Pad Thai with Spaghetti Squash ~ Vegan

Vegan, Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, Dairy-Free

The Navy has the hubs stationed in Hawaii for his very first duty station. We really didn't know what to expect, and we've definitely learned a TON going through our first PCS (permanent change of station) move. When you first get here you need to stay in a hotel until you can meet with the housing department (which takes forever. literally. Forever) and be assigned a place in military housing or find a place to live off-base (muy expensivo!). Anyway, while we were holed up in a hotel room with no kitchenette we got to explore the many different food options here! There's lots of unhealthy stuff and it's really hard to find vegan food, so I was a lot less strict on it during those 3 months. There is a really big Asian influence in the islands, and I absolutely fell in love with the Thai food here! For the first month we would just try out different Thai restaurants to find the best one in Oahu, and I finally settled on Olay's Thai food. They set up in different farmer's markets around the island each week, and I tried to get most of my food/produce from farmer's markets near Waikiki. Now that we are finally settled in a home (YAY) and I have to cook for us, I really wanted to re-create the yummy Thai taste without all the gluten/sugar/meat/fat that I knew was lurking in it. I happened upon a recipe at popsugar.com, and modified it to produce the recipe below. It's not exactly like Olay's, but it's vegan and still has that yummy Thai taste! This was my first time making this recipe, so we'll need to keep on experimenting with it. 

According to renowned Thai chef Jet Tila, who is featured on the food network and this video here, Thai food is summed up by YUM - hot, sour, salty, sweet. When those flavors are perfectly balanced you get a true Thai dish. Thai food often uses fish sauce (which is basically the Thai version of soy sauce, so you can sub Braggs Liquid Aminos here) for the salty flavor, limes for the sour, chilies or a curry paste for the hot, and sugar for the sweet (obviously, sub with stevia or erithrytol). I tweaked the recipe below just a bit to incorporate a few more of these flavors, and the first thing Kenny said when he tasted the sauce was, "It tastes like Pad Thai" - SCORE!! I was so happy! Pad Thai is definitely an Asian comfort food, and I hope you enjoy this healthified version!

Recipe inspired by the Paleo Pad Thai recipe from Elana's Pantry featured on FitSugar.com

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium spaghetti squash, seeds removed and cut into quarters (about 4 cups)
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 medium red onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1 head broccoli, chopped (about 2 cups)
• 2 heads baby bok choy, sliced crosswise into 1-inch strips (about 1 1/2 cups)
• squeeze of lime
• 1 tsp. each garlic powder and organic herb seasoning
• 1 tbsp. Braggs Liquid Aminos (or fish sauce)
• 6 scallions, white and green parts thinly sliced (about 3/4 cup)
• 1/2 cup mung bean sprouts
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup pad thai peanut dressing, recipe below

Pad Thai peanut sauce:

• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup PB2 (cuts down on fat/calories in recipe)
• 1/2 cup lite coconut milk
• 4 tbsp. warm filtered water
• 2 tsp. Braggs Liquid Amino Acids (or fish or soy sauce)
• 2-3 pinches stevia

DIRECTIONS

- Spaghetti Squash: 

Steam the spaghetti squash in a metal steamer basket over a large pot filled with 3 inches of boiling water. Make sure the lid over the spaghetti squash is closed, and steam for about 20 minutes or until you can easily pierce it with a fork and the inside is tender. Instead of steaming the squash you could also cook it in the oven or microwave. Once it is tender and cooked through, let it cool (or put it in the fridge to cool it faster), so you can scrape out the noodles. 

- Pad Thai Peanut Sauce:

While the squash is cooking and cooling, prepare the Pad Thai peanut sauce. You can puree the lime juice, ginger, garlic and vinegar, then blend in the coconut milk, PB2, water and Braggs Liquid Aminos. (I just stirred everything in the measuring cup). You will have extra sauce which you can store in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

- Scoop out the spaghetti squash once it is cool enough to handle. 

- Veggies: 

In a wok or large skillet, heat 1 tbs. coconut oil over medium high heat. Add in the onions and saute for 8-10 minutes until soft/translucent. Add the broccoli and saute for ~8 minutes until bright and tender. Stir in the bok choy and saute for about 4 minutes until tender. Stir in the spaghetti squash noodles and saute further. (I was trying to get them a little crisper, but that didn't really happen the longer I kept them on high heat...) Season the veggies with lime juice, herb seasoning and Braggs Liquid Aminos. 

- Serve Hot:

Top the veggies with your sauce (however much you prefer), cilantro, scallions, chopped nuts (optional, we didn't), and a heap of mung bean sprouts. 

Enjoy! :)

Substitutions: To make this Paleo you can sub the PB2 for Almond Butter.

Cross Country Road Trip// Drive from Rhode Island to San Diego

 California or Bust!

PCS'ing (Permanent Change of Station): an adventure paid for by the navy!
After graduating OCS you are given orders assigning you to your first command.
On my preference list of where I'd like to be stationed, we put:
1. Virginia (close to Kim's family/friends)
2. California (heard it was a really good base, and it's warm!)
3. Florida (Kim loves Florida)
4. Washington (close to my parents)

To our tremendous surprise I was assigned to a ship in Hawaii!! [Another guy getting orders at the same time actually put Hawaii as his first choice, and he got Washington ... so yea, preference lists are just for fun - ha!] My orders were a little convoluted and said I had to make an I-stop (intermediate stop) in San Diego for a school. Thankfully the navy will pay for your travel costs to relocate to the new duty station. This meant a paid trip to both Hawaii and San Diego, starting in Newport. I say "all expense paid" because the navy gives you a travel stipend depending on how far you are traveling and if you travel by car or plane. They also give you "travel days" which is basically free leave to use between PCS stations. So in my case I was allowed 9 days of travel by car or 1 day by plane to San Diego. Some of you may just want to buy the plane ticket and get it over with, not me! A 9 day road trip across the country, heck yes!

According to the info I found online to travel by car you get paid $0.19 per mile as well as $123 for meals (plus $92.25 per dependent over 12 and $61.50 for dependents under 12). Once you arrive at your final destination you will fill out a travel claim with help from your admin department. So keep all toll fees and anything you think you might be able to get reimbursed on, better to try and ask for more reimbursements then you will get then not ask for what you deserve. I am not sure exactly how much I got paid for the trip but it was a nice chunk of change. Keep in mind though most of the time it takes a while to complete the travel claim so make sure you have enough money on hand to do without it at first.  I will link the website for the rates I found at the bottom of the page for your continence.

Anyways, after we got my orders, I went down to check out with the admin department of OCS and then called ahead to the Basic Division Officer Course to let them know I was going to take a few extra days of leave during travel. They were fine with it since my orders allowed me to check in anytime in December.

And with the heavy eastern winds of Newport at our backs, we drove west! It was about time too, as 2 months of student-pool during the frigid winter in Newport gets quite tiresome. The first stop on our epic Road trip was Philadelphia to spend Thanksgiving with Kim's parents. Perfect timing as we left 2 days before Thanksgiving. We had a good time catching up with her family and enjoying some of their holiday traditions but we had to continue west. Our next stop was at our little apartment in Ohio. I had really only spent a couple months here before I went to OCS so it was a little strange coming back to it, still almost exactly how I left it. We packed the car with anything we thought we could take on a plane with us to Hawaii at a later date. Things like a skillet, silverware, a pot, and other odds and ends we made due with. We only spent the night in our apartment before I paid 6 months of rent and locked the door to continue our journey. Now some of you are probably wondering why I didn't just pack up the apartment before heading to San Diego. Well we did try, we looked desperately to see if we could do it in a week but the soonest we could get the movers to come was 2 weeks out, so decided that we would fly back at a later date to pack everything up to send to Hawaii. It worked out perfectly because because we still had an apartment in Ohio and were still receiving BAH which was far more than the rent on our apartment. Also we found out later that the moving company would hold our stuff in Hawaii for 3 months at no cost, so it worked out that I flew out before my 2 month class to have it shipped.


Back to the adventure. The first night we didn't really have a planned stop picked so we just drove as long as we could bare and stopped in some Motel 8 on the way. Not the most luxurious of locations but a bed was all we needed. The great American Plains came and dragged on endlessly but eventually we reached the promised land: Colorado! Having grown up in Colorado it was good to be back even though we came on apparently the coldest day in recent memory. It was negative 10 degrees with the sun shining. But since it was a dry cold it wasn't as bad as the cold wet wind of the east, well at least in my opinion. We spent 2 nights in Colorado catching up with old friends. I also accidentally forgot to tell my brother who was in the northern part of Colorado in school that I was in the state... oops. Sorry Austin! A friend of mine owns a motel in Colorado he was nice enough to save the best room for us. They also offered to give it to us for free, but I felt that if the navy was paying me specifically for this kind of thing that I should just pass the money along.

We were warned the night before we were scheduled to head over the mountains that a big storm was blowing into the mountains and it could give us some problems on the road. I didn't want to spend more leave then I had to waiting for a storm to blow through, winter storms are very common in the mountains so I figured we would just plow through it. That may not have been the wisest decision but I had grown up driving on ice and snow, in fact I got banned from my high school parking lot for doing donuts in the morning on the fresh ice... But that is a story for another time. Our goal for that day was to reach my grandparents in Utah, normally a 10 hour drive. But when the snow started to fall it slowed us quite a bit. By the time darkness fell we were on a road that didn't have stops for 120 miles, and we didn't see a single other car for 3 hours. Yea ... 3 hours on a major cross country freeway without a single car. The snow was coming down enough to cover the lines and the plows weren't running yet.  No cell service, no lines on the road, no radio stations, no cars. It wasn't looking good, but we stayed on the road and I kept the car at a safe speed of 25 the whole way and we eventually emerged from the mountains in a valley with a 2 gas stations and a few motels that had numbers in their names. We chose the motel with the largest number on its sign (motel 8) and stayed the night after telling my grandma we would be coming the next day.

The next morning the sun emerged revealing beautiful snow capped mountains cradling the road to Utah. The roads were being plowed as we drove down the roads making for a much easier drive. We arrived to the relieved hugs of a grandma who worried we would roll off the road in the snow. Having arrived pretty early in the day we had time to go to Zion National Park with them and see such a beautiful national park that I had only ever seen in the hot Utah summer, now under the largest snow pack in 100 years.

We spent the night in my grandparents guest bedroom which was weird in the fact that every stay up to this point my brothers and  I had always had the floor in the little house's living room while my parents would stay in the guest bedroom. This was the first time Kim and I had visited as a married couple and had earned the guest bedroom.

The final stretch to California was enjoyable just for the beauty of the mountains in the west, but as we approached San Diego the width of the roads steadily increased to a point of having 7 lanes on each side... ridiculous!  Our long journey ends with us checking in for a 7 month stay at the Navy Lodge in the always sunny San Diego.

3,132 miles. Driving through 2 snowstorms in the mountains. 5 days in the car. 
Successful Cross-Country Road Trip. 



Per Diem Page linked here.  

Dark Chocolate Mousse Cakes

Vegan, Gluten-Free, No Sugar Added, Nut-Free, Oil-Free

This recipe was adapted from the Molten Lava Cakes over at veggiegrettie.com. After searching for a vegan, sugar-free, gluten-free chocolate melting cake recipe to make for Kenny, I finally settled on that recipe. I didn't have all the ingredients and wanted to tweak a few things, so this recipe is the product of my experiment, and what happened to be in the pantry tonight. Although it didn't turn out as anticipated (with a gooey center), we both thought they tasted really good!! :) They weren't exactly Melting Cakes with the gooey center and cakey outside, but they had more of a mousse consistency throughout with a rich dark chocolaty flavor. I baked them for 13 minutes, so they might have came out a bit more cakey if I had baked them longer. Either way, this was my first time trying this recipe, and since we liked it so much I'm documenting exactly what I used and the result. 

Wet Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate chips
• 6 tbs. unsweetened Almond Milk
• 4 tbs. unsweetened Applesauce
• 3 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 tsp. Chia Seeds

Dry Ingredients: 

• 9 tbs. Quinoa Flour
• 2 tbs. Cacao Powder (or cocoa powder)
• 6 Stevia packets
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1/4 tsp. Xanthan Gum
• Pinch Sea Salt

- Melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler, or in the microwave. If using the microwave stir every 30 seconds, and it should be done after about 90 seconds. 

- Stir together all of the dry ingredients, making sure there are no lumps. 

- Stir the rest of the wet ingredients into the melted chocolate. 

- Stir the dry ingredients into the wet. The batter will be quite thick like brownie batter. 

- Spray 4 ramekins with coconut oil and cocoa powder. 

- Fill the ramekins so they are half or 2/3s of the way full. Place the ramekins in a 9x13 inch pan, then fill with water until it reaches halfway up the ramekins. (If you're short on time and don't want to bother with the water you don't have to - it just helps it cook better from all angles.)

- Bake at 350 degrees for 10 - 14 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes and Enjoy! :) 
   

Measurements to Double the Recipe: 

Wet Ingredients:

• 1 cup Enjoy Life Chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Almond Milk
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Applesauce
• 2 tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
• 2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 2 tsp. Chia Seeds

Dry Ingredients: 

• 1 cup + 1 tbs. Quinoa Flour
• 1/4 cup Cacao Powder (or cocoa powder)
• 9 Stevia packets
• 2 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp. Xanthan Gum
• Pinch Sea Salt

Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies ... or Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Vegan, Gluten Free, Sugar Free, Fat Free, Nut Free, High Protein

Wouldn't it be great if you could have cookies that were packed with super-nutritious ingredients, so you could eat dessert totally guilt-free and still be happily nourishing your body? That's what I've wondered for a long time, and this recipe hits the spot in both regards! I stirred a few secret healthy ingredients in here that make these cookies high protein, low fat, low calories, but still really big and satisfying on taste! The special ingredients?  

• Quinoa Flour or Brown Rice Flour - works as the flour and provides a great source of protein
• Pumpkin - sweet vegetable that has a lower glycemic index, plenty of fiber, and is rich in important antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. It "is less in calories but contains vitamin A, and flavonoid poly-phenolic antioxidants such as leutin, xanthin, and carotenes in abundance" (see references below). 
• Chia Seeds - loaded with antioxidants, a great source of important omega 3 fatty acids, good source of fiber, and a high-quality protein source. These are very important to add in one's diet, and they can even replace the eggs in baking!
• Cinnamon - proven to help stabilize blood sugar, boosts cognitive function, improves insulin production, and can even reduce cancer cells. 

Wet Ingredients: 

• 1 1/2 cups pumpkin
• 1 cup applesauce (unsweetened) 
• 3/4 cup erithrytol (or sweetener of choice)
• 2-3 pinches stevia
• 2 chia seed eggs (2 tbsp. chia seeds + 4-5 tbsp. water)
• 2 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tsp. imitation butter flavor (optional, if you want to keep it really pure leave out)

Dry Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup Quinoa Flour or Brown Rice flour
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 3 tsp. cinnamon 
• 1 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. cloves
• 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• pinch sea salt
• 3/4 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips, or any other add-ins you'd like! (raisins, nuts, etc.)

*As many ingredients as possible should be Organic and trustworthy.

Stir the wet ingredients together, then mix into the dry ingredients. If the mixture looks a little too wet, then add in extra quinoa flour, and if it's too dry add in pumpkin or applesauce or even almond milk. It might look kind of wet, but that is okay and they should still turn out into solid cookies. You might get good results by putting the dough in the fridge for a while to firm up, but it's not really necessary and I didn't do it. 

Form the cookies into your desired cookie shape on a foil-lined pan. The cookies don't rise much at all, so form them into the shape you want now - bite-sized, or big cookies, whatever!
By using the dough as is, you will make Pumpkin Spice Chia Cookies (great for breakfast!), OR you can add in chocolate chips to make a gooey chocolatey dessert! Sprinkle the plain Pumpkin Spice cookies with cinnamon before baking, and they'll even look like snickerdoodles.

      Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Version: 
Stir 6+ tbsp. of natural peanut butter into the finished dough. The peanut butter taste of the final product will depend on the kind of peanut butter you're using, so use more or less than that amount depending on how strong you'd like the flavor to be. I used about 6 tbsp. of PB2 mixed with water, and the peanut taste was not too strong. Then stir in your chocolate chips and form the cookies.

Bake at 350 degrees for 16-19 minutes, or until golden brown/darker and the inside is mostly cooked through. You can still take them out if they are still pretty soft on the inside, since they will continue to cook on the pan, and they will just be softer and chewier. 













I obviously chose to make a lot more Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip cookies today, as that is Kenny's ultimate favorite flavor combination. He really liked the cookies, and I really liked their taste, soft chewy texture, AND that they are so healthy, will not spike our blood sugar, and have only ingredients that are GOOD for our bodies! :)

Reference: 
http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/pumpkin.html
http://www.organicauthority.com/health/11-health-benefits-of-cinnamon.html
http://www.organicauthority.com/health/11-health-benefits-of-cinnamon.html