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Tag: foodie
Favorite Snacks while driving for Lyft
Some of you may know that one of my hustles is driving for Lyft, which I actually enjoy quite a bit. I have met some really awesome people and had some very enlightening conversations with people from all over the world. Sometimes I drive really long hours, 8 plus. And of course driving that long, I have to have snacks to keep my energy up and sometimes to keep me occupied and awake. So my snacks change all the time, but as of right now, these are my favorite go to snacks.
Because I am an avid shopper at the Asian grocery stores in my area, I am always finding new foods to try out that I have never even imagine. One of these would be dried or dehydrated sweet potatoes. Now sweet potatoes is one of my top favorite foods and to have it in a dehydrated form, I wasn’t to sure about. But I found this Asian brand and the only ingredient is sweet potatoes.
That is important to note because I found some other brands that had preservatives and such in them.
Of course when I find something I really like, it seems everyone around here stopped selling it, so I found another brand which ingredients are sweet potatoes and honey;
although a bit sweeter than first brand, it is still very tasty.
These dehydrated veggies are not only good, but they are good for you, loaded with lots of vitamins and minerals, and they last along time.
Another snack I have really been favoriting is Pocky, Chocolate Almond Crush flavor.
These little yummy are dangerous, because I find myself not being able to eat just two or three. This box comes with two plastic packs inside with 6 stick per pack. They are like a cookie or biscuit that is dipped in milk chocolate and real crushed almonds. So very good. When I can not find this brand, I also get the Pepero brand which is a Korean brand.
Same exact thing just made in a different country, and still tastes just as good.
Next is another Asian favorite of mine and it is Sangaria natural flavor Ramu, grape flavor.
This is just a grape soda made with real sugar and natural flavor. Definitely taste the difference between this and grape Fanta or Crush.
Again I love sweet potatoes, so when I found this at my local Grocery Outlet, I was eager to try them.
Simple and addictive, these sweet potato crisp are light and easy to eat a lot of. They have a very authentic sweet potato taste with a hint of salt. Additionally, If you have ever eaten Quaker brand rice cakes and liked them, that is what these are, but very very thin.
The last snack food that I have been keeping with me while driving are these Good Health Veggie Chips that I found at Dollar Tree.
At first, they didn’t have much flavor, but that is because they are not extremely salty, just very lightly salted. These chips have tomatoes, spinach, beets, broccoli and carrots in them, not that they have a strong flavor. Might be a good way to sneak some veggies in your kids diet.
Overall, I try to eat healthy while I am driving because there are so many options and opportunities for me to eat not so healthy and sometimes I do partake in the unhealthy habits. However, I find that as long as I keep healthy options on my person, I am a lot less likely to do so.
In the comments, let me know some of your favorite snack you are eating right now!!!
Until, next time; Remember to Cook, Eat and Enjoy!
Apple Cinnamon and Blueberry Almond Energy Balls
Hey my foodies and non-foodies alike. School is in full swing for my two daughters which means leaving early and coming home pretty late. And all though I like to think of my children as always being so full of energy, I know they need a little boost sometimes. I had been hunting for a snack idea for them that would give them energy and have healthy ingredients minus the chocolate and peanuts since they are allergic. I came across the energy balls or bites. These were perfect because I could tailor them to each of my kids. So I ended up making apple cinnamon balls and blueberry almond balls, each with different type of butters. And better still, there was no bake involved. So here is what I used:
4 cups of rolled oats (2 cups each batch)
2 cups ground flaxseed (1 cup each batch)
2 cups sweetened shredded coconut (1 cup each batch)
1 cup of honey ( half cup each)
1 teaspoon salt (half teaspoon each)
1 cup of almond butter
1 cup of sunflower seed butter
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract (1 teaspoon each batch)
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground cloves
1 cup of dried blueberries
1 cup of sliced almonds
1 cup of dried apple rings cut into bite sizes
1 baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment
2 large mixing bowls
For all the oatmeal, I warmed in a frying pan to make the oats a bit easier to incorporate. I used my favorite Red Cooper Frying. If you want to go and get it, her is my Amazon Affiliate link. I love this pan so much!!!
https://amzn.to/2CTvSSY
So to each mixing bowl add in 1 cup of ground flaxseed, 2 cups of oats, 1 cup coconut, half cup of honey, teaspoon of vanilla extract and half teaspoon of salt.
Each cup of butters, you want to melt a bit in the microwave to make it easier to handle.
For the apple cinnamon batch: add in the tablespoon of cinnamon and ground cloves, the almond butter and the pieces of dried apple. Mix well
For the blueberry Almond batch: add in the dried blueberry and sliced almonds and the melted sunflower seed butter. Mix well.
Now the fun part for those who love to get there hands messy, so it is a great cooking activity for kids. Time to roll out the balls. If when you begin to roll the balls out and you find that they are breaking apart, this is because they are to dry and you need to add a few tablespoons of water to help them roll easier.
Make the balls as big or small as you like them. I used a healthy tablespoon size and formed a tight ball in my hand, then place them on the bake sheet.
Once everything is rolled out, place then in the fridge for 20 minutes so they can set, after which you want to store them in a airtight container. They should keep for over a week or so, however if you get the response that I received at my house, they will barely last 4 days or so.
If you would like to see the actually process, head over to my YouTube and checkout the video her at Energy Balls | Apple Cinnamon…
Until next time, Cook Eat Enjoy!!!!
Best Things I ate – Summer 2018
Hey foodies and non-foodies alike. I hope you had an awesome and tasty summer. So yes it is officially Autumn here in the U.S. and I just couldn’t let summer go without highlighting some of the best things I ate; some of these I cooked and others were had out and about. So in no particular order let’s get started.
I love Asian food of all kinds, and if there are noodles involved, I am sold from jump-street. I had these sweet potato noodles that I got from the Asian grocers. With them, I made Japchae, a typical cold veggie noodle dish. Mine had cabbage, shredded carrots, onion, mushrooms, garlic, and cilantro. This is so tasty and light and I like mine on the warmer side. But it is a great way to get your veggies in a meal. The great thing about this dish is that I ate it all times of day and night and it kept me full for some hours without feeling heavy.
Here in Portland Oregon where I reside, we have tons of food carts, pods, trucks, etc. Downtown Portland, the Alder Street Food Carts, there is a food cart called Bing Mi. It is located on 9th and Alder. The only thing they make is Chinese Crepes. I had heard a lot about this place before I ever ate one. I drive Lyft, and I had customers who were visiting tell me about this place. So I decided to give it a try. It was a phenomenal mix of Asian taste and American breakfast.
Oh, and I can not forget about fair food. I only go to county fairs to eat all the stuff I don’t eat on a regular. This fair, I had my eyes set on the huge smoked turkey leg and I made straight to the stand upon entering the fairgrounds. I felt like a Flintstone eating this big leg, and it’s not a cute food to eat. So if you are on a date or you are worried about how people look at you when eat, this might not be the food for you. But since none of these were the case for me, I chomped away.
Now I love corn on the cob and I have been eating my share this summer. Before this summer, I slightly remember seeing a lot of Latinos and Hispanics eating corn on the cob that had cheese on it. But it didn’t fully register until I started seeing this corn called Elotes on Youtube. Well… I finally got to have one this summer at the Portland Pride Parade. OMG, it was the best thing; the combination of the sweet corn, the tartness from the cotija cheese, the creaminess of the mayo and the very very light spice of the chili powder. My mouth and my stomach were beyond happy. I loved this so much, that for the next two weeks following this encounter with my dear Elotes, I made them at home at least 6 times within those weeks. This might be the top favorite thing I ate this summer.
These were just a few of the great foods I consumed this summer, the ones that come to my mind first. The lovely thing about food is that I can have them any time of year I want because I can cook them at home, so I don’t have to wait until summer. In the comments, let me know what were some of your favorite foods you had this summer and if you have pics, I would love to see.
If you want to keep up with what I eat or what I am doing, follow me on Instagram @Gloriousgal . I am typically very active there. Also if you want to see me cook different dishes or travel and eat, Follow my Youtube Channel @Cook Eat Enjoy.
And until Next time, Cook eat and Enjoy!!!
Comfort Food: Veggie Lasagna & Chicken Lasagna
Let’s talk comfort food. Technically, all food can be comfort food if said food brings you comfort when you think about it or partake.
For me, when I think of comfort food, the foods that immediately spring to mind, makes me smile and makes my mouth begin to water just from the thought are: fried chicken wings, homemade Mac and Cheese and Lasagna.
I do not eat any of the aforementioned often because… well… I am trying to eat better and all that jazz. However, sometimes, it is good to treat yourself. Self care comes in many forms and me being a food lover, what better way to show myself some love than to make one of my happy food dishes. 
So, I typically make Lasagna the traditional way. Okay let me specify because my family traditional is probably not the same as actual ‘traditional’. So traditional meaning a ground beef meat sauce, ricotta and different shredded cheeses. But since I am trying to be a bit more healthy, I decided to make a veggie lasagna for me and since my family loves chicken, I made them a shredded chicken lasagna.
Chicken lasagna is super easy, I just boiled chicken breast in seasoning and shredded it.
For the veggie Lasagna, I used veggies that I love and that would hold together. I used yellow summer squash, zucchini squash, a medley of 5 mushrooms and red spinach. Red spinach has a slight bitter taste, so the next time I would just use regular spinach. Never-the-less, my family devoured the chicken lasagna; I got none, but they definitely enjoyed it. The Veggie lasagna was so hearty, that I forgot it did not have meat in it!!!
If you want to see how I prepared these two dishes, check out the video HERE!
And please like comment and subscribe.
Let me know in the comments below, what is your favorite comfort food?
Until next time, Cook, Eat and Enjoy!!!
Vegan/ Vegetarian Experience
It is never easy to change. Sometimes change is forced upon you, while other times you are the one initiating change. Either way, it takes some time to get your feet under you when the winds of change blows. 
I have experienced quite a bit of change here in 2018; most I could not control. However, the one I could and can control is my diet. I have taken on a Vegan/Vegetarian diet with the occasional fish. 
I wanted to try this eating change because of health issues. I wanted to see how a change in my diet would affect my mental and physical states. I love meat of all kinds; from your everyday beef and pork to the more exotic (to some) deer, rabbit, etc. I also love veggies; growing up, my parents insisted my brother and I ate our beans, peas, green and the likes. No, was not an answer, which has served me well as an adult. 
I have never not eaten meat, nor have I ever had the desire to not eat meat. But as I grow older and different health issues have manifested, it has been suggested that I cut meat from my diet and perhaps try a vegan, vegetarian or even pescatarian diet. Of course, when it comes to food, I am game to try new things and if it will assist in decreasing or eliminating me health issues, I am here to give it a try.
So for the next 4 weeks, maybe more, I will be embarking on this Vegan/ Vegetarian diet. Actually I have already begun. I am now ending week 2 and will be posting the week 2 update on my YouTube Channel: Week 1 is here. 
So far so good. I am really enjoying eating and especially make vegan/vegetarian meals. It has given me a chance to test my food creativity and try new foods I would not have otherwise tried. For example, I have tried Beyond Meat burgers and they blew my mind!!! The same with Field Roast’s smoke Apple sage sausage.
So here I am on another food Journey, so come and follow along and watch the updates and recipes on my YouTube channel Cook Eat Enjoy.
In the comments, let me know if you have or ever considered going Vegan/Vegetarian and why? Also let me know some of your favorite vegan products that you think I should try.
So I would say wish me luck, but so far, so good. Until next time, Cook, Eat, Enjoy!
Seafood Boil
Hey All,
Hope this blog post finds you well and prospering in 2018. Well let’s start this year off right and that could only mean seafood for me.
Last week, I was inspired to make a seafood boil and it turned into a Mukbang on my youtube channel Cook Eat Enjoy
I am an east coast girl, so seafood is in my blood and I could eat it everyday!!! I am actually considering becoming a pescatarian… maybe. Anyway, I had really been craving seafood and was going to go out to a restaurant, but realized that I could get more for my money if I did it at home, and that is what I did. So I was home alone, everyone else was either at school or at work, so I got to treat myself, but I did save everyone else some… I am not that greedy (although when it comes to seafood, I typically am).
My seafood boil had head-on shrimp, snow crab legs, king crab leg, little sausages, red and yellow potatoes, frozen corn on the cob, mussels and old bay seasoning.
Of course, any combination of seafood can be added, your choice.
All of this cost me about $32, and I had enough to feed 4 people and it took me about 30 minutes to make. Please tell me in the comments if you know of a place where you can get a deal like that. That is a restaurant I might just go check out with my family 🙂
Never-the-less, if you want to see how I made the Seafood boil in 30 minutes. Go check out the youtube video Seafood Boil Mukbang
Oh and while you are there please like, comment and subscribe to support your girl, me!!! Until next time; Cook, Eat and Enjoy!!!
Cook Eat Enjoy Youtube Channel
Hey all. Yes, I am still here and yes I am still cook, eating and enjoying as I hope you are. I wanted to let you guys know that I have started a Youtube channel and I want you all to come check it and me out. Some of it is me going around to restaurants here in the Portland Oregon and surrounding areas, and some of it is me cooking. So now you can actually see me on my food journeys and have a virtual seat in my kitchen instead of reading and seeing pictures. I will still be posting here though. I think I might even do a short post of my upcoming videos, so that way you will know they are up. And/Or you can follow me on Instagram and twitter @Gloriousgal and always be in the know. I already have 4 videos up already. The most recent on just went up moments ago. So the link is here: Teriyaki Salmon Belly
So come check out the channel. Subscribe. Follow me on Instagram and Twitter and Until Next time, Continue to Cook, Eat and Enjoy.
Pork & Greens Tteok-bokki
I love food from all different nations and backgrounds. I believe the best way to learn about a culture is through their food!!!! Yummmy!!!!🤤🤤🤤
I absolutely love rice noodles, but a few months ago I discovered Tteok-bokki or Korean rice cakes or sticks. These are lovely thick chewy noodles made from rice and formed in different shapes, typically long cylinders. One can typically find them in Asian food markets for fairly cheap. This bag ran me under $5 here in Portland Oregon area.
On to my tasty tteok-bokki dish.
Boil your desired amount of rice sticks until soft. Drain and set aside. You can stir a teaspoon of oil so they don’t stick.
For this dish I used hog jowls that I cut into chunks. However, if you can not find hog Jowls, you can use thick bacon as well.
Cook meat until cooked thoroughly, then remove to a paper towel.
Pour all fat left in pan from meat in a coffee mug and set aside except for about 3 tablespoons.
Dice 1 large onion (white or yellow) and add to pan and let cook for about. 3 minutes in high heat.
Add in 1 package of sliced mushrooms (crimini or white)
1 teaspoon oh diced garlic and 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger.
Add a little salt, Cook together another 4 minutes.
Add a handful of baby Arugula to pan and stir 30 seconds.
Add in the tteok-bokki or rice sticks and turn off heat.
Now I purposely did not make a sauce for this dish because I wanted to try this Frank’s RedHot Stingin’ Honey Garlic Hot sauce. But you can make any sauce; use soy sauce, hoisin, etc.
I added my Honey Garlic Hot sauce on top of my dish and sat down and enjoyed the chew.
Now when and if you reheat this, you must do so throughly because the rice cake need a little extra heat to soften up. So 2 minutes in the microwave might do or you can just reheat on the stove with a little water.
Until next time; Cook, Eat and Enjoy!!!!
Quick Angel Hair Pasta with Veggies
Hey Winners, this meal takes a quick 10 minutes. In the time it takes to boil a handful of angel hair pasta, the rest will be done. So quickly:
Boil a handful of angel hair pasta.
-in a pan with olive oil about 6 crimini mushrooms sliced, 1 small onion sliced, sauté. Then slice an heirloom tomato add to the pan, with a teaspoon of diced garlic.
-Cook for about 3 minutes sprinkle with a little salt. Add crush red pepper if you like it spicy.
-Deglaze with red wine vinegar
– add pasta and finish with parmesan.
No meat required or needed.
Until next time: Cook, Eat and Enjoy and take it one day at a time. Stay encouraged.
