Tag Archives: soup

Moss No More

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Hello again, long time no see!  After a solid month of basically being a sloth, today was my first productive day in a long time and it felt good.

I spent four hours shadowing an RD who does nutrition counseling for some of the local public schools.  Such a neat job!  I got to sit in on several sessions, including one with a parent.  I had a great time learning more about another new job possibility, but I have to admit that being back in a public school setting did make me miss my teaching days.  Actually, lately I’ve been thinking a lot about teaching.  I’m not sure where I’ll end up at this point, but I do know that I have to finish this degree before anything else happens!

I did have time to eat before I left, but when I got home Adam and I split this persimmon.

This anniversary gift was finally ripe.  We scooped the flesh out with a spoon.

Very tasty, though not quite $5 tasty.  I’m glad I got to try this guy as a present.

I also had a salad for greens.

A romaine base topped with peanut sauce, craisins, and buckwheat groats.

And I did a bit of nibbling while I cooked up dinner.

Tonight’s meal was a blog-inspired affair!

Olive oil crackers from Yes I Want Cake.

Sweet Chicken Chili from Iowa Girl Eats topped with a bit of parmesan.

Those girls are so good, both recipes were delicious.

I’ve made the chili many times in the past (even the beef chili from the chili sale was inspired by the recipe) and I am so glad that I decided to be brave and try the crackers.  They had the perfect balance of crunch and chew!

After dinner I cuddled up to this bag of popcorn.

And now the kitchen is officially closed for the night and my retainers are in.  I’m off to paint my nails!

How many different types of jobs have you held?  If you’re a career-switcher, do you ever miss your old gig?

My list at this point includes editor, retail worker/cashier, ice cream scooper, waitress, note-taker, and teacher.

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!

STT; Wednesday Afternoon – Thursday Morning

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Wednesday

Yesterday afternoon I made another stop at the gym; woot!  I hopped on the treadmill for 9 sets of 2 minutes running/2 minutes walking.  36 minutes and 3 miles.  I’m going to need to make myself do some strength training soon, but for now I’m taking baby steps.  Plus, my legs got sore enough that I decided to make Thursday a day off.

After a shower, I was heading downtown for a mini-meet up my old school was hosting.  I hate going to things like that by myself; I am seriously the worst with faces.  I love getting to catch up with people but if I’m not with a friend to tell me who people are then it feels more stressful than fun.  Thankfully (ha!) there really was no one I knew there, just a bunch of younger kids.  I met up with one friend from my class and we quickly fled in seach of dinner.

Crystal – a high school friend that I am thrilled is visiting the same time as I – and I headed over to Benny Iguanas, the new location of a sushi place that was very popular back in the day.  I started with a tofu/veggies miso soup.

And got a cucumber-avocado roll for my meal.

The catching up was better than the food, but the meal wasn’t terrible.

Thursday

I started this morning with dessert.

Plus a little of this –

And some of this –

The holiday season just isn’t complete without some “Carebears Nutcracker.”  Though it’s possible that I “borrowed” that DVD from a Blockbusters in Brooklyn 3 years ago!

I also had breakfast.

A 2% Pineapple Chobani with a sliced banana.

And now I’m heading to lunch with my mom, hopefully for more sushi!

How do you feel about high school reunions?

Best Ever

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It’s a good thing I decided not to blog after dinner yesterday because we ended up staying out for drinks!  It was a late, fun night.

We started our evening with dinner at Las Culebrinas, Adam’s favorite Cuban place on the planet.  They have rolls with the best garlic butter.

We also ordered some appetizers to share.

Fried plantain with shrimp in red sauce and mozzarella sticks.

For dinner I got Mahi Mahi crusted in corn flakes and topped with a honey mustard sauce.

It was a little too fried for me but the sauce was so good.

And it came with a side salad with great dressing.

We did lots of sharing (though no one went near Adam’s beef because he was moaning so loudly – and whispering sweet nothings to his chocolate flan – and we were all a little afraid).  I ended up eating the equivalent of 3/4 of my plate.

Afterwards we walked around Coconut Grove for some more people watching.  And somehow ended up at Uncle Moe’s for drinks.  Like the Cow Tipper.

Here’s a shot with my hand for size comparison.

My mom and I split this one, obviously.  It was tasty, but not as strong as it sounds.

Which is good, because I was feeling good this morning.  I decided to skip the hotel breakfast, which was lackluster yesterday, and get in a quick gym trip instead.  15 minutes on the treadmill for a bit over a mile.

I ate my stolen pear for breakfast.

Along with a NuGo Dark bar packed from home.

And we stopped by our old favorite Thai place for a bubble tea smoothie.

Strawberry coconut smoothie with bobba.

So freaking good!

Plus a few peppermints for freshness.

Amid the day’s exploration we also spent some time at the mall. I know shopping seems like a strange vacation activity, but my parents live on an island so it’s more exploratory for them than the beach. My dad shared a pretzel with me while we were there.

I ate about x2 what’s pictured. We were practically frozen so I also bought an earl grey with steamed skim milk.

A few stops later, and we were at my favorite place on the planet.

Where I made the biggest cup of froyo I’ve ever eaten.

Everything chocolate and caramel, smothered in marshmallow.

Heaven. Pure heaven.

And the evening only got better. The plan was to go to Joe’s Stone Crab, but a 2-hour wait scared us away. The disappointment was very serendipitous, because we ended up having a best ever dinner at Joe’s less formal take-away spot next door. You ordered your food at a counter and brought it to the booth yourself and it ended up being just perfect.

To start, Adam and I split a seafood bisque.

It was creamy and tangy with big chunks of fish.

Then the four of us split an order of stone crab.

Stone crab is like the best crab you’ve ever had, on steroids. It is meaty, yet tender and buttery.

I got most of two claws, dipped in butter and mustard.

I drank a spicy bloody Mary with my food but I was too excited about the crab to remember to photograph before a few sips in.

For the rest of the meal, my mom and I split two sandwiches.

The shrimp po boy and the lobster Reuben.

The po boy was good, though I mostly ate the shrimp out of the bun, dipped in remoulade.

The Reuben was out of this world. Everything that’s good about a Reuben but with the added amazingness of lobster.

Everyone kept laughing at me for chewing with my eyes closed but I just couldn’t help it. The big pieces of meat were absolutely perfect.

I thought I couldn’t be happier, but then Adam bought me this t-Rex juice container.

Best trip souvenir ever.

My favorite activity in any city is bike riding, and for the hour after dinner that’s just what we did.

It was so much fun, though our times in the sand basically left my thighs burning! Then we spent another hour walking down the club strip on South Beach for the ultimate people watching. It was the best vacation day ever.  The best.

By The Magazine

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Last day of school before a 5 day break, what what?!!  I was actually super busy all afternoon but something about not having to go to class tomorrow just made the whole day feel 100% fun.

I rolled over to look at the time this morning and it was already 7:15.  It’s possible my alarm didn’t beep, but more likely that I turned it off in my sleep.  Breakfast was on the go, and rushed.  A perfect pear,

and this Orgain Iced Cafe Mocha protein drink.

I bought the drink on super-sale at the Co-op and it wasn’t really what I was expecting.  It wasn’t thick or sweet at all, which would normally be nice but was strange when I was expecting the opposite.  But the nutrients did a good job of filling in my morning.

And then we had cake.

I’ll tell you again, that my classmates all loved the crock-pot cake.  Even if you don’t win my giveaway I suggest making it at home.

Amid afternoon activities, lunch was eaten in parts.  First, a strange-sounding yogurt bowl.

Activia Selects French Pineapple yogurt with canned pumpkin and shredded coconut.

I know that combination sounds strange, but it was pretty good.  Pumpkin Colada?

Plus a bag of popcorn.

And a Biscoff spoon.

I’ve had this jar of Biscoff open for more than a month now and I’m sort of not sure how there’s still any left.

Dinner was Tomato-Vodka Soup and Scones, both magazine recipe finds.

The Tomato-Vodka Soup was from Everyday with Rachael Ray.

I skipped the spices and rim rub, only used half of the vodka, and substituted light for heavy cream.

The Easy Scone recipe was from Woman’s Day.

I used light cream instead of heavy again, but otherwise left this one alone.

Both were delicious.

But I’m not the hugest tomato soup fan (I made this for the husband mostly) so I left behind the 2nd half of my bowl.  Instead I ate a 2nd scone.

With Smart Balance Light and honey.

P.S. Don’t forget to enter my Duncan Hines giveaway.

Yay, Buffet!

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It was a good weekend end.  It’s been great having my brother-in-law in town for a quick visit.  I managed to have a good balance of work/schoolwork/and fun today too.

We started our morning with smoothies.

1.5 cups of mango puree, 1.5 Tbsp honey, 1.5 cups frozen peaches, and 1 container of Stonyfield Mango and Honey Low-fat Yogurt; split three ways.

This was the last of the mango puree but I definitely plan on purchasing more soon.

My smoothie made me shiver, so I made a cup of tea to warm up with.

2 bags of red velvet tea steeped in skim milk.  It was tasty, but the dog snuck his snout in halfway through so I had to abandon it.  I moved on to pizza leftovers instead.

Atop notecard making.  Holy crap do I ever still have a lot to do before Wednesday’s exam!

I did take a mid-day study break to go to Brawler’s Deli with the boys for lunch.  Their portion sizes are ridiculous; check out this half of Adam’s sandwich!?!

My meal was healthier, but equally big.

A side salad with a bit of balsamic and spicy mustard on top,

a cup of gouda beer soup,

and Adam’s side of cole slaw.

I ate all of the cole slaw, 3/4 of the salad, and 2/3 of the soup, when the game reached halftime and the Pearl Street Staff set out a huge (free!) buffet.  Score!

I took some fruit, carrots, and spinach and buffalo chicken dips with chips.  All tasty.

After my brother-in-law left, Adam and I spent the afternoon hanging out until I had to go to work.  Dinner had to be simple since my shift started at 6, mac and cheese leftover from last week.

Plus some amazing cookies (recipe’s coming tomorrow) when I got home.

Also plus 2 servings (?!) of Lindt truffles that were eaten on the couch and out of reach of the camera.  Whoops.

It’s going to be a busy week, I’ve got to get to bed!

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.

Veg Head

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The chili sale was good, work was good, but today was crazy and I’m tired so I’ll keep this quick.

Sometimes, when I know that the schedule of a day will make it impossible to keep an all-around healthy lifestyle (like today!) I’ll choose one healthy goal to work on.  Today’s goal?  Making veggies the main “meat” of all of today’s meals.  And in light of today’s goal, I think this is the perfect post to share the vegetarian infographic my friends at RetailMeNot sent my way –

Vegetarian Foods
Source: RetailMeNot.com

Breakfast’s veg was eggplant.

My Cheesy Baked Eggplant leftovers are just as tasty as they were the night I made them, even cold and straight from a Tupperware!

Today’s schedule was class –> chili sale –> orthodontist –> work –> home.  With a fun mid-day addition of cake tasting.

A classmate’s wife is starting a cake business and sent one in for us to give feedback on.

Lunch was a Chili Sale meal (we did great by the way, made more than $250 to give to the food bank!).

Veggie = beans in the vegetarian chili.

Plus a super delicious roll, provided by Romeo and Juliet’s Cafe.

And a bit of the tasty veggie sandwich they brought as well.

Dinner was pure veg.  Spinach, butternut squash, mushrooms, (and tofu and craisins!).

Yesterday I went on a roasting extravaganza.  I did the tofu in maple syrup and rice vinegar, the squash in curry powder, and the mushrooms in truffle oil and salt.  Once everything was nice and toasty (30 minutes at 350* followed by 20 minutes at 400*)  I put them all together in a Tupperware with a few handfuls of spinach and some craisins.  I shook everything together and the heat from the roasted veggies wilted the spinach a bit.

It was perfect.  And the mix of flavors was great.

As were these –

The bookstore was having a Combos’ sale, how could I resist?!?  I didn’t eat that entire big bag but I definitely came close!

I really wanted to make it to the gym today but it just didn’t happen.  I’m hurrying to the bed in the hopes that a good sleep will get me to there tomorrow.