Convenience Food Reviews and Countdown: 2 days!

[The Crazypants Baking Post]

Regular readers and friends know I like to cook and bake on Saturdays and eat leftovers or simpler meals for most of the week. It's inexpensive, gives me a chance to try new recipes, eat well, and still fit cooking into a life that is, at least for the moment, very full of studying.

Sometimes though, I do rely on prepackaged meals, especially if I've just been away for the weekend, or for non-leftover-based lunches I can take to the university when I spend the day there studying. I'm always on the lookout for tasty new ones, so here's my thoughts on some I've tried lately:

1. Kashi Mayan Harvest Bake
2. Trader Joe's Green Papaya Salad 
3. Trader Joe's Black Bean and Corn Enchiladas
4. Tasty Bite Kerala Vegetables and Target Brand (Market Pantry) Precooked Brown Rice. 

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1. Kashi Mayan Harvest Bake

Kashi makes 3 frozen vegan entrees. I can't really afford them with any regularity, but when they go below $3.00 each on sale, sometimes I make the splurge. 

Here's my previous reviews of the Black Bean Mango and here's Tuscan Veggie Bake.

The last one to try? Mayan Harvest Bake. Unfortunately these cell phone pics are even worse than usual.

I really love them all, but this is my favorite for sure. Wow. The mix of textures was great, and as usual you can count on them to have way more veggies than your standard frozen meal. 

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2. Trader Joe's Green Papaya Salad

I didn't really know what to make of this one. I was skeptical as I was putting it together, but the flavors are honestly awesome. 

The prep isn't really what I look for in a packaged meal, because you need your own dish, and you microwave it but just enough to defrost. I sort of think it might work better to just put the papaya packet and dressing together in a tupperware and keep it out of the freezer until dinner time to thaw, but the defrost microwaving definitely worked fine.

That said, the taste was a wonderful mix of thai flavors, crunchy and spicy.

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3. Trader Joe's Black Bean and Corn Enchiladas

If possible, I like these even better than the Amy's ones of similar makeup, and they actually fit my budget. There's tofu, plenty of sauce, and they didn't skimp on the veggies either. Seriously, Trader Joe's knows where it's at. This one was actually today's lunch. Eaten while sitting outside and trying not to enter study panic mode.

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4. Tasty Bite Kerala Vegetables and Target's Precooked Brown Rice

As usual, I added steamed veggies. I'm incapable of resisting.

Tasty Bite: This is possibly my favorite Tasty Bite Indian flavor. It's a little bit coconutty, lots of vegetables, and the curry has a kick that isn't overwhelming - I'm not a huge fan of spicy. 

Rice: I prefer the Trader Joe's precooked, this one had a bit too much added oil (based on the nutrition facts, I'm pretty sure it's an extra teaspoon per cup), but it definitely serves the purpose and completes the meal when I don't have an hour to cook my own brown rice.

And so, packaged meal in hand, back to the books.

Boards countdown: 2 Days! How? How did this happen?


I'm not quite sure what to do. You can't really cram a test that covers 2 years worth of knowledge, but how is it that I feel there's so much I still wanted to review but haven't?

Strawberry Colada Oatmeal Heaven

Okay, whatever your breakfast plans were, if you're much like me chances are you'll stick with them. However if you are not yet mentally committed, I hope you'll entertain the possibility of this, the best bowl of oatmeal I think I've ever made.

Strawberry Colada Oats

1/2 cup oats cooked in 7 oz. almond milk

Topped with:

1/2 banana

about 7 medium strawberries

drizzle maple syrup

pinch salt

1 tbsp coconut butter

It's like a warm, healthy, filling bite of a tropical island. The coconut butter is really what brings the palm trees and warm breezes to mind.

And in just 5 days, I can take a real vacation. 

Until then, this will suffice. 

Vegan Black Bean & Sweet Potato Chili

Holy generous support. Your comments on my last post about achievement and self-image were so wise and encouraging and just wonderful. Especially to those of you who've gone through it and offer your wisdom, thank you. You make me feel like I can do it. 

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Okay, here's an achievement to celebrate: chili to love.


When I offered my friend (and invaluable study compadre) Molly a bowl of this chili, she looked in the pot and said, "There's broccoli in this chili." 

True, there's broccoli in this chili, like a spiced up stew version of a grilled veggie burrito, this is satisfying and flavorful, with plenty of protein from the black beans, some vitamin-laden veggies and sweet potatoes (got to keep my hands orange).


I made this lovely stew last weekend, so it's been my go-to leftover meal for the past week. 

Black Bean & Sweet Potato Chili

Makes 8 cups, 180 calories each.

1 tsp oil

1 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

One 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained

3 cups water

2 carrots, sliced

2.5 cups fresh or frozen broccoli, in florets

2 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 large sweet potato, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1. Cook onion in the oil  in a large stockpot over medium heat until almost translucent, 5-8 minutes.

2. Add garlic and cook one minute, stir frequently.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients, except broccoli. 

4. Bring to a boil, then simmer partially covered about 20 minutes.

5. Add broccoli and simmer another 10 minutes. 

To serve, squeeze in some lemon, maybe add cilantro, salsa, even guacamole or tortilla chips. 

Pair with a lazy-girl Fiesta salad: Lettuce + Salsa. 

Do your friends ever act surprised by the ingredients in your food?

When the Scores Say You're Not Enough.

This post is a little text-heavier than usual, but it's about something important to me. Still, I know none of us have unlimited time, so if you're not my Mom, who's obligated to read every word, you can get the highlights with the bold and colored sentences.

What do you do when the results don't match your efforts?

This is the analysis of my first practice Boards, taken April 12, about 5 weeks ago. To make it simple, good scores have blue lines on the RIGHT side.

Mine, clearly, are on the left:

This was a demoralizing thing to see 5 weeks ago, and I don't want my Boards breakdown to look like this. 

In fact, it can't look like this, I would have to take it again. Good thing I'm studying just as hard as I possibly can. 

Thank you SO much for all the supportive comments on my whining about Boards studying. It's wonderful to know I have so many people pulling for me that I can't even see. 

I've been getting through and working really hard this week, but right around 7 this evening I hit quite a wall and I'm glad it's Sabbath. Time for a day of rest.

The Boards countdown is now 7 days, or actually 6, not counting the day of.

I feel like it needs a name, like B-day, but that just makes me think birthday. U-Day for USMLE? S-Day for Step 1?

What about P-D-E-M-M-D-T-A Day? For "Please-Don't-Ever-Make-Me-Do-This-Again Day"?

I know my life will be full of other Boards and tests and evaluations and recertifications etc. for a very long time, but something about this just feels like such a big deal. Not so much for my career. I know that even if I don't do that well, as long as I pass I'll get where I'm going eventually, even if it means an interlude for residency in rural Montana instead of my dreams of Oregon Health Sciences.

It's more about how I'll be able to see myself, my brain, my ability to learn and all the work I've put into the past two years. I was never the kid who was good at finding things to like about my talents that were unmeasured by grades. I was great at feeling proud because I worked hard and got exactly the grades I wanted. I wasn't particularly artistic, athletic or musical, and I was very result-focused. These past two years have really challenged me to find other strengths, other sources of self-worth, because at the medical school level, I can no longer think of myself as excellent.

In fact academically, I feel I've become  rather completely mediocre, despite working as hard as I can.  


And I will freely admit, sometimes no matter how much I know there's more to my life, these failures feel like the whole world. 


What else is there when my life's been primarily defined by academic achievement?

The question becomes, Who are you if you take away what you thought you were good at?

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Pass or fail, medical school is helping me form an identity that relies on traits, passions and joy that isn't meant to be quantified by acheivement.

I'm a fiercely protective and proud sister.

I am completely unashamed of my rather loud and squeaky laugh.

I love people fearlessly. My friends, my family. Sometimes that means my heart hurts because I miss someone, but it's the way it should be.

I love making health fun, and I care enormously about the health of those around me. Medicine's where I feel at home, but I know I can find a way to feel helpful with or without an M.D.

God made me perfectly, and that includes my brain.

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And I just couldn't resist (although it may be categorized as achievement) 

I make an awesome bowl of oatmeal:

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No matter what the result, I plan to come back to this post in 7 weeks when I get my scores, to remind myself how little influence they truly ought to have.

Whether the scores say we're smart or not, they will never define any of us. Not them, or our jobs, or our degrees, or the number of successful parties we've hosted, or loaves of bread that have risen, or races we've run, days with clear skin, pounds lost or notes played in tune on our musical instruments.

We're worth more than the sum of achievements, 

So tell the scores to shove it.

I Chose This Right?

The last couple weeks (10 days!) before Boards kind of feel like living in an H E Double Hockeysticks of my own creation.

It feels like I'm studying all the time, though I know I'm not, and when I'm not for a second it's just nothing but guilt. (Like now, or earlier today when I racked up 20 wins on Facebook's Tetris Battle - don't start. It'll suck you in.)

I started getting headaches. I don't get headaches.

Sometimes the video on my review lectures goes out of focus. At first I thought it was the video; now I think it's probably my eyes. Not to worry, I'm eating plenty of carrots.

I get sad when I realize I've already showered on a given day because that's the one time I'm not trying to take studying with me.

I'm drinking coffee like it's falling from the sky.

I no longer listen to music while I run - I listen to audio reviews of pathology. Also while I cook. And play Tetris Battle.

And Nora got a flat tire yesterday, so that chops my built-in daily activity to none. It also made me realize I hadn't driven my car in over a week, which is actually kind of awesome. I need to get that fixed.

Endorphins = functional person. No endorphins = this depressing study dungeon takes over my psyche.

And the worst part? It feels like every piece of information I cram into my brain means something else falls out. I don't actually theoretically believe my brain has a limited capacity, yet I am somehow experiencing it.

Are we sick of my whining? I kind of am. I mean, I chose this right? 


Alternatively, I could say to myself, "What an awesome opportunity. You get to take an enormous test that allows you to go onto the wards and work with the team and treat patients. You're becoming a doctor, and all of this is important." 


That said, people say this is the hardest I'll study in my life, and no matter how positively I try to spin it, I really really hope that's true. 


At least I'm not alone. I don't know what I would do without my roomies, friends and classmates with whom to study, and lament. And my wonderful family and Boyfriend (and now you - thanks) to listen to me whine. They're the only reason I haven't just smashed that coffee cup over my head yet.

So, this much-needed brain break is just about up, but here's a little montage of recent brain fuel.

Breakfasts: Yogurt bowls. 

Lunch: Mexican Salad, Almond Butter and Raspberry Jam on Oatmeal Bread

Dinner: Black Bean and Sweet Potato Chili (recipe to come), Roasted Root Veggie Chili Mac

Quick, tell me something awesome you're doing! Or mediocre. Anything really. Tell me anything. 

Like a Train.

I don't know what is going on with me today. I went to bed a little later than usual, 11 instead of 9:30, but this morning I reset my 5 am alarm, then turned off my 6 am alarm ... and when I actually woke up?

It was 10 am! I slept for 11 hours. And I feel like I've been drug under a train ... or just drugged. I swear I didn't do anything that strenuous yesterday, so I don't know what is going on.

The late sleeping means I haven't been on my morning run, and I might go this afternoon when I hit a study wall, we'll see. Fortunately I will get some activity courtesy of Nora when I go to the university, or a coffee shop. I actually haven't decided where I'm headed for my out-of-the-house study time today.

First though, it's brunch time. Normally this would be breakfast, but we're fast approaching 11 am. Ack. So much to learn.

Breakfast-at-11: Banana, Yogurt, Muesli. 
If this breakfast looks familiar, it's because I've had it every day for at least the past 4, and the food-peats are going to be increasing I suspect: 12 days until Boards! Variety just isn't of particular priority, compared to quality fueling quick right now. That said, recipe ideas run through my head like little sheep and I've been jotting them down for some serious kitchen time after May 27.

Do you have a go-to stressful time meal?

She Has a Name!

And: Sometimes a girl just wants some cheesecake.

Some of you may recall that I recently bought a bike.

I've been using it for pretty much all my transportation and I absolutely love it. It's a great feeling to be moving more throughout the day than just when I intentionally exercise. I think it's just good for my mental image of myself to keep that in mind. In that picture you can see that I took her to the pool.

I also take her grocery shopping, which involves a very large purse that I wear like a backpack (or sometimes my actual backpack.)

Here's an example of a particularly heavy trip:

Pasta, bread crumbs, milk, oats, broccoli, peas, something I can't see. 

It's all right though, even when I have a lot to haul, it's like combining in my weight training. 

Today I took my bike to Target, about 4 miles away and across a freeway. It took some creative routing, but I avoided actually crossing any freeway bridges, and I'm happy to say I made it back and it was a lovely ride. 

So what's the point of saying all this? 

Well, a lovely reader reminded me I hadn't yet decided on a name for the bike. I took some suggestions from you all a while back and got some great ones, but after some deliberation I have decided to go with the first suggestion I received.

So, thank you sister Emma for the suggestion,

Her name is Nora!

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Biking's not the only thing I'm loving, 

Today's Food:

Breakfast: Yogurt, Muesli, Banana

Lunch: Tasty Bite Bengal Lentils with steamed carrots and macaroni noodles.

This was my first time eating this particular prepared Indian meal. I can't really afford them in my real life, but Mom knows how much I love Indian food and sent this one in my easter care package. I always eat meals like this in 2 servings, usually with veggies and rice but I had noodles cooked up today. 

Dinner: (is on the stove) I'm trying a new Black Bean Sweet Potato Chili. 

Dessert: A new experiment - Chocolate Cheesecake Bites

I had some Tofutti Cream Cheese to use up, leftover from the Cinnamon Roll Icing, and I decided I'd really like to try some cheesecake. This recipe was a combination of various sources, and while it satisfied my craving, it does taste ... vegan. Cream cheese is hard to duplicate, and that's okay with me, but I wouldn't necessarily bring these to a party full of non-vegans. 

That said, they're so cute. And chocolatey delicious. I might post the recipe later, I'd like to try a couple changes first. 

Do you name the important inanimate objects in your life?