Monday, August 25, 2008

Settling In

For the past few days, I have been busy setting up my apartment and preparing for another semester of classes. I'm sure it won't surprise you that my roommate and I fixed up the kitchen, first thing. We both love our food (and cute dishes)! I love my postage-stamp sized kitchen--I just wish it had better lighting! As a result of the poor window placement, my food pictures might be a little blah until I can figure something else out...

Anyway, I have quite a few pics to share today, so I better get started if I want to finish before Jon and Kate Plus Eight comes on!

Saturday
On our first morning in our new abode, my roommate's mother was nice enough to offer to take us to the Durham Farmers' Market. As you might expect, I jumped at the chance! Before we left, I made a quick bowl of Corn Bran cereal with TJ's AntiOXidant trail mix, sliced banana, and soymilk. Remember when the farmers' market came to campus? Well, the actual farmers' market was even better! I loved seeing all the Durham locals selling their vegetables and crafts, plus I met a few cute pooches as well:) I left the market with a sack full of Pink Lady tomatoes and some green and purple bell peppers. Look for them in later meals...
I came back from the market and snacked on this before my run:
After a workout and a trip to Whole Foods, I returned to the apartment famished. I heated up my leftover veggie burger from Ruby Tuesday and dipped it in some organic Heinz. I also had a spinach salad and an apple with cashew butter.
I figured I should use my food points at least once per day, so my roommate and I headed to campus for dinner. It's the return of the Crunchy Broccoli Salad. Unfortunately, this was a rather pathetic example of this favorite salad of mine--not nearly enough walnuts or crunch. Boo. I added my own kidney beans though.
I made my first apartment smoothie! After a few minutes of fiddling with the MB, I finally got it to work in the new location. This one had frozen blueberries, soymilk, and my usual Nutiva HempShake with a granola on top.
Sunday
I had a leisurely bowl of oats before Chapel: banana oats with Brazilnut butter and pumpkin flax granola. Perfection.
I kept it simple for lunch--hummus sammie with tomato, spinach salad, and almonds.
My sweet tooth beckoned mid-afternoon. A Clif Z bar seemed to do the trick. No wonder people love these things!
I was in an experimental mood for dinner, so I made a new version of tofu salad. Shockingly enough, I didn't use any Grey Poupon in this one. Instead, I combine the tofu with cashew butter, ginger, garlic, and chopped purple bell pepper. I stuffed it into a pita and served it alongside broccoli and plain yogurt with wheat germ.
Apartment smoothie, round 2: strawberries, soymilk, HempShake, and granola.
Monday
I was a little anxious this morning due to the start of classes--I always have the feeling that I am going to be late, or I won't be able to find the classroom or something; you'd think I would be over that by now. Anyway, I wanted something comforting as a result of my unease--PB&J! Technically, this was cashew butter and blackberry jam on toast, along with plain yogurt (sprinkled with cinnamon). Note the return of the animal cups!
After my morning classes, I wanted to head straight to the gym (since it's all on the same campus). I didn't want to eat lunch beforehand, however, so I munched on an apple and a baggie of Corn Bran as a pre-workout snack. Once at the gym, I ran about 4 miles on the track and cooled down on the stationary bike for 20 minutes.
For lunch, I hit up the salad bar--lots of veggies with chickpeas and sunflower seeds.
Dinner was another tofu salad concoction: tofu with Annie's Goddess dressing, Bragg's, and a little basil. Spinach, sliced tomato, fresh blueberries, and a baked sweet potato finished it off. No shortage of phytochemicals in this meal!
Whew! Congratualations if you're still reading. FYI, you might have noticed that I featured a lot of new products in this post. I'll be reviewing them in the near future for one of my "feature" posts. Ciao for now.

16 comments:

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

Wow, that farmer's market sounds wonderful!!

First shake made in your apartment + blueberries+ Futters Nut Butters (the brand I'm loyal to!! Whoo hoo!!) + PBJ + animal cups = Delicious!!! (well, the animal cups are just cute, since they're not edible, haha).

"No shortage of phytochemicals in this meal!" Haha, that made me laugh out loud :0)

Can't wait for the product reviews!!

Nicole said...

I love your shakes! I just got my wisdom teeth out and I see lots of shakes/smoothies tomorrow!

Whitney said...

My roommates and I are OBSESSED with Jon and Kate plus 8...I would probably kidnap Alexis if I saw her in person but they are all pretty adorable! ...We are also obsessed with the Hills around here so needless to say Monday nights are a pretty big deal :)
My college town, Eugene, also has an amazing farmers market...especially this time of year it's impossible to pass up! Best of luck with your classes!

Anonymous said...

You said in an earlier post that you only used the low-cal Nature's Valley bread because it's the one your parents bought. If that's the case, then why is it in one of the pictures? If you want to eat low-cal bread, fine, but can't you at least be honest with your readers?

Anonymous said...

Ahh, there are so many yummy things you make!

Brazillian Nut Butter? Sounds amazing and so does the Clif Z bar, man I love those things.

Ooo Purple Bell Pepper! I always get so excited about the color of my food...you eat with your eyes first after all!

ChickPea said...

VeggieGirl: I can't thank you enough for introducing me to Futter's...they're wonderful!
Sweetpotato: I wish you the best of luck in your recovery...I'd love to hear about the shakes/smoothies you come up with!
Whitney: Alexis IS a cutie, but I think my favorite will always be Aaden! Thanks for reminding me about The Hills!
Anonymous: I have a sneaky feeling that you're the same one who gives me such crap about my ED tendencies. Yeah, it is low-cal bread. Yeah, we do buy it at home, not only for the sake of my parents' waistlines but also for its lower price, which is something that is important to me whether or not I am living at home or on my own. I like the way it tastes, and if it is lower in kcalories, so be it. Sheesh.
Shelby: I totally agree that we eat with our eyes first. Some say that food presentation is pointless, but I think it can make quite a difference in my enjoyment of a meal.

Little Miss Sunshine said...

Hey Caroline - wow, I'm in awe of your yummy college eats!

Just a question though, I moved out recently and I'm sharing a house with 3 other people - this results in limited fridge space ... so my question is, how can you enjoy a range of produce with a limited storage space?? I've been eating the same produce for a whole week here!!!!

Thank you for your response :0)Have a kick ass day!!

Rosalie Y said...

Carolineeeeee :]

Greetings from Craven D!
I love your blog, and the creative meals you come up with mixing campus foods and your own cooking! I hope central campus and your kitchen is treating you well.

Hearts, Rosalie

Anonymous said...

Ohh i bet this year it iwill be eaiser for you now that yoru in an apartment.. but your food looks great as always! Cant wait to see some new products! What classes are you taking this semester?

KP said...

Oh your smoothies always look so good. You've inspired me to buy some hempshake.

ChickPea said...

Cecilia: Hmm that is a tricky situation. You'll notice that my produce selection is more limited at school than at home for the same reason. I try to mix it up by buying salads or meals with different veggies in them while I am out/on campus--that way I'm not getting the same nutrients at home and dining out. Also, don't forget about frozen fruits and veggies--that's another way to add variety.
Rosalie: Hello! I hope you are loving the convenience of Craven D--it's close to everything! It's great to hear from you:)
SportsNutritionLiving: Yes, eating at college is a lot easier this year than last--having a full size fridge and a stove help! I am not taking anything related to nutrition this semester (I take those classes at another university). Linguistics, Gender and Language, Stats, and Personality Psychology are what's on the schedule this semester.
Kree: You won't regret it! I just ordered some myself, actually. I need to stock up for the school year!

Rosalie Y said...

Yeah, Craven D is such a great location, except it's soooooo hottttttt. I guess I should be used to it by now since I've never lived in an un-AC room (pegram, crowell, now craven...). I went to whole foods yesterday (and tried the PB larabar everyone's so crazy about!!!), and thought about you... you and your "whole foods mondays" from last year ;)


Rosalie

Anonymous said...

im so jealous of that purple bell pepper!! that is sooo cool!

and brazilnut butter sounds yummy! im curious as to what it would taste like! because I can never imagine nuts in their butter forms!

ChickPea said...

Rosalie: Haha! That's so nice that you remembered my Whole Foods schedule! I think it might be WF Fridays this year though...I can't wait to try that Larabar.
GlidingCalm: It was my first time to see a purple pepper (although I have heard about them), so I was so excited to try it. Unfortunately, they don't taste as sweet as the red and orange ones, but they sure are pretty. As for the Brazil Nut butter, it didn't have too strong of a taste--maybe I just need to have a taste refresher of what the actual nuts taste like...

Whitney said...

Caroline: I bought purple peppers last week (they were on the discount shelf...score!) I wasn't really a fan of them raw, but I roasted one and it was delicious! But I might be biased...I can't turn down a roasted pepper!

ChickPea said...

Whitney: Thanks for the tip! Next time I'll try roasting it for a better flavor.