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:)

The Vegetarian Kitchen

Hi everyone!
Khara from Cookware.com was kind enough to provide me with an article which discusses a topic quite pertinent to The Broccoli Hut: the well-equipped vegetarian kitchen. Enjoy!

A Vegetarian’s Guide to Cookware

Being a vegetarian is a choice that can pay a lot of dividends, between the money saved in groceries and the health benefits. But by forgoing meat and animal products, you are forgoing convenience, as your dietary choices become more restricted. The initial adjustment period is always difficult in this regard, and tough decisions and dilemmas are always played out whether in a restaurant, supermarket, or right at home. But there are ways to deal with this, and one of them is having the right cookware in place that will make your own vegetarian meals much easier to prepare. We’ll help out by showing some items that you might want to concentrate on when you’re out shopping for cookware sets.

Eating a vegetarian diet means putting more of an emphasis on fruits and vegetables, which in turn means you might find yourself doing more food prep. So you want to make sure that you have the right tools at hand, whether you are slicing, dicing, chopping, pitting, or peeling. A proper knife set might be a worthy investment in this case, as would specialized kitchen gadgets such as a fruit corer or a julienne peeler. Another thing you might want to look at is upgrading your food processor or blender so that you can whip up sauces, shakes, and other accompaniments in a jiffy!

Other than convenience, the other thing to consider is what cookware items can bring to the table in terms of nutrition. One of the difficult things about becoming a vegetarian is finding ways to bring into your diet nutrients that are primarily found in meat. Iron is a great example of this, which is why vegetarians might sometimes have iron deficiency issues. The best way to compensate for the iron you are losing in your diet is to take nutritional supplements, but another way to do so is to use cast iron cookware. Research has shown that food cooked in cast iron skillets or pots has higher iron levels than food cooked with other types of cookware materials. This can make a huge difference over years of usage!

These are just a couple of things to consider when you’re thinking of the types of cookware that will best accommodate your vegetarian lifestyle. Any way that you can streamline the cooking and food preparation process will help immensely in dealing with those first few weeks without meet and will get you on your way to eating healthy and animal-friendly at the same time.


Although I have quite a few of the items mentioned, I am still in the market for an all-purpose food processor. Cookware.com does sell VitaMix and BlendTec machines...a girl can dream:)

Be back soon with a weekend re-cap!

Celebrate National Peanut Month!

That's right--March is National Peanut Month. This fact may have been obscured this year due to a certain peanut fiasco, but fear not: there are still plenty of ways to celebrate this most glorious legume, without endangering your health. The geniuses over at Peanut Butter & Company, for example, have provided us all with no less than EIGHT different varieties of peanut butter (not to mention their equally delicious peanut butter pretzel nuggets...we'll save that for another review). Thanks to the peanut butter fairy (aka VeggieGirl), I have had the good fortune of sampling five of these tantalizing flavors. Read on for the deets:


Cinnamon Raisin Swirl
It's like a cinnamon-raisin bagel in peanut butter form. Does it get any better than that?! Come to think of it, yes--spread some of this lusciousness on a Rudi's cinnamon-raisin bagel for double the delight.

Here are some of my other ways to enjoy it. The Banana Quesadilla (no cheese--just PB goodness) and the waffle-wich are two are my favorites:)


Dark Chocolate Dreams
Another match made in heaven: chocolate and peanut butter. It's like a Reese's cup without the guilt.
Serving suggestions. Note that it pairs especially well with raspberry oats and pancakes!


White Chocolate Wonderful
I'll admit it--I didn't like white chocolate...until I discovered this heavenly spread. I have big plans for this stuff; imagine the white chocolate macadamia Clif...in oatmeal form. Wonderful, indeed.


Mighty Maple
So autumnal, so sweet, so perfect. Who needs the syrup when you can put this on your pancakes?
Other ways to gobble it up:

Smooth Operator
Last, but not least: the classic original. I am very much a creamy girl, so this deliciousness goes down easy.
Yes, I am now a PB & Co. devotee: their cookbook is on my Amazon Wish List, and that "Heat Is On" variety is just callin' my name. Try them all for yourself--order online here.

Now you get your PB party on.

Interview Time!

Laural from Body, Mind, Soul kindly selected me to be her interviewee. Thanks for choosing me! Here are my answers to her questions:

1. What is the best way to make broccoli at The Broccoli Hut?

Although this is a difficult question, since I enjoy the wonder-veggie in so many ways, I would say the best way to prepare it is in a tofu scramble, one of my all-time favorite dishes.

Here are some other delicious ways to enjoy this most glorious vegetable:

2. What it your all-time favorite recipe?

Another difficult decision! However, one recipe that never fails to make me and my stomach happy is Cashew-Ginger Tofu from Eat, Drink, & Be Vegan by Dreena Burton. That also happens to be an all-time favorite cookbook of mine.

3. Are you strictly vegetarian and when did you make this choice?

I eliminated meat and fish from my diet five years ago, when I was 16. After becoming comfortable with that lifestyle, I toyed with the idea of veganism (In fact, you can read about my contemplations here). I cut out eggs and dairy from my diet for a period last summer but found that I lacked energy; I also worried about my calcium intake considering my history with anorexia. Thus, I compromised: I am now a lacto-vegetarian, meaning I do not eat meat, fish, or eggs, but I still consume some dairy (mostly cottage cheese and Greek yogurt!). I think my story elucidates the notion that there is no "one-size-fits-all" diet, vegetarian or not--it's best to experiment and find what works well for your lifestyle.

4. Pair of shoes you could not live without?

I am quite the shoe fanatic, so I simply CANNOT choose just one pair.

-I have been fortunate enough to discover my perfect running shoe, the Nike Air Pegasus. I could walk forever and a day in these.

-I must always have a pair of classic black pumps. Here is my latest pair.

-Fun shoes are also quite necessary.

5. Ethnic cuisine you most want to try (or country you'd most like to visit)?

I would love to try Korean fare. My aunt is Korean, and one of my best friends here at school is Korean, and they are always singing the praises of Kim Chee and Korean BBQ. I'd be interested in finding a locale that specializes in Korean cuisine...but I am not sure I'll find it in North Carolina OR Alabama. Oh well, maybe I'll just have to make a voyage to Korea one of these days!

Now it's your turn!

If you would like to be interviewed:

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me." If a few people want interviews, I will randomly pick 2.
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. (I get to pick the questions).
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Enjoy your Saturday!

Sweatin' Like a Man

Typically, I am not a sweaty girl. Rather, I merely get "dew-faced." I've never had to deal with pit-stains; it's not a big deal if I happen to forget to apply deodorant. Then today happened.

I went to the gym this morning in my yoga pants and T-shirt, as per usual, and remarked to myself, "Geez, it's a little hot out herr." Then I went on my merry way. After my workout, I looked down only to discover that I had oh-so-attractive sweat spots all over my body--the pits, the neck, the back. Eww. Fortunately, I had brought my Puma jacket so I was able to hide the evidence on my walk back to the apartment. Lesson learned: March means it is time to retire the winter gym-wear.

On another note, thanks for all your comments on Wednesday's posts. Rather than endeavor on a potentially restrictive "crap-free week," I am merely going to be more aware of my sugar and sodium intakes for a while--no counting, just focusing on more whole foods. Besides, you know I could never give up my daily Z bar!

Keep those alphabet oatmeal ideas coming! I foresee "I" and "U" being challenges as well...

Now, here's what I've been nibbling as of late:

Wednesday
I had another campus eatery to evaluate for the dining committee--Subway. Call me picky, but I think it's a little absurd not to have a whole grain option for sandwiches. Yes, they have "wheat" and "multigrain," but neither of which is truly whole grain. Thus, I had to make do with a Veggie Delight salad. I didn't even get any apple dippers--the guy in front of me snatched the last pouch. Hmph. Anyway, I returned to my apartment to add a little sustenance to the meal: guacamole and sliced Tofurky, along with a whole grain bagel and an apple.
Snack-time! I had to collect some data for my research methods class, so I brought along a Cherry Pomegranate Nectar bar. It was quite cherry-licious...add another Clif product to my favorites list:) Are you all enjoying the posting of my snacks? I have found that it's motivating me to be more creative with my afternoon noshing.
For dinner, I just made a big pasta salad with whole grain wagon wheel pasta (Hodgson Mill), chickpeas, cucumbers, carrots, celery, steamed broccoli, reduced-fat cheddar, and balsamic vinaigrette. I had a bowl of peaches on the side.
The shake of the evening is a bit of a mystery...I don't quite recall what I put in it. I know raspberries and dark chocolate were involved. That's my Choco-Cherry granola on top.
Thursday
The next installment for Chobani Week: Strawberry Walnut Parfait! Strawberry Chobani, FRESH strawberries, TJ's High Fiber Cereal, and walnuts. Fabulous.
I had to hurry to meet a professor, so I kept lunch fuss-free. I put the rest of my roasted red pepper hummus in a wrap along with some guacamole--it achieved quite a tie-dye effect. On the side, I had a spinach salad and fresh cantaloupe which I cut up all by myself--a first for me. Yes, I am a big girl now.
Snack-time featured some of those Cinnamon Graham Sticks with applesauce and almonds...and a side of Faulkner;)
For dinner, I made my all-time fave comfort meal: Cashew Ginger Tofu. I swear, I could drink that sauce straight...cashew ginger milkshake, anyone? I had some awesome veggies and whole grain couscous on the side.
The shake last night included chocolate rice protein, dark cocoa, soymilk, TWO bananas, and raspberries.
Friday
Breakfast was heavenly today: Tofu-Banana French Toast, another old fave of mine. The best part was the topping: I combined almond butter with that agave-maple syrup--fantastic!
Whole Foods haul:

Highlights: coconut water, Flax & Fig Waffles, tempeh bacon, and Rachel's cottage cheese. Oh, how I do love grocery shopping.
I had another wrapped-up lunch: Goddess Garbanzos in a veggie-wheat wrap, salad, and a chopped pear with wheat germ.
I just finished up today's snack, which featured Crispy Green fruit: freeze-dried bananas! I received these samples so that I would review them for VegFamily...they will get a positive review, methinks. I enjoyed them mixed into plain Greek yogurt with Dark Chocolate Dreams PB.
Reminders!
-Erin is generously sharing her Newman's Own bounty. Enter by March 28th!
-Jenna from Eat, Live, Run is putting together a blogger dessert cookbook! Contribute your recipe to HelpJennaRun@gmail.com by April 1st at 5PM.

Alright, Alanna (future roomie!) is coming over in a bit for some What Not to Wear and toenail-painting action. Later!

Nutritional Self-Esteem

I have no idea whether "nutritional self-esteem" is an actual term, but it describes a construct that has been prominent in my mind this week. Allow me to explain.

I feel like my diet has gotten progressively poor in nutritional quality lately, with far too much sugar and sodium than I would prefer. For example, on the Early Show this morning, there was short segment about various sweeteners (sugar vs. HFCS), in which they stated a sugar intake guideline--I think I had consumed that much as of 10 AM this morning. Granted, some of those were natural sugars found in milk and fruit, but I have a hard time justifying the sugars in that Z-bar and sweetened yogurt. What happened to the health-nut I used to be?

Just to be clear, I am not indicating that I feel guilty about kcalories or that I "feel fat" today. Rather, I am merely concerned that my diet's nutritional quality is not as satisfactory as it has been in the past. I am thinking that I should endeavor on a "crap-free week" in the near future, although it may have to wait until the chaos of school comes to a close.

On a lighter note, I received some great suggestions for my next oatmeal challenge. Here are a few ideas:
-Premium Ice Cream (a la Ben & Jerry's)
-Desserts!
-Savory oats
-Exotic fruits
-Clif flavors
-Tea varieties

Here is my idea: Alphabet Oats. I could incorporate ingredients with every letter of the alphabet into my oats, sweet or savory. For example, "A" could include apple, apricots, almonds...What do you think? Suggestions are welcome (especially for those pesky letters like Q, X, and Z).

Whew! Enough jibber-jabber--onto the food!

Monday
After my test on Monday, I came home in the food for some produce. So I made a quick Waldorf salad out of chopped apple, dates, walnuts, and vegan mayo. I used dates rather than raisins just 'cuz I am on a date kick these days. I also had some Ak Maks and veggies with (storebought) hummus.
Continuing with my attempt to break out of my snack rut, here's a new one: cinnamon graham cracker sticks with almond butter.
I stopped by the salad bar after my dining committee meeting and came home to prepare some quick BBQ tofu. I just slathered some pressed tofu with Whole Foods brand BBQ sauce and baked it in a 400* oven for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through. I also had some corn, melon, and added Goddess dressing to the salad.
The smoothie of the evening featured mango, strawberries, vanilla rice protein, and soymilk. I used more of that Bear Naked mango granola for crunch.
Tuesday
Inspired yet again by Clean Eating Magazine, I made some pumpkin pie oats, although I changed up the recipe a bit--their version included the protein powder as an "icing" mixed with water. I thought that sounded a little gross, so I just mixed it in with the oats. I don't think I am a fan of protein powder in oatmeal--it changes the texture too much. It might also have been this brand of protein powder; I am glad I didn't buy a big drum of this! This made a LARGEbowl of oats, but I managed to pack it all in;)
As part of my dining committee duties, I had to evaluate an on-campus eatery yesterday. I ordered their Greek salad ("The Parthenon"). When I got back to the apartment, I added a protein component by whipping up a batch of roasted red pepper hummus with chickpeas, roasted red peppers, lemon juice, garlic, ground red pepper, and tahini. I served it with whole wheat mini pitas and an apple.
My snack creativity continued with a kid-food craving: ants on a log! PB, celery, and raisins, plus a string cheese.
For dinner, I made a Mexican Pizza. After spreading some refried black beans on a flatbread, I baked it for about 10 minutes. Then, I spread the guacamole and sliced tomatoes on top with a little chili powder. On the side, I had a salad with chopped pear and raspberry vinaigrette. As a side note, these refried beans have been a pantry staple for me, ever since my dorm cooking days. I highly recommend them!
Another mango-strawberry concoction, this time with Pina Colada Spirutein. I topped it with coconut and Mango-Almond Melange.
Monday
Continuing with Chobani Week, I made another concoction featuring Greek yogurt this morning. I combined blueberry yogurt with bluberries and almonds. I dipped blueberry mini waffles into the mixture. (I also had a blueberry Clif Z bar this morning as my pre-workout snack--totally intentional, of course).
Before we part, a few reminders:
-Julie from Julie GoLean is giving away a few of her favorite goodies! Enter by March 29th at 11AM, EST.
-I'm not sure if the contest is over yet, but Courtney from the Hungry Yogini is giving away Barney Butter, a product I've never tried, oddly enough. I'd like to give it a whirl though! Enter by March 25th.
-Em at The Health Nut is giving away an *awesome* "I Love Oatmeal" shirt. I can think of severeal food bloggers, including myself, who NEED this shirt:) Enter by March 27th at midnight, EST.
-Jaime at Fearless, Fabulous, and Full of Life is giving away Oikos coupons! I am on a mission to sample every as many brands of Greek yogurt as possible, so I want to win this one! Enter by March 27th at 11:59 PM.

C. Yode, out!

An Award!

My friend Dulcie, from Daily Dulcie, was kind enough to tap me for the Kreativ Blogger Award this week. Thanks so much! It's always so flattering to be recognized by a fellow food blogger:)

So, the rules of this award dictate that I must list 7 things that I love, then pass on the award to 7 bloggers. Well, it seems that this award has made its rounds in the food blogosphere (and I don't know how I would choose just 7 people!), so I will just share my list of favorite things. Feel free to post a comment with yours!

1. God. There is no way I would still be here today without Him. 'Nuff said.
2. My mom. She's my best friend, my therapist, my advisor, and style consultant. I love you, Mom!
3. Cooking. Clearly, I make it a priority in my life. I just can't enough time in the kitchen.
4. Writing. I The written word is something that never fails to relax me and bring me joy. Beware--I am a grammar Nazi!
5. Running. Although I am a relative newbie to the sport, I love the sense of strength and overall health it provides.
6. Christmas. As some of you may remember, I begin my annual countdown in September. My birthday is Christmas Eve, so my excitement is two-fold.
7. Warm laundry out of the dryer. No matter how many loads of laundry I do, that cozy feeling provided by fresh laundry consistently gives me the warm fuzzies:)

Living in a Zoo

As if the chaos of the end of the semester weren't enough to make me feel like I'm living in a zoo, there is yet another reason these days: campus tours. Yes, it's that time of year again--the season in which reluctant high school students and their parents visit college campuses across the country in hopes of finding "the perfect fit." Overall, I don't really mind their presence, but it does make me feel a bit like a caged animal..."Look! A college student in its natural habitat!" Every time I exit the gym doors or look up from a computer screen in the library, I find multiple pairs of eyes staring back at me. Perhaps I am being overly sensitive to this mild surveillance...but still, this kind of thing makes you think twice about pickin' a wedgie;)

In contrast to the weekday zoo-like experiences, my weekend was pretty tame: just studying, a trip to TJ's, and chillin' with friends. Here's what I've been munching:

Friday
I busted out my Mango Almond Melange granola from my MixMyGranola on Friday night. Yes, I did create my smoothie on the basis of the granola flavors--I'm that cool. I combined frozen mango, raspberries, soymilk, and Tropical Fruit Spirutein, the perfect vehicle for my granola:)
Saturday
I was in a particularly decadent mood on Saturday morning, so I made a choco-berry parfait. I used layers of TJ's High Fiber cereal, plain yogurt mixed with dark cocoa and stevia, and sliced strawberries topped with wheat germ and chocolate-hazelnut spread. YUM.
For lunch, I used more of that bean dip to make a very messy burrito. I put bell peppers, mashed avocado, bean dip, salsa, and spinach in a veggie-wheat tortilla and served it alongside a salad and an apple. I need to work on my wrapping skills, apparently.
For my snack, I tried another Rachel's cottage cheese flavor. I think I have a dependency on this stuff. Cottage cheese is definitely the reason why I couldn't go entirely vegan...for now.
Before heading over to watch the Duke-Texas game (in which we were victorious!), I made a simple dinner: a can of Health Valley's Vegetable Soup with added chickpeas, rice crackers, and a salad with cashews and Tofu-Lime Dressing. In addition to my homemade hummus obsession, I think I feel a homemade dressing fixation developing...
My smoothie that night featured frozen banana, unsweetened banana Spirutein, raspberries, and soymilk. I topped it with some more of that Peak Protein granola by Bear Naked.
Sunday
As you may know, I have a healthy appreciation for Clif bars, especially the Maple Nut and Oatmeal Raisin Walnut flavors. Accordingly, I decided to combine my favorite flavors in my oatmeal bowl: oats, rice milk, cinnamon, raisins, walnuts, and an agave-maple blend made for a wonderful start to the day. I find myself running out of oatmeal inspiration these days. With my Taste the Rainbow challenge and Girl Scout series complete, I need ideas. What should my next oatmeal challenge be?
I whipped up another batch of tofu cream cheese yesterday (NOT in pizza dip this time) and assembled a fruit pizza. I added a little cinnamon to the mix and the resulting flavor was quite reminiscent of the Creamy Cashew Dip from ED&BV (which I have made here and here). This fruit pizza was of the strawberry-banana variety, and I served it with greens topped with cucumber, wheat germ, and raspberry vinaigrette.

This marks the beginning of Chobani Week. This week, I'll be using all of your wonderful suggestions to sample Chobani's various flavors. First up was plain, with pumpkin and almonds.
After chapter, I returned home not really in the mood for a real dinner, so I made Mexican Dip again. This time, I layered the bean dip you've seen so much lately with salsa, TJ's Guac-Salsa, reduced-fat cheddar, and some more tofu sour cream. I scooped up all the goodness with baked blue corn chips and celery. High in sodium, but oh-so-delicious.
The smoothie last night was a bit of a leftovers concoction: soymilk, blueberries, frozen banana, strawberries, and vanilla rice protein went into the blender for this one. I topped it with my Choco-Cherry Treat granola--not the perfect accompaniment but tasty just the same.
Monday
I was in a rush to get to class today, so I slapped together a banana dog: whole wheat hot dog bug, banana, PB, and agave-maple syrup with a glass of rice milk. Fast and delish.
A few important reminders:
-Brilynn at Jumbo Empanadas is giving away a VitaMix. Yes, you read that right. You have no idea how much I covet the VitaMix machines of my fellow bloggers. I mean, come on, I make at least one smoothie per day. I clearly *need* a VitaMix. Anyway, enter by March 28 for your chance to win!
-Kristin from Kristin's Nibbles is giving away an assortment of Quaker goodies. I love the Simple Harvest products...and fuzzy slippers, so I am excited about this giveaway as well! Enter by tonight (March 23 at 9PM).

Eek! Another monster post! Congrats if you read this far! Be back soon:)

Bar-Hopping with Gnu and Odwalla

So I've been bar-hopping lately...snack bar-hopping, that is. Yep, I ventured beyond the confines of my beloved Clif world and taste-tested a few of those other treats you see lurking in the ever-expanding bar aisle. Here's a quick summary of my thoughts:
Gnu Bars
These bars have been getting major press lately: featured on the Today Show, Rachael Ray (A Broccoli Hut fave), and included in magazines like Real Simple and Prevention. A few months ago, Robyn from Gnu Foods kindly offered to send me a box of these fiber-packed bars for review. Due to my abundant snack bar stash, it wasn't until now that I got around to sampling them.

The Stats
-130-150 kcalories
-3-5 grams of fat
-3-4 grams of protein
-a whopping 12 grams of fiber
-7-11 grams of sugar
-fruit-sweetened
-vegan
-made with whole grain flour
-HFCS-free!
The Flavors (in order of preference)
*Banana Walnut: I have sample many banana-nut flavored bars in my day, and this rendition is one of my favorites. Quite banana-y, with no artificial aftertaste (after all, there are real bananas in there), and I like the texture that the walnuts provide.
*Cinnamon Raisin: Feeling like a cinnamon-raisin bagel? Grab one of these! Not only is the taste right on target, but you'll get a lot more fiber by chomping one of these instead of its more starchy counterpart.
*Chocolate Brownie: Quite the fiber-licious brownie, this one. I really enjoyed this variety thanks to its abundance of (dairy free) chocolate chips. If you're expecting a milk chocolate flavor, however, you should look elsewhere--this bar has a more intense cocoa flavor that I love.
*Peanut Butter: This flavor was pleasant enough--but NOT peanut-y. It was mildly sweet, but it earned only a "meh" response from my tastebuds. Not a winner. Re-formulation needed, ASAP.
*Orange Cranberry: I opened this bar with high hopes; I expected it to be similar in taste to the apricot Clif flavor (which reminded me of glorious orange marmalade). Not so. The orange flavor was not authentic, and it did not combine well with cranberries. This was by far my least favorite.
General Comments
I used these bars as a pre-workout snack. Not a wise decision. I had my suspicions that the high fiber content would not make them ideal for a quick burst of energy, but what's a Clif Z-bereft girl to do? Anyway, these bars are generally quite difficult to digest--generating fullness, but also causing some discomfort during physical activity. If you choose to try these bars for yourself, consider consuming them as a mid-day snack; avoid eating them before exercise or just before bedtime.
On another note, the wrappers of these bars are ridiculously difficult to open without scissors. Translation: not a good snack to throw in your purse for on-the-go snacking, unless you happen to carry some sort of cutting utensil with you.

Odwalla Bars
These bars are rather ubiquitous: on campus, in various Whole Foods locations, as well as in the food blogosphere. Thus, I just had to give them a try for myself. Unfortunately, I was unable to sample all of the flavors due to the peanut recall as well as the limited selection at my local Whole Foods. Where are those elusive Superfood bars?! Also, I am not including the Chewy Nut Bars...we'll save those for another review, since they're quite qualitatively distinct from the other flavors.

The Stats
-220-250 kcalories
-4-7 grams of fat
-3-4 grams of fiber
-4-5 grams of protein, although the Superprotein variety has a whopping 16 grams
-18-20 grams of sugar
-made with organic ingredients
-includes a few vitamins and minerals, such as calcium (25% RDA), vitamin A (20% RDA), and vitamin E (50% RDA)

The Flavors (in order of preference)
*Superprotein: Hello, giant protein oatmeal cookie! When I brought along this flavor for a quick pre-workout snack, it always disappeared far too quickly. I love its subtle cinnamon-y taste and the fact that one bar contains so much protein! They're even soft like a freshly-baked cookie.
*Choco-Walla: Alright, I am a bit biased in that I will pretty much eat anything with chocolate in it, but this was another winner. Delightful chocolate chips also provide unexpected hits of intense chocolate flavor throughout the bar. I bet this would be quite tasty warmed and dunked in rice milk:)
*Banana Nut: Yep, yet another banana nut bar. No points for creativity, but Odwalla does get some points for taste. This bar also lacks the artificial banana flavor that so many bars can have, but it does have visible chunks of walnuts inside. Delish.
*Berries Go-Mega: As a non-fish eating vegetarian, I am always looking for ways to fit in those omega-3s, so I appreciate products that provide an alternative to the usual flax and walnuts. Excellent berry flavor--it boasts cranberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Good, but not a favorite.
*Strawberry Pomegranate: Now this is a creative flavor. It's not too often that you encounter strawberries in bar form (why is that?). Anyway, the flavor reminded me of those Fruit Roll-Ups I used to stash in my lunchbox as a kid...not sure if that's good or bad. I didn't detect any hints of pomegranate, sadly.

General Comments
These bars have a texture similar but not identical to Clif bars; they are slightly softer and stickier, which can cause unexpected problems (read: sticky fingerprints on test papers). In addition, excepting the Superprotein variety, they lack the significant protein counts found in Clif bars. Most flavors have just 4-5 grams in comparison to Clif's 9-10 grams.
One of may favorite Odwalla products does not come in the full-size bar, but I highly recommend them if you can find them: Carrot Raisin snack bars. I featured them many months ago here at the Hut, but I still find them quite delicious. For those of you who found the Clif Carrot Cake variety so unpalatable, you might try this version as an alternative. These have 110 kcalories and lots of vitamin A.
I have previously reviewed Clif bars and Clif Z bars. Check 'em out!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

"Have It Your Way"...with Granola!

Thanks to all of you who entered my first giveaway. I received a total of 50 entries, and used a random integer generator to select the winner of the $20 gift certificate from MixMyGranola. And the winner is...

#27 howunremarkable, who said:
"I can't believe I didn't know this existed! Amaaazing."

Well, now you know...and you get to try it for FREE. Send me an e-mail (carnie87@aol.com), and we'll fix you up for your personalized granola taste-test.

As for the rest of you, there IS a consolation prize. ALL Broccoli Hut readers are entitled to a $3 discount at MixMyGranola! Simply enter in "HUT" for a promotion code at checkout.

Enjoy:)

One Scatter-brained Sister

For some unexplained reason, I have been quite the scatter-brained sister lately. On Wednesday night, I failed to set my alarm for the next morning. I awoke approximately a half-hour late, to the considerate questioning of my dear roommate:
"Caroline, did your morning class get cancelled?"
"What? Aw, crap."
I was quite appreciative of her awakening me--I had to turn in a paper that day!
Then, today I was daydreaming in the shower until I discovered that I had shaved the same leg three times. Hmm. It seems I need a little assistance in maintaining focus these days.

On another note, I have been visited by the sample fairy several times these past few days. First my personalized granola from MixMyGranola:
There's still time to enter my giveaway...you have until 11:59 PM tonight to enter!

I also received a few goodies from McCann's:
Any tips on how to prepare Irish oatmeal?

Finally, I also received this book from the people over at POM Wonderful.
It provides an insider's perspective on starting a business and marketing it successfully. I can't wait to read it...however, it will likely have to wait until after school is over.

Despite my recent flightiness, I have not been so distracted that I have forgotten to eat. Here's what I've been chowing on lately:

Wednesday
My mom has this really awesome (and really easy!) recipe for pizza dip for which I have been having an intense craving. So, I called up my mom, got the recipe, and set to work. The recipe calls for cream cheese, but I had the "genius" idea of substituting homemade tofu cream cheese. I whipped up the tofu concoction (which was quite tasty), then spread it in the dish and added the other layers (tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and veggie toppings--I chose artichoke hearts). Twenty minutes later, I had a bubbling mess. Although it tasted alright, the tofu cream cheese had totally disintegrated in the baking process. Lesson learned: stick to the real stuff next time. Those are baked blue corn chips and a salad with balsamic vinaigrette on the side.
For dinner, I had sorority ceremonies to attend for several hours, so I brought my dinner along: a Tofurky-hummus sandwich, an apple, raw veggies, and almonds.
Once home, I whipped up a delicious shake: cappuccino Spirutein, frozen banana, non-dairy vanilla ice cream, and soymilk with a few chocolate chips for garnish. Who needs Starbucks?
Thursday
Yesterday morning was the day of the "absent alarm" incident. After scrambling to put on a T-shirt and yoga pants, I still managed to make breakfast. My roommate remarked, "Hey, you still managed to eat breakfast!" Of course. Breakfast before beauty. I made CCV's Banana Bread Blender again with GoLean, soymilk, frozen banana, almonds, cinnamon, and a little coconut. OK, so my version really doesn't much resemble the original recipe, but it was tasty, nonetheless.
For lunch, I drew inspiration from the most recent issue of Clean Eating magazine. There is a recipe for a Caribbean Tuna Salad, which sounded delicious, but I made significant substitutions to make it vegetarian- and time-friendly. I used chickpeas for the tuna and used prepared peanut sauce with lime juice and jerk seasoning to make the dressing. That's mango and bell pepper in the salad and pita on the side. I'll include the magazine pic too, just for fun.
More sorority ceremonies that night, so I brought by dinner again (in my eco-friendly sack): asparagus-avocado-tomato wrap, grapes, and soynuts with dried apricots. I also brought some little PB cracker sandwiches for snacking.
My shake last night was...weird. I combined strawberries, dark cocoa, chocolate rice protein, soymilk, and non-dairy ice cream then topped it off with a bit of PB2 and high-fiber cereal (I need that crunch!). Not my best effort.
Friday
After a blissful 8-hours' sleep, I prepared a filling breakfast favorite: scrambled tofu. I switched it up this time and put it in a wrap. The green you see is asparagus and scallions. I also had a perfectly ripe orange on the side.
Following my Whole Foods trip, I came home to prepare a simple lunch: hummus pizza. I used leftover Greek hummus (from Tuesday), tomatoes, and an Ezekiel pita. Due to the oregano, olives, and tomatoes, it really did smell like pizza in the apartment! I had some greens with raspberry vinaigrette and an apple on the side.
Another night of sorority ceremonies, another sack dinner: PB & apple butter on whole wheat with grapes, and raw veggies with this bean dip. For snacktime, I brought a Jamfrakas bar and almonds.
Whew! I am pooped. Sorry for the monstrous post...but before I go, a friendly reminder:

Time's a-tickin'...enter the MixMyGranola giveaway before it's too late!

Life as a List-Maker

Hello, my name is Caroline, and I am a chronic list-maker.

It's true; my roommate and I both share a love of making itemized lists (hence why I gave her this book for Christmas). Our apartment often looks as if a Post-It blizzard has struck--our laptops, the refrigerator door, and even the bedroom wall usually are host to a few brightly colored stickies with lists on them. Recently, however, I graduated from Post-Its to a more attractive way of recording my lists. Check out one of my latest purchases from Home Goods:
A Cook's Planner!
Are you a list-maker? What do you make lists for? Do you take one to the grocery store? I usually take a list so that I don't forget specialized items for recipes, but I rarely buy solely what is written on it...I inevitably have a few impulse buys.

I am aiming to be on time to class today, so let's move onto the food!

Monday
One of my fun projects over spring break was to go through my pile of Clean Eating magazines and select a few recipes to try in the coming months. One from the most recent issue caught my eye: the Avocado Egg Salad. I veganized it by using cubed silken tofu rather than boiled egg whites. There's also some dijon mustard and paprika in there for some kick. I served it atop a bed of greens alongside some Ak Maks and grapes. Quite a green meal!
I have yet another snack to share with you all. I don't normally post snacks since they're pretty repetitive. Accordingly, I have been getting bored with my usual yogurt+Sunbutter combos, so I decided to mix it up. Here you see Tofurky-provolone roll-ups with a few almonds. Although I authored a snack post a while back, now I am asking you: what are your favorite snacks?
I had a sorority event that night, so I put together a quick wrap for dinner: artichokes, bell peppers, and mozzarella in an Italian herb flatbread, plus asparagus with walnuts and garlic salt, and a perfectly ripe orange.
For my smoothie, I combined mango, raspberries, soymilk, and the very last bit of my drum of Nutribody protein. I really like the color raspberries add to my smoothies! I topped it with another kind of granola that I found lurking in the cupboard: Bear Naked Mango Agave Almond. Sounds like my kind of thing, no? Check out those hunks of mango!
Tuesday
My oat bran addiction continues. This time, I cooked it in rice milk and vanilla extract, then added pumpkin and banana. I used cashew butter as the perfect topper. This took fo-evah to eat! Totally worth being late to class for it:)
Another recent obsession: homemade hummus. I make Greek hummus yesterday, as inspired by this recipe from Rachael Ray. Olives, parsley, oregano, tahini, chickpeas=tastiness. I served it with some whole wheat mini pitas, cucumber sticks, and an apple. Lots of green goin' on here, too...
In honor of St. Paddy's Day, I made an even greener meal for dinner: whole grain pasta with peanut lime sauce, edamame, snap peas, and broccoli. I got the idea for this one from Ellie Krieger. I also had some greens on the side.
My smoothie of the evening featured unsweetened peach Spirutein, peaches, raspberries, and soymilk. I used more of that heavenly mango granola on top.

Wednesday
With the warmer temperatures these days, I have returned to my 2-a-day smoothie habit. Today's featured that tasty pumpkin-banana combo again, along with rice milk and flax. On the side, I had a mini bagel with a Laughing Cow wedge.
Take a look at what I found waiting for me at my door yesterday:
CHOBANI! I know so many of you bloggers out there love 'em, so tell me how you like to enjoy them the most. How do you Chobani? (Yes, I have made Chobani a verb).

Reminders:
-Eating Bender is giving away TWO amazing assortments of her favorite items. Enter by tonight at 8PM CST.
-Visit Say Yes to Salad for a chance to win some Oikos coupons. Those would come in handy on my recent mission to sample all Greek yogurts...Enter by today at 12PM PST.
-Enter my giveaway for a gift certificate to MixMyGranola by Friday, March 20 at 11:59 PM EST.

Alright, C Yode out!

My First Giveaway!

Hello all! I am supah-psyched to share an opportunity to score some sweet foodie loot! The kind folks at MixMyGranola have offered to give away a $20 gift certificate to one lucky Broccoli Hut reader. Seeing as how we're all pretty health-conscious here at the Hut, I think you all will love their nutritious and fully customizable products. I ordered two boxes of my very own, fully personalized granola yesterday. It was a tough decision, choosing among their 50 ingredients...but I managed somehow:) Can you guess which ingredients went into my mix? Let's just say I named them "Mango-Almond Melange" and "Choco-Cherry Treat." (What can I say? I like alliteration!)

SO, if you'd like a chance to get creative with your granola, leave me a comment on this post before March 20th at 11:59 PM, EST. I'll use a random integer generator to choose a winner and announce it this weekend. Leave me some love, bloggies!

Be back soon.

Are You Afraid of the Dark?

**Thanks to everyone for your kind comments in response to my post entitled "Another First." I really enjoyed the experience, and I appreciate your support!**

Aside from being a super-awesome Nickelodeon television show from my childhood, today's post refers to how I felt this morning. I hopped out of bed at 7AM this morning, as per usual, to walk across campus to the gym. When I open up the door, however, it appears to be the middle of the night. Oh, yeah. Daylight Savings Time. While it's great to have the prolonged sunlight in the evening, I had forgotten that there is a trade-off--it's much darker in the AM. Central campus (where I reside) has a reputation as being more crime-ridden than one might prefer, so this unexpected darkness made me a little nervous. Yes, I admit it--I was afraid of the dark. Fortunately, the sun came along soon enough, so my trek over to the gym was minimally frightening. How about you? Are you afraid of the dark?

Anyway, since my last meal re-cap, I have returned to school for the final portion of the semester. Here's what I ate in my last few days of freedom.

Friday
I have another rare snack to share: Rachel's cottage cheese with pear and mangosteen. To be honest, I'm pretty sure I have never even seen a mangosteen, but I still thought this flavor sounded intriguing. I enjoyed mine with some raw cashews. I think the reason I like these flavored cottage cheese cups so much is that they remind me of Breakstone's Cottage Doubles. They have the same portability and tastiness--without all the icky ingredients.
For dinner, I decided on the Thai Chick-Un Pizza from ED&BV (quite possibly my very fave cookbook). I have made it before (see here and here), and it never disappoints. I wish I had had the pineapple that the recipe requires, but no such luck. Nonetheless, it was quite delicious. I also had a salad and some clementines.
My shake of the evening was of the choco-nana variety: unsweetened chocolate Spirutein, frozen banana, vanilla non-dairy ice cream, and soymilk. Sorry for the crap-tastic picture--at least you have a nice few of my current cookbook obsessions in the background.
Saturday
Following my race on Saturday, I knew exactly what I wanted for breakfast. I had mentioned it in my last post when I showed you my GoLean Muffin creations...yep, I made a muffin parfait. This one featured said muffins, Greek yogurt, blueberries, and Mighty Maple PB. I love how the muffins soak up all the flavors of the other layers. See yesterday's post for details.
I had a quick lunch so that I could devote my full attention to the ACC tournament on TV. (FYI: DUKE WON THE TOURNAMENT). Anyway, I made a ginormous wrap with chickpeas, steamed cauliflower, red bell pepper, mixed greens, and Woodstock dressing. This wrap ended up being quite messy and falling apart after my picture. Nonetheless, it was quite tasty. On the side, I had more greens and a big bowl of watermelon.

As a last hurrah before my departure, the whole fam came over for dinner. I needed to use up some leftover beans, so I made some hummus inspired by Caitlin's purple hummus...except mine was pink! With my hand blender, I combined red beans, liquid smoke, tahini, paprika, cumin, garlic, and S + P. The end result was quite smoky and garlicky, which doesn't make for the best breath, but it tastes good goin' down. I put a hefty amount in an oat bran pita with some spinach. I also had some salad, clementines, and grabbed the last few green beans from the serving bowl. You gotta be quick in my house if you want some green beans, apparently.
After a night out at a piano bar (which was another first for me), I came home to make a quick shake: S'mores Spirutein, dark cocoa, soymilk, banana, and non-dairy vanilla ice cream. Yum.
Sunday
I re-fueled before church with a simple breakfast: Toast with PB and fig jam, a clementine, and some good ol' Fage.
I packed my lunch for the airport, which I'm afraid featured more simple fare: leftover pink hummus, Ak-Maks, assorted veggies, and grapes. Garlic breath and small enclosed spaces (i.e. airplanes) are not a good combination. Oops.
I tried a new bar for my snack: a PURE bar in the Chocolate Chip Trail Mix flavor. Look for a review in the future...
Once home, unpacked, and re-stocked with some produce, I settled into dinner. I made a salad with chopped up soy nuggets, spinach, and a homemade agave-mustard dressing. On the side, I had some corn, broccoli, and applesauce with almonds. I promise my culinary creativity will return eventually...
For my smoothie, I amped up the raspberry: raspberries, raspberry Spirutein, soymilk, and Peak Protein granola. I found this in the cabinet from way back when the kind folks at Bear Naked sent me samples.
Monday
Back to the grind this morning. I just heated up some rice milk and poured it over Autumn Wheat cereal and served it with a sliced apple & Cinnamon Swirl PB.
Heads up on an upcoming giveaway:
Em of the Health Nut is giving away an Eat Right bag from the American Dietetic Association. Enter by March 20th at midnight, EST.

Well, it's my first day back, and I am already running late for class again. Sheesh. Enjoy your Monday!

Healthy Habits: The Perfect Parfait

Let me tell you a story. About 7 years ago, while on vacation in the fabulous town of Las Vegas, I ordered something called a "Breakfast Parfait" for breakfast one morning. Being the then-unadventurous eater that I was, my breakfast options had previously been limited to Honey Nut Cheerios and Eggo Waffles. Thus, this "breakfast parfait" was a major departure from my habitual morning meal. When it arrived, I was delighted by the eye-catching layers of yogurt, granola, and fruit. I liked it so much, I ordered it again the next morning. I completely forgot about that divine breakfast treat until many years later, when I had been bitten by the cooking bug. Inspired to assemble something more elaborate than toast or cereal, I determined to re-create that breakfast treat. Little did I know that I would soon develop a new culinary obsession.

Breakfast parfaits have it all: they're versatile, nutritious, and beautiful:
-You can adapt any parfait to suit your taste preferences; there are no real rules about what must go into a breakfast parfait.
-If you choose relatively healthful components (i.e., low-fat or non-fat yogurt, plenty of fruit, and whole grains), then a breakfast parfait is a healthy addition to any diet.
-Be sure to choose a pretty glass in which to place your ingredients. Half the fun of eating a parfait is the presentation!

I've had much practice in making parfaits over the years (almost as much expertise as I have in smoothie making), so here are a few guidelines I've created to ensure a maximally enjoyable parfait experience:
*Choose a grain component. I like whole grain cereals such as Fiber One, raisin bran, and Kashi GoLean. Other grain options include VitaTops, homemade whole grain muffins (crumbled), or other baked goods.
*Choose a fruit. There are no real limits here. Go with your favorite...or even a combination of several.
*Choose a wet ingredient. Mine is almost always yogurt, but I have been known to include applesauce or pumpkin as well. Most often I use plain yogurt, but feel free to include flavored yogurts as well--just keep an eye on that sugar count.
*You may like to sprinkle an optional topping as a final flourish. I typically place a dollop of nut butter, a few chopped nuts, wheat germ, or granola for texture and taste.
*Pay attention to the order in which you layer your ingredients. I happen to enjoy soggy textures, so I like to layer in the following order: grain, yogurt, fruit--repeat! That way the muffins or cereal soak up the flavor of the yogurt, creating a texture not unlike a trifle. Feel free to change up the sequence as you please.

I have made MANY breakfast parfaits on this blog, but here is a mere sampling:

For a complete list of all my parfait posts, click here. If you have any questions about any of the ingredients in any of my creations, just shoot me an email!

Happy parfait-making!

Another First

I have officially completed my first race! Despite the rainy weather, I ran in the Perseverance 5K Race this morning (aptly named, I know) in 25:02. Not my best time, but I am beyond satisfied with my racing experience. Reaching the finish line made me realize how far my body has come in the past 5 years--there is no way I could have competed back then with my restrictive eating habits. Here's to a future filled with healthful eating and a healthy body! I can't wait to run another race.
Check out a few pics from the race:
Here are the racing goodies:
Mostly coupons to stores selling track supplies and sporting goods, plus an energy gel thing and lip balm. No mini Laras this time!

Thanks to my family for showing up to cheer me on in the icky conditions:)

Enjoy your Saturday!

A Little Less Wimpy

I woke up this morning to gray, rainy skies and a temperature gauge that read 47*. Boo. What happened to our summer-like weather? I am quite the wimp when it comes to running in unpleasant weather; I much prefer the constancy of the treadmill. However, I have no treadmill at home, and I really needed to run today. I had opted for alternative (indoor) forms of exercise for the past two days--and I have my 5k tomorrow! So, to avoid being completely unprepared for my first race, I put my big girl pants on--I ran in the nasty weather. My experience ended up being relatively successful: I survived the chilly drizzle of rain and returned home with a feeling of accomplishment. What about you? Are you more of an indoor or outdoor exerciser?

I have been thoroughly enjoying the leisure of spring break by trying some new combinations in the kitchen. Take a looksie:

Wednesday
I ended the day with a favorite Spirutein flavor: Nutty Berry Burst. As I've mentioned before, this variety has a flavor pleasantly reminiscent of pistachios. Anyway, this rendition included strawberries, non-dairy vanilla ice cream, and soymilk, topped with a little PB2 and cashew granola. Fab-yoo-lus.
Thursday
Remember when I re-purposed my French toast batter as a pudding? Well, I've been at it again, but this time I mixed it into my morning oat bran. Once I had prepared the tofu-banana mixture and cooked the oat bran, I combined the two and blended them with my hand blender. The end result was a silky smooth bowl of goodness. I topped the oat bran with wheat germ and Sunbutter.
After an intense day of shopping, I returned home famished. I quickly made a batch of Better Bunny Salad (which I have also made here, here and here) using pineapple, currants, walnuts, carrots, and vegan mayo. I served it atop a bed of greens; I also toasted up a new kind of bagel that I found at SuperTarget. Cherry and pomegranates, in the same item? In a bread item, no less? Clearly, I was destined to try this product. One drawback: as I was waiting for my bagel to toast, I noticed that the ingredients list includes sucralose (aka Splenda).
In response to a recent craving for muffins, I decided to make a batch yesterday afternoon. I drew inspiration from my all time fave cereal, GoLean. Whole wheat flour, bananas, applesauce, almond milk, and agave nectar made for some delicious vegan treats. I am thinking a muffin parfait is in my future...
For dinner, I made yet another recipe from Totally Vegetarian, the Pumpkin Bulgur Chili. I know, this sounds like another odd use for pumpkin, but it has proved to be quite the versatile ingredient this week. This thick stew turned out delicious! I had never used bulgur before, but I now know that its texture is eerily similar to ground beef when incorporated into soup. Anyway, other main ingredients of the chili include red beans and toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds). I went back for seconds on this one!
The smoothie last night featured perhaps my second favorite fruit for blended concoctions, cherries. I combined cherry Spirutein, cherries, soymilk, and cashew ginger granola.
Friday
Clearly, after my nippy run this morning, all I wanted for breakfast was a big bowl of warmth. One of Katie's recent posts reminded me of the wonders of her oatmeal creations, so I decided I would make a pumpkin variation of her Oatmeal Raisin Pudding. I made this once before, and it was total heaven then, just as it was this morning. I topped it with walnuts and currants and served it with a bowl of strawberries and peaches.
I spent the day shopping for various kitchen items with Mom, which as you all know, is one of my favorite pastimes. I swear, I really am 21, not 85. Anyway, when we returned home, I made myself a piping hot curry dish with red beans, red onion, tomatoes, garam masala, curry powder, cumin, paprika, and turmeric. I soaked it up with an Ezekiel pita and served it alongside an apple and a salad with Ginger Miso Dressing. My sister Lea has been obsessing over this dressing for months, and I couldn't find it until just recently. It tastes exactly like the dressing they use at Japanese steakhouses. I really enjoyed it, but its texture is a little thick for using on salads. It has the consistency of hummus or peanut butter, making it difficult to distribute among the greens.
Regarding my last post's topic, I have decided to respond to specific questions and comments via e-mail. Otherwise, I'll leave you a note in the comments section. Just thought you'd like to know for future reference:)

Some pretty awesome giveaways are taking place in the blogosphere these days:
-Heather Eats Almond Butter is giving away coupons for Turtle Mountain products, which happen to be personal favorites. I *love* their fruit-sweetened non-dairy ice cream and their cinnamon bun soy yogurts. Enter my midnight tonight!
-If you head over to Lucky Taste Buds, you'll have the chance to win a $20 gift certificate for Mix My Granola. Were I to win or order from the site, I know for sure that my mix would include mangoes, almonds, and coconut. What would you include in your ideal mix? Enter by March 16 at 8AM.

Ta-ta for now, bloggies!

Talk to Me

After reading a recent post by Lindsay in which she asked her readers how they preferred to be contacted, I got to thinking that maybe I should do the same. Many of you may not know it, but I respond to each of your comments individually in the comments section of each post. I do this because I want to emphasize how much I appreciate each and every comment/question I receive. However, I fear that many of you never even see my responses. SO...I want to know: how would you prefer I respond to your comments? Should I continue leaving mammoth response comments in my posts, or would you prefer that I send you an e-mail? If it's the latter, you'll have to be sure to leave me your e-mail address.

Now, with all logistics aside, I have some fun dishes to share with you today. I am loving all this leisure time to cook as I please!

Monday
After being prompted to choose my absolute favorite Spirutein flavor by my friend K, I bestowed the honor on the Blueberries N Cream flavor. Accordingly, I made a smoothie with it that night: blueberries, said Spirutein, and soymilk topped with TRUWhip (a natural alternative to Cool Whip), and cashew ginger granola. Dee-lish. I think I have outgrown my liking for whipped topping though--I much prefer the crunch of granola these days.
Tuesday
After a very sweaty run outside in ~80* temperatures, I needed a cool and refreshing breakfast...so I had a breakfast parfait. This one featured Graham Bumpers, Cherry Almond Butter (from VeggieGirl!), dried cherries, and Greek yogurt. I cannot wait for cherry season!
For lunch I wanted another excuse to use my hand blender, so I decided on a soup recipe from Totally Vegetarian, Creamy Cauliflower Soup. The name of the dish is a slight misnomer,as there is no milk or soymilk in the recipe--the creaminess comes from the blended potato! This was a super simple recipe and delicious to boot. I enjoyed it with the rest of my pumpkin hummus, raw veggies, and a few clementines. Perf.
Although I don't normally include pics of my snacks, I thought this one was blog-worthy: Rachel's Cucumber Dill Cottage Cheese. I picked it up at WF the other day on a whim, and I am SO glad that I did. Its flavor was quite reminiscent of tsasiki dip, one of my favorite condiments these days. For those of you counting your sugar grams (Jenn!), these have 75% less sugar than conventionally sweetened yogurts.
I whipped up another dish from Totally Vegetarian for dinner: Pasta with Red Onion, Radicchio, Fakin' Bacon, and Edamame. I love all the colors in this meal! The green and purples are quite eye-catching, no? Unfortunately, this dish didn't have enough flavor for me. Next time I might add some pesto or something. That's a dish of peaches and a salad with Woodstock dressing on the accompanying plate.
Yesterday afternoon, I received a Facebook message from VeggieGirl with a suggestion for a shake recipe. After saving it in my recipe file, I decided to try something similar for my evening treat (I didn't have all the ingredients on hand, so I was unable to follow the recipe exactly). I blended strawberries, soymilk, unsweetened vanilla Spirutein, and a couple spoonfuls of PB2. Fabulous! I really recommend the PB-strawberry combo. As soon as I get some hemp milk and vanilla rice powder, I'll try VG's precise recipe:)
Wednesday
After much indecision over what to have for breakfast, I remembered Jenn's recipe for PB2 icing. I topped my toast with a good dose of the icing and served it with a combo of Greek yogurt, pumpkin, and almonds, plus a few clementines on the side.
My lunch today was again inspired by an Everyday Dish podcast. I made the Ginger Peanut Tofu Salad. It turned out pretty well--it tasted a lot like my Peanut Butter Noodles, just in tofu form. Oddly enough, I realized that I had forgotten to add the agave nectar--how unlike me to forget sweetener! Anyway, it tasted yummy just the same. I served the salad with some flax crackers, "carnival" cauliflower, and pineapple.
I didn't get much of a chance to plan dinner tonight, so when I finally returned home, I just slapped together the first thing that came to mind: whole wheat hamburger bun with broccoli, provolone, and sun dried tomatoes, plus a salad with Goddess dressing and an apple. I scarfed this down WAY too fast.
Before I go, I'll let you know about a few giveaways going on:
-Emily from Health Nut is giving away a supah-cute meal planner. Enter to win by March 13 at midnight!
-Jenn from Eating Bender is giving away a few Quaker goodies that I *really* covet. Enter my March 13 at 1 PM CST.

That's all for tonight--be back on Friday!

A Full Year as a Bloggerina

Hello, everyone! I have returned from a fabulous weekend in DC, just in time to celebrate my one-year blogiversary. It all started as a fun way to spend the afternoon during spring break of last year...little did I know that I would find a new hobby, a side career, and, most importantly, a warm community of health-minded foodies. I've learned a lot about myself in the past year, largely due to your thoughtful comments--thanks for reading, commenting, and providing much needed support.
Now, what should I do to celebrate this milestone?!

I have much to share from the second half of my weekend adventure. Check it out:

Saturday
We awoke to a beautiful morning on Saturday--as well as rumbling tummies. As a result of our beckoning appetites, we decided to dine in the hotel restaurant for breakfast. I satisfied my never-ending craving for mango and ordered the Mango Oatmeal, which consisted of Irish-cut oats cooked with mango pieces and topped with fresh berries. Much to my surprise, this dining room offered soymilk as an accompaniment, so I enjoyed a glass of that on the side, along with a mug of Lemon Lift tea. I also got my dad to snag a few spoonfuls of sliced almonds from the breakfast buffet. Delish, but totally overpriced.
Then we headed to the National Gallery of Art for the morning. Points to anyone who can identify the artist of the painting with which I am posing:
For lunch, we headed to an eatery called Teaism. Given my infatuation with tea, I was quite excited to discover this place. I ordered the Veggie Bento with roasted vegetables, sweet potato, tofu, edamame, and brown rice. To drink, I opted for the Jasmine Pearl tea (just for you, Rosalie!). Everything was superbly delicious--I wanted to lick my plate!
We met my cousin and her husband as well as a family friend for dinner. The family friend (Judy) actually owns the restaurant at which we dined, Rock Creek, an establishment devoted to "mindful eating." (Check out the link for details!). Anyway, for my salad I ordered the Butterhead Lettuces with Exotic Mushrooms (sans cheese). Then the bread basket arrived, with a subtly sweet focaccia spread with a garlicky eggplant dip. For my entree, I ordered the only vegan entree on the menu, Hawaiian Hearts of Palm with Red Quinoa and Squash Puree. I've never had hearts of palm aside from those that come from the can, and this fresher preparation was clearly superior. The palm had a texture that was oddly similar to meat! Once again, I cleaned my plate entirely, gobbling up every last kernel of quinoa and smear of squash. The dessert menu arrived, and I found that I still had room for a little sweet something, so I ordered the pomegranate sorbet. A perfect ending to a perfect meal.
My bottomless pit of a stomach called to me again later that evening, so I satisfied it with a cherry pie Larabar...good, but not as tasty as my usual smoothie:)
Sunday
Before heading out to church services, my dad made a run to Cosi, after I had suggested that we try it--I've seen so many of my fellow food bloggers enjoy their relatively healthful offerings. He returned with a sack full of parfaits, egg croissants, and...oatmeal! Can you guess which one I chose? The oatmeal was slightly sweetened with maple syrup and topped with raisins and brown sugar. It was fabulous--it reminded me of the Cream of Wheat my mom used to make me when I was a child. I supplemented the superstar oats with fruit, tea...and a packet of airline peanuts. What? I was still hungry, and I knew fats would do just the trick.
For lunch, we headed to the Cheesecake Factory. Not exactly as unique and sustainably-minded as our other dining locales, but they always have something for everybody. After pigging out on their fluffy brown bread (is anyone else as obsessed with this stuff as I am?!), I ordered the Luau Salad, sans chicken and dressing on the side. The crispy wontons make the salad a bit of challenge to eat, but I really like the chopped macadamias and sweet citrus glaze with which they are covered. Plus, this salad also features more of my recently preferred fruit--mango!
After an afternoon of shopping in Georgetown, we headed to the airport, where I snacked on some carrots with almond butter, one of my all-time fave combos.
When we finally returned home to Birmingham, I looked to the freezer for dinner. I heated up a vegan chik patty and stuffed it in a pita with whole grain mustard and vegan mayo. On the side, I had a salad with Woodstock dressing, Brussels sprouts, and a dish of peaches.
I was blissfully reunited with my nightly smoothie last night: blueberries, chocolate soy protein (Whole Foods brand), soymilk, chocolate syrup, plus a few animal crackers for fun. One word: heavenly.
Monday
Following my refreshing run (in 70* weather!), I whipped up a quick breakfast of a smoothie and an English muffin. The smoothie included mango, cherries, and soymilk, and I spread the English muffin with White Chocolate Wonderful PB. I topped both with a dusting of coconut. I thoroughly enjoyed this while browsing the latest Crate & Barrel catalog--check out those cute plates!
I ran a few errands with my mom, then returned home to make homemade hummus for the very first time. I opted to use the Pumpkin Hummus recipe from Everyday Dish TV (my most recent podcast obsession). I got some strange looks from my mom as I was preparing this tasty mess with my hand blender, but I promise it's a delicious combination! I served it with whole grain flatbread, a spinach salad, and an apple. I can't wait to whip up another batch of homemade hummus...what are your favorite variations?
Afterward, I went to Whole Foods with my dad for a big shop--I didn't get a chance to photograph the haul due to the warm weather--it needed refrigeration ASAP! Anyway, some highlights include two new flavors of PURE bars, Graham Bumpers, Rachel's flavored cottage cheese, Earth Balance (I've never tried it), radicchio, and a baby watermelon. Keep an eye out for those in the coming week!

For dinner, I prepared Mock Maryland Crabcakes from Toni Fiore's Totally Vegetarian. I've never had a real crabcake, so I can't tell you whether these tasted "authentic," but I can say with certainty that they were delicious! I dipped them in some tsasiki sauce and served them alongside a salad, and Greek yogurt with cashews and dates.
Now, I am off to do a bit of reading--some for school, some for pleasure (hello, Clean Eating).

Be back soon!

A Guide to Protein Powders

As anyone who reads this blog with any regularity can attest, I like smoothies...a lot. They make for a satisfying midnight snack and the perfect accompaniment to my nightly blog reading. Part of what attracts me to these blender creations is that they provide a convenient way to sneak in an extra serving of fruit, dairy, and, most pertinent to this post's topic, protein. Not only does the added protein hit ensure that I consume adequate amounts of this very necessary macronutrient, but it also adds a lovely "shake-like" texture to my blended beverages.

Over the years, I have experimented with them all: whey, soy, rice, hemp, even pea proteins. Here is a brief review of my protein adventures:

Whole Foods Soy Protein Powder
Given my obsession with all things Whole Foods, it shouldn't surprise you that I have sampled their house brand of protein powder.
*I have come to prefer non-animal sources of protein, so I opted to use their soy variety; they also produce a whey formula.
*Just two flavors are available: chocolate and vanilla. Both are quite palatable and lend themselves well to a variety of flavors.
*Unlike some powders, they may simply be mixed with milk--and still be tasty. Often protein powders need other components such as fruit or non-dairy ice cream to mask an unpleasant "protein" taste.
*Each packet contains 110-120 kcalories, 24 grams of protein, and partial supplementation in a few vitamins and minerals.
*Also available in canisters. A formula with added spirulina is also sold in some markets.
Living Harvest Hemp Protein
Just like my pal VeggieGirl, I have a healthy appreciation for this brand of protein.
*Available in 3 varieties: original, vanilla spice, and chocolate chili. My personal fave is vanilla spice (especially with mango!).
*Hemp has a very strong and distinctive taste, so I recommend easing your way into using this variety of protein. Get acclimated to its taste in combination with other flavors (from fruit, for example) before trying it on its own. Lindsay had the brilliant idea to mix it with oatmeal!
*Each 4 tablespoon serving contains 120-130 kcalories, 9 grams of protein, and a surprising 8 grams of fiber.
*Available in packets or canisters from their online store, as well in some Whole Foods markets.
To see more of my Living Harvest creations, click here.

Nature's Plus Spirutein
This was my first protein powder obsession...I will always have a special place in my heart for Spirutein.
*Available in SEVERAL varieties:
-Fruity: Strawberry-Banana, Strawberry, Strawberry Shortcake, Pina Colada, Tropical Fruit, Peaches 'n Cream, Tangerine Dream, Cherries Jubilee, Blueberries 'n Cream, Nutty Berry Burst, Banana, Raspberry Royale, Exotic Red Fruit
-Non-fruity: Egg Nog, Chai Latte, Chocolate, Vanilla, Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl, Double Fudge Crunch, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Cookies 'n Cream, S'mores, Cappuccino
-Flavors in italics are my favorites!
*Strawberry-inspired flavors are NOT good--their flavorings are simply not quite right. Think cough medicine.
*Spirutein develops a light and fluffy texture when whipped in a high-speed blender. Yum, smoothie "clouds."
*Select flavors are available in unsweetened varieties and are just as tasty!
*Nutritionals vary according to flavor, but most contain 100-130 kcalories, 14 grams of protein, and a wide variety of vitamins and minerals. I like that each serving provides 300 mg (30% RDA) of vegan calcium.
*Available in canisters or packets from many online stores, but I choose to order mine from Lucky Vitamin for their wide selection of flavors.
*My girl over at Gliding Calm likes to add Spirutein to her oats every now and then!
To see more of my Spirutein creations, click here.

Alive! Ultra Shakes
These provide a nice alternative to your average protein powders--great way to eat your peas!
*Available in soy and pea-rice protein blends, in vanilla and apples & cinnamon.
*Don't be turned off by their green color! They taste delicious, regardless of their slightly off-putting hue.
*Similar to Spirutein, Alive! shakes develop a pillowy texture when blended.
*Each serving contains 130 kcalories, 15 grams of protein, and whopping amounts of vitamins and minerals. You might not want to consume these daily so as to avoid excessive supplementation.
*Available in canisters or packets at Whole Foods Markets.
To see more of my Alive! shakes, click here.

Nutribody Protein
I received a large canister of Nutribody to sample for VegFamily--it turned out to be a favorite. You can read my review of it here.
*Available in a single variety, original (but it tastes like vanilla to me!)
*Sweet-tasting, despite its 0 grams of sugar...no stevia here either. Luo han is the sweetening agent here.
*Protein is derived from brown rice, making it suitable for those allergic to soy.
*Each 4 tablespoon serving contains 124 kcalories, 26 grams of protein, and 1.3 grams of fat. There is no other supplementation. (Bummer!).
*Quite possibly the most versatile protein powder I have used--perfect for any smoothie.
*Available in canisters on the company website.
To see more of my Nutribody creations, click here.

Amazing Meal
I received these packets as a result of my position at VegFamily as well--I will definitely order these for myself in the future!
*Available in 3 flavors: Original, Pomegranate-Mango, and Chocolate; all three are excellent, but I especially liked the mango and chocolate varieties.
*Protein is derived from hemp & rice, but the blend also includes a vast array of superfoods such as wheat grass, kale, and goji berries!
*Each serving contains 120 kcalories, 10 grams of protein, and an impressive 6 grams of fiber.
*Available exclusively at Whole Foods Markets.

To see more Amazing Meal creations, click here.

Nutribiotic Rice Protein
This provides the perfect compromise for the soy-averse and those who do not like the taste of hemp.
*Available in plain, vanilla, chocolate, and mixed berry. Formulas with added flax and antioxidants are also available.
*This powder tastes sweet to me as well, but it is completely free of sugar and sweeteners.
*I suggest adding a scoop of cocoa powder for a deeper, more instense chocolate flavor; otherwise it lends a "milk chocolate" flavor to your shakes.
*Each 1 tablespoon serving contains 55-60 kcalories, 12 grams of protein, and little to no other supplementation.
*Works well in Gina's breakfast cookies!

To see more of my Nutribiotic creations, click here.

Nutiva Hemp Shake
Another hemp protein after my heart...
*Available in 3 varieties: chocolate, amazon acai, and berry pomegranate. The amazon acai is undrinkable, in my opinion.
*Again, this powder has a strong hemp taste that is almost spicy; proceed with caution if you're a hemp newbie.
*This powder does not mix well with ice--combine only with fruit, milk/juice, or non-dairy ice cream/yogurt.
*Each serving contains 80-100 kcalories, 6-9 grams of protein, and 8 grams of fiber. You're out of luck if you're looking for additional supplementation.
*Available online at many outlets, including Amazon.
To see all my Nutiva creations, click here and here.

-You can revisit my post devoted to smoothie makin' here.
-I also reviewed another brand of protein (rather unfavorably) here.


Whew! I think that summarizes my protein powder career. I welcome comments, questions, and suggestions for other protein products. Enjoy!

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

After a few stints in various modes of transportation, I have finally arrived in DC for the weekend. Spring break has officially begun, and I have entered relaxation mode. Check out the view from our hotel room today at sunset:
What are you up to this weekend?

Backtracking to those last few days before freedom:

Wednesday
Those frozen artichoke hearts were calling my name again, so I made a quick pasta dish to incorporate them. Whole wheat angel hair pasta, artichoke hearts, pesto tofu, and minced garlic made for a delicious evening meal. On the side, I had some steamed snap peas and lots of greens with tomatoes. Can you tell that I was trying to use up my produce?!
The smoothie that evening was another peach-mango concoction using Nutribody protein. Tasty, as always.
Thursday
As you may know, I have a fondness for vegan French toast, particularly for Tofu-Banana French Toast from the Imus Ranch Cookbook. Indeed, half the reason for my enjoyment of the dish is for the batter itself--I could eat it with a spoon...so I did. (Since it is a vegan recipe, the batter is egg-free, so eating the batter does not present a threat of salmonella). Instead of using the batter for its intended use, I ate it as a pudding, into which I dipped some more of those blueberry mini waffles. I washed it all down with rice milk.
After my last class, I was in a particularly celebratory mood due to not having class for the next 10 days. I kicked things up with a BBQ veggie hash: chickpeas, garlic, zucchini, mushrooms, and Whole Foods brand BBQ. I scooped it all up with baked blue corn chips, and I used up the rest of my fresh produce in a salad with cashews and a dish of grapes.
Then I packed up my suitcase for home...I thought you all would appreciate some of my "travelling essentials."
I also packed up dinner and a few snacks for my flights that evening. Dinner consisted of a veggie bologna sandwich, an apple, almonds, and raw veggies. For snacks, I brought along a light cheddar stick with rice crackers and a small container of TJ's trail mix.
Once at the airport, I picked up another small snack to nosh on while reading Shape. Mango? Yes, please.
I arrived home late, but I needed to pack up for DC before bed. Here's a glimpse at my reading material and my "emergency breakfast kit." What are some of your travel essentials for eating healthfully?
Finally, I got to sit down and read a few blogs with my nightly smoothie: Vanilla Alive! protein with blueberries, rice milk and Nature's Path cashew-ginger granola. Ah, the comforts of home.
Friday
Before heading out to the airport (again!), I had a quick breakfast: Rudi's bagel with Sunbutter, apple, and Friendship cottage cheese with apple pie spice. Oh Rudi, how I missed you.
By the time we arrived at the train station in DC, I was starving. Fortunately, there is a "grab and go" Au Bon Pain in the station, so I snagged a few items to eat: garden salad (with sprouts!), mixed nuts, vanilla soymilk, grapes, and whole grain bread. I didn't eat all this...but pretty close.

Next up was dinner at Nora, the nation's first certified organic restaurant. I was surprised to find that the vegetarian options were rather limited (read: only one entree was meat-free). Nonetheless, I had a fabulous meal. I ordered a spicy tofu hot pot with loads of veggies and soba noodles. I drained that bowl clean:) For dessert, I ordered the coconut sorbet, aka heaven in a martini glass. Everything I ordered was completely delicious, and completely vegan, as the waitress assured me.
Whew! I am spent from all that eating. It's so nice to visit a city where eating out is a delight and stress-free for vegan/vegetarians. What are your favorite cities for dining?

Before I sign off, I want to let you all know about a special giveaway over at Blue Plate Special. Anna is offering the chance to win Raising the Bar, a book about the creators of my beloved Clif bars. In case you missed it, I recently did a review of ALL Clif bars (minus the peanut flavors)--check it out here. Obviously, I am one of Clif's biggest fans:)

Good night, all!

Berry Tripping

Hello, all! I apologize for the delay--my normal midday posting schedule was side-tracked due to a dining committee event. We're hosting a "berry tripping" event on Thursday night for which I was selling tickets. What is berry tripping, you ask? It all centers around the "miracle fruit," a berry grown in West Africa that alters your taste sensations. A glycoprotein present in the berry makes sour things taste sweet: just imagine sucking on a lemon that tastes like lemonade, or guzzling Guinness that tastes like a milkshake.

Check out this video from the NYT for an inside look at this food trend.

What do you think? Would you be brave enough to go on a berry trip?

Anyway, here's what I've been chomping on since my last post:

Monday
Inspired by my recent purchase of frozen artichoke hearts (from TJ's), I decided to whip up a vegan spinach artichoke dip. I based my version on the recipe from the Chicago Diner Cookbook, which includes vegan mayo, artichokes, garlic, and spinach. To make a completely dippable meal, I also served up some hummus with sliced olives on top. I used some more of those fab baked blue corn chips to shovel in the tastiness. Oh yeah, some salad a few grapes added a little more nutrition to the meal.
Following my dining committee meeting, I made another mock tuna melt, using my standard chickpea mixture as the "tuna" and melted provolone for the "melt." The end result was much better than last time--sliced cheese is much more melty than a chopped up cheddar stick. I also had a big salad from the salad bar with Annie's Balsamic Vinaigrette, plus a dish of melon.
For my smoothie that evening, I whipped up a frothy peach-banana combo with Nutribody. Sadly, I am nearing the end of my Nutribody AND my Cascadian Farm granola...looks like I'll need to go shopping for smoothie supplies soon:)
Tuesday
I've had this "People's Choice" yogurt by Stonyfield sitting in my fridge for a while--since it was so "special," I felt like I should use it creatively. In the end, it formed one of the components of my blueberry-pom parfait. I layered TJ's High Fiber cereal, said yogurt, blueberries, and almonds to make it. The yogurt tasted mostly like blueberry to me, but it was tasty, nonetheless. I really like this cereal though--it's like a gloriously aspartame-free Fiber One. I am also mildly obsessed with its cereal cousin, TJ's High Fiber Fruit and Nut Medley. Hmm...perhaps these will appear in future product reviews?
After my test, I came back to the apartment for a little comfort food...which has come to mean Goddess Garbanzos. I put the delicious mess in an Italian herb wrap with mixed greens and served it alongside a salad with 'shrooms and chopped apricots, plus grapes and steamed sugar snap peas.
I was stuck at home doing homework last night (rather than attending the basketball game against FSU), so I treated myself to an old fave while watching it on TV: scrambled tofu. I included zucchini in the mix for this one and served it with a whole wheat mini bagel, Brussels sprouts, greens, and an orange.
My nightly blog-reading was accompanied by a fab shake: strawberries, banana, soymilk, dark cocoa powder, and chocolate rice protein. A few more of those Annie's Bunnies decided to take a swim.
Wednesday
I am trying to whittle down my cereal selection (what? 8 boxes is too many?), so I opted for a hot bowl of Autumn Wheat today. I also had a banana with some Cinnamon Swirl PB.
Today's lunch was a double-salad: Waldorf salad, plus herb/greens mix with chickpeas. How can you go wrong with almonds, raisins, and apples? I also had a few crackers on the side.
There are a few giveaways in blogland that I wanted to let you all know about.

Olga from Healthing It is giving away a gift certificate for Me & Goji cereal. I've never tried it, but I love the idea of fully customizable cereal! Enter by March 9th!

Katie from Chocolate-Covered Katie is giving away Jocolat bars. I love me some Jocolat bars! I reviewed the chocolate mint variety here. Contest ends March 19th.

That concludes this installment of the Broccoli Hut adventures. Next post will be from DC!

Serendipitous Snow

OK, I admit it. I am a weather.com addict. I check it every day in order to anticipate what the coming days might bring, whether it be glorious sunshine or lame wind & rain. As per usual, I checked last night to see what the weather would be at 7AM, the time at which I usually make the trek across campus to the gym. Answer: "12*, windy and icy." Fabulous. A glance down the page indicated that no warming trend was expected throughout the morning. After much deliberation, I decided to deliberately skip my morning class, a transgression I rarely commit.

Lo and behold, I wake up this morning to my roommate rejoicing and announcing that classes had been cancelled! A rather serendipitous blanket of snow had arrived overnight. Hence, all guilt induced by class-skipping was successfully avoided. Sweet.

This weekend was pretty low-key around here; there wasn't much going on around campus, so my friends and I hid from the icy rain and watched a few chick flicks. I also managed to squeeze in another trip to TJ's with Alanna. Check out the eats that kept me going:

Friday
I wasn't much in the mood for cooking, so dinner ended up being a simple veggie bologna wrap with provolone and mixed greens. I'm with Kath--the taste of cheese is never pronounced enough when mixed into sandwiches and wraps, it seems. Anyway, I also opened up a new bottle of Annie's dressing after my beloved Woodstock disappeared. This time, I tried a classic, the balsamic vinaigrette. That's broccoli and a nectarine on the side.
The kind folks at Amazing Grass recently sent me some of their new Amazing Meal protein powder to review for VegFamily. You may remember when I tried (and reviewed) their Berry Greens supplement, but this time I tried out the Amazing Meal original flavor and combined it with soymilk, peaches, blueberries, and strawberries. Fabulous! FYI, Amazing Meal is a combination of hemp and rice proteins (soy-free!).
Saturday
Continuing the simple trend, I had an old fave for breakfast: toast with PB & J. In case you're curious, I used Dickinson's organic all fruit blackberry spread. On the side I had some cottage cheese with banana and cinnamon.
For lunch, I made another Asian Bean Salad, this time using lightly steamed sugar snap peas, mushrooms, green onions, adzuki beans, and Annie's Shiitake Sesame dressing. More of those addictive crackers on the side, plus an orange.
After my trip to TJ's and a very necessary viewing of Bridget Jones's Diary, I made a late dinner out of Mexican Dip. In a glass bowl, I mashed some black beans and added layers of cheddar cheese, salsa, mashed avocado, and finally homemade tofu sour cream. I served all that goodness with some baked blue corn chips and a plate of greens. Definitely spawned a food fugue.
Next up in the Amazing Meal lineup: Pomegranate Mango Infusion. I just blended it with some frozen mango and soymilk, although in retrospect I could have added some POM as well...next time.
Sunday
With my Girl Scout challenge complete, I was left without inspiration for my oatmeal...and then I spied my pretzels in the cupboard next to the oatmeal. Bingo. I cooked my oats in rice milk and vanilla, then topped them with a few pretzels and a blob of PB. Just like those PB pretzels VeggieGirl sent me:)
As per usual, by Sunday I was left with a variety of beans and veggies in the fridge...so I made another veggie-bean stew out of tomato sauce, black beans, adzuki beans, garlic, mixed veggies, cumin, turmeric, and curry powder. I dunked a mini bagel in all that tastiness and served it with grapes and greens with cashews.
I've gotten some great meal suggestions from blog readers, and this one is a new favorite. I stuffed a pita with a Bistro burger, mashed avocado, and melted provolone for a delectable hot sammie. Thanks to Jessica for suggesting this dish! I served it alongside some zucchini, salad, and peaches.
The final installment of the Amazing Meal journey involved a tasty chocolate infusion. I combined it with dairy-free vanilla ice cream (from TJ's!), lots of strawberries, and soymilk. A few Annie's chocolate bunnies decided to join in on the fun. SO GOOD. This was my favorite flavor!
Monday
After sleeping in this morning, I took advantage of my snow day by making a big bowl of choco-nana oat bran. Special dark cocoa powder, oat bran, rice milk, banana, coconut, and chocolate PB made for quite the breakfast treat. I am fast becoming an oat bran convert...
Despite the snow day, I still must venture out to my dining committee meeting tonight. We're discussing some new ideas for eateries to bring to campus. If you're in college now, what's your favorite place to eat on your campus? If you're not college-age, what kind of place would you frequent on a university campus? Outside input is always helpful!

Enjoy your Monday!

Burger Bliss

Five years ago, I announced to my mother that I would no longer be eating meat. After recovering from the surprise, she took me on a very necessary trip to the grocery store, where I bought the essential neophyte vegetarian item: the veggie burger.

They're quick, convenient, and tasty, plus they provide an easy meatless form of protein. While I no longer eat them with the same regularity as my initial days of vegetarianism, I still keep a box (or two) on hand for those times when I simply haven't the motivation nor the time to prepare an elaborate vegetarian feast. Boca was my first brand of choice, but since then I have broadened my horizons. Yes, since my early days as a veg, I have graduated to brands such Sunshine Burger, Health Is Wealth, and, of course, the mistress of veggie burger expertise, Amy.

Sunshine Burger
This past year, in the midst of summer barbecues and grill-out sessions, I was on the hunt for a new variety of veggie burger, specifically one that was both meat- and soy-free. I of course ventured to Whole Foods for the answer to my burger-prayers. After a quick jaunt down the frozen foods aisle, I found these: Sunshine burgers. Made simply with raw ground sunflower seeds, whole grains, vegetables, and a dash of sea salt, Sunshine burgers are the epitome of an all-natural burger. I love that these burgers are completely free of unnecessary ingredients.

Sunshine burgers are available in 4 varieties: Garden Herb, Original, Barbecue, and Southwest. Nutritional stats vary accordingly, but most are between 200-259 kcalories with a moderate (6-8 grams) of protein, and 12-13 grams of fat. Most varieties also provide an impressive amount of vitamin A, ranging from 50-90% of your daily RDA.

While these burgers are tasty any way you eat 'em, I recommend the old fashioned way, in a whole grain bun with your favorite toppings, such as salsa or avocado.

Feel free to eat them sans bun, as well; I regularly enjoy them this way as a fish substitute when my family is having a seafood-centered meal.

Finally, if you'd rather use your creativity, consider slicing one up as a salad component. I especially like them in combination with my homemade sweet dill dressing.

Health Is Wealth Chicken-Free Patties
As a girl raised (mostly) in the South, I've enjoyed a few Chick Fil A sandwiches in my day, and I do occasionally get a craving for a deliciously breaded patty (couldn't care less about the chicken part!). Fortunately, there is a relatively healthful alternative. While many breaded "chik" patties exist on the market today, many still contain high amounts of fat and a few questionable ingredients. Health Is Wealth, however, produces a chicken-free patty that is low in fat (1.5 grams) and breaded with whole grain bread crumbs. Plus, they're vegan--no egg whites are used to provide that breaded crust.
These can be difficult to find, although Whole Foods carries the brand; only large stores carry this particular product. Look for it at health food stores as well. If you can't find the patties, the chicken-free nuggets are just as good!

These patties also lend themselves well to the traditional whole grain bun route. My condiments of choice are a mixture of vegan mayo and mustard, even better if it's agave-mustard! For Chick-fil-A authenticity, you could throw a few pickles on top:)

Try using these in place of chicken in your favorite Chicken Parmigiana recipe. Yum.

These patties can also easily be sliced and used as a salad topper or wrap stuffing. The possibilities are endless!

Amy's Bistro Burger
If you've taken a look at the frozen food aisle lately, you've probably noticed a proliferation of products emblazoned with the notorious "Amy's Kitchen" label. Aside from her delicious burritos, pizzas, and breakfast items, Amy also produces a wide variety of burgers, made from whole grains, veggies, and soy. This particular item caught my eye due to its relatively low sodium content for a frozen food (14% RDA) and abundance of vegetables in its ingredients list.

Each patty contains 90 kcalories, 2.5 grams of fat, and a slightly disappointing 5 grams of protein. I would hope for more protein in a meat alternative. Nonetheless, these burgers provide a satisfying alternative to your regular beef burger. As a bonus, they are made from 93% organic ingredients--score!

Warning: if you do not like mushrooms, you may not like these burgers. The shroom' flavah is strong, which is just fine by my tastebuds, but others may be overwhelmed by its presence.

I like mine best with mashed avocado...

But they're pretty awesome with organic K + M as well.

Just as good in a wrap!

The Amy's website also recommends adding BBQ sauce...perhaps we should try the humbecue combo as well?

Amy's Texas Burger
Speaking of barbecue, these burgers are specifically designed to have that distinctive smoky flavor.

This variety is decidedly less 'shroom-ey and more tomato-ey. There's also some bell peppers and a kick of molasses. Tasty.

Each patty contains 120 kcalories, 2.5 grams of fat, and a respectable 12 grams of protein.

I like mine with lots of spicy salsa!
They're also pretty tasty as a salad-topper...especially with Woodstock dressing to play up that tomato goodness. Best served with some sweet potato fries!
These few burgers represent just a selection of my veggie burger samplings and an even smaller portion of those available on the market. What are your favorite meatless patties? What do you look for in a veggie burger? Let me know...I'm always searching for a new favorite:)

Girl Scout Oatmeal

As you may know, I am continually expanding the boundaries of oatmeal possibilities. For my first oatmeal endeavor, I aimed to eat a bowl of oats for every color of the rainbow. As evidenced by this post, I managed to span the color spectrum with relative ease. My next breakfast-time challenge was inspired by the annual arrival of Girl Scout Cookie season. In anticipation of the cookie season, my cravings for the sweet little rounds of joy reached maximum capacity...so I decided to make my own GS cookies--in my oatmeal bowl! I managed to keep most of my renditions relatively healthful, and all successfully satisfied my cookie cravings.

Enjoy!

Samoas

Thin Mints

Taglongs

Lemon Chalet Cremes

Do-si-dos

While I did not make a bowl for every GS cookie flavor, I did manage to re-create all my favorite varieties. What are your favorites? For those of you outside the US or simply have no idea what I am talking about, you can read up on Girl Scout cookies here.

Enjoy your evening!