An attempt at something new

So it is becoming obviously apparent to me that posting everyday will just NOT be able to happen... and that's ok. The point of this blog for me is to be thoughtful of my moments of joy and happiness throughout the day. And although I just started it a few days ago and have only posted twice yet... it is already working. Throughout the day while I am playing and cooking and cleaning and so forth, I have been much more aware of my joy in the last few days... thinking things like oh...that would be a good post or that could something I share with folks... or other such thoughts.

So I feel content, even if only a smattering of my thoughts actually become content up here.

My husband is working two jobs right now. On wednesday, thursday, and friday he leaves at 7:30 am and comes home anytime from 12:30 am-1:30 am depending on how busy of a night it was. He goes to his regular job from 8:00-3:30/4:00 (he is a line cook) and then heads over to a second restaurant(as a line cook) and puts in a 7/8 hour shift. This is new. within the first month of it. and it is hard. it is hard on him. hard on the kids. and not completely unimportantly, hard on me. But we have discussed it over and over and for right now I need to be home with the kids, so it is something that needs to be done.

Although there are not positive things about this... that is not my focus here, so one of the positives of this situation is I get to cook more healthful foods because he isn't here to NOT eat them, and make me feel bad about it.

So I tried (again!) to make a tofu burger that was tasty AND wouldn't fall apart. I only partially succeeded, but I think I'm close to something good here!

I'll tell you what I did and if you have any suggestions or want to try them for yourself and let me know how it went... I'm all for it!

Here goes, this is what I ended up putting together:

Tofu Burgers

1 package of extra-firm tofu

1/2 cup of steel cut oats

1 can of white beans

1/4 cup of sunflower seeds & 1/4 cup almonds

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 cup mushrooms, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

Spices: sea salt, oregano, basil,

21 seasoning salute(an awesome salt-free spice from Trader Joe's),

powdered kelp & dulse (I put these in everything!)

celery seed, a little cumin, fresh ground pepper, olive oil

all of these to taste and anything else that might be good or if you don't like it.... leave it out! : )

{this is probably where I should state that I rarely use a recipe...I cook from taste, look, and feel...I try to tell people about what I use.. but often I have no idea...just guesstimation really ...so sorry about that!}

1. The first thing I did was cook the 1/2 cup of oats in 1 1/2 cups of boiling water with a pinch of sea salt. I cooked them a little less than I would for porridge, maybe 15 minutes.



2. While that was cooking I mashed the tofu with a fork. I used extra firm so I didn't feel like I needed to smash and drain...{ but that might not be a bad idea actually... b/c I did have some textural difficulties! : ) }


3. I also put both kinds of seeds into the mini-processor and chopped them to a crumbly consistancy.


4. I chopped the onions, garlic, and mushrooms. Sauteed the onions for about 5 minutes then added the shrooms and garlic and cooked for 7-10 minutes more until they had a nice color and smell. : )


5. At this point I mixed everything together. I was thinking that I didn't want to use an egg(just to see if I could do without it), so for added stickiness I guess, I processed the can of beans and threw them in too (drained and rinsed, before throwing in the mini-chopper).


6. I made 7 patties originally, they were HUGE. I put them on wax paper and put them in the fridge to set up.
   

This is what they looked like when I took them out to cook. By the time that I got to cooking them that night... things were a little hectic, cranky, and hungry..and they fell apart... and I WAS NOT in the mood for pictures! But I put the rest in the fridge and carried on with bathing, putting kids to sleep, cleaning, washing dishes....etc... and figured I'd try again tomorrow.





Well today(yesterday's tomorrow..hee hee...), I pulled them out of the fridge, and they were MUCH firmer. So I decided to make each patty into two patties ( to help with the size and sticking together thing) and throw them in a non-stick pan with about a tablespoon of olive oil.






...and it worked! I cooked each side for close to 10 minutes(which is a long time)... but they came out pretty good! I think that when I make them again I would use the egg. I think that would hold them together even more... I'm not even vegetarian, much less vegan, but I was just trying to see if I could do it vegan, because it makes me feels better for when I eat with my husband (you know beast of some sort on the table every night)!

Anyway, this is the final product, on some toasted whole grain bread with a little dijon mustard and some massaged Kale(an awesome raw foodie trick that I learned from a friend, and use ALL the time.) There was some breakage..I couldn't have pick it up and swung it around... but it was easy to flip and made it to the bread just fine... so like I said.. maybe an egg next time.. but I will defenitely be trying it again! Also any suggestions, or opinions about them is welcome...especially if you make them differently... I like to fiddle with my food! : )

Oh, and the kale trick is super easy!

Massaged Kale

just take a bunch of kale, remove the stems by folding it in half and pulling the leaves from the big rib going up the middle... wash in a sinkful of cold water... spin dry... then put the juice of a lemon, a pinch of sea salt, and a little olive oil in a bowl wisk it together and pour it over the kale. Reach in and massage (yes I know it sounds silly!) the leaves with the "dressing" ... let it sit for an hour or so. I rinse the leaves after that, but if you like the flavor you can leave it on... you could just spin off the excess maybe...it is a little too strong for me... so I rinse some of it off. It "cooks" the kale making it WAY less bitter without actually cooking it ...so you get all the good stuff with a lot less bitterness... total score right? : )

Today I have lots of things on my thankful list pertaining to this post:

Today I am thankful for a husband who takes care of me and our family.

I am thankful that my children eat my cooking and generally like it!

I am thankful that I succeeded (mostly) in a new food adventure, even if it took an extra day!

I'm thankful for this blog to throw stuff out there for other people to see.

Oh, and I didn't get to it.. but I'm thankful that, so far today, Sophia hasn't had an accident in her big girl undies...although it is naptime so stayed tuned for the results of sleeping in said undies (for the very first time today!!)!