Tag Archives: salad

Long but Loving

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Hello again!  I hope that everyone got over the week’s hump nicely.  I’ll describe my situation succinctly: I will never put off my work for 4 days in a row again!  It’s been a painful experience that I don’t want to soon repeat.  The last 48hours have been stressful, but my eats have all been so good that there was no way I wasn’t posting them; hence the long recap post.

Wednesday morning I made a breakfast that was truly a thing of beauty –

A serving of Van’s Belgian Waffles topped with 2T maple syrup, the last of the strawberry sauce, fresh blueberries, and a cinnamon sprinkle.

Gah!  I always used to think that I didn’t like waffles, pancakes, etc, but that was just because I didn’t know to top them off with fruit and cinnamon.

{study, study, study}

Lunch was some Allergaroo Spyglass Noodles.

These were super tasty, and just the right about of food.

I wanted to keep lunch light because it was Katie’s birthday last week and we had a cupcake date.  It ended up being too hot for cupcakes, but locally made ice cream certainly fit the bill.

I got a small scoop of A Date at the Zoo, coconut ice cream with wine poached dates, brazil nuts, and chocolate chips.  Yes, it was as amazing as it sounds!

{study, study, study}

When hunger hit (hard) later in the afternoon I sliced up a big plate of cucumber to munch while I studied.  Unphotograhed accountability note – I also ate ~ 1/3 of a salmon patty straight from the container.

The water-dense snack was a good choice, because when the husband got home at 6 we headed out for a run.

I didn’t wear my watch, so I have no idea what the times are, but it was a good workout.  We did a mix of running and walking (with a few stops so I could fuss with my socks, eek I’m not sure if it’s the shoes or the socks but something with my new shoes isn’t working) and covered 3miles in total.

When you have good leftovers a healthy tasty dinner can literally be less than 2mintues away!

Over a bed of spring mix lettuce I combined 2/3cup microwaved frozen corn, a salmon patty, and a big scoop of medium chunky salsa.

The flavors of this salad went together so well!  It filled me up but it tasted so good that I kept scraping at my plate so I wouldn’t lose any of it 🙂

{study, study, study} um, {study, study, study, study}

That’s right folks, I pulled an (almost)all-nighter!  I stayed up until 4am doing the reading I should have done over the weekend.  Ugh.

I fell into bed for 6hours or so and then got right back to my books.  My messed up sleep schedule messed with my hunger in turn, and breakfast just didn’t sound good.  I did nibble on a serving of Jammie Dodgers throughout the morning though.

Around 2:30 I was finally caught up on the reading, which meant that I was ready to study for and take my test, jeez!

I did break for lunch though.  I pulled a carton of Dr. McDougal’s Lentil Soup out of the depths of my fridge.

I gussied it up with a chopped string cheese, a dollop of plain Siggis yogurt, and some Sriracha.

With a Savory Kathy’s Krackers Flax Snax on the side.

All together now –

Then it was more studying, yadda, yadda, yadda, and FINALLY I took my exam.  And I’m pretty sure I got a 100%, phew!

and if you’ve stuck around through all of that, I’d like to reward you with some recommendations…..

A Few of My (Current) Favorite Things –

1. The new fishy measuring spoon set my mom sent me.

They are available at Fred Flare, but I have heart palpitations whenever I view the kitchen section of that store so I can’t give you an exact link!

2. This College Humor Article about us 90’s kids.

Although I was actually always partial to Treasure Mountain, the article is hilarious.

3. The free online game Red Remover –

It is based on actual principles of physics, it is wickedly entertaining, and it’s flipping adorable.

Any current loves you’d like to share with me?

Red, White, and Late

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I hope everyone and their families had an incredible Independence Day.  No July 4th post for me, mostly because I was so ashamed by my lack of red, white, and blue foods; I always stick to theme!  We did dress festively though,

some of us more than others 😉

We did eat in an, ahem, celebratory fashion though, so I woke up today feeling pretty bloated and gross.  No better cure than testing out the new running shoes (an early birthday gift from my parents).

Since it was 10am already but we didn’t want breakfast before our run the husband and I split this pack of energy gels.

They were a free sample but I would probably buy them again, they tasted more like candy than gels and didn’t sit heavy in our stomachs.

I decided the safest route for new shoes was short intervals –

  • 5minute walking warm up
  • 5minute run
  • 3minute walk
  • 5minute walk
  • 3minute walk
  • 5minute run
  • 3minute walk
  • 5minute run
  • 5minute walking cool down

All total we covered 3miles in 39minutes.  I’m unsure about my new shoes still, they were far more supportive but I ended up having to stop and mess with my right foot halfway through because of a big blister forming on my right pinky, I’m hoping from my new socks.

After a quick shower we headed out to meet our friend Danielle for brunch.  I had a ton of work to do today (and did NOT get enough of it done!) but I didn’t want to miss the opportunity since the husband had the day off from the lab.  We headed to Panos.

I was feeling stressed about my work, but that’s nothing an extra spicy bloody mary can’t fix.

All the breakfast options were pretty big, but thankfully I talked the waitress into letting me order off of the kid’s menu.

I ended up with the 1-1-1.  One egg, sunny side up,

one piece of french toast,

and I subbed in hash browns for my one piece of meat.

I smothered everything in maple syrup and devoured, delicious!

While I was home not working I did random snacking.  Blue and I had some Rainbow Nerds.

A serving of Jammie Dodgers biscuit cookies.

An onion roll with Smart Balance, x2 actually, this was quick and tasty.

And I finally got in my red, white, and blue!

Siggi’s vanilla yogurt with strawberry sauce and blueberries.

O-M-G, so fabulous!  Doesn’t the yogurt just look like a scoop of ice-cream?!  The texture is practically like cream cheese!  The strawberry sauce I actually whipped up yesterday, the recipe comes from Healthy Food for Living.  I had to add ~1/4t of xanthan gum to keep it from being too liquidy, but other than that I highly recommend trying it yourself.

The husband came home this evening (he went to a water park with some friends) and insisted on getting me some veggies; my knight in shining arm took me on his steed to the Co-op hot bar.

I got a little bit of turkey Tetrazzini,

a piece of eggplant parmesan,

2 stuffed grape leaves,

and some side salad.

Now I’ve got to get to bed on the double, I panic a little bit whenever I think about how much work I have to do tomorrow!

Did you do anything fun to celebrate the Fourth?

Put Another Veggie on the Barbie

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Our day just got better and better 😀

After my bike ride I grabbed a small bowl of fresh fruit for breakfast.

Melon, blueberry, raspberry, grape.

Then the family set off toward the 2nd Street Market –

It ended up reminding me of a mash-up between a farmers’ market and Quincy Market in Boston.  We didn’t end up buying a whole lot, but we did see all sorts of neat things.

I did “lunch” in bites.  My dad and I bought a pint of cherries to split.

Adam gave me one of his grape leaves.

And I ate a pack of Bananamon Funky Monkey.

After the market we did shopping that was even more my style.  We went to Trader Joe’s to stock up on Sun Butter and then to Dick’s where I got my birthday gift early – new running shoes!!!  I can’t wait to start breaking those bad boys in!

On the way home we stopped at George’s (like Dairy Queen, but owned by a family friend, and better) so the husband could demolish a double cheeseburger and chocolate malt.  I went with a much more reasonable extra small grape/strawberry slushie.

This was one of the times I appreciated the vegan challenge; George’s has a long blizzards list and besides the fact that I really don’t need a huge ice-cream choosing a flavor gives me anxiety 😉

I did finish up dessert with a small serving of gummi cola bottles at home though.

Dinner was the first time this month that the vegan challenge was actually a challenge.  My grandparents adore Outback so that’s where we went, but my options were beyond limited.  I ended up ordering three sides.

Side salad (no cheese, no croutons) with balsamic vinegar.

Side of steamed veggies.

Side of french fries.

Not the healthiest meal by any stretch.  I rounded it out with some fresh watermelon when we got home.

Adam and I just got our butts kicked at Euker and now it’s bedtime.  We’ve got an early morning tomorrow before we head back to Buffalo, see you at home!

Top it Off

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I am leaving to pick up the husband in exactly 29minutes so I’ll try to do this Speedy Gonzalez style.

This morning had all the components to make me cranky – I overslept and I didn’t get a chance to read and I was dropping everything I picked up.  Does that ever happen to you?  I think the main reason I don’t really wear make-up is because I’m always irritating myself by dropping the brushes!  Nothing a big smoothie can’t fix though.

1 banana + 1cup frozen blackberries + 2T unsweetened shredded coconut + 1cup So Delicious Vanilla Coconut Milk + 1t xanthan gum + 6ice cubes = filled to the brim.

The coconutty flavor in this was awesome, I don’t think there’s anything that isn’t better with coconut.

We actually got our 1ominute break in soc today (hallelujah!) so I took the opportunity to snack on a bag of Peeled Snacks dried pineapple.

Best dried pineapple ever!  I don’t think I’ve ever seen dried pineapple sans added sugar before (maybe at Trader Joe’s?) but this bag was just fruit, and since it’s available at Starbucks I don’t need to make a trek to NYC to get more!

After class I stopped in at Cafe59 – the coffee shop on my street – to get caught up on my reading.  While I worked I ate a delicious salad for a late lunch.

For a set price, they offer a build-your-own salad in which you get to pick lettuce, dressing, and 5 toppings.  I adore BYO in general, but this might be one of my best combinations yet.  I choose romaine lettuce and balsamic dressing with sundried tomato, green olives, Portobello mushrooms, marinated zucchini, and roasted garlic.

The flavor combination was kind of fantastic.  The big pieces of roasted garlic really made it.

The husband and I have some fun plans for the evening, I’ve just got to go get him!

What are your favorite salad toppers?  I’m partial to carmelized nuts and goat cheese, mmmmn!

Boston, Bubbles, and Boats

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It’s been another fabulous day here in Boston!  I’m feeling much better, thank goodness.  I was nervous that my episode last night was the start of some sort of illness but it seems like I just reacted to something I ate.

Nikki had to work today so Adam and I were on our own in the morning.  We wandered around Coolidge Corner and ended up stopping in at b.good for a late breakfast. 

I’ve seen this fresh fast food spot on blogs before and I was thrilled to get to try it myself.  Adam and I split a meal because we were so close to eating lunch at that point.

We got a turkey burger west side style (avocado, cilantro, tomato, and chipotle salsa).

And steamed veggies.

The husband got an amazing tasting chocolate shake,

but I went with water to try to rehydrate.

Afterwards we met up with our friend Ian and hopped on the T.  We wandered around Kendall (?) and saw some fun buildings.

And ultimatly went to lunch at The Black Sheep in the Kendall Hotel.

They had cute sheep decor,

and we sat on the porch in the sun.

I went with the Kendall salad – “baby spinach leaves tossed in our tangy maple vinaigrette, sprinkled with candied pecans, crumbled blue cheese, and marinated green apple slaw”

Delicious!  I think the combo of strong cheese and candied nuts on salad is perfection.

Next we headed up to Harvard Yard.  It was a gorgeous day and the geese were out with their babies.

We ended up laying out in JFK Park and goofing around.

Finally we headed in to explore civilization.  Adam got an amazing looking cupcake at Sweet (highly recommended by Tina),

but that wasn’t an option for me because I’d already spotted the…..bubble tea!

I got a frozen chai tea with boba.

So cinnamony and delicious!  It was pretty sugary though and I was trying to be careful with my stomach today so I deeply enjoyed half of it and threw the rest in the trash.

We headed up to Copley to pick Nikki up from work and went to sit outside Cafeteria for drinks.  I went with Diet Coke,

but I did steal the olives out of the husband’s martini.

We went from one adult activity to the next, Duck Tour!

The Duck Tour involves a land-water bus tour of important historical sites in Boston.  It was fun, but by the time we were done at 7:30 I was more than ready for dinner.

A final trip on the T took us to Common Ground where they, gloriously, had Abita Strawberry.

Sadly I wasn’t as impressed with the food selection.  I ended up ordering a fried chicken sandwich with honey mustard and swiss cheese.

I threw the bread away but finished 90% of the meat and fries.

Finally we headed back to the apartment to watch the Celtics game.  We might head out to a bar and I’m trying to convince everyone that frozen yogurt is in order but otherwise we’ll be having fun here.  Can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings!

No Breakfast, Recap Only

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This actually isn’t a recap AND breakfast post; in order to have eaten breakfast one would have had to gotten up before 11:30.  If it’s not obvious already, I had a bit too much to drink last night. 

We had a great time though; we went out with a couple the husband is friends with from school.  I’m going to keep this short and simple as my pictures are terrible due to the lighting (and I’d like to go eat breakfast!).  Note – I’m not using name because I don’t know them well enough to know if blog exposure is cool with them.

They suggested going to Allen Street Hardware Cafe which ended up being a fabulous idea.  I loved it there and can’t wait to go back.  The beer selection was huge.  Thinking back to a rave post about it from Kath, I ended up ordering a Tusker.

Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum!  Other than Abita Strawberry and Hell or High Watermelon I never really like beer.  I don’t mind it, but it’s usually not my favorite.  Tusker is now added to my top 3 favorites though, it was delicious!  I usually finish my drinks way after everyone else (actually I usually don’t finish because I take so long they get warm) but last night I was ordering a second round before the rest of the group had made a dent in their drinks!

My meal was pretty fantasmic as well.  I went with the Chef Salad which was Mixed greens, roasted beets, red onion, carmelized pecans, goat cheese, and a roasted shallot champagne vinegarette.

Fabulous!  I forgot to ask for dressing on the side but it didn’t even matter because it was so lightly dressed to begin with.  The combination of goat cheese with beets was perfect.

After dinner we moseyed down the street to another bar.  I ordered a diet coke with Cherry Three Olives Vodka.

This was the point where I maybe should have just gone with diet coke.  Actually, everyone was a bit tipsy at this point because our attempt at couples darts took for-ev-er because we all were aiming so poorly!

A good time was had by all though.

The only downfall of the evening is that in my stupor I decided I was starving and I talked Adam into letting me eat a boatload of chips.

Ugh.  Probably the reason my hunger didn’t wake me up earlier this morning.

I should get off the computer and get back to the world though, 12:30 is probably a good time to start the day 😀

Are you a beer drinker?  What are your favorites?

Is Your Choice Behind Door A or Door B?

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It’s been a great day of family fun; we played board games, watched the Discovery Channel, and I got to see my niece get her ballet pictures taken.

I brought my own breakfast from home (picked up from the hospital cafeteria at volunteering) so I was sure to have something healthy to start my day.

Quaker Instant Oats Express in Baked Apple.

This was actually seriously delicious.  I tend to avoid instant oats unless I’m traveling because of the added sugar but this ended up being a really nice treat.  And the fiber/protein content led to enough fullness that it was almost a trade-off for the sugar.

Unfortunately I just can’t jive with the waste of packaging or I would make this a regular thing.

Lunch was a 6inch turkey sandwich from Subway.

Topped with pepperjack, lettuce, tomato, green pepper, banana pepper, red onion, pickles, cucumbers, and honey mustard.

The worker was annoyed that I packed so much on but my sandwich ended up being tasty and filling.

I ate part of a small bag of Cheetos with my sandwich.

I only ate half, because I realized that with Cheetos the enjoyment-to-unhealthiness ratio quickly shifts from left to right.  I’m never going to stop eating crap completely, but I’m really trying to make an effort to regularly check-in with myself about whether or not the treat is worth it.  I think it’s (more than) ok to occasionally eat things with no health benefit, but it only makes sense if there is a happiness benefit.

On the way to the mall I sucked on a blow pop.

Why were we at the mall you ask?  Black light mini golf, duh!

They managed to squeeze 18 holes into the course.

I have a dorky child-of-the-80’s obsession with black lights and the aquatic theme was pretty tacky-fabulous.

After we worked up a sweat, of sorts, we headed to dinner. 

The in-laws’ pick was Cici’s Pizza, which was a new experience for the husband and I.  I was excited about the buffet aspect (I loooove choices and small tastes) but pretty disappointed in the lack of veggies.  I genuinely don’t understand only offering iceberg lettuce at a salad bar!  I will admit that I was pleased to see everything small-sized; the pizza pieces were tiny so you could try a bunch without eating too much.  I was super hungry but I didn’t want to go crazy so I decided to do two runs of healthy food first.

Small plate of salad.

Small bowl of chicken soup.

After I filled up a bit on soup and salad, then I got pizza.

Sadly I wasn’t really in love with either of these, the crust was pretty soggy and disappointing.  I ended up picking at 2/3s or so before moving to dessert.

Dessert, however, was pretty darn good.

I skipped the soggy crust but I loved eating the strusel topping and the cinnamon roll was great, super duper cinnamon-y.

Unfortunately I did too good of a job not overeating; I ended up not eating enough!  When I got home I broke out a Fruit and Nut KIND bar from my from-home-snack stash.

Holy yum!  KIND bars are always good but this flavor was socks rocking delicious; I love that the use apricot in addition to dates for stickiness.

There will most likely be some snacking tonight, I’ll recap in the morning.  Hope everyone else is having a great weekend!

Veggies eaten today: ~2cups

What is your thought on “treats” (candy, cookies, chips, extra cheese, or whatever your preference is)?  Should you cut them out completely, enjoy in moderation, or go hog-wild?  What works, or doesn’t work, for you?

Down in Lunch Lady Land

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Why yes, I am posting at midnight.  Is it possible my sleep schedule needs a wee bit of work?  Perhaps I should grow up a bit and learn to not watch Buffy the husband all night prioritize?  I will keep this quick though.  Like super quick.

We had lab check out today, I ate a Cookie Dough Balance Bar during final exam review.  (18words, speed it up, Emily!)

Good God I love those bars!  Did not really dent my hunger though.  And my plan was to swim afterward but I didn’t so I ended up stuck at campus waiting for Adam.  I did a 40minute swim on Monday and my ears have been hurting, better safe than sorry so I’m not swimming again ’till this weekend.

While I waited I did hit up Starbucks.

Tall, non-fat, iced, cinnamon-dolce latte.  I literally had to tell the barista that I was aware that “my drink has too many adjectives!”  I almost was starved into an item from the display case but I was too excited about my planned lunch.

I decided to bring back taco salads.  This guy had a lettuce base with black beans, crushed blue tortilla chips, 2% colby jack, low fat sour cream, and homemade pineapple salsa.

Do that not just sound/look like the best salad ever?

Well it WAS NOT.  Holy yuck!  The lettuce was so bitter that I seriously gagged on it.  I did my best to pick off the toppings but I ended up having to throw most of it away.

Not surprisingly, I was still hungry, so I popped a frozen mac and cheese into the microwave.

Much better.

Whilst hanging out this afternoon I snacked on too much some of this Divine candy bar.

It had crunchy, but yet still juicy, pieces of dried strawberry all throughout, so yum!

Dinner looked like this –

I used a Cooking Light recipe for Almost Meatless Sloppy Joes.

The sauce was more Joe’s cousin James than full on, but still very tasty.  I used ground turkey meat, of course.

And for our side I did a quick saute of chopped okra, frozen turnip greens, and chopped turkey bacon.

Dinner was good, but Adam and I were mostly excited for dessert.

What’s that?  Oh, not much, just a toasted marshmallow milkshake!

The recipe comes from Rachael Ray Magazine, and yes it was amazing.  I did sub in reduced fat varieties though.

It is undeniably bedtime.  Sweet dreams!

What’s your favorite Adam Sandler song?  When his stuff was popular my parents wouldn’t let me buy the cds, which was ironic because I owned several Jerky Boys cds!