Eggplant

Eggplant
Photo Credit: Google Image Search

Monday, October 24, 2011

Dog Soup?

So, it's been awhile.   I know, ok?   We've had some stressful times in our lives these past few weeks.

1) Bought new bedroom furniture which = stressful argument while putting said furniture together.
2) The weather has changed.  I hate being cold.  It's been cold a few times.  Therefore I hated "it."
3) I discovered an obsession with the hit series "Friday Night Lights."   It got so bad that I re-started my Netflix membership...for the 4th time.
4) Oh yea, and we added this mongrel to our family:


That's Otis.

He's been living with us for just over 3 weeks.

He's a bassador (basset hound/labrador) and he's 7.

He's perfect.

But he's also a HUGE responsibility.

Before we get into all that, let me set the stage:

Me: Hey, I want to get a dog (this convo happened at least 50 times over the course of this past year).
Matt: You travel too much.  And dogs are expensive.

Fast forward to a Friday 3 weeks ago.

Matt: How do you feel about going to get a dog (very non-chalantly)?
Me: Umm...(insert panic as I haven't had the chance to prepare for this life-altering decision)
Matt: We can just go and look at the dogs, just to see.
Me: Umm...ok.

3 hours later, we walk out with....



And I proceed to have a prolonged panic attack as to what this all means.  Then Matt panics.  Then I panic again.

But he's here to stay!

And we love him.

I'm so SO glad we adopted him because he's brought so much joy to our lives already.   Beyond how much fun he is, he's forced us to be more responsible and also to spend more conscious time together.  Now, instead of watching 6 episodes of Friday Night Lights on an evening, I only watch 4 because we take Otis for a long walk each night.   Now, instead of blogging regularly, I brush Otis' skankified teeth.

It's a good life.

Anyways, I've still been cooking.  And I've actually been taking pictures too.  Matt and I are still going strong on our plant-based oil free diet.  Matt's lost about 25 pounds...I went to the doctor and had lost 3 since my last visit.  That's...great.  But it's not about poundage!  It's about feeling good and eating healthy, so I'm actually ok with that.

Just so you know I'm not blowing smoke, here's a recipe that I've cooked probably 4 times in the past month because it's easy, SO healthy, HUGE, and delicious.



Savory Lentils and Greens Soup from Engine 2 Diet:

2 medium onions, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
4 tomatoes, chopped
2 1/2 cups lentils
5 cups vegetable broth
5 cups water
Ground pepper to taste
2 large heads of leafy greens, chopped into bite-sized pieces. Use kale, spinach, kale, collards, Swiss chard or Chinese cabbage.

In a large soup pot, add onion, celery, garlic, and carrots and stir –fry over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the tomatoes and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add the lentils, broth, water, and pepper and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, turn heat down and simmer for 45 minutes. Add the greens and simmer for another 10minutesor. For especially the green and fresh-looking greens, boil or steam the greens first, then add them to the soup pot just before serving.    We added hot sauce to the finished product to give it a little extra flavor.