Cooking something new!

Recently I had an opportunity to make dinner for a vegan family. When I said I would, I didn't know they were vegan. So when I found out, the excitement began.
I looked through recipe books and Internet and here's what I made.



1. Tofu Gyoza(pot stickers with Tofu)

I found the recipe on Japanese cooking website. The filling is made with Tofu, green onion, cabbage, and garlic. And of course some spices such as soy sauce, ginger powder etc. They were gooood!!!

This is what it looks inside. It is whiter-because of Tofu anyway. Kids ate them too. It went well with soy sauce as a dip.
These were a little drier than pork ones but really healthy.

Tofu is like a magic ingredient- I am planning on making a treat using tofu soon.


2. Three bean soup

I found this recipe here. I actually made it my own version by adding vegetable stock, rosemary, and basil. Also, I cooked it longer since I like softer beans which makes the soup thicker and more home style ( my opinion). I ate it with sour cream and it was so yum. I found new love for soup!

I forgot to take a pic until later so not much in the bowl...

3. Veggie skewers


This is our stable- should I say. My husband and I love the little tart flavor that come from lemon juice and garlic salt that goes well especially when those zucchinis are still crispy. When mushrooms are coated in the sauce, it gets very soft and moist so you get the flavor with each bite you take. This recipe is for grilling veggies. You just put them on skewers and grill them while basting with herb mixture often. It makes great camping dinner. I just decided to sometimes not put them on skewers but separate and cook them in oven. This goes well with any dish- or maybe I think so because I love them!!!

4. Mini apple pie


It's hard to tell from this photo but it is actually 3 pieces here. I have been craving for apple pie - aren't they just simply good and comforting? Anyway, I didn't want to do pie crust so I used the spring roll skin, divided into 4 pieces and put them in mini muffin pan then baked them in oven. Then stuffed the apple pie filling inside.
Here's another picture.

I actually had my 12yrs old bake the spring roll. He was very curious to find out how it turns out. He loved it! I like the puffy pastry bite mixed with apple pie filling also so this will be a good alternative once in a while. You can change the filling and make it any appetizer you like!

I was really grateful that I had this opportunity to make non meat, non dairy meals. Eating healthier is one of my goal for this year and I believe I'm having such a good start! Cheers to ME! Yay!

New Year, New Plan

A Happy New Year! 2010 is here! I still remember the Y2K chaos that we went through, and... my goodness, it has been 10 years since then?? Scary.

This is my new year resolution. I am tired of being unorganized. I am tired of saying "I will do it later" and never have things done. So, I decided to do something so I can control myself to use time effectively. I realized that, to me, I am the hardest person to handle...I know I will need to make some adjustment as time goes on. But for now, this is the plan.

Monday- Finance. I will use this day to look at our money situation. Budget. Make sure we are on the right track. I decided to record the receipt everyday since, if I don't, I let them pile up. That disappoint me and I don't feel like doing that anymore and then I don't do it for a while... so keeping track of it everyday will be good. Plus, I most likely will remember what's on the receipt anyway.

Tuesday- Photo. This would be a day to organize my photo, DL from camera, sort them, etc. Maybe I will edit some even. Or make movies with them.

Wednesday- Clean. I will try to clean and do my part of the chore on this day. Cleaning is not something that I always have time to do(meaning it's the last thing on my priority list ;P), I will take time to clean the baseboards, dust a little here and there or even, clean the fridge. Good for me.

Thursday- Craft! Of course after cleaning so much on Wednesday(whether it really happen or not), I need to reward myself with something fun! I will try to finish many unfinished projects and actually use things I have... so lame!

Friday- Organizing/mending. I will look around and try to organize something whether it is my own life or shelves or what. Mending, I will take time to sew things. This way, I don't have to try sewing merit badges on the court of honor day anyway. lol!

Saturday- Floating day. Since I teach little kids' class at church, I will probably use this day to prepare for the lesson. And I will use it to do anything that didn't get done during the week.

Sunday- planning day. I will try to plan for the coming week's schedule or even plan a week's worth menu!