Another Food-fest Complete

Hello again! I hope everyone had a tasty and restful Thanksgiving yesterday. (For those of you outside the US, I hope you enjoyed your Thursday as well!). I began the day as tradition would predict: I watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade with a mug of hot cider. After a bit of lounging, I got around to a bit of exercise and food preparation, of course. There's nothing like having a day to do exactly what you want to do--in my case, cook a fabulous meal and watch Jon & Kate Plus Eight. How did you all spend your Thursday?

Wednesday
Before turning in, I made a quick smoothie with another one of my favorite fruits: cherries! I combined them with soymilk, hemp protein, and PB granola.

Thursday
I kicked off the day with another round of Banana Blender Cereal. This time I used a new cereal for me, Publix's Toasted Oatmeal Flakes; I also used Brazil nuts for the nutty component. I was really bummed that this didn't turn out as well as I had hoped:(

After a morning of parade-watching, exercising, and cranberry-cooking, I made a quick stir-fry for lunch. I made a sauce out of agave nectar, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic and combined it with mango chunks, red bell pepper, mushrooms, tofu, and garlic noodles. Chopped almonds topped it all off, and I served it all alongside a salad with sweet Vidalia dressing that I found in the fridge.

Once mealtime came around, I prepared a last-minute appetizer plate for the crowd: sun-dried tomato hummus with fresh cut veggies and Triscuits with cheese cut-outs.
The big meal consisted of a Quorn Turk'y Roast with vegetarian gravy, salad, cranberry sauce, steamed broccoli, and stuffing. The salad was a random creation of mine, featuring field greens, currants, and walnuts. The cranberry sauce was another one of my contributions. Although I normally sweeten it with agave nectar, I opted for brown sugar last night to appease all the palates present; other components include vanilla and cinnamon stick.

The stuffing presented a challenge this year: my mom always prepares it from a specific mix, but I happened to notice that this particular mix contained trans fats and high fructose corn syrup. Not cool. Instead, I suggested the Whole Foods brand (see below). Mom was nice enough not only to acquiesce to my request but also to prepare it with vegetable broth (instead of chicken) so that I could enjoy some. Thanks, Mom!
A few hours later, my stomach had deflated enough to enjoy some vegan pumpkin pudding that I had prepared earlier in the day. I adapted it from CCV's Apple Pie Pudding. Yummy stuff but still second-best to Mom's (non-vegan) version!

I still made room for my smoothie last night. I combined peaches, cinnamon, soymilk, hemp protein, and PB granola.

Friday

I woke up this morning ready for some shopping. I needed plenty of fuel to help me navigate through the crowds, so I prepared a classic tofu scramble with tahini, soy sauce, ginger, turmeric, mushrooms, and red bell peppers. On the side, I had some toast and a sliced kiwi.

We returned home early enough so that I could watch the Duke-Duquesne game on TV. I enjoyed watching another Duke victory while munching on a Turk'y salad wrap, which was comprised of leftover Turk'y, celery, vegan mayo, walnuts, currants, curry powder, mustard, and agave nectar. SO GOOD. Along with it, I had a salad with Clementine segments…and another Clementine.
I don't often share snacks with you all, but I had an exceptionally tasty afternoon snack today: plain yogurt with stevia, cranberry sauce, and raw almonds. So nutritious and delicious! In the spirit of harvest-time coming to an end, I decided to roast an acorn squash for dinner. I seasoned it with herbes de provence and S+P, then stuffed it with leftover stuffing and topped it off with toasted cashews. To round it out, I had some garlic-spiked spinach and cinnamon-y cottage cheese. Doesn't the squash half look a little bit like a heart?
I am off to enjoy a holiday movie, likely Elf or Home Alone. What's your favorite holiday movie?

I will leave you with a few pictures of our oh-so-elegant table setting:

Be back soon!

"But Mom, It's All for Basketball!"

During a recent phone conversation with my dear mother, I was detailing how amazing the night's basketball game had been and how excited I was for the next game. I also happened to let it slip that I had a quiz the next day (Tuesday) for which I studied a total of 20 minutes. Uh oh.

"Caroline, I think you need to study more than that. We don't pay all this money so that you can blow off your classes."
"No, just think of that money paying for access to Duke basketball games."
"Ugh. I think it's time to get off the phone now so you can study."

She just doesn't understand--it's all for basketball! She won though--I did end up studying for a bit longer:)

Anyway, as a result of games on Monday and Tuesday nights, in combination with a flurry of tutoring appointments, my diet continues to consist of simple favorites. Please pardon the monotony!

Monday
Before rushing out the door to the basketball game, I snagged a Coconut Creme Pie Larabar (but failed to snap a picture). Although I scarfed it down in less than a minute en route to the stadium, it tasted phenomenal! These would be a great stocking stuffer *hint, hint, Mom* When I got back, part B of dinner commenced: a hummus sandwich on an Arnold sandwich thin, plus a handful of carrots.
The shake of the evening was a berry-chocolate delight: strawberries, raspberries, soymilk, and chocolate hemp.
Tuesday
In a last-minute study session for the aforementioned quiz, I quickly toasted up two PomegranPlus waffles and topped them with hazelnuts and agave nectar. I had a delicious pear on the side.
The no-fuss trend continued into lunch: Goddess garbanzos (with tomatoes and kelp granules) in an Italian flatbread, plus a simple salad and an apple.
My friend Ms. Larabar joined me again for dinner. This time I enjoyed the PB Cookie variety--another winner! The only downside is that I tasted PB for the entire night as I cheered on the Blue Devils. I also had a small baggie of soynuts. No pics of this uber-exciting fare.

The smoothie last night featured the last tablespoon or so of my vanilla hemp powder, plus a few scoops of the Nutribody protein powder I mentioned a few posts back. Soymilk, frozen peaches, and ginger granola made this quite a delectable concoction.
Wednesday
I just can't stay away from CCV's Banana Bread Blender very long. This time I used cashews for the nut component.
For lunch, I quickly heated up some leftover butternut squash soup and added broccoli and chickpeas for an extra nutritional boost. I also had some peaches with almonds/cinnamon, plus a handful of crackers.
Tonight, I finally got around to preparing an acorn squash that had been lurking on top of my fridge for the past week or so. I simply baked it in the oven along with some cubed tofu that had been rubbed with agave nectar and cinnamon. (Maple syrup would have been ideal, but, alas, I have none). Once they were finished baking, I stuffed the tofu inside the squash and finished it off with some chopped hazelnuts. I also had a piece of whole grain toast and a small salad.
If you're still reading, here are a few things interesting about yours truly. (I was kindly tagged by Paulina to do so).

1. My favorite color is red. I know, I know a boring fact, but you don't understand the extent of this love. I don't just wear red, but I invest in it. My phone, my iPod, my planner, my dumbbells, my backpack--all red. The one exception is my camera; it dons my second favorite hue, pink.

2. I am currently obsessed with Enrique Iglesias's song "Do You Know? (The Ping Pong Song). I first heard it on VeggieGirl's dance video, and I have been flouncing to it ever since. Perhaps its appeal lies in the fact that I can relate to its sentiment...or maybe I just like Enrique's intensity. I think I played it only twice today...but the night is still young.

3. I have a "thing" for brightly colored coats. It all started with a turquoise coat I got for my birthday four years ago. Ever since then I have been collecting: a green pea coat, a pink rain coat, a red pea coat, and a magenta swing jacket. I'm always easy to spot in a crowd!

4. I can sing in random languages. Throughout middle- and high school, I took voice lessons and sang in my school's choir. Although cultivating my musical talents was the ultimate goal, I also picked up a knack at singing in foreign languages, including German, Italian, and French. Sometimes I just bust out with "Voi che sapete" or "Gretchen am spinnrade" when the mood strikes.

5. I have an addiction to magazine subscriptions. Ever since I got my first subscription to Self in 10th grade, I have been a mag devotee. At one point, I was subscribed to Women's Health, Today's Diet & Nutrition, Self, Fitness, Vegetarian Times, and Reader's Digest simultaneously. It's totally impractical since I have ZERO time to read them while I am at school, but I just can't bear to give them up--they're rich with such valuable information for my everyday life!

Whew! This post is excessively long. Congratulations if you made it this far. Feel free to share little nuggets about yourself--I'd love to know more about my readers! Ciao for now.

Congrats to Aaron McCargo, Jr.!

If any of you are as addicted to The Next Food Network Star as I am, then you know to whom I am referring in my post's title. Last night was the finale of TNFNS, and the winner was Aaron McCargo, Jr. Sorry if I just ruined the surprise...oops. I am satisfied with the judges' choice; I would have been a little annoyed if Lisa had won. Sure, she's super stylish (I love all her vintage-inspired dresses!), and her food is impressive, but she doesn't have Aaron's cuddliness. A friendly demeanor outweighs fashion. Did anyone else watch last night?

I had lots of good eats this past weekend. I finally had the time to cook, without anatomy terms rattling in the back of my mind.

Here's what rolled out my kitchen most recently:

Friday
Simple smoothie this time. I love using berries, but those darn seeds detract from my enjoyment of the berry-themed smoothies. I have tried blending twice, as readers have suggested, but the Bullet seems to leave them in tact. If only I had a Vita-Mix... Saturday
Yay for homemade pancakes! As I mentioned in my last post, I had intended to make them earlier in the week, but I was missing too many ingredients. I tried a new recipe from VegWeb that uses applesauce rather than mashed banana. The verdict: the VegWeb pancakes are much cuter and fluffier than the pancakes from Sweet Eats, but banana beats all. I happen to like a dense pancake...plus the banana pancakes are the perfect vehicle for a dollop of PB:) I didn't feel like making much for lunch, so I just put a few blobs of hummus on Ak-Maks, made a quick spinach salad, and sliced a banana to dip in some Sunbutter.
Dinner was inspired by a recipe from The Imus Ranch Cookbook, the Vegetable Pasta Salad. In the end, I used almost entirely different ingredients, but I think that's what pasta salad are supposed to be--just a conglomeration of what you have on hand. Mine had white beans, whole wheat rotini, cucumber, sliced mozzarella, red bell pepper, carrots, olives, balsamic vinaigrette, and lots of dill. I also had a side of that superstar veggie, broccoli.
Another simple smoothie, and more pesky seeds to go along with it. I used pomegranate granola this time though.
Sunday
Quick brekkie before church yesterday: frozen banana-soymilk shake with PB Puffins. I also had a handful of roasted peanuts. (Notice a trend these days? banana PB banana PB banana PB....)
We made a long overdue Whole Foods run yesterday. Here are a few shots of the loot:
I am so excited to finally try Chobani yogurts. I see them all over the food blogs, but I have never tried them. They were about 60 cents cheaper than the other Greek yogurts. Another highlight of the trip was that I picked up some new flavors of Soy Delicious fruit-sweetened nondairy ice cream: Peppermint Carob and Almond Pistachio.

For lunch, I finally got a chance to recreate my Cafe Sunflower meal: Stuffed Acorn Squash. Once again, I didn't have all the ingredients, but I ended up with something just as tasty: white beans, dried cranberries, walnuts, and lots of spices. I also had some whole wheat toast and berries.
We all ordered Chinese takeout for dinner last night--I got my usual steamed veggies with tofu, and I added cashews and my own seasonings (liquid smoke and garlic powder). I also had some rice crackers, a plum, and the obligatory fortune cookie. Oh, and here's another flattering picture of Major. He was really enjoying his chocolate Cool Whip.
Fun shake last night! I used my new Peppermint Carob Soy Delicious with the usual components, plus mint extract. It tasted like a nutritious Thin Mint cookie! (Sorry for the bad pic!)
Monday
After an excellent workout this morning (swimming!), I made a big bowl of oats with whipped banana, almond butter, and lots of wheat germ. I noticed that I have been neglecting that little red jar of wheat germ for far too long. Plus, for my nutrition class, we have to track our eating for 3 days, and I have consistently been low on vitamin E--Kretschmer to the rescue!
Another fabulous lunch today: Goddess Garbanzos from ED&BV wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla, side salad, and fresh cherries. I was in a food fugue...until I got cherry juice all over my pants.
To top off this day of tasty eats, I made one of my recent favorites: Cashew Ginger Tofu (do I even have to type it? It's from ED&BV, of course). Whole wheat couscous, steamed broccoli, and salad made this quite possibly the best meal ever.

Off to study a bit before Jon & Kate Plus Eight. Happy Monday!