One Meal Sunday

by Emily

We are a third of the way through September; holy frick! Today was not a relaxing Sunday, but I would still qualify it as a good one.

I was afraid that soreness from last night’s rocking climbing would impede my 60 minute hot yoga class this morning, but it was actually one of my best practices. Staying in bed late this morning to get a full 8 hours definitely helped. My unlimited pass expires in a week and I am devastated about it. Though I’m excited to spend the next month getting back to cardio and running.

After my calming class the rest of the morning was crazy. So crazy, in fact, that I didn’t have time for breakfast or lunch before work. My first meal of the day ended up being at 6pm. At least my growling stomach was prettily shrouded?

Thanks for the new dress, Mommy! p.s. I have no idea what is happening with my face in that picture, I swear to God my left check isn’t swollen in real life.

I worked until 4:30 and had a meeting for school at 7:30 so Adam and I got dinner at Spicy Thai in between. We’d been before and found it to be ok, not the best Thai in Buffalo but not the worst either, so when a Groupon popped up we jumped on it. Sadly today’s meal was not all that good and I don’t think we’ll be going back again. <– I don’t have a ton of time to post right now so I’m just going to leave it at that.

Crab rangoon to start.

We tried to split two dishes,

but I hated Adam’s cashew chicken and only ate four mushrooms’ worth.

I found my Pad See Eiw with extra vegetables to be too sweet but the noodles had good texture and I ate about 75% of the dish, including every last speck of green.

We had black sticky rice with coconut pudding for dessert.

That dish was actually very tasty and we were quite glad we tried it even after our meals were disappointing.

My meeting was at The Spot and I ordered a coffee with skim milk and four sugars.

Our MNT teacher has graciously offered to meet each Sunday to go over questions since the class material is pretty tricky.

That’s all she wrote!

27Aug2012

Stir-Fried Soup

by Emily

I made it through the first day of a new semester! I forgot what day it was and pressed snooze a couple of times this morning, but I did manage to make it to the gym for a quick workout.

25 minutes on the elliptical, level 6 random.

I cut it close but the husband offered to drive me this morning (both walking and driving myself eat up 30 minutes) so I had time to shower and grab breakfast to go. A Chocolate Dipped Coconut Luna Bar,

and an iced coffee with skim milk.

It wasn’t just any iced coffee. Do you remember when I blogged about wanting to try Chameleon Cold-Brew Coffee? They now sell it at Wegman’s!

It was even better than I had imagined. Smooth, not at all bitter, and I swear with the skim milk I tasted hints of chocolate?!

I breakfasted during my first class and the caffeine boost was much-appreciated. This semester is going to be hard. I’m only taking a few classes (the minimum number of credits versus having to petition to take extra credits almost ever other semester) but there is a ton of work and the concepts are all higher level.

Good thing I got some work done in the break between classes and my shift at work. I also made lunch.

A salad of romaine, flax, light honey mustard dressing, a little shredded gruyere, and a crumbled slice of turkey bacon.

Plus apple dippers.

A sliced Pink Crispin,

with a melted mix of peanut butter, Biscoff, and Heath bits, ~ 1 Tbsp of each.

Delish!

I worked from 2 -7 and then came home and wandered around all evening in a tired, sore-backed haze. That is not going to be able to happen as the semester progresses. But overall I think I did a good job of getting things done today.

I even pre-made some of the components for tomorrow’s dinner. I snacked on a serving of Barbara’s Baked Cheese Puffs while I cooked.

They were an impulse buy at the co-op that paid off; didn’t tasted “baked” at all.

Dinner didn’t happen until 9:30 but it was worth the wait. Super worth it. Did you make my Thai-Inspired Coconut Peanut Soup yet? I hope so, because if you did you are halfway done with this killer spin on it – Stir-Fried Soup!

Stir-Fried Soup, serves 1

1 Tbsp evoo
1 oz cashews
1 serving Thai-Inspired Coconut Peanut Soup
4 dashes Sriracha
1 large egg

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Toss in cashews and toast. Add soup leftovers and Sriracha and saute, stirring occasionally, until crispy. Scramble in egg. Serve and swoon.

It was the tastiest thing I’ve eaten in weeks, I swear to God.

What’s the strangest thing you’ve done with leftovers?

26Aug2012

Bok To School

by Emily

I’m heading back to school tomorrow (eek!) and I finally remember all my education on the importance of vegetables. Better late than never! All of my meals today included a veggie and two of them centered around bok choy (“bok to school,” hyuck, hyuck). Tomorrow I should probably work on including some fruits.

I did not get right into bed last night – and the neighbor’s dumbass friends ringing our doorbell at 4 am didn’t help my sleep either – but I did make it to yoga this morning. A 60 minute hot yoga class.

Breakfast made use of our bok choy gratin leftovers.

I scrambled a big serving into two eggs along with a few dashes of green Tabasco.

Hidden inside the eggs, this casserole actually wasn’t half bad.

Our afternoon entertainment was a walk through the Elmwood Art Festival.

We saw a few cool pieces but my main goal was lunch and I sadly didn’t see any food that appealed to me. I ended up eating at the hot bar when we went to the grocery.

Wok-seared veggies that were the best I’ve ever had from the hot bar,

two pieces of sweet and sour chicken,

and a few grapes for dessert.

I also ate this fun-size pack of Sugar Babies while we were out and about.

I nibbled on a half serving of Special K Savory Herb Crackers while I made dinner.

Dinner was homemade soup.

Thai-Inspired Coconut Peanut Soup, serves 4 (vegan)

1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
medium green bell pepper, thinly sliced
3 green onions, sliced
2 Thai hot peppers, finely chopped
15 oz can stir-fry mushrooms
4 heaping cups baby bok choy
13.6 oz can light coconut milk
16 oz vegetable broth
6 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
2 cups black rice vermicelli, broken in half
lime juice (optional)
Sriracha (optional)

Heat sesame oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.
Add green pepper to pot and cook 2 minutes, stirring regularly.
Add green onions and Thai pepper and cook another 2 minutes.
Add mushrooms and bok choy and cook another 2 minutes.
Stir in coconut milk and broth and bring to a boil.
Stir in peanut butter and vermicelli and boil an additional 7 minutes.
Top bowls with lime juice and Sriracha to taste.

We are both looking forward to leftovers tomorrow.

Also consumed, was an Honest Tea Honey Green Tea.

I’m down to the last bottle from my Honest Tea shipment and I definitly plan on buying more with my own money when they’re gone.

I’m hoping to paint my nails (both sets!) before bed; gotta go!

13Aug2012

Canoe-dle

by Emily

As the start of my 2nd to last week before school begins, I say “hello, Monday” very reluctantly. My day got off to an odd start because I spent an hour searching for a food truck whose Twitter stream had lied to me. I really want to cross that off of my birthday list before the summer ends.

I ended up getting lunch at the hot bar, which was probably cheaper and certainly healthier.

Chana Masala,

veggies,

more veggies with a little tofu,

and the large space was supposed to be fruit but I got flustered and forgot.

In a crowd I’m wonderfully decisive but when I’m alone I tend to get overwhelmed by too many choices.

I had a small iced coffee with skim milk while I shopped.

I’ve officially begun hoarding pumpkin things – I’ve got three cans of puree and three beers! – even though I know I won’t touch them until October.

When I got home I broke into an exciting purchase.

Luigi’s Birthday Cake Italian Ice.

Amazingly, it was a little too sweet for me and I only ate half. I’ll have to see what I do with the rest of the cups.

At 5 o’clock I did manage to cross something off of my list, a friend and I cashed in a Groupon and went canoeing!

We went out on a two-hour ride and managed to keep up our paddling the whole time. We even got to spot several deer.

It was fun to get some nature time. Over all we did really well, though there was one very shallow area that we got stuck on in both directions. On the way back I actually had to put my feet out of the canoe and give us a push!! I can’t wait to see how my arms feel tomorrow.

Right now my biceps feel good, but I am pretty darn tired. Like, dinner sounded like an impossible feat, tired. Instead of cooking, I ate this spicy salmon brown rice roll for dinner.

And I’m going to fall into bed the minute I press publish. Good night!

9Aug2012

A Midsummer Night’s Date

by Emily

So I did, in fact, sleep through yoga. I suck. I have two weeks until school and then I’ve got class at 8 am five days a week so I need to seriously work on my getting out of bed skills!

Breakfast was a big pink smoothie.

Into the blender went 1.5 cups Silk Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, a heaping 1/2 cup frozen strawberries, a heaping Tbsp pb, and 2 scoops of Tera’s Whey Organic Bourbon Vanilla Whey Protein Powder.

My smoothie tasted like a vanilla pb & j!

I also had 2 oz of the wasabi snack mix my parents brought.

I spent what was left of my late morning cooking dinner. This quart of heirloom tomatoes played a big role.

I also finally used this Kelapo Coconut Oil sample that I got last summer at HLS.

And tri-color quinoa from last summer’s trip to Trader Joes.

The dog is afraid of the oven and this meal kept the oven and stove-top on for a solid hour and scared him deep into the back of the closet.

What a scaredy ~~cat~~ dog!

The end result was worth it.

Here are the general specs if you want to recreate it, for 4 servings –

1 cup quinoa, cooked according to package instructions
1 quart tomatoes, roasted
2 large zucchini, sliced and roasted
2 pints sliced mushrooms, sautéed in 2 Tbsp butter
14 oz extra-firm tofu, drained and pressed and sautéed in 1 Tbsp coconut oil with seasoning of choice
sauce of choice (I topped my bowl with 2 Tbsp pesto)

The photos are actually of Adam’s bowl since my dinner looked like this –

I ate to-go because the husband picked me up from work and we walked straight to Shakespeare in Delaware Park.

We only caught half of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (I got out of work late and Adam has a strict bedtime) but we enjoyed what we saw.

We shared these cola gummis for dessert while we watched.

Buffalonians, have you seen any Shakespeare in the park this summer?

8Aug2012

Chicken Chicken

by Emily

Please note – if you were my dog you would read that title as “chick-ON chick-ON,” since that is what we say whenever we feed him chicken.

Not a lot has gone down in the two days since I left Ohio, but there were a few highlights. I did get to eat lots of chips and several large diet sodas.

Our drive back to Buffalo and my parents’ flight home went off without a hitch.

My dad drove the whole way home for me and I finished knitting my scarf!!!

The fine people at Honest Tea noticed that I can’t help but buy a beverage whenever I walk past the co-op and sent me a few new flavors to try.

I got a new retainer, hopefully my last new retainer ever. *fingers crossed*

We had to take the dog to the vet to get a cyst on his tail lanced and it was the grossest/coolest thing ever.

Poor baby!

The vet trip actually happened today and it’s a good thing that went well because it was pretty much all I accomplished today. I didn’t get much sleep at my grandma’s house (I was on the couch and there was cable) and I stayed up too late again last night and crashed hard today.

I did manage a good, late breakfast.

Oh, Green Monster, I love you so. My original recipe is still my favorite. 1 frozen banana + 1 cup frozen spinach + 1 cup oj.

So ~~green~~ good.

I also ate half (aka 1 serving) of this Honey Noosa Yoghurt.

I got lunch from the hot bar while I was grocery shopping (hey, that’s an accomplishment!).

Two types of chicken,

plus roasted veggies.

I tried to get a skinny caramel macchiato as an afternoon snack but I ended up throwing it out after a few sips.

This drink was one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever tasted. It was super sour, but like there was something wrong with the coffee, not the milk. And I used part of a birthday gift card so it was extra sad.

Dinner was more chick-ON.

Baby carrots,

honey mustard for dipping (Ken’s Lite and it was very good, if you’re wondering),

and two servings of Wegman’s chicken nuggets.

I’ve been wanting nuggets for days and these hit the spot.

Tomorrow’s plans include not sleeping through yoga, medicating the dog, a shift at work, and a fun nighttime event with the husband.

What is your favorite sauce for nugget dipping?

3Aug2012

EWT

by Emily

Eats:

Starbucks White Chocolate Energy Double Shot.

A strawberry shake (made with fresh strawberries!) split with my dad.

A rice bowl. Brown rice, black beans, chicken, sautéed onion and pepper, lettuce, corn salsa, spicy sauce.

Pasta dinner.

Salad.

Whole-wheat spaghetti with marinara, ground chicken, peppers, and mushrooms.

Bread with butter.

2% Fage with Strawberry for breakfast this morning.

Workouts:

1 hour bike ride – lots of gliding but on a high gear – both Thursday night and Friday morning. My butt is soooo sore!

Thoughts:

I miss my boys like crazy. My grandma’s dog sits on the top of the couch just like Webster.

Finally, a message to my husband –

2Aug2012

Three Days Into Your Trip

by Emily

Hello from Ohio. I know I haven’t blogged in a few days, these old folks are keeping me busy!

Adam had to stay in Buffalo (he’s going to be a doctor so we don’t feel bad for him, though we do miss him!) but Tuesday morning my mom, dad, and I logged 8 hours in the car. After some tearful goodbyes, of course.