Showing posts with label banana. Show all posts
Showing posts with label banana. Show all posts

Monday, February 2, 2009

Peanut Butter, Basketball, and Sisterly Love

Yep, my weekend consisted of three of my favorite things. The ChiO crush party on Friday was a blast; even though all the juniors (myself included) were designated as "sober sisters," we all managed to have lots of fun. Yesterday, I headed over to the basketball game, where we defeated Virginia, 79-54. Sweet. To top off all this weekend fun, I managed to try not 1, not 2, but 3 additional flavors of my new Peanut Butter & Co. products. Life is good.

How did you spend your weekend?

Although I did consume a healthy amount of peanut butter this weekend, it's not all I ate. See for yourself:

Friday
Before heading out for the evening's festivities, I was sure to adequately fuel myself. As a sober sister, I had to be there for the entirety of the event from 9 PM-2 AM. Oy. Anyway, here's what I cobbled together: Amy's Bistro burger on whole wheat with organic K+M, a salad with tomatoes and walnuts, and a dish of grapes.
When I returned from the party, I was famished from all that dancing...so I made my smoothie at 3AM. Yes, my neighbors love me, I am sure. Anyway, here's what went into my concoction: frozen banana, soymilk, cappuccino Spirutein, and a few dairy-free chocolate chips.
Saturday
I suppose you could call this breakfast, even though I didn't eat it until about 12 PM...yes, I actually slept in for once! I made a tropical parfait: plain yogurt, spelt flakes, mango, coconut, and cashews.
For lunch, I made the best of leftovers my making a two-bean chili: chickpeas, black beans, tomato sauce + water, chili powder, cayenne, and onions. On the side I had a baked potato, salad, and a blood orange.
After some hard-core homeworking, I was ready for some grub. I took the lazy route and just made a big salad with soynuts and served it alongside rice crackers and an apple with White Chocolate Wonderful PB. The apple with PB was by far the best part of this meal--the Cameo apple (which I purchased for 99 cents/lb at WF!) was the perfectly sweet accompaniment for the PB. It was almost like dessert. Almost.
The smoothie of the evening featured one of my favorite Spirutein flavors: bluberries 'n cream. I combined that with blueberries, soymilk, and a bit of granola.
Sunday
Before heading out to chapel, I made my customary stovetop oats, this time with strawberries and rice milk for a super creamy texture. Then I plopped a dollop of Dark Chocolate Dreams PB on top...that's just the tip of the PB iceberg you see below; much of it sunk to the bottom of the bowl, which made for a lovely surprise at the end of my meal. Chocolate-covered strawberry, anyone?
I didn't get a chance to eat "lunch" until after the basketball game at 4:30 PM. Yeah, so I was ready to eat anything in sight. I relied on my freezer goodies this time: I heated up a Tofu Scramble Pocket by Amy's Kitchen. While I much prefer my own scrambled tofu creations, this product is great for occasions when time is short...or you're just too hungry to prepare anything for yourself. I served it alongside a salad with Woodstock dressing and a dish of grapes.
Dinner was another spontaneous affair. I made a hummus pocket sandwich and ate it with some steamed veggies and an apple with cashew butter.
The smoothie last night featured unsweetened banana Spirutein with a banana and a sliced peaches for good measure.
Monday
Inspired by a recipe I found in the Skippy cookbook my dad received for Christmas, I made a PB "quesadilla" except there was absolutely no cheese involved. I spread a wrap with Cinnamon Raisin PB and sliced bananas, then threw it on the George Foreman. I also had some cinnamon-spiked yogurt on the side. It was quite melty and delicious.
Now for a completely random question: What kind of toothpaste do you use? I am squishing out the final bits of my tube, so I need to replace it ASAP.

OK, maybe I'll actually be on time to my Faulkner class today. Whatevs--blogging is worth missing a few minutes of class:)

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Snacks in a Sack

As of 11 PM this evening, the last round of recruitment has come to an end. Tomorrow is Bid Day, so I will be able to return to the blogging world...and I guess return to the world of homework and responsibility.

Anyway, as a result of my crazy schedule these past few days, I have become an expert on packing portable nibbles for between-party snacking. I apologize for the boring nature of my diet this week--I tried to avoid repetition and to maintain a minimal level of nutrition in my on-the-go meals. Check it out:

Wednesday
After I signed off last time, I prepared a quick lunch of scrambled tofu, complete with some of my favorite veggies. Spinach and mushrooms went into this tofu scramble, in addition to the usual tahini, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger. I had some toast and a few clementines on the side.
We had the night off from recruitment parties, so I happily used my free time to attend the Duke basketball games. I arrived in line at about 5:30, with a Prana Bar carefully concealed in my pocket (no outside food is allowed, as I discovered here). Not long after I arrived, torrential rain took over campus; the winds grew stronger and hail descended upon us. The temperature was also a toasty 20*F. Oh, the things I do for the Blue Devils. I was one of the last few people granted entrance into the game. Weather troubles aside, we won the game, and I was able to thoroughly enjoy my coconut acai Prana bar. I will be reviewing this in the future! Afterward, sorority duties beckoned for a late-night workshop, so I grabbed a quick Greek salad on campus. A few of my my roomie's Swedish fish assortment *might* have swum their way into my mouth as well...
The smoothie of the evening was delightful--I used two of my favorite things: cherries and Nutribody protein (which I reviewed here).
Thursday
With still limited groceries available in my apartment, I made a simple breakfast out of toast with mashed banana/almond butter and a dish of plain yogurt.
For lunch, I threw together a simple chickpea salad wrap, made with vegan mayo, a touch of mustard, and kelp granules. I also had a salad with pecans and clementines.
I prepared another on-the-go dinner for the evening: a snack mix consisting of GoLean, soynuts, currants, and peanuts; I also had an apple and a Larabar.
It turns out that my sorority provided sandwiches from Panera between parties, so I saved my PB&J for later in the evening. I also grabbed a bunch of grapes.
Friday
After a blissful night of sleep, I prepared an awesome bowl of oats: oatmeal, banana, vanilla extract, a crumbled pistachio Larabar, and dried cranberries all went into this little bowl of heaven.
I then restocked my pantry and refrigerator with a trip to Whole Foods. When I returned, I made a quick tofu hash with mushrooms, corn, and red onion, as well as garlic, oregano, and Bragg's for flavah. On the side, I had a spinach salad with wheat germ and raspberry vinaigrette, and a dish of peaches with flax and cinnamon.
When I returned, I discovered that I had a package waiting for me at the post office:
VeggieGirl was kind enough to send me an assortment of Larabars. She and I arranged a little food exchange, and I requested a few Larabars, selected by the expert herself! Thanks, Liz!

Dinner was yet another "moveable feast." I packed tomato basil hummus to be enjoyed with pita and carrots as well as an apple, PB Bumpers with peanuts, and a string cheese for snackage.
I am headed to bed in a bit--I aim to get about 8 or 9 hours tonight. What is your ideal amount of sleep? In high school, before the academic rigors and social opportunities of college life had entered my life, my body would naturally awake after precisely 9 hours of sleep. Is your sleep schedule consistent? Do you make sleep a priority in your life?

I will update you on the rest of the weekend in Monday's post...ta-ta for now.