Sunday bonding time; Cooking with my daughter

 

Black-Bean-Burger-vegetable-Fried-Rice.08.01.10.jpg

 

Black Bean burger w/vegetable fried rice

As a child, Sunday’s was a day reserved to elaborate meals. For breakfast we could expect to see foods like sausage, bacon, eggs, grits, biscuits, and gravy. My mom usually supplied some type of fresh fruit, and vegetables too. She made everything from scratch, and so our breakfast meals, just like lunches, and dinners were an elaborate affair.

Naturally, my mother prepared Sunday breakfast early, so there’d was plenty of time for all of us to get ready for church. Sunday dinner was usually already in the oven; The aroma of baked turkey, ham, or chicken could be smelled throughout the house along with some type of vegetable dish (usually greens or carrots.) Although our family always ate meals together, Sundays were special since it was our parents day to relax. My brother and I looked forward to Sunday, since it meant we had extra time with our parents.

A lot has changed since my childhood days…

Savory Lentil soup

Savory Lentil Soup

I became Vegetarian in 1992, and switched to a Vegan lifestyle shortly afterwards. I’m what you’d consider a whole food Vegan, which means I eat as close to the natural food source as possible. You won’t find too many processed food items in our household. They simply don’t have the flavor and wholesome goodness of the abundance of fresh vegetables and fruit that are available.

 

Oven roasted vegetables

Oven roasted vegetables

Sundays are still a special day in our home. My seven year old daughter loves to cook, and I let her help me prepare a few of our meals. Even though I’m not making the traditional meals from childhood Sundays are still special for myself and my daughter, since I  let her share in the cooking experience. She also gets to choose some of her favorite foods. Makes sense, since she’s helping prepare them, right? It’s a great time for us to chat about food, nutrition, and whatever else crosses her mind.

The majority of my meals aren’t elaborate (even though I do love cooking) but they are still nutritious, simple, and delicious, and I prepare our meals and have them on the table withing twenty minutes. I love color, so you’ll see me picking a lot of bright and colorful vegetables and fruits in the meals I prepare.

We’re fortunate to have a garden bursting with produce, and so we’re always have a steady supply of fresh vegetables and fruits. Currently we’re getting a lot of eggplants, green onions, tomatoes, collards, kale, cucumbers, squash, blackberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, and figs. It won’t be too long before it’s time to pick the corn, sunflower seeds, grapes, and a few other vegetables that I cannot think of at the moment.

Today my daughter and I are taking it easy. Our meals were prepared yesterday, and so after arriving home from church we needed only to heat our meal. How’s that for convenience?  What was on our vegan menu? Black Bean burgers, vegetable fried rice, savory lentil soup, oven roasted vegetables, with green smoothies and freshly prepared fruit pudding were the choices available. Naturally, we didn’t eat all of that, but the option was there.

Question: How was your day? However, you spent your Sunday, I’m hoping you and your family is have a sparkling day!

 

 

 

 

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Mike

This Sunday was pretty much spent traveling to the next stop on our trip. We’re now about 50 or so miles north of Yellowstone National Park. We’ve been offline for most of the last week and are catching up on e-mail, blogs, bills, etc. We’ll be going into the park on Wednesday where we will spend a week.

Moondancer

Hi @Mike,

It’s nice to see you stop by my little home. I really enjoy reading about the road trips that you and your wife take. It’s something I hope I can do more, when things settle down for myself. Soaking in the gorgeous scenery, visiting historical sights, camping, definitely top on my “I must do list.” 😉

I used to do road trips on Sundays; I guess I should get back into doing a few of those with my daughter, even if they trips are local. I’m hoping you, and your wife safe travels as you continue your road trip adventure. 🙂

BJ_Mama

Those Black Bean Burgers look YUMMY! (stopping by from SITS) ANd even though my daughter’s only approaching 3, I love when she “helps” me in the kitchen. It’s so much fun!

Moondancer

Hiya @BJ_Mama,

Thanks for stopping by my virtual home.

Yes the Black Bean Burgers were delicious. I have fond memories of my daughter helping me out in the kitchen at three years old. Although it was messy at times, it was so much fun. Kids… they grow so quickly! My daughter is now seven years old. 🙂

Wayne Howard

Oh, those pictures look delicious! You should be a professional food photographer. I’ve never really thought about being a vegan, but those pictures make me want to rethink that. 🙂

But my Sunday was good. Had a wonderful time at Church then spent the rest of the day blogging and catching up on some schoolwork. Thanks for asking.

Moondancer

Why thanks @Wayne Howard,
I love taking pictures, I need to post more on I’m Celebrating Life. I had a blog that was dedicated to the photos I’ve taken.

I’m glad that you had a great Sunday, Church was great for me too. Yes, Sundays can be a great day to catch up on work. 😉

kaozz

We had a great weekend! Ty for asking 😉 Glad to hear yours was well.

That food at the top looks great. You make some really interesting dishes, I can imagine how great they taste.

I also like simple meals that are quick to prepare but are nutritious. Last night I had a raid in WoW so I grabbed some chicken from the Deli with mac and cheese. I was hungry later, wishing I had made something more filling… then again when I went back for some mac and cheese my husband had polished it off! So much for starting with a tiny portion lol.

Moondancer

Heya @kaozz, /hugs
It’s so nice to see you, sure miss hanging out with you in WoW even if it were for a brief time, heh.

I think you and I would get along well in real life. I love simple meals. Come on now, you know you had to hide a stash of Mac & Cheese! My daughter loves Mac and Cheese, well in our case it’s “uncheese” 😉 I usually toss in veggie with my Mac & Cheese, hmm perhaps I should post a recipe. 😉

Maira Grove

Had a busy weekend over here. Spent some time cleaning out the garage and getting some things out that are no longer useful to us… a lot of work though definitely necessary.

On Sunday we did have some time to relax in the afternoon and spend some time grilling. Made some of my family’s favorite treat, grilled artichokes.

So nice to hear you and your daughter had such a lovely weekend =)
*Tasty pictures by the way!!

Moondancer

Hiya @Maira Grove,

It sounds like you were extremely busy! It’s always nice when you get a lot accomplished.

I love grilling. I haven’t done that in a while but have been thinking about grilling something this weekend.
Thanks, I love taking pictures, finding the time to upload and post them can be challenging, heh.

Lakhyajyoti

It is my first visit in your blog.Like your design and found useful.Glad to know that you are a vegetarian.

Moondancer

Hi @Lakhyajyoti,
Thanks so much for stopping by. I like the minimalist look. It took a while before I found one that fit me, so I was happy when I stumbled upon this theme.

Yes I’ve been Vegan for quite a while, cannnot imagine being anything but that. I’m off to pop by your site, 7 Things You Should Know To Write a Killer Article looks very interesting.

Kathy

When you described those Sunday meals your family used to have, I could picture my own family doing the same thing. Those are some fond memories. I can’t believe that you could grow up like that with all of that delicious but not so healthy food and make such a switch over to pure wholesome food. You have a lot more strength and determination than I do.

Moondancer

Hiya @Kathy,
Oh we had a lot of good times. I have a lot of great memories of hanging out with my brother and parents. The foods I eat are still delicious; I don’t deprive myself of good food. 🙂 The only difference is our meals are vegan. The fact that they are healthful is a delightful bonus. Even though the food has changed the times spent around the table are still very special since we’re spending time together. 🙂