Raw Diet for Weight Loss, Kashi Videos, and New Candy Bar Labels

I apologize for the delay of today's feature post...the parents have left, so I had lots of work to catch up on! Gotta love Sunday evenings, right?

Anyway, I have loads of good articles and websites to share with you tonight. As always, I invite you to read and comment on these links, or share your own recent reads.

Raw Diet for Weight Loss
I have always been intrigued by raw diets and raw cookbooks; you'd be amazed at some of the scrumptious raw desserts you can make. While I don't think I would ever go 100% raw permanently, it might be an interesting mode of eating to experiment with. This article discusses the weight loss benefits one woman has enjoyed thanks to her raw eating habits. What do you think? Have you ever tried a raw diet? Do you have a favorite raw recipe or cookbook?

Harvard Removes Calorie Information
Harvard University recently ended their practice of providing nutrition information for meals served on campus for fear of encouraging eating disorders. While some might be disappointed in such a development, I applaud the university for taking action against eating disorders, which run rampant among institutions of higher learning. What's your take on this change of policy?

Kashi Videos
On a lighter note, I discovered these quick "Eating Well" videos on Kashi's website. The nutritional advice they provide is pretty simple, but I think it's a great idea to provide more health resources for the Kashi community.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Herbs and Spices
As a loyal fan to Rachael Ray, I regularly visit her website and subscribe to the newsletter. The newsletter recently featured a link to this Herbs and Spices Guide. So handy, especially for foodies like me:)

The Truth about Candy Bars
Mars, the famous candy bar producer, recently announced that it will introduce a new labeling system for their products, enabling consumers to more easily understand the truth about what they're eating. A bit of an unexpected tactic from a candy bar company, but I appreciate their efforts to make sweets addicts everywhere more aware of their treats' nutritional values.

That's all for now...be back tomorrow for a full report of the weekend's eats!

Parental Invasion

This weekend is Duke's annual Parents' Weekend, so as of about 1 PM today campus has been swarming with the "50+" population. Everywhere I look, there's a proud dad toting around a bag from the University Book Store, or a beaming mom snapping zillions of pictures. Gotta love it.

My parents arrived this evening, after multiple flight delays, but they landed safe and sound (albeit a little hungry!). We have plans to go to the basketball game tomorrow (my mom's first!), and to make a trip to Banana Republic. Aah, two of my favorite things in the same day: Banana Republic and basketball.

I plan on catching up on some much needed sleep tonight, so I better get crackin' with the last few days' food.

Wednesday
As a study break on Wednesday evening, I decided to take the time for a real meal, rather than slapping together a PB&J as I had been planning. With the help of my trusted friend George Foreman, I grilled some eggplant slices that I had rubbed with garlic. Once adequately charred, I drizzled the slices with tahini and served them alongside a mound of whole grain couscous. I also had a salad which consisted of spinach, chickpeas, soynuts, and sliced mozzarella.
I called it a night with a frozen treat: blackberries, chocolate rice protein, soymilk, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips.
Thursday
When I am in need of a one-bowl breakfast, I consistently turn to CCV's Banana Bread Blender. This time, I used pecans (rather than almonds or walnuts), plus my usual rice milk, vanilla extract, bran flakes, and frozen banana. So yum.
I started out making sloppy Joes for lunch with lentils and tomato sauce, but it took on a decidedly Italian twist when I added wilted spinach, garlic, and oregano. The Italian version still ended up delicious--I enjoyed the mixture atop toasted whole grain bread and served it alongside an apple with cashew butter.
My Thursday nights are now occupied by RUF (Reformed University Fellowship) meetings, so I kept dinner simple last night: Chef Salad with Romaine, Tofurky, carrots, mozzarella, and honey roasted peanuts. I also had a pear and some crackers.
For last night's shake, I used up the last of my strawberries along with cocoa powder, soymilk, chocolate rice protein, and chocolate chips. I apologize for the monotony, but I don't have many options until my shipment of hemp protein arrives.
Friday
I have been having major back pain lately, so I had to do some low-impact cardio today and use the elliptical rather than go for a run. I returned to the apartment for a quick breakfast of a peach-banana smoothie and a bagel with Sunbutter. Afterward, I darted off to campus again to do some promotional stuff for my sorority's "Mocktail Blendoff." Sounds like my kind of event, no?
I also made a Whole Foods run today (of course). Here's a look at the loot:
I needed something to warm me up after my errands in the cold, so I made a bowl of lentil chili for lunch. I combined tomato sauce, water, lentils, corn, garlic, cumin, chili powder, and ground red pepper and let it simmer while I did my laundry. On the side, I had a salad with a new salad dressing (Annie's Woodstock) and a beautiful Fuji apple that was just too pretty to slice.
Once my parents finally arrived, we went to one of our favorite restaurants in town, Taverna Nikos. We ordered an eggplant dip for an appetizer (although it was not labelled baba ghanoush). I thoroughly enjoyed the "herby" flavors that shone through in this dip; plus, my parents let me have the olive:) For my entree, I ordered the Vegetable Souvlaki, which consisted of vegetable skewers served with pita and tzaziki dip, plus a bed of rice. I practically licked the plate on this one.
We made a much-needed Target trip after dinner, and now I plan on settling in to some TLC before bed. Wild and crazy Friday night, right? Hope you're having fun tonight, wherever you are.

I will leave you with a pic of my mom and me at dinner. Love you, Mom!

The Lazy Chef

As my friend Jenn might say, I have been quite the lazy chef lately. My culinary inspiration has been alarmingly absent these past few days; my mind has been occupied by homework, linguistics terms, and (most significantly) romantic interests. (Anyone have any tips on how to ask a guy to a semi-formal?) Anyway, as a result of my persistent distraction, my meals have been relatively simple, although I had a minor spark of creativity in the kitchen last night for dinner. You'll just have to read on to hear more about that.

Monday
In typical Monday-night form, I grabbed a quick salad from the salad bar after my dining committee meeting. This veggie delight featured: mixed greens, tomatoes, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, kidney beans, and sliced olives. I also snagged a small container of grapes. Crunchy. Tasty. Yum.
As I mentioned in my last post, I am suffering from a dearth of vanilla hemp protein at the moment, so alternative varieties have reigned supreme these past few days. This shake included cherries, strawberries, soymilk, chocolate rice protein, and chocolate chips.
Tuesday
In an effort to use up some overly-ripe pears, I decided on a Pear-Berry Parfait yesterday morning. Bran flakes, diced pear, blueberry yogurt, and chopped almonds made for quite the unique flavor explosion.
For lunch, I kept it simple with a Tofurky wrap, jazzed up with mustard, vegan mayo, and dried cranberries (my lame attempt at incorporating the Blogger Secret Ingredient). It tasted a tiny bit like Thanksgiving--if only I had some stuffing to go with it! On the side, I had a spinach salad and an apple with some Futter's cashew butter. PS That's a Flat Out spinach wrap--I recommend them!
I bought an eggplant for super cheap last week at Whole Foods (99 cents!), but I am a tad tired of my usual ratatouille route. Instead, I made an open faced baked eggplant sandwich! After baking the slices in the oven, I placed them atop toasted whole wheat bread, drizzled them with balsamic vinegar, and topped them off with a mixture of onions, bell peppers, and oregano. On the side I had "chickpea mash," inspired by Rachael Ray. My version included chickpeas, tahini, and a squirt of lemon juice. For a sweet ending, I had a fruit cup that I purchased on campus.
The shake last night was another berry-cocoa bonanza with blackberries, strawberries, chocolate rice protein, cocoa powder, soymilk, and chocolate chips. Delish.
Wednesday
Remember when I was asking for frozen waffle recommendations? Well I finally purchased a new vegan variety at Whole Foods on Friday, Nature's Path PomegranPlus (with oat bran). I toasted up two of those, drizzled them with agave, and served them along side peaches with almonds and a glass of rice milk. These waffles provided quite the pleasant contrast from my usual Kashi waffles...plus they're egg-free, which makes me happy. Expect a product review in the future!
In hopes of getting more studying done this afternoon and this evening, I looked to the freezer for inspiration for lunch today. Sunshine burgers just happened to be the first item that entered my field of vision. I heated up one of the patties, chopped it up, and tossed it into a salad with my agave-dill-mustard-vegan mayo dressing. A big sweet potato with cinnamon and brown sugar and an apple rounded it all out.
I am off to shower and settle into an evening of studying. Ciao!

Too Many Distractions, Not Enough Time

Normally, I am a conscientious student who has no problem getting her work done. That description does NOT apply right now. I have a big midterm on Thursday for my "Gender and Language" class, but I have been slackin' on the study schedule for the past few days. I meant to do the bulk of my studying yesterday, but somehow time just got away from me. (Strike 1). Today, I intended to get some studying done between classes...I decided to have a tea date with a friend instead. (Strike 2). Due to a fortuitous, last-minute class cancellation, I planned on squeezing in some study time this afternoon...I planned out my spring classes instead; the schedule just became available today. (Strike 3). Rather than make another ill-fated attempt before my busy evening, I sit here typing to you. I've got priorities:)

Saturday
Weekend mornings are supposed to be relaxing, right? Wrong. I had a meeting at 11 on East campus, so I decided to head over there early to squeeze in some treadmill time. Let's just say I ended up getting out of the meeting at 12, running to the bus stop, stuffing my face with "breakfast," showering in 3 minutes flat, and running to the basketball stadium for the scrimmage. Anyway, here's what the meal looked like: mini bagel with Sunbutter, pear, and plain yogurt with pumpkin. I scarfed it down as I stepped into the shower, so I don't really remember if it tasted good.
For lunch, I decided on an old standby: Goddess Garbanzos. This was a pimped out version though because I added chopped carrot, dill, and kelp granules. I stuffed it into a pita and served it alongside a spinach salad and an apple.
I kept dinner simple too. I finally finished that box of Boca burgers so that I could get the good stuff--Amy's Bistro Burgers. Bistro patty + whole wheat bread + organic ketchup/mustard = darn tasty sandwich. I also had a salad, steamed asparagus, and a banana with cashew butter.
The vanilla hemp supply has sadly dwindled to near nothingness, so I have been experimenting with the chocolate variety. Saturday's was blueberry-flavored, with a few chocolate chips on top. Surprisingly delicious.
Sunday
Yesterday morning, I decided on making a "harvest pie fusion"...in a bowl of oats. Pumpkin, oats, ginger, cinnamon, brown sugar, and pecans made for quite the breakfast treat. No need to decide between pumpkin and pecan pie, when you can have both in your oatmeal for breakfast!
In an effort to use up some things in the fridge before the start of a new week, I made hash for lunch yesterday: spinach, red onion, garlic, silken tofu, nutritional yeast flakes, plus a few spices I don't remember. On the side I had toast and an apple with cashew butter.
Dinner was prepared and consumed in about 10 minutes. (Pesky chapter meetings...) As a result, it was rather uninspired: hummus and pita, salad with soynuts, and broccoli. When I got home I had a banana with Sunbutter too.
The shake last night was another choco-berry experiment that turned out scrumptious. Strawberries, cherries, chocolate hemp, and soymilk made for a tasty evening snack. I randomly added wheat germ on top for texture.
Monday
Another typical, rushed Monday morning. Cheerios with rice milk and dried cranberries, plus an apple with PB. Totally boring.
I remembered to buy some lentils at Whole Foods last week for the Blogger Secret Ingredient contest, (although I think it has ended now...oh well). I put those to use for lunch today. I combined lentils, garlic, spinach, ginger, cumin, and creamy tahini and served it alongside whole grain couscous and an organic pear. Delish.
As a side note, I thought I would show you some coupons that I scored at Whole Foods:
They were sticking out from the bottom shelf in the bar aisle, where the Z bars typically hang out. 50 cents off an individual bar makes them less than 20 cents each! I like that price. S'mores bar, anyone?

OK, I am off to my meetings, etc. Please send "motivation vibes" my way so that I might actually study in the near future!