The weekends here in Saudi are Thursday and Friday because Friday is the Muslim holy day. So, today means back to work! But oh what a wonderful weekend we had!
This weekend I…
Finally perfected my green smoothie! I used to have such trouble with it always being gritty and too thin, which meant I usually stuck to fail safe green juices.
But I have finally achieved success! By blending the chard up with a splash of soymilk all by itself before adding anything else I can get a smooth consistency every time. Then I add a dollop of peanut butter, spirulina, a banana, frozen berries and a bit of water – perfection!
Ignore the skeptical look on Cody’s face – it really is delicious!
I also ate lots of wraps! These things are one of my favorite things to eat, so fresh and fun. I pile them high with lots of tofu garlic sauce, avocados, bacos, sprouts, spinach, bell peppers, carrots and pickles. YUM! And on the side I like to snack on cucumber rounds and, of course, Kristen’s Raw Tuscan Sun Dried Tomato Dip. That stuff is EPIC – make it! And if you haven’t read her Kitchen Questions interview yet, get to it!
We also went jogging in the desert! I know, I know, you are thinking to yourself – “But Tasha, I thought you couldn’t run because it hurt your knees too much! What gives?”
Well, dear readers, all of that has changed. I started reading a lot about the amazing book Born To Run, and realized that I COULD run, I just had to change my style.
So, a few weeks ago Cody and I began jogging regularly and I put into practice the gentle, low impact stride technique that I had been learning about and…what do you know! No pain, for the first time in my life NO PAIN! I love it! I feel so excited about running now. I’m taking it slowly but I am loving it.
And Cody? He is a running machine! Seriously, that man ran 5 miles easily the first time he ever went down to the track. Ridiculous!
The perfect plate of post run refueling food! Whole grain bread topped with peanut butter and agave nectar, and a side of juicy berries. Yum!
I also ate A LOT of sambusa! Greasy, crispy, fried, heavenly potato sambusa!
In case you were wondering the way to make sure your sambusa is the finest the streets of Khobar has to offer – just look at the bag it came in. You know you’ve got yourself the best kind of sambusa when the grease nearly soaks through the bag. DROOL!
‘Tis the season to watch lots and lots of Christmas movies. So this weekend I watch my fill of them. My favorite was a childhood favorite of mine: Little Women – the 1994 version starring Winona Ryder. Such a great movie, filled with fabulous actors, gorgeous costumes and scenery, a loving family that I wish was mine, and a beautiful feminist message. Really does the book proud! I know, it isn’t a traditional Christmas movie but it never fails to get me in the holiday spirit.
While watching that wonderful movie we feasted on lots of sushi and popcorn! I have had vegan sushi nearly half a dozen times during the past 2 weeks, I really can’t get enough. This time Cody used actual sushi rice instead of the quinoa or brown rice we usually use which made this my favorite batch ever. The sushi rice was so chewy and moist and perfect, definitely a winner. Actually….I convinced him to make me more tonight! Yay!
And of course, you can’t watch a movie without popcorn! LOTS of popcorn! The main reason I love popcorn is because it is merely a way to get lots of vegan butter and nooch into my mouth! Look how buttery and greasy that is, perfection!
And last but definitely not least I got all my Christmas shopping done and wrapped! Excuse the lack of proper Christmasy wrapping paper, I’m sure you can understand that is pretty impossible to find around here. I love the gifts that I got for everyone, I can’t wait till they open them!
And finally, a funny/depressing/angering story for your reading pleasure….I was in the car with Cody and my father on the way back to Aramco after shopping for presents in Khobar when we were stopped by a Saudi military checkpoint. The Saudi guard leaned into the car, looked at us all, pointed at me and asked my father and Cody in Arabic: “Who does it belong to?”
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You know what else I would have liked to snack on this weekend? A plate of raw veggies with one of Zukay Live’s yummy salad dressings for a dipping sauce. If YOU want to snack on that too don’t forget to head over to my latest Grand Opening Giveaway for your chance to win a case of Zukay Live salad dressing!
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Well at least the food part of your weekend was exciting. I’m sure it wasn’t exciting to be called “it” by a Saudi Guard. C’est la vie.
Glad you are getting into running and enjoying every part of it this time. As for me I am waiting until its warmer outside to go hiking.
I miss my green smoothies, but I have little motivation to drink them in the cold. I envy your winters!
Little Women is my favorite Christmas movie, too! In fact, it’s one of my favorite movies ever. My mom had to drag me to see it in the theater when it first came out, but I’ve been madly in love with it ever since.
That paper may not be Christmas-y, but it’s absolutely gorgeous! (As are those sambusas.)
Isn’t it a magical movie! I had a huge grin on my face the whole time we were watching it. It is such a feel good, happy, wonderful movie. LOVE IT!
Yes, our winters are gorgeous here….but our summers? 125F with 90% humidity? NO THANK YOU!
All of your food looks so delicious!! Your gifts look beautifully wrapped – I still haven’t mastered the art of wrapping gifts.
Hahaha! It’s funny you should say that because I’m actually not good at wrapping gifts. I just wrap them up as quickly as possible and get the tape on them. What I am good at is hiding wrinkles, tape and tears in the photos and making them LOOK good!
My mom, on the other hand, is an expert gift wrapper. I think when she was in college she used to wrap gifts at a department store, and it shows. Growing up our wrapped presents were like works of art!
Sounds like it was a good weekend! I have to admit, I am a little jealous that you are done with your Christmas shopping already! I wish I could say the same, haha.
yay for sushi
& i feel like my boyfriend would definitely make a simliar face about the green monster if i tried one.. i want to!
What a weekend! Wish we could catch up before I leave for Oz, but it looks unlikely now i have to go away on a work trip just before my flight home…boo hoo.
Your sambusa’s look amazing, I have to come to Khobar with you sometime to find out where the best deals are.
Guess what? I have three massive containers of Nutitional Yeast. You must advise me on my first recipe ideas….I am thinking Cheesy Swiss Chard Chips?
You’ve got to make mac&cheese for sure! I make a mean queso sauce with nooch, it is super easy. Saute a bunch of onions and garlic till they are super caramelized, add a dollop of vegan butter, melt it, sprinkle in some flour, stir constantly till it forms a past. Thin out the paste with slowly drizzling water, KEEP STIRRING, until you’ve got a thick sauce. Add soy sauce, mustard, spices, and tons of nooch. That is my basic nooch cheese sauce and it is heaven. You can find lots of these recipes on my blog, check the ‘cheeze’ category. Enjoy!
I want to say a big thank you for the comment on my blog – i appreciate new readers and comments. Maybe you might check back more often? Add me to your blog roll ?
I think you have a terrific blog…wow, the sun is mesmerizing…Little Women, I have not seen it, I ought to read the book some day.
Cheers to you .
I’ve always lumped Little Women in with Christmas movies too! It’s just so good!
I think that paper looks great! I love Little Women too. I wonder whatever happened to my copy!
I am happy you figured out how to run pain-free! I may have to check out that book.
Ugh. How did you respond to that guard?
My dad drove away before I had a chance to respond or even process what happened! Grrr!
I’m SO excited I just stumbled across your blog!! Beautiful, interesting vegan food pics, witty writing, and you live in Saudi Arabia?! How cool! I’m majoring in middle eastern studies at Berkeley and have been (attempting to) learn Arabic. I’m eager to read more posts from ya!
I LOVE Little Women!! Oh my gosh, so beautiful.
I’m going to have to bookmark that book. It sounds like it was really helpful!
YAY!!!YUM!!!WEE!!!
I can’t believe that guy called you IT!!!! Makes me want to go on a rampage. Instead, I’ll just sit here and REALLY appreciate your talented, amazing self.
I’m so glad you found my blog and I found yours. You have so many interesting stories and delicious-looking food. You live in a part of the world I’ve always wanted to visit but haven’t made it to yet.
Oh who does this belong too!? Wow. I love your wrapping paper! ANd your food looks greta, great pictures!
Everything looks wonderful, as usual! Especially the green smoothie, and I’m always a fan of vegan sushi – num!
I think I’m with Cody here…I know, I know. Juicing is so healthy for you. But for me it’s a texture thing; liquids with particles in them just make me queasy. I can’t even drink pulpy orange juice.
I see one of your bite marks made it into a photo! Looks great, nonetheless.
Oh no, no, Cody loves green juices/smoothies, he was just skeptical because HE is usually the one that makes them. My track record is a little…..not so great! But I’m a pro now, promise!
I haven’t visited since your site got its new look. Terrific! Very cheerful. Your wrap looks great–so fresh and crunchy. I need to get on the green smoothie bandwagon, but I’ll need to drink them in the dark, or from opaque cups with lids. That color weirds me out…
Merry Christmas!
I love Born To Run! Did you see John Stewart (The Daily Show) interview the author? It definitely made me think again about running! That book is amazing.
I notice you eat a lot of cucumbers-is that your favorite snacking veggie? i’ve never seen them that small and still have seeds.
I am going to try your green smoothie recipe…mine are chewy! hahaha
good for you that you can run again! I am on a rest hiatus..and MISS IT!
and Little Women…FAV!!!!
sweetest movie ever!
I looove Little Women!!
Jo March = my childhood heroine!
Wow, running in the desert sounds like quite a feat! But your post-workout fuelling eats look super tasty. Yum!
[...] had a green smoothie Tasha Style today…( she has a good technique to make them less chewy and mine are nice and [...]