Happy Food Day!

Today is National Food Day! 

Celebrate National Food Day by eating a local and healthy meal!  Food Day is a nationwide celebration of healthy, affordable, and sustainably produced food and a grassroots campaign for better food policies. It builds all year long and culminates on October 24.

 For more information visit:  http://www.foodday.org

Happy 10th Birthday Bob!

It's October 23, 2013! For many days I have been trying to figure out how to express the meaning of today. This is an emotionally draining day and I didn't want to make it even more draining. I want smiles, happiness and appreciation. So after a long talk with my best friend, I decided to approach this blog in a different way. I have chosen to write a letter to my 15 year old self which is also 10 years to date from my heart transplant.


Dear Mandie,

In exactly 10 years from today, you will still be crying; thanking God for this amazing blessing in your life. The transition from a teenager to womanhood will be nothing like you expected, but you will be glad you didn't miss a minute of it because it made you strong as hell. But as for those plans you had... Let me explain...

You will surpass your goal of just making it to your high school graduation; you will graduate college and start your own business. Surprisingly-you will not be the first Latina Athletic Trainer in the NFL, instead you would become a chef. Your interest in the human body after a sports injury will change to an interest in food and how it affects the human body. You will use your knowledge and talents to help yourself and those around you.

You will hate high school but those bullies would learn that you weren't weird and fat you were mature and on steroids. Until someone has to fight for their life like you had to, they can't truly understand why homecoming and what you wore to class wasn't important anymore. But you did learn what it meant to be and have real friends and your high school coaches would become your real friends.

Plus as time went on you will figure out that you didn't just interview for your first job that summer before college; you would interview to meet your best friend. She would not only teach how to gift wrap she would teach that there is someone crazier than you but understands you more than anyone else. But this is just one of the many people that would change and impact your life. People will come and go from your life. After a long struggle you will deal with loss of people you love and the appreciation of the new people you will meet. You will never get used to hearing people say how much you impact their life cause you still can't find enough words to tell them how much they impacted yours.

Such as your mother. 10 years later she is still your everything. You will have your rebellious years with her but finally around 23/24 you will realize that she just wanted the best for you and you don't know everything just because your 20 years old and graduating college. Speaking of not knowing everything, you will finally find a balance in your sisterly relationship with Melody but she would also find your weakness.... Having an amazing little girl named Lola. You still don't have the desire to be a mother but you're going love being an Aunt. It will make that rough and tough exterior melt away and give you an excuse to still watch My Little Pony in your mid 20s. A few years later you will also have a nephew names Jr; which means someone to play in the mud and watch football with.

Within in the next 10 years you will go through an emotional roller coaster with your dad. You still and will always love him dearly.  With time and work, your relationship does get better. You'll learn that you and him are very much a like and both works in progress. Which reminds me about the men in your life... fortunately you are not married to your high school sweetheart. Instead you will come to terms with your sexuality and your love life. You will learn to love yourself first. You'll figure out your self-worth and patiently wait for someone who is truly worthy of all you have to offer. Plus some of those cool older cousins that you wanted to hang out with so bad will become your best friends too and will have a strict screening process for your future significant other. It's funny because even as you meet potential people in your life, their voices will be in your head even though they live in different parts of the country--and even on a different continent.

Right now you're thankful to begin this journey to leave that hospital in a few days and go home. Amazingly, you and Bob will do more than that; you get to travel to many places around the world. You'll go back to Jersey to see your family and you will Make a Wish to take your mom and sister to the Bahamas to swim with dolphins. You'll make your first adult decision to go to China and study aboard during the summer. You will also travel to Puerto Rico, Washington DC, New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles to name a few.

You'll still feel like 'thank you' isn't enough to say to all the people who have been there over the past 10 years. The family, friends, doctors, nurses, coworkers, teachers, coaches,  and strangers. All of them who been there and prayed for you and your family over these past 10 years. Each one of them will all impact and change your life in some way. I guess you just continue to say thank you and you are forever grateful.

As you see, a lot will happen in 10 years. You will reach your goals and continue to make new ones. You stop asking "why you" and start to say "why not you". You will continue to accept and appreciate what God has given you. You may not believe it, but you turn into this amazing beautiful young woman with a voice your aren't scared of anymore. Kid, all I can say is--you stop saying "A Heart for Amanda" and start saying "A Chef with a Heart".

Love,
Amanda DeJesus

Fall Recipes

Hi Everyone! Is everyone enjoying all the pumpkin spice? I have gone pumpkin crazy. ;-)   Well here is a great breakfast smoothie recipe using pumpkin and a nice fall snack with your favorite kind of apples. 


Pumpkin Spice Smoothie:

Ingredients:
1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or another non-dairy milk)
½ cup pumpkin purée 
½ banana
½ tsp agave syrup
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
⅛ tsp ground ginger
pinch ground nutmeg
pinch ground cloves
pinch all spice


Directions:
1) Place everything in the blender.
2) Blend until mixture is smooth.
3) Pour into your favorite glass and Sprinkle with cinnamon if you’d like!

Enjoy!

Serves: 2

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Homemade Apple Chips:

Ingredients:

1 large Apple (Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith or Golden Delicious)

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 225 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2) Using a vegetable slicer or mandoline slice the apples as thinly as you can.  

3) Mix the sugar and the cinnamon in a shallow bowl and dip the apple slices lightly in the mixture, just lightly coating them.  

4) Lay the slices on the baking sheets, about 12 slices per sheet. Bake for 60 minutes.  

5) Remove one pan at a time and flip the apple slices over with tongs.  When you return pans to oven, also rotate them - put the one that was on the top rack on the bottom.  

6) Bake for another 60 minutes. Remove pans from oven. Apple slices will start to harden up pretty quickly.  Remove with tongs.  

Enjoy! 

Makes 2 dozen chips

Sautéed Pork Loin with Apples and Broccoli

Hi Everyone! Sorry for the hiatus but I was on vacation for a couple weeks. One of my favorite things about fall is apples and spices. Well this recipe is a great combination of sweet apples and savory spices with a nice crunch from the broccoli. If you do not eat pork this recipe will work just as well with chicken breast. Hope everyone is enjoying their October. 




Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin, trimmed of fat and sliced into 1-inch pieces
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground chipotle chile pepper
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 apples, thinly sliced
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
1/4 cup apple cider
2 heads broccoli, florets separated
1 small sprig of fresh thyme


Directions:
1) In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, chipotle chile pepper, nutmeg, and ground coriander. Sprinkle both sides of the sliced pork with the spice mixture.

2) Heat a large skillet over medium high. Sauté the pork for about 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through and browned all over. Remove from pan and cover to keep warm.

3) Back in the pan, spray pan with cooking spray. Add the shallots and sauté until they start to soften, 2 minutes. Add the apples and broccoli to the pan, continuing to sauté until another 2 minutes. Add the apple cider and sauté two more minutes.

4) Place the pork (with the accumulating juices) back in the pan and cook about a minute longer, incorporating the flavors.

5) Serve dish garnished with fresh thyme leave

Enjoy!

Serves: 4

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Happy October Everyone! It's time for Halloween, pumpkin lattes, caramel apples and of course Breast Cancer Awareness month. Let's not forget to show our support by wearing and buying all things pink! Well to start this month off here is the easiest pumpkin recipe ever. This recipe only have 3 ingredients and it's really quick to make. The great part is you can change up the dry mix to whatever flavor you prefer. 


Ingredients:
1 (15 oz) can Pumpkin Purée 
1 box Spice Cake Mix (just mix)
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract


Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 24 muffin tins with paper liners. 
2) In a mixer, combine cake mix, Pumpkin purée and vanilla extract together.  Continue to mix until the batter is smooth without any lumps.  
3) Pour approximately 1/4 cup of batter into every cupcake wrapper. 
4) Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. 

Enjoy!