Roasting Vegetables Chart
So how do you use up all the produce from your fridge before it all goes bad if you work during the week and are almost never home?
It’s simple! Roast your veggies in the oven! It’s easy, quick and hassle-free!
Just wash the veggies, cut them up, drizzle them with olive oil (I use an olive oil spray) and throw some spices on for extra flavor (like salt, garlic powder, oregano, basil, rosemary, etc.)
And that’s pretty much it! Don’t you love it?
Ever since I discovered how easy this is, we’ve been roasting veggies almost every day!
Here is a very useful chart that I’ve been using. I found it on the internet on the Good Housekeeping website.
Roast away! 
Dinner with friends
I’ve never had to cook a completely vegetarian meal before for a dinner party.
I have to admit, I was a little intimidated.
But it turned out great and it was a huge hit. Whew!
Course 1: Tabouleh salad (recipe coming soon!)
Course 2: Veggie “Meatloaf” with marinara sauce; Oven roasted red potatoes with rosemary and garlic; Steamed corn
Course 3: Pineapple mango sundae with whipped cream, lime zest, ginger and fresh mint
Pottery and Lovery
Hi there! How is your day going so far?
I am definitely taking it easy today with the calories after last night’s late party. Haha.
So breakfast was simple: a grapefruit, a wedge of Granny Smith, a few baby carrots, green peppers and a cup of detox tea. 
And lots of freshly-squeezed orange juice during the day (instead of my usual coffee)
I don’t usually like to eat late, but last night was an exception. I was personally invited to a fun-filled, romantic date night with The-Guy-Of-My-Dreams (Seriously. I dream about him at night!)
How did it happen? Well, just before I was getting ready to make dinner, a hot guy called me and told me to forget about cooking because he was taking me out to a fancy dinner. And what did I say? Yaaaaaaaay!!! That’s what! 
Our first stop:
Glazed and Amused—A “make-your-own-pottery” place. We’ve never been there before, but always wanted to go! See? Dreams do come true…if you have realistic, affordable ones 
We decided to make a “surprise” gift for each other. We both picked cute little soup bowls (the ones that have room for crackers on the side). And for a while I tried really hard not to peek, but it’s seriously impossible to not be interested when The Squarehead is doing art! He is SO hilarious!!
You should’ve seen/heard him mumbling under his nose the whole time! Just like a grouchy old man!
I guess he wanted to paint a sunflower (since that’s my favorite flower), but he says it turned out like a withering weed in the desert. What?
I kept reassuring him that I’ll love it no matter what, because HE made it….but ya think it helped?? The guy cracks me up. 
Stop no. 2 for the night was this fancy place. Some of my friends really like to eat here, so we thought we’d give it a try. So glad we did because they have amazing food, as we found out later. 
We decided to sit outside which was an awesome choice, because after a while we had the whole patio for ourselves! It was SO awesome! I love eating fancy meals on the streets! Haha. It felt a little bit like Europe. 
I got one of their vegetarian options, the Asian Bowl, with a side salad. Wow! It was SO amazingly good!!! Stir fry oriental veggies and sushi rice, topped with sliced almonds, wasabi sauce, bean sprouts and a pineapple ginger glaze. Yumm! Seriously the BEST restaurant meal I have ever had!! I’m not kidding you. 
The Squarhead decided to go with seafood, so he got their wood-fired oven roasted “Cedar Planked Alaskan Coho Salmon”, served on rice and oriental veggies. I stole a couple of bites when he wasn’t looking and it was truly phenomenal! Big bow to the chefs of 91! Amazing job on that salmon.
Stop #3 of the night was Starbucks, for dessert of course.
Their frappuccino blended beverages are SO good!! TS got a Caramel one and I got the Strawberry’n Creme one with soy milk, coconut flakes and nutmeg. Yummyyyyyy!!!!!!! 
Then we jumped on this speedy, wild red horse, and went home. 
No, not really. We just took a picture of it with a sigh
But we did go home! And opened some gifts. 
What a perfect night! And I don’t even have to kiss my handsome prince good bye!! He is here to stay! For ever and ever! Happily ever after!!! Yaaaay! A never-ending date. That’s what I’m talking about!
But right now reality is calling my name. And reality tells me that daydreaming doesn’t put bread on the table.
I’m working in a few hours and I still need to do a hundred things till then. Time to switch gears and get going. Zoomm-zoomm………….out.
Healthy Avocado Cole Slaw Recipe
What you’ll need:
•½ head of cabbage, finely shredded
•2 carrots, grated
•1 avocado, mashed (OR use 2 Tbsp of Earth Balance light mayo instead)
•2 celery ribs, chopped well
•4 green onions, thinly sliced
•3 radishes
•2 Tbsp ground mustard
•one pack of Stevia
•1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar (or lime juice)
Seasonings:
•1 tsp sea salt
•1/4 teaspoon pepper
•1 tsp garlic powder
•1 tsp paprika
•1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
•3 Tbsp water
•Fresh herbs (cilantro/parsley for garnish)
What you’ll do:
1 Shred/grate/chop up all the veggies by hand (or in a food processor).
2 Add the mashed avocado (this adds a really creamy texture and nutty flavor to it) and whisk in the rest of the ingredients. If you’d like a creamier and smoother texture, use your blender.
3 Toss in the seasonings and garnish with some fresh herbs. It’s great on top of salads, or eat as a side dish.
Avocados are really healthy, but usually pretty expensive. So try to stock up when they are on sale! Mash them with some lime juice to prevent discoloring and freeze them in little zip lock bags for later. I do it all the time and it works!
Quick & Delish Spaghetti Dinner Recipe
“A very wise man (my husband) said this once: “The point of good experimentation is good documentation.” I’m pretty sure he was referring to his nerdy scientific experiments, but I right away applied it to my own little “adventures” in the kitchen. Why not? The guy is a genius, so he’s probably right! What’s the point of creating an awesome recipe, if you can’t make it the 2nd time? People often ask for my recipes when we go to brunches and I’m always so embarrassed when I’m not able to recall more than 3-4 of them. Well, this has got to change! So here is to new beginnings! Cheers!
Last night I ended up whipping up a really quick, but delicious spaghetti dinner. And guess what I had in my hands the whole time? That’s right! Paper & pen!!!! It will take some getting used to, but it’s not beyond the bounds of possibility
To make it, this is what I used (in this order) :
▶ Whole grain thin spaghetti pasta
▶ a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
▶ 1 medium size onion, chopped
▶ 2 pounds lean ground beef/turkey/soaked TVP (whichever you prefer)
▶ 1 1/2 cup warm water (until meat is covered) 
And some condiments/spices:
▶ 1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes (mine was already salted a little)
▶ 2 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
▶ 2 teaspoons garlic powder
▶ 1 teaspoon salt
▶ 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (a mix of Marjoram, Basil, Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary)
▶ 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
▶ 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper 
For toppings and decorating you can use:
▶ Fresh oregano, cilantro or basil leaves
▶ Sliced, pitted black olives
▶ Shredded cheese of your choice
Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well. Set aside and cover to keep warm. 
2. In a separate pan sauté the onions with a little olive oil and add your choice of meat. Cook until meat is brown.
3. Add warm water and cook on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes. 
4. Stir in the can of crushed tomatoes into meat mixture. Add the rest of the ingredients as well. Bring to a boil while stirring it occasionally.
5. Cover and simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes. 
6. Serve hot over noodles, with sour cream and/or cheese.
It tastes even better with a side of fresh strawberry-spinach salad! TS would def. agree with that statement. I mean, just look at the guy! You would think that the poor fella is never ever fed!!
Served with my cute little hand-painted Hungarian spatulas. Aww. A little piece of home 
7. Garnish with olives and fresh herbs if you’d like.
Or just wear it on your back. It’s entirely up to you how you choose to serve it.
Productive and rewarding!!
Hello ‘y’all!! (No, I don’t live in the south but I think southern people are pretty awesome!)
Today I had a very productive day (!!!) and the day is not even over yet! So yeah. I kinda feel pretty cool about that!
Made breakfast √
Went to work √
Did some grocery shopping √
Made some important phone calls and was able to set up a few crucial appointments √
Cleaned some and did the dishes √
Had an awesome lunch √
Did some homework and quizzing for my online Business class that are due tonight √
Got my 50 minutes of weight session in (in my living room while listening to this and this √
Cooked a delish, healthy dinner for tonight √
Had a little snacky to hold me over until dinner √
And I even had time to do my nails!!! √
Breakfast: raspberry ice tea with whole wheat hot cereal, cooked in vanilla soy milk and topped with low-fat cottage cheese, apricot fruit spread and chia seeds.
And French toast for my dear Squarehead hubby: 
Lunch for one: a whole wheat tortilla, piled with raw veggies (lettuce, spinach, green pepper, mushrooms, celery and tomatoes), topped with a teaspoon of horseradish, shredded carrots and cayenne seasoning. 
Crunchy snacky: vanilla coffee with air popped corn kernels, sprinkled with sea salt and nutritional yeast (for a cheesy flavor). 
Dinner on the menu: baked tofu with slow-cooked navy beans, raw celery & tomato, and grilled, spicy veggies.
And now I’m off to classes, in this yuck-yuck weather! 
Q: Are you doing anything interesting or productive on this cheerless, clouded day?
See ya later!
<º))))>< Reka
It’s another “Funday”!
Well hi there! Hope your weekend is/was a fabulous one!
Mine was pretty busy actually. Since I have school on Saturdays, the weekends fly bye SO quickly. But TS and I always make sure that we squeeze in as much fun as we can on Sundays. We usually refer to Sundays as “Fundays”, because they are def. by far the funest days of the week!! By the way, check out this wrestling match! Before, I didn’t even have the slightest chance, but lifting weights finally started to pay off! YEAAAH!!
Church was awesome this morning (as always)! I get so excited about the worship and about refueling my “spiritual tank” for the week! 
Even Nora baba was excited to go! 
Today is the LAAAAAST (!!!) day of my one-week, “spring cleaning” detox diet. At least for a while. (That deserves a big Halleluia!!) I usually try to do a week of detox every 3-4 months (Sometimes a little more often if I’ve been sick or having low energy levels).
During the detox week I drink lots of liquids (water, tea, pureed soups, smoothies, freshly squeezed 100% fruit and veggie juices, etc.), eliminate anything heavy to digest from my diet (dairy, pasta, nuts, etc.) and replace them with loads of liver-friendly, raw foods (veggies, fruits, etc.).
Although my detox diet is more of a “raw-food” diet than a restricting one, I try to NEVER exceed 10 days at a time. Not only that it’s not healthy to go for longer than that, (at least that’s what I read), but I just don’t think I could exist without my my super-duper nut butters for that long! 
So for breakfast today I had an awesome, green VitaDrink! A handful of celery (with the leaves on), some spinach, 5 big strawberries, a few carrots, a ripe banana, vanilla flavored almond milk and some pumpkin spice for taste.
Blend it well….and breakfast is served! It’s not just easy, but very healthy and cleansing too! Love it!! Perfect choice for grab-and-go meals! 
Some particularly good detoxifiers are the following: carrots, celery, apples, beets, broccoli, grapefruits, wheatgrass, lemons, and TONS of other ones too. I also take different kinds of natural, herbal supplements all year round, like Psyllium Husk, Licorice, Dandelion, Nettle leaf, Lemon balm, Ginger, Chamomile, Cayenne, Echinacea, Goldenseal root, Green tea, Milk thistle and Açaí. These digestive herbs help break nutrients down and eliminate waste and toxins from the digestive system. You can take them as supplements or just drink them as tea if you don’t mind that some of them taste pretty bitter.
I’m happy to announce that this week I met my goal of 300 minutes of exercise!!! I keep a little chart during the week, which helps me stay on track.
Here is a little break-down of the week:
| Monday |
Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| 65 min. | 60 min. | 50 min. | 66 min. | 56 min. | REST | 45 min. |
That is a total of 342 minutes!! So that would be an average of 57 min/day for this week, right? Hmm. That’s not bad at all, considering the schedule I’ve been having lately. So, I guess I’m happy with that. Maybe next week I should make my goal 400 minutes? We’ll see.
OK, time to plan and pre-cook the meals for the week now! I usually do that on Sundays to save time on eats during weekdays. It helps to write a list of ideas ahead (I’m such a “list person!”) and brainstorm, based on: what’s in the fridge/pantry, what we feel like eating and what really needs to be cooked soon. 
Then, since it’s SO pretty out there (I think winter might be finally over!!), we might go to the park later. I SO love the park on Sundays! Cute, old couples holding hands, kids feeding the birds with their dads, teenager girls jogging and mommies pushing baby strollers. I feel like I’m part of one, big happy family! 
Also, TS really wants to see the movie ‘Unknown’ tonight. It’s supposed to be a suspense movie about a guy whose identity was stolen. Have you seen it? Would you recommend it? I’m not a big fan of suspense movies, but the boy came with me to soooo many chick flicks already that I feel it’s def. my turn today.
I guess it’s called sacrificial love, right? For better or for worse. And in this case: “for worse”! Hahah! (Don’t tell him I said that).
Enjoy your evening and stay healthy!
<º))))>< Reka
Ds 4 Ds :)
It feels so amazing to be home after a long week of work and school! I usually don’t like to be by myself a whole lot, but right now it feels SO awesome! I’m listening to some soothing tunes of smooth jazz by Jane Monheit and Renee Olstead (wonderful artists!) and enjoying this delightful, colorful source of nourishment: butternut squash soup (seasoned with Cayenne), sided with the perfect veggie nest (sliced carrots and iceberg lettuce). For toppings I used: raisins, sesame seeds, smoked TVP and some juicy orange wedges. Not just cleansing and nutritious, but outstanding combo of flavors, if I may say so myself!!
To be completely honest with you (you won’t get upset, right?), I didn’t really feel like doing a post today. I usually can’t wait to sit down with my laptop, edit some photos and update you about my day, but today I have a huuuge business test to take online. So that means that I’ll probably be on the computer for hours studying the online materials! Blah! That’s way, waaay too much online time even for a net-junkie like me! 
However, I can’t help but think of the two/three of you, HefiA fans out there who constantly ask me about the next post and always wait for it so anxiously. I just want you to know that I SO appreciate your interest and support in my blog and my whole journey to health. You’re the BESTEST fans and support group ever!! So give yourself a pat on the shoulder! You sure deserve it! 
This morning my detox breakfast consisted of some fresh cleansing fruits (grapefruit and kiwi), celery, raw garlic (to be swallowed in whole), plenty of water and a mix of cayenne pepper & diluted apple cider vinegar drink—these stimulate digestive juices and help cleanse the colon. A perfect way to start a new day
“Donuts for Dads” (Ds4Ds) was a big hit today I think. We played with our awesome toys, made some cool crafts (mini puppet stage, flag stand and bird feeder) and shaved our very patient dads. Funfunfun!!!!!!
Then we made coffee (by the way, coffee makers are so awesome!!), and had lots of sugary choices, like punch and soft, sweet donuts……
…but I was good and had this instead: 
Now it’s time to hit the gym in my lovely “I love my husband, because God first loved me” T-shirt. I love wearing it to the gym where all these macho, all-muscle guys are looking for young, single chicks to impress. Sorry boys. I’m taken. Fish somewhere else.
If you’re European, you might think it’s a lame trick to wear a shirt for “safety” reasons, but here, in America people actually read each other’s shirts!! Weird, huh? 
Then, for the rest of the night I will be studying for the exam. Exciting? Not really!
Anyways, wish me luck! I need to get an A! 
See you tomorrow. Hope you’re Friday evening is more adventurous than mine. Are you doing anything interesting that I should be jealous of?
<º))))>< Reka
