Gaining Comfort in Good Food {Soy Curl Fajitas, Tempeh Loaf w/ Rutabaga Fries & Glorious Fruit!}
The last month has definitely had some highs and lows, but this week I hit a big low. Last weekend was fantastic. Beautiful weather. Lots of time outside. I’m usually home for the most part on weekends anyway, so it didn’t feel too surreal like most days do anymore. The beginning of the week was equally as good. Then I woke up yesterday morning and just couldn’t get out of a funk. Both mentally and physically I felt low energy and melancholy. Luckily I got a good night of sleep last night, and another day of meaningful meditation seemed to start putting my spirit to rights. Talking to some wonderful pals online who have experience similar emotions of course didn’t hurt either.
I think we’re all allowed some of those roller coaster emotions right now, no matter how silly the trigger may be. My youngest sister’s birthday is tomorrow, and of course it is Easter weekend. This marks the final sister (I’m the middle of three) celebrating a birthday without the family around. For whatever reason, it just made me sad this week. We’re all healthy and financially stable, so part of me felt guilty for feeling the way I did. I know many people suffering in many more ways so my pain seems quite trivial in comparison. But I’m ok with being sad for a day because I really want to hug someone other than my boyfriend.
Today I’m back to focusing on one of the things that can always lift my spirits and make me feel good–food! I do consider myself extremely lucky that my usual cooking has not suffered one bit as I have still had access to my regular shopping spots. I’ll be hitting the kitchen here shortly to finish off my farmers market goodies from last week before going tomorrow morning and picking up the latest pre-ordered fruits and veggies. I also decided to splurge a wee bit and order from one of my favorite local vegan restaurants to help support them during these tough times in the service industry. They are offering a full vegan Easter dinner plate to pickup tomorrow to cook at home on Sunday. I’m looking forward to @dksart and I enjoying something a little special. Perhaps we can even Zoom the family to break bread.
Until then, I thought I’d share a few of my totally comforting and delicious meals from this past week. The meal above made me think about some of the former @foodfightfriday champs, @dandays and @puravidaville, so I couldn’t help but jump in on the first Friday back to share it. A classic tempeh loaf that graces my table on many occasions, paired with some delicious baked rutabaga fries that my fellow root-veggie-loving friend very much enjoys. Rutabagas are not quite the same as regular spuds, but they are pretty darn good in their own right!
Of course I couldn’t forget the green stuff, and more of those amazing fresh strawberries that are just coming into season right now. To go along with the main plate I made a satisfying side salad with mixed greens, fresh berries, and baked beets and Brussels sprouts. All topped off with a fruity vinaigrette. Total comfort food in my humble opinion.
The other highlight of the week was definitely these soy curl fajitas. Holy moly were they good! I just cooked up some red onion and bell peppers with lots of spices, then tossed in my rehydrated soy curls to the mix. A simple cabbage slaw, salsa and some herbs from the garden for garnish topped off the veggie mixture. Nothing really fancy when you break it down, but looks just as good as they tasted with all the pretty colors mixed together.
Of course they were delicious in some whole grain tortillas, but I also ate some of the mixture on top of mixed greens for a hearty salad. I’m also trying not to go shopping more than once a week, so we didn’t have enough tortillas for all the filling that I made. Kind of feels like a different meal for some variety with the leftovers anyway!
Looking back, it was a pretty darn good cooking week. I will absolutely enjoy my special Easter meal from Cafe Sunflower, but I will also very much look forward to the continued joy of making more meals in the P2P kitchen in the week ahead. Shoot, one of my farmers has the first fresh asparagus of the year. If that doesn’t make a foodie gal happy, I don’t know what will. 😜
Wishing you all a happy Passover or Easter weekend for those who celebrate, or just a darn good weekend if you don’t.
