News, Good and Bad

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Do you want the good news or the bad news? 

I’ll start with the neutral – the “couple time” I referenced on Valentine’s Day was spent dying my hair (I told you it wasn’t what you thought!).  Not much of a change, just a bit of auburn to lighten up the rest of winter.  The difference is so slight I don’t think photographs will show so I’m not going to bother posting one.  Just consider me 7% more red-haired from now on 🙂

The bad – My laptop is f**ked.  And that’s me putting it gently.  We have no idea where I manged to pick up a virus but I currently have the computer of a curious 15-year-old boy.  My baby is having a stay with the Geek Squad at Best Buy and my posts will be a bit more sporadic the next few days.

The good – CSN Stores must have heard about my misfortune, because they offered me a bit of fun: a chance to review any item from their stores.  Originally I thought about the Vision Boards Meghann talked about at Meals and Miles the other day.  I decided to try out a few living room ideas –

I used modern furniture from All Modern to create my two looks.

But really it’s not time for a new living room yet (nor do I really have my design ideas figured out).  Ultimately I think I’m going to pick out a few new pieces of tableware, so I can be pretty for you guys!

That’s it with news here.  Expect a review post in the coming weeks, and a review of my day later tonight (I’m going to try to recap the whole day still while I’m using the husband’s laptop, but 1 rather than 3 posts per day).

Any news you’d like to share with me?  Good or bad, connect me with the outside world!

<3 <3 <3 <3

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Every moment spent on the computer I’m not cuddling with my valentine, so I’ll keep this quick.  Especially since I wasn’t the only one with a surprise to give today –

Lunch today was 7-Layer Casserole leftovers.

This recipe just got better and better as it sat.

My quiz went ok, but it was a busy busy day.  We had “fancy” dinner plans originally, but when I saw how much work I had to do in the evening we decided to do take-out instead.

In addition to a ton of chips, I also had a vegetarian burrito.

A little bit of rice, plus black beans, sautéed onions and mushrooms, corn salsa, guacamole, and cilantro.

Yum, yum.

And for dessert, we tried out Mama’s Peas Vegan Blizzards.

We layered in a vegan Snickers-style bar, and added some pink food coloring for the holiday.

Festive, festive.  P.S. Two hints – 1) make this recipe but 2) cut the measurements in half, we didn’t even come close to eating our portions.

Now we’re off to do couple things, and that totally doesn’t mean what you think it does!  You’ll see tomorrow….

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Getting Sappy

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Did everyone have a good weekend?  I kind of took the weekend off (not from blogging, from everything – whoops!).

I’ve got a big day – a quiz I didn’t study for, a Valentine’s date – so I needed a big breakfast.

I reheated my leftover banana breakfast risotto – 30 second increments in the microwave with stirring – with raisins and a splash of Vanilla So Delicious.

Then I topped it with maple syrup and dug in.

Delicious!  I maybe went a little too big though, I definitely couldn’t finish the whole bowl.

We had a new bottle of syrup and I accidentally went a little heavy on the maple,

I didn’t really mind.

After breakfast I dealt with the other kind of sap –

Adam and I are pretty notoriously unromantic but I wanted to show him my appreciation for his participating in this month’s challenge with me, so I picked up some vegan goodies for him.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

I’m Soooooo Hungry

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So the liquid lunch was a bad idea.  It’s possible I said “I’m soooooo hungry” so many times this evening that the husband temporarily stopped loving me.  No worries, I’m sure my complaints about the cold won him back 😉

So far the vegan challenge has been easy breezy, but tonight, surrounded by the chicken wings and pizza logs of Wegman’s hot bar, it felt pretty challenging.  All I can say is thank God was able to find these (vegan) veggie wontons at the sushi counter.

If I hadn’t been able to eat before we started shopping I’m pretty sure I’d still be at the grocery store, wandering around in a haze and whimpering.

But the beast was not squelched, as my hand found its way (again and again) into this bag of tortilla chips while I prepared dinner.

It got so bad I finally took out another, smaller bag of chips so I’d have some built-in portion control.

Adam shared the bag with me, but not by much, and there might have been some growling.

It’s a good thing dinner was tasty.

It’s also a good thing that dinner was low-calorie and full of veggies, but that’s another story.

A few weeks I ago I was sent some Pace Picante Sauce (for free, via the Foodbuzz Tastemakers Program) with a note to create an amazing recipe for a chance to win a Super Bowl party.  Clearly I missed that opportunity, but I did make a tasty recipe –

Vegan Seven Layer Casserole*, serves 4

  • 2 tightly packed cups baby spinach
  • 3/4 cup canned corn
  • 1 cup finely chopped red onion
  • 1 cup crushed tortilla chips
  • 1 medium avocado, chopped
  • 1.5 cups pre-cooked, chopped veggies  (Use whatever you’ve got leftover, but we used yellow squash and broccoli and that’s what I’d recommend if you’re starting from scratch.)
  • 2 8oz jars Pace Mild Picante Sauce
  1. Preheat your oven to 400*.  Lightly grease an 8×8 casserole with cooking spray.
  2. Carefully fill casserole with 7 layers, spreading each layer out smoothly.  Start with spinach on the bottom followed by corn – onion – chips – avocado – veggies – and finally salsa on top.
  3. Bake 30minutes.

*Note – this will not come out in squares like a typical casserole, it’s more of a spoon out dish.

I’m finally full, and now I’m (finally) going to get in bed with a book!

Lunch At The ‘Bucks

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Please note – I don’t actually call Starbucks that, that would be lame.  It would be a good nickname though; it’s both a shortening of the name and a nod to the fact that their drinks cost so much you’d think they were selling cups of Adamantium.

I did have lunch at the local Starbucks today though.  I went straight there from campus and got some solid studying done.  I started with a grande steamed apple juice (the caramel apple spice minus the caramel),

and a bag of salt and pepper popcorn.

I know that the ‘Bucks has gotten some flack for its iffy nutritionals in the past, but this was both tasty and healthy.

After two hours I was dying to leave but not yet done with my notecards.  My flamingo rubber band friend convinced me to get another drink and finish my work for the class.

Tall, soy, toffee latte.  Good to know – all of the flavored syrups used at Starbucks are vegan.

When I actually completed one class (fyi – that’s one class, 3 hours later I’m HALF done with the notecards I need to make for the week) I headed out to stroll around Elmwood doing Valentine’s shopping.  Another important note – Adam and I actually don’t do gifts for any holiday.  So sometimes I like to celebrate by buying things to make him feel bad.  Did you catch the latest Modern Family episode – “I win Valentine’s!” – yeah, sort of like that.

Now I’m off to the grocery store, a necessary step before dinner can occur.

If you’re in a realationship – did you buy gifts for Valentine’s this year?

On the Clock

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If i don’t want to be late to class then I have to keep this post quick, just like my morning workout.

I started my day with a speedy trip the gym.  I didn’t have much time, so I decided to work on my quickest mile.  1.5miles in 12:40, booyah!  I did a few minutes each of warm up, cool down, and stretching, and then I was outta there.  I can do longer workouts on the weekends when I don’t have to choose between the treadmill and breakfast.  Today I was on the clock.

Plus, I knew this breakfast was going to be a good one –

Banana Breakfast Risotto

  • 1 cup canned light coconut milk
  • 2 cups water
  • 1.5 Tbsp butter substitute
  • 2 medium bananas, chopped into bite-sized pieces
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 cup arborio rice
  1. In a small saucepan, combine coconut milk and water and heat to boiling.  Reduce heat to low and cover the pan.
  2. Melt butter substitute in a large pan over medium heat.
  3. Add bananas and saute until they turn a deepened yellow color.  Season with salt.
  4. Add rice to the pan and toast, 1 minute.
  5. Add approximately 1/2 cup of the liquid mixture to your pan.  The liquid needs to be at a low simmer, so lower or raise your heat accordingly.  Stirring constantly, cook until all of the liquid is absorbed.
  6. Working in 1/3 cup increments and continuing to stir, add the rest of your liquid to the pan until it has all been absorbed.

This bowl was so good.  Super chewy, and nutty, and just a bit sweet; swoon!

When do you work out the longest, during the work-week or on the weekends?

It Was a Good Idea

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Coconut Caramel Cocoa

  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbsp water
  • 1 cup canned light coconut milk
  • 2 tsp cocoa powder (we used Green and Black)
  • (optional) vegan marshmallows
  1. Bring sugar and water to boil in a heavy saucepan.  Cook 5 minutes or so until starting to brown.  You can swirl the pan, but do not stir.
  2. Reduce heat to low and slowly whisk in the coconut milk*.  Continuing to whisk, add cocoa powder to pot and continue to mix until homogenous.  *If your caramel seizes up, don’t panic!  Just bring the liquid back to a boil and continue to carefully whisk until everything has reached a liquid state.
  3. Pour into two mugs and top with marshmallows if desired.

This was so good that I gasped when I took my first sip.  Pretty please, make this at home so you can fall in love too!

These Photographs

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My title is both one of my favorite songs (Joshua Radin, woo!) and a nod to the fact that my eats today were not at all pretty (in any sense of the word).

I’m not sure why I keep trying to pack breakfast when I’m leaving with Adam in the morning.  My plan is always smoothies and my plan always falls through sometime between the 2nd and 3rd alarm clock snooze.  My lack of packed breakfast leads me to talk to you all about pretzels.  Have you talked with your kids about pretzels yet?

Let’s talk Snyder’s of Hanover Honey Mustard and Onion Pretzel Pieces.  1st, what they are not – vegan.  Also not – a (not vegan either) candy bar.  But they are – the only non-candy bar food available on campus before my 9:25 lab.

I ate them.

I did pack a lunch, but it wasn’t pretty.  Inside this ugly photograph lies a tasty lunch.

A Multi-Grain Sandwich Thin with an eggplant burger and a bit of Stubb’s BBQ Sauce.

I also packed a pair of clementines.

Sadly within three minutes of eating lunch I was starving again.  That’s approximately one hour into my five-hour break if you’re keeping track.  I’m pretty gosh darn glad I ate the pretzels, otherwise I might have chewed off a leg.

When I got home from my final class dinner was the first thing on my mind.

That will be my final bowl of Kale and Roasted Vegetable Soup.  It was still delicious, but enough is enough.

My plans for the evening include a shower, hopefully starting a new book, and dessert.  If dessert is just ok then I’ll mention it in the morning.  But if it’s as good as I think it’s going to be – it’ll deserve its own post!  Keep your fingers crossed!

What is the ugliest thing you eat?