Coffee and Coconut

Today has been the perfect kind of Saturday!  Cuddling up with Adam in front of the tv with funny shows and plates of food?  Count me in!

My parents gave us a purple french press for Christmas and we finally got to try it out.

Besides the fact that it makes me feel cool and European, the coffee (Kona, by the way) was much tastier and less bitter; win.  Per usual, I had mine with skim milk.

Alongside the joe we made eggs with turkey and cheddar sausage mixed in.

It made for a very nice breakfast.

Choking laughter at “Modern Family” worked up my appetite and I shared some of Adam’s Brushetta Chicken Pasta leftovers from last night.

But the real piece de resistance of lunch was this guy.

That guy is a Young Thai coconut.  I drank a little coconut water in the usual way,

but ultimatly I decided to do a smoothie.

1 medium banana, juice + meat from the coconut, 6 ice cubes, a little bit of honey, and a bunch of cinnamon went into the blender.

The result tasted like the coconut chai from Bonobos, LOVE!

My plans for the rest of the day include a work-out, some laundry, and a tasty dinner.  Happy Saturday!

Have you ever drank directly from the coconut?  Love it or hate it?

Oink?

Some people might view yesterday’s eats as motivation to get in some greens; I apparently saw it as a challenge.  Prereading Disclaimer – do NOT try this at home, you will gain 15lbs in less than a year and it will make you sad.  That said, eating crap and watching tv all day was fun.

I did leave the house for a little bit though –

Our friend Danielle (who we actually saw at the restaurant!) has been recommending Coles as a brunch spot for months.

Brunch = Bloody Mary.

And to eat I ordered the crab cake Benedict.

I ate about 2/3 of this before passing it off to Adam.  Overall the meal was good, but it just couldn’t compare to brunch in NYC 😦

Afterwards we drove to Anderson’s for froyo.

I got cinnamon with Heath pieces.  I only ate about half of this.  I’m not sure why I kept wasting food, but I do know I probably should have wasted my next two eats –

And then I rounded out the day with a disgusting amount of popcorn.

Divided into two bowls so I could sample two flavors of Kernel Seasons sprinkles.

Yuck, I feel gross.  I’m having foot surgery tomorrow so I don’t plan on moving any time soon but I could certainly eat a lot more cleanly this month!

Do you have a favorite brunch spot in your hometown?  Cole’s was ok but we need to keep looking.  I miss my Brooklyn brunches!

Merry Christmas

Happy Holidays Blog Readers!  I dragged my whole family to school so I’ll keep this quick.  I don’t have many food pictures today, so I’ll take a moment to show off all the red and green I’ve been rocking this week –

After my last blog post I spent the day setting up for our Christmas Eve bash.  I had some random snacks for lunch; carrots,

a Hello Dolly,

a few nuts,

and half of a tuna salad sandwich.

I did lots of nibbling during the party but I ended up not taking any pictures.  My parents had the lights low and there were a TON of people in our little house so I ended up skipping it.  A fabulous time was had by all though.

Christmas morning with my parents and husband was wonderful.  Just 3 years ago today, Adam was proposing to me under the Christmas tree!!!

My mom and I made a great, festive breakfast.

I had an eggnog scone that was super tasty, I plan on buying more packs from this company.

And we made scrambled eggs with red and green bell pepper and white cheddar.

Plus I had a small glass of nog, I think I actually like Silk Soy Nog the very best!

My dad’s sister’s family is flying in in a few hours and then we are all going over to my mom’s sister’s family’s house for dinner.  Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Study Central

It’s study central around here; my final is at 8am this Saturday and I’ll be cramming my butt off until then!

Last night we finished watching Waitress and I decided I was in love – what a great movie!  It was super quirky, and made me crave pie like crazy, but I really enjoyed it.  I don’t know if it was the movie or what, but this movie I was having the craziest dreams!  In one I was a Greek man hitting on my sister-in-law and in another they made “Bones” into an awesome movie.  I hate to get up in the middle of a dream so we ended up sleeping in way too late.  After running some errands it was noon by the time we got our study on.

We spent the day (12 – 9, yes 9hours) at the Spot, so most of my meals came from there.  Brunch =

A diet coke and the ever adored Mike’s Sandwich.  An everything bagel with egg, cream cheese, and provolone.  Yums.

A few hours later it was time for a snack.

Oh yes, that is a ‘Smores Bar.  I’m obsessed with pretty much anything ‘smores related, but other than ‘smores pie this might be the best thing ever!  It was soooo chewy and tasty, it took me more than an hour to eat.

With my sweet I also had some China Breakfast tea.

It was a nice rich black tea, I ended up dipping the diffuser into more hot water for a second cup.

Hours later still – my friend Caroline was there at this point – I had my new favorite thing.  “Santa’s Little Helper”

Skim milk cappuccino with dark chocolate, peppermint, and green foam.  Ack!

Too exciting!

In spite of all the sugar I was super hungry when I got home.  I heated up a carton of Dr. McDougall’s Black Bean Soup for dinner.

While I waited we tried some new cheese, Kerrygold Aged Cheddar with Irish Whiskey.

This was my favorite Kerrygold variety yet, so nice and creamy.  I melted some on top of of two small slices of french bread as a side.

And I topped my soup with low fat plain yogurt and some Sriracha, so yum.

All together –

It was a good meal.

Adam is watching Dutch, and I’m getting sucked in, but hopefully I’ll be in bed soon.  I have pt at 8am tomorrow, and a few errands to run, but the rest of the day should be study study study.  Do be on the lookout for a giveaway tomorrow around lunch time though.

Mid-Fray Update

I have time for a post, can you believe it!?!  The food is all prepared and the house is cleaned, all that’s left is getting dressed so I figured I might as well stop in and share some recipes.

I drove Adam to school this morning so we had to be out of the house at 7:30.  My alarm broke and his didn’t go off until 7:20 leading to this outfit –

Yep, I slapped Uggs on my pajamas and called it a go.

During our drive I drank this purple Rockstar for an energy boost.

And that’s all I’ve eaten since then.  All day.  I did some nibbling while I made dessert but other than that I’ve kept my hands out of the food.  All I’ll say is this: thank goodness for Rockstar!

Tonight’s surprise party is going to be tiny, but very well stocked with food and booze 🙂  In addition to the rum, vodka, etc. we have around the house I bought three kinds of Christmas beer.

Appetizers:  buffalo chicken dip with Food Should Taste Good Olive Chips and Sociable crackers; devilled eggs.

Dinner: salad with red and green peppers; garlic bread; vegetable lasagna.

Dessert: ‘smores pie.

This party is about Adam, not me.  I choose things that he liked and made them the way he likes, without healthy substitutions.  I didn’t cut back the cheese (there is LOT of cheese in this menu) or use plain yogurt in place of mayo.  I did buy low fat or fat free versions of most everything.  Also, as usual, nothing has trans fat; Adam doesn’t eat it either.

Buffalo Chicken Dip  I got this recipe from Tina’s blog.

I basically followed it except that I don’t have a slow cooker, so after the stove top I put mine in a small casserole dish and baked for 20minutes, uncovered, at 250*.  Also, I used fat free and 1/3 less fat cream cheeses.

Devilled Eggs

  • 7 large eggs
  • 2 T Miracle Whip Lite
  • 1 t mustard (I used Jack Daniels)
  • ½ t olive juice
  • 7 pimento stuffed olives, cut in half
  • paprika 
  1. Hard boil the eggs.  When they are finished, run them under cold water for 1-2 minutes.
  2. Carefully peel and discard shells.
  3. Cut each egg in half lengthwise, dumping the yolks into a small bowl.
  4. Mash yolk with a fork.  Add mayo, mustard, and olive juice to the bowl; mash to combine.
  5. Spoon a bit of the yolk mixture into each egg half.
  6. Top with an olive half and a sprinkle of paprika (I only put paprika on half).

Salad

For the salad I bought two bags of mixed lettuce and four bell peppers (two red, two green).  I chopped up the peppers and tossed.  I’m setting out the bowl with a variety of dressings.

Garlic Bread

All you need is a loaf of Italian bread, SmartBalance Light, and garlic powder.  Cut the loaf into slices.  Spread each slice with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder.  Reform into a loaf and wrap tightly with tinfoil.  Warm in oven for the last 10minutes of cooking time of whatever you’re serving it with.

Veggie Lasagna  This is Adam’s mom’s recipe, but I’m writing it with the several changes I made.

  • package lasagna noodles (you need 10noodles)
  • 15oz fat free ricotta cheese
  • ¼ lb parmesan cheese, shredded.  Reserve half
  • 16oz part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • ½ cup fat free cottage cheese
  • 3 eggs, lightly beaten
  • ¼ t salt
  • ¼ t pepper
  • 1 T oregano
  • 1 T garlic powder
  • 16oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and strained
  • ½ cup shredded carrots
  • jar spaghetti sauce (I used garlic flavored) 
  1. Preheat the oven to 400*.
  2. Cook the noodles according to package directions, for half the time instructed.  Add evoo to water before boiling.
  3. Drain noodles and lay flat.
  4. Combine cheese, eggs, and seasonings in a large bowl.
  5. Brush a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan.
  6. Put down a layer of pasta, followed by half the spinach, then all the carrots, then half the cheese mixture, then a thin layer of sauce.  It’s easiest to put the cheese and sauce layers down in small spoonfuls and then spread with your fingers.
  7. Repeat layers again – pasta, spinach, cheese, red sauce.  Top with the reserved parmesan cheese.
  8. Bake uncovered for 25-35minutes, or until set and lightly golden.
  9. Allow to stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

‘Smores Pie.

Click the link above.

Everything is prepped, but the lasagna, dip, and bread still need to go into the oven as it gets closer to party time.  I’m a little bit nervous, this is literally the first time I’ve ever made most of these recipes!  I hope that Adam likes everything and that he’s surprised.  I’ll be back tonight with a recap.

What dish do you take to parties?  Do you have a special one for the holidays?

Sugar High, Gotta Have It When I Need It to Get By

So you know – Adam has yet to turn 24 and we have only been married for 1year and 11months.  Those events don’t take place until December 11th and 28th respectively.  Thank you for the well wishes though!!

However, if you assumed I didn’t post all day because I was busy eating crap, well then you were correct!

I woke up so hungry today!  I actually broke into the snickerdoodles Adam’s mom brought him before I could even get started on breakfast.

For breakfast I was inspired by something my mom sent –

These are actually cookie cutters, but can easily be used to make fantastically cute eggs.

I made an onion bagel with chive cream cheese,

then topped each half with some egg love.

Delish!

Eggs are so tasty.  And very filling. 

I wanted to enjoy a leisurely meal but Adam rushed me out the door and to the movies.  We saw “Brothers” which was very enjoyable.  Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman, Tobey Maguire; I’d say it was very well cast.

Dark Chocolate Cookie Dough Bites were on sale for $1 so I ate some.

After the movie we spent some more time at the mall.  Adam’s parents gave him a gift certificate for his birthday so we spent a looong time in Joseph A. Banks.  He made it up to me by driving to Anderson’s afterwards.

I’ve been yammering about the peppermint soft-serve for weeks.  Worth the excitement?

Yes!  I had mine mixed with Oreos.

I’m not quite sure what the dinner plan is, but if it follows the rest of the day’s eating I’ll just inhale a big bowl of sugar 🙂

How cool are you – what movie does this song remind you of?

Microwaved Miracles

Hello, hello!  I slept in until 10:30 today, but I’ve been telling myself it’s so I’ll be fully over my cold before we drive up to Ohio tomorrow to visit my grandparents.

When I did get up I made the most amazing breakfast!  Microwave eggs might be the best thing ever.

You just combine all of your ingredients in a smallish microwave safe bowl (2 eggs, s&p, the last 1.5T of gorgonzola), stir, microwave on high for 1minute, stir again, and finish with another minute in the microwave.  The fabulously fluffy eggs slide right out of a bowl and onto a sandwich!

This sandwich was topped with Jack Daniels mustard and some clover honey from Foodbuzz!

Mmmn!  It was the perfect combo of savory and sweet.

Breakfast lunch perfection!

In just a bit I am driving to pick up Adam at school so we can go to my doctor’s appointment.  I am getting my leg imaged to make sure I don’t have a blood clot, and hopefully finding out more information in general.

Tonight we are going to a dinner we’ve been planning for months, and tomorrow I’m driving up to my grandparents’ for Thanksgiving!  Just to warn you in advance, I’m not sure what the posting sitch will be this weekend, they may need to be a large recap.

What miraculous things have you done with your microwave?

French Toasty

You’re not going to believe it, but we missed another movie this morning!  We were a combination of a little tired, a little hangover, and a lot cranky.  The plan was to see our movie at 10:30, but we were definitely still in bed at that time.  When we did finally get up we decided to go this afternoon and get started on breakfast!

I made my best french toast yet!

The toast was regular style – 2 slices of bread dipped in a splash of milk and an egg, cooked in a skillet with a bit of butter substitute.  The topping is what made it though.  Fruit topping, serves 1

  • 1/4 T butter substitute
  • 1/4 t sugar
  • dash of salt
  • apple, chopped
  • splash oj
  • 1/2 cup blackberries (I used frozen)
  1. Heat the first four ingredients over medium high heat until the apples are browned. 
  2. Add the juice and berries and cook another 5minutes.

I topped my toast with the fruit and a little bit of real maple syrup.

Delicious!

I have some errands to run and we are planning on (actually) seeing our movie at 4:20.  I’ll be back for dinner!

What is your favorite type of french toast?  I had amaretto and pecan at a restaurant that was great, and I want to try cream cheese and banana stuffed next!