This afternoon I had a date with a beer, some Mango Salsa (from Costco, Chips and Jay’s Xbox to watch Glee.
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I am 3 episodes in and completely addicted…
So addicted that I only stopped to make some Easy Tofu Stir Fry with Peanut Sauce and all the random frozen vegetables open in the freezer.
Then it was back to the recliner… which is where I plan to stay.
Tonight I made one of my favorite quick dishes, Tofu Stir Fry. There are three tricks that made this meal super easy and quick.
1. I press my tofu while I run.
2. I use frozen Stir Fry Vegetables.
3. I boil my water before I add it to the quinoa.
Ingredients:
Directions:
Well friends, I have a lot to do tonight as I put away my things from Carolina and prepare for camping this coming weekend.
What is your favorite quick and easy meal? What tricks do you use to make it super fast?
Saturday evening, Jay and I decided to have a Groupon/ Living Social date night.
We started the evening at Kanlaya Thai Cuisine in Chinatown. A few months ago my boss saw this Groupon pop-up and recommended it to me. Jay and I find that Groupon/ Living Social is a great way to explore new restaurants on date night while staying within our budget.
As soon as we sat down, we knew that this was a great pre-movie restaurant. It is located around the corner from the Chinatown movie theatre and has very reasonable menu prices. In fact, we had trouble using the entire $40 value we had on our Groupon.
Jay was able to order a beer (he could have had 2) and we had the Golden Triangle appetizer. Honestly, I found this appetizer a little flavor-less. It was a simply crispy fried tofu, served w/ crushed peanuts and sweet dipping sauce. The sweet dipping sauce saved the dish.
For dinner, I had Tofu with mixed Vegetable Pad King (ginger, onions, scallions and mushrooms in light bean sauce). As you can tell from the picture I dug right in. It was soo tasty, that I had to remind myself to stop and take a picture before cleaning my plate. This delicious and filling meal was only $10.
Meanwhile, Jay opted for the Beef Pad Thai (Rice noodles with spiced tofu, egg, bean sprouts, scallions and peanuts). He loved it and also found it very filling. I had a quick bite of his and was very glad for my menu choice. But in the end, he was happy and that is all that matters. His meal came in it the perfect price of $12.
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After dinner we saw Water for Elephants. Jay choose Sucker Punch with our last Fandango Living Social coupon, so I got to choose the movie. I was very tempted to make him see Disney’s Prom, but alas I was a nice fiancé and took him to Water for Elephants. He was nice enough to acknowledge that for a chick flick he was entertained. I also liked the movie, but I didn’t love it. Maybe I am getting old, but I thought there was way too much violence!!!
Have you see Water for Elephants? What did you think?
What restaurants have you discovered through Groupon or Living Social? Tell me the good, bad and ugly!
Tonight, we had some more of My Vegetarian Pasta, with a few variations of course. This time I used tofu instead of garbanzo beans and used pasta noodles instead of quinoa.
It was simply delicious and hit the spot!
Friday, I told you about the engagement but I haven’t filled you in on the weekend with the girls. Friday morning we all slept in before enjoying my oatmeal bar.
I made sure to bring out the works for them including Brown Sugar, Butterscotch Chips, White Chocolate Chips, Milk Chocolate Chips, Peanut Butter, Honey, and Maple Syrup. Of course the plain oatmeal consisted of my normal concoction: 1/3 cup quick oats and 1/8 cup of Ground Flax Meal.
After breakfast we relaxed and I blogged as we waited for Jay to return home from school. My friend Charlotte loves Alice in Wonderland, so we decided to take her to the Mad Hatter.
We were really impressed by their weekday lunch menu. There were a lot of healthy and affordable options. Plus, you get to roll the dice at the end of the meal to see if your meal is “on the house”. Specials do not count toward the game. We were lucky, Jay rolled the number of the day, 9, and got a free meal!
After lunch we headed to one of the few rain free places, the Smithsonian. Of course Charlotte had to pose with the Dumbo… Overall we had a great time exploring the museum and just catching up!
I sure miss these girls, but am so excited that they came to visit for our engagement. As soon as pictures are posted, I’ll share with you our day on Saturday!
Where in your town do you take out-of-town guests?
Tonight for dinner we had BBQ Tofu with sautéed veggies over quinoa and celery.
The one thing I love about tofu is it’s so versatile. One night you can use it in a Thai Dish, the next on pizza and the following in a BBQ stir fry. The possibilities are endless!!
What is you favorite way to prepare tofu?
After our lovely roommate dinner (yes, we all cooked together), the three of us sat down and watched Disney’s latest Princess Animated Feature, Tangled. I really liked it. Of all the recent Disney movies, it was the most like the Disney movies I grew up with (Beauty & the Beast, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, etc.)
My brother had a different opinion.
After watching his review, I still liked the film but I realized how recycled it is. Besides the blatant Little Mermaid scene that Jim pointed out in his review, there is also a strong Beauty & the Beast resemblance at the end of the movie. And, he is right, Disney is trying to be like the Shrek movies. When did making fun of fairy tales become cool?
I still think the movie is super cute and if our roommate had not bought it I would run out and buy it. Tangled will never replace Beauty & the Beast, but our other Disney movies seem to have warmed up to its presence.
What is your favorite Disney animated movie since 2000 (excluding Pixar films)?
I have to say that Tangled is my favorite Disney animated movie since 2000. It may not be the most original flick with the most high-tech features, but it is a fun feel good movie. What else can a girl ask for?
Let me first tell you about dinner before describing this nice little graphic below.
For dinner, Jay made Mary and I meatless Tacos.
The poor guy didn’t know he was making us meatless until after he looked up how to make Tacos. Poor guy!!! Since we didn’t have any meat in the apartment, he was stuck with Mary and my grand plan, Tofu and Black Bean Tacos.
This was a very simple meal. Jay drained the cubed Tofu, sautéed on high for about 5 minutes, added the amount of water indicated on the taco seasoning package, added the taco seasoning and the black beans. Let cook for about another 5 minutes on medium heat.
You can’t beat a simple delicious meal that someone else cooked for you!!!
At least dinner was stress free! Last night I completely stressed myself out about our upcoming trip to California. It did not help that I spent the better part of the evening planning our trip to Europe for May 2012… That probably helps explain the map above huh? More details on the trip once I return from Cali.
For now I need to work on cleaning my room and packing for my upcoming trip!!!
Do you go over board planning vacations?
I love to travel!!! I have just been so excited to have the chance to backpack across Europe that I got carried away. At least we have an overall plan allowing me to calm down. Today we also ironed out some final details of our California trip and I finished writing all of my posts for when I am gone. A big thank you to Iowa Girl Eats for her post on her Top Ten Things To Do in San Francisco. No I was not the one who e-mailed her, it was just shear coincidence. And, please come visit my blog next week while I am on vacation!!! I am running recaps of all my international trips (except Canada). I even had some help from my travel companions. Thank you Mom, Dad and Jay!! They were a lot of fun to write. I hope you like reading them as much as I enjoyed reliving them.
Let me start first apologize, I did NOT take any photos at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Blasphemy, I know! As a result I will not be posting about the park. Maybe I’ll give you my feedback in a few days, but no promises.
For dinner, we had Pineapple Tofu Teriyaki Stir-fry.
This is essentially the same recipe as my Pineapple Chicken Teriyaki Stir-Fry, but with Tofu instead of Chicken and minute Brown Rice instead of Millet. I am also on my never ending journey to perfect my Crispy Tofu. I got closer this time!
To accompany dinner, Jay and I played with a Riesling, Juice and Club Soda combo. Nancy and Lan bought the Riesling while they were here. I don’t mind a good glass of Riesling occasionally, but we should have never put both bottles in the fridge or we should have sent them home with the girls (sorry ladies!). It has just been sooo rough trying to drink wine every night since I have been back 
Besides trying to get back into the groove of things with food, I am also trying to get back into the running game. Can you believe it, I have not run since February 15th?!?! Where has all the time gone?
I have been very physically active between trooping around DC with Nancy and Lan and Conference, but I haven’t gone running or lifted weights. I just pray that I don’t get sick again before the Cherry Blossom 10 miler and that I have a pretty injury/illness free training season this summer. Yes, blogging world friends, I am officially registered for the Marine Corps Marathon this fall! Leave me a comment if your running too?!?!?
So, while I have a plan for the MCM this fall, that plan does not start until June. As I mentioned above, right now I need to focus on the Cherry Blossom 10 miler. Tonight, after I post I am going to jump on the treadmill during American Idol and Saturday Jay and I will pump out 7 miles (hopefully). I also have grand plans to go to my gym classes next week before California. I think the key to getting back onto your training schedule is sucking it up and just doing it! I have to start somewhere, that somewhere might as well be today!
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Lauren made taco seasoned tofu and cheese in crescent rolls, topped with salsa. They were delicious. You would never know they were meatless!
Alissa made french bread with spinach and peppers and mozzarella cheese on top.
And of course we finished the evening with chocolate fondue!!!
And then I went to BodyPump. I want your opinion on the new release!!! I hate it but love it. I like that I use my own body weight for the triceps track. I hate that I use my own body for the triceps track. I am sure I will love it this summer when I am in a bathing suit with amazing arms... or when I complete a marathon...
When I arrived home, arms shaking from BodyPump, I cut the Tofu into squares and sauteed it in olive oil. Half way through I added some onion. Meanwhile, I rinsed the Millet and threw it in a pot with water 2:1 ratio.
After letting the Tofu cook for about 3 minutes each side I added the other fresh vegetable, zucchini and mushrooms. After a few minutes I topped the mix with Trader Joe's Garlic Marinara Sauce and a can of Italian Diced Tomatoes.
Deliciousness!!!
What is your favorite Tofu recipe?
I have a mild obsession with snowstorms. I act like a school aged child, except that I don't care if I have off tomorrow or not. I have been wearing snowman underwear for the past few days, putting my PJ's on inside out and backwards and throwing ice around the apartment. Ok, I didn't really throw ice around the apartment, but I considered it.
I think I have become a Tofu fanatic! I loved it. I now feel the challenge to make it even better, even crispier (it was not crispy tonight). So, be prepared meat-lovers, Going on Goals maybe a little more meat-less.
Once I felt the Tofu was cooked properly I added some froze Peas, Mixed Pepper Strips and Green Beans. I then added some more Teriyaki Sauce (because there is no such thing as too much?).
And served it over 7 minute rice. Yum!
