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:)

In the Kitchen with Caroline

Recently, when reading Erica's post about her new home, she asked her readers, "What is your favorite part of your home/apartment/room, etc.?" Without a doubt, the answer to this question, as applied to my on-campus apartment, is my kitchen--my very red kitchen. Although my preference for this area of the apartment may be due to its inherent relation to another one of my favorite things--food!--my kitchen brings me joy beyond the cuisine it helps me produce. All of my contributions to the kitchen decor are of a scarlet hue: the dishes, the gadgets, the measuring cups, the dish towels, and, yes, my beloved blender. Here is a glimpse into my culinary world:
Right side. Where creativity happens.
Left side. Where...dishwashing happens.
Oh-so-glamorous stove (with cherry towels!).
Assorted utensils. Uniformly red and white, save for my Foodbuzz spatula.
OK, so I like colorful dishes.
A selection from my ever-growing cookbook collection.
Where the (blending) magic happens. Although I lust after my fellow bloggers' VitaMix and BlendTec machines, I'm not sure they make them in red:)

Clearly my kitchen is not a high-tech or spacious destination, but I have fun in here, nonetheless.
What does your kitchen look like? What do you love about it?

Take a look at the latest kitchen creations:

Monday
The on-campus grocery store was out of garbanzo beans last week, so I chose a different variety that I had never tried before, aduki beans. Although they are traditionally used in sweet Asian dishes, I opted to use them in a stir-fry with my bunch of bok choy. I simply cooked them in teriyaki sauce along with a few asparagus spears and topped the mixture with toasted cashews. Couscous and a few grapes rounded it all out.
Dinner was a momentous event--I finally tried Jenn's Humbecue Pizza! Although I substituted a sliced mozzarella stick for the feta, I think I achieved the same general flavor experience. Fabulous! I will be using this combination in the future, for sure. Just think, humbecue wraps, salads, quesadillas, potatoes...oh the possibilities. I also had some greens with a few chopped dates on top, plus peaches with almonds.
In the evening I slurped on a triple berry smoothie: raspberry Spirutein, strawberries, and blueberries mixed with soymilk. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Tuesday
Breakfast was a big ol' bowl of oat bran. I made this creamy delight with rice milk, vanilla, agave nectar, ground flax, and mashed banana. I topped it off with some chopped apricots. YUM.
For lunch, I reverted back to my childhood a bit. Ever since kindergarten, I was always responsible for packing my own lunch (which made for some pretty interesting combinations early on). I soon developed a favorite: fat-free bologna on white bread with mayo, mustard, and pickles. Not exactly health food. Nonetheless, I still crave it occasionally, so I made a veganized, healthier version yesterday: Smart Deli meatless bologna slices, whole grain mustard, vegan mayo, sweet relish, and a few mixed greens piled on whole wheat bread. I love taking trips down memory lane with food. Anyway, I used to eat these deli slices all the time when I first became a vegetarian but have since shied away from meat analogs. This one is still pretty darn tasty to me though:) To complete the "lunchbox" theme, I had an apple with PB and raw veggies with salsa.
Dinner was an attempt to revamp leftovers: butternut squash pasta with assorted veggies. I've pulled this before, using soup to make a pasta sauce, and it is still quite tasty. I wished there more saltiness to this soup though--that's what I get for buying the low-sodium variety. Anyway, in the veggie mix, you see red onion, squash, and asparagus. On the side, I had greens with Woodstock dressing, plus a nectarine.
The shake last night was pretty awesome: strawberries, banana, chocolate rice protein, special dark cocoa powder, soymilk, and a few dairy-free chocolate chips.
Wednesday
This morning, I decided on another banana dog with Sunbutter and apple butter, plus a Greek yogurt on the side. Of this entire package of hot dog buns, I've only used them once for their intended purpose, hot dogs. Go figure.
As I sit here typing, I am in awe of how dry and nasty my hands have become. The cold weather and dishwashing certainly have taken their toll. How do you keep your hands silky and supple?

Be back soon! Happy (Ash) Wednesday!