Hi there =)
We had a really tiring and physical day, but we also had a fun time today. We spent a couple hours in the basement sanding (no pics yet, too much dust) and then almost 4 hours doing yard work. Weeding, mowing the lawn, pruning, removing dead shrubs/vines, etc! Eric said I did a great job today. I beamed with pride (usually I have no confidence with renos and yard work type endeavors!)
A weed-free garden is a peaceful garden!
The weeds were out of control as we haven’t had any time to weed in over a month!
I think these beds need some flowers! All the perennials have come and gone this season. It is sad when their bloom is complete!
Blue Jay feather…we have lots of Blue jays around here.
I also discovered a love for pruning…
I went a bit crazy, as you would expect.
I sculpted, I designed, I made art. I love pruning because it appeals to my artistic side. I also love symmetrical objects. Very feng shui. Eric kept walking by and chuckling to himself because he said he’s never seen someone have so much fun while pruning before. What can I say, I whistle while I work!
While I was busy weeding and pruning, he was pulling out half dead shrubs and vines covering the house.
Even though the work was hot and sweaty and not ideal for a day off, we made it fun by enjoying each other’s company. We actually had a great time out there. Many hands make the work light, or however that saying goes! ;)
After admiring our work, we came in and were starving, so I got started on dinner right away.
I made a vegan version of my favourite 7 layer tortilla pie (aka Mexican Lasagna!). It is delish both ways and I highly recommend it!
Mexican Tortilla Pie
Adapted from 7 layer tortilla pie.
Ingredients:
- 2 (15 ounce) cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup salsa, divided
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 (15 ounce) can refried beans
- 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
- 7 (8 inch) flour tortillas
- 1/2-3/4 cup Mae’s humnut cheese sauce
- Dried parsley, to garnish
- Enchilada sauce (I used for top layer)
Mae’s Humnut Cheese* (adapted)
- 2-3 tbsp hummus
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- A pinch of turmeric if you like your cheese yellow
- water to thin
[*Note: I tripled her humnut cheese recipe.]
Directions: Preheat oven to 400F. In a large bowl, mash pinto beans. Stir in 3/4 cup salsa and garlic. In a separate bowl, mix together 1/4 cup salsa, cilantro, refried beans and tomatoes. Place 1 tortilla in a greased pie plate or tart dish. Spread 3/4 cup pinto bean mixture over tortilla to within 1/2 inch of edge. Top with 1/4 cup humnut cheese, and cover with another tortilla. Spread with 2/3 cup refried beans, and top with 1/4 cup humnut cheese. Repeat layering twice. Cover with remaining tortilla, and spread with remaining pinto bean mixture, humnut cheese, and enchilada sauce. Cook for about 35 minutes. Serves 6.
I didn’t have 7 tortillas or refried beans, so I made an adapted version, but it still worked out!
I had two slices and Eric had THREE! We were hungry monstaaaaas. In our case, it did not serve 6 as the recipe suggests! lol. It depends on how hungry you are I guess.
Eric said ‘If you keep cooking like this I won’t ever need to eat meat again!’ , as he shoveled in the pie.
I’m not so sure that will ever happen, but he has cut down meat about 75-80% and he says he doesn’t really miss it. I get a TON of questions about Eric’s diet- in fact, it is probably one of the most frequently asked questions as of late. I think he needs to start a blog! ;)
Eric does love a good beef burger, so I don’t think he would ever give up meat entirely (or maybe I am wrong here)… and that is fine by me. I will support him, just like he supports my choices. I don’t think that everyone needs to be 100% meat-free to make a difference. The fact that he is now making healthier choices than he once did, is a positive step and makes a huge impact on the system and his health. Small changes add up to something big! I truly believe this. I don’t think that everyone’s ‘end goal’ should be a vegan diet, but I do support awareness and consciousness about our food choices and the opportunity to feel our best with what we put into our bodies. I guess you could say I am pro-educated choice!
Do you live with someone and if so, do you share the same ‘diet’ or do you have different eating habits, opinions on what you eat, and different taste preferences? Is it difficult, easy, fun, creative, annoying?
we eat the same…it’s easer that way
That looks so good. I did a bunch of yard work and gardening yesterday also.
I live on my own, but, I am the only vegetarian in my family. If I have family over for dinner sometimes I will do a vegetarian meal for everyone or I will cook them meat, its my choice not to eat meat, so I don’t like pushing others. When I have dinner at my brothers he comes up with great veggie meals, he says I am annoying (I hope he is joking), but, as I said to him, when you don’t eat meat, you have to be creative with your meals or food becomes boring. I love alot of your recipes, last night I made the pizza’s, they were so yummy.
I’m a 100% organic Vegetarian. My Husband would eat beef and/or fast food for every meal if possible!
Before we got married I dont even think he ate vegetables….
Now he’ll eat basic salads, cucumbers, carrots, and celery ;)
I’m working on him little by little!
I don’t mind that our eating is so opposite. I’l take a great guy that eats (Horrible)
than a Guy that has other much horrible habits yets eats healthy ;)
haha so true
Me=exercise and eat healthy. Boyfriend=doesn’t exercise nor eat healthy. His food tempts me sometimes and I have to plan ahead when we go out to eat or else it’s a disaster. At home it’s much easier to eat the chicken or whatever meat he cooks and substitute his Rice-a-Roni for my veggies or hummus, whatever I’m having. It’s sad to me because I would like to him to live healthier, but I try to lead by example instead of lecture. At least I have him eating fruit ;)
That tortilla pie looks amazing! I’ll be trying that in the very
near future. While there aren’t any different food preferences in our household, I am lactose intolerant and my husband is not. He’s learning to live without mozarella and cream and all the other yummy dairy he’s used to.
That looks delicious! Throughout university I’ve had a total of 5 roommates, and my eating habits have been very different from all of them. The best way to describe it is that they were all “cupboard-people”, and I’m more of a “fridge person” – the majority of their foods were packaged and needed to be stored in the cupboards, whereas mine tend to be a ton of fruit, veg, meats and dairy, and need to be stored in the fridge. Also, all of my past and current roommates are all about convenience, and think it’s odd that I ‘cook real meals’ (which to them usually means something in the oven, or something that actually involves more than 5 mins of preparation) on a regular basis. There’s nothing really annoying about it… just different I guess!
Oh wow! That Mexican Lasagna looks amazing! I all the sudden want to stop my dinner plans just to make this. Absolutely going on my list of “to make” this week.
Well, I exercise and eat healthy. I’m working on getting over an eating disorder and body image issues and such, so it’s a process. My husband is the exact opposite! It’s pretty..difficult sometimes I think. Mainly because I want him to exercise with me and he wants no part of it!
I am all for ‘pro-choice’ as well. We have many friends who are vegetarian or vegan even though along with our dairy we raise Natural Beef. My family is a beef eating family and when we have parties at our house, we are sure to have enough vegan and beef choices for everyone to enjoy :)
My husband and I have very similar eating habits and preferences, which I’m so thankful for. We both agree we could never give up meat completely, but love venturing into more and more vegetarian type meals. It just started happening without us even realizing it!
And I hate doing yard work. I can handle things inside the house all day long, but yardwork just gets to me.
Currently my husband eats what I make for the most part- which has been leaning vegetarian for no particular reason. At one point we actually were making completely seperate meals because he wanted a high protein diet that included meat, and I decided to go a low-calorie route. I guess you could say we’re flexible at life changes.
Love how your flower beds came out! Very nice and that dinner looks amazing!
My husband and I have VERY different eating habits. I try to eat clean most of the time, but the hubby definitely doesn’t.
He is great however with trying anything “healthy” that I make. He usually ends up loving it too. He just can’t kick his McDonald’s habit though…or that potato chip one :)
My husband is a total carnivore, but he also respects that I do the cooking and food shopping around here, which means that he eats what I make! So, he ends up eating a vegetarian diet at least 5 days a week, simply because I’m in control of dinners, etc. If you asked him, he probably would claim he’d rather have a burger, but secretly I think he likes eating a clean, healthy, meat-free diet the majority of the time. I know it gives him more energy, and it makes having a special treat on the weekend (like that burger, for instance) all the more enjoyable.
Oh what a touchy subject! My boyfriend will tell anyone that I have completely taken over “his” kitchen, and that there is nothing to eat! He is a part time vegan, he’ll eat what I make him, but as soon as we go out to dinner, fish or chicken appears! Just last night we tried out a new restaurant, and our appetizer came out with cheese on it. I let it slide and picked the cheese off. Then came the dinner, cheese again! I had to send it back. Then he proceeds to ask, “can’t you just get over it and eat the cheese. It won’t kill you.” In my mind I reached across the table and shook him violently! Obviously I just sat and smiled while waiting for the correct meal!
My boyfriend and I couldn’t be more different with food – first, I love it, can spent hours in markets, read recipe books in bed etc. He is not interested at all. To him it’s just fuel, not something to be thought over and really enjoyed. I’m vegan, he’s a meat eater. I don’t have any caffeine, carbonated drinks or junk food (though I do have a love for Teddy Grahams) – he lives on Mountain Dew and for the first year we were together would have junk food for every meal. He’s starting to make more healthy changes, and gave up junk food almost completely. I’m looking forward to the day when he eats a piece of fruit or some salad!
Also wanted to say I love your blog and find it so inspirational – I’m an academic researcher too, and after a particularly difficult year professionally and personally and have been trying to reassess my options/choices so it’s great to see the changes you’ve made!
Thank you Anna!
My Fiance and I live together and we have slowly adapted to similar eating habits. No one wants to make two dinners (cooking one meal for two is hard enough as it is!) and he usually eats whatever I do, unless its something he doesn’t like, then he goes for a PB&J :) I think as we changed our eating habits to become more healthy, meat just hasn’t been as abundant as it used to be. I think without even realizing it, we’ve cut our meat consumption to about once a day…and surprisingly are really okay with it.
My roommate and I eat in similar ways, but I think living with a friend is way different than living with a boyfriend/husband/significant other, especially since she and I prepare our own meals separately. But we do influence each other.. if I see something delicious-looking on her shelf in the refrigerator, I sometimes go out and buy it for myself the next day. Some sets of roommates I know -always- cook together, but with our schedules I just don’t see how that would work!
I live with my boyfriend and he has really reduced the amount of meat and overly processed foods since we moved in together! I’m still trying to get him to live veggies and to eat something besides hot dogs if I don’t cook something for him :) baby steps…
what shoes are you wearing in the garden pics? are they white converse? they look cute!
They are Nike Frees from 2008 :) Tks!