Where or Where is the Perfect No Fat Dressing?

Eating a plant based diet is definitely a new experience for Craig and I.  He has a more difficult time than I do because he was raised as a meat and potato boy.  Actually, his favorite was hamburgers and milkshakes.  My father was a Navy veteran, we ate stew, bean soups of every kind, canned vegetables and lots of coleslaw and potato salad.  My mom was a good cook, but she loved to let my Dad take the lead and he would usually cook Navy style.  We loved it.  I also live in an area where farms surrounded us, so we did eat lots of local produce.  I love veggies, Craig tolerates them.

I always thought that I loved salads.  Lots and lots of lettuce and chopped veggies. Mmmmm and don't forget the home grown tomatoes.  It wasn't until we started eating a plant based diet, that I realize that I didn't love the salad so much as I loved the salad dressing.  True confession:  I love salad dressing.

In addition to our plant based diet, we are eating no fat.  Yah, we are trying to clean out our old arteries and make room for all our wonderful blood supply.  I cannot find a no fat salad dressing that I can tolerate.  Salads are just not the same.  I tried the lemon juice and pepper, vinegar and spices,  pureed fruit and vinegars, tomato purees and spices and vinegar,  all manner of concoctions.  I bought some fat free dressings from the health food store in the refrigerator section and they were so strong with vinegar, I could have breathed out fire and vapor.  It is my quest to find some dressing that is fat free, or nearly fat free that I can tolerate, because frankly I love salad dressing more than salad, who knew!

Tonight I had a breakthrough.  A dressing that I could enjoy.  I am still on the path to no fat dressing nirvana, but for now I enjoyed my very first salad dressing.  It isn't 100% no fat, but it has very little with no added oil.

Almost Nirvana Dressing

Mix together in a blender or I use a magic bullet
1/3 block of soft tofu
3-6 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar, to taste
3 or more Tablespoons of Almond milk to thin
1 small tomato chopped
small handful of chopped green onions
1 tsp of dry ranch dressing mix (I used the dip packet, yes this isn't the healthiest seasoning, but but but but)
spices to taste  I used:
garlic powder
onion powder
cumin
chipotle pepper powder, just a dash
dried vegetable seasoning
Salt, pepper, dash of stevia
Blend and add more vinegar or almond milk as needed for consistency.
I think I would add a bit more seasoning the next time I make this. Maybe a little tomato paste.
My goal was a creamy tomato dressing. 

To go with the salad, I made a Polenta Tamale Casserole

Polenta Casserole (no added fat)

1/2 large sweet onion chopped

1 large green pepper chopped

1 can corn

1 can of black beans

1 small can tomato sauce

1 cup of fire roasted tomato chunks

1/2 package of Boca Burger meatless shreds

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp chili powder

1-2 tsp of a taco seasoning (I used frontiers Mexican fiesta seasoning)

dash or more of chipolte pepper seasoning, depending on your taste for heat

salt and pepper as desired

Place pan on burner and let it heat.  Add onions and peppers to a hot no-stick pan and let them sizzle until cooked and almost ready to stick, stir often.  Add tomatoes and all the other ingredients, stir and cook until well heated. Set aside and make the polenta.

6 cups water

1 3/4 cup cornmeal

salt to taste

Bring water to a boil, add salt and add cornmeal in steady stream (not too fast) stirring continually.  Once all the cornmeal is added, stir and cook back to a boil.  Lower heat and cook till tender, stirring frequently.  Remove from heat and quickly spread half the mixture in a 9x11 casserole dish, sprayed with pam. Spread flat. Add the Boca burger mixture then top with the remaining polenta and spread flat.  Bake for 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven.  Serve with Salsa, ketchup and a sprinkling of rice cheese. 

Unexpected Surprises

We had a health surprise last week.  I won't go into the personal details, but I have gained a new perspective about healthy eating, health care, and health management.  "You are what you eat". 

While dealing with health care this week, I neglected my garden for two days.  Yup, just two days.  While I was absent I had a new SQUATTER  move into the garden. In a two day period of time, he ate the whole top off an heirloom tomato plant.  Sheesh, I have lived here more than 20 years and have never seen a Tomato Horn Worm. This year I have a whole family.   I can't help but wonder where they have been hiding, since I have just barely found them devouring my plants. 

I did a little research and found that the giant Hawk Moth, lays its eggs in the soil and they emerge in the spring as caterpillars.  I am not sure what they have been eating, but I do have a fairly large potato patch. Maybe they hung out their until they noticed I wasn't around for two days straight, then it was tomato plant buffet.

Here is the Daddy Horn Worm.  He sports a beautiful blue iridescent coat.  Isn't he beautiful. He is about 4 inches long.

Here is the Family:  Dad, Mom and the Twins  (three cousins showed up the next day and didn't get their family picture).  Of course this is just a wild guess.  It could be possible that they are all brothers and sisters and the big one is exceptionally hungry and works out a lot to be bigger than its siblings. 

I could not squash the worms, after all they are pretty juicy.   I couldn't put them down the disposal either.  So I did what any bad pet owner would do:  I took them for a ride!   I suppose they will probably starve if they don't have tomatoes to eat, but I just couldn't do them in.  Sorry little guys!

This is an Amazing Story of Courage.

My son Adam produced this video for Snowbird Resort.  Not only am I amazed by this video, but I am so proud of  Adam and my son Jordan who also helped film.  I hope this video is inspiring to you, too.  Pass it on to your friends.

I have been reading motivational stories, messages, and books so that I can develop a better understanding of myself and my actions.  I saw a show about a girl who was morbidly obese, almost 500 pounds.  Her story of weight loss was inspiring.  She had what seemed like an impossible task ahead of her.  One of the things she said was that there comes a time when there are no more excuses.  I have been thinking about that lately.  I have been thinking about the excuses I make for myself.  This video shows that the only limitations we have, are those that we create for ourselves.  No More Excuses!

Things That Should Not Come in From the Garden

Thing # 1 - CAULIFLOWER THAT HAS GONE TO FLOWER.  Yuck 

I was out in the garden trying to sort out what was weed and what was edible.  One thing for sure, cauliflower is my nemesis.  I have never been able to get a good forming head of cauliflower and this season is no different. I planted early, but our weather is crazy crazy.  I planted three cauliflower plants and they bolted to a flower and are very bitter.   However, one of the cauliflowers did manage to form a fairly white head before it bloomed and therefore it is not bitter.  I plan on eating it.  Never bring in a bolted head of Cauliflower, you WILL be disappointed.

Thing # 2 - UN INSPECTED DOGS.  Never bring in your dog before checking what he was doing in the garden.
I wasn't watching Merit while I was weeding this morning.  He has a new haircut because he gets so hot in the summer.  It might seem wrong to cut the hair on a Sheltie, but his is so thick he is really uncomfortable outside, and he loves his yard.  Well, to make the story short, I called him in to a nice clean house to discover he had dug himself a little cave in the rock wall and wallowed in the dirt.  He went out nice and clean and came in full of dirt.  I wish they had an automatic Dog Wash. 

Thing # 3 - THIS SHOULD NOT GO OUT INTO THE GARDEN.  My new cute brown sandals I paid almost nothing for, but love.  I got busy weeding and throwing weeds and dirt everywhere then noticed what shoes I was wearing.  Once I quit my weeding project and come in to change those shoes, I am not going back out in that baking sun.  I came in anyway. I hope I didn't destroy my lovely Walmart cheapo brown sandals.  I just can't bear it.

Thing # 4 - BUGS MUST ALWAYS STAY OUTSIDE.  I have brought my fair share of earwigs and ants into the kitchen on the lettuce and leafy green plants.  I don't use insecticides on my garden, I believe in "share and share alike:  However, if they come into the house, I do my best to feed them to the disposal.  Once in a while one will make a break for the counter top and I blast it with my handy dandy faucet sprayer, or Lysol cleaner, then I feed it to the disposal.  That was the case today.  I was focused on the last spinach of the season, I wanted every last edible leaf.  Snip snip swish swish and on to the paper towel.  The fan is spinning in the kitchen and a thought a loose hair brushed my neck, so I quickly brushed it back with my hand.  Yikes, Ugh, Ick, Oh No, it was something squishy soft and large.  Chill, shiver, recoil, fling into the sink.  IT'S A SPIDER.  I'm doing the spider dance all over the kitchen floor.  Shake, scrape, brush do it all again, put your right foot out and shake it all about and do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around, that's what it's all about.  Gotta Love Gardening!