Destination: Relaxation

Pardon the cliched title, but most precisely describes where I am headed. Fall Break begins for me tomorrow--we officially have no classes Monday and Tuesday, but since Fridays are always class-free for me, I get to start my vacation all the earlier. Yippee! As of tomorrow afternoon, I am on my way home for a long weekend of restful enjoyment. My plans include the obligatory Whole Foods run, plus maybe some lake time with the family, and nail polish shopping. What's on the schedule for you all this weekend?

These past few days have been rough; I had a noticeably more difficult second exam in stats today. At least it's over! I'm just sad that I had to miss the debates last night due to studying constraints. Boo! What did I miss? Was there anything particularly revelatory of either candidate?

Hmm, I am especially tangential tonight, aren't I? Let's get to the food before I bring up another random topic.

Monday
As is typical of my Monday evenings, my schedule was packed. Following my dining committee meeting, I hurried to the salad bar and was pleasantly surprised by lots of new goodies. Edamame, bulgur, and walnuts, oh my! Is it sad that I let out an audible "ooh!" when I saw the walnuts? Oops. I also had some perfectly ripe (non-woody) cantaloupe.
I was in a tropical mood on Monday night, so I decided a strawberry-pineapple smoothie was in order. In retrospect, I wonder why I didn't add some coconut.
Tuesday
My parfaits have been especially inspired by baked goods lately. Last week it was apple pie, this week I decided on a blueberry crumble theme. Blueberries, plain yogurt with cinnamon, bran flakes, chopped almonds, and wheat germ made for a perfectly crunchy breakfast rendition of the dessert favorite. I had major overflow on this one--too many ingredients, so little space!
Yesterday's lunch consisted of White Bean Cashew Dip from ED&BV, which gave me the excuse of using both the Bullet and my nutritional yeast flakes. Score! I served it alongside crackers, salad, and grapes.
Amidst my studying frenzy last night, I decided to direct some of my nervous energy toward chopping. I diced some yellow squash, red onion, spinach, and my last Boca burger to make a delicious hash. To complete the diner-esque meal, I had some toast, plus an apple with cashew butter. Yum.
I had to drop off those graham cracker brownies last night, so I decided to check my mail box at the same time, and look what I found:
I am so psyched to try this cookie:)

To treat myself after a tedious studying session, I made my favorite smoothie combo: vanilla hemp with mango, plus I added some peaches in there for good measure. I crumbled some Puffins on top for a change in garnish.
Wednesday
I kept it simple this morning as I crammed some last minute information into my head over breakfast. I opted for a bowl of Whole Foods brand Cheerios, rice milk, sliced banana, plus a little dish of TJ's AntiOXidant trail mix. Excellent brain food.
After a nice, relaxing run (in which I lapped a boy...twice!), I came home to prepare a batch of scrambled tofu with the usual components: tahini, turmeric, soy sauce, and ginger. On the side, I had a baked sweet potato, salad, and more of those ever-lasting grapes.
For dinner tonight, I attempted to re-create the White Bean and Walnut Bruschetta I made a few months ago. The ED&BV recipe calls for tomatoes and walnuts, however, neither of which I happened to have on hand. Improvisation came into play, and I substituted almonds for the walnuts and red onion for the tomato. These alteration produced a decidedly different flavor, although I enjoyed it, nonetheless. Along with it, I had some yellow squash, a salad with my new favorite dressing (mustard/vegan mayo/agave nectar/lemon juice/dill weed). A nice dish of applesauce finished it off. Whew! Lots of food, but I needed it.

I am off to finish packing, then perhaps read a little bit--for pleasure!