I've Moved!

I've moved my blog to make it more conducive to food blogging.

Blogger has been fun, but I'm moving on.

You can find me in an apartment near Chinatown.

peace, love and snow.

BRRR!

It's December 2nd and I have yet to turn on the heat in my apartment. I'm so cheap when it comes to my electric bill, so I just throw on a sweatshirt or grab my boyfriend a blanket. The one problem with no heat is that if I get hot in the middle of the night, I shed some clothing and then come morning time, I'm too cold to get out of bed! (Note to self: stop starting blogs off with how much you hate getting out of bed)

For breakfast, I had a bowl of oats (soy, water, half a banana and cashew butter) and an orange-mango-goji smoothie.

Two days ago I threw a handful of goji berries into a pint glass of water. The berries plumped up and softened, turning the water a reddish-brown color. I threw the water and gojis into the blender with a splash of OJ and a couple pieces of frozen mango. I took it to go so I could drink the cold smoothie while blasting the heat in my car.

MMS: Handful of Kashi Go Lean and Pumpkin Spice tea

Lunch did not go according to plan. I had a lovely salad prepared, but that will have to wait until tomorrow because I got this text from my dad at 11:40: Want to meet @ Chipotle in 15 mins across from your office?

Oh no. There are two things I just can't say no to...Family and Chipotle. My dad scooped me at work and we met up with my mom. I got a veggie burrito bowl. I always mean to get the salad, but it's cold and rainy and I wanted something hearty. My bowl had black beans, tomato salsa, hot and mild salsa, corn, guac and lettuce. YUM! I saved some of the bowl for dinner.

Afternoon Snack: Honey Oikos Greek Yogurt (I honestly didn't think I'd need a snack after lunch, but I was wrong)

Dinner: Leftover Chipotle on a bed of spinach with a little cheese.

Dessert: Cut up apple with cinnamon raisin PB and cinnamon

Last night I was able to get to the gym, take a shower and put my Christmas tree up before 9! That meant when z got there, I was ready to relax!

Ok, I know it's a little pathetic and right in front of the intake, but I've got to work with the space I have!

Off to do hopefully do a podcast and wash some dishes!

It's December?

Oh, I guess that would explain why it was so darn cold this morning!

I love my bed so much that I can never seem to get out of it when I need to. This morning wasn't as bad as yesterday, and I was up before my auto-brewed coffee had even finished filling the carafe :) Since I had showered, made my lunch and picked out my school clothes last night, I was able to sit down and have some coffee and oats while reading a cookbook.

B: Oats (water and soy), melted banana, cinnamon raisin PB with coffee and hazelnut Silk creamer

MMS: Honeycrisp Apple Cider Apple

L: Spinach salad with cottage cheese, wafer carrots and leftover tofurky (does not look appetizing); Apple Goji Yogurt

S: Chocolate Chip Z Bar, Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea

Pre-Dinner Snack: Cheese and "salami" rollup.
For dinner, I was craving french toast. No idea why... So I made Arnold Sandwich Thins French Toast with egg whites, silk creamer, vanilla, and cinnamon.

Topped with half a banana and maple syrup. Yummy!!

Lately I have realized that I don't really watch my sugar intake. I focus on seeing low calorie and low/no fat on labels much more than I look at grams of sugar. Why is this a problem? Sugar that isn't burned off ultimately turns in to fat! Duh! Yogurt is where I'm having the biggest dilemma...I really enjoy yogurt and it's so delicious, but do I compromise flavor and health benefits just to lower the amount of money I spend sugar I consume?

Yogurt Comparison:

Fat Free Honey Chobani ($1.00+) - 6oz, 150 calories, 20g sugar, 16g protein, 20% calcium, no gelatin, no artificial flavors or preservatives, thick and yummy

vs.

Lucerne Light Yogurt Apple Goji ($0.50) - 6oz, 90 calories, 10g sugar, 5g protein, 4% calcium, contains kosher gelatin, sweetened with Splenda, runny and fake tasting

It seems like an obvious choice, but 20g is a LOT of sugar and paying over a dollar for 6 ounces seems insane. Ugh...

Other things of note:

• In case you were worried, today is the end of the Atlantic hurricane season.
• I was here a year ago: http://peaceonuniverse.livejournal.com/2008/12/02/
• I need to shop here: http://www.adogslife.net/index.htm

It's almost 8 and I need to go to the gym and shower before z gets here at 9...ahh!

Happy Tuesday from an apartment near Chinatown!

ravenous.

After Bootcamp, I'm usually really hungry and tonight was no different.

I microwaved some egg whites and toasted two sandwich thins to make a sandwich.

Bread.Ketchup.Hot Sauce.Cheese.Vegan Salami.Egg Whites.Bread.

Holy cow! Even though I burnt my toast, it was still an awesome sandwich :)

I quickly followed this with a bowl of Kashi Go Lean cereal with soy milk.

As if that wasn't enough, I had a couple bites of the vegan chocolate banana ice cream I made last night.

The liquid mixture.

Getting frosty!

Ready to eat!

To warm up my cold hands finish off the night I had some Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea. I finally found the seasonal teas!!


I went to the gym Friday, Saturday and today, but I think I need to go tomorrow to get myself on a better routine. I'm a work in progress...


On a side love note: I get to see my boyfriend tomorrow!

goodnight.

He's back!

z is finally home! I really missed him.

We spent the weekend together and he sectioned my grapefruit for me again :)

The end <3

Dia de las Gracias!

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday! Lots of family, food, and fun!

My parents let me sleep in Thursday morning which was awesome. I had a "C"themed breakfast of coffee, a clementine and a chocolate chip cookie :) Before we really started anything, my mom and I took Zeus on a nice long walk in the cold.

I started "Grandma Redmon's Cranberry Sauce" right away. This is the second Thanksgiving without her. After grandaddy died, I was the only one she made the cranberries for, so I knew I wanted to be the one to make it this year.

I started by rinsing the fresh cranberries and picking off the stems.

In a pot, I brought one cup of sugar, 1/2 cup OJ and 1/2 cup water to a boil. Once it came to a boil, I added the fresh cranberries. They instantly started to pop!

I stirred them for a few minutes then took them off the heat to let them cool and get jelly-like.

They turned out so beautifully...and they were super tasty!


Then it was time to peel and cut the carrots for roasting. They were tall, skinny and gorgeous, so I told my mom they were "model carrots."


Tofurkey prep time!

Because I had fresh sage on hand, I decided to do the recommended baste on the side of the box.
Hey pajama pants!
Hey Tofurkey!

Butternut squash and carrots getting ready for roasting!
After they finished roasting, I added dried cranberries and fresh sage to the squash.
The final product:

I finished all my tasks, so I offered to help out with the non-veg food. I made bagged stuffing with chicken stock and water.

Then I made the homemade gravy with flour, water, butter and the turkey fat juice. Kind of gross. Apparently it's good but I stay far, far away from it.

Here's dad carving the turkey:

Honey Baked Ham:

The BUFFET!!

This is the beautiful table my mom and I set up.

My amazing plate: carrots, squash, tofurkey/veg stuffing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, artichoke dip, and one sneaky little olive. I think this was the best Thanksgiving plate I've ever had!

Killer Dessert Plate! I took tiny slivers of pumkin cheesecake, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bar, brownie and pound cake (with coffee, of course). Wow...definitely couldn't finish it.

Cute cousins playing on the floor, ha!

Kasey and I:

My parents convinced me to play Rummikub.

Grandma loves it.

We went around the table and said things we were thankful for. There is SO much to be thankful for. I thank God for family, friends, an awesome boyfriend, and a job! I love Thanksgiving!

Hope you all enjoyed some time with family and friends!

Happy Thanksgiving!

sometimes we have two thanksgivings.

My aunt had to work on Thursday, so we had a family Thanksgiving on Wednesday so she could enjoy some family time. It was a pot-luck, very non-traditional Thanksgiving, which was cool because we did the traditional food on Thursday.

I always have an appetizer problem. Everything always looks good, so I end up eating too much...

My brother diced fresh onion, tomatoes, green and red peppers and then melted a TON of fresh cheese into it on the stove. He called it "Salsa con Queso," but I'd like to re-name it "that damn cheese dip that almost spoiled my appetite because it was so good."

My dad grilled turkey and beef burgers, mom brought veggie burgers, but I didn't even need one. Here is some of the table...

Here's my plate with veggie couscous, cabbage/corn relish, cucumber raita, deviled egg, a random lettuce leaf, and potato casserole!

Dessert was pumpkin pie...I don't love the crust, so I let my little brother eat it.

I was stuffed! I offered to be the DD for my two brothers when we went to Bethesda to meet up with high school friends. It was crazy, as expected. I was being kind of lame, but I was full and still in my work clothes. Good to see everyone...I nerded it up a little by talking to a friend about blogs! Along with some friends, he recently rolled out a new blog which is totally different than mine, but super cool. Check it out: The Gallant

Got home around 2 and went to bed. Had to be awake for Thanksgiving prep the next day...


Thanksgiving recap coming soon...