Keep on Chuggin'

As of 9:45 this morning, I let out a sigh of relief--my stats test is over! Only one more until the end of the semester! Ordinarily, I would be in total relaxation mode right now, but it's that time of the semester when assignments and projects just keep coming. Oh well--my workload is not keeping me from attending the basketball game tonight:) Consequently, I am posting now rather than later so as to avoid another "hiccup" (see Sunday's post).

Due to my weekend of playing and working, my diet became, well, random and uninspired. Here are the goods anyway:

Friday
Following a late-night chat session with one of my close friends, I whipped up a delicious smoothie at 2AM. This one included blueberries, peaches, acai hemp protein, soymilk, and delectable ginger granola.
Saturday
After a leisurely workout at the gym, I returned home to a still sleeping roomie, so I kept breakfast simple and minimally noisy in preparation. I combined pumpkin with flax, cinnamon, and agave nectar and spread it on a whole wheat sandwich thin. On the side, I had some plain yogurt with sliced grapes.
I spent much of my afternoon waiting around for someone to return a text about studying--he never responded, and I missed the last home football game of the season as a result. To add insult to injury, he was the one who wanted to study together in the first place! As Stephanie Tanner would say, "How rude!" To assuage my grumpy mood, I decided some lunch was in order. I made some refried bean fajitas with bell peppers and salsa. I also had an apple with cashew butter.
I had had quite enough waiting around, so I headed to the mall with my friends for the evening. After a few impulse buys, we decided it was time for some fuel and headed to California Pizza Kitchen. I ordered my favorite Smashed Pea Soup plus a half Mediterranean Salad. My favorite thing about that salad is the little bed of hummus waiting for you at the bottom. Delish.
Oh yeah, Kristen wanted me to show you what she got: mushroom-sausage-pepperoni pizza. No tofu for her!
We spent the evening hanging out on campus with some Navy boys (Kristen is in NROTC). When I returned, I made another 2 AM blender concoction: chocolate hemp protein, banana, strawberries, soymilk, and dairy-free chocolate chips. Repetitive, but oh-so-good.
Sunday
After seeing similar ideas on other blogs, I decided to make myself a bowl of raspberry oats. In addition to the main ingredients, I also included cinnamon, vanilla extract, and chopped almonds. My roommate thinks my oatmeal creations are so odd--they're either bright orange (pumpkin oats!) or bright pink (berry oats!). I like to "taste the rainbow."
The afternoon was spent at a mandatory sorority event at which the offerings were pepperoni pizza and soda. Boo! I made a leftovers sandwich instead: refried black beans, tofu, and salsa on the last two pieces of my whole wheat bread. On the side, I had a salad with honey-roasted peanuts and an orange.
Dinner was completely random but still tasty: I combined corn, tomatoes, a Sunshine burger, and dill for an impromptu salad. I also had some snap peas and an apple.
Once my studying had reached its conclusion for the evening, I made a big, tasty shake. It was almost the same as Saturday's, except I added a hefty dose of coconut to the mix. I was really sad when I reached the bottom of my big green cup:(
Monday
As I put some finishing touches on my stats studying, I gobbled down a bowl of Kashi Mighty Bites with sliced banana, rice milk, and wheat germ. I also had a side of GORP (good ol' raisins and peanuts).
With my classes and responsibilities behind me, I settled in for an easy lunch of tofu scramble. This tasty mess included tofu, tahini, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and broccoli. On the side, I had toast and a rather seed-tastic orange. Despite the messy orange, this meal was so comforting, as always.
Now, I am off to shower and maybe squeeze in some studying before my dining committee meeting and the basketball game. Happy Monday!

Friggin', Fraggin' Frugal

As you might expect, I went for my weekly shopping trip to Whole Foods yesterday. Once there, I was amazed to discover price increases--over the span of a week. The yogurt I normally buy (Stonyfield Nonfat) is now 99 cents per cup compared to last week's 89 cents, and I can't even afford almonds anymore. I usually buy a one pound bag, but that would set me back $6.39! Granted, nuts are a high-price item, but last week I am sure they were $5.99/lb. Frozen fruit is of course more expensive these days since berry season is pretty much complete, so it looks like I will be buying frozen peaches and pineapple chunks for a while. At least I got some steals on fresh produce (local eggplant! organic apples!).

These increasing food prices particularly sadden me because generally I am a frugal person, but I choose to spend money on food; I have habitually opted to have high-quality groceries be my "luxury" items. I acknowledge that I could shop elsewhere at places that perhaps have better prices (Kroger, SuperTarget,etc.), but 1) I don't have a car, and these places are not as proximal to campus, and 2) I find that other stores do not carry the quality or brands of products that I like to buy.

I apologize for this rant, but I just became quite irked when I realized that I haven't been able to afford $1.79 Larabars for the past few weeks (I still haven't tried the PB Cookie or Coconut Creme Pie flavors!). Mom, if you're reading this, those would make excellent stocking stuffers for Christmas :)

When I look at my diet over the past few days, I realize that perhaps food that good and good for you is worth a few extra bucks...

Wednesday I have been neglecting my Nutiva hemp protein for a while, so I decided to use that for my smoothie the other night. This one included strawberries, coconut, and soymilk. I love the texture that shredded coconut provides--I used it both within the smoothie itself and on top. Thursday
The love affair with coconut continues...A whole wheat mini bagel with cashew butter and shredded coconut, plus a peach-soymilk smoothie with wheat germ. I was busting at the seams after this one--this breakfast gets two thumbs up on satiety. My last class on Thursday got cancelled so I headed to the gym earlier than usual. An earlier gym time and a super-filling breakfast left me in need of a smaller pre-run snack: the other half of a chocolate chip Clif bar. For lunch, I used a great recipe from VegWeb as inspiration. The combination of spices and tahini, plus the buttery chickpeas made for an excellent dish. That's couscous and a salad with carrots on the side. I got creative in the kitchen that night. What I ended up with was an agave-mustard tofu dish. I simply combined minced garlic, dijon mustard, agave nectar, a little soy sauce, and some water and poured it over some slabs of tofu and baked it in the oven for about 25 minutes, turning once. YUM!! I am definitely on a sweet-tangy kick lately, so I really enjoyed this. Along with it, I had steamed brussels sprouts, red quinoa, and a salad with peanuts, orange slices, and Bragg's. The blender concoction of the night ended up being a thin shake. I used a frozen banana, soymilk, cocoa chili hemp, and coconut. The flavor was awesome, but next time, I'll use less liquid, because this didn't have the right consistency. Friday
After sleeping in a bit and making a leisurely trip to the gym, I decided on a fall-themed breakfast. I made stovetop oats with unsweetened applesauce and cinnamon, topped with wheat germ and crunchy PB. (Note the article about Panda Express on the front page--there are some intersting comments at the end of the piece). Following my depressing trip to WF, I came home to use up some leftovers for lunch. I cooked some chickpeas with canned tomatoes, basil, and oregano. I stuffed that mixture into a pita and served it alongside a salad with balsamic vinegar, a juicy peach, and pistachios. I had a "sisterhood retreat" last night, so a few of us girls headed to McAlister's Deli for dinner. I ordered the Taco Salad with the veggie chili (sans cheese and sour cream). This was my first time to McAlister's, and I think I would return again--they had lots of veggie options, and it's all pretty substantial, not just pathetic salads. I didn't take a picture, but here is what it looked like (from http://flickr.com/photos/lamarstyle/347942406/).
The evening consisted of many goofy games--and much snacking, of course. I managed to find a few healthy options. Someone was wise enough to bring fruit!
So I snacked on lots of grapes, an apple, plus a few pieces of candy. Not quite as nutritious as my usual smoothie, but tasty. Here's a picture of the snack table, post-snackfest: Now I am off to relax and maybe do some stats HW. Enjoy your afternoon!

PS Get excited for product reviews tomorrow!

Where's My Tristan?

Sorry I didn't post last night--I got caught up in a girls' movie night. My friends and I watched Tristan + Isolde; I highly recommend it. Although it's categorized as tragedy, I was still left in a romantic state, pining away for my own Tristan. Ever since the movie ended, I have been lamenting my perpetual single-ness. Perhaps one day I'll find Prince Charming. Sigh.

In other news, I am successfully recovering from last week's cold. I no longer have a dependency on cough drops as I did at the beginning of last week, and my sniffles have significantly subsided. Woohoo! Keep your fingers crossed that I can stay healthy for the remainder of the semester--I'll keep emphasizing the fruits and veggies in my diet to ensure adequate intake of those vital phytochemicals.

Anyway, here's an update of the eats from Wednesday evening through Friday evening:

Wednesday
I am loving my Living Harvest! I made a peach-cinnamon-vanilla spice concoction the other night. Delish.
Thursday
Just a simple bowl of cereal for breakfast. This mound included Fiber One, Corn Bran, cashews, dried cranberries, and soy milk, with sliced banana on top.
The pre-run snack was comprised of the other half of that Oatmeal Raisin Walnut Clif bar and a big fat orange. Gotta love that vitamin C.
Lunch was moderately Greek-inspired: a big salad with mixed greens, mushrooms, red bell pepper, cucumber, olives, and artichoke hearts.You have no idea how excited I was when I saw those on the salad bar. Anyway, I also had an Ezekiel pita with a big blob of hummus.
After much homework, I settled down to an easy, but veggie-filled dinner. I heated up a can of Health Valley vegetarian chili and topped it with chopped avocado. I also had a salad, corn, and haricot verts.
The smoothie of the evening consisted of strawberries, soymilk, and vanilla spice hemp. Note the change of scenery. Those are my perfume bottles in the background.
Friday
After a workout at the gym, I came home to prepare something I have been craving for a while: banana pancakes. I used the Sweet Eats recipe as a template, but I got creative yesterday and added my own twist with the addition of special dark cocoa powder to the batter. I also topped them with cashew butter. YUM. As a result of this dish, I had Jack Johnson's "Banana Pancakes" stuck in my head all day, thanks to a comment Ruby made a while back.
After my weekly trip to WF, I returned to the apartment to make a quick lunch: taco salad! I topped spinach, orange bell pepper, and tomato with leftover chili, and I toasted up some whole wheat tortilla triangles in the oven. Those are kiwi slices and pistachios on the side. Yes, I eat the skin on kiwis--is that so odd? My roommate thinks it's so gross.
Kristen and I grabbed dinner at a campus eatery, where I got a black bean burger and a side salad. I switched out the lame white bun for the heels of my loaf of whole wheat bread. I also had a container of plain yogurt with raisins.
The smoothie last night was phenomenal. What do you expect when you combine the two flavors meant to be together, vanilla hemp and mango? This pairing is still my favorite, by far.
Well, I am off to check out the football game in a bit and then maybe get a little studying done for my stats test on Monday. Ick. Be back soon!