Veggin' at Epcot

Epcot has always been a favorite Disney park of mine. I think I've been at least a dozen times. There's just something so relaxing about strolling around the countries, stopping for drinks and snacks along the way. And I'm loving the return of Captain EO right now! It's just as awesome as when I saw it back in the '80s.

My husband and I had the opportunity to go to Epcot with some friends on Saturday, and the park was probably the most packed I've ever experienced. Even though the Food & Wine Festival is in full swing right now (ending November 14), we opted to forgo the featured 75 different types of cuisine and 300 varieties of wine, and instead we ate at restaurants within the countries ... including the brand new La Hacienda de San Angel restaurant in Mexico. (Hang on, I'll come back to this!)

Lunch was at the Tangierine Cafe in the Morocco Pavilion. In the past I tended to pass by the Moroccan restaurants, but I realize now it's such a great spot for a quick and healthy vegetarian meal. My husband and I split the Vegetable Platter ($10.99), which had hummus, Moroccan bread, tabouleh, lentil salad, couscous salad, and a greens salad with falafel balls on top. It wasn't until after we finished that I realized I forgot to snap a photo. But we were hungry and it didn't take long for us to finish off the platter anyway.

The real highlight was dinner at La Hacienda de San Angel. The expansion is located on the site of the quick-service Cantina de San Angel in Mexico. There's still an outdoor quick-service area, but the new indoor section is a casual sit-down with table service. The vegetarian options are limited on the menu, but when I asked our waitress if there was a vegetarian entree selection, she whipped out a special menu card with four veg choices. I ordered the vegetable tacos and my husband the vegetable enchiladas (both $18.99). These aren't the greasy, cheesy, fatty tacos and enchiladas we've all become accustomed to at so many Mexican restaurants. Instead these are fresh and light with great flavors.

Vegetable tacos

The tacos are two small flour tortillas topped with black beans, a variety of roasted vegetables and corn, and a creamy sauce.

Vegetable enchiladas

The enchiladas have roasted vegetables with flour tortillas topped with a tomatillo sauce, queso fresco, and shredded red cabbage. Both entrees were excellent. As were the margaritas!

The Nitty Gritty
What: La Hacienda de San Angel
Where: Epcot
Reservations: Disney Dining

Sustain Natural Market

I had been seeing the billboard on Semoran Blvd. for a few months now advertising the new Sustain Natural Market, but I simply just hadn't made the effort to go. That was until my friend Kathleen suggested we check it out over this past weekend.

I was surprised that another health food store opened up near the existing Hoover's Essential Health Market, which is less than two miles away. Hoover's is bigger and sells a lot more, plus it's been around since 1973, so it's an established market.

Sustain, opened earlier this year on Earth Day (April 22). It's very nice inside, with half the store devoted to vitamins and herbs, and the other half for groceries. They sell locally grown produce, including hydroponic veggies from the Heart of Christmas Farms, and eggs from Lake Meadows Naturals Farms in Ocoee. There's also your standard bulk items like grains and beans, plus grocery items like cereals, gluten-free products, locally-baked bread, etc. They have a little bit of everything, but the prices leaned on the pricier side, so the only thing I purchased was a dozen Lake Meadows eggs for $3.99.

Generally when I grocery shop I take my reusable bags. For some reason I didn't bring them into the store with me, but I was impressed to see that Sustain does provide biodegradable bags. (Although the woman at the register kindly said to me that they really encourage patrons to bring their own bags.)

The Nitty Gritty
What: Sustain Natural Market
Where: 3060 E. Semoran Blvd., Suite 100, Apopka, FL 32703
Site: http://www.sustainnaturalmarket.com

Recipe: Maple-Glazed Buttercup Squash

I couldn't resist doing another winter squash recipe. Not only is squash easy to work with, but it's also nutritious because it's high in beta carotene (an antioxidant) and vitamin A (helps form and maintain healthy teeth, skeletal and soft tissue, and skin).

I sure wish it felt like Fall in Florida right now because this recipe screams autumn to me. Nonetheless, it made for a tasty dinner on Sunday night. I had the idea to do the maple-glazed squash after seeing it on Seasons 52's menu a week ago. When I cook I tend to just throw ingredients together without measuring them, but here's what I came up with. And what I got was caramelized yumminess.

Maple-Glazed Buttercup Squash
1 buttercup squash
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
chili powder, seasoned to your liking
coarse salt
olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut stem off the squash and slice squash in half. Scoop out the seeds using a spoon, and then slice each half into 1-inch sections. Arrange squash on a baking dish and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt.

In a bowl combine the syrup, vinegar, and chili powder. Brush over the squash. Cook squash for 25 minutes. Flip and cook for 5 more minutes.

I served this with a boxed lentil & rice pilaf mixture that I doctored up with 1/2 teaspoon of curry powder, a sprinkling of red pepper flakes, 2 caramelized onions, and 1 sauteed red bell pepper.

Giddy About Salads

Yesterday I Tweeted about the great salad bar deal at Chamberlin's Market & Cafe in Winter Park. At $4.49 a pound it really is a bargain. The salad pictured is today's lunch, and it cost me $3.44. And it's filled with organic greens, carrots, beets, tomatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, beans, and the pièce de résistance, Annie's Naturals Goddess Dressing.

I had every intention of eating my Amy's Black Bean Tamale frozen meal today, but the salad with the Goddess dressing was beckoning me for the second day in a row. And not to discount the lovely salad bar, but it's really the dressing that pulls the salad together for me.

At the risk of sounding obsessed, the Goddess dressing is really truly amazingly good. I have my friend Shelley to thank for introducing me to it. For had she not raved about it the way she did I probably would have never tried it. I was quite content with my olive oil and balsamic, but decided to purchase a bottle just to humor her. Needless to say I'm convinced. But since Goddess has 13 grams of fat in 2 tablespoons I do need to limit my consumption. Which isn't easy because it tastes great on things besides salads, too. The good news is it's vegan and made with all-natural ingredients *Canola Oil, Water, *Tahini, *Apple Cider Vinegar, *Soy Sauce (water, *soybeans, sea salt *wheat), *Lemon Juice, Sea Salt, *Garlic, *Sesame Seeds, *Parsley, *Chives, Xanthan Gum.

It's available at regular grocery stores, but an 8 oz. bottle costs nearly $5. Thankfully Shelley discovered that Super Target has it for half that price. Score!

As for Chamberlin's, while I do love their salad bar, I don't love the plastic containers they provide. So hopefully they can make the transition soon to something more eco friendly!

Orlando Needs Trader Joe's

Even though Trader Joe's doesn't fit in with my local Orlando thing here, it does fall in line with my vegetarian and sustainability themes so it's allowed! Plus, I feel I must share the awesomeness of Trader Joe's, a grocery store that we in Florida sadly do not get to appreciate.

I was first introduced to TJ's in 2002 while visiting family friends in California (where the grocery chain originated). I didn't think much about TJ's after that since we don't have them here in Florida. It wasn't until a few years ago during a trip to Atlanta that I was reintroduced to the store. Since then I've been to TJ's in Chicago, San Francisco, and Napa.

With 344 stores in 25 states and Washington D.C., Trader Joe's is known for it's specialty gourmet and organic foods & drinks, plus household cleaners and personal hygiene products. The stores aren't flashy (though they are cute) or big (they stock about 4,000 items, compared with typical grocery stores that stock an average of 50,000 items), but that really doesn't matter since TJ's has quality products at a low cost.

Many of Trader Joe's private label items are actually brand-name suppliers that offer products at a significant discount. (These suppliers do not publicize their business relationship, but I've read that companies like Stonyfield Organic yogurt and Stacey's pita chips are just a couple of the "brands" you will find there under the Trader Joe's name.) And since TJ's buy directly from producers whenever possible, it cuts down on costs for consumers. Trader Joe's also promises that anything with their logo contains no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, MSG, and trans fats, and is not sourced from genetically modified ingredients.

In a recent Fortune magazine cover story, the store was described this way: "A Trader Joe's brings with it good jobs, and its presence in your community is like an affirmation that you and your neighbors are worldly and smart."

Unfortunately, that story also pointed out that the chances of the chain coming to the Sunshine State are pretty grim. "Trader Joe's small stores don't have much of a back room, so ordering from the distribution centers has to be precise. This distribution process helps determine where the company opens its stores. Texas and Florida have cities that boast consumers Trader Joe's covets, but insiders say the current distribution infrastructure makes it difficult for the company to efficiently get products to those states."

Thanks to my dear friends The McV's who live in Virginia, I can still get my TJ's fix. I was able to send them money and have them pick up items for me at their nearest TJ's. It was so much fun opening the package when I got home from work since I didn't know what I'd be getting (I wanted to be surprised).

My TJ's loot!

The contents of my package included:

• Three Grains Blend (rice, barley and spelt)
• Organic Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Soup
• Palak Paneer Indian Fare
• Organic Red Quinoa
• Cumin & Chili Chickpeas
• Harvest Grains Blend
• 17 Bean & Barley Mix
• Apples & Cinnamon Oatmeal
• Organic Tomatillo & Roasted Yellow Chili Salsa
• Pomegranate White Tea
• Instant Chocolate Pudding
• Dark Chocolate Covered Powerberries
• Honey Mango Cream Shave (obviously not food)

A big thanks to The McV's!

Let's hope that Trader Joe's can figure out a way to bring their goodies down south so all of us can enjoy too. For more info about TJ's go to www.traderjoes.com. 


P.S. - I have both of these reusable Trader Joe's bags and I have received numerous comments from fellow shoppers about TJ's. Better yet, I once had a Whole Foods employee say to me how great it would be to have a Trader Joe's here in Orlando!

Recipe: Yay for Squash

Left to right: Sweet Dumpling, Delicata, Golden Acorn

It's not technically Fall yet, but the telltale signs of the autumn season are popping up in stores (ie: Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations). While shopping at Publix last night I was drawn to the display of winter squash varieties. These types of squash always seemed more decorative to me, often used in Fall cornucopia arrangements, so I'd usually just pass them by. I'm a fan of butternut, acorn, and spaghetti squashes, but never really ventured into any of the other types... until now.

There were at least eight varieties available, each about .99 cents a pound. I couldn't resist picking up a few new ones to try. I was particularly excited to see the Delicata squash since I recently found a recipe using that kind (posted below). I'm guessing that the Sweet Dumpling will be similar in taste to the green acorn squash. And I read that the Golden Acorn is slightly sweeter than it's green sister.

One of the simplest ways to make squash (I'm talking specifically about acorn here) is to slice it, remove the seeds, drizzle with a little olive oil, sprinkle some coarse salt, and roast it in the oven for about 40 minutes at 450 degrees. The skin gets really soft, too, making the whole squash edible (except for the stem).

Now that I have a Delicata squash I plan to try this recipe from the Eat Well cookbook by Williams-Sonoma.

Warm Spinach Salad with Delicata Squash & Ricotta Salata

1 ½ lb. Delicata squash (or butternut)

4 tbsp. olive oil 

Salt and freshly ground pepper

3 tbsp. red wine vinegar 

8 oz. baby spinach leaves 

4 oz. crumbled ricotta salata or feta cheese

½ cup toasted sliced almonds 

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Rinse and dry squash. Halve squash lengthwise and remove seeds, then cut crosswise into half moons ½ inch thick. In a 12-by-17-inch baking pan, toss squash with 1 tbsp. olive oil, ¼ tsp. salt, and a few grindings of pepper. Bake until squash is tender, about 20 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix vinegar and ¼ tsp. salt. Add squash, spinach, cheese, and almonds. Heat remaining 3 tbsp. oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Carefully pour over salad (oil may splatter) and toss to coat and wilt spinach evenly. Serve at once. 

Serves 4

Recipe: My Favorite Granola

Earlier this year I got on a big granola kick. But store-bought kinds contain a lot of sugar and extra ingredients that I'm not really into, so I opted to make my own. This particular recipe is a blend of a couple recipes, and I occasionally modify it as I go along. And I tend to play around with the type of sweetener each time I make it, varying it up between honey, agave, maple syrup, or brown rice syrup. But I'm really digging the taste and crunch of this right now as it is, so I think I'm settled on this mix.

It has become my go-to breakfast item as of late. My favorite way to eat it is with organic vanilla yogurt and berries, while a friend of mine says he prefers the granola sprinkled on top of chocolate ice cream. And since it's filled with healthy ingredients like oats, flax, almonds, and walnuts, I don't feel guilty about grabbing handfuls of it to snack on either.

Ingredients
4 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup almonds, chopped
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
3 tablespoons ground flax seeds
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons brown sugar
pinch of salt
1/3 cup brown rice syrup
1/4 canola oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Prep
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Combine all ingredients in a large baking pan and stir well. Make sure the wet ingredients thoroughly coat the mixture.
Bake for 12 minutes and then stir. Continue baking for another 12 minutes, until slightly browned.
Remove from oven and stir.
Let cool. As it cools it will stick together, so break apart into bite-size pieces.