And the Camera Ran Away with the Hairbrush

by Emily

There was no day post today because my camera battery needed to charge. Really I think suicide was a last-ditch effort on the battery’s part to avoid involvement in my train wreck. It’s probably a good thing the earlier half of the day went without photographs.

I ate chips for breakfast – embarrassing.

I met Katie for lunch at Moe’s – repetitive.

And I did it all still in my clothing from the day before – why am I allowed to leave the house?

Thankfully the husband’s parents came into town for a belated birthday celebration and that got me to pull my act together. I even took a shower.

Because if cake’s not worth clean hair, then what is?

First though, was dinner. We needed quick wait, accessible parking, and good food – Jack Astor’s. With lobster and crab dip to start.

I ate this plate x2.

And then I proceeded to terrorize the wait-staff. Diet Roy Rodgers, please.

Once we got that figured out (diet soda, grenadine, cherry on top) I cobbled together a meal using pieces from three different menu items.

The end result was delicious. A turkey burger with white cheddar, jalapeno zucchini relish, and fig jam.

I ate all of my turkey/toppings, half of my bun, and half of my fries. Truth be told, I did not need the fries, but malt vinegar was available and I feel the end tummy ache was worth it.

After dinner we did a driving tour of Christmas lights.

I couldn’t get pictures from the moving car, but the trees on Elmwood are just gorgeous!

Then we headed back to the hotel room for cake. Actually, Chocolate Decadence to be exact. “4 layers of chocolate sponge cake filled with whipped ganache, frosted in chocolate butter cream. Garnished with chocolate buttons and drizzled chocolate.”

I only ate a few bites of my piece (I wasn’t kidding about that tummy ache!) but it was pretty divine.

We spent a long time talking to my in-laws, hence the midnight post. It’s been a fun day, and if I want tomorrow to be fun as well I’ve got to get to bed!

14Dec2010

Holiday Dishes and Demons

by Emily

Do you have your holiday dishes out yet? Other than the reindeer stuff (very nice, Kate Spade bowls and mugs) from my mom this little tree is my only piece.

It made lunch feel festive.

Although, lunch was pretty exciting (to me) all on its own.

Sandwich/salad, sandwich/soup, and soup/salad combos always feel like lunch at a restaurant to me.

My salad was a butter lettuce base with Newman’s Own Asian Sesame Dressing, Sahale Snacks Valdosta Pecans, and a bit of pulverized coconut.

I don’t eat salads at home that much – something about the lettuce skeeves me out – but this was a great combo.

My sandwich was a grilled cheese with tomato.

I spread two slices of Nature’s Pride Oatmeal bread with Miracle Whip, topped with tomato slices and two pieces of 2% provolone, then spread the outside with Smart Balance Light and pan-fried.

Yum! The husband took a big bite (I made him a pretty gourmet mini-pizza for his lunch) and declared it delicious.

We watched TV while we ate. Sidenote – has anyone seen the “Family Guy” or “American Dad” Chirstmas specials this year? I think Seth McFarlane has some holiday demons, yikes!

Back to work!

13Dec2010

Tastes Like Home for the Holidays

by Emily

My shower took forever because I couldn’t bear to get out of the warm water! It’s already 10* outside, I’m a little afraid of what January will bring.

Tonight’s dinner utilized take-homes from my cultural meal project.

Callaloo and dumb bread with cheese!

Callaloo is a traditional Caribbean soup made traditional with callaloo, pumpkin, coconut milk, and okra. Our version was slightly less traditional, with spinach, butternut squash, and coconut milk.

Still delicious though. This is the recipe we used.

Dumb bread is a non-yeast-levened bread with shredded coconut scattered throughout. I topped my serving with extra sharp cheddar.

This flavor definitely took my back to my childhood! This is the recipe we used.

Leftovers for dinner meant less cooking time and more baking time!

Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Brownies.

I followed the recipe on the Baker’s Chocolate box, but substituted the nuts and vanilla for 2 tsp cinnamon extract and 1 cup chocolate chips.

Quite tasty! The husband said the cinnamon gave them a warm taste.

Brownies are usually my mom’s specialty but I think these definitely hold their own. I ate two small ones.

Between the traditional Caribbean flavors and (not)mom’s brownies this meal tasted like home to us; which makes it a good meal for this week because we are gearing up for a trip home! After all of our exams are done we are heading to St. Thomas for 10 glorious days. Now I’ve just got two more exams to get through; I can’t wait!

What substitutions have you made on the traditional brownie recipe? Which was your favorite?

13Dec2010

Combatting Stress

by Emily

Today has been a big day – I had a nutrition final, a break, and then my Organic Chemistry final. I knew 8am – 3pm was going to be a stressful, so I did my best to combat my lack of cheer.

Like wearing a nice pink shirt (new from Hanukkah).

And having Adam stop at Starbucks on his way to dropping me off at school (grande non-fat eggnog latte).

My first exam went pretty well, 84% at very minimum. Sidenote – when I take multiple choice tests I always keep a tally of questions I’m not certain of so that I can calculate my lowest possible score. Does anyone else do this? Anyway, my class grade before the final was a 100%, so I’m not too worried.

Then I crammed. Not gonna lie; I did not study Organic this weekend. I really have no explanation or excuse for my study habits this semester; all I can say is that I’m pretty disgusted with myself. I quit my job to go back to school, next semester I plan on treating school like it’s my job (because it is!).

For my mid-cram lunch I packed a ‘new things sandwich.’

1 slice 2% Provolone cheese and 3 slices Applegate Farms Turkey Bologna on an Arnold’s Whole Grain White Sandwich Thin.

The star of the ~~show~~ sandwich was definitely the Applegate Farms Turkey Bologna.

I’ve never actually tasted bologna before, but this was delicious! There was a fabulous smokiness to it.

Does anyone else see that sandwich smile?

I also packed a baggie of baby carrots on the side,

and a 60% Cacao Ghirardelli square.

I probably should have packed more chocolate, because then I headed to Organic 😉 It wasn’t good, but it wasn’t terrible either. I asked the teacher to look over my test at the end and he said that I wasn’t ridiculous. Supposedly we can get our grades tomorrow, so I’ll be waiting with pretty bated breath.

Then I headed to the gym to work off the rest of my stress. I did an intervals session on the treadmill –

1 minute walking / 2 minutes running
x 13 (39 minutes)
with cooldown = 45 minutes, 4.0 miles

I had to wait on campus for Adam to pick me up (it’s 10* out there!) but as soon as this is posted I’m getting into the shower and then into my baking clothes!

10Dec2010

No Complaints About the Food

by Emily

Today was – – – tiresome? It wasn’t a terrible day, but I certainly have a lot of complaints about it! I woke up to the realization that I’m getting sick, I felt sick all day, we were so busy all day that I couldn’t study for Monday’s two finals, and in the midst of not studying I found out that I got a B in my Anatomy Lab… Boo.

One thing I have no complaints about is breakfast.

Kath‘s oat smoothies are genius! And my holiday twist was pretty darn smart too 😉 This was a leftover serving of oatmeal, 1 frozen banana, and 2/3cup Silk Soy Nog, with a healthy shake of nutmeg.

Mmm-mmn! The nutmeg totally took it to Christmas morning. So did these pepermint flavored Now and Laters.

And then I was out of the house for the rest of the day. We had lots of errands and doctors appointments, all of which moved like molasses. Adam has a birthday tomorrow (25!) and I’ve got an idiopathic bone lesion. Fun.

Lunch from Wegman’s salad bar was a bright spot.

But since I didn’t eat “lunch” until 4pm my hunger was so out of control that this barely filled me up.

A slice of buffalo chicken pizza was soon to follow.

Not gonna lie, this slice of pizza was not cooked and I went ahead and ate it anyway.

Adam headed to a coffee spot to study after the grocery, but I knew my best course of action was to get myself into my pjs and tuck into a large bowl of vanilla bean with caramel sauce.

Yep. I’ll be on the couch if you need me!

9Dec2010

Moe’s Who?

by Emily

It’s been quite a night for a Thursday, quite a night! In addition to making a banging dinner and a revolutionary dessert, I also managed to get some school work done; booyah!

On the agenda for tonight were quick and easy quesadillas.

But you know I did some snacking first. Adam and I split some fun – a snowman cookie from Sweet Tooth,

and a Weyerbacher’s Imperial Pumpkin Beer.

Both were quite tasty; I ate a little less than half of the cookie, and a little more than half of the beer.

Wokka, wokka, wokka, wokka…..

In between sips, I sautéed up 1/2 cup each frozen corn and black beans in some tomatillo salsa.

This was delicious, and what didn’t fit on my quesadilla was eaten out of a bowl with a bit of sour cream.

I topped a tortilla with my veggie mixture and 1.5oz of sharp cheddar, folded, and gave a quick spin in a greased frying pan.

To die for! This was cheesy and melty and salty, all while still being healthy. I previous thought that nothing could top Moe’s, but this was definitely better!

Dessert was pretty darn good too.

That would be low-fat cottage cheese, topped with half a banana, drizzled with caramel sauce.

Sometimes I even impress myself.

Eaten whilst watching “Modern Family,” which seriously slays me with how funny it is!

What do you put on your quesadillas?

7Dec2010

Nog Makes It Nice

by Emily

I love egg nog. Like, a lot. If I wasn’t so obsessed with keeping holidays within their “slots” I’d probably drink it year round. But then there’s also that whole ‘fitting into my pants’ issue. Which is what makes this product so amazing.

Silk Soy Nog. 95% as tasty as the original, and the nutritional stats are 95% better than the original.

It is so fabulously tasty, and healthfully low-fat that it even works well as a breakfast staple. Overnight oats anyone?

Soy nog overnight oats are so good that I’ve basically stopped eating regular o.n.o. the rest of the year!

Yesterday evening I stirred together 1/3cup oatmeal and 2/3cup Silk Soy Nog and put them in the fridge overnight. This morning I stirred in 1 Low Fat Vanilla Stonyfield and a dash of nutmeg. Topped with holiday sprinkles, of course!

Packed into a go-cup for the car.

I ate in transit so I could cram for my test once I got to school. I think I did pretty well, ~B, there were a few questions on there that we had not covered at all in class so that was frustrating.

My schedule today was class – break – meetings – break – evening class. I used my first break to study for my upcoming Anatomy practical. Fueled by Reese’s Pieces.

ET made me do it! I ate about half of this bag, or approximately 1.5servings.

Just in case you aren’t sure that I’m a dork, I have to show you that I was taking my notes with a peppermint scented red and green striped pen –

‘Tis the season!

My meeting concerned the application process for the program I’m applying to (due the first week of the spring semester) and gave me major anxiety. I have a lot to do over Christmas break.

My plan for the second break was to get a veggie sub and study for Orgo. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that “a little bbq sauce, please” was code for “please dip my entire sandwich in sauce, thereby making it impossible to eat and work at the same time.”

That messy monster contained green pepper, red onion, lettuce, tomato, pickles, pepperjack, and bbq sauce.

Sidenote on the sandwich – what I really wanted was an enchilada burrito from Taco Bell. I hate most fast food but, not gonna lie, I sort of love Taco Bell. But I recently realized that just because Taco Bell isn’t McDonalds (eww), doesn’t mean that their chickens are any tortured. If I only buy “humane” meat to cook at home then I shouldn’t eat “evil” meat just because I’m not at home. Obviously there are road trips and restaurants and other people’s houses, but I should probably be done with Taco Bell 😦

My night class went quickly, and then I came home to a quick but random dinner.

Actually, we were both starving, so while we cooked the husband and I split a quicksadilla (that’s a tortilla with sharp cheddar microwaved in it).

When I was at my grandparent’s house for Turkey Day, they served the tastiest brussels sprout dish. I wrote down the recipe – by Cat Cora for a magazine – to make again when we got home.

3 lbs brussels sprouts
1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 Tbsp lemon juice
4 Tbsp capers

Prepare brussels sprouts by peeling off the outside leaves and cutting off the steam. Using a paring knife, mark the core where the stem was with an X. Cut the sprouts in half.
In a 4-qt saucepan, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Season with 1 Tbsp salt. Blanch sprouts for 10minutes or until fork-tender.
In a 10-inch saute pan, brown the butter and add sprouts. Cook over medium-high heat until caramelized, 10minutes.
Remove from the heat and add the capers and lemon juice. Season with remaining salt.
Serves 8. Per serving: 130calories, 5g protein…

I have to warn you about my entrée – it tasted better than it looked.

There was a serving each left of kugel and hoppin’ john…

…so I put them together!

The sweet and spicy mix was actually very tasty.

I’m almost definitely going to have a repeat of last night’s dessert (vanilla ice-cream with strawberries and homemade caramel sauce) but I have a few assignments to tackle so I’m going to say “goodbye” to blogland now and switch into work-mode. See you in the am!

***Via random integer generator, the winner of my OhNuts! giveaway is #8 –