Chillin on the Counter

I have had a busy afternoon cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry – all in preparation for the work week. 

After cleaning the bathrooms and kitchen, I had a snack – I was starvin!

Crispy Wheat crackers and one piece of reduced fat swiss cheese.

I then started working on dinner – Lentil Loaf which I spotted last week on Broccoli Hut’s blog. 

I boiled my lentils and used leftover marinara sauce from my freezer (marinara sauce had mushrooms in it too – bonus!).  After 50 minutes in the oven, I enjoyed 2 platefuls of lentil loaf!

I had no idea what to expect from this recipe – would it be like meatloaf?  Should I dip it in ketchup (no – cover in parmesan cheese)?  This reminded me of Snobby Joes from Veganomican – with more of an Italian Flair.  I think this would taste excellent warmed up later in the week on a Pepperidge Farm Whole Wheat Deli Flat with a chunk of mozzarella cheese melted on top…mmm. 

I will make this recipe again – I would like to try the concept with some different flavors and additions.  I was wondering what my mom’s meatloaf recipe would taste like with lentils instead of meat…

With the lentil loaf, we had some cucumber and red pepper for some veggies

And for dessert, a few cookies!

While the Lentil Loaf was cooking, I started work on some dinner prep this week.  First, I made Mexican Brown Rice for burritos tomorrow night.   Second, I boiled black beans that had been soaking all afternoon (also for burritos).  Lastly, I made a big pot of Steel Cut Oats – you will be seeing those for breakfast this week.  Matt also grated cheddar cheese – for tomorrow night and also for a Frittata later in the week.  This meal prep should really make things easier during the week. 

After everything was done, I had a lot of things cooling on the counter ready to go in the refrigerator. 

Onto….

Simple Changes September 

Updates:  Yesterday I stuck with my list at the grocery store.  Check it out – I even crossed everything out as I went to make sure I didn’t forget anything. 

Looking at my meals planned out on the left side of the page helped me strategize ways to do some meal prep today.  I really like these grocery lists I bought at the Container Store.  Yesterday at Whole Foods, I also purchased a new dish detergent since my Dawn was just about out. 

September 12, 2009: Reduce my Forkprint!

While enjoying a delicious lunch with my friend Becky yesterday at Whole Foods, I realized what a waste disposable cutlery is.  I have a large enough purse – why don’t I bring my own?  After thinking about this some more on my way home, I realized that I wasn’t sure I wanted to keep my silverware in my purse – it would be heavy in my already heavy purse.  Instead I found these on the internet; reasonably priced, made of bamboo and therefore light and it includes a neat carrying case.  Solves all my problems.  I have ordered a set of these and will start using them when plastic silverware is all that is available. 

September 13, 2009: Green Up My Kitchen Cleaners

Last week, Melissa from Melissa’s Nibbles asked me to do a guest post on green cleaning.  I went through a lot of my kitchen cleaning products and found one in particular that was so bad it didn’t even include the ingredients!

Check this out.

That’s a whole lot of other ingredients. 

I leaned a lot about cleaners and posted more information on Melissa’s blog post but when this bottle of Soft Scrub is out I will definitely be looking for a more greener product. 

Well I need to be going to bed – there is an early morning run in my future!