Happy blogiversary to Inspiralized!!
Three years ago today, I started the Inspiralized blog!
Well, technically, three years + one day ago I started Inspiralized, because the night before was the dayĀ I registered the domain (I was too excited!). So if we’re being technical….
Can you believe it? For those of you who have been following me since the beginning, I hope you’ve enjoyed the journey as much as I have! There have definitely been ups and downs, but the ups have certainly outweighed the downs – and for that, I’m grateful!
This little blog has grown into a full blown business, but it’s even more than that – it’s helped me find my healthiest self and embrace body positivity. It’s helped me find out who I truly am, the kind of woman I want to be, and how I want to impact the world. Everyday I feel blessed to be able to bring my healthy recipes to all of you, and I’ll never take that for granted.
Always on my blogiversary, I think about those two days (June 25, 2013 – I quit my job and June 26, 2013 – I started my blog.) I feel like it was just yesterday, truly! If you don’t know my story, you can read it here, but I figured I’d touch uponĀ it briefly.
On June 25, 2013, I wasn’t expecting to quit my job. I had been trying to build up the guts to do it for weeks, but I just couldn’t. It was a comfortable job with a good salary and a five minute commute from my apartment. How can you beat that?!
Basically, that day, I went into my boss’s office and told him that I wanted to pursue this Inspiralized dream. Originally, I suggested I work part-time for his company and part-time on Inspiralized. He basically laughed in my face, told me that “you can’t make money on cookbooks” and tried to convince me that I’d be making a foolish, life-ruining mistake. He was a real jerk and I left his office, blood pumping, heart pounding. I was on the brink of tears.
I called Lu and I exclaimed, “I justĀ want to quit! I think today is the day.” Lu’s a pretty practical guy, so he told me something along the lines of, “If you think it’s time, baby, then I’ll support you – go do it. Just make sure you’re ready.”
I was ready.
I walked into the CFO’s office (my boss had already left for the day), burst into tears, and quit. I wasn’t a cute crying (I’ve seen girls do that on TV, I don’t know how they do it), I was sobbing, practically dry heaving. The CFO was kind and told me to pursue it – and that he could tell I was really passionate about this idea. That calmed my nerves, and I walked to my desk, cleaned up, and walked out of corporate America that day (June 25, 2013.)
I calledĀ my mom, immediately, to let her know. Then that night, I waited patiently for Lu to come home, hugged the heck out of him, and was so excited to start building Inspiralized, that I went ahead and purchased Inspiralized.com (I had the name in my mind for a while after I word vomited it one night during a spiralized dinner.)
Honestly, there was no better feeling that night. I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders and I was reborn or something. It was so empowering, exciting, scary, and uplifting. I felt like I could burst!
That next morning, I walked with Lu to the PATH (he takes the PATH everyday into Manhattan where his office is) and on the way, there’s a Starbucks and I stopped in there, with my laptop and…. a dream.
I opened my laptop and I can’t even put those feelings into words. I bought a coffee, logged into their WiFi, and literally made a bullet list of what I needed to do that day. I started my building my social media channels and of course, my first blog post.
THE REST IS HISTORY! š
And as for today’sĀ recipe, I think it speaks for itself. It was inspired by a Rachael Ray and Skinnytaste recipe, but modified to suit my cooking and ingredient preferences, as well as #inspiralized! The meat is all kinds of savory and salty, and the cucumbers compliment the spiciness of the gochujang paste, a trending Korean condiment. Speaking of gochujang, this is the paste I used.
Overall, a slam dunk meal for Korean food lovers and meat lovers. If you’re vegetarian, you can use crumbled tofu or seitan!
That’s it – and as you know, I’m currently celebrating my blogiversary in Thailand – right now, we’re in southern Thailand! Make sure to follow along on Instagram.
Watch our video to learn how to spiralize a cucumber using the Inspiralizer and subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch more videos:
PLEASE NOTE: Currently, I am celebrating myĀ one year wedding anniversary with my husband,Ā inĀ Southeast Asia. Thus, I am not checking blog comments and messages. If you do leave a comment, Meaghan, our Brand & Community Manager is here to respond and help with any questions. You can always e-mail her if you need anything while I’m gone. I return July 4th weekend, and will respond to everything that week when I’m back in the office. Thank you for your patience and understanding as I enjoy this time with my husband!Ā
Nutritional Information & Recipe
Weight Watchers SmartPoints*: 7Ā points
*These points were calculated using the official Weight Watchers SmartPoints calculator. We are in no way affiliated with Weight Watchers, we are providing this information based on popular demand.
Korean Beef Rice Bowls with Spiralized Cucumbers and Daikon Rice
Ingredients
- For the beef:
- 1 pound ground beef lean
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
- 3-4 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- For the bowls:
- 2 daikon radishes peeled, Blade D, noodles trimmed
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil room temperature
- 4 scallions diced, white and green parts divided
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons gochujang sauce or more if desired
- sesame seeds to garnish (about 1/2 tablespoon)
- 1 English seedless cucumber Blade D, noodles trimmed
Instructions
- Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Once skillet is hot, spray with cooking spray and add the ground meat. Breaking the meat up with a wooden spoon, cook the meat until cooked through and browned, 5-7 minutes. Add in the garlic, onion, and ginger and season with salt and pepper, cooking for 1 minute or until fragrant.
- Add the soy sauce, sesame oil and red pepper flakes to the skillet and stir well to combine. Cover the skillet and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes to let the flavors develop.
- Meanwhile, prepare the rice. Place the daikon noodles into a food processor and pulse until rice-like. Place a medium skillet over medium-high heat and add in the coconut oil. Once oil melts, add in the white parts of the scallions. Cook for 5 minutes or until scallions soften. Add in the daikon rice and season with salt and pepper. Cook for another 3 minutes or so just to heat the rice through and soften to your preference.
- Divide the rice into bowls. Top with the beef and place a dollop of the gochujang sauce (about 1/2 tablespoon/bowl). Garnish the beef with sesame seeds. Top with cucumber noodles and serve.
comments