VegOut! Challenge

For this challenge, I have 30 days to eat 30 different vegetables, but I don't think it will take me that long! Today is day 5 of the VegOut! Challenge and I've already had 12 different vegetables. Here's what I've had so far:

I started on Saturday, March 1st with a  healthy breakfast. One fried egg over easy topped with salsa and served with avocado (Veggie #1) and grilled Tomatoes (Veggie #2) and White Onions (Veggie #3).

I went to Mardi Gras the rest of the weekend so didn't worry about the VegOut! Challenge. On Monday, I was back at it:

For lunch on March 3, I made Okra Stew served over rice. In it I pan cooked Okra (Veggie #4), Chives (Veggie #5), Celery (Veggie #6), Green Bell Peppers (Veggie #7), Garlic (Veggie # 8), Eggplant (Veggie #9) and a few other vegetables that I've already counted like White Onion and canned Tomatoes.

For a snack that afternoon, I had more vegetables!

I love eating vegetables with either ranch, peanut butter or hummus. On Monday, I added Cucumbers (Veggie #10) to my veggie log.

For dinner on Tuesday, March 4, I made one of our favorite meals:

This is wasabi and soy marinated tuna steaks, cooked with tomatoes and onions and topped with avocado. For sides, we had wasabi and soy mashed Russet Potatoes (Veggie #11) and fish sauce Brussels Sprouts (Veggie #12).

All in all, this VegOut! Challenge has been fairly easy. It has challenged me to be more creative and more complex. I'm a very simple cook, meaning I can make a meal with anything I find in my kitchen. This has caused me to add more ingredients to normal meals and grocery shop more frequently.

So far, I've been sticking with the veggies that I know and love. But, I can't wait to add a few new vegetables that I don't cook or eat very often like: Bean Sprouts, Cabbage, Edamame, Daikon, Mustard Greens, Kale, Turnips and more!

The Big Kahuna Tuna

My mother, sister and I invented this tuna steak sandwich three years ago: The Big Kahuna Tuna! We call it this, because it is packed high with thick tuna steak, sauteed onions and tomatoes, wasabi, soy sauce and avocado all piled on a hamburger bun or Hawaiian sweet bun.

This has turned into one of our favorite meals. But, since we're dieting we can't have our Big Kahuna Tuna and avocado fries. Instead, we made this low-calorie, delicious option:

 

 

For under 500 calories,  you can enjoy baked (skinless) sweet potato fries and a bread-less Big Kahuna Tuna! Here's how we did it:

1. Cover your thawed or fresh tuna steaks with salt and pepper and allow them to marinate in soy sauce and wasabi while you prep the rest of the meal.
2. Preheat your oven to 375.
3. Peel the skin off of one sweet potato and dice the potato into very thin, long strips.
4. Toss these strips in a bowl with olive oil and other seasonings of choice. We use: black pepper, garlic salt, cayenne and smoke seasoning.
5. Cover a pan with aluminum foil, spray with pam and spread the fries out.
6. Place fries in the oven and allow to bake for 30 minutes.
7. After 15 minutes of baking, start working on your sandwich. Chop 1 onion, 1 tomato and 1 avocado. Place onions and tomatoes in a skillet on med-high and saute with olive oil and soy sauce. After the onions are translucent (approximately 5 minutes) add in your Tuna Steaks.
8. Cook tuna steaks for 2 minutes on each side for rare and up to 3 minutes and 30 seconds on each side for well-done.
9. Plate your food by first putting down your tuna steaks then topping with cooked veggies, avocadom fresh wasabi and more soy sauce. Add a side of fries and you are good to go!
10. ENJOY!