Tuscan White Bean Stew

2 days in a row of updating, this is epic.

I am sharing Monday's dinner with you as I can not tell a lie.. I had smart dogs again tonight. :)

This stew is AMAZING! I have been looking forward to making it for a long time, I bookmarked it way back when I first went vegetarian and finally got to it. I was really looking forward to the seitan in it, but of course.. the stores had no pre-made seitan and whenever I try to make it.. it turns out as a bouncy ball. It has the same consistency as chewing gum and its really annoying. Luckily, the seitan is optional in this recipe & I can vouch for the fact that its really good without it.

I doubled the amount of potato because I wanted it to be more filling since the seitan was MIA. I've never had white beans before, they are really good! I added like 90x the amount of kale it calls for... Like I said last post, I need to up my nutrients!

I've seen this on a lot of blogs, but the recipe I followed is here

try it! You won't be disappointed! And if you make your own seitan successfully, please pass some pointers on :(

Chicago Style Hot Dog, Vegetarian Style

Not only am I a horrible blogger, but I am a horrible vegetarian as well. (PS : Why is blogspot different? I hate it. It took me 10 minutes to figure out how to create a post)

Why am I a horrible vegetarian? Well, this winter I was quite lazy and I have a feeling that has something(read: everything) to do with how ill I have been lately. Winter vegetables are so blah to me.. theres only so much squash I can eat. Not to mention the wrinkly tomatoes, the half rotten onions, and the wilted herbs. So I decide to eat processed crap instead, hence why I feel like absolute crap lately. I couldn't honestly tell you how long I went without eating actual produce. Any vegetables I was eating were coming from a can. But I can't figure out why I'm so unhealthy and ill. Hummm..

Anyway. It's spring, almost summer, and there's no more excuses. My main focus is obviously to bring as many fresh vegetables and fruits back into my lifestyle as possible, but I am also trying to eat raw fruit/veggies as often as possible. Raw meals is another mountain to conquer in the future.

I've been focusing on apples, bananas, oranges for breakfast. Lately I've been eating yogurt as well, which normally I try to avoid dairy but I was on an anti-biotic for close to 3 weeks and really need to balance out my stomach. So, I add chia seeds to it and it makes me feel less guilty. I hate eating in the morning, so this is a good step in the right direction.

I walked into the break room at work today and someone was cooking hot dogs. I haven't had a hot dog in over 3 years, meat or non, and I instantly wanted one. I don't have a grill (and thats the only way I like hotdogs) but a quick google search found that George Foreman grills are on sale this week! So I went after work and got a grill & some vegan hot dogs and all the toppings for a Chicago Style hot dog, Vegetarian style!

There may be some variants to what "Chicago Style" means, but one thing is for sure... NO KETCHUP! I have nothing against ketchup but given the choice I'd choose mustard any day. Loaded mustard. Yummmm.

Mine consisted of the vegan hot dogs on a poppy seed bun, spicy brown mustard, regular mustard, tomatoes, onion, dill relish, and a pinch of celery salt. Delish!!

The best part about this grill is that I can make potatoes on it. IN SEVEN MINUTES. In case you didn't know, Hello my names Amanda & I could live off of grilled potatoes. Do you realize how amazing it is to have grilled potatoes ready in 7 minutes? It makes the cost of the little grill (which was basically nothing) totally worth it. If you have a George Foreman grill, try your potatoes on there! Chop it up (I left the skins on-extra nutrients..Just make sure to scrub it!) into thick chips, coat with olive oil, and season how you like. I did salt pepper and onion powder. And 7 minutes later, you're in heaven. THEY EVEN GET BURN MARKS!!! *love*

I can't wait to grill the asparagus I have on this later this week!