Well, ladies and gentlemen, there you have it. As for now i am of to take a nap... a long long long long long long long nap, lol. Until next time this is PanClayke, reminding you that bigger is not neccesarily better.

Good evening all, i hope your Thanksgiving was as awesome and as full of food as mine was! Im not gonna lie, there was definnitely some extreme fullness happening. I guess im just one of those people that graze on a bit of everything... unfortunately, there was a lot of dishes that were brought. So, after a 2 day nap, there was only one thing to do and that was to update all the wonderful people out in the land of Blog.

So, i know your all on pins and needles about my last post making the declaration to enjoy the festivites to their fullest. I know what your thinking... "You need to remind yourself to enjoy a holiday? (weeeirdoooooo...)" You would be right about that one, i am a weirdo but one that is set on changing. That being said i think its time to throw the honestly party of the year and confess that i DO have issues with food. Those of you that have been here for a while have probably already caught on to this but i do not think i have ever come right out and said it. In a nutshell, i was an overweight kid and always considered my weight the reason I didnt have a lot of friends growing up. Looking back, i know that the reasons were anything but weight related... but try telling a chubby kid that. So... leave that a few years to marinate and one develops food/weight issues which led yours truly to a point that he would rather not go too far into. Lets jest say it got to a point where i had to take a 'mandatory sabbatical' from my job at Starbucks, there was a therapist involved and even...... the shun of Pancakes!

I know, i know... the tissues are behind you. Go ahead and grab a few... now blow. Good.

But, as Rafiki once said: It doesnt matter... its in the past. Oh man, the 'Lion King' is friggin awesome, is it not? Life lessons AND good animation. This actually became somewhat of a mantra as i walked into Thankgiving. Working to keep the ticks at bay and to take what i wanted, not what was 'good' or 'bad'. The result... a day full of fried turkey, broccoli casserole, grandmas yams (want to run a TRAIN on these) and even some Pumpkin Pie and some of the best Flan i have ever tasted... plus many, many, more. I was full, but i was happy and i walked away thankful to God for the gifts we had received and the wonderful family He blessed me with. All in all, it was an awesome Thanksgiving and I would not wish it any other way.

Not only that... but there were LEFTOVERS <----- best part! However, there was not enough turkey for the families liking so we hit up the farmers market and got a breast for roasting. A turkey sandwich may make an appearance later in the week coupled with the 'splaining of how to make the perrrrrrfect leftover sangwich (years of study cant be wrong). There was also some more cranberry sauce made and......... A PIE!

OR, a cheesecake. Whatever, either way its awesome, healthy and half gone. I may or may not be running a train on this dessert. But... if you have to have a guilty plesure the Enlightend Pumpkin Cheezcake isn't a bad way to go. I subbed silken tofu for one of the bricks of cream cheese for some added protein and i used pre-made crust because my mother did not know what kind we needed... next time i make this i want to use Nilla Wafers cause im from the south and we put them on everything. I will be adding more more brown sugar next time... but, other than that, this is a wonderful little dessert thats nice when your craving something Pumpkin-y.

As if baking is not awesome enough there was some SWAGGGG accumulated over the break that i will go into later (im sure i have bored you enough already). Until then i will leave you with a little warning I saw at the beach after i had breakfast the other day that made me laugh... since i had chosen to NOT have oatmeal that morning.
How do you like that one Mitri?

Also, still on a high from the Terminator Success! I am now taking down another food challenge that has daunted South Florida for far too long. Will update more later on so be ready.

Well, ladies and gentlemen, there you have it. Tune in next time for an update on the SWAG and the 'Challenge' not to mention a restaurant review or two. Until then, this is PanClayke, reminding you that when you fry a turkey on high heat it creates a sear that keeps the bird from getting greasy but keeping it moist. haha, i said moist.

Labels

Being a dieter and a vegan have made me realize the importance of label checking. Who knew that nearly every 'vegetarian' product is nowhere near vegan. Well, regardless... ill tell you who knows now.

OOOOOOO! Before i get to deep into the black hole of my mind allow me to let the flight attendant direct you to the link to the right ---->. Yes, yours truly is going to put the 'NO' in November when he takes down the Terminator... once and for all. Be prepared for a video that will make you laugh, cry, hurl, pass out, laugh again and leave you wanting peanuts for some reason.

Okay... back to labels. The are nowhere near as helpful as people wish they were, in my opinion. Yes, they are great in respect of telling what the ingredients are in foods. Heaven knows that there are enough allergies and intolerances in the world today without people needing to constantly worry about weather or not their bread contains something that will make them sick.

On the other hand.... there is an aspect of obsession. Horrible, nagging, thought-clouding and mind numbing obsession. I remember spending 2 hours in the grocery aisles looking at the differences between THIS bread and THAT bread. "Which has more protein. Whats the serving size? Is there enough fiber in this one?" Yeah... im a freak, or at least was. The only thing is you fail to see yourself in that way since the realm of thinking is: "They put the labels there, i HAVE to check them." This way of 'healthful thinking' would result in me spending 5-10 minutes looking at a label having an inner debate about whether or not i should eat something... later on, it evolved into weighing out apples and oranges and making sure the lighter ones were what i went with. And, sad but true, there was even a period where the food scale would come out and weight/measure bagged salad. Friggin iceberg lettuce down to the exact ounce. Good Lord, just saying it makes me wonder how something like that can be thought of as 'healthy'.

If your still hanging around, then mad props to you. Like i said here i feel the need to be more personal throughout the Panclayke-sphere... maybe to my detriment, but only time will tell. That being said, i dont think there is anything more personal than the contents of ones fridge/pantry.

Yeah... remember how i mentioned how labels suck? The tupperware is definitely insane, mostly homemade hummus but still. This leads me to my next challenge.... THE PANTRY CHALLENGE! Cleaning out the pantry the only way I know how... by eating it! (There is gonna be a LOT of hummus sandwiches) Now, there is still going to be trips to publix/whole foods for fresh things (fruit, bread, veggies, etc), but no other food will be coming in the house until the tomb is empty. Why do it... that brings me to my next point...

Okay, so ive been eating vegan for a while now. This, i find, works well since apples and sweet potatoes dont come with a nutrition label. I've learned to appreciate fresh food and respect it at the same time. Even though the tomatos on the vine didnt have a 'personality', there is still the inkling that it is helping me be better by nourishing me. Ergo... when said tomato goes bad i always feel guilty... almost ungrateful and disrepectful (i am SUPER-sensitive... hey, i have a super power!). There is also a more real guilt to be had... in the sense that many are going hungry in the world today. Now, THAT makes me sad... so, again, allow me to direct you to the donation icon at the top of the page. Feel free to visit the site or Email me to learn more but the readers digest version is that im going to take down the eating challenges of S. Florida as somewhat of a stunt to get donations for the 'Daily Bread Food Bank'. I encourage you all to help me kick hunger (mine and others) in the FACE!

Last, but not least, something uh-maize-ing happened today. I mentioned to my mum-zies that i was thinking about pulling my savings moula and buying a refurbished video camera so i could start some video postage (WHOOPS, Gave away the surprise) but, then she told me to wait before i went to Best Buy... left the room for ten minutes and came back with a SONY HANDY-FRIGGIN-CAM! This thing is like brand spanking new and is going to fuel some new realm of postage... and WAY better documentation of the 'challenges. Which, as of now, contain

• Terminator (pancake)
• 5 lb burrito
• the kitchen sink (ice cream)
• the Vermonster (<-- google it!)
• 5 lb burger.

Well my loves... thats all for this tired blogger. I am not off to enjoy some Neil Patrick Harris and a quilt with my name on it. Until next time, this is PanClayke reminding you that that people are like food and should not be determined as a 'label'.

Honesty Party!

I've been on the fence for a long time about how much of myself to put into this blog. Should I trust my poker hand and go all in or should i hang back and save a couple chips for the river? Should I write the bolg more for myself and make it a bit more meaty and emotional or just stick with posting a good pancake recipe once a week?

At first, it seemed a god decision to go gung ho, just emote all over the internet and talk about anything and everything that bothers me and end every paragraph with 'why am I like this/what should I do?" in all caps AND underlined. You now i was serious because that is pretty much the internet equivelent of screaming at the top of my LUUUUUNGS (im giving it baaa-aack <--- thanks Mandy Moore) Then i paused and realized this blog is on the WORLD wide web, and though of how many people are actually in the world. The answer? Hundereds..... there are literally, hundreds. Some of those people may be my future employers and others may be the women i eventually want to make a good impression on through the world of speed-dating. I'm a realist, what can I say. So, i decided to add a bit more of myself into these pages but not go all in. Hopefully this doesn't turn out like last nights baked potato and blow up in my face. That being said, i have realized that i need to get more sleep. Part of me feels like im just whining and should 'man up', but then im remembered of two things. The first being that its not about manning up, more about what is needed by each 'man'. Meaning, you may work fine off three hours of slumber and thats totally cool... more power to you. To be honest, i do "okay" on three hours as well.... but I'm the best i can be when i get seven or eight. And, as with the mighty pancake, it is not about how long they take to get on the table but rather how tastey they are. I would like to be tastey pleeeeease. Secondly, while i may not be the best 'philosophizer' i like to think i am smart enough to remember some good advice when i hear it. Some such advice stems from this genius. She once told me: "The human body has three necessities; food, sex and sleep." The first two will have to be saved for a later posting and the third is abviously important since it is dubbed 'necessity'. Therefore; more sleep is necessary.

Why did i feel the need to vindicate something that seems so trivial? Well, due to lack of sleep my brain tends to not be in the greatest state. I dont think clearly and im moody beyond all reason. It gets really bad the more I try to remedy whatever i believe to be bothering me since it just makes me more introverted and results in overthinking to the maxxxx. I can tell this because iv;e been stressing out over things i can't control (the future, other people, lifetime goals, etc) and the second is that im in a depression about lack of 'happenings' going on in my life while simultaneously having no motivation to move from the couch to do much of anything. It's time to be selfish and take care of me, which is something I neglect to do WAY more than i should... much to my detriment. Therefore, i would like to take this opportunity to apolgize to my body or not treating it as well as it deserves and make a promise to be nicer to it. A promise I WILL follow through with this time... after all, this is the one make/model that can't be traded in.

Speaking of taking care of the bod, many of you will remember the recent change in my diet to a way of veganism, meaning no meat, eggs or dairy. Think about how much that entails in todays society..... got it? Yeah, no those. Needless to say, its been a decision met with a lot of discussion and concern from friends/family. "How can you not have meat? Are you getting enough nutrition?" Now, Perhaps this is a decision best made for when i am adequately nourished/rested so we will definiely hit upon this subject later. But for now... its something to think about. Should the PanClayke stay cruelty-free? Only time will tell

OMG! CHALLENGE! Im watching Rachel Ray (no judging) and i just noticed her 'whats for dinner tonight' for monday is a... get this crap..... Chicken Pot Pie Pancake. Now granted, my original recipe has yet to be put into circulation yet, but it also means that there is something wonerful coming your way this weekend! I will, however, be changing the name of the recipe to P-Cubed (pot pie pancakes) as opposed to the earlier renditions name (chicken and dump-cakes). In retrospect, the aforementioned recipe name sounds like a show for Nicelodeon about a wimpy kid and his smelly friend. I think it is fair to say though that the Nick Network could use a bit of revamp-age.

EDIT: This may be randomly disconnected but it was too short for a brand new post so i thought i would piggyback on the earlier one i wrote today just so i could have written records of it happening. What am I talking about? Well, im working a haunted house/ministry opportunity for my church starting this weekend where i play a drug dealer in a one minute scene. This is going to go on for about four straight hours. in the heat. over and over. maybe a five minute break on the hour. But ill tell you right now, i was having fun. People were getting into it and i actually started enjoying myself after a couple of runs... despite me being apprehensive about it as people kept talking about the event and all the hurdles we are going to have to hop over. Either way... I forgot how much i missed acting. Along with the promise to treat myself better is going to have to be the promise of not forgetting what im good at and why I am here in the first place. Could i do other things? Sure... but who would ever want to is my question.

Terminator.... I hardly know her.

The discovery and the challenge is presented.

This is what we were dealing with. People often ask why Mt. Everest was climbed, and the answer was "Because it is there". Well, its time to eat this bad boy... because its there!

There were still a couple more Dedications... the sheer volume of the cake necessitated more people i suppose.

Dear PanClayke... you know your in trouble when Dad and Grandma have both finished their meals and your still tucking into it. Also.... when grandma is worried your going to die.

-Yours truly was feeling strong and was seemed to have this in the bag. Then i realized what the preverbial ' wall' is, you know... the one that marathon runners talk about when they get to the last mile/half mile. For me, however, this came about 60% into the cake. Now keep in mind, not only was this 60% of a 24'' pancake that must have been an inch thick, but i had also chosen today as 'non-vegan day', giving myself the chance to see if i actualy prefer the taste of meat and dairy and went vegan only to jump on the bandwagon of the 'Skinny Bitch' hype. Believe me when i say... while it may have been a hype decision before... it is anything but now. Bite after bite just made me question every decision i had made within the last three hours. My stomach was hurting and I could barely speak above a whisper. I tried all the tricks i could think of (food combining, dipping the pancake bites in coffee, alternating between meats and carbs... however, not only was everything tasting the same after a while (salt, salt and more salt. Even the coffee tasted like salt!) but i questioned the reasons i was even still doing it. It was only for those waitresses in the restaurant and the readers in the blogsphere.

Now, know that i love you all (you know that right?) but even all the love in this little chefs heart couldn't bring him to take another bite this time around. I kid you not when i say that when i left I felt like the bottom of a shoe after one walks through a porno theater... sticky and weird. And apparently, I was not the only one...

Now, to be honest... i do not feel worthy to be called PanClayke at the moment. I know this was a task that is and will be attempted by the truly insane but that still does not stop me from feeling a sense of failure. However, im sure this will be gone once i get some fresh fruit in me (once this massive 'food baby' decides to be delivered).

Now, the final thoughts: Will i ever attempt the terminator again? Maybe in another year on non-vegan day. However, i know my body will start to remind me of how crappy i feel after taking in all the animal product and it might persuade me to do otherwise. However, i may just get on the horn with a vegan friendly diner and see if we can work something out.

Was going vegan the right desicsion? YES!!! My grandma kept telling me that my ody was not going to be able to handle it since i was used to eating so well (i opted to not listen since i am the quintiscential 'man'). But I would have to agree. After a while i noticed i was leaning more towards eating the potatos and sipping the water, even eyeing the left overs of my grandmas greek salad thinking about snagging a tomato. Evidently... it was my subconcious trying to get some actual nutrition in my body. Afterwards... i felt i could have taken it down and was actualy starting to get mad at my 'partners' for rushing me to get out of there. Then, i took a breath and asked myself why i 'wanted' to put my body through something like that? I think it was just because i really wanted one of the apples i picked up at WF yesterday, or maybe a banana fresh fron the freezer after being put in there 10 minutes ago. Uggh, i cant even think about that now though. For now it is time for a walk and then a morning wake up call to greet the radio listening masses.

Until next time this is PanClayke reminding you that there is, sometimes, too much of a good thing (Even pancakes). Tune in next time for the pancakes of the weekend and a review of Whip IT!

Vegan MOP!

Yeah, your right... like the instrument of cleaning. Not that i use one, in fact... the last time i attempted the 'swiffer' to clean up dried rum on the floor I ended up spreading it around more. Helpful hint... when cleaning alcohol up you cave to wash, soap, wash again, and dry. Its alot like washing the old coiffure, just with a mop and a bucket. Wait, its EXACTLY like washing the coif!

Hair trends aside, the 'strange' title has a double meaning. The first is to give glory to Neil Flynn! You may now him as the Janitor from Scrubs, he was also Lindsay Loan's dad in mean girls, sad that i know this. Guilty pleasure aside, the former is the reason why we honor him this day due to the abundance of Scrubs i have been lving up on recently... season 8 to be exact (SWAG!).

MOP is also serving as an abbreviation for Month Of Pancakes. Let me explain... october is vegan month of food... there, I did it. Numerous vegans in the Blogsphere are documenting the foods they eat and tips for new and aspiring vegans... however, due to my lack of experience in veganism i have opted to rebel out and focus on the wonder of Vegan pancakes. THEY CAN BE DONE! This may be interrupted breifly, more on this later, but a 99% is still an A. An A in Veganology, no wait... Veganomics (winner!). So, lets begin with...

ZUCHINNI PANCAKES!

(you put WHAT in there?)

See, i have a problem buying too many veggies when i go to the store. I dont really have a menu planned... but i know that I may want a veggie sangwich sometime during the week so i get some zuchinni. However, since produce is not as forgiving as meat, it tends to go bad before i can use it. Seriously... DONT USE IT! My toilet can vouch for this after what i dub as the 'radish inquisition'. So, since i cannot stand wasting food i decided to take a former Starbucks Favorite and MOP it!

Start with half a medium zuchinni and chop the buhjesus out of it and mix it with a little milk and sugar. Top it with Wheat Flour, baking soda, cinnamon+nutmeg, and a few chopped walnuts. Mix, pour, flip and VIOLA! You have a pancake fit for a wonderful cup of coffee! Just take a look at that. Veggies for breakast again! Remember These guys? OF course you do.

Now, the bad news. Normally I make the mix with Whole Wheat/chik pea flour or soy flour. Today... i was out of both. This is important because WW flour is heavier and, therefore, makes a more dense pancake when it is used by itself. That being said... the initial flavor was a bit offputting (and a little heavy on the nutmeg if i say so myself). I always forget that not every spice is as magestic as cinnamon. *gutteral moan* cinnamon *gutteral moan*. However, the heat from the skillet softened the zuchinni well and the Waluts provided a wonderful texture/flavor.

Lesson: Half the WW flour so its lighter, less nutmeg and toast the walnuts a but before putting them in with the dry goods. (MAN, am i critical or what?)

Lastly, as promised... what is going to interrupt the Vegan MOP? Well, let me answet your question with another. Can you click on this? IS it vegan, no... will I triumph in a pool of awesomeness? Tune in next time! Until then, this is PanClayke reminding you that guilty pleasures (pancakes and 'Mean Girls') are necessary from time to time.

Pie, or cake?

Okay, so I have been following that show "Man vs. Food" prety carefully since it first came out. The fact that this normal guy who has supposedly held 'every job in the kitchen' is getting paid to travel to these awesome places throughout the U.S. eating all this wonderful food and getting new T-Shirts along the way makes me both laugh and cringe at the same time. Laugh because.... well, a man going into a self induced food coma is funny. And cringe because I would be kicking those challenges in the face while being just as entertaining (if not more... i do sing as well you know). I think its safe to say the Adam Richman is my definition of an 'American Hero', someone who uses a niche (no matter how obscure) and uses it to educate as well as entertain...... sacrificing his body one dish at a time.

This led me to think, how could this humble cake-head solidify his status of heroism in such a way. Well, i like food.... i love Florida....and (though it may not look it) i can put away a whole lotta foodening. The answer? Pick up a fork and be your own hero!

This motivated me to jump on the interwebs and search out the challenges of Florida that i was yet to be familiar with. Two have popped up that are pretty local: one being seemingly daunting and the other being perrrrrrrfect for our purposed on this day.

Daunting- "Pizza Rustica"= a 24'' x 16'' pizza (that can be made vegan!) which takes four people to complete! I have already enlisted assistance from the pizza lovers/food movers in my circle and they are so down.

Perrrrrfect-"Shelby's Diner"= a 24'' pancake known as the 'terminator' covered with eggs, homefries, toast and bacon. A giant pancake! I would have to be insane not to do this.... but it is a solo challenge. Could one do it on their own? Also, this dish cannot be vegan friendly, which leads me to some serious decisions about the choice to make the switch (more to come on that later) However, if i need to... im going to whip out a giant sheet pan and make my own pancake "Uncle Buck" style.... cause im totally jonesing for a giant pancake right about now (I should snack before work tomorrow).

Well, the question then is: 'Cake or Pie', sweet or savory.... the eternal struggle. I pose this question to you and await the answer.

(*note; the picture at the top of the post is a 24'' pizza pie. Just to be used as a comparison. Compare it to something like........... a human baby. Scary, no?)