Refreshing Tomato and Cucumber Salad

Weird fact: This is my secret blog. It's not entirely secret; my whole family and a few friends know about it - but that's it. Why? I'm not really sure. Maybe it's just because this blog is not as polished as I would like it to be yet, maybe it's just because I'm self-conscious about the fact that it exists for some reason.

I'm sure that I'll share this blog with more people, but for now I end up sneakily taking photos of my food when no one is home or awake. Luckily, my roommates mostly seem to sleep until noon so I often see no signs of life before leaving for the day. It does mean that my posting schedule is a little erratic. Most food bloggers seem to schedule their cooking around blogging; I cook when I want food and then hope that I'll get a chance to take a picture before I've eaten the whole dish or it has been in the fridge for so long that it no longer looks appetizing.

This probably makes it harder for me to achieve the consistency that I want in this blog, and therefore makes it less likely for me to share it. I guess I've created a bit of a cycle of positive feedback, but for now it is what it is. This salad, for example, was made yesterday and then smuggled into my room this morning for some photos before I ate it for breakfast. And by breakfast, I mean second breakfast. Don't judge.

This salad is so refreshing - the bright and tangy flavours from the herbs and lemon juice go well with the fresh and hydrating vegetables (or fruits, if you want to be technical) and the red onion and seeds add a little extra crunch for texture. Plus, it's so easy to make.

Simple and light, this salad is perfect for summer. It is somewhat inspired by greek salad - the lemon, herbs, and salt make the tofu somewhat reminiscent of feta. If you want to go further towards a greek salad, add some olives or even feta. I used tofu for the protein content (which also makes this vegan) but adding feta and removing some or all of the tofu would also be delicious - just be sure to adjust the salt and lemon quantities accordingly.

Ingredients

• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 1 English cucumber, chopped
• 1/3 red onion, chopped
• 1 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 package extra-firm silken tofu
• 2 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 cup lemon juice, to taste
• 2 tsp salt, to taste
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Directions

1. Chop fresh vegetables and herbs and mix together in a salad bowl.

2. Dice tofu, and mix with 3tbsp lemon juice, dried herbs, and salt.

3. Add tofu mixture to vegetables and mix. Taste, and add additional lemon juice to salad if desired.

4. If making in advance, leave the salad in the fridge until you are ready to eat it. This salad stores well as the flavours infuse the tofu more over time, but it can also be eaten immediately.

5. Add sunflower seeds just before serving, and enjoy!

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Creamy Roasted Vegetable and Bulghur Salad

I've been feeling kind of ineffective lately. I'm used to having a regular training schedule requiring me to be awake and present somewhere at ridiculous hours of the morning (last summer I left home at 4:15am to get to practice on time), or at least a full time class schedule which I have to plan my schedule around. Right now, I have a couple of hours of class in the afternoon, train at random times depending on how my ankle is feeling, whether I can get on the water, when I work, and when I drag myself out of bed. For some reason this lack of structure leads to a lot of sleeping in and a lot of forgetting to bring lunches. An accident which sometimes wonderfully results in me buying myself falafels to eat for lunch. I know they're fried, but they can't be thaat bad for you, right? Chickpeas, herbs, in a wrap filled with vegetables... regardless, they are oh-so-delicious.

The one time that I tried to make falafels, I didn't have too much success, so I decided to go a different route. The idea for this salad started off as a kind of deconstructed falafel concept - chickpeas, cilantro, parsley, onion, tahini. In reality, it is not really falafel-like in the slightest. It is, however, delicious. The smoky, spicy and flavourful roasted vegetables and warm, garlicky toasted bulghur and chickpeas are a hearty and delicious base, coated with a smooth, lemony and creamy tahini and herb sauce. This tastes decadent and rich, but is actually very healthy and full
of protein since the sauce is made creamy using silken tofu.

This is really easy to toss into a jar in my backpack for lunch, as it tastes good cold as well as warm. It is also, unfortunately, really easy to forget said jar in the fridge. I guess I will have to go buy more falafels...

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup uncooked bulghur wheat
• 1 can chickpeas
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp paprika
• salt, to taste

• 1 eggplant, diced
• 1 zucchini, diced
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp salt, adjust as desired
• 1/2 tsp cayenne, adjust as desired
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red pepper, diced

• 1 container silken tofu, firm
• 3 tbsp tahini
• 1 small bunch parsley, chopped (about 1.5 cups)
• 1 small bunch cilantro, chopped (about 1.5 cups)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice

Directions:

1. Pour boiling water over bulghur, cover, and let sit for at least 20 minutes.

2. Place eggplant, zucchini, onion, garlic, paprika, cayenne, salt, and olive oil in a bowl or dish, and toss to combine. 

3. Roast vegetables in a pan or on a cookie sheet for 15 minutes. Add red pepper, toss vegetables, and roast for another 10 minutes or until they are thoroughly roasted.

4. While vegetables are roasting, combine tofu, tahini, parsley, cilantro and lemon juice in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.

5. Melt coconut oil on a pan, and add garlic. Add drained, cooked barley and chickpeas, garlic, paprika, and salt. Sauté for a few minutes until most of the water from the barley has evaporated and it begins to turn a deeper golden colour.

6. To serve, either mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl, or layer roasted vegetables on top of barley and chickpea mix, and spoon the dressing on top of the vegetables.

Notes: Be sure to add a decent amount of salt and spice to the vegetables and barley, since the sauce is very cool and creamy. Make the vegetables more spicy than you would normally want so that the spice still comes through.

Change up the vegetables if you want, or add more. If I made this again, I would probably make it a little more vegetable-heavy.

Do NOT skip the toasting step for the bulghur and chickpeas. The first time I ate this it was a little watery and bland - good, but not great. Luckily I had stored my three parts in separate containers, so I toasted the barley and chickpeas with the garlic, paprika, and coconut oil, which really added depth to the dish and made it fantastic.

I am sure that you can sub another grain for the bulghur - quinoa would be my first choice, but barley, cous-cous, or probably even rice would work; you could probably also serve it over bread or in a pita. This is also good over fresh baby spinach as more of a green salad, if you so desire.

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Cilantro & Lime Quinoa Salad

Happy Easter, everyone! Though I am missing out on my family's Easter celebrations, Good Friday was indeed a good day with some beautiful weather. I spent the morning volunteering at a local meals-on-wheels kitchen, where I made 50 servings of finely-chopped fruit salad and a lot of beets. I am a relatively new volunteer at this organization, but I love the sense of community and the assortment of people who come together to provide sustainable and affordable food for those who need it. And even though chopping fruit is not exactly a test of my culinary creativity, there is something nice about just being in the kitchen and knowing that you are providing people with nourishment.

The gym was closed and it was a gorgeous and sunny spring day, so I grabbed my bike and headed down to the track to get out of the spin room and breathe some fresh air during my workout. I have to admit, I felt a little silly listening to the somewhat-ominous sounds emanating from my supercycle as actual cyclists zoomed past on their fancy bikes, but it was still a really nice way to spend a couple of hours outside. I must admit though, I really really miss running and rowing and feeling strong and competent during my workouts.

To finish off my day, I had a lovely vegetarian dinner with a friend. She made some delicious tofu veggie patties, and I brought over this quinoa salad. It had been in my fridge for a couple of days, so I livened it up by mixing in the diced flesh of two small avocados and a few handfuls of chickpeas - additions which I highly recommend.

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