perfect day

I love all types of music. I will listen to almost anything as long as it is not demeaning. In the efforts of full-disclosure, I really like Hoku. She sings "Perfect Day" that was in the movie Legally Blonde. She is super sugary sweet pop, but I love it. So I have stuff like that on my playlist that will be followed by soulful gut-wrenching blues. I recently went on a music purchasing spree before the big trip. This is the craziness that ensued: Chris Thomas King, Fall Out Boy (really!), Toni Braxton, D'Angelo, Five Iron Frenzy, Operation Ivy, Annie Lennox, Brian McKnight, Duffy, Hoku, Kate Bush, SWV, Ben Folds featuring Voices in Your Head, and Regina Spektor. I forgot how much I love D'Angelo's voice. Also, just for the record, some of those purchases pushes me further to "queen of the 90s" status.

Food today was whatever I could scrounge up. I ran out of almond milk at breakfast so I knew I had to hit the store today. Plus I wanted to stock up on some road snacks. Lunch was the all too familiar AB&J toast and some carrots with olive hummus. For the road, I have some cinnamon crackers, Kashi heart 2 heart cereal, non-perishable almond milk in a box, blueberries, bananas, grapes, various cashews and "deluxe" mixed nuts (what does that mean?), EL Fudges for J (gross! but I wanted to surprise him with a non-healthy snack so he won't complain the whole trip) and some Vitamin water. Let's talk about the vitamin water for a second. I am not a fan. I am of the group that believes you should get all of your nutrition as close to the source as possible. However, after the potassium scare, they told me to interspurse some "electrolyte" beverages into my diet particularly when I am doing marathon workouts (more on that in a moment). I try to ensure that I have a banana and my cereal before workouts so that I have plenty of potassium and can just drink water through my workout. Gatorade has always made me feel super sick, and I attribute that to the copious amounts of sugar in that stuff and my body rejects it. So to avoid the Gatorade, I started with the potassium infused Vitamin water. I don't like the flavor at all, but if that is what keeps my body in line so be it. Since on the road I have a lack of nutrition due to lack of access to foods, I try and make sure that I have one per day. That way I won't overdose on water. Dinner was more carrots with hummus, some blueberries and grapes that wouldn't fit into my bowl :), some cinnamon crackers that also wouldn't fit, and half a small container of chocolate soy milk for dessert. See what I mean.

Ok now for my workout. I went to the gym tossing around the idea of participating in the Body Pump class after my run. I use that name lightly because it is a copywritten name for Les Mills and you have to be Les Mills certified, use LM music, queues, and use their equipment to use that name. The gym uses it however, so I'm going to let it go. Its basically a barbell class. I got on the treadmill with plans to hit at least 4.5 miles. I ended up skipping the class and hitting 5 miles :). I am so glad that my heart, knees, and hamstrings are holding up to this mileage. Very encouraging! I followed that with an ab workout:

1 set of 25 crunches
3 sets of 25 crunches on stability ball
2 sets of 1 minute intervals of roman twist with 4 lbs medicine ball
1 set of 25 hip lifts
10 reps of Pilates style roll up with legs extended (oh yeah)
25 reps of Pilates corkscrew
25 reps of crunches with 4 lbs medicine ball over head

I always love incorporating some Pilates stuff in my regular strength workouts. If you have never tried it that will get your abs strong in no time.

I anticipate that I will be taking a siesta after tonight. Someone is coming to visit and we are going on a whirlwind tour of the south. Look for postings to return in about two and a half weeks :).

warm

It was really nice to get back to the gym this morning. Now I know I needed it because I am super tired and was ravenous at dinner. I started out with a run. I think that I could have gone 6 miles this morning. I was feeling that good. It usually happens when I take some extra time off. I only went 4.5 miles, but it was good. Then a leg workout:

3 sets of 15 reps - leg press 100lbs
3 sets of 20 reps - weighted calf presses on the leg press 100 lbs
3 sets of 15 reps - thigh adductor 70lbs
3 sets of 15 reps - hamstring curls on stability ball
3 sets of 20 reps - squats
3 sets of 20 reps - stationery lunges
3 sets of 20 reps - sumo squats

Then on to swimming 700 meters. I got out of the pool with the intention of laying out for 2 hours. At about the 1 hour mark, I noticed that the sun was gone and it was getting gray. Just as I had everything packed up the clouds opened and it poured. I got home and showered while my obese purse dog lounged on my bed.

Exhibit a:


Then I had lunch:

AB&J on Ezekiel bread, carrots with leftover hummus, and watermelon.

I made an appointment to get my pedicure at 2:30. When I reached the salon, I told them I was there for my appointment and they told me it was not until 3:30. Not true. I decided to wait there and read some magazines. My nail tech did a really good job, but she didn't talk. It was super awkward. She also asked me if I wanted a design. Really?

I did find out that they have super cheap spray tans that are done by a technician. Don't judge, I just think that my skin looks way better when it is a bit darker :). Its one of my vices.

I got back home and spent some time snuggling with Heinz until he got too restless. I came upstairs to get some final packing done and clean the room. Somehow I got sucked into the bed and a 30 minute nap. I woke up and was so hungry. I had more AB&J toast, the last of the hummus leftovers, some cashews, banana, watermelon, and peach sorbet! I am still hungry now, but I'm going to let that settle before something else is dropped into my stomach.

I am now going to seriously work on packing and cleaning more. Did I mention my legs are killing me?

sad day

Yesterday was full of emotions. It may sound weird to some but it was really hard for me to leave work. Everyone there has been so awesome to me and I have some really close friends and relationships that developed. I will miss them all but aim to keep in touch with them.

On to the food....Remember all that baking. Here are the potluck pics:


Look at the delicious hummus! From left, all different hummus flavors with veggies and whole grain chips, a delicious fruity rice casserole, a wonderful spinach salad with goat cheese on the side :)


From left, better pic of the fruity rice casserole, spinach salad, a great dip, and fruit.


From left, watermelon, pineapple, some wings (I did say it was vegan-encouraged), the chocolate chip love muffins, a vegan pasta salad, fruit tray, double chocolate almond explosion cookies, honey apple cookies, and a chocolate chip pound cake.

Everyone was so kind to bring something in and I enjoyed spending all the time with everyone. Today I am already missing all my friends from work. Its hard when you spend 40+ hours a week with a group of people and then it is over.

On the exercise front, I purposefully didn't workout the past three days. Now I'm feeling all flabby :(. After doing some internet errands I will be hitting the gym. I've decided to start outlining my workouts, so that people can get a better idea of my strength routines. Remember that these are not necessarily for everyone, as there is no cookie cutter workout. Look for a post later on today.

love and magic

"Love and magic"...That is what I told one of my managers tonight after he asked me how I made cookies and baked goods without eggs in them :).

Tonight is a really unusual night because I baked! As frequent readers know, I typically cook/bake on Sunday or Monday only, since those are my days off. However, tomorrow marks my last day at work. I have mixed emotions. Everyone always talks about how they would love to not have to work. Working gives me some feelings of accomplishment in addition to I have some great friends at work. I will have a lot of free time to work on my freelance stuff, but free time can also be dangerous for me. A lot of stuff will also be coming down the pipes in the remainder of the year, so I assume that everything will work out.

So why am I baking?! Tomorrow the awesome people at work are throwing a vegan-encouraged potluck. I told everyone that they didn't have to bring something that is vegan, since its just little old me. Plus, I know it might make people go a little crazy :). I decided to make two new recipes which is really a shock, because normally I bring tried and true recipes. I am feeling dangerous though! So I made my version of Chocolate Covered Katie's Love Muffins and Dreena's Double Chocolate Almond Explosion Cookies

Tonight I was assisted by Chef Heinz:


Double Chocolate Almond Explosion Cookies:
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1⁄4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1⁄2 tsp baking soda
3 tbsp almond slivers, toasted or not
3 tbsp non-dairy chocolate chips
1⁄4 cup unrefined sugar
1⁄4 tsp sea salt
1⁄3 cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1⁄2 tsp almond extract (optional)
1⁄4 cup organic canola oil (a little generous measure)

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a bowl, sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the almonds, chocolate chips, sugar, and salt, and stir until well combined. In a separate bowl, combine the maple syrup with the vanilla and almond extracts, then stir in the oil until well combined. Add the wet mixture to the dry, and stir through until just well combined (do not overmix). Place large spoonfuls of the batter on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Take 1 or 2 chocolate chunks and a pinch or two of almonds and gently press into each cookie, flattening cookies a little. Bake for 11 minutes, until just golden (if you bake for much longer, they will dry out). Let cool for no more than 1 minute on the sheet (again, to prevent drying), then remove with a large spatula and transfer to a cooling rack.

Notes! I did not use the almond extract, mostly because I didn't have any. I used mild olive oil instead of canola oil. I also didn't toast the almonds. In Dreena's original recipe, she uses some almonds and broken chocolate bars to press into the cookies. I didn't do this, because I thought the cookies were delicious without them, but that is up to you. I of course tried one of these cookies and it was amazingly delicious. Not too sweet so the chocolate flavor came through. As I was eating it I was thinking that it would be delicious to put some orange zest in it. Yum.




Love Muffins:
1 3/4c. whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp unsweetened applesauce
1 c. almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
1/2 c. sugar

Preheat the oven to 380 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients, then add the wet ingredients right before putting the mixture into the oven. Stir until just combined but don't overmix. Scoop into non-stick or oiled muffin cups and cook 8-10 minutes or until they've puffed up. For optimum freshness, freeze all the muffins you aren't planning on eating within two days. To reheat, microwave for 20 seconds.

Notes! So I took the liberty of making these a little more special. I made chocolate chip love muffins and PB and J love muffins. The chocolate chip love muffins just had chocolate chips in them, although I am wondering what else could be added to these. They were ok. The PB and J ones were a little more involved. I put a dab of the batter followed by a dab of organic strawberry jam and covered with another dab of batter. Then (this is my favorite part) I "iced" them with some natural PB! The flavors were wonderful! This was definitely my favorite option.
The PBJ Love Muffin:

The Chocolate Chip Love Muffin:


Whew! I'm now enjoying some PBS before hitting the hay and doing my routine day one more time.

heat

I had an awesome time today with some great friends! We went to my favorite Moroccan restaurant and I gorged myself on food. Then we wandered around in the blazing heat! Good news though, I successfully did not get a sunburn. Of course I was reapplying every 15 minutes but who is counting. I got my vegetable platter and an extra order of hummus with extra pita. Then my friends gave me some of their lentil salad because it wasn't their thing. Of course I happily dove in. I'm pretty sure I was silent most of the meal as I was shoving food into my mouth. And it was utterly delicious.

This morning I was able to get in thirty minutes of a hill walk and thirty minutes of swimming and drills. I wanted to take it a little easy (haha) since I knew I would be schlepping around in the heat most of the day. I didn't do a strength workout and I'm glad I didn't because my legs are killing me tonight.

monsters

Oh boy. The postings are going to dwindle for a little while. I'm going on a little siesta in the next few weeks. I am very excited.

On Friday I was not in the mood for exercising. I planned on working out Saturday morning. I woke up not being in the mood again :(. I got on the treadmill anyway, but was only able to eek out 2 miles. I continued walking after that. Today was a much different story. Hooray! I got in 4.25 miles tonight. I was going to do 4.5 but decided that I was going to run tomorrow so I wanted to not push it. I did some abs afterwards and called it a night. I still had to pack but luckily everything else on my to-do list is done :).

Now I feel like this:


Today was filled with more non-cooking adventure foods. Lunch was a delicious AB and J on Ezekiel toast with some blueberries. After my run I had a handful of grapes which were super yummy! Then for dinner I had the best green monster yet! Soy vanilla yogurt, frozen banana, ice, teaspoon of almond butter, and about 1/4 c. chocolate soy milk! The chocolate soy milk did it I think. It made a ton of monster, but I really enjoyed every bit of it. My mother-in-law was totally scared of the color. I asked if she wanted to try it and she would not. Heinz and Bean however loved every minute of the leftovers I gave them.

Exhibit A:


I have not decided what I am going to make for the potluck. That will have to be made Wednesday night. To tide you over until my next post here are some cute dog pictures with captions:


Leave me alone. I am trying to fit in my 23 hours of sleep which you interrupted with a bath!


Why can it not always be 75 degrees? I am such a princess.

green...

It was so nice to have an extra day off. I feel so accomplished! The car didn't take long to get serviced and the headlamp just had a loose connection (free!) so that was awesome. I went to the gym and cranked out four miles. I totally could have gone further, but am trying to be a good runner and stick to a healthy reintigration routine. I wanted to go five though :). Especially since I am thinking about doing a 10K and possibly a 13K this fall.

Breaking news - I think my heart just skipped a little bit when Paula Deen said, "this is going to be a healthy meal" as she tossed collard greens into bacon fat! *gasp*

Ok, now back on track. I finished my gym experience with an upper body workout, which means I didn't swim. My left shoulder can handle either an upper body workout OR a swim, not both. Instead I made my second attempt at bringing some color to my skin and getting some Vitamin D. I think I had a better attempt this time, especially since I didn't burn. I found a freckle city on arms however.

I did a good bit of cleaning today and found out that we do not have enough suitcases unpacked to pack (follow that!). I finished J's anniversary present and got some other things done.

Onto the food: Now that my body has had almond butter it wants it all the time. But my mind is smart enough to stop that nonsense. Lunch was a delicious baby spinach salad with cauliflower, green olives, blueberries, and 5 cashews. For the dressing, I have some awesome balsamic maple reduction straight from Canada. I decided to make a real "tossed" salad and mixed everything with the dressing in a bowl before throwing it on the plate. I need to do that more often. After the salad I had a banana smeared with almond butter. At dinner, once again my body said, AB and J sandwich. My mind said no way. So I had another salad with two soy dogs. I had something that I have not had in a very long time though...ketchup. I normally don't do ketchup because I think it tastes weird. Its way too sweet for me. However, there is a "fast food" restaurant in Tampa called Evos and they make their own ketchup. If I remember correctly, they had four different kinds. They also had the most delicious veggie burger (ironically called the "All American") and air fries, that weren't fried but baked. But I digress. It was ok, but still I'm not sold. I want to try making my own ketchup as I move towards less dependence on food store goods. Two more days of work before two more days off!

MIA

I had good intentions of posting last night and then we had a summer storm. The power flickered and I decided it best to cut the computer off for the night and read as the storm blew through. I haven't seen a storm like that since Oklahoma, but it was definitely nice to not have to worry about tornadoes. A storm like that would have definitely produced a tornado in Oklahoma.

Anyway, things are coming down to the wire and this morning I had a little panic on the way to work about all the stuff I need to do. However, it seems that things are piling on. Last night I noticed Bean has some sort of lump on his side. It sort of hit me because one of my former dogs was diagnosed with lymphoma after my mom found a lump on her neck. I am trying to tell myself that this one is much smaller and doesn't seem to be worry-some. I'm going to try and take him to the vet on Monday morning, since that will be my first opportunity. Other than that I have to pack, clean, do laundry, get the oil changed in my car, try and keep up some sort of workout routine, clean the cars, get a pedicure :), get father's day stuff squared away, and finish the anniversary gift. I'm sure there is other stuff in there that needs to be done but those are the most important things at the time.

Food wise, I've been sort of all over the place. Yesterday, I enjoyed a green monster for lunch (spinach, almond butter, vanilla soy yogurt, almond milk, blueberries, and a banana). I finished another effortless 4 mile run and then fixed a boca burger with cucumbers, hummus, Ezekiel bread, dijon mustard, and spinach with a side of some cauliflower. Today I enjoyed the Healthy Choice Organic Veggie Potstickers and some soy yogurt with blueberries as a snack. Dinner was a banana with almond butter and some cauliflower dipped in hummus. Next week there will probably be one big dish for a potluck on Thursday but I am planning on keeping it easy for the remainder of the week. So prepare for sparse posts...

sunshine

I am really glad that I am back into working out regularly. This morning I headed over to the gym and finished 30 minutes on the stair climber, my quickie leg workout (3 sets of 25 squats, 25 lunges each leg, and 25 sumo squats), and then got in the pool. I finished 1000 meters all at once and my shoulder did really well. It was burning during the first 200 meters, but then performed like a champ. I brought my other swimsuit to change into so that I could lay out for a while and perhaps not be so lily white. I only sat out for one hour, but it was really nice and relaxing. I am planning on doing the same if not longer on Thursday.

Food time! So I made food for my in-laws today. Baked spaghetti casserole, garlic bread, PB Banana chocolate chip cookies (those were vegan, shh!), and Mediterranean chicken salad were on the menu. The baked spaghetti recipe will come at a later time, because I am not in the mood to go get it out of the book. Here are the others with some pictures...

First off, I have joined the green monster bandwagon. Jenna over at Eat, Live, Run makes them frequently and has even gotten her partner to enjoy them as well. Mine today involved the following:

1 banana
1/4 c. vanilla soy yogurt
a blender full of organic spinach
a splash of almond milk
a spoonful of almond butter

This is what it looked like:


The verdict: Super Yummy! I have made spinach drinks before, when I was detoxing, but the green monster was way better than those even. I need to get some soy protein powder and I will be in business. I don't know if I can do them for breakfast, since I leave rather quickly in the morning, but maybe I will try. I am going to play around a little more with the ingredients as well and see what comes up. I want to freeze the bananas to make a colder drink. This one I blended while waiting on the spaghetti to finish and stuck it in the fridge.

The Garlic Bread:



The Spaghetti Casserole, unbaked and baked:



PB Banana Chocolate chip Cookies:



Recipes!

PB Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies:
These are courtesy of FatFree Vegan

1/2 c. natural PB (chunky or smooth)
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. mashed banana
1 c. unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour (do not use regular whole wheat flour!)
1 tsp. baking powder
pinch salt
1/4 c. non-dairy chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cream PB and sugars. Add banana and mix to combine. In a separate bowl, mix flours, baking powder, and salt. Add flour slowly to PB mix and stir to combine. Add chocolate chips, if desired, and stir, but do not overmix. Drop onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Flatten with a fork and bake 10 minutes or until golden.

Thoughts: Really good. They aren't super sweet, but they are thick and delicious. You could make these without the chocolate chips and they would be just as good.

Garlic Bread

6 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 c. chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/4 c. fresh oregano, chopped
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 c. good olive oil
1 ciabatta loaf
2 tbsp non-hydrogenated vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Process garlic in a food processor until minced. Add oregano, parsley and salt. Pulse only twice to combine. Heat oil in a small skillet and add garlic mix. Slice ciabatta lengthwise and spread butter on one half. Spread garlic mix on the other half and put two halves together. Wrap in foil and bake 5 minutes. Unwrap loaf and bake 5 more minutes.

Thoughts: This bread is always really good. It is usually a showstopper and yet so easy to make. I'm sure you could mix up the herbs and add basil instead of the parsley and it would be really good.

Mediterranean Chicken Salad
1 c. plain Greek yogurt
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp cumin
3 c. cooked chicken
1 c. chopped red pepper
1/2 c. chopped green olives
1/2 c. diced red onion
1/4 c. chopped cilantro
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

Combine first three ingredients. Mix together remaining ingredients in a separate bowl and pour yogurt dressing over top. Toss to combine.

Thoughts: I obviously didn't try this one. But based on the other ingredients it sounded like it would be really good. Plus it is way more healthy than traditional chicken salad :).

That's it. I am exhausted! I am glad that I only have to work two more days and then I get another day off. Whew. The next two weeks are going to be super busy so I may be absent for a little while.

CBS?

What is going on over at CBS? First they had a story a few months ago on their "Sunday Morning" program about Rip Esselstyn and some firefighters in Austin who eat vegan while they are on duty. He wrote a book called The Engine 2 Diet. They also talked with Rip's dad, Dr. Esselstyn, who advocates lowering cholesterol by diet alone and not through medication. Anyway, as I was walking through the living room I saw a woman making food and say something about organic and I was interested. On "60 Minutes" they were talking to Alice Waters, who is a food advocate and created an awesome restaurant in Berkley. She convinced a school to allow kids to take a class on gardening and then teaching them how to cook the food they grow! *melts* When the kids started talking about composting and I wanted to cry! You can find the Alice Waters' story here

b-day

Today is both flag day and the Army's birthday. That's right the United States Army was "officially" born today. Some people accuse me of being unpatriotic, however, I believe in a definition of patriotism that is outside of flag t-shirts and "God bless America" bumper stickers. I take great pride and pleasure in the many opportunities that have been afforded to me by this nation and the people that fought for it. That doesn't mean that I believe it is the most perfect government system nor does it lack criticism. So with that being said, happy flag day and happy birthday to the Army.

Moving on to exercise and food...

After flip flopping back and forth between taking a rest day and running, my legs won and I ran. I hit 4 miles today. Isn't that funny, how I wasn't really into running today and it was a picnic to make it to 4 miles. I then kicked my abs into gear with some pilates and other ab exercises. Whew! Tomorrow I plan on hitting the gym for maybe the stairclimber or just walking, followed by an arm workout, followed by a swim, followed by getting some sun, maybe. The TV person is coming tomorrow to see what is wrong with my cable box that used to give me wonderful digital channels for free :). I miss all four of my PBS channels. That was all I was really watching, along with the occasional Food Network show. There are a few shows that I really enjoy on Food Network. I am not a fan of Rachael Ray, mainly because I don't like her cutsie name for things like "sammies" and she makes way to many burgers for my taste. Nothing wrong with her, just not for me. I love Jamie Oliver, Ina Garten, Giada DiLaurentis, and Elie Kruger (sp?). While they are obviously not vegan, I get great ideas from them plus there are opportunities to make things for J. I used to not enjoy Giada, but her new show Giada at Home I really like. This morning she made an eggplant hummus that I still need to find the recipe. I hate the "challenges" though. I am not into cake decorating at all so I can't get into them. I respect their artistry, but again, not for me.

Now that my rant is over, onto today's food. Breakfast was a mix of Quaker's Cinnamon Oatmeal Squares mixed with Kashi Heart to Heart and light soy milk. I have an uncanny love for cereal and currently have enough cereal to last me for a few months. I can't help myself when they put delicious cereals on sale buy one get one free! So I have Raisin Bran, more Heart to Heart, and one box of the Oatmeal Squares. For lunch I enjoyed two pieces Ezekiel bread toasted with almond butter and strawberry jam. For an afternoon snack, I enjoyed a handful of Salt and Pepper Cashews before heading to the food store. After my run I made an organic Boca burger and sandwiched it with some organic spinach, cucumbers, green olives, smoked salt, dijon mustard, black olive hummus, and a tomato. It was really good! For dessert I just finished a little bit of organic strawberry sorbet. Very refreshing!

So I am not making anything much this week that is vegan. I decided to make a meal for my in-laws, but knew that if I fixed something vegan they probably wouldn't eat it. So I am making a baked spaghetti casserole (made healthier), some herb infused olive oil garlic bread, a Mediterranean chicken salad (look mom no mayo!), and sneaking in some PB banana chocolate chip cookies that are totally vegan. Shh. I am fixing the chicken salad, because she can't reach the microwave, so this way she can just get it straight from the fridge.

Now I'm going to make a note about being vegan and making non-vegan food. I do not judge others, just like I don't want people to judge my eating habits. Therefore, I am also not going to force others to become vegan. That goes against my compassionate lifestyle and opinions. I encourage people to be informed about what they are eating and demand safe healthy foods to consume. My spouse is not vegan, no one in my family is vegan, and currently none of my close friends are vegan. I am ok with that, because they are ok with me. Sometimes my husband jokes and says "I bet you wish I was vegan." I always tell him that I want him to be vegan if that is what he wants for himself. I am not out to "make" anyone any way. If I didn't make dinner for my spouse, he would eat out all the time or constantly have microwave meals, or eat from the grill and not have any veggies other than corn and potatoes. Therefore, I cook non-vegan foods for him so that he can have wholesome and healthy meals made with love and not out of a box. The same goes for my in-laws. They would be eating box meals the whole time that my MIL is out of commission and I want to make something they can enjoy that will not also contribute to the downfall of their health. So there you have it. If you want more on being a vegan in an omnivore environment check out this post

Insufficient

I must first start off by talking about how awesome I think Stephen Colbert is. I have always been a fan, but after his week of shows in Iraq, I have become much more of a fan. You can watch the series of shows at Colbert Nation and I really recommend them. While he is funny and satirical, there is true meaning to his points. Also, I was touched by some of the things that were said by guests as well as Stephen during the shows. This was his final sign-off: "I want to thank the troops here and around the world. I am rarely at a loss for words but when I think about all you have sacrificed for these six years it really seems insufficient to say thank you and really inappropriate to say holy sh*t. So I'll just say what I hope you can all say soon, honey, I'm coming home."

In other news, I went to the gym this morning and cranked out another 3.5 miles. I did a brief leg workout afterwards and skipped swimming. I was pretty dehydrated so I cut the workout short so that I could relax a little and re-hydrate and eat breakfast. Ever since the whole "you drink too much water" statement was made I have been paranoid about drinking water. Now I realize that I can drink water as long as I have a balanced diet to balance out the water with nutrients. I drank plenty of water today and am feeling much better about it. I have my Nalgene bottle beside me as I type. Tomorrow morning I am hoping to go for a long swim and forego strength training until the evening. I can do some yoga flows and push-ups and will be ok.

Still the same meals happening for the most part. I had a Kashi Mango Black Beans and Rice microwave meal and some blueberries for lunch. For a snack, I enjoyed some soy vanilla yogurt with more blueberries :). Tonight for dinner, I made a small spinach, mushroom, blackberry, cauliflower, green olive, honey dijon dressing salad and some Ezekiel bread with jam and almond butter. I seriously hope to be cooking this weekend to share more foods and recipes with the blogosphere. Until then why don't you mosey on over to Wing-It Vegan and enter to win an awesome Healthy Chef 4 in 1 appliance!

Chandra Namaskara

Tired is the word of the day. Funny thing is that it didn't hit me until I was eating dinner and my eyelids got really heavy. I got a lot of my work done today and will not have to worry about getting behind. I also get to go in later the next two days, which means I will have plenty of time in the mornings for a run and possibly a swim. I am afraid that I will start nixing the strength workouts for a swim though.

I got through a 3.5 mile run with no trouble at all tonight. It was so easy, I'm wondering if I shouldn't bump my mileage up prior to Sunday. But I will be good and follow my plan. Sunday I plan on hitting four miles though. I really want to get back into being a six-mile runner (meaning that is the distance of my average runs). Only then can I start training for the imaginary half-marathon that I will be doing at some point in the future.

Even though I was out of the office this morning, I was back in the office before lunch and therefore didn't have time to go get a delicious lunch. For some reason, I forgot to bring anything to eat, except watermelon. I was able to grab a vegetable sushi roll at the cafeteria and some hummus with questionable califlower, beets, and black olives. Lets just say that the salad bar is somewhat lacking in the produce selection. For dinner I enjoyed another fabulous salad and a piece of toasted Ezekiel bread with applesauce and almond butter. Very delicious.

I am considering making some food for my mother-in-law since she has hurt her leg. I thought about this when my father-in-law came out of the kitchen with an armful of microwave meals asking which one she wanted for dinner. Do not get me wrong, he is certainly trying his best. I think that some healthy food will help her leg heal, but it certainly can't hurt. I have a recipe for carrot-pineapple muffins that I may try and need to work through some other recipes to determine what will be the best dishes to make.

Next week I am getting started on my article about homemakers and the media, because I want to get all my ideas nailed down and organized. I also want to work on some articles to send out to other sites for possible publishing. More on that to come. I am so glad to get back into writing, as I really missed it.

work

Today was a ridiculous day at work. But it is over and I have moved on. I did enjoy some delicious Moroccan food today! Yum. See here for a picture of my favorite vegetable platter. Everytime I get it the flavors are different which I enjoy because it tells me that the stuff is handmade and fresh. Its not a cookie cutter meal, even if it is produced in bulk. It was super hot outside and almost so hot that I didn't want to make the short walk to the cafe. But I sucked it up and walked over there. It is an open air cafe, so no a/c but I was able to find a secluded shady spot by a fountain to enjoy my meal.

Luckily tomorrow will be my last day of having to work part of the day outside of the office so I can return to a more regular schedule. I go in early and leave later tomorrow, so I plan on hitting the gym after work. I get to go in late on Friday and Saturday so I am planning on a brick workout, probably Friday. I feel gross for not working out today or yesterday. I usually take two rest days a week but not in a row. Gross. For a snack today, I had some vanilla soy yogurt with fresh blackberries. I think that vanilla soy yogurt is my favorite of all the flavors! I actually have never had it before and got a tub of it to make the blondies. It was the perfect snack because it bridged the gap between lunch and making it home. For dinner I had the banana that I missed at breakfast and Ezekiel bread with almond butter and organic strawberry jam. Oh so delicious.

Next week I have an involved to-do list, so I really need to get things done.

Random thought of the day...I have not had TV since Sunday and I haven't missed it. I'm ok with this.

fixed

I'm feeling much better today. My mind and my body have resolved their issues and are functioning as one again. Just a quick one today. The next two days are going to be *crazy*. So the brownies were deemed by co-workers to not be a loss. They liked them and said that the difference was a more chocolat-y flavor versus a sweet flavor. Maybe so. The chocolate was a high quality unsweetened cocoa, so that is probably why. The blondies were of course a hit. For breakfast, I ventured away from my Grape Nuts/Kashi/Raisin Bran cereal kick and had some Oatmeal Squares and the brand name is escaping me. They were cinnamon flavor and were mixed with some Kashi. Very delicious! Lunch was a bowl of watermelon and the Amy's Black-Eye Pea, Brown Rice and Veggie bowl. Always a winner. I also snatched a small square of blondie for dessert :). Dinner tonight was just two slices of toasted Sesame Seed Ezekiel bread with unsweetened organic applesauce. My new thing is using applesauce like a jam. It works soooo well! And I don't have to worry about HFCS or gelatin. Tomorrow will probably be a Moroccan meal (hooray!) as I will be out of the office most of the morning. Tonight I am not working out either, so that I can wake up ultra early and make the commute to work. Ugh! Not much longer! The next day that I workout will probably be Thursday if not Friday, which I am not happy about, but after these long days I don't have much energy for exercise.

Oh also, yesterday, I forgot to mention that I got my half.com ordered copy of Veganomicon! I can't wait to leaf through it and make some delicious meals.

broken

I think I broke my body today. My mind and my body are in disagreement. In protest, my body decided to break. I have been wanting to swim ever since they opened the pool. I love to swim but it is sort of like a sick disease. I cannot get in a pool and just "hang out" or swim around and do flips and float. No, no. I get into water and immediately begin swimming laps. I have been swimming for as long as I can remember and have never been afraid of the water. I swam competitively in high school and loved every minute. So now, when I can swim laps for general health and wellness, I LOVE it. So I planned on a mini alternative Brick workout (brick workouts are a training method for triathlons where you perform two legs of the race back to back). I always do my bricks backwards, because once I am finished swimming, I cannot run in training. So I did an interval run (2 minutes jog 1 minute sprint) for 6 repetitions and then finished out with a walk while reading my book. Then I did a leg workout and this is where my mind and body began to fall into a bad place with each other. I finished the leg workout and was excited to get into the pool. I jumped into the pool and cranked out 100 meter warm-up, 100 meter for time, 200 and 300 meters for endurance. I did 50 meters of water jogging and then stretched and got out of the pool.

After returning home, I got the dogs out for their bath which is no small chore. I then bathed myself and that is when my body broke. Everything caught up to me and I am now sore all over!

To top it all off, prior to my workout, I was a little hungry and grabbed a banana. Once I got everything done it was 1100 and I had not had anything but the banana! I grabbed some Salt and Pepper Cashews, which are delicious, to make it through the preparation of lunch. I also had four slices of crusty wheat baguette with black olive hummus as an appetizer:


Then I fixed my salad:




That's organic spinach, cabbage, carrots, blackberries (a little tart!), cucumbers, califlower, chopped black olives, and green onions. I made Sweet Honey Dijon and used local organic Orange Blossom Honey :). It was really good.

Then I made PB chocolate chip blondies and some brownies. The brownies were from The Joy of Vegan Baking and the jury is still out. There is something not right. I take one bite and think it is the flavor and then I take another bite and think it is the texture. I'm taking them to work tomorrow to a trusted friend who is not afraid to tell me the truth :). The blondies on the other hand...I could have eaten the entire tray! I used Veggie Girl's recipe for Fig Almond Blondies and used 1/2 c. crunchy natural PB and 1/2 c. semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips instead of the almonds and figs. It worked really well and provided for just a hint of PB flavor and velvety chocolate chips.
PB chocolate chip blondies:



Brownies:



Tonight for dinner I had a delicious vegan organic Boca on Sesame Seed Ezekiel Bread, with dijon mustard, a touch of black olive hummus, cucumbers, and spinach with a side of watermelon. Then I had a small square of blondie for dessert :). Tomorrow is going to be a whirlwind day, and may change my course of things for the coming months. More on that later...

Alternatively, I found an awesome call for essays on women and the media. I want to submit an abstract about the way that homemakers are preceived in the media versus reality. We will see how that comes along. Maybe I will be published in the collection! I am actively getting back into the writing thing because outside of cooking it is something that I love. I will have a lot of free time soon, so that will give me a break from the back and mind breaking labor that will be sorting all of our possessions.

food

Does it bother anyone else that produce rarely has dirt on it? Just curious. As I was wandering through the food store and afterward when putting my food away, I started thinking about the role that food has played in my life. A lot of people relate foods with memories and most Americans have whole holidays that center for the most part around food and food customs. My life is no different. However, I think the difference comes in the memories and the foods that were introduced to me. I remember very distinctly never really playing with babydolls. However, I remember vividly the Christmas that my grandparents gave me a tin toy refrigerator. Prior to that I remember having an oven with cooktop in my room plus an awesome Strawberry Shortcake table and chair set. My mom even made cupboards out of shoeboxes covered in wallpaper. It was awesome! I also love that my grandmother never shooed me out of the kitchen. I would pull pots and pans out of the cabinet and "pretend" to make things on the floor right under her feet. I would get lucky sometimes and get the scraps from her fresh made biscuits, so that I could "make" my own. I also distinctly remember that she always made her own meringue. I never really wanted it and usually called it "fuzz" but I surely ate the chocolate pie that was underneath it. Now I can truly appreciate the height and perfection of that handmade meringue. My grandmother wasn't the only one with food memories attached. My grandfather had a quite large garden in their backyard. That was where I first learned what a turnip looked like as it grew, as well as grapes, tomatoes, scuppernongs, corn, watermelon, and cucumbers, among other things. We would go for a ride on his riding lawn mower and then be rewarded by a raw turnip right out of the garden that he would cut with his pocket knife. Little did I know then the love and attention that went into that garden. He successfully made jams and jellies and canned a number of foods, in addition to making wine. He also would take my brother and I to strawberry fields to pick strawberries. Sadly, I probably ate more than I picked, but I knew what a strawberry plant and a strawberry looked like when they were growing.

This is where my mom comes in. Growing up it was so rare that we ate out or purchased fast food. She always had dinner ready even after a full day of work. She too carried on the traditions of her parents of canning just about anything she could get her hands on. I remember being shocked by a funny looking and weird smelling bottle in the cupboard. I soon learned that this was sourdough starter that she had gotten from a friend at work. She would take my brother and I to a friend's farm where we helped to pick all sorts of vegetables and I experienced my first sunflower patch. She would go with us over to my grandparents house where there would be bushels of beans, peas or corn that we would shuck, snap, or shell. These would then be put away for winter. My grandparents had three refrigerators and a huge chest freezer! But they also rarely ate out as well. My mom would take us to the farmers market in a distant town which was always an experience. The highlight would be when we got to pick out a pumpkin to carve for Halloween. We would drive or walk from booth to booth so my mom could browse the goods and then buy from the farmer with the best price for the best produce.

I am beginning to appreciate the memories and love for food that my mom and grandparents held. As well as the care and attention that they gave to the land that produced their foods. I could not have asked for a better family to raise me and wish that they could know how important their knowledge and memories are to me (even outside of food). I want to learn how to can vegetables and make jams and jellies. I think that people have forgotten these important labors of love and rely on the processed foods that they can easily get from the store. I am certainly guilty of that myself. I told J today that I want to get us to the point where we are only buying things from the store that we cannot make or grow. I think that you appreciate your food more then, I know I do. I may have grown up in a small rural community, but I wouldn't trade it for living anywhere else, now looking back on it.

weekend

Another work week is over. Thank goodness. Sadly, its not going to get much better the next few weeks.

My food store list is almost complete. I don't think its going to be an exciting cooking weekend. I am trying to scale down on my food buying since I will be taking a two month siesta from the in-laws abode. So it will probably be salads, boca burgers, soy dogs, and some sort of nut butter and jam. Of course, veggies and fruits will be combine with that. Plus there are two opportunities for me to eat at the Moroccan place again. Yum. I am planning on possibly making some cookies or brownies or something. Oh and this dressing. I also have some balsamic maple reduction that I may mix with some olive oil and see how that turns out for a dressing.

No swimming today. When I woke up this morning I decided to just lounge around and enjoy not being rushed. I hate being rushed, especially in the morning. That's why my internal alarm will never let me sleep past 0630. Tomorrow I plan on running in the morning and hopefully getting to the gym for at least a strength workout if not a swim :).

It is dog washing weekend. Other than that, I have the regular chores and maybe I can get J's stuff packed. Only about 20 days until I get to see him again! So unbelievable.

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handbags

I am really not into designers and accessories and stuff. I have some things that I mostly got as hand-me-downs or in antique stores. Today however, they were having a 70% sale at a local JC Penny's. My current handbag was in dire need of retiring, since the liner was tearing out and it was just a touch too small. I had been looking for something for a while because I am very picky when spending money on something that I will use a lot. Luckily I was able to get three handbags for ten dollars each! Original price = $60 each! I was proud. And they are totally vegan.

After I said that I rarely eat out, I realized today that I was eating out for the second day in a row. Oops. But I can't even remember the last time I ate out prior to that. Today I went out with three friends from different departments at work, as sort of a last hoorah. We went to an Italian place that is not really all that "authentic" but their decor is really awesome (50s kitch all over the place) and they have a salad and bruschetta to die for. So the salad, its a mix of wild greens with housemade balsamic vinegrette. The bruschetta is what you should really go for. It is super garlic-ky...like with real garlic, not imitation stuff. Then they use yellow and red tomatoes and fresh basil on a bed of greens with crostinis. I could just eat it as a salad! They previously had a delicious "breads and spreads" appetizer that was delicious. There was a sun-dried tomato spread, a pesto spread, and my favorite, a head of roasted garlic. They had since removed that from the menu. Oh well, as long as the bruschetta is still there, I will still go. No pictures, unfortunately.

I was able to drag myself to the gym this morning. Actually it wasn't really a situation where I had to force myself. I am definitely getting back into the swing of working out. I actually woke on my own at 0600 and lazily got ready. I made it to the gym around 0645 and that is where the forcing began. It was cross-training day. I*Hate*Cross-Training*Day! I love to run so when I have to do something other than running I get bored and generally feel like I will never finish! But I sucked it up and got on the stairclimber for 20 minutes and the elliptical for 25 (boo). I hate the elliptical. But I love my knees, so I try and give them a little break, even if my mind is disappointed. I also got a killer lower body workout in. All before work started! That is because I didn't have to go in until 1030. I get to go in tomorrow at 1030 as well, but its supposed to be a rest day. The pool opens at 0730, so potentially I could swim and get some abs in, because it is cardio rest day, not muscle rest day :).

I haven't made a food store list yet, but some sort of nut butter will be on it. I'm thinking about making a salad dressing and doing some salads. The inspiration is just not there right now. I'm debating a Whole Foods run tomorrow after work, but it will depend a lot on my willingness to fight traffic.

tired part 2

I have been super busy at work lately and coming home next to exhausted. So that is the excuse for the lack of posts. Thankfully I have still found the motivation to work out, and ironically harder than before. Yesterday was one of two rest days this week. Today I was at work from 0630-1640, which is a rare, but nonetheless long, day. One reward to look forward to is going in later tomorrow and perhaps Saturday. I am going to workout in the morning and then take Saturday off. I thought about not working out again today, but made it to the gym somehow and ran. 3.25 miles today and also an upper body workout. My upper body is not as shocked as it was on Monday :). I have hit my mileage every time I ran this week which is really promising. Perhaps I will hit four miles by the end of the month.

Today was nice because I ate out at a Moroccan style cafe. I rarely eat out on my own and consider it a rare treat when I do (plus I am very picky about my foods and where I will eat). Its also because I like to know what is going into the food I'm eating, so I would rather just make it myself. They have a vegetarian platter that is amazing. First off though, the price has gone up and the dish has changed. It was an olive salad (marinated black and green olives), a green lentil salad (still searching for this recipe), pita bread, hummus, tangerine couscous (which I have a love/hate relationship with because sometimes they put a touch too much curry in there). Today's platter included all the above, with a small lettuce and tomato mixture (I guess if you wanted to make a sandwich with the pita) and two falafels. The other salads were much smaller portions (I don't know how I feel about that) and after tasting a falafel it was super spicey, so perhaps some curry was in it as well. It was enjoyable to eat outside under the lemon trees though.


Vegetable Platter

tired

And at this moment I feel like this:


You must think that all the dogs do is beg for more food and sleep. That is pretty much their lives. But they are cute. Heinz had a good visit with the vet, which basically means he didn't bite anyone and didn't hyperventalate. We think that the last of the mange is gone! I have to continue with the double shampoos once every two weeks, but at least he is done with the toxic chemical dips. He is also glad to not be so itchy.

I went to the gym straight away after dropping Heinz off at the house. 3.25 run today! It wasn't that bad either. I am going to play with the distances and my speed to sort of ramp myself back up to distance running. I also need to get my tail running outside more often. After about three miles the treadmill bores me to tears! I also sucked it up and did a upper body workout. I have lost so much strength in my upper body. It was grueling but I made it through it. Now my muscles are crying for sleep and to really just not do anything again for maybe three days. Sadly that will not happen. So far so good with the strength training. Lunges and squats tomorrow. I know I'm excited.

Now onto the meals this week. Or meal as the case may be. I had a major craving for spring rolls. Not the fried ones, but the ones wrapped in rice paper. That fell through when I could not find rice paper :(. So I made lettuce wraps instead, which worked out ok, but that means that I can't make them in advance. Oh well. I did make a Baked Barley and Brown Rice dish as well as Lemon Coconut Quick Bread and PB Banana Bread. Onto recipes, notes, and accolades:


Baked Barley and Wild (Brown) Rice Casserole
1/3 c. uncooked wild rice
4 c. water
1 c. barley
1 tbsp vegan non-hydrogenated butter
1 c. sliced mushrooms
2 c. veggie broth
1 can sliced water chestnuts
1/4 c. slivered almonds
1 envelope vegan onion soup mix
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp onion powder

Combine rice and 1 c. water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 50-60 minutes. Cook barley 2 minutes in butter. Add mushrooms and cook 2 more minutes. Transfer to a baking dish (13x9) and stir in broth, water chestnuts, almonds, soup mix, garlic salt, onion powder, rice and remaining water. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour stirring two times. Uncover and bake 5-10 minutes longer.

Notes! I didn't have any wild rice so I used brown rice instead. I don't know how long I cook the rice, as I do it by taste and feel, so you can just cook it according to the bag directions I guess. I was also expecting sort of a cake type consistency in the final product (I don't know why) but it definitely wasn't cakey. I would probably cut the water back at least 1/2 cup if not 1 cup. I also added half a chopped vidalia onion when I put the mushrooms in to cook. I didn't have slivered almonds and used whole. And finally, I didn't like that the water chestnuts were not bite size so I got diced water chestnuts instead. Really delicious overall and definitely a hearty meal for winter.


Lemon Coconut Quick Bread

(Original recipe by Susan at Farmgirl Fare)

2 1/2 c. unbleached all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 c. sugar
2 c. shredded unsweetened coconut
3 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
6 Tbsp water
3/4 c. unsweetened plain soy milk (I used 8th Continent Light)
1/2 c. fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla
1 stick Earth Balance, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in sugar and coconut. With an electric mixer, mix egg replacer with water until thick. Add milk, juice, zest, and vanilla to egg replacer. Create a well inside the dry ingredients and pour in wet ingredients. Stir until combined. Add melted butter stirring until incorporated. Do not overmix! Pour into greased loaf pan and bake 65-70 minutes.

Notes! So I veganized this recipe. I was scared, because it is the first baking experiment transitioning a non-vegan treat into a vegan one. But it turned out great! The changes didn't overpower the flavor of the lemon and coconut which shined through. I did find that when I mixed the wet and dry ingredients, it didn't incorporate all of the dry ingredients. I think it is because there would be more liquid in the eggs than in the replacer. But when I added in the butter all was well. The bread has a delicious crusty top with a soft moist middle. Be careful though, because coconut is one of the few (if not only) plant based items that has saturated fat. While the bread is delicious, eat in moderation if you are concerned about your cholesterol :).


PB Banana Bread

Original recipe by VeggieGirl and found here

I didn't make any significant changes, so on to the notes:

Notes! I only used three bananas and didn't put the bananas on top. This was because I only had three :). I also didn't measure the soy milk that I used, as I was really excited. I also tasted the batter :) and it was delicious, which made me more excited. It says to let it bake 45-50 minutes, but mine wasn't done until about 55-60 minutes. When I sliced it, it was super moist and not to mention delicious!

Ok that is actually it for this week. My workout made me super tired today and hindered my ability to actually *stand* and *cook*.

Onto another work week....