Tag Archives: greens

Wednesday – Thursday, Still On The Move

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Hello again from another location, this time Ohio.  Once we get home from here we have a day trip to Toronto and then I’m staying put until the end of break!

Wednesday

Yesterday was Adam’s and my 4-year wedding anniversary, aka our 9-year anniversary of being together!!!  It’s crazy to think that we’ve shared so much of our lives.  Sappy sidenote – I am grateful every day that I get to spend with my husband.  I am so thankful that the man I love is handsome and funny in addition to being intelligent and kind. </sap>

I had an early morning orthodontist appointment and we had to do a grocery restock and then we reunited with another man I love.

I sort of want to get those pictures framed.

Adam and I spent our anniversary doing our favorite things – namely tons of eating good food and cuddling on the couch watching good tv.  A big, made from scratch breakfast felt downright gourmet.

For the eggs, we went to the deli and requested two, 1/4 inch-thick slices of honey roasted turkey.

We chopped them up and sautéed them in a bit of butter, then scrambled in 4 large eggs.

Out of control delicious.  I quit eating most meat (mammals) before I had gotten to try everything and I suspect that I would really enjoy ham.

We also had hash browns made with white potatoes, onion, red bell pepper, 2 Tbsp of butter, and 2 tsp of chipotle oil.

Adam bought me some fourth year gifts for our anniversary.

A book with a sweet inscription, persimmons for fruit and rugelach for flour (substituted for flour because we were going out-of-town).

I’ve been picking up the persimmons and deciding that they were too expensive to splurge on for weeks at the grocery, so they were such a nice surprise.  We split part of one persimmon but decided that it wasn’t ripe enough yet.

Adam was careful to buy squishy ones because once in the city, before we knew better, we tried to eat an unripe persimmon and about died when all the moisture was sucked from our mouths!  This one had a good flavor but was still a little cotton-mouthy.  So we washed it away with rugelach.

The snack was perfect to bring us into lunch.

I had an Applegate Farms Turkey Bologna sandwich on half a cheddar jalapeno bialey with a little bit of Miracle Whip.

Plus a huge pile of roasted green beans.

Adam hates jalapeno but knew I’d like that bialey more than the others and I gave him the half with more cheese, so we both compromised in the name of love.

It would have been easy and fun to go out for a romantic dinner, so I’m extra proud of us that we stayed home and cooked together instead.

I started by steam-sauteing 3 chopped zucchini in a bit of chicken stock.  Then I finished them off with 1 Tbsp of evoo and this packet of Garlic Gold I got in my HLS swag.

I was expecting to adore the Garlic Gold after all the love it got in the healthy living blog community, but we found it to be pretty “meh.”

We set the cooked zucchini aside and while Adam boiled 3 servings of pasta I made a roux with 2 Tbsp of butter, 2 Tbsp of flour, and 1 Tbsp of milk.  Into that, I whisked 1 cup of skim milk and 1/2 cup of shredded sharp cheddar cheese.  Once the sauce came together all we had to do was toss it with the cooked squash and pasta.

We topped our bowls with a bit of panko and more cheese.

Dinner was great, definitely as good as anything we would have gotten in a restaurant.  This was on the healthy side, but now I am absolutely going to make a similar sauce and use it in oozey, gooey mac and cheese.

We stayed up later than planned watching “That 70’s Show,” which was good for anniversary fun but bad for me working out this morning.  I can’t do anything active here in Ohio and I’m worried that all my vacation workout momentum will be for naught.

Thursday

Today was a day of many meals.  Due in parts to time of the month and restlessness from 7 hours in the car.  And we got junky food too; a healthy living blog no-no but an unavoidable part of existing in the real world.

Chicken biscuit from Chick-fill-a.

The leftover serving of dinner.

A juicy pear.

Animal crackers split with Adam (70/30 his favor).

Mid-way we got to stop for froyo.

I got eggnog and toffee mocha yogurts, topped with candy bar pieces and some marshmallow topping.

Alas both of my flavors were too spicy and I ended up throwing most of mine away.  It was a sad day indeed.

But hundreds of miles later we found a Sonic and I ordered a diet coke with strawberry that totally made up for it.

Adam and I also split fries and chicken tenders.

Good thing my grandma served a lateish dinner, huh?

Webster was a perfect angel for 95% of the drive.

We even got to take him in to meet my grandpa this afternoon.  I like it when all the men in my life are well-acquainted.

Per usual, my grandma made a great dinner.

Side salad,

cooked spinach with feta and cherry tomatoes,

truffle mac and cheese to make up for Adam not having any on Christmas,

and italian breaded chicken, 

which I only could eat a few bites of because I felt like food was coming out of my ears.

After dinner, Nana and Adam worked on a 750-piece puzzle while I wrote this monster post.  I hate all these super long posts I’ve been writing lately!  I know none of my readers are interesting in scrolling for hours, but since I use my blog as a journal I don’t want to skip days that are so great.  I promise to get back to a less annoying schedule once I’m home for good.

STT; Thursday Afternoon – Saturday Morning

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It’s a busy day (the day before Christmas!) but I just couldn’t bear not sharing (pictures of all, descriptions of few) what I’ve been up to!

Thursday

Thursday afternoon, my mom treated me to lunch at Pesce, a newish Italian spot. We split the two things that sounded best. A spinach salad with craisins, candied pecans and goat cheese,

and a (fried) bbq chicken flat bread.

The husband has been calling about missing me and asking for pictures, so – Hi, husband!

Do you like my new top?

For dinner my parents and I headed to Victor’s Hideout for some good local cuisine.

Our plates came with plantains, fungi, sweet potato, rice and beans, and salad.

Plus I ate a roll with butter.

Here, my dad and I split two plates.  He got the fried shrimp,

And I got ole wife, a local whitefish.

Head on, scrape the meat off the bones… It was intense but tasty.

That evening I headed over to the apartment (bachelor pad) of two high school friends who just moved in together. 4 of us from a regular group were there together and it was fun to do some reminiscing. Adrien served me a tasty vodka-soda-lemon thing at some point.

But I stuck to one drink because I was driving (on the left … in the rain … without traffic signals because half the island didn’t have power). My mom did text around 1:30 to see if I was dead, which I thought was sweet.

Friday

Friday morning I may have overslept. I missed my gym window too, which was annoying. But I got up in time for breakfast.

That bowl was 1 egg, 2 whites, ~3 oz leftover spicy chicken, a handful of shredded cabbage, 1 Tbsp butter, and 2 Tbsp cocktail sauce. I’m not even going to attempt to describe it.

Brunch was Christmas in a convenience package.

A gingerbread Clif bar that I took one bite of and then trashed in horror.

And an eggnog Nutrament that I swooned over.

Plus I got a chaispresso (chai, espresso, 2% milk) during afternoon errands.

Friday night my parents hosted a Hanukkah party!

It was great getting to see everyone, and it was extra great that my uncle made his (best ever) latkes.

I took many appetizers bites. I actually did take a photo of every single one, so I’m going to consolidate them grid style –

My cousin made matzoh ball soup.

Here is my dinner plate –

Salad, noodle kugel, and a tiny bit of salmon.

And my mom made “Crack Pie” (of Momofuku fame) for dessert.

Tiny slices because it was basically a pie of caramel in an oatmeal cookie crust.

Saturday

This morning I had my mom drive me to school so I could run some laps on the field.  I have no idea of distance, but I jogged 20 minutes straight; plus a quick, walking warm up and cool down.  I am not in running shape at all so it was interesting to see a workout out in the wind!

And I’d like to wish a very Merry Christmas tomorrow to all of my readers who celebrate!

Party through Paradise

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Hello, hello!  It feels good to be back at a computer; I’ve been wanting to check a test grade for days (still not up).  I can only access the internet here when I got to school with my mom, so I plan on posting all of vacation but in every-other-day intervals.  This is a strange recap to start with though, because I don’t have a lot to share.  Blame booze and lack of sleep.

Our holiday party was great!  You know what else is great?  The drink I’ve coined a “Merry Christmas.”  It’s Goldschläger with orange juice.  Cinnamony and festive.  A few friends came over early to watch The Carebears’ Nutcracker and I poured us some Merry Christmases.

I might have overpoured.  Maybe.  That glass was 2/3 Goldschläger.  So, yeah.  And then I proceeded to spend the first half of my party far drunker than intended.  I had a great time.  And since I overpoured every drink, the whole party was drunker than intended, so at least I was in good company.  But the pictures might have suffered.

I have shots of most of the food and drinks.

Important points – 1. That eggnog seltzer was ridiculous good.  2.  My party recipes all came out perfectly and I plan on sharing them over the next few days.

I have a shot of the Christmas cardi I borrowed from my grandma.  (thanks, Nana!)

I have shots of the adorable cake balls my friend Kim brought us.

And I have shots of some party guests.  Minus the ones of party guests actually taking shots, which I promised wouldn’t go on the internet.

We had 20+ people in our little apartment and I’m not sure the dog is going to recover.

The last of our friends left the party around 1.  Adam and I got up at 5:30 AM to get me to the airport.  I didn’t actually get to my parents’ house until 10:30 PM.  And now you understand why I have no photos recapping what I ate yesterday.

You didn’t miss much, considering that I largely subsisted on two bagels and a giant bag of trail mix.  I did make sure to document the tres leches I got in Miami.

Most exciting airport food ever.

And I made sure to document my reading materials.  You Better Not Cry by Augusten Burroughs I knew would be good.  In typical Burroughs style, his Christmas-themed collection made me both laugh and cry.

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen was plucked at random from a sale table.  I ended up loving it!  The perfect amount of fantasy blended into Southern small town life.  Plus, cake!

And Good Morning, Killer by Anna Smith was purchased during layover #2, in desperation.  It wasn’t bad, but I’m not exactly clamoring to read the rest of the Ana Grey series either.

When I got home I immediately got started on my main goal this vacation –

I’ve read every comic in that giant stack of Archies at least 10 times each, but I’m hoping to give them all another reread this trip!

No breakfast this morning.  My cell phone didn’t switch time zones for some reason and I stupidly went to bed and got up later than planned.  I spent my late morning unpacking, then drove over to school to write this post.  Lunch was a tangerine and gala apple.

And the baked spinach patty my mom had for me.

Not traditional – usually pattys are stuffed with meat and fried – but still delicious.

The rest of the day looks to be nice and calm.  My visiting family and high school friends don’t get until later this week so I’m looking forward to time at home with my parents.  I’ll leave you with this –

What two items did I forget to pack for my ISLAND vacation? 

  1. sunglasses
  2. bathing suits

?!??!!!

What’s the dumbest thing you’ve forgotten to pack?

I Wish I Was In Hawaii

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It’s been a good day!  You would barely know that I have three exams tomorrow …  😉

Our trip to the Buffalo Centre went well.  We couldn’t see much due to privacy concerns, but it was really interesting to see the menu selection system and learn a bit more about how appropriate intake for eating disorder patients is determined.  Among other things, the RD mentioned that most patients won’t gain weight unless they are taking in at least 2,000 calories a day.

I ate a late lunch (thanks mom!) while I looked at some notes.

A few pieces of sweet and sour chicken,

and veggies picked from a chicken dish.

I got a lot of work done this afternoon and I definitely have to give credit to my student partner –

Dinner was a shrimp roll.

Plus fruit as an apple with Justin’s Maple Walnut Butter.

And veggies in the tasty form of Hawaiian Inspired Greens.

Click here for a link to the recipe, it’s a good’un.

I ate my dinner way to early in the evening and ended up doing some (unneccessary) snacking as the night wore on.  Popcorn,

and a few pieces of Almond Rocca.

Think smart thoughts for me tomorrow?

Hello, Bob

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So, this morning I looked like this –

and now I look like this –

I like it, I think!

I always sort of hate my hair whenever I get it chopped, but I’ve gone short several times now so apparently that’s not holding me back!  I ended up having 14 inches to give to Locks of Love, which is great.

A friend and I went during a long break between classes and it was fun to see people’s reactions when we got back.  “Wait, didn’t you have a pony-tail this morning?!?”  I surprised Adam too.  He picked me up from school and his mouth fell open when I walked out to the car!

BC (before the cut) I ate half of this Coconut Chocolate Chip Clif Bar for breakfast.

And AC (after the cut) I bought a great green juice.

This was blend of spinach, kale, carrot, and cucumber; from a new spot just blocks from my apartment.

This was so good, and “only” $4.  I predict I’ll be there more often than I can afford!

Adam picked me up after school so we could make a quick grocery trip.  We each picked something from the cookie bar for funsies before we did boring stuff like toilet paper.

I chose cinnamon nut rugala and I’m now on the hunt for a rugala recipe to make at home.

While I was fixing Adam’s dinner I snacked on some canned pineapple over 1% cottage cheese.

My dinner was supposed to be some of Monday’s “leftovers,” leftover.

A heaping bowl of pasta, shredded chicken, and tons of peas, topped with parmesan, cranberry relish, and a drizzle of evoo.

I love this bowl so much more than I do anything I eat on Thanksgiving.  But I got up to do something halfway through and when I came back there was a dog face in my bowl!  Webster’s sort of an asshole.

Instead I ate this Smart Ones Brocoli and Cheddar Roasted Potatoes.

Not as good as the dinner I shared with the dog, but not as bad as it looks either.

Have you ever given to Locks of Love?  If you have long hair – how many times have you gone short?

Happy Thanksgiving

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We’re in Miami!

Can I just say, how little I did I manage to pack for two people for four days?

And that’s with the husband’s giant boy clothes taking up extra space.

Our day of travel went smoothly, minus my yogurt (in a perfect peanut butter jar!) getting tossed at security. We slept though the first flight and then spent three hours walking around the Chicago airport.

We got a strange 8am meal, splitting a Baja chicken burrito from Burrito Beach.

I asked for chicken, red rice, black beans, corn, cheese, sour cream, and roasted veggies.

Supplemented with a tangerine packed from home.

I was pleased with the job I did packing food for this trip.

(Adam also had a downright gourmet salad in my backpack.)

I ate a sandwich – Applegate Farms Turkey Bologna, Crofter’s Grape Spread, everything Bagel Thin – on flight number two.

Plus Peanut M&Ms bought from the airport.

I also started reading the all time funniest book ever on the plane.

Clearly Webster liked it too.  I laughed aloud so many times I’m sure our seatmates were thinking of muzzling me.

Before we knew it, we were on the ground and hugging my parents at the gate.  We are so freaking excited to be with them (especially in Miami!).

Our first stop was a nice walking tour of our old haunt, the U!

So fun to see how the campus had changed in little ways.  I will admit to becoming a bit nostalgic when we walked past the building where I took all of my English classes.  Plus it’s fun that Adam and I got to date here for four years.

Our next stop made my heart sing.

Self-serve froyo is high on my list of things to be thankful for!  I did keep the serving small though (we were about to head out to a nice Turkey Day dinner!); dolche de leche and taro froyo with fruit, a smidge of marshmallow, sprinkles, and lots of popping bobba.

If we manage to sneak in a froyo every day of the visit I think this will end up being the best vacation ever.

For dinner we headed to the Chart House.

The shirt that Adam has on here is actually the one he got married in!!!

I started my meal with a Blue Moon.

And a really great roll with butter.

And for dinner I went traditional.

Sliced roast turkey,

cornbread stuffing,

mashed potatoes,

cranberry relish,

and creamed spinach.

The spinach was soooo good, but overall I probably ordered the wrong thing since I actually hate most Thanksgiving foods.  I only ate a 1/3 or so of my plate; but at least I won’t have regrets about “missing”anything, and Adam is thrilled with his plate of leftovers.

My meal came with pecan pie.

But there wasn’t a preference issue that kept me from eating this, the pie was just plain nasty.  Store-bought (crappy store-bought) pie, Chart House?  You can do better.

But what really matters on Thanksgiving is family, and I got to spend the day with my three favorite people.  And I hope all of you, Americans or otherwise, got to spend the day with your nearest and dearest too.

He’s Back!

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No, not me (I’m a she if you didn’t know!), my computer!

He’s back from the place that drained my wallet Best Buy’s Geek Squad and feeling better than ever.  I’m glad to have a working computer again, though I did learn a few things in his absence –

  1. If it’s not Google-_________, WordPress, Slate, Hotmail, or another of the select few, I’m not opening it on my laptop.  That’s what fancy cell phones and school accounts are for.
  2. I need want to spend more time away from the computer.

How much of your free time would you say you spend staring at a screen (tv, computer, or cell phone)?

I spent 7:30 am – 9:30 pm out of the house and my eats today were decidedly pathetic.  Cheese, and carbs, and hey I did the best I could on the run!

Breakfast, consumed during a break in class #1, was a leftover serving of mac ‘n cheese.

And lunch, consumed during the break between class #2 and 3, was a Cookie Dough Balance Bar.

And after all my raving over how this bar is my favorite thing ever, I’m pretty sure they’ve changed the recipe!  This was overly chemical and just not good.  What gives?!?  I don’t even know how I’m going to break the news to Adam.

In between lunch and dinner, insert a group meeting, an hour spent writing my personal reflection on the Chili Sale, a trip to the mall in torrential downpour to pick up my computer, and three-hour shift at work.

Unsurprisingly, dinner came from the frozen section.

A Newman’s Own White Pizza, purchased with a free coupon from the Foodbuzz Tastemaker’s Program.

I ate my single serving on a too-big plate so that we could reuse the plate for Adam’s big serving and save a dish.

Soooo good.  The portion didn’t feel very big but it was less about being unsatisfied and more about really wanting to keep eating the delicious flav-a.  If I’m not going deep dish, I want my crust to be crispy and this definitely delivered.  The cheese had a great sour, tang to it that I couldn’t get enough of and the red sauce wasn’t missed at all.

For my side I tried to recreate Saturday’s salad.

Romaine base topped with crumbled blue cheese, chopped Gala apple, groats, and Wegman’s Yogurt Casaer Dressing.

It was very good, but I realized too late that dressing with honey and vinegar probably would have taken it over the top.

Dessert was two coffee malt cookies.

I’m going to be up half the night chipping away at schoolwork and it’s likely I will continue to do some snacking.  I’ll update in the morning as need be.  Good night!

I’m Sure Immortals Was Great

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It feels good to be back!  It will feel even better to actually have my computer back, but I’ll take what I can get.  I will admit that it’s felt a little freeing not having a computer this past week.  Sure, I still check my e-mail on my phone every 10 minutes, but not being tethered to a seat reminded me of how much the old me hated sitting in one place for hours, even in front of  a computer.  Something to think about.

I spent yesterday cooking and Adam spent the morning cleaning.  I like having company because it makes us pretend to live like adults!  While he worked, I munched on a simple but delicious sandwich.

Half a jalapeno cheddar bialey with 2 slices of Applegate Farms Honey Maple Turkey and a thick schmear of Crofter’s Organic Grape Spread.

I know I say it every time, but the spicy + sweet combo makes my world.

My brother-in-law got into town around noon so we took him to lunch at JP Bullfeathers.  We were sat in the downstairs “wine cellar” area, which was fun.

It was in the 40’s at that point so I relished a warm lunch.

I got a cup of jalapeno corn chowder which I was thrilled to see contained lots of whole kernels of corn.

And an order of garlic bread which I was sad to see was topped with cheese.  Who puts cheese on garlic bread?  I ate three pieces nonetheless.

The lunch as a whole was very heavy and it left me feeling full but not satisfied, if that makes sense.

I had to leave the boys to head in to work.  They went to Blue Monk while I was gone, a trip that required me to have to drive them to the movies later, ahem.  I actually walked from school over to Blue Monk to pick them up on foot first.  It was a nice walk, made even nicer by the purchasing of green juice from O3.

I made my own mix instead of ordering off of the menu, but I believe that what I ended up with was spinach, celery, cucumber, and carrot.

I had no desire to see “Immortals” so I stayed home and did some work.  I knew the dinner plan was pizza so I made sure to eat a nice salad when I got home.

A spinach bed with chopped apple, crumbled blue cheese, groats, and Wegman’s Yogurt Casaer dressing on top.

I’m not sure the salad will make me any less hungry for pizza, but I’m glad I at least got in some produce first.

I also ate a serving of Lindt truffles.

And as soon as I pick up the movie-goers it will be pizza time!  I’m not going to blog again today so the husband can have his computer, but assume I’ll have 1-3 slices of the good stuff.

I will see you all again (phew!) tomorrow.