Major Spill

...and no, I am not talking about a cooking accident. I wiped out on the sidewalk yesterday while on my run. These crazy old sidewalks are pretty cracked and uneven. I got scraped up badly on my hands, knees, and my shoulder, of all places. When it happened, two things went through my mind: 1) Is my iPod OK? (sick, I know), and 2) Did anyone see me? Needless to say, I am fine, just a little bruised and bandaged.

Later in the day, I had my anatomy quiz. It was not fun. Nuff said.

As a result of my no good, very bad day, I was looking for a little comfort these past few days. As per usual, I turned to my food!

Thursday
Immediately after my clumsy run, I enjoyed a breakfast of overnight oatmeal. I used instant oats, plain soymilk, and cinnamon; I had a sliced banana with almond butter on the side. As my grandfather would say, "hits the spot!"

Lunch was pretty hurried--I lost track of time while I was reviewing my notes before lab. I whipped up something quick--curried tofu salad (or pseudo-chicken salad). This version consisted of extra-firm tofu, Nayonaise, Grey Poupon mustard, curry powder, raisins, and walnuts. I also gobbled up some Ak-maks and crudites.
For dinner, I dug up one of my favorite cookbooks: The Imus Ranch Cookbook by Deirdre Imus. My uncle gave me this way back in my earlier days of vegetarianism, and I never really appreciated how great it is until now. I decided to make the Mesa Meatballs, which include soy sausage, thyme, fresh oregano, and a few other flavorings. These were stuffed into an oat bran pita and smothered with tomato sauce. Delicious! I need to use this cookbook more often. I also had some some salad, steamed squash, and a blueberry soy yogurt.
The smoothie of the evening was peaches 'n cream: peach Spirutein, plain soymilk, frozen peaches, and Nature's Path pumpkin granola.
Friday
No fancy breakfast dish this morning: just a whole wheat mini bagel with Sunbutter and a strawberry-soymilk smoothie.
After running some errands with my mom and sister, I made a quick lunch out of some freezer staples. I decided to make V-con's ever-popular corn and edamame salad--so simple and tasty! I also had a salad of Romaine, roasted red peppers, rice vinegar, and sliced almonds. Mango cubes balanced it all out.
Back by popular demand, some snack pics. Today I had some of Enjoy Life's trail mix and a small dish of plain soy yogurt.
While we were running errands today, my mom and sister stopped at McDonald's for lunch. Although I'm not a fan of the Golden Arches, being there did spark a craving for a cheeseburger. Truthfully, I've never had a real cheeseburger, even in my meat-eating days. Anyway, this craving inspired my dinner: Boca burger on whole wheat with ketchup, vegan cheddar, and Romaine. I also had some a squash-turnip greens saute and a salad with perfectly ripe avocado. Words cannot describe how much I enjoyed this meal:)
Quick question for you all: would you be interested in a list of my favorite cookbooks? I could add a sidebar listing the contents of my cookbook shelf. Let me know what you think!

Now I'm off to watch an episode of What Not to Wear. Have a good weekend!

Back to Routine

At last, some sense of normalcy has returned in the Yoder household. All the family has headed home (excepting the newlyweds, who are still on their honeymoon), and a routine has been established. To illustrate the remarkable change, consider this scene:

Mom: "Caroline, let's see what's on the Style Network."

Me: "Oh, it looks like it's another episode of 'Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?'"

Mom: "Ugh. Turn it off. I don't want to even think about weddings for a looong time."

Bear in mind, this statement emerged from the lips of a woman who has lived and breathed wedding plans for the past 11 months. I must say that I am glad to have my normal mother back:)

My meals should be more typical these days too...

Monday

My love of chocolate has returned again. My smoothies were so healthful for a while there--just fruit, yogurt, and spirulina. Alas, my virtue was short-lived. I had a chocolate-banana shake on Monday, using banana, banana Spirutein, and chocolate non-dairy ice cream (So Delicious, fruit-sweetened). I love the texture of the So Delicious when it's whipped in the blender--very fluffy and "cloud-like." I used the "Awesome Chocolate" flavor, and the carton does not lie--my shake was awesome.

Tuesday

Once again, I needed a quick breakfast after my run (and before my nutrition class) yesterday. I combined plain soy yogurt with cinnamon and pure maple syrup, for a cheater's maple cream topping. I put it on a toasted Rudi's Flax English Muffin, and I had some leftover, so I put a blob on mound of fresh berries. Pretty good for an improv breakfast.

After class, I made a curried pseudo-chicken salad using tofu, Nayonaise, Grey Poupon, curry, raisins, and sliced almonds. I stuffed it all in an Ezekiel pita and served it along side some organic greens and a sliced kiwi. This was SO good. The sweetness of the raisins and the acidity of the mustard created a great flavor combination. For dinner I made an "everything but the kitchen sink" salad. Here's what went into this mess: canned kidney beans, mashed avocado, roasted red peppers, fresh cucumber, yellow peppers, and cherry tomatoes. I also had some whole wheat toast and brussels sprouts. I had another decadent shake last night, using chocolate So Delicious, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Spirutein (!), and a splash of vanilla almond milk. I topped it with a few dark chocolate chips. I was drooling over this one as I poured it into my cup. Wednesday

I kept it simple today for breakfast. My class today was cancelled, so I was able to sleep in and fit in an extra-long workout. As a result, I was hungry by the time I got to the kitchen, so I settled on a "bowl meal" breakfast. Today's mixture included Kashi GoLean, puffed rice, Plain Light Silk, sliced almonds, and fresh blueberries.

Lunch was a quick one too. I just crumbled some tempeh on top of organic greens. There are also some walnuts on there, in case you can't tell--they kind of blend in with the tempeh! I added some raisins too. A piece of Ezekiel toast rounded out the meal. Dinner was inspired by Self Magazine. I save most of the nutrition articles from my magazines, including the ones for the diet "challenges." They often include daily sample menus. Please understand that I am NOT trying to lose weight--I just like to use the menus for new meal ideas. Anyway, one was as follows: "breaded pork chops with steamed spinach and a sweet potato." I thought that sounded pretty balanced, so I made my own version by breading some tofu with wheat germ and baking it at 350*. I used Grey Poupon as the "glue." Two of my addictions in one dish--Grey Poupon and wheat germ! I also had a side salad and some cashews to add some necessary fat. I will leave you with a picture I took today, when "the subject" wasn't aware. He's pretty much deaf these days, so it's easy to sneak up behind him...Now I'm off to study for an anatomy quiz.