The Ultimate Mode of Procrastination

THE BROCCOLI HUT HAS MOVED!

Yep, I've decided to migrate to where all the cool kids are...Wordpress. Fiddling with Wordpress has been quite an effective procrastination tool:)

Check out the newly renovated Hut at this address: http://thebroccolihut.com.

**Please update your reader subscriptions accordingly!**

The Saga of the Cherry Rain Boots

If you step onto a college campus on even a moderately rainy day, you're likely to encounter hundreds of female undergraduates sporting rain boots--in every color of the rainbow, in any pattern you can imagine. I had refrained from partaking in this trend for a while, given my distaste for "being one of the crowd," but I finally surrendered to the rain gear trend when I realized the inclination of Duke's campus toward sludginess. Plus, we all know how much I like shopping for footwear:) After having my pair of cherry-printed rain boots for about a year, I have worn them maybe twice. After looking at the weather report for today (RAIN ALL DAY), I decided today would be a good opportunity to get some use out of them. Lo and behold, the weather gods decided to make a mockery of me today--it has barely drizzled a drop all day. As a result, I felt like a may-juh dork walking around campus in my rain boots, without a raindrop in sight. Sigh.

Maybe my "cool" eats will make up for my dorkiness...

Monday
I indulged myself at Whole Foods last week and bought some tempeh Lightlife Fakin' Bacon, my favorite variety of veggie bacon (I am NOT a fan of Lightlife's "SmartBacon."). I forgot to snap a picture of the package, but I'm sure you all can figure out what it looks like if you're interested in trying it for yourself. Anyway, I used it to make a BLT: tempeh bacon, lettuce, tomato, vegan mayo, and whole grain mustard on whole wheat. I also had some celery with PB and an orange.
Before heading out to my weekly dining meeting, I had some baked blue corn chips with guac and salsa.
For dinner, I whipped up a strange concoction inspired by this recipe. I didn't have any flax oil...so I used ground flax. It was actually a pretty tasty dressing. I also had a big salad, grapes, and crackers.
The shake of the evening featured strawberries, soymilk, chocolate rice protein, and more hot chocolate mix.
Tuesday
In contrast to my usual sweet breakfasts (aside from scrambled tofu, of course), I had a savory meal yesterday morning. I made a breakfast sandwich out of tempeh bacon, tomato, and guacamole. DELISH. I also had a sliced apple.
Continuing with my homemade hummus fixation, I made another batch yesterday; this time the flavor was tomato-basil. Quite delicious, and such a lovely hue of pink! I enjoyed it with some whole wheat mini pitas, celery, and cucumber, along with some grapes.
I tried another variety of Chobani yesterday, the vanilla flavor. I combined it with some wheat germ and roasted almonds--gotta love that crunch factor. (PS Yes, that article was painfully boring to read).
By the time I got around to making dinner, I was famished. I made a quick veggie panini with mushrooms, spinach, red onion, and mozzarella, along with some zucchini fries (seasoned with garlic salt and pepper). I also had some peaches with cashews and cinnamon.
My shake last night included an unprecedented combination for me: banana + raspberry. I also added chocolate rice protein and soymilk, along with coconut and Choco-Cherry granola on top. Sorry my shakes are so repetitive lately--I have only one form of protein powder these days. Chocolate is so much more limiting than vanilla or plain!
Wednesday
My breakfast innovation continued this morning with a "Banana Energy Sundae." The idea for this meal came from here. Obviously, I changed it up according to my tastes: TJ's High Fiber Cereal, cinnamon-spiked plain yogurt, banana, Sunbutter, wheat germ, and chopped dates. I *think* I might have found a new favorite breakfast...
Today's reminders:
-Katie from CCV is giving away...herself in a box. Enter to win some of Katie's favorite products by April 12th--there are LOTS of ways to enter, so check it out!
-Sarah from Tales of Expansion is giving away a Bob's Red Mill product. I feel like Bob is my good buddy, considering how many of his products I regularly purchase (oat bran, flaxseeds, TVP...), so I am pumped about this contest! Enter by April 5th at noon.
-The Girl in the Little Black Dress is giving away more of those fabulous Quaker goodies. Organic cotton robe? Yes, please! Enter by April 3rd.

TTFN, my friends.

Bitten by the Racing Bug

As you may know, I ran my first race a few weeks ago. I enjoyed my experience so much that I've signed on for another one...or three. My next race is this weekend (4/4); it's a 5K to support efforts to fight HIV/AIDS. I have two more planned before the end of the semester. They will give me something to look forward to in the midst of my nasty end-of-semester To Do lists. Exercise always makes for a good study break...as do cooking and magazine reading:) How do you keep yourself sane when life gets chaotic?

Due to my aforementioned vicious workload, I spent most of my weekend being lame and preparing for my presentation that I gave this morning. At least my eats kept me entertained...

Friday
Before my evening of relaxation with Alanna, I fueled up with a Taco Salad dinner: refried black beans with guacamole, salsa, and reduced-fat cheddar all atop a bed of greens. I scooped up the goodness with TJ's brand of baked blue corn chips. I might have to do a comparison post in the future of the Guiltless Gourmet variety and these guys. I also had some cantaloupe with strawberries.
My shake of the evening was fabulous: strawberries, banana, chocolate PB Spirutein, soymilk, plus Choco-Cherry granola and PB2. Lots of flavors going on but still delish.
Saturday
After unintentionally sleeping in, I settled in for quite the savory breakfast: Rachel's Sundried Tomato Pesto Cottage Cheese with olives and tomato atop a whole grain bagel. I also had some more luscious melon.
For lunch, I revamped my leftover refried black beans and made black bean hummus. I added lime juice, cumin, cayenne, and almond butter for southwest flavah. I shoveled it in with Ezekiel pita and snap peas. I also had some salad and an apple.
In continuation with Chobani Week, I sampled the peach variety for my snack. As recommended by K, I added lots of cinnamon...plus some cashews.
After far too many hours of staring at a computer screen, I pulled out dinner from the freezer: Gardenburger Chik'n Grill patties. I kept it simple and just sandwiched it between some whole grain bread with BBQ sauce. This concoction tasted eerily authentic. These might even rival Quorn for chicken-ness. On the side, I had some green beans with dill and greens with chopped pear, dates, and raspberry vinaigrette.
My smoothie was a berry-chocolate explosion. I combined raspberries, blueberries, soymilk, chocolate rice protein, and dark cocoa--LOTS of flavor here. I topped it off with coconut and Choco-Cherry granola.
Sunday
Announcing...Alphabet Oats! I started off with A yesterday: applesauce, apricots, and almond butter. I also cooked the oats in a bit of rice milk and cinnamon. An unconventional but tasty combination.
I didn't have much motivation to cook for lunch yesterday, so I just stuck with an old stand-by: sweet potato with hummus. I added a dash of cumin and cayenne to make it appear as if I put forth some effort in this meal. That's the end of the snap peas on the side, plus a salad with almonds and cantaloupe.
I am slipping into my snack rut again...I just had plain yogurt with pumpkin and Dark Chocolate Dreams PB.
After chapter, I came home pretty famished, so I made a quick wrap that I've enjoyed before: Peachy Nutty Tofurky Rollup. You can check out the recipe at Rudi's Bakery here. I used Laughing Cow instead of cream cheese, for the record. I also had a salad and some Brussels sprouts.
My shake was heavenly last night, due to the addition of an ingredient I rarely use: hot chocolate powder. I've had the canister sitting in my cupboard for months, but I decided to use it last night due to its calcium content. Since I am low on protein powder these days, I have been relying on my rice protein, which has no added vitamins or minerals. Thus, I turned to the hot chocolate for a calcium boost; it has 300 mg per serving. Anyway, I combined it with frozen strawberries, soymilk, rice protein, and dark cocoa. I topped it with shredded coconut.
Monday
I was a nervous wreck this morning prior to my presentation, so I just dumped a few items on my plate before heading out the door. I had toast with almond butter and Rachel's Pear Mangosteen Cottage Cheese with chopped pear. I am officially addicted to Rachel's cottage cheese.
One quick reminder before I bid you adieu:

You can still enter your favorite dessert recipe for Jenna's Dessert E-Cookbook. You have until April 1st at 5PM; send entries to HelpJennaRun@gmail.com. I know I'll be sending in my recipe ASAP!

Later, bloggies:)