Art on the Rocks

I just returned from an evening at the art museum...but I didn't see any exhibits. The Birmingham Museum of Art hosts events for young adults throughout the summer, (Art on the Rocks) and I made my first venture there tonight. It was a good way to spend the evening, although I think I was by far the youngest person there. I think the definition of "young adult" spans age 22-35ish, so I still have a few more years until I fit into that category. Nonetheless, there was good music, a few snacks and beverages, and even a fun craft!

Tomorrow, the fam heads to Atlanta for some fun shopping at Ikea and H&M, plus a visit to the Georgia Aquarium. One of the things that I am most looking forward to is our visit to the Cafe Sunflower--an all vegetarian restaurant! My dad surprised me last night by announcing that he had made reservations there. Here is the menu....what would you order?

We leave early tomorrow morning, so I'll get to the food already.

Wednesday

I haven't been posting my snacks as often lately, so I thought I would post a few today. Here is one from two days ago: plain Oikos yogurt with Craisins and whole grain graham crackers. Not a bad study snack.

My shake was fabulous--again. I am on a roll lately. However, this shake wasn't perfect; I used chocolate PB Soy Delicious, but I could barely taste any peanut flavor in the shake. Next time I think I'll add a scoop of PB to the mix.
Thursday

On Wednesday evening, I made a batch of muffins from raisin bran cereal, whole wheat flour, and agave as the sweetener. I had two of these for breakfast yesterday with a tall glass of soymilk and some sliced peaches with cinnamon.

My packed lunch consisted of a taco chili sandwich (using a spread by Cool Beans), fresh berries, and carrots with natural PB. I purchased this spread at Fresh Market last weekend--I had never tried it before. It lived up to its label--quite spicy!--but the fresh tomato cut the spiciness so that the sandwich was enjoyable. Contrary to my usual sweet tooth, I had a considerable salt craving yesterday after lab--I reached for some of those BBQ soy crisps, and green bell pepper strips with Goddess dressing.
Last night's dinner was inspired by the Eggplant Fans recipe from the Chicago Diner Cookbook. I didn't end up making the fancy schmancy "fans" that the recipe called for, but I used most of the same ingredients: olives, artichoke hearts, and oregano. I added a Quorn cutlet for some protein, plus my usual side salad.
My shake last night was the best I have had in a while. The addition of a frozen banana and dark chocolate cocoa powder made all the difference. I was seriously a little heart broken when I reached the bottom of the glass:(Friday

Another tofu scramble this morning--note that the salsa is absent from this rendition. Rather than Mexican, I went for an Asian theme this morning: orange zest, grated ginger, and green onions went into this morning's mix. I also had a small kiwi and a slice of whole wheat toast.

For lunch, I picked out a recipe from Clean Eating Magazine (No. 1). This was not just a random recipe; I chose the cover recipe: Quinoa Black Bean Salad. This recipe gave me the excuse to use fresh cilantro from my garden AND my beloved Recaito that I mentioned a few weeks ago. Not a bad look-alike to the original, no? Anyway, I also had a salad with local tomatoes and fresh avocado, plus a big orange. Totally satisfying.

As I mentioned above, I went to a party this evening, so I didn't eat a real dinner. I was told that there would be "great food" at the event. There were platters full of mini ham sandwiches and buckets of queso, but I ultimately feasted on a dinner of chips and salsa with a glass of white wine. Oh, well--can't eat well all the time!

Alright, I will try to check in later this weekend, but if not...be back Monday!

Chop, Chop!

Vegetables are not the only thing I've been chopping lately...I cut off 10+ inches of hair today! I typically go through hairstyle cycles of long-short-long-short...so this is my third time to donate to Locks of Love. I'm sure someone else will appreciate my hair much more than I did. Check out the new 'do:
I have lots to share with you today, so I'll just dive right in.

Wednesday
As promised, I tried a new protein powder on Wednesday evening: Nutiva Berry Pomegranate HempShake. I have tried Nutiva's chocolate variety before and loved it, so I was pretty pumped to try this flavor, plus it includes a popular superfood: pomegranate. I am happy to report that this flavor was a hit--I'll be using it again in the future.
Thursday
For a quick breakfast yesterday, I whipped up a pineapple smoothie in the MB. The smoothie was good, but I think my beloved Bullet is dying a slow death...good thing I have a spare! On the side I nibbled on some honey roasted peanuts and Kashi Cinnamon Harvest cereal.
My packed lunch included a Health is Wealth vegan Chik Patty on whole wheat (with Nayonaise and mustard), broccoli slaw (with red wine vinegar), and a tropical trail mix I made from raw cashews and diced dried papaya. I think this was a tasty lunch, but I can't really say--it started to raining (er, pour) as I was eating it (outside), so I stuffed everything in my mouth and ran! I was soggy for the entirety of my anatomy lab. Boo.
For dinner, I inadvertently cooked up a meal consisting entirely of vegetables: steamed squash, salad, a baked potato, and spinach/beans cooked in Annie's BBQ sauce and cumin. I highly recommend cooking your veggies in BBQ sauce. Oh, and my prankster dad snuck that teal M&M into the picture without my realizing it. Yum, candy-coated squash.
The shake of the evening included another Nutiva HempShake flavor: Amazon Acai. I was psyched about this one too for its inclusion of acai, another uber-trendy superfood. Maybe it was just the combination of ingredients, but this flavor tasted a little too "hempy" to me. I still ate it (of course), but the amazing Amazaon acai wasn't so amazing in my opinion.
Friday
Today I woke up refreshed and ready for the weekend...so I had another breakfast parfait! I can't really make these during the week because it's a more labor intensive dish than, say, oatmeal or cereal. Displayed in my new $2 parfait glass is two crumbled bran muffins, vanilla soy yogurt, and sliced peaches. Yum!! Allison from Sweets by Alli requested a recipe for the muffins, so here it is (adapted from Clean Eating Magazine):

Agave Wheat Bran Muffins
1 c wheat bran
3/4 c soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
2/3 c whole wheat flour
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 T flax + 1 1/2 T water
1/2 c vanilla soy yogurt
1/3 c agave nectar
1 t vanilla
1/4 c pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 375*.
In medium bowl, combine wheat bran with soymilk and let stand for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine dry ingredients in another bowl.
In the bowl with the wheat bran mixture, add flax + water, soy yogurt, agave, and vanilla.
Combine the wet ingredients into the dry ones.
Spoon batter into lined or greased muffin cups and bake for 15-18 minutes.
Eat:)
My lunch today was incredible. I still can't get over how tasty it was (yet so simple!). I decided on a "cookout" theme (because I'm cool like that), and here's what I came up with: broccoli slaw (with Nayonaise, rice wine vinegar, and stevia), baked beans (ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, and minced onions), BBQ Soy Crisps (purchased for $1.79!!), and fresh strawberries. In all honesty, I baked the beans for only 15-20 minutes--no time for that slow-cooked nonsense.
For dinner I made a dish from V-con: Israeli couscous with pistachios and dried apricots. I didn't have any dried apricots, so I used dried pluots (plum/apricot hybrid). I really like the texture of this Israeli couscous--it's not whole grain, but it's more fun to eat. Steamed zucchini, spinach salad, and an Stonyfield organic blueberry yogurt also joined the party.
Check out what came in the mail today...my Amazon order! Living Harvest Vanilla Spice Hemp Protein, new ear buds for running, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. I just finished The Poisonwood Bible and really liked it, so I thought I'd read another book by Barb. Plus, her daughter just graduated from Duke:)
OK, I apologize for this excessively long post. Happy 7-11 Day--celebrate with a healthy homemade slurpee!