Bacon, And Corn, And Shrimp, Oh My

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Wednesdays are my long days (8 – 4:40 on campus) but today didn’t feel so bad.  I’ve fallen into the swing of 8 am classes and my friend Janessa and I had a group project to work on that filled up our long break between classes.  Throughout the day I did eat all of my packed lunch components.  I also bought a short apple cider from the school coffee shop.

This wasn’t a total fail like the Tim Horton’s cider, but it still tasted a lot like warm apple juice.

I need to find a good cider before the end of September Apple Month!

Adam came to pick me up at the end of the day and wanted me to go to Wegmans with him to pick something up for school.  He plied me with hot bar.

I caved easily.  To be fair, I genuinely needed some greens to go with my dinner.

Plus a few pieces of chicken for good measure.

It’s a good thing I was still hungry when I got home (ha! when am I ever not still hungry?) because I got to work cooking an actual dinner.

I’m not sure what corn chowder is supposed to look like but to me that looks like success.

I pulled the recipe for Bacon-Corn Chowder with Shrimp from Cooking Light last month but I was waiting until it felt more like fall to try it out.  Here were my changes –

  • using 5 strips of (Applegate Farms) turkey bacon and crumbling it all into the soup
  • skipping the thyme
  • throwing in 2 extra cloves of garlic
  • leaving my frozen corn frozen when it went into the pot

I gave myself a large serving and happily tucked into the first soup of the season.

Adam and I thought that the recipe was good, but not amazing like we wanted it to be.  I wanted the flavors to be more vibrant and definitely sweeter.  I think a large part of the problem was using frozen corn; I’d love to make this again but with fresh corn off the cob.  We gave it a 6.5/10 but considering how low-calorie it was (~300 calories for 1 and 2/3 cups) the flavor certainly wasn’t bad.

My taste buds weren’t fully satisfied by the meal though.  I actually ended up making myself an after-dinner coffee.

A little bit of lukewarm coffee, a Tbsp of sugar, and a lotta bit of Plain Silk Almond Milk.  I hope the caffeine doesn’t keep me up!

Window Shopping Wednesdays

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I am not much of a shopper, much to my mother’s chagrin.  The woman can spend days at the mall, while I start to feel itchy after just a few hours.  It’s not that I’m not materialistic, I totally am, it’s just that the thought of adding more stuff to my life makes it hard to breathe.  But I like the idea of things.  So I’m an avid window shopper.  I browse catalogs I’ll never buy from and hold my breathe when I pass the window at J.Crew.  So while I’m stuck at school all day Wednesdays, I thought we could have some fun via blog.  Let’s window shop!

Here’s what I’m coveting this week –

1. Clinque Chubby Stick Lip Balm.

Particularly in Woppin’ Watermelon.  I have a total love for things that look like school supplies so the crayon lipstick trend is high on my list.  Years ago I got a lip highlighter from Sephora that I’m obsessed with and this is the closest thing to it I’ve come across since.

2. Gingerbread Ale from Bison Brewing.

And I quote – “Our Spiced holiday porter is brewed with ginger, nutmeg and a touch of cinnamon, yielding the aroma of fresh backed gingerbread men!”  Holy frick; this would beat a Starbucks gingerbread latte any day!

3. The All Out Of Pad from Knock Knock.

We actually already use this product and I love it.  The pad is preorganized so that items are grouped by section (which you should do anyways) and the more common items are listed so you can just check them off (though there are also lines to write stuff in).  It’s convenient and I love how much neater this looks on the side of the fridge than a plain pad with Adam’s doctor handwriting scrawled all over it.

4. The Whoopie Pie Baking Pan from Fred Flare.

There’s a pumpkin spice whoopie pie recipe with my name on it and I’d love for my final product to look a bit more uniform.

5. Cupcake liners from Cath Kidston.

I’m not even going to pretend like $18 for cupcake liners isn’t a waste of money, BUT … look at how cute they are!  I think it’s important for everyone, including cupcakes, to feel well dressed.

What are you coveting this week?

Co-Co-Ca-Razy

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My breakfast this morning was chockfull of coconut.

I realize that these aren’t the prettiest pictures but a certain dog wouldn’t keep his nose out of my bowl.  That’s a Liberte Coconut Yogurt with 1 Tbsp of Bear Naked granola and 1 Tbsp of shredded, unsweetened coconut.

The Liberte yogurt is sooooo sweet and thick.  I’m coo-coo for coconut!

Speaking of crazy, check out the to-do lists I made on todoist last night.

This semester is not going to be kind to my sleep schedule and working out goals.

As long as we’re looking ahead, here’s what I plan on having for lunch – a serving of baby carrots,

a mini box of raisins,

a big baggie of grapes,

a serving of Quaker Maple Oatmeal Squares (HLS swag),

and a string cheese.

I imagine these will all be eaten by the end of the day.

I’ll be home around 5, but you should stop by the blog at noon for a shopping post!

Pregnant in Philly

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Ever since the Healthy Living Summit I’ve been thinking about one thing.  Not blogstalking new people; I’ve been too busy for that.  Not how to improve my blog, though obviously that should be high on my list.  For me, Philly was all about the Philly.

The vegan Philly Cheese Steak.  The minute I took that first chewy yet crunchy bite I knew this was something I’d have to recreate at home.

We hollowed out a roll of Italian bread, piled it high, and melted on two slices of 2% Provolone cheese.  For our filling we sautéed together sliced mushrooms, sliced onion, thin strips of red pepper, and crumbled Seitan.

Meet the /mostly/ vegan Philly cheese steak /done at home/.

It was delicious.  But it wasn’t the delicious.  I was looking to relive the taste I experienced in Philadelphia – the savory yet tangy flavor, my need to pull pieces of the “meat” from my sandwich to eat with my fingertips – and this wasn’t quite there.  Still good though.

I plated myself a small bowl of filling on the side when we sat down.

But I ended up having more than enough food and leaving most of this, plus a few bites of bread, behind.

For the salad course of dinner we ate the remains of some romaine.

Topped with Kraft Light Parmesan Asiago Balsamic Vinaigrette and big handfuls of blue cheese crumbles and buckwheat groats.

My last bite was pure blue cheese and buckwheat and it was ridiculous good.  The crunchiness of the groats makes me enjoy salads 100% more than before.

Other than making a good dinner, I didn’t accomplish near enough this afternoon.  After all my morning workout motivation it was all I could do not to fall asleep on my notes this afternoon.  It didn’t help that Webster was being a distracting little stinker –

That is the top of the couch!  Why/how?!?

Pregnancy Chic?

The other half of my title comes from my afternoon admission that I rock tunic-style tops fairly regularly.  They look good on me, they hide the fact that I spent the summer watching Charmed on the couch, and I generally think they’re adorable.  Like this new top I got at the Banana Republic outlet this summer.

This top is super cute, especially the wrap-style boobs.

But when I was describing my look this morning I heard “second trimester chic” coming out of my mouth.

I’m good with it though.  I may be years away from pregnancy but I’ve already got a ton of concerns about all the things that come after getting knocked up.  At least I can cross *spending money on maternity clothes* off my list of worries, my current wardrobe should carry me through just fine!

Are you a fan of the “pregnancy chic” look or do you prefer tighter fitting tops?

Spiders and Schweddy Balls

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Success!  I started my day with success.  In spite of not getting to bed quite on time last night I successfully managed my first morning workout today!  I was worried things were getting off track when the world’s largest spider was on my car door (seriously) but I kept it together.  Sure killing the spider calling Adam and crying did eat into my time a bit, but I still got in a good workout.

35 minutes on the elliptical; random level 6.  Followed by a super quick strength/stretch session.  <– what that means to me, by the way, is generally 50 crunches, 40 other abs moves, 3 sets of toe touching, and a 1-minute plank ending with a downward dog.

I left the gym at 6:57 and had time to drive home, shower/dress, get my stuff together, drive back to school, park, and walk to class for 8 am.  The gym opens at 6am so if the spiders leave me alone I can get in a decent workout most mornings.

This morning, “get my stuff together” included making a giant iced coffee.

4 cups of cold coffee, 2 Tbsp English Toffee Syrup, and a big splash of Silk Plain Almond Milk. 

The almond milk takes coffee to whole new level; it is sooo thick!  (twss)

I also packed myself some plums to munch on during my 4-hour class.

1 black plum and 1 dapple plucot; sliced for easy mid-class eating.

My breakfast held me over until noon, especially because I find coffee to be very filling, but I did make lunch a three-parter when I got home.

Course 1 was chicken salad.

I tossed together shredded chicken, a few grapes, and 2 Tbsp 0% Plain Fage, 1 Tbsp sour cream, and 1.5 Tbsp pickle relish.

I don’t mind mayo but it’s fun to branch out; the greek yogurt sour cream combo did a great job as a binder.

I also ate a serving of these chips but my camera was dead so no picture.

Course 2 was a green apple with peanut butter.

That unappetizing looking stuff is actually Peanut Butter Company’s Dark Chocolate Dreams.

I used to love PB&Co when I lived in the city and I was super excited to find a 170-calorie pack in my book store.

And the awesome looking plate actually came home from my grandma’s house last weekend.

My great-great-grandmother painted these by hand!

My peanut butter sparked my sweet tooth because my final course was dessert.

I made myself a small serving of Ben and Jerry’s Schweddy Balls ice cream with 2 tsp of Heath crumbles on top.

I would probably like this ice cream even if it tasted like cardboard because the reference to one of SNL’s best skits is just too good!  Thankfully it’s also delicious; the rum flavor is nice and mellow and the malt balls are still crunchy.

What’s your all-time favorite SNL sketch?  I think mine might be Baldwin’s other win, “Canteen Boy.”

Full Court Press

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Yikes!  The semester is starting to get real and today was just a bit stressful.  I’ll keep this post quick because I have to get in the shower by 9 pm to have any chance of getting in bed in time to workout in the morning.

We finally got some info on due dates in class today (we still have several assignments that are unknown though frustratingly) and as of right now here is what I have on tap of this semester –

  • 15 exams
  • 4 personal papers (2 of which include presentations)
  • 4 group papers/presentations

That’s in addition to quizzes and homework assignments.  Fun.  I originally said I was going to aim to finish all assignments by October but clearly that goal is shot!

During class 1 I ate this Nature’s Path Peanut Choco bar from my HLS Swag bag.

A bit sticky for my liking but it was packing a great amount of chocolate and peanut butter, especially for 150 calories.  I actually enjoyed it so much that I tried to buy more at Wegmans this afternoon.

After class 2 and I headed to the gym for a quick (quick!) workout.  1 mile run and 10 minutes of strength/stretch moves.

During class 3 I ate this mini pack of dried cranberries and pineapples.

After school I drove a friend to work, went to the tailors, and did a grocery run with Adam.  Thank goodness we had a free coupon for hot bar because getting to 4pm on 200 calories made me just a bit cranky.

Garlic eggplant, garlic broccoli, roasted veg, and some sesame chicken.

Plus h2o-melon, pineapple, and a few berries.

I was freezing this afternoon so I made a mug of hot chocolate to sip while I worked.

I wish I could say I had gotten more done but it’s hard to study when this is your scenery –

I love my boys!  Actually, I told Adam the other day that sometimes I think about leaving him so I can get away from the dog but that’s a fleeting thought when I’m cleaning up after 1 or both of them and in general I think I’m the luckiest lady on earth.

Dinner was a Panini masterpiece.

A sandwich idea was sparked by my desire for this combination –

Trader Joe’s mango butter with brie.  Plus Applegate Farms Organic Sliced Turkey on rye bread.

The sweet brie pairing is always a winner (see baked brie with dried cranberries) but turning this into a sandwich took it over the top.

Yum!

Plus a side of roasted green beans which sadly seem to have gone bad and were mostly left uneaten.

Rotton beans can’t put a damper on that sandwich though, dinner was still considered a success.

Do you like brie?  What’s your favorite way to pair it?

More Sleep More Hunger

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Apparently my body didn’t get enough sleep or food the other day because it demanded more of both in large quantities.  Good thing it’s the weekend and I had time to indulge in both.

Adam and I actually got out of bed at 8 am this morning but when the dog got back into bed we thought we’d cuddle with him, just for a minute.  4 hours later it was noon and we were waking up for lunch.

Adam made chicken salad my favorite way; shredded chicken with grapes, walnuts, and Miracle Whip.

Grapes totally make chicken salad.  But apparently this didn’t fuel us that well because we totally went back to sleep until 2:30!

When we got up and set out on errands I was starving.  We stopped at Tim Hortons on the way to Goodwill for a caramel apple cider.  On Friday I was bemoaning the pumpkin options I can’t try until Pumpkin Month (aka October) and my friend Kim convinced me that September should be all about apples.  Another theme?  I’ll take that challenge!

That happy face was before I actually tasted the cider sadly, yuck city.  It tasted like it was made with fake apple flavoring.

I chucked my cider after 1 sip but I did eat 2/3 of this filled maple doughnut.

This was a very out-of-character thing for me to eat but I was low on options and we were running late for our afternoon activity.

The Bison Ballpark Brew Bash is a craft beer tasting event whose proceeds benefit Cystic Fibrosis research.

We got our tickets 50% off with Groupon so it wasn’t a big deal that I didn’t end up drinking that much.  I ended up taking a few sips of a few things and calling it a day.

Buffalo Brew Pub’s Oktoberfest.

I don’t really remember this one; not bad but not my style.  I drank ~1oz.

Ithica Beer Co’s Smoked Porter.

Eek, not my thing at all; one sip was enough for me!  The smoked flavor was almost meaty, I imagine drinking a full one of these would feel like eating a meal.

Rohrbach’s Brewing Company’s Vanilla Porter.

For a porter the flavor was nice and light and I liked the vanilla scent.  ~1.5oz.

Post Road’s Pumpkin Ale.

Ewwww.  The smell of this was good but it was way too sour for me, I was sad that I even took one sip.

Six Point Brewery’s Sweet Action Cream Ale.

Yum!  This had a great light fizz and almost orange-y undertones.  I drank 95% of my pour happily.

Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale.

Now this is what pumpkin brews should taste like!  The smell was pumpkin pie and the taste was pure pumpkin.  I am definitely going to be on the lookout for a bottle of this before October Pumpkin Month.

I ended the day with Heineken Light.

I know most people who drink craft beer would call this a low note, but don’t hate, I love Heineken Light.  The flavor is mild enough that it’s sort of like drinking water, but the brewery is quality enough that it’s not like drinking dirty water (my thoughts on Bud, Miller, and Blue Lights).

The most exciting taste of the day was this soft pretzel – covered with mustard – that I split with the husband.

We took the train to the event but ended up walking back to our car in Allentown afterwards.  When we lived in Allentown I used to walk down to The Spot all the time and it was great to do some Delaware ambling again.

Adam and I were both still starving when we got home and we weren’t quite sure what to do with our evening.  Thankfully our friends Patrick and Michelle had just headed to dinner and invited us to come along.  We ended up at Gin Gin for Chinese food.  They had bobba!

I got a taro milk tea with tapioca.

I got the chicken and eggplant in garlic sauce with rice.

I also took several bites of the table’s order of bok choy.

The food was good but my meal was pretty heavy so I started feeling sick before I felt full.  I ate about half of my food and boxed the rest up for Adam’s lunch this week.

Finishing out my day with dessert, I split these Panda Yummies with Adam,

and ate a mini sundae whilst watching “That ’70’s Show” and blogging.

Today’s been fun, hopefully tomorrow will be productive!

Fillo Me Up

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When Adam got home at 3 o’clock (two hours late, I might add) we realized that neither of us and had eaten all day and we were both starving.  Waiting for dinner wasn’t an option because of our stomachs, eating at home wasn’t at options because of our pantry, and grabbing food close by wasn’t an option because we’re growing tired of Elmwood take-out.  To the internets!

I found a Groupon for Mississippi Mudds that we could buy and use this afternoon so we headed out.

The food was cheap and sounded good so we were excited to try something new.

Adam and I got a spread to share and headed to the roof for a meal with a view.

Problem # 1 – The complete and total bee infestation at Mississippi Mudds scared us back inside in a matter of minutes.  Problem # 2 – The food was freaking bad.

I ordered the seafood salad sandwich.

I knew that there was a chance of the fake crab mix but this was basically egg salad!  I ate about 1/3 before giving up.  Plus, even with my small serving I was left completely nauseous which means I’m probably sensitive to one of the preservatives in the fake crab mixture.  <– yet another reason it’s better to eat whole foods

Adam and I also split the sweet potato fries with honey and butter (on the side).

I imagine it’s hard to produce a product that is both undercooked and burnt but they managed.  The fries were cold too, which was pretty much the final straw for us.  We’d give Mississippi Mudds a 1.5/10; the only positive was that we used a Groupon so we only had to pay 50%.

So in spite of our efforts to branch out, the bulk of lunch ended up coming from our old standby.  Wegman’s hot bar can basically do no wrong.  I got a broccoli mixture and a cauliflower mixture, plus some apple cider sweet and sour chicken.

Still cheap, but now healthy and delicious!

I have a less busy weekend with time for school work so I spent my afternoon watching tv instead of studying.  I’m typically not an emotional eater (I eat junk because it makes me happy, not because I’m sad) but I will admit that the full glass of Arnold Palmer the dog spilled on the couch did push me towards the this mint chocolate chip swirl cupcake.

I ate the top half of the cake with icing, because that’s the good part anyways.

The husband and I weren’t hungry again for dinner until pretty late in the evening so we wanted something quick.  Thank you HLS swag bag, for the mini fillo shells.

Our final meal was “Strawberry Fields” themed.

We baked the mini fillo shells with chunky peanut butter, diced strawberries, and a sprinkle of brown sugar.

I ate 6 (technically two servings for 90 calories total) and the pb&j feel was perfect.

On the side we had salads with leftover diced strawberries.

Also romaine lettuce, roasted buckwheat groats, crumbled blue cheese, and Newman’s Own Light Caesar Dressing.

Cheese plus fruit (particularly blue or goat cheese with any type of berry) is a combo that never fails.

Fellow HLS attendees; what did you do with your fillo shells?