Rock Your Body

As one of my friends reminded me recently (Hi, Rosalie!), this week is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week. Without being a Debbie Downer, I just wanted to take this opportunity to spread the word about the dangers of eating disorders. As someone who has experienced the detrimental physical and psychological effects of restrictive eating, this issue remains close to my heart, even several years into recovery. So, this week, I encourage you all to love your body, regardless of its shape or size. Nurture it, flaunt it, and yes, make like JT and "Rock Your Body."

For more information about National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, visit this website.

In full appreciation of my body, I have been fueling it well these past few days, despite my intensive study schedule. Ah, the joys of midterms. Anyway, here are the goods:

Friday
This was a "leftovers smoothie" in that I just plopped in the remainder of a few bags of frozen fruit: pineapple, peaches, and a few strawberries made quite the delectable frozen drink. I used Nutribody for the protein component.
Saturday
After a glorious 9 hours of sleep, I headed to the gym to calibrate my Nike+...which ended up being quite damaging to my runner's self-esteem. Anyone else have experience with their Nike+ overestimating mileage? Anyway, I felt much better when I prepared breakfast: blueberry mini waffles with TJ's Maple Agave Blend, walnuts, and blueberries, of course. I also had some Greek yogurt on the side.
I took a study break for lunch and made a quick ratatouille. It's been a while since I've prepared this dish, but it continues to be a favorite. Squash, tomato sauce, onions, and garlic combined with chickpeas made for a yummy dish of warmth. On the side, I had some greens with Woodstock dressing, Italian-herb flatbread, and an apple.
For dinner, I made good use of that POM juice again. I modified ED&BV's recipe for Orange Sesame Tofu by substituting POM for the OJ and omitting the sesame seeds. It turned out quite delicious, if I do say so myself. I had some couscous with toasted cashews on the side, along with steamed asparagus and 'shrooms and a few grapes.
The smoothie of the evening consisted of simply mango, soymilk, and Nutribody. Simple perfection.
Sunday
In completing my round-up of Girl Scout cookie themed oats, I made my oats with Do-Si-Dos in mind: oats with vanilla, rice milk, agave nectar, and chopped toasted peanuts topped with good ol' PB. Yum.
Because I just cannot go an entire week without it, for lunch I made scrambled tofu. This version incorporated asparagus. That's whole wheat toast, a salad with cukes and scallions, and an apple on the side.
At halftime of the ultimately victorious Duke basketball game, I prepared a quick dinner: veggie hot dog in one of those pillowy Arnold's buns, with organic ketchup and whole grain mustard, broccoli with melted cheddar, salad with Woodstock dressing and more grapes. Kind of a sodium-overload, but tasty and comforting, nonetheless.
The smoothie last night featured another fab combo: peaches and banana. Always creamy and delicious.
Monday
In order to squeeze in a little more study time this morning, I had a quick breakfast of convenience: Amy's breakfast burrito, cinnamon-spiked yogurt, and a nectarine. Sorry for the crap-tastic picture of the inside of the burrito--my camera just wouldn't cooperate. I think the owl plate enhanced my enjoyment of this breakfast immensely:)
Before I go, I'll ask you a final question. In keeping with the theme of the week, what do you love about your body?

Have a happy, healthy Monday!

Pomegranate Crime Scene

After about 2 weeks of hiding behind my wheat germ jar, the pomegranate I purchased was finally put to good use today. I have absolutely zero experience with pomegranates or their seeds, so preparing this mystery fruit made for quite the adventure. After carefully cutting off the top, I began separating the seeds from the membrane...then the chaos began. Those seeds are slippery little suckers! Let's just say that the preparation session concluded with stained counters, a purple-dotted microwave, a speckled T-shirt, and "freckles" all over my body. In short, it looked like a pomegranate homicide had taken place.

Anyway, the hummus-soynut monotony has gladly come to a close. Check out my most recent eats:

Monday
After a failed smoothie attempt using the Vega vanilla chai protein (*gasp* I actually poured it down the drain!), I settled on another strawberry cream shake: strawberries, soymilk, vanilla soy ice cream, and Nutribody protein.
Tuesday
I decided to get creative with yesterday's parfait. I combined plain yogurt (with cinnamon), sliced pear, bran flakes, currants, and almonds. Out of the ordinary and delicious.
In an effort to use up my eggplant, I made a ratatouille with tomato sauce and onions. I served it with couscous, a salad with wheat germ and sweet dill dressing, and a banana with melty PB for dessert.
For dinner, I was craving comfort food, so I heated up some of Amy's baked beans and served them alongside mac & cheeze (based off of this recipe), broccoli, and green beans.
The smoothie last night was a berry bonanza: blueberries, strawberries, soymilk, and Nutribody protein. I am in dire need of frozen fruit! Eek!
Wednesday
Another week, another Banana Bread Blender. This time, I used spelt flakes instead of bran and honey-roasted peanuts for the nut component. Banana with PB...in liquid form.
Lunch today was inspired by a recipe for Baked Bean Stew from Nubella. I omitted the chicken and made a few other adjustments. Toast points and an apple with glorious almond butter rounded everything out.
I just finished a delicious dinner: I made wagon wheel pasta with broccoli and TVP "meat sauce," and I made a killer salad out of greens, sweet dill dressing, pomegranate seeds, and pecans. Whoa.
I promised you pictures of my semi formal outfit for this Saturday:
This is my first time wearing the dress; I hope it will be right for the occasion. PS Anyone have any suggestions on how to do my hair for the evening?

Alright, I am off to do some sorority activities. Ta-ta for now.

Relaxing with TLC

No, I do not mean tender, loving care, nor am I referring to those ever popular Kashi crackers--I've been relaxing with my favorite channel, TLC. Monday nights are now by far my favorite night of television (Jon and Kate Plus, Eight AND Little People, Big World!), but I never get to sit down and enjoy "my" shows because of meetings, Bible study, and that pesky little thing called homework. However, thanks to my university's autumnal gift to its students, Fall Break, I was able to spend a leisurely evening with my family watching said programs. *Sigh* What a great way to recharge before the second half of the semester.

As I mentioned last week, my time was split this weekend between the lake house and our house in Birmingham; it ended up being a nice balance between tranquility and activity. While I enjoyed sipping tea by the lakeside, it was also nice to get to do some shopping with Mom:) How did you all spend the weekend?
Due to constantly being in transit these past few days, I didn't put together many elaborate meals. Nonetheless, I prepared a few things outside of my at-school repertoire...

Friday
My sister hadn't yet arrived (with my camera( by the time I broke out the blender, so I don't have a picture of Friday's smoothie. Don't worry--it was very blah. I didn't have any hemp protein around, so I just grabbed some random protein packets I've had lying around for a while. This one consisted of Super Blue Pro96 Soy Protein, frozen blueberries, soymilk, and cinnamon raisin granola. Not tasty at all. Saturday I rummaged around for some acceptable breakfast victuals and finally stumbled upon some Kashi Heart to Heart. I poured myself a bowl of that with soymilk, plus an banana with PB. After a trip to the grocery store and a little girls' afternoon out with my mom and sisters, I returned home to a simple lunch of refried beans and salsa wrapped in tortillas, salad, and an apple with almonds. The family was having chili con carne for dinner, but since I just had chili last Sunday, I decided against making a veggie version and instead made some baked beans. I used tomato sauce, maple syrup, sauteed onions, and just a touch of mustard. On the side I had corn, salad with sunflower seeds, and surprisingly tasty strawberries. We returned home that night, so I prepared a late-night smoothie with Alive! rice and pea protein, apple sauce, cinnamon, and soymilk. Odd color, yummy apple-pie taste. Sunday I took my time for breakfast yesterday and made pumpkin pancakes. My first attempt was free-form, not using a recipe--and it failed quite miserably. As a last resort, I actually looked up a recipe and that batch turned out much better. I hate to waste my precious pumpkin though:( I topped these baby pancakes with chopped almonds and dipped them in...more pumpkin. I sweetened the pumpkin with maple syrup, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg. After my breakfast debacle, I decided to keep it simple for lunch, so I just made a simple veggie-tofu sandwich with tomatoes, mushrooms, guacamole, and garlic rubbed tofu. I also had salad and an apple. Last night for dinner, my dad decided he would prepare a ratatouille omelet for everyone. As a lacto-vegetarian, I don't consume eggs, so I decided to prepare something a little different. I topped ratatouille with baked polenta rounds (along with some spices) and served it alongside a Health Is Wealth Chicken-Free Patty with melted mozzarella and some cubed watermelon.
I was leaning in a more decadent direction last night when I prepared my shake. I needed chocolate--badly. I used a frozen banana, soymilk, chocolate soy protein, peanuts, and chocolate syrup. Total yum.
Monday
After a trip to Whole Foods yesterday, I was excited to eat some vegan Van's waffles this morning. I topped them with the same pumpkin mixture I used yesterday morning. I also had a sliced apple with Dark Chocolate Dreams PB. These waffles were good, but I am always looking for alternatives. What brand of waffles do you buy? I prefer egg-free varieties.
I gave the Blogger Secret Ingredient another try today. I baked a few polenta rounds and topped them with sun-dried tomato hummus; I also had a snap pea-tomato mixture and peaches with cinnamon and chopped almonds.
As my vacation draws to a close, I just wanted a comfort dish for dinner. So of course I made Cashew Ginger Tofu from ED&BV. I never get tired of it. This was delicious of course, but (as you can see), the sauce got a bit pasty. I had it with some noodles, salad, and an assortment of freezer veggies.
Whew. I am off to stuff a few last items into my bulging suitcase before I head off to bed. Be back soon!