Tag Archives: beans

Impulse Control

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I’ve made it to hump day and school is still going ok, phew!  I’ve attended 5 out of my 6 classes now and it seems like this semester is going to be doable.

We have a super long lunch break on Wednesdays so a group of friends and I decided to take advantage of the time and took a walk down Elmwood to lunch at The Spot.  We ended up walking a bit more than 2.5 miles round trip, booyah!  Between that and walking to and from school and with Webster I think I can practically count walking as a workout for today.

Lunch was a fun mix of flavors.  I can’t believe my Thai leftovers even lasted this long!

There’s less there than it looks, sad face, maybe about 1 cup’s worth of veggies and broad rice noodles.

Still nice and spicy though, I had to buy a cup of skim milk from The Spot to save my tounge.

I also packed some leftovers from last night’s dinner.

2 oz of Black and Blue Dip,

with celery and green bell peppers dipped in.

This was a great lunch, I love meals with lots of little pieces.

We got out just early enough from our final class that I had time to hurry home, cuddle Webster, and drive to the post office before it closed so I could mail a book I sold on Amazon.  While I was out I also picked up a few necessities from Target.  Including this impulse purchase –

Actually, I spotted a display of candy boxes at Wegmans on Sunday and have been obsessing about them ever since, so I’m not sure you can exactly call this an impulse purchase.  Definitely a good purchase though, look at some of those flavors –

Yum!

After taking Webs on a walk the husband and I threw together the quickest dinner ever.

It helps to keep things speedy when almost every item on the plate is a leftover.

Like these leftovers tacos.

We spread a thin layer of the Black and Blue Dip on corn taco shells,

added a layer of the sautéed veggies from last night (onion, red bell pepper, and mushroom),

and topped with a layer of this Newman’s Own Medium Pineapple Salsa.  <– divine

The seemingly random combo of flavors actually went together really well.  The dip is pretty savory and the salsa is a bit sweet and the texture of the veggies went perfectly with the crunchy taco shells.

Plus a serving of bbq kale and beans on the side.

I actually single-serving froze the rest of those leftovers so I have them for lunches later on.

You know what our after dinner plans were.

Another cup of red velvet tea with skim milk and a serving of chocolates.

Adam and I mostly split them but I kept the bananas foster flavor all to myself.  I’m actually finishing up my snack and we speak type.

What was the last thing you impulse purchased?

Dip for Dinner

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I finished all of my schoolwork for this week, wrote an article for the Dietetics newsletter, and made a deeply delicious dinner.  Go me!

The first round of dinner felt oh-so-sophisticated, dip and crudities.

The dip was my newest recipe creation, Black and Blue Dip:

Yield: 14 ounces; Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 0

  • 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 oz (or 1/2 cup) blue cheese crumbles
  • 4 Tbsp light sour cream
  • 3 Tbsp A-1 steak sauce
  1. Place beans into the food processor and pulse until mostly smooth.
  2. Add blue cheese, sour cream, and steak sauce and pulse until well-combined, scraping down the sides of the food processor as needed.

The black beans and blue cheese are a fun flavor combo, the A-1 adds spice and depth, and the sour cream helps to smooth out the flavor.  Adam described this as meaty (and fun for all vegetables!) so I guess this had umami!  Each 2 oz serving had only 106 calories so this would be the perfect dip to bring to a party where you were hoping to keep things healthy.

I ate a 2 oz serving,

with baby carrots, green pepper, and celery dipped in.

Adam and I both agreed that this was a fabulous appetizer.

The second half of dinner was brinner.

I used 2 Tbsp of butter to saute 1 pint of sliced mushrooms, 1 sliced red bell pepper, and 1 Mayan onion.  We pulled out half of the cooked veggies for later use and scrambled the rest into 3 large eggs.

This dinner ended up being a little small but it’s bedtime so what can you do?  Meh.

What is your favorite thing to dip into blue cheese?  Baby carrots are good but pizza crusts are better!

If At First You Don’t Succeed

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I’m 0-for-2 in my efforts to hit the gym before school.  On Monday I had those weird nightmares and I wasn’t well-rested.  Last night I got in bed at 10:30 (it should have been closer to 9:30) and then the dog woke me up at 3am and I couldn’t fall back to sleep.  I turned off the alarm this morning but I was more determined than ever to make this work.  I’m not working out tomorrow and Thursday’s plan is a longer session, but I’m going to give it all I’ve got on Friday morning.  I guess I’m in the second stage of if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.  For now, I’m going to make an effort to go to bed early the next two nights to prepare.

At least staying at home gave me time to make a healthy breakfast.

For two servings, I blended 2 cups of frozen strawberries, 2 scoops of chocolate protein powder, 1 cup of unsweetened So Delicious coconut milk, and 1 cup of green tea.

The addition of the green tea gave our smoothies a totally unique flavor.  I like what the protein powder does for the texture (and the protein content, duh!) but I don’t love how chalky it makes things taste.  Any suggestions?

I drank my smoothie on the walk to campus but halfway through my 4 hour class I was devouring half a tin of Altoids.  I think I’ll need to bring a snack for my extra long classes from now own.

Fueled by Altoids, I headed to the gym after class.  45 minutes on the elliptical at random, level 6.  I put in the time on the elliptical but I didn’t really put in the effort, my brain and body were both ready for lunch!  At least I finished my session with some quick strength and stretching moves.

I’d like to say I ate as soon as I stopped sweating, but sadly the dog crushed my soul by eating his pee pad first.  Between the walk home, discipline, and taking a shower, I didn’t actually sit down to lunch until almost 4pm!

At least it was worth the wait.  The same combo as Sunday night, a serving of bbq kale and beans topped with tons of Parmesan, Sriracha, and a dollop of 0% Plain Fage.

For dessert I tried this can of horchata de leche I found at the grocery store.

The taste nice and cinnamony but I did miss the chew factor of regular horchata.

I’m off to take the monster on a walk and build back up my appetite for our tasty dinner.

When do you usually workout?

How to do use protein powder to make it less chalky?

Mood Food

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Today’s eats were a little strange, which made them perfect mood food since I feel a little strange.  I’m an odd mix of nerves and excitement about heading back to school tomorrow.  I’m thrilled about getting back on a schedule but I’m worried that I’m planning on working on too many goals (being a better student, getting on a workout schedule, cooking more often).  I don’t want to set myself up to fail by trying to do/change too much.

I spent my morning setting up the office for school and worked right through breakfast.  Side note – trying to figure out which notes to save for registration exam studying is brutal.  I’m not sure whether I’m throwing away things I need or saving so much that it will be overwhelming.

I didn’t want to head to the grocery on a completely empty stomach so I stirred a scoop of protein powder into a glass of skim milk.

It wasn’t very good (it tasted about as good as it looks), apparently I only like our protein powder after it’s been through the blender.

I did get myself a small but delicious salad from the hot bar too.

A spring mix lettuce base with tarragon vinaigrette, topped with a scoop of corn and kidney bean salad,

a scoop of veggie lo mein,

and a tiny piece of smoked salmon and brie.

The whole combo was super tasty, I think I may need to do salad at the hot bar more often.  I really want to like smoked (basically raw) salmon and usually I’m too afraid but today I loved it.

When I got home Adam and I took a quick walk through the Elmwood Art Festival.  We were naughty and snuck in our own beverages.

The Woodchuck Limited Release Winter Hard Cider is wonderful.  It tastes more like a vanilla-scented apple juice than something boozey.  Also when I went to the site to link for you guys I discovered that they make a pumpkin variety!  <– must find

I knew dinner was going to be on the small side, so I made myself a tasty yogurt bowl to supplement when we got home.

Low-fat coffee yogurt with 1oz of honey roasted peanuts and a drizzle of honey.

One of those combos from when I was a kid that I still love.

We didn’t have any set plans for dinner, but I did want to make a batch of Jenna’s Sweet and Spicy BBQ Beans to have for lunches this week.

I used 2+ cups worth of extra kale and it came out fabulously.  This recipe – which really is sweet and spicy – gives the best chew.

We decided to make the beans the bulk of dinner.

Such a good plan!  I topped my serving with shredded Parmesan, more Sriracha, and a dollop of 0% Plain Fage.

Dee-lish!  I sort of ate around the cheese to save it for the end and I was swooning by my last bite.

To round out my meal with carbs I turned to popcorn.

1 serving, topped with melted butter and cinnamon sugar.  I can’t think of a better way to face a new school year than popcorn.

Who else is heading back to school this year?

Yesterday

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Hello, there.  I wrote this last night and intended to post but Webster was being a psycho and it got too late.  It’s a good thing he looked like this for several hours this afternoon or I might have smothered him.

Since I didn’t eat very much on Monday, I woke up yesterday starving.  I turned to the tuna noodle casserole Adam made while I was away.

Good job, husband! 

This was tasty and it filled me right up so I could work on my Sabra/Foodbuzz contest post.

Many nibbles were taken during the creation of those recipes.

But I still had time for lunch when all was said and done.

A toasted Bagel Thin with spinach and artichoke hummus dip,

plus a bowl of watermelon chunks.

For dessert I made myself 2 s’mores in the broiler.
It’s a lot easier to ignore the fact that your puppy is puking up the carpet he devoured when you’re eating a toasted marshmallow.

I also ate a serving of Raisin Bran Plus later in the afternoon.

This was supposed to be fuel for a free yoga class but since it was canceled at the last minute this ended up just replenishing my saddle bags.

For dinner Adam and I split these nachos.

I specifically said “whole black beans please, no refried beans” but for some reason these were loaded with both.

I still ate my full share though so I guess I shouldn’t complain.

Moving to the present… I just got home from an orthodontist appointment and most definitely ate these cookies on my drive home.

They did impressions and I just can’t stand having that gross chemical flavor in my mouth!

Now I’m off to find some real food.  I’m also headed to school to run a session with some incoming freshmen.  Have a great Hump Day!

Sabra Substitutions Cocktail Party Recipes

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This post is my entry for a chance to win a free trip to the Foodbuzz Festival.  All of the Sabra products used in this post were provided by the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program.

For a chance to win a free trip to the upcoming festival, Foodbuzz tasked us with creating a cocktail party-worthy recipe using Sabra hummus.  But the zesty flavor of hummus would fit with so many dishes that I didn’t know which one to choose.  Indecisive to a fault, I just couldn’t limit hummus to one recipe; it has too much potential.  So instead I made a trio.

(Recipes to follow)

Chicks in a Curry, hummus deviled eggs.

Replacing mayonnaise with hummus in my deviled eggs base left me with a smooth but sturdy filling.  The sweet curry powder helps to brighten up the flavor.  These deviled eggs are the wiser, more exotic cousin from the East of the traditional American picnic fare.

Spinach, Chokes, and Chicks; spinach artichoke hummus dip.

It’s hard to improve on the traditional spinach and artichoke dip but this hummus-filled adaptation is just begging for a crudities.  The creamy texture and cheesy flavor are both elevated by the velvety garlic hummus.

Savory Surprise Hummus Cookie.

The love child of a cookie and a biscuit, these would be perfect for appetizers or dessert.  The texture is more cake-like than crumbly and the flavor is just a bit sweet.

All in all, I was more than pleased with hummus’ ability to adapt to these traditional dishes.  I’ve been sneaking into the kitchen for bites all day and I can’t wait to try the finished products out on my friends.

Chicks in a Curry, hummus deviled eggs

Yield: 12 servings; Prep Time: 20 minutes; Cook Time: 15 minutes

  • 1 dozen large eggs
  • 8 Tbsp Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus
  • 2 tsp worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tsp sweet curry powder
  • (optional) paprika and roasted chick peas
  1. Place eggs in a single layer in a large saucepan and cover completely with water.  Place over high heat and bring to a rolling boil.
  2. Remove pan from heat and cover tightly with a lid as soon as the water reaches a boil.  Set covered pan aside for 15 minutes.
  3. Immediately after 15 minutes have passed, use tongs to carefully move the boiled eggs to a bowl of ice water.  Allow to cool completely, at least 5 minutes.
  4. Dry and peel eggs, removing shells completely.
  5. Slice each egg in half lengthwise.  Scoop yolks into a medium bowl.
  6. Add remaining ingredients to the yolks and mash with a fork until well combined.
  7. Use a spatula to move filling into a piping bag or a small plastic bag with the corner cut off.  Pipe filling into whites.  These eggs have more filling than a typical recipe but that is part of what makes them so fun.
  8. Top with paprika and/or roasted chick peas if desired.

Spinach, Chokes, and Chicks; spinach artichoke hummus dip

Yield: 12 servings; Prep Time: 8 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes

  • 5 oz frozen chopped spinach; thawed completely
  • 14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained
  • 1 cup Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus
  • 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, 2 Tbsp reserved
  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
  2. Wring out the spinach to remove as much moisture as possible.  It may be helpful to microwave it for 20 seconds or to squeeze between two paper towels.
  3. Place spinach and artichoke hearts together in a medium bowl.  Use a fork to mash for 1 – 2 minutes; this will help to de-clump the spinach and break up any large pieces of artichoke.
  4. Stir hummus and Parmesan (minus 2 Tbsp) into the vegetables.
  5. Pour the dip into a pie pan and use a spatula to spread evenly.  Top with remaining 2 Tbsp of cheese.
  6. Bake for 20 minutes.  Serve warm with chips and/or fresh veggies.

Savory Surprise Hummus Cookie

Yield: 2 dozen; Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 15 minutes

  • 4 Tbsp butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.  Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. 
  3. Add hummus and mix until incorporated.  Add egg and continue to mix until smooth.
  4. In a side bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
  5. Fold dry ingredients into wet, mixing just until combined.
  6. Spoon Tbsp-sized balls of dough into even rows on the prepared baking sheets.
  7. Bake 13 minutes, until lightly browned and firm to the touch.

Healthy Living Summit 2011 Mega Recap

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This post is going to be huge, so there are a few facts I want to establish before I begin –

* The Healthy Living Summit (HLS) was fabulous and I had a wonderfully fun time.  However, since I didn’t have internet all weekend this is going to be a monster post and I’m not going to include as many details as I’d like.

* I met and hung out with some amazing people.  So many, in fact, that I think it makes the most sense for me not to link back to anyone.

* I snapped a photo of every piece of food that went into my mouth but I wasn’t so good on people or places; I was too busy enjoying those things to photograph them.

Okey doke, let’s start from the beginning…

So, this happened exactly halfway between Buffalo and Philly –

Usually a picture of a flat tire would be followed by many four letter words but the only one I could think of was l-u-c-k.  My trip to Philly was greasy, two hours longer than planned and completely exhausting, but I actually started crying because I felt so grateful.  The things I am thankful for –

  • It rained 70% of my trip but not a drop fell during the two hours I was standing on the side of the road changing my tire.
  • My tire blew on a small side road and not when I was going 70 mph on the highway.
  • I was able to take off the nuts and jack up the car all by myself, and if the tire hadn’t been completely rusted to the axle I probably could have done the entire thing myself like a total badass.
  • The nicest man on earth not only stopped to help me out, but drove back to his house for the sledgehammer it took to get my tire off.
  • The nice man gave me directions to his nice friends’ body shop, where they replaced my tire and fixed me up for only $20.

Isn’t the world amazing?  Before the whole debacle I drank a guava Rockstar for breakfast,

and afterwards I shakily ate the half turkey sandwich with cheese and cranberry mayo that I packed from the Co-op. 

And I made it (with aching forearms) to Philly with time to shower and change before the HLS cocktail party.

The drinks, provided by Drink Chia, were super tasty.

This cocktail was a mix (I believe) of Drink Chia, strawberries, and vodka.  It tasted sort of like a bubble tea with mini bobba!

The food was pretty good as well.

I had a corn and crab fritter, a piece of pretzel crusted chicken, a few small bites, plus another piece of the chicken.

Everything was tasty but there wasn’t quite enough sustenance for dinner so a few of us ended up in the hotel restaurant for a late night snack.

I went with the s’mores mousse shooter.

Plus I scarfed up one of the Lindt truffles they brought with the bill.

It was a sweet end to the first day.

The next morning (Saturday) we were up bright and early for breakfast.  Cereal with skim milk,

an Oikos drinkable yogurt with a juicy plum – sidenote, I feel like I had food dripping down my face this whole weekend! –

and a much-needed coffee.

Around this point I realized I probably should be snapping more pictures like a good blogger.

Though I did snag a shot of me with two of my roomies.

I didn’t love the Quaker Smashbar provided on the snack break so I only ate half of it.

But I did love the RD Quaker provided as the key-note speaker.  She wrote a book on being a flexatarian and I loved her points about embracing plants more than avoiding meats.  In fact, all of the sessions were pretty darn informative and inspirational.

Before I knew it, it was time for lunch.

Side salad for greens,

quinoa salad, which had some sort of acid component that took it over the top,

and half a tofu sandwich on Great Harvest bread, squeal!

For dessert I grabbed a milk chocolate crunch Attune probiotic bar.

I had no idea these would be so delicious!  I was very excited to see some coupons in my swag bag.

After the sessions we went to do some city exploring.

Here are all my roomates,

and here is the Liberty Bell.

I’m glad we sight-saw in the way that we did, because our travels took us to Farmacia for dinner.

Yum, seriously just yum x 1000.  The wait staff was so sweet and accommodating of our 12-person party, the space was adorable, and the food was delicious.

I was ravenous and I think my heart actually skipped a beat when this bread and herbed butter were brought to the table.

I ate this slice times two.

Since it was a vacation I went with a John Daly to drink.

Sweet tea vodka and fresh squeezed lemonade, yes please!  A few people sipped my drink and we all agreed it was the best Arnold Palmer ever.

And then came the food.  Which was basically ridiculous.

I ordered the sweet corn and risotto croquettes.  Which came with garden veggie ratatouille,

and sautéed spinach that blew my mind.  It must have been the butter sauce that was floating on my plate.

The spinach was the best thing I ate all weekend, but the croquettes were perfect too; crunchy and creamy all at the same time.  I ate 1.5 croquettes and all of my veggies and was basically in heaven.

You know I have to get self-serve froyo if I’m in a new city.

I got peanut butter, cream cheese (!!), and tart, topped with all the berries, caramel sauce, and sprinkles.

Fueled by sugar, a group of us stayed up until practically 3am!  Normally a 3 am bedtime and 8 am Sunday workout would feel brutal, but I think I was too excited to be tired.  I don’t have any pictures, but I did participate in the HLS 5k.  A huge group walked/ran around the city including the Rocky steps.

When we got back it was time for oatmeal.

Topped with flax, cinnamon, and walnuts.

I also had about a billion mugs of Tazo Earl Grey tea with skim milk.

I am completely obsessed (I stole a few packets from breakfast!) and need to buy this asap.

After the festivities wrapped, a group of us did some more exploring around Philly.

This is what happens when you give bloggers a group photo-op –

For lunch we sought out Philly cheese steaks.  I found success at the Basic 4 Vegetarian Snack Bar.

This monster was vegan, but there is basically no way that the traditional meat sandwich could be better.

I left a lot of the bread, but gobbled up the “meat” which was crunchy in the most pleasing way.  Such a great way to end the weekend!

Around 2 I made my final goodbyes and headed out.  Though I did stop at Whole Foods for an Argo Tea Mojitea for the road.

It was very tasty, but my next two drinks were much more telling.  A grande white mocha coconut frappuccino with 2 extra shots of espresso.

And a huge diet pop with a splash of cherry coke.

Can you say exhausted?!  But I made it home in one piece and had a wonderful weekend to boot!

Did you attend HLS?  What’d you think?

I Lied

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I lied.

I know I said I wasn’t going to blog until Friday, but the minute I told myself I didn’t have to, then I wanted to.  It’s like I just needed the freedom not to.  Does that make sense to anyone else?

Anyway, I’m glad I decided to blog because I’m having a good day.  This morning was full of excitement; I went with some friends to buy our lab coats for clinical.

Like a boss RD.  Though I imagine I’ll look less silly when I’m not rocking jeans underneath.  I’m just glad to have that trip out of the way before the school year starts.

My friend Hillary drove, so I walked to campus in the morning to meet up.  Afterward I got dropped off at home to grab Webster for a walk and we ended up accompanying my friend Janessa back to campus.  All total I made the trip three times, which is good practice since I plan on walking to class again this semester.

The non-canine walkers got Starbucks during the walk.  I drank a tall white mocha frappuccino but I don’t have a photo because I still thought I wasn’t blogging.  Here’s what you want to see a picture of anyway –

Have I mentioned I’m in love?  We call him Webs, Dog, or Little Dude.

I’m glad that coffee fills me up because I had lots of little things to do on my computer, and I took Webster on another walk, and before I knew it 3 o’clock came without me eating any solid food.  I was heading to the grocery anyway and luckily I found a magazine in our mailbox on the way so I grabbed hot bar for lunch.

Panang tofu, channa masala, and veggies from the cashew chicken.

plus fruit for dessert.

I had to replenish our stores so I could cook Adam casserole for while I’m gone.  Speaking of which, I probably should start thinking about packing for HLS, huh?

Bloggers – how often would you say you just don’t feel like blogging?  What helps you push through your rut?