All of those comments are exactly why I'm so committed to doing this, because you really never know until you try it. I am not trying to get attention, or make money from this experiment like my inspiration, No Impact Man, but I do believe that the best way to learn about these lifestyles is to jump in head first like he and his family did.
When I play tennis, I always hit better shots when I have to run to the ball. When I play disc golf, I throw farther uphill between two trees than I do on a straight fairway. I am just the kind of person who excels when given obstacles and constraints to aim through and I am excited for the personal growth to be found on this maze of a journey through the Omnivore's Dilemma.
As for the food!
I sadly realized that honey is not vegan and will have to put that one away for the next 30 days but got the day started right with a bowl of oatmeal and crunchy sprouts. Having that added green boost helped keep my focus throughout the day.
I thought dinner was going to be more of a challenge because I was preparing and eating with the "professors of manhood" whose lessons range from off-road scootering to steak & fries pizza. They are both supportive of the experiment, but much more excited about the local portion. After keeping the dogs out as long as the sun was, we were too hungry to wait for the squash to roast so I leaned on an Andrea Reusing (chef-owner of Lantern, Chapel Hill) favorite- apples, onions, and garlic sauteed together with a splash of olive oil to warm us all up.
From there we powered through to a Southwest Spaghetti Squash Casserole (recipe below) that left the professors of manhood satisfied and leftovers for lunch! The spaghetti squash provided a very unique texture that was reminiscent of how shredded chicken or beef would thicken up the dish even though the winter wonder is pretty bland in and of itself. Next time, i would choose to add tomatoes and more spicy awesomeness. I would also change up the crust to make it more crumbly and tasty by using a more coarse corn meal, a dash more salt, and a cayenne kick! Live and learn, cook and eat, share and save!
Southwest Spaghetti Squash Casserole (with complements to SusanV)
Preheat the oven to 375* and stab your medium spaghetti squash victim in several places so it doesn't explode and place it in the middle of the over to bake for 1 hour (if you want to cook it faster, you can steam it in the microwave- google it)
Sauté 1 cup diced onion, 1 1/2 cup of diced mixed bell peppers, and 2 cloves of minced garlic until tender. Add a can of black beans, chopped green chiles (or substitute fresh chopped chiles to your firey heart's delight), can or cup of corn, 1/2 tbsp of chili powder, and for an added boost of green goodness 1 pound of fresh chopped spinach and allow to heat through until all of the spinach is cooked down. ***I didn't have any, but would have liked to add a can or one diced tomato.
Once the spaghetti squash is ready turn the oven down to 350* Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop the goop (you can save the seeds to roast like pumpkin seeds!), fork the stringy awesomeness into your sauté, squeeze in a lime of lime juice and salt and cayenne pepper to taste.
Transfer the mixture to a lightly oiled casserole dish and make the crust by mixing 1 cup coarse corn meal with 1 1/4 cup warm water and salt, sugar, and pepper to taste. It should create a crumbly texture to spread over the casserole. Sprinkle the top with chili powder and bake for 25 minutes or until crust is beginning to brown around the edges.
NOM NOM NOM. Serves well with tortilla chips and salsa. Keeps great for nummy lunch leftovers!
No comments:
Post a Comment