Settling In

For the past few days, I have been busy setting up my apartment and preparing for another semester of classes. I'm sure it won't surprise you that my roommate and I fixed up the kitchen, first thing. We both love our food (and cute dishes)! I love my postage-stamp sized kitchen--I just wish it had better lighting! As a result of the poor window placement, my food pictures might be a little blah until I can figure something else out...

Anyway, I have quite a few pics to share today, so I better get started if I want to finish before Jon and Kate Plus Eight comes on!

Saturday
On our first morning in our new abode, my roommate's mother was nice enough to offer to take us to the Durham Farmers' Market. As you might expect, I jumped at the chance! Before we left, I made a quick bowl of Corn Bran cereal with TJ's AntiOXidant trail mix, sliced banana, and soymilk. Remember when the farmers' market came to campus? Well, the actual farmers' market was even better! I loved seeing all the Durham locals selling their vegetables and crafts, plus I met a few cute pooches as well:) I left the market with a sack full of Pink Lady tomatoes and some green and purple bell peppers. Look for them in later meals...
I came back from the market and snacked on this before my run:
After a workout and a trip to Whole Foods, I returned to the apartment famished. I heated up my leftover veggie burger from Ruby Tuesday and dipped it in some organic Heinz. I also had a spinach salad and an apple with cashew butter.
I figured I should use my food points at least once per day, so my roommate and I headed to campus for dinner. It's the return of the Crunchy Broccoli Salad. Unfortunately, this was a rather pathetic example of this favorite salad of mine--not nearly enough walnuts or crunch. Boo. I added my own kidney beans though.
I made my first apartment smoothie! After a few minutes of fiddling with the MB, I finally got it to work in the new location. This one had frozen blueberries, soymilk, and my usual Nutiva HempShake with a granola on top.
Sunday
I had a leisurely bowl of oats before Chapel: banana oats with Brazilnut butter and pumpkin flax granola. Perfection.
I kept it simple for lunch--hummus sammie with tomato, spinach salad, and almonds.
My sweet tooth beckoned mid-afternoon. A Clif Z bar seemed to do the trick. No wonder people love these things!
I was in an experimental mood for dinner, so I made a new version of tofu salad. Shockingly enough, I didn't use any Grey Poupon in this one. Instead, I combine the tofu with cashew butter, ginger, garlic, and chopped purple bell pepper. I stuffed it into a pita and served it alongside broccoli and plain yogurt with wheat germ.
Apartment smoothie, round 2: strawberries, soymilk, HempShake, and granola.
Monday
I was a little anxious this morning due to the start of classes--I always have the feeling that I am going to be late, or I won't be able to find the classroom or something; you'd think I would be over that by now. Anyway, I wanted something comforting as a result of my unease--PB&J! Technically, this was cashew butter and blackberry jam on toast, along with plain yogurt (sprinkled with cinnamon). Note the return of the animal cups!
After my morning classes, I wanted to head straight to the gym (since it's all on the same campus). I didn't want to eat lunch beforehand, however, so I munched on an apple and a baggie of Corn Bran as a pre-workout snack. Once at the gym, I ran about 4 miles on the track and cooled down on the stationary bike for 20 minutes.
For lunch, I hit up the salad bar--lots of veggies with chickpeas and sunflower seeds.
Dinner was another tofu salad concoction: tofu with Annie's Goddess dressing, Bragg's, and a little basil. Spinach, sliced tomato, fresh blueberries, and a baked sweet potato finished it off. No shortage of phytochemicals in this meal!
Whew! Congratualations if you're still reading. FYI, you might have noticed that I featured a lot of new products in this post. I'll be reviewing them in the near future for one of my "feature" posts. Ciao for now.

Show and Tell

I'm back again for a quick post. As promised, I'll share some of the nutrition-related articles I've been reading lately (Google Alerts are a beautiful thing). Anyway, here goes:

-No Moo or Oink
I wish I had seen this list before I left for my trip to Chicago! The Chicago Dining Examiner created a Top 5 List for vegetarian dining in Chicago. I managed to experience one of the five...I hope to try the other four in future trips to the Windy City.

-Even More Label Confusion
Just when you thought you had learned everything there is to know about the nutrition facts label, the food industry throws you a curve ball. In an effort to help consumers make more nutritious choices at the grocery store, food manufacturers are now emblazoning their labels with stamps, stars, and spots. Ironically, the addition of these logos might make grocery shopping even more tedious for some consumers. Take a look at this article to clear up some of the confusion.

-Real Food Challenge
This is an initiative in which my university might participate in the near future. As you all know, food choices can make for big changes, and that's what this challenge is all about--daring colleges around the country to examine their food systems and change them for the better.

Click, read, enjoy. Since this is show and tell, feel free to comment on these articles, or share some links of your own that you've enjoyed.

Catching Up

Hello again! Sorry for the delayed post--my usual Friday post was postponed until after the craziness of moving in had settled down.

After much indecision, I finally decided on a format for the next 9 months or so. I posted my plans in the comments section from the "FEEDback" post, but I'll copy it here so that everyone can have the heads up:

Thanks, everyone! I really appreciate your suggestions. I have decided to keep a similar format to my current one--after all, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? I'll be photographing as many meals as I can, with a new emphasis on snacks, especially pre-workout snacks. I will try to mention the workouts themselves throughout the week too. In addition to the three posts during the week, I will devote one post per week to a special topic: articles, product/restaurant reviews, or my food philosophy. I hope you all like it!

With that said, I need to catch up on my meals through Friday. While I didn't get a chance to photograph all my meals throughout the road trip, there are several examples of (relatively) healthful road food for those of you interested in that sort of thing.

First, I must backtrack to my final days of cooking at home.

Wednesday
I tried a new protein powder for my smoothie on this night--Vega Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer, berry flavor. I hate to admit it, but I actually had to pour this down the drain. I simply could not stomach it. Something about the aftertaste seemed to "supplement-like." Basically, I ate the granola, plus a few spoonfuls of the smoothie, but I called it a night after that. What a waste of mango!
Thursday
To make the most of my last day at home, I wanted to start it off right with a bowl of banana oats. This version included a healthy blob of cashew butter and lots of wheat germ. Heaven in a (girly ruffled) bowl.
I made another breakfast favorite for lunch: scrambled tofu. This time, however, I added mushrooms and wrapped it up in a whole wheat tortilla. I love me some tahini.
Dinner was spent out with my brothers-in-law, my sister Lea, and her brother-in-law (if that makes any sense). I chose Nabeel's, where I ordered lentil soup and a peasant salad. The salad was excellent, but when I tried the soup, I kept reaching for the salt shaker. I didn't bring my camera to this one, so you'll have to use your imagination.

Luckily, my final smoothie was a success. You just can't go wrong with cherries. Also, note the different variety of So Delicious. It's not the fruit-sweetened variety I usually buy, but it's still a less "junky" form of ice cream...and on sale!
Friday
We hit the road early, so, true to form, I stuffed some cereal in a baggie with a few mix-ins: GoLean, sliced almonds, and raisins. I nibbled on this as I drifted in and out of sleep.
For lunch we hit up one of my favorite semi-fast food places, Panera. I usually get the You Pick Two option, so that's what I did this time, not even considering the portability factor--big mistake. I got a half Strawberry Poppyseed Salad with a bowl of Garden Vegetable Soup. Neither soup nor salad ranks high on the "grab and go" meter. I ended up gulping the soup at a traffic light and stuffing lettuce leaves in my mouth once we got on the highway. Oops. PS. Aren't they supposed to give you bread with soup? They gave me some lame potato chips instead. I felt a little cheated, going to Panera and not getting any bread.
Aside from its inability to be transported and easily eaten, my lunch was not especially filling either. I relied on my good friend Dr. Weil to satisfy my hunger. I've had this Goji Moji bar before, and I still say it tastes like the inside of a Fig Newton (probably due to the abundance of fig paste in the ingredients list). Good, but I didn't notice a lot of Goji or cranberry flavor as proclaimed on the package.
For dinner we went to Ruby Tuesday, where I completely gorged on the plentiful salad bar. They even had edamame! I also ordered the most ginormous sandwich on the planet, aka the Veggie Burger. I am not sure if the patty itself is vegan, but I ordered the burger without cheese or mayo. No pics here, but you'll see leftovers later...

After a SuperTarget run and a few hours of unpacking, I said goodbye to my parents. I'll miss them, but I'll be back for a visit soon enough:)

Be back later today with one of the aforementioned "feature" posts.

Ch-ch-changes

I am loving all of your valuable feedback! I haven't made any final decisions on how I will change the blog once I get to school, so please keep on comin' with the suggestions and comments. I want to make this blog intriguing and enjoyable--for you and me.

Anyway, I have been making the most of my last few days at home. My mom and I made a few last minute shopping trips, and I've been doing my favorite running route this week. I made my current favorite recipe last night (Cashew Ginger Tofu), plus I also did a little experimenting of my own in the kitchen. A nice way to relax before the storm of academia enters my life...

Monday
I discovered a great combination--cherries and strawberries. To be honest, I got the idea from the HempShake package, which pictures cherries, strawberries, and raspberries, among other things. I switched up my topping too--I used Clifford Crunch instead of granola.
Tuesday
I tried a new component for my parfait yesterday morning--Annie's Bunny Love cereal. Frankly, I chose the cereal 1) because it was on sale and 2) well, because it's bunny-shaped! It turned out to be a pretty good purchase; it reminds me of slightly sweeter, more porous Cheerios. Anyway, it went into the parfait glass with plain organic yogurt, Enjoy Life's Mountain Mambo, and a mix of strawberries and blueberries.
After several hours of packing (and going up and down stairs), I needed to refuel. With a can of refried beans I need to use up, I made mini Mexican pizzas. I topped 4 corn tortillas with the beans, salsa, and sliced avocado. Spinach salad and peaches with wheat germ and cinnamon also made an appearance.
As mentioned earlier, I made my fave dish of the moment, Cashew Ginger Tofu. I really am addicted to that sauce--maybe I should just make a huge batch of sauce and put it on...broccoli?
It's been a while since I had whipped up a chocolate-y shake (and by a while I mean a few days). I decided to bust out my artistic skills with the chocolate syrup.
Wednesday
I had another doctor's appointment this morning, so I needed a quick and portable breakfast. Smoothie and cereal to the rescue! The slurpable component was a combination of strawberries, blackberries, and soymilk; the crunchy component was Clifford Crunch, honey-roasted peanuts, and Nature's Path Oaty Bites.
A workout and a few errands later, I was famished. I experimented with a new way to make mock-tuna--I combined chickpeas, Nayonaise, a touch of dijon mustard, lemon juice, olives, and dill. This dish presented a host of new flavor pairings for me, and I really enjoyed it. I plopped the mixture on a bed of spinach and served it with an Ezekiel pita and an organic nectarine.
Tonight is my dad's first night of classes for the semester, so my mom took the time to make meatloaf for dinner before he darted off to teach. I wanted to follow suit, so I had planned on making a tofu loaf (something I have never tried), but I nixed the idea when I read that the recipe required pureeing the tofu. Call me crazy, but I think the best part about tofu is its texture, you know, being able to bite into it. Plan B turned out pretty well--I made tofu cutlets instead. I dredged the tofu slices in sage, dry mustard, garlic, salt, pepper, and dried parsley; I also threw baby bella mushrooms and diced onion into the pan. Add a zigzag of organic ketchup, and you've got a tasty dish. In an effort to continue the "meat and potatoes" theme, I also had a baked sweet potato, brussels sprouts, and salad. Completely satisfying.
With that, I bid you farewell until my next post--from Durham! Remember, keep contributing your thoughts and suggestions for future blog changes. Thanks in advance!