Belated Anniversary

In the midst of my cooking fugue last week, I forgot to mention that May 9th was my blog's two month anniversary! I am so glad that I decided to join the blogging community. Blogging has provided me with a network of fellow foodies whom I can count on for support (and cooking tips!). Here's to another two months, and beyond!

This past weekend at the lake was thoroughly enjoyable. My sisters and their spouses all joined my parents and me for a summer kick-off. It was nice to be at the lake and actually see water there--last summer's severe drought made the lake more like a desert canyon.

Although I love the lake, it's definitely part of rural Alabama, so our only grocery store options there are the Super Wal-Mart and a small Winn-Dixie; neither carry the foodstuffs to which I've grown accustomed. This limited grocery selection made cooking a bit difficult, plus my sister had to borrow my camera for the weekend. She was taking pictures for her Mother's Day gift:) These facts, combined with my desire to just relax, made for a bit of a culinary hiatus. However, I still have a few pictures to share with you all.

Friday

Just after I finished my last post, we started packing up the car. My parents heated up some Jimmy Dean Delight sandwiches (egg, turkey sausage, cheese on an English muffin), but I opted to make a tasty vegetable wrap with mushrooms, tomato, and organic mozzarella on an Italian flatbread. I nuked it for a couple seconds in the microwave, and it turned out delicious! Next time, I might try grilling it on my George Foreman :) I also had a big organic apple on the side. I didn't have to time to scarf down anything else!

Saturday

On Saturday morning (pre-grocery run), I was faced with bare cabinets and expired refrigerator contents. Since I had a delightful experience with peanut butter oatmeal a few weeks ago, I decided to make that again. Plus, it requires just two ingredients that we always have on hand: oatmeal and peanut butter. Yum! I've included two pictures, because I want to show off the cute bowls that I get to bring back for my apartment next year. I love square bowls and plates, especially ones with adorable flowers on them!

Sunday

Upon our return from the lake last night, we didn't really have time to cook up something special for my mom, so we headed to Whole Foods. My dad got some salmon burgers, cole slaw, and curried cauliflower for the rest of the family to share. I picked up some Wild Wood Tofu Burgers and some of Rudi's Organic Whole Grain English Muffins. I smeared some avocado on it for a hearty sandwich. I had some fresh organic strawberries and a spinach salad on the side. I had never tried these tofu burgers before, but they are they delicious! They're pricey though, so I'll be sure to savor the other one that came in the package. Next time I want to try Sunshine burgers. What do you all think of them?

Monday

After a delightful run this morning (65* and sunny!), I concocted an equally delightful breakfast. I made a muffin parfait, which consists of crumbled up bran muffins (those same ones that I had in the freezer), organic plain yogurt with cinnamon, strawberries, and sliced almonds. I got the idea for this from a Fitness or Self magazine a few years ago, and it's been one of my favorite breakfasts ever since. I am a fan of soggy foods, so I love how the crumbled muffin soaks up the moisture from the yogurt and strawberries. This is a fun dish because you mix it up so many ways: use banana muffins, sliced banana, and chopped peanuts; use blueberry muffins with blueberries and walnuts....the variations are endless!

For lunch today, I made vegan nachos. After preparing my nutritional yeast queso (recipe from VegWeb.com--Thanks Vegan Nurse!), I realized I didn't have any tortilla chips! Luckily, I had some whole wheat tortillas, so I just cut them into wedges and toasted them in a 300* oven while I heated up my black beans. The end result was a mediocre plate of nachos. I may have to play around a bit with a few different recipes until I am satisfied. I also had a side salad with mushrooms. I am off to make dinner...I'm thinking of making the Blackened Tofu from ED&BV. I'll let you know how it goes. Happy Monday!

The Home Stretch

I am so close to being done with summer classes! I can't wait to have a few weeks to chill before I head back to Duke...for more classes. I am posting now because I have my anatomy final later today at 4PM and then my nutrition final tomorrow at 8AM--not much recovery time! So rather than blogging this evening when I should be studying, I thought a midday post would be best.

Friday
Excellent smoothie night! Almonds/Pistachios+cherries=party in a blender. It's amazing the wonders that ice cream can do... Saturday
Nothing like a weekend breakfast of scrambled tofu. What did I do before I discovered this stuff? Anyway, this one had tahini, ginger, garlic, turmeric, soy sauce, and green onions. Whole wheat toast points and amazing cherries rounded it all out. Saturday was my big study day, but I took a short break for a simple lunch. I opted for an old standby: hummus, lettuce, and red onion stuffed into an oat bran pita with a side salad, cashews, and a big orange.
I didn't give much thought to dinner until my stomach started growling, so I made an easy dip that I have made before, spinach artichoke dip (from the Chicago Diner Cookbook). In case you can't tell, I went a bit heavy on the spinach...maybe more of the Nayonaise next time? I spread it on Ak-Maks and cucumbers, plus I had a side salad and a banana with hazelnut butter for dessert. The banana-hazelnut combo is far superior to that of apple-hazelnut.
My shake of the evening deserves a spot in my top five frozen concoctions. Almonds and cocoa make for an incredible taste sensation! Maybe next time I'll try carob powder instead of the Special Dark Cocoa...
Sunday
Another simple pre-church meal: Van's whole wheat waffles with almond butter and blueberries.
After some light studying, I got really hungry. I made another batch Absent Egg Salad (tofu, vegan mayo, paprika, celery, lemon juice, and a bit of dijon mustard). I wrapped it up in a whole wheat tortilla and served it with a salad (with added honey roasted peanuts for crunch) and some more of those fabulous cherries. I perused the new J.Crew catalog while I munched.
For dinner, my whole family (sisters and spouses, mom and dad, plus me) all headed over to some friends' house for a little shindig. I snacked on some tortilla chips before dinner, but I refrained from any alcohol. The dinner menu consisted of burgers, potato salad, fruit salad, pasta salad, baked beans, Caprese salad, and peanut butter pie. The hosts were kind enough to give me the heads up, so I brought my own Gardenburger to heat up in the M-wave. Of course I ate my mom's famous baked beans (vegetarian recipe!), lots of fruit salad, and some of the Caprese salad too. I felt a little awkward bringing out the camera, so no pics. Sorry!

The shake was bad last night. I guess I was overdue for a failure since my last two were so exceptional. Boo.
Monday
I am getting so repetitive in my breakfasts, guys. I apologize...but they're still tasty:) Another muffin parfait/trifle today. This time I used some carob muffin tops I found in the freezer (I think I made them in March??) The addition of plain yogurt, blueberries, and sliced almonds made for a divine breakfast treat.
That's it for now. Next time I post it will be from my new computer!

Are You Afraid of the Dark?

**Thanks to everyone for your kind comments in response to my post entitled "Another First." I really enjoyed the experience, and I appreciate your support!**

Aside from being a super-awesome Nickelodeon television show from my childhood, today's post refers to how I felt this morning. I hopped out of bed at 7AM this morning, as per usual, to walk across campus to the gym. When I open up the door, however, it appears to be the middle of the night. Oh, yeah. Daylight Savings Time. While it's great to have the prolonged sunlight in the evening, I had forgotten that there is a trade-off--it's much darker in the AM. Central campus (where I reside) has a reputation as being more crime-ridden than one might prefer, so this unexpected darkness made me a little nervous. Yes, I admit it--I was afraid of the dark. Fortunately, the sun came along soon enough, so my trek over to the gym was minimally frightening. How about you? Are you afraid of the dark?

Anyway, since my last meal re-cap, I have returned to school for the final portion of the semester. Here's what I ate in my last few days of freedom.

Friday
I have another rare snack to share: Rachel's cottage cheese with pear and mangosteen. To be honest, I'm pretty sure I have never even seen a mangosteen, but I still thought this flavor sounded intriguing. I enjoyed mine with some raw cashews. I think the reason I like these flavored cottage cheese cups so much is that they remind me of Breakstone's Cottage Doubles. They have the same portability and tastiness--without all the icky ingredients.
For dinner, I decided on the Thai Chick-Un Pizza from ED&BV (quite possibly my very fave cookbook). I have made it before (see here and here), and it never disappoints. I wish I had had the pineapple that the recipe requires, but no such luck. Nonetheless, it was quite delicious. I also had a salad and some clementines.
My shake of the evening was of the choco-nana variety: unsweetened chocolate Spirutein, frozen banana, vanilla non-dairy ice cream, and soymilk. Sorry for the crap-tastic picture--at least you have a nice few of my current cookbook obsessions in the background.
Saturday
Following my race on Saturday, I knew exactly what I wanted for breakfast. I had mentioned it in my last post when I showed you my GoLean Muffin creations...yep, I made a muffin parfait. This one featured said muffins, Greek yogurt, blueberries, and Mighty Maple PB. I love how the muffins soak up all the flavors of the other layers. See yesterday's post for details.
I had a quick lunch so that I could devote my full attention to the ACC tournament on TV. (FYI: DUKE WON THE TOURNAMENT). Anyway, I made a ginormous wrap with chickpeas, steamed cauliflower, red bell pepper, mixed greens, and Woodstock dressing. This wrap ended up being quite messy and falling apart after my picture. Nonetheless, it was quite tasty. On the side, I had more greens and a big bowl of watermelon.

As a last hurrah before my departure, the whole fam came over for dinner. I needed to use up some leftover beans, so I made some hummus inspired by Caitlin's purple hummus...except mine was pink! With my hand blender, I combined red beans, liquid smoke, tahini, paprika, cumin, garlic, and S + P. The end result was quite smoky and garlicky, which doesn't make for the best breath, but it tastes good goin' down. I put a hefty amount in an oat bran pita with some spinach. I also had some salad, clementines, and grabbed the last few green beans from the serving bowl. You gotta be quick in my house if you want some green beans, apparently.
After a night out at a piano bar (which was another first for me), I came home to make a quick shake: S'mores Spirutein, dark cocoa, soymilk, banana, and non-dairy vanilla ice cream. Yum.
Sunday
I re-fueled before church with a simple breakfast: Toast with PB and fig jam, a clementine, and some good ol' Fage.
I packed my lunch for the airport, which I'm afraid featured more simple fare: leftover pink hummus, Ak-Maks, assorted veggies, and grapes. Garlic breath and small enclosed spaces (i.e. airplanes) are not a good combination. Oops.
I tried a new bar for my snack: a PURE bar in the Chocolate Chip Trail Mix flavor. Look for a review in the future...
Once home, unpacked, and re-stocked with some produce, I settled into dinner. I made a salad with chopped up soy nuggets, spinach, and a homemade agave-mustard dressing. On the side, I had some corn, broccoli, and applesauce with almonds. I promise my culinary creativity will return eventually...
For my smoothie, I amped up the raspberry: raspberries, raspberry Spirutein, soymilk, and Peak Protein granola. I found this in the cabinet from way back when the kind folks at Bear Naked sent me samples.
Monday
Back to the grind this morning. I just heated up some rice milk and poured it over Autumn Wheat cereal and served it with a sliced apple & Cinnamon Swirl PB.
Heads up on an upcoming giveaway:
Em of the Health Nut is giving away an Eat Right bag from the American Dietetic Association. Enter by March 20th at midnight, EST.

Well, it's my first day back, and I am already running late for class again. Sheesh. Enjoy your Monday!