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Finding Balance: Week 5

Life is all about finding that perfect mix of fun and hard work.

This week I want to talk more about practice and repetition. Though I’m still in the beginning stages of what I hope is a thorough transformation, I recognize the importance of developing and implementing a quality routine.

I’ve started to do that by trying to stick to eating certain things for breakfast every day, normally low fat Pop Tarts or a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of coffee. I try to follow that with a snack around 10am, usually a Kashi granola bar, some natural almonds or a piece of fruit. Lunch used to be a sandwich, but I’m doing my best to stay away from excess bread if I can help it. I’ve been eating a lot of Vietnamese food lately, usually sticking with a bowl of Pho Ga, which is essentially just chicken soup. The cilantro and bean sprouts I add to it give it more substance and keep the meal healthy, except for the sodium in the broth.

After going back over my food journal for the past month, it looks like my biggest challenge is controlling what I eat for lunch. It’s no surprise either, since I go out for lunch about 90% of the time. The key is to make sure I go places where I can track my calories, like Chipotle, Chick-Fil-A and other places where nutritional information is readily available.

Now, this week I did allow myself to splurge one morning for breakfast. I’m from Texas, so I have to get my Whataburger fix every now and then. Two taquitos always hit the spot…

The only negative to my routine so far is that I really haven’t developed a consistent enough workout plan. I’ll be honest, it’s been way too sporadic for my liking. The only thing that’s been a constant is soccer practice on Monday, softball games on Wednesday (which are killing me; I’m getting too old to recover quick enough) and soccer games on Saturday. Now that my son’s soccer season is winding down (for those that don’t know, I’m the player wrangler, er, coach), I’m going to have to find something else to drive me crazy, I mean, some other worthy cause to devote my time and energy to.

Another thing I’ve decided to do is weigh myself monthly rather than weekly. I don’t want to get discouraged if I do happen to gain a pound a two during a given week. I’m trying to stay in this for the long haul, so I figure once a month should suffice.

What do you do to exercise, other than the standard walking/running/weight lifting combination?

Happy Hour: Cranberry Mojito

Get ready for the weekend with a Thursday Happy Hour.
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What happens when you take a scoop of this and dump it in this? You get the picture above. You also get a great drink. I used a little creativity on this one. Plus, I had a ton of leftover cranberry granita and wanted to put it to good use. Boy, did I. The tartness of the cranberry was perfect with the lime and mint of the mojito. This is a great drink for the holidays that's different from the heavy, creamy cocktails associated with this time of year. I highly recommend this Cranberry Mojito (Kevin style). It also makes for a wonderful presentation, and your guests will think you're an expert mixologist. If you're throwing a holiday party, this is a great drink to make ahead of time, throw in a punch bowl and top with the cranberry granita.

Unique Randomness

My random thoughts...brought to you once a week!

• The time change always f’s me up, but not in the way you might think. I can deal with the short days and temporary messed up sleeping. What I can’t stand is driving to work with that d@mn sun in my eyes. I’m practically blind. I know, poor me.

• Don’t you just love the battle of the insurance commercials? I do. Progressive has Flo. Farmer’s has the dude from Juno. And State Farm has that guy I just want to punch through the screen. I know Flo is very annoying. Love the Juno guy in everything, and these commercials are no different. But for the life of me, I just can’t figure out what annoys me so much about the State Farm guy.

• I watched some the of Breeders’ Cup while treadmilling the other day. Favorite horse name: Unzip Me. I wanted to pick him, but figured he was too much of a long shot. Hey oh!!!

• Speaking of horse racing…name another sport that is so captivating when it comes on, but you could care less about when it’s not on?

• Began the purge with a garage sale last weekend. I love to haggle. It’s really not about the money to me, it’s about the game.

• My stages of every Pink song, ever: Stage 1: Denial-It’s just on the radio for the kids. Stage 2: Acceptance-I kind of like the beat and catchy lyrics. Stage 3: Glee-D@mn I like this song. Stage 4: Shame-What the f was I thinking? And they play it all the time. Stage 5: Intollerance-Turn the song off in the first three seconds. Stage 6: Further Denial-I never listen to that Pink crap.
  

• We watched Date Night the other night. It had a few funny moments. Just a few. Overall, it was terrible. Mr. Carell, you are on thin ice.

• Sports in Houston really suck right now.

• I got another good report on Heights West. If you live in Houston, you should check this hidden gem out.

• Another tough one...who is that in the picture?
  

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Vegetarian View: Black Walnut Cafe

Monthly Feature
Molly gives us a peek at a restaurant through the eyes of a vegetarian.

Overall Vegetarian Selection: (2) Stars
Black Walnut Cafe’s menu is very typical of my standard dining experience. It’s one of those places where the vegetarian selection is not great and I feel like they only threw in a sparse handful of meat free dishes to shut us herbivores up.

I didn’t order an appetizer, but their selection had four vegetarian options out of eight. Not too horrible, but the four items were nothing to turn my head at. They were spinach and artichoke dip, garlic cheese bread, toasted ravioli and chips and salsa with guacamole. Kinda boring.

BWC’s salad selection of 13 items only had two vegetarian options. I mean come on…this is a no brainer where a restaurant can easily win a vegetarian over. I really expected more here. And to add insult to injury their extra salad additions consisted of seven meat/seafood items and no tofu. At this point I am picturing the Twitter fail whale in my mind.

Now onto the “Signature Entrees” portion of BWC’s menu where not one meat free item is listed out of nine entrees. By now I am getting pretty upset at the menu creator but am not surprised in the least, because remember BWC is a standard sample of my dining experience unless I purposely visit a vegetarian friendly restaurant.

No time for ranting, it’s time to visit the pasta selection where again, it is easy for a restaurant to please a vegetarian. Pasta, like lettuce in a salad, is diverse and almost anything can be added to it. Out of 14 items to choose from BWC has a whopping two meat free pastas and one of them is blatantly named “Vegetarian Pasta,” which I will expand more on later.

The “Burgers and Sandwiches” section has 12 items and only one is meat free. That item is…drum roll please….a grilled cheese sandwich. Please keep in mind a grilled cheese sandwich is also on the kids menu here too.

There is a glass display case near the cashier with various gelatos, cannolis and other desserts. Maybe I should have gotten something here to brighten my dining experience at BWC.

BWC also serves breakfast with omelets, eggs benedicts etc. but this vegetarian doesn’t eat eggs by themselves so I won’t even go there.

Ordered Dish: (3) Stars
Since my choices were limited, I was able to quickly pick the Vegetarian Pasta for my lunch. (Thanks for spelling it out to me BWC.) My bowtie pasta dish was priced at $9.50 (a little expensive for lunch I think) and consisted of pesto, extra virgin olive oil, sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, artichokes, garlic and shredded parmesan cheese. The meal was decent but nothing memorable. Since Mediterranean is my favorite cuisine I liked the theme of olives, artichokes etc. in the dish. I thought the ingredients and flavors went well together and the pasta was cooked just right for a cold pasta dish. My meal was a little salty because of all the marinated ingredients and pesto always leaves me running for the water fountain.

Healthy Rating: (3) Stars
My pasta meal was pretty healthy but certainly did not help me in my protein grams consumed for the day. I try to keep my protein at 50 grams a day and this dish probably brought me to probably ten. (The cheese was not abundant in the dish.) I will say the meal was low fat, but high in carbohydrates which bothers some people but I happily accept because of my running.

Overall Opinion: (2.5) Stars
Black Walnut Cafe’s décor is really quaint. There are a lot of different sized couches paired with tables to choose from. For the non-couch eaters BWC does have some regular tables. The interior is kind of dark but that adds to the cozy, sofa atmosphere. Plus they have a spacious patio in the front of the restaurant when the Houston weathers plays nice. Too bad BWC’s menu isn’t vegetarian friendly because I really liked their comforting and relaxed décor. The BWC I visited is located in the Village Arcade so parking can be a problem during peak hours. The service was quick and the restaurant seemed pretty clean. I gave BWC an overall score of 2.5 because even though they have a heavenly dessert case and unique dining room set up, I just cannot forgive the lack of vegetarian dishes. (And what they did offer was very boring.)

www.BlackWalnutCafe.com
5510 Morningside Drive
Houston, Texas 77005

Kevin's Food Find: Mountain Thunder Coffee (Kona)

We're always on the hunt for some good products.

What is it?
I'm back with another coffee find. Sorry, I just can't help myself when it comes to coffee. Found this one while strolling in a little place I like to call Costco. Two things struck me--price and name. It was under $20 for a pound of Kona coffee. I know my Kona prices, and that's rare. I checked the label to make sure it was 100% Kona, not some f'd up blend. It claims to be 100%, but I didn't see the official seal (look for it). Now to the name. This might be my favorite name of any product I have ever seen--Mountain Thunder! I know you're not suppose to give yourself nicknames, but d@mn if I don't like Mountain Thunder.
Can't you just feel the power through your monitor?

Why it’s so great?
To be honest, this product wasn't great, but it was good. And given that it's from Kona and reasonably priced, I consider it a Food Find. Most Kona coffees run in the late $20's a pound and can run up to $50 for reserves. I knew this would be on the lower end of the Kona coffee chain when I broke the seal. It just didn't have that strong, unique Kona scent. But still pretty good. Smooth and low acidity.

What’s the price?
Like I said, under $20 at Costco....think it's $28 on the web site.

Where can I buy some?
Well, again...at Costco (Whole Bean French Roast). But they also have a pretty good web site to order from (http://www.mountainthunder.com/).

Test Kitchen:King Ranch Chicken Casserole III

It's time for a Saturday Test Kitchen. You'll see the good and/or bad of every recipe.

The Dish
King Ranch Chicken is one of those dishes that seems to work its way into the mix every now and then. The last time I had some great KRC was at a bed and breakfast place outside San Antonio. Think of KRC as very chicken pot pie-ish, but with the spices and corn tortillas, it certainly can have more of a Mexican food flavor.

The Ease
For full disclosure, I didn't cook this. Sara did. That still counts because we are two hearts beating as one. Sorry, just messing with you. Actually, I had to go out, and wanted to make sure something was posted. So she was kind enough to make the King Ranch. I don't think it was difficult. When you see the word "casserole" in the dish's name, that's code for "we know you have kids, have no life, and have no time--so this dish will be easy".

The Taste
I only had a bite but it was good. The corn tortillas and the spices really made the dish stand out. Another example of a great dish to make on the weekend--for a the week. It yields plenty of leftovers and contains enough veggies to make it fairly healthy. And remember, this is the type of recipe you can add just about any veggie you want. Oh, one more thing. Sara used leftover turkey, so technically this was King Ranch Turkey. Didn't matter, still turned out great.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/King-Ranch-Chicken-Casserole-III/Detail.aspx

Higher Learning: Roasted Filet Mignon with Ancho-Red Pepper Sauce

Monthly Feature
Get ready advanced cooks. Vivek brings the knowledge up a notch with Higher Learning!

Filet Mignon is luxury when it comes to steak. Its melt in your mouth tenderness is unmatched in the world of meat. It’s likely the first steak you get when you go to a steakhouse, and it’s also the likely steak you order when someone else is getting the tab! What I love about filet, as opposed to some other cuts like NY Strip and Ribeye, is that you can really use a lot of flavors to act as a supporting cast. Because filet does not have a lot of fat, it can use some help in the flavor department. So when I cook filet, I make this great sauce with spicy and fruity ancho chiles and sweet roasted red bell peppers – a perfect complement to the beef.

Like with all steak, I prefer mine medium rare – an internal temperature of about 125 degrees. I achieve that here by doing something counter intuitive – cook it low and slow. You almost want to cook the tenderloin roast as a prime rib, slowly, in order to achieve an even doneness throughout the meat. If the oven is cranked up to 400 degrees, it won’t be a good medium rare. Served with some roasted potatoes, this dish will take any ordinary steak menu and elevate it up to the level of Higher Learning!

Roasted Filet Mignon with Ancho-Red Pepper Sauce (serves 4)
(Recipe adapted from Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill Cookbook)

For the filet:
1 2 lb tenderloin roast, left whole
2 T fresh chopped rosemary
2 T fresh chopped thyme
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 T prepared horseradish
2 T dijon mustard

For the sauce:
5 tablespoons canola oil
1 large red onion, coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 (14.5 oz) cans plum tomatoes and juices
3 red bell peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded, and chopped
3 ancho chiles, soaked, seeded, and chopped
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
¼ cup fresh cilantro
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.

Get started on the filet first. Combine the rosemary, thyme, garlic, horseradish, mustard, and a few cranks of black pepper. Rub all over the filet and then season the filet with salt. Insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the roast and cook in the oven until the roast hits an internal temperature of 120 degrees. Take the roast out of the oven and let rest, covered in foil, for about 15 minutes. This ensures the juices redistribute in the meat and keep it moist. At this time, the roast will continue to cook and get to that perfect 125 temperature we are looking for.

In the meantime, make the sauce. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, red peppers, and anchos and cook until the tomatoes soften and break down and the liquid thickens, 20 to 30 minutes. Carefully transfer the mixture to a blender and process until smooth. Add the vinegar, honey, and chopped cilantro, season with salt and pepper and pulse a few times just to combine. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning as necessary.

If your roast still needs to get that great crust (and it might because we cooked it at such a low temperature), get a really heavy cast iron pan over high heat. Add some butter and when it is almost smoking, sear the filet. Since you are just searing, you aren’t going to cook it past it’s perfect temperature. Cook it for about 30 seconds on each side until it gets that great crust and carve away.

When ready to serve, put some sauce on the plate. Carve the roast into slices and give everyone as much as they want! Garnish with chives and some extra virgin olive oil.
*Note: If you want those fancy cubes I have, I just the roast into 4 steaks. Then I made the “circle” into a “square” by cutting off a little bit of each side. Those scraps are great for a sandwich the next day!

Hope you all enjoy this installment of Higher Learning! I look forward to bringing you some great recipes that will both challenge your culinary curiosity and take you on some amazing epicurean adventures!

Cheers,
Vivek
http://viveksurti.wordpress.com/