Adding a Little Color

You all know that I am an adamant proponent of eating by color (especially in oatmeal!), but this love of color also extends to my wardrobe, writing utensils, and, most recently, my decorating. My on-campus apartment boasts a nice shade of blah on the walls, floor, and well, on every square foot of the unit. Although I was sure to add plenty of red pizazz in the kitchen as soon as I moved in (as I spend much of my time there!), my roommate and I had not gotten around to infusing the rest of our apartment with color until...last night. Here is a glance at a few new details on the walls, plus a glimpse at my ever-colorful bedding:
I promise my room at home is much more sophisticated...but I'll save that for another post:) How would you describe your decorating style?
This is a food blog, so I suppose I should get to the eats:

Monday
After I last posted, I prepared a delicious and simple lunch out of tofu, veggies, and a cashew sauce I whipped up. On the side I had couscous and clementines. I swear, things taste better when eaten with chopsticks.
I had a busy evening of unnecessarily long meetings, so I satisfied my aforementioned salad craving with a prepared creation on campus. I opted for one of my faves, the Crunchy Broccoli Salad to which I added chickpeas for protein. (There are walnuts hidden beneath all that glorious broccoli). I also had a fruit cup and some pita. I'll try all your creative ideas ASAP!
The smoothie of the evening was a cherry-berry delight consisting of cherries, strawberries, soymilk, and Nutribody protein. I am running low on granola...suggestions for the next box?
Tuesday
I have an early class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I kept the morning meal simple: Fiber One with dried cranberries, and rice milk, plus an apple with cashew butter. Quick tip: Fiber One contains 10% RDA for calcium per half-cup but also contains a small amount of aspartame.
Lunch was a rushed affair, so I just quickly combined spinach, chickpeas, garlic, tahini, and cumin and served it alongside some flatbread and a few clementines.
After a busy afternoon and evening, I relaxed in one of my favorite ways...cooking, of course! I made a simple chili out of TVP, canned diced tomatoes, onions, chili powder, cumin, and ground red pepper. I served this hot pot of goodness with a Rudi's English muffin, a salad with Woodstock dressing, and peaches. This was one of my most enjoyable meals in recent weeks.
The smoothie last night marked the return of my favorite smoothied combo: mango and vanilla! I combined mango, Nutribody protein, soymilk, and topped it with the usual granola. It made my nightly blog reading even more enjoyable:)
Wednesday
This morning's breakfast was a strawberry-banana "waffle tower" as Sarah would say. I topped two waffles with cottage cheese, strawberries, and a broken up Banana Bread Larabar (courtesy of VeggieGirl). Quite delicious, although the banana was not as pronounced as I would have preferred.

I am headed to class now, but I'll leave with you another question to ponder: what's your favorite hot beverage? I just downed a cup of Mighty Leaf orange dulce, and it was pretty amazing.

Be back soon!

Let the Countdown Begin!

Yes, it's that time of year again. Once September 16 rolls around, my anticipation begins. What event is it that I so eagerly await, you ask? Christmas, of course.

As I explained many months ago here, I have always been a fan of Christmas; it's a time of double celebration for me, since my birthday is December 24th. For as long as I could wield a crayon (or maneuver a computer cursor), I have been making Christmas countdowns. The trend in the past 10 years has been to begin this extended advent season on September 16th, precisely 100 days until Christmas Day. Yes, you may call it premature, and yes, you may say that I am wishing my life away. However, I still appreciate the present--I am just especially conscientious about preparing for the season of utmost joy and peace. Even for those of you who do not celebrate Christmas, I am sure there is some season or holiday for which you can identify with this feeling; I think everyone can relate to a sensation that combines eagerness, excitement, and contentment all into one sublime emotion.

Long story short: 99 days until the big day, 98 until my birthday. I expect presents ;)

Onto the grub:

Monday
There was free food again at the dining meeting. This time it was from Chai's, a local noodle bar that wants Duke Dining to allow students to use food points at their restaurants. I'm not sure what the dish was called, but I tried the only vegetarian dish there: crispy tofu with bell peppers and egg noodles. I avoid eggs in my diet, so I just picked took a portion and ate the tofu/vegetables with some steamed rice. I was still a little hungry (and desperately in need of vegetables!), so I made a pit stop at the salad bar, where I loaded up on my usual fave veggies (mushrooms, snow peas, tomatoes, etc.), plus a container of cantaloupe. I chomped this down in record time before heading to Bible study.
My smoothie of the evening consisted of frozen pineapple with vanilla hemp and soymilk. Wow! This was quite tasty--almost as good as mango and vanilla hemp. Almost.
Tuesday
I don't have class until 10 on Tuesdays, so I took advantage of the extra time yesterday to construct a parfait. This one featured a past favorite flavor combination of mine: strawberry-banana. I went through this phase in high school where I ate everything strawberry-banana: yogurt, smoothies, even lip balm (gross, I know). Anyway, I got a little burnt out on it--until now. The parfait included strawberry yogurt, sliced banana, Fiber One, and raw cashews.
The pre-run snack was a TJ's fig bar and an apple. I was draggin' a little yesterday, despite an almost all-carb snack.
I picked up lunch at a campus eatery--it was free because I was evaluating it for the dining committee:) I opted for a vegan summer roll (cilantro, basil, carrot, cucumber, and tofu) and a hot tea to warm me up on my walk through the rain. When I came home I whipped up a quick peanut sauce using PB, garlic, ginger, and soy sauce. Delish.
Dinner was pretty simple last night: just frozen corn, black beans, canned tomatoes (no salt added), and sliced avocado. On the side I had a big salad and some fresh fruit that I had picked up on campus earlier in the day.
I had heaven in a glass for my smoothie last night. (Mango + Vanilla Hemp, in case you don't know what that tastes like).
Wednesday
I had a rather fallish breakfast today: whole wheat toast with almond butter, unsweetened applesauce with cinnamon, and plain yogurt with pumpkin and wheat germ. That last item was a staple in my diet last spring--I had it every day for a good two months. YUM!
The pre-run snack today was a big banana and a PB Mini Clif. This fueled me very well, although I had PB breath throughout the entire workout. Could be worse, right?
Afterward, I returned home to prepare a simple Goddess Garbanzos wrap and a spinach-mushroom salad. Simple, but oh-so-satisfying.
Finally, for dinner tonight I made a tofu salad pita using cubed tofu, vegan mayo, Grey Poupon, dried cranberries, walnuts, and basil. On the side I had green beans cooked with tomatoes and basil, plus a mound of mixed greens. Oh, and a furry little kiwi on the left.

After that, I jetted off to a Sex and the City party, where we didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to the TV, and simply chatted instead. Fun stuff.

One more day of classes until the weekend! Be back soon.

An Unexpected Houseguest

As Kristen and I were heading out to our chapter meeting last night, we discovered this cutie wandering dangerously close to the bus route: After checking out the neighboring apartments for an open door or a concerned owner, we took her back to our apartment. We called the housing staff on call, and fortunately, she knew to whom the pup belonged. While we waited for her to be picked up, we played around with our little houseguest--she especially enjoyed helping us make dinner!

Anyway, once again, I have quite a few things I need to do this evening, so I am posting now rather than later. Here's the weekend recap:

Saturday
After a hot and difficult run across campus, I returned to my apartment and made a peach parfait. This one included peach yogurt, sliced peaches, Fiber One, flax and cinnamon. Delish. This kept me fueled for several hours. I headed to the football game, where I witnessed another Duke victory; we beat Navy 41-31. Nice. Anyway, I didn't get home until about 4, so I was about to eat my arm by the time I finally sat down to eat. What's easy, fast, nutritious, and tasty? Scrambled tofu, of course. A simple combination of tahini, Bragg's, ginger, and tofu, all wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla. A sliced apple and organic baby carrots added some crunch. Due to my extremely late lunch, I didn't eat dinner until much later in the evening. After much indecision, I finally just swiped one of Kristen's sweet potatoes and cooked it up with black beans for a hash dish. I added cumin, minced garlic, and chili powder for flava'. That crowded plate you see also had some green beans and salad with sliced avocado, plus I had a dish of cottage cheese with wheat germ. Ah, wheat germ. One of nature's most perfect foods. I finally got the chance to try Living Harvest's Cocoa Chili flavor! No disappointments here. I blended it with a frozen banana and soymilk, and added some dairy-free chocolate chips from Enjoy Life. Geez, I better do a round of product reviews soon--they're piling up!
Sunday
My weekly stovetop oats were inspired by some of my fellow bloggers; I decided to add pumpkin to the mix instead of banana. I have used pumpkin in my oats before, but that was back in the days of microwave cookery. Cooking it on the stovetop is a completely different story. YUM. I added lots of cinnamon to the pot while cooking, thus the unattractive hue of the oats. Next time, maybe I'll just add it on top to make it more pleasing to the eye. Anyway, here's what went into this mound of deliciousness: oats, soymilk, pumpkin, cinnamon, and cashew butter.
I had a slab of tofu itchin' to be eaten yesterday, so I just threw that on my friend, the George Foreman. Along with chopped avocado and salsa, it made for quite the tasty sammie. I also had a sliced apple and a spinach-mushroom salad.
While entertaining our furry friend, I managed to cobble together dinner: black beans and couscous (no rice!), green beans, spinach, and plain yogurt with cashews.
My addiction to chocolate has come back with a vengeance. I had another cocoa chili smoothie last night, using frozen strawberries this time. Some of the chocolate chips sank to the bottom, so I was greeted with an extra tasty surprise when I reach the bottom of the glass. Mmm.
Monday
I wanted to arrive early to my stats exam today, so I made overnight oats last night to save time in the morning. This version had a decidedly tropical twist: oats, soymilk, coconut, sliced kiwi, and cashews. It would have been better if I weren't nervously reviewing distributions and Z scores:(
The pre-run snack today was half a Chocolate Chip Clif bar and an apple. It wasn't exactly energizing. I think I just need straight-up carbs.

After my workout, I made a quick black bean burrito, using black beans, avocado, the last of salsa, and a whole wheat tortilla. I think black beans are my favorite variety of beans for burritos--pintos just don't cut it.
Alright, I should probably read a bit before my busy evening begins. Ciao for now.