Tempeh Help

This was my first attempt at preparing tempeh, and I have to admit, I need some help!

I am trying not to give up hope yet because the first time I tried making tofu it was a pretty big flop too, but now I love it!

First of all. . . .

What is tempeh?

Tempeh is made from whole soybeans, which have been fermented and shaped into a block.

You can see some of natural-occurring mold on the outside.

It is okay to eat—just like the mold in blue cheese is safe to eat.

How do you prepare tempeh?

This is what I’m still trying to figure out!

I tired to find a recipe but nothing stuck out. It seemed as though a lot of people just sliced it raw and stuck it in a sandwich like this, which I am going to try to recreate tomorrow.

I thought I would try frying it like I’ve done with tofu in the past.

However, I wasn’t very impressed. I think when I heated the tempeh up, it brought out the fermented taste more, which definitely gave it a bad after taste.

So, I’m still in the search for a better way to prepare tempeh—other than eating it plain because I’m not really a big fan of that way so far. If you have any advice, let me know!

To go along with my tempeh, I also roasted a sweet potato and a regular, white potato.

Sweet potato sprayed with olive oil using the Misto + cinnamon + S&P.

White potato sprayed with olive oil + S&P.

Bake in the oven at 400* for 15-20 minutes. Make sure to stir them occasionally.

I also roasted some broccoli!

I love having 3-4 (even 5 things on my plate) rather than eating 1-2 things!

Workout

I trekked to the gym this morning for a run on the treadmill and a weight lifting session.

Rather than running before school and then going to the gym after school to lift weights, I killed two birds with one stone this morning.

Distance: 5 miles

Time: 45 minutes

Speed: varied (I was all over the place, switching it up the whole time.)

Incline: 1.0%

Weight lifting: 30 minutes of various upper body lifts, a couple lower body lifts, and crunches

I even ended up showering at the gym and got ready in record speed—15 minutes!

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I’m so glad tomorrow is Friday, but Friday is also my busiest (and usually most stressful) day of the week, which makes it bittersweet. :-?

Questions

Have you ever tried tempeh? How did you prepare it?

Do you prefer a lot of variety on your plate, or is one to two items sufficient?

I Knew It

I knew it!

I knew wouldn’t be able to stick with the afternoon running. I tried, I really did, but I caved this morning and went back to my early morning runs.

I really wanted it to work, but my stupid stomach always has issues in the afternoon. I’ve tried running in the afternoon in the past, but the same thing happens—my stomach becomes bloated, and it feels really uncomfortable during my run and even afterward!

I had a bloated stomach all afternoon at school yesterday and knew it would carry over into my run. Luckily it wasn’t quite as bad as it has been, but still doesn’t make for a very pleasant run.

So back to my morning running this morning:

Distance: 7 miles

Time: 60 minutes

Temperature: 32* (While this is still chilly, it is so much better than the teens and single digits!)

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Check out my new toy I picked up yesterday from Best Buy!!!

Since last August I’ve contemplated getting a dSLR camera. I’ve hummed and hawed and read review after review.

Do I buy a Canon or a Nikon?

Which camera would be the best value for my money?

What features are important to me?

I’ve pretty much spent the last 8 months researching and weighing my options. (Can you tell I’m indecisive?!?!)

Finally, two weekends ago, I walked into Best Buy ready to make purchase a Canon T1i (which is what I’ve been wanting all along), but as things would end up, I instead walked out with a Nikon 3100. Go figure—it is the story of my life!!

I went with the Nikon because it was on sale (and cheaper) than the Canon and had just one less megapixel. While I still feel a little bi-partial to Canons, which is what I use now, I have been told by many sources that it is really just personal preference if you use a Canon or a Nikon.

I can’t wait to try it, and I hope I like it!!

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My shipment of chia seeds from Amazon came in the mail yesterday as well!

I bought 2 pounds of chia seeds for $10.25 from The Raw Food World (through Amazon)!! From what I’ve seen, that’s a pretty good deal!

The owners included a sweet note (photocopied but handwritten) and a coupon for 5% off my next purchase.

They also included a free sample of white chia seeds and hemp protein. I can’t wait to try them!

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Congrats to those of you who guessed #2 was my lie in my previous post on Two Truths & A Lie.

I have never eaten a worm. . . . but my sister has!! She did it on a dare from her teammates!!

Two Truths & A Lie

I spent five summers working at camp—three of which I was a camp counselor, two as a program coordinator. I loved working at camp and easily has been my favorite job so far. :)

One of my favorite “get-to-know-you” games I played with my campers was 2 truths and a lie. Not that we encouraged lying, but we did make an exception for this particular game. ;)

Each person would go around the circle sharing 3 things about themselves—two things that were true about themselves, one of which was a lie. After they were done sharing, I would have everyone else hold up one, two, or three fingers to indicate which they thought was the lie.

So there are three things about me, let’s see if you can guess which is the lie:

1.) One summer while out riding my bike, I was crossing the road, coming up onto the curb, when I looked up and saw a moose staring right at me—literally two feet away from me! He was galloping towards me, and I nearly ran into him!!

2.) During college, I was hanging out at a track meet with my friends. We were discussing what it would be like if we were stranded and the only thing to eat were bugs/worms/insects. Coincidentally, a worm crawled out of the ground and someone said they would give me $5 if I ate it! I’ll do anything for a little extra cash, so I picked it up, dropped it into my mouth and swallowed it down!!

3.) Growing up, I rarely helped my mom in the kitchen. If she coaxed me into the kitchen, I would mess-up by using the dry measuring cups for liquid ingredients and vice-versa. I didn’t enjoy cooking/baking, and my mom often said I should find a husband who would cook for me!!

Tell me if 1, 2, or 3 is the lie in the comments section below!!

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Workout

Distance: 5 miles

Time: 43 minutes

Weather: a balmy 42* (okay, not exactly balmy, but then again it is Alaska!)

This was my second day running in the afternoon, and I was pretty bloated all afternoon, which carried over into my run. :( I don’t know what it was from, but it made the run a little less than enjoyable.

In addition, every step was like playing a game of hop-scotch—dodging water puddles, sliding around on slushy snow, and skipping over small rivers across the road. Having soaking wet, freezing cold feet doesn’t exactly make for a pleasant run.

As always, it was good to get out! :)

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Dinner tonight was prepared by my fabulous husband!

Usually I do the cooking, but Craig was hungry before I started my run, so I pulled up the recipe and said, “here ya go!”

And I came back to this:

Penne with White Beans and Spinach

Recipe courtesy of Jenna from Eat Live Run, which can be found here.

I liked the dish, but it was a little strong on the lemon juice and zest. If I would make it again, I definitely would cut back on the lemon flavoring, but everything else was great about the dish! I loved the addition of sun-dried tomatoes and fresh spinach!

I steamed some broccoli for some extra veggies! :)

Time to get some shut-eye!