Tag Archives: veggies

Around the Globe

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I was hanging around the house this afternoon, checking some e-mails, eating some popcorn,

getting half-dressed for the gym and trying to decide whether to head there or pick up my stuff at the tailor first.  When Katie g-chatted me about lunch who was I to say no?  Even if it meant I ended up going out in public in this –

A running skirt for running errands?  Not a good look for me!  Although I ended up doing so much walking that I was almost glad not to be sweating in my jeans.

Globe Market is conveniently located between our two apartments so we decided to meet up there.  I’d never been before so I thought I’d sample the menu with a half sandwich/soup combo.

Vegan gazpacho.

Green apple and brie sandwich.

I ended up with a ton of food.  Sadly I wasn’t that impressed with any of it though.  The gazpacho was ok, but it was practically tasteless compared with the bowl Benji served me the other day.  And the apples in my sandwich tasted like they were rotten!  The best part of my meal was actually the bread that come with my soup, airy and delicious!  I left behind a lot of food –

It was good to catch up with Katie though.

A fun story from my teacher days – On one of our many professional development days a workshop let out early.  This meant that we had to stay on school campus but didn’t have anything specific to do.  The nicest facility in the school was the basketball court so someone suggested a game of Around the World.  I have to mention here that I worked in a rough neighborhood and my job was pretty intense – most of the staff consisted of very large black men.  I actually was the only caucasian female employed by the school the two years I worked there.  I did not win that game of Around the World, not by a longshot, but I did hold my own.  The look on some of my fellow teachers’ faces when they realized they just got schooled by a little white girl in a mini skirt (it was a no student day)?  Priceless.

Activia Desserts for Dessert

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I wasn’t in the mood for breakfast this morning, but I was all about the pizza pizza!

I roasted up some broccoli, put it on a single-serving crust with marinara, and topped it with 2% sharp cheddar.

Mmmn, broccoli and sharp cheddar made the perfect pizza combo.

A bit later I snacked on some sliced green apple and a few pretzels (way to finish the whole bag before I got any, Adam!).

And for dessert, Activia Desserts.

I buy Activia for the husband because he has some tummy issues and it seems to really help.  I usually just stick to Greek yogurt but the Strawberry Cheesecake flavor sounded so divine that I had to try it.  Good decision; the cheesecake flavor was spot on, nothing like the “cheesecake” fat free yogurts I’ve tried in the past that just scream artificial sweetener.  This was creamy and sweet and pleasantly thick for regular yogurt.  All for 140calories, I think I’m  a fan.  If you’d like to try some yourself go here for a $1 off coupon.

We’ve got a tasty dinner planned, but I’ve got my eye on a mini bag of kettle corn in the meantime.

*Update to Add – I’m going for it, mini bag of kettle corn here I come!

Cheeburger Cheeburger

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When I was still living in Brooklyn, Missy wrote a post about an incredible burger place she frequented.  The menu was huge and you could choose as many things as you wanted from a long list of toppings.  But it was in Queens, and no one goes to Queens unless they live there, so I put it out of my mind.  Until today…

Wonder of wonders, Buffalo hosts something exciting: Cheeburger Cheeburger!

The location was small but the 50’s style decorations totally set the mood.

Plus the hostess offered to take my picture with the giant cheeseburger so it was pretty much a love affair from then on.

We were having dinner with Adam’s friend from the lab and her husband, so I was trying to pretend that I was cool, but who wouldn’t geek out at the sight of this –

It was all downhill from there, I actually clapped my hands when my shake was brought to the table.

I went with a half order (I forgot to request skim milk, boo) of amaretto, marshmallow, oreo.

Yuuuuuuuuuuum!  I agonized over the choices but I think this was a pretty good combination.  The amaretto flavor was pretty heavy though, when we go back again I might just get unadulterated marshmallow.

I’m going to be totally honest with you guys and cop to the fact that made my dinner selections before we even got there.  I read the menu like a novel (it’s practically that long!) and hemmed and hawed in front of my laptop in the privacy of my own living room.  My indecision is embarrassing enough at a normal restaurant, going to Cheeburger Cheeburger unprepared would have been disastrous.

I think I did a pretty good job of ordering in the end.

If nothing else I certainly took advantage of their ‘as many toppings as you like’ policy!  I went with a turkey burger patty on a salad with the following toppings –

  • banana peppers
  • dried cranberries
  • 2 onion rings
  • pineapple
  • roasted red pepper
  • grape tomatoes
  • mushrooms
  • artichoke hearts
  • red onion
  • black olives
  • chick peas
  • cucumber
  • jack/cheddar cheese
  • (there was also 1000island dressing on the side but I didn’t use it)

And by the time I was done with my shake and burger I was so full that I could only manage 3 little bites of my salad!

Worth it.  We packed up the salad for Adam’s lunch tomorrow and I thought that the turkey burger was divine so it all worked out.  I practically had to be rolled out of there though.

My goal bedtime is 11pm, ready – set – go!

If you went to Cheeburger Cheeburger what toppings would you order for your burger/salad?

Happy Birthday Danielle

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It’s been a busy day and I’ll keep this quick. I have an early morning tomorrow so I’m already up way too late.

I was not feeling the gym this afternoon, I wanted to play with my new phone, I wanted to play with Adam, my leg hurt… But I’m learning that for me one day off exercise turns into twenty, so I hauled my butt to the gym. 30minutes on the elliptical, level 6, random. In the end I loved it; I’m not sure how I managed to skip the gym so much this last year, exercise makes me so happy!

It was our friend Danielle’s birthday today and by the time I was out of the shower the boys were in the kitchen baking burning some cupcakes. I put myself together a snack while they cooked.

Pomegranate and Passionfruit Siggi’s, Stonewall Kitchen Mimosa Jam, and crunchy peanut butter.

I still cannot get over how much the Siggi’s yogurt looks like a big scoop of ice cream, it is so aesthetically pleasing!

We had to pick up beer before we headed to Benji’s house and I brought a soursop nectar to drink along the way.

Sadly it had added sugar and was way too sweet, I tossed it after just a few sips.

I was starving and cranky by early evening but thankfully Benji is practically a gourmet cook and he hooked me up with this plate of awesomeness.

That is sunflower bread from the co-op with strawberry balsamic vinegar,

and homemade gazpacho.

Yum! It was such a fresh and tasty way to satisfy my hunger.

We spent a large portion of our evening at Wine Thief, where I in fact passed on wine in favor of a Labat Blue with Lime.

I also snagged a small slice of communal pizza.

The pizza was good, and upon perusing the variety of the food menu Adam and I declared that we have to go back for dinner soon.

The rest of the evening was spent in a wicked game of Pictionary.  Fyi – my team won 😉  I didn’t partake in any more booze, but I did nibble on this Strawberry Soy Joy bar from BlogHer.

Can how many days can you take off from the gym before you lose your motivation?

Age Math

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Eeek!  All sorts of excitement in the lunch post.  I did not supplement breakfast.  I did snag a small dark chocolate from my BlogHer swag,

but I refuse to file that as breakfast.

Then I was sprinting out of the house because I found out I could pick up this beauty –

I earned a new phone rebate more than a month ago and I have been patiently waiting driving Adam crazy waiting for my new phone to come in!  I’m not that important (at all) but it’s still exciting to be able to check my e-mail on the go!

I’m also a genius (just a bit) so I wanted to share my great idea with you; when I borrowed Adam’s phone in NY I discovered that the old standard I-Pod cases fit the EVOO perfectly –

My phone is protected, it looks cute as all get out, I didn’t have to buy a new case, and I repurposed an old case that would have gone in the trash!

Speaking of dorky and phone related updates…

I resisted for months when my friends begged me to try g-mail and that ended up being a good decision, so I figured I should cave on the Twitter issue too.  I have no idea what the heck I’m doing on there so pretty please go follow me so I don’t feel like such a dork?

While I was out and about I took a phone survey with Moe’s and earned myself a free lunch, love that place!  I got a Moo Moo Mr. Cow –

Moooo, I ordered my baby burrito with rice, black beans, tofu, corn salsa, and cucumbers.

I asked for just a few chips (I proved last night I can’t resist them!) and got some guacamole as my side.

Since I ordered off the children’s menu I also got a cookie, white chocolate macadamia.

I bring in coupons like I’m 70 and order a kid’s meal like I’m 7; does that average out to 25?

Can you help me with twitter?

  1. What the frick is a hashtag?
  2. How does the whole @specific_person thing work?

Tru Tortilla Chip Craving

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I managed to hold off my snacking urge all afternoon, but we did decide to switch up our weekly meal plan and head to some take out!  Dinner is being repurposed for my lunch tomorrow and my restaurant leftovers are going toward the husband’s lunch so in the end it all works out.

We went with Moe’s, always a good choice.

I was in the mood for a quesadilla but instead I ordered something I was sure to have leftovers with; a rice bowl.  I topped my rice with black beans, chicken, mushrooms, peppers, onions, cheese, lettuce, jalopenos, black olives, medium salsa, corn salsa, and cilantro.

The flavor storm was great and as predicted my rice bowl ended up ginormous.  I ate about 1/3 and packed the rest up for Adam.

I probably should have stopped there but I got a side of queso dip so I also scarfed a sort of disgusting amount of free tortilla chips.

Soooooo full.

We are currently Netflixing the show “Tru Calling;” we are only 1 episode in but it seems pretty good!

Dinner for Two

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After our family time weekend it was great to spend the evening with the husband, just the two of us.  We even had a three course meal, Emily and Adam style.

First course, a big plate of green bean fries.

This is my favorite veggie to roast!  Tonight’s plate got a sprinkle of onion powder pre-oven that took it over the top.  My favorite are the crinkly ones, just like french fries!

Second course, shrimp and lobster ravioli with garlic butter sauce.

I’d love to have you think I was a good enough wife to have whipped this up on my own, but in reality it was a Buitoni sample I got to try via the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program.

This was from their Complete Meal for Two line.  The ravioli and garlic butter sauce cook in the time it takes to boil water so I didn’t have high expectations but I ended up being very impressed.  This was the quickest, easiest meal but it tasted restaurant quality.  The sauce was rich without being too heavy and I thought it was well seasoned.  The ravioli were stuffed full and I found huge meaty chunks of shrimp and lobster.  Plus, at 500calories a serving I found my portion to be very filling, probably from the 21grams of protein.  My only complaint with the dish is that it had 49%! of your daily sodium.  Adam and I both have good to low blood pressure so this is ok for an occasional indulgence for us, but be careful if you are watching your sodium levels.

Dessert.

Breyer’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough sandwiches.  I saw the box on sale today and just couldn’t resist.  I adore ice cream cookie sandwiches but I had a random allergic reaction to a Chipwich in college so I haven’t had one in years.  No reaction tonight, unless you count the exclamation of utter bliss!  For 160calories I was blown away at how generous the portion was.

The cookies were chewy but not at all soggy and the filling tasted like vanilla froyo.  The cookie dough pieces took it to a new level.  Full disclosure – I actually ate my dessert before dinner 😀

What was the last “fancy date meal” you prepared?  I feel like I tend to make “girl food,” but bacon mac and cheese is on the menu for tomorrow so we’ll see if I can’t make the husband swoon yet!

Icing or Cake

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This post comes from back in Buffalo.  We made it (mostly) in one piece.  More on that later though.

I want to preface this post with recognition of the fact that the husband and I eat very differently than the rest of his family.  Our preferences, nutrition goals, and food values are all very different.  This means that when we are with his family I have to weigh being rude or being a bother with eating in a way that makes me feel happy and healthy.  I try to satisfy myself in a healthy way and also not to offend anyone.  I did my best to balance both of those goals this weekend.

When we went to the store Friday night my brother-in-law did warn me that I needed to buy breakfast so I was more than prepared for that.  I got to try a couple of new things 😀  – – – Side note; walking through the yogurt aisle in his grocery store practically gave me an aneurism because I was so jealous of the immense Greek yogurt variety.  – – –  Like Fage 2% with blueberry.

I was so excited for this but I ended up being a bit disappointed.  It wasn’t terrible, but the blueberries had a weird bitter taste.  The strawberry Fage has such a great balance of sweetness and tang but it just didn’t work here.

I had much more success with Oat Revolution instant oats, cinnamon roll flavor.

The texture was way more complex that regular instant oats, definite upgrade!

Adam and I drove around with his brother helping to pick up things for the party but we also found time to play on the swing set with our niece.

Excuse the closed eyes, swinging as high as I could was glorious but sunny.  We swung for an hour which ended up feeling like a bit of a workout.  We also worked on handstands and cartwheels.  Just throwing it out there – my fitness goal for the next 4months is to be able to do a proper handstand and cartwheel again.

Lunch.

I grabbed two small slices of pizza with ranch and a little serving of pasta salad.

Our niece had an iCarly birthday cake.  I requested a tiny corner piece.

It ended up being mostly icing, which was exactly what I wanted!

Saturday evening the grandparents babysat and we went on a movie date with Adam’s brother and his wife.  We saw The Expendables which was adequately funny.  There are so many movies coming out that I’m excited about.  I packed a Toffee Chocolate Power Bar as my movie snack.

When we got home I ate another two small slices of pizza for dinner but they somehow escaped the camera.

This morning I started my day with a Yoplait Plain Greek Yogurt with a grape honey stick.

Everyone was in a hurry to get on the road but we did make time to go to the in-laws’ favorite spot for breakfast.  It was a buffet but sadly most of the options were meat based.  I ended up putting together a pretty good plate.

Veggies, scrambled eggs, and a biscuit with honey.  And a second plate full of fresh fruit.

Why, oh why was 90% of the fruit bar canned in heavy syrup?  I would have loved peaches or strawberries.

I had one final coupon to use so we stopped at McDonalds at lunchtime.  My coupon was for a premium salad so I got a Southwest Salad with grilled chicken.

I have a lot of issues with some of the offerings at McDonald’s so I wanted not to like this but I just can’t give this salad a bad review.  Honestly?  It was freaking amazing.

The lettuce was super fresh and the salad was loaded with black beans and roasted corn.  The dressing came from Newman’s Own and even if you did slop a lot on there were only 100calories in the pack.  The tortilla strips added crunch and the perfect amount of heat.  I was pretty much in love!  With grilled chicken (and the dressing packet) the salad came out to only 320calories, and it was very filling.  Even though I loved it I was so full that I only could finish ¾ of it.

Now we’ve made it safely home and I’m headed off to the grocery store.  That was supposed to be a Monday errand but instead I’ll be meeting the glass repair guys to deal with the giant crack that resulted when a rock kicked up by a truck (in the left lane like a jerk!) met our windshield.  Here is a question dear readers – do you have glass coverage included in your auto insurance?  Repair is going to be a hassle, but at least it’s free.  I highly recommend you check out your policy.  Fun fact – Adam was actually going to remove glass coverage from our policy on Friday, but while he was on the phone I told him not to.  Thank goodness!

Which do you prefer, the icing or the cake?  I’m an icing girl!  To the chagrin of classroom mothers, when I was a kid I would like the tops off of cupcakes and throw the rest away!