Just two more!

Well, we lost 2-3... just 2 more goals and I'd be a happy girl, but it was a good game anyways. It was SO easy to get to the campus, easier than I thought, and I had a lot of fun with my friends so we'll definately be making another BC trip soon!
My pear held me over well, I had my wrap in the car... they made it whole wheat and it was baked with lots of veggies, but there was a WHOLE lot of sauce... thats alright, it's healthy fat and I enjoyed every. single. bite. =)
I actually devoured it so quickly I forgot to take a pic until I was 1/2way through! It was HUGE, but mostly stuffed with the veggies... and it held me four hours and I resisted all concession foods, so that was defiantely a plus!



It held me all throughout the game, and on the way home I snacked on a delicious baggie of red grapes I packed with me. (Better choice than pizza!)

It was a very fun night, but I'm exhausted now...
It just started snowing, luccily I'm getting a ride home tomorrow morning (no driving in the snow for me!) but hopefully it won't be too snowy on the first day of March!

Time to hit the hay!

While I'm waiting...

So while I'm waiting, I decided to take a survey from Ruby Red Vegan (her blog is so creative!)
All about food, of course... I figured maybe you'd be interesting in a few of my quirks...

1. Favorite non-dairy milk?
Oooh tough one! When I go soy, I like West Soy Lite... but I'm a BIG fan of my new obsession, Living Harvest Organic Hempmilk in Vanilla flavor!

2. What are the top 3 dishes/recipes you are planning to cook?
Pineapple Quinoa from Veganomicon (tomorrow's dinner), Dreena's Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies (tomorrow's dessert), Chickpea Cutlets from Veganomicon (next time I'm home!)

3. Topping of choice for popcorn?
I'm most definately a kettle corn girl.

4. Most disastrous recipe/meal failure?
Nothing I can think of at the moment, I've definately had my failures but usually I turn them into something completely different and just as fabulous!

5. Favorite pickled item?
The little mini pickles my grandma puts out at the holidays. I eat sooo many when I help set the table!
Otherwise, I don't go for the pickled stuff.

6. How do you organize your recipes?
My computer is #1, but they're not too organized at the moment, and I also have a cute red, white and black recipe book that needs some new additions!

7. Compost, trash, or garbage disposal?
Trash, and recycling as much as possible... trying to start a compost at home!

8. If you were stranded on an island and could only bring 3 foods...what would they be (don't worry about how you'll cook them)?
Oatmeal, peanut butter, falafel

9. Fondest food memory from your childhood?
Beach trips

10. Favorite vegan ice cream?
anything Purely Decadent!

11. Most loved kitchen appliance?
Tough one. The stove/oven at home, my microwave is my at-school savior.

12. Spice/herb you would die without?
Garlic! I loveeeee garlic! Cinnamon as well.

13. Cookbook you have owned for the longest time?
My Juices & Smoothies book

14. Favorite flavor of jam/jelly?
Raspberry or apricot (everything's a tie!)

15. Favorite vegan recipe to serve to an omni friend?
Garden Risotto, minus the parmesean. Or sloppy joes. They're my new fave.

16. Seitan, tofu, or tempeh?
Depends on how it's cooked. Tempeh 'cuz it's nutty, tofu when it's firm or stirfried.

17. Favorite meal to cook (or time of day to cook)?
Breakfast at school, dinner when I'm home.

18. What is sitting on top of your refrigerator?
Lots! Oatmeal, cinnamon, walnuts, napkins, tea and baggies on the top shelf, honey, vanilla, coffee, splenda, aluminum foil and plastic wrap right on top

19. Name 3 items in your freezer without looking.
Quorn cutlets, frozen veggies, sunshine burgers.

20. What's on your grocery list?
More fruit, hempmilk, salad greens, tofu steaks, ingrediants for dinner and cookies!

21. Favorite grocery store?
Whole Foods.

22. Name a recipe you'd love to veganize, but haven't yet.
Grilled cheese with tomato!

23. Food blog you read the most (besides Isa's because I know you check it everyday)? Or maybe the top 3?
1. Eat Like Me
2. Katheats
3. Veggie Girl Vegan

24. Favorite vegan candy/chocolate?
Endangered Species Dark chocolate

25. Most extravagant food item purchased lately?
Not expensive, but fantastic- honey roasted PB from WholeFoods. My ezekiel cereal was a bit pricey for cereal, $5!

26. What is your favorite restaurant (not including all-vegan or all-vegetarian ones)?
Crazy Burger!

Ready to go

When I came home from my help session I snacked on a big pear to hold me until dinner...



I ordered my wrap- a baked falafel wrap with veggies, banana peppers, falafel, hummus, tahini, yogurt sauce and a bit of feta. I just asked for a little sauce, a little tabbouleh and a bit of feta because they usually go overboard! I also ordered it on a wheat wrap- lets hope they got my order right... I'll take pics of it when I chow down if I can!

Another kind of chick'n salad

I decided to head back the dorm for lunch today, I have so many veggies left from the week I decided to use what I had at hand to make a big ol' salad- spinach, red peppers, carrots, celery, cucumber, yum! I love my veggies!
I topped this with a Quorn cutlet and 1.5 tbsp Annie's Gingerly viniagrette, and had a banana on the side for a healthy, filling lunch!


Salad up close:


Later this afternoon after my help session I think I'm going to order a wrap from my FAVORITE middle eastern place on campus... to take on the go! I can't wait!

Have a great Friday afternoon... the weekend is just about here!!!!

A second try

You know how I had mentioned I wasn't sure how much I liked the Ezekiel cereal when I tried it the other day? Well I guess second time's the charm because today it was SOOO good! Definately going into my breakfast rotation, the hemp milk makes it nice and sweet, I LOVE the crunch and it is SO. GOOD. heated up! Very filling and so nutritious! Love it!

This morning I got up and had 1/2 a banana nut clif bar, then ventured out into the still very cold, cold day to go for a 40 minute run at the track- I also did a few lunges at the end of my cool down. Came home, showered quick because it wasn't too warm, and cooked up a delicious bowl of 3/4 cup Ezekiel Cereal with 3/4 cup hempmilk, along with a GIANT chilean peach... I picked these up at whole foods at the beginning of the week. I had never seen them before, but they were HUGE and looked yummy so I decided to try them. They lasted ALL WEEK and they are delicious, I'm glad I tried them!

Look at how big this bad boy was compared to the bowl: (I ate it all, of course!)



Today I've got my one class far away, then its a quick lunch, chem help session, and I'm ordering dinner to take with me on the way to a hockey game in Boston tonight! Should be fun!

Finally organic

Had a nice big mug of sweet cinnamon tea with Danielle, had a great conversation and now I'm back in my dorm... it's getting late and I still have work and dishes =(
I shouldn't have ben so lazy earlier!

Still don't know whats up this weekend... hopefully we can get plans set soon because I'm a planner!
I'm snacking on an organic apricot mango Stonyfield Farms organic yogurt now... it's delish and I'm SO glad I'm finally organic again =)



Have a nice Thursday... tomorrow afternoon starts the weekend! Yes!

A little more focused

Ok, so my meals/groceries are planned for next week, I've eaten and am perfectly satisfied, now I'm packing my first bags for tomorrow and I should be good to go out for coffee!

Had my easy dorm room staple again; chick'n patty with organic marinara, reduced fat provolone and some garlic cauliflower (about 2 cups) on the side!

Distracted

I got out of my lab a bit early, and wanted to come back to a peaceful room to post my lunch, get a bit of planning done and have dinner. Well, I just started getting hungry (my lara bar held me well!) and there have been people in and out of my room literally since I walked in... so I've been a bit distracted!
I need to get some focus though, I'm meeting my friend for coffee/tea later so thats a couple hours away from planning/packing/working... and I have TONS to do before the weekend! I'm such a busy girl!


My packed lunch was very yummy today; here is it last night while I was preparing it:


A whole wheat wrap with about 3 tbsp hummus, some spinach, red bell pepper, cucumber and a few slices onion! I also had some baby carrots and a small plum.



Kept me full through chem, and I snacked on an apple pie larabar before my lab... more distillation this time, but we were pretty efficient so we got out at 4:30! I'm about ready to go make my dinner now, so expect another post soon! =)

Tricked by spring

I guess we were spoiled by the hint of spring from that little bit of "warmer" weather we were having... it's back to a chilly february in New England! Ugh, I can NOT wait for spring, really. I can't wait. This morning I woke up, had my 1/2 banana and was all set to go for a nice run at the gym... trekked down in the 18 degree cold, got there, started well... and got CUT OFF 2 miles in by the football team doing sprints! Ahhh I was soooo angry! They were completely in my way, and I in theirs, so I had no choice but to stop my run. Needless to say, I was NOT happy and even tried to complain, but they said they couldn't do anything about it. So, I settled on 20 more minutes (I had been running only about 15 minutes) on the bike in the cardio room, and had to head back because I was out of time. Damn. I had looked forward to a good run... I guess this means I'll definately be on the treadmill at home Saturday to make up for my missed day today!

After all that craziness, at least I am enjoying another DELICIOUS bowl of my new fave breakfast... Oats made with hempmilk, pb, flax, banana and blueberries. PERFECT! Sooo creamy and delicious, definately made me feel better. =)



Time to get going on my long Thursday... the weekend is quickly approaching!

What a nice ending to a busy day

I am SO excited right now... I ACTUALLY caught the campus bus I have been attempting to catch since second semester started! My awesome shift at work helped me get through my drawer quick at the end of the night and let me leave a couple minutes early... I made it JUST as it arrived (I ran to it of course!) and I was the only one on the bus, but the driver was nice and it was MUCH better than having to walk back to my dorm with my big backpack and lunch bag in 27 degree weather (it's still very cold here at night... can't wait until that changes!)
Another nice occurance... I'm actually getting a few more hours at work next week, which means I'll be eating more on the go... but also means I'll be able to come up with some exciting new work dinners =)

So, onto today!
I had planned on going right from Kinesiology class to Starbucks to study before work, so I got my lunch together last night and had it before I started my chem problems!
My ezekiel cereal held me well, 3.5 hours (which is my max) so I'll definately be going with the 3/4 cup!

For lunch I packed a whole wheat pita stuffed with some tofurkey slices (4 slices, 1 serving), a slice of reduced fat provolone, some spinach leaves and a couple tsp of dijon mustard. I had a cut up pear on the side Very good and filling!
I still wanted a snack before work, but I didn't feel hungry enough for the grapes I packed so I went with a tall nonfat latte which I sipped during the beginning of my shift, and it held me until I could heat up my soup for dinner.



Tore it in half, thought maybe you guys could see the inside a bit better:



I was pretty hungry at this point though, so I ended up munching on the baggie of red bell pepper strips I had packed while my soup was in the micro so I don't have a pic of those!
For a quick dinner I had my standard fiber filled Organic Health Valley Lentil Soup with some baby carrots (and the pepper strips)




I was hungry a few hours later, so I snacked on the grapes I had packed for an evening snack.

(Not the best pic, I know...)



When I arrived back at the dorm, (warm and happy I got a ride!) I was craving something sweet, so I had a tall mug of licorice tea with one of my organic dark chocolate cookies. Yum!



It was a nice ending to a busy day... I got all my chem problems finished for the a.m., so all I have left to do tonight is pack up my lunch and head off to bed!

Long lab day tomorrow... but then it's FRIDAY and hopefully I get to see my friend Rhiannon, who's on spring break from Northeastern... I haven't seen her in almost two months, so whatever we do should be quite fun!

Trying something new

This morning I had the other 1/2 of my crunchy peanut butter clif bar before going for a 45 minute run.
When I got back, I showered and made myself something new... Ezekiel Cereal!
It's pretty energy dense... 200 calories for 1/2 cup, but very nutrient dense as well- 1 serving has 8 grams of (complete) protein and 6 grams of fiber! Woah!

I was going to experiment and just have 1/2 cup with 1/2 cup hemp and see how long it lasted, but I know I'm not eating lunch until later so I went with 3/4 cup cereal and 3/4 cup hemp mik (yep, still in love!) It had a very interesting taste... I liked it, I'm still not sure HOW much. Different than what I usually eat, maybe I'll try it with a bit of Agave Nectar (Jenna's suggestion) next time. I heated it up like grapenuts, and it was good that way... I'm very full now, let's see how well it holds me!
I also had a juicy, perfect nectarine. Yum!



I NEED to get some of these dishes done this morning... no way am I going to have time after work today! I'm also attempting to get the majority of my work for the weekend done now, so I have some free time to relax! Possible hockey game friday night, saturday morning run, groceries and dinner with the fam... possible baking excursion with my sister as well? Hopefully!

The last of them

Had my last- and favorite Apple Turnover Yoplait. If I do buy these every once in a while, I'll be sure to buy this flavor- it's soo tasty!
I got my lab report done, as well as some other stuff... didn't get to dishes or philosophy reading (bad girl) but I'm pretty tired so I think I'll be heading off to bed soon.

I made my lunch for tomorrow, something new, that should be fun to try!
(Tomorrow night's boring work soup again...)
I'll definately be dreaming about more hempmilk for breakfast tomorrow... mmmm!



Have a great night =)

Fish before outing

Tonight I wasn't feeling too creative, because I didn't have much time after studying before heading to outing club. I decided to skip yoga and save the $$ this week because I have a lot of work to do and am still sore from Sunday! I'll go this weekend, definately.

For dinner I just cooked up one of my favorite quick "work meals", Szechuan vegetables (frozen mixed broccoli, red pepper, water chestnuts & snowpeas in a sesame/soy sauce) with a bit of tuna for a protein-filled entree, and had a perfectly ripe plum sliced on the side.
Just filling enough!






This afternoon I snacked on an organic cheese stick while studying.




I went to outing club, and it we have a couple fun trips coming up I'm pretty excited about!
Now I have to finish the pre-lab I started earlier... this is definately my least favorite homework. =(
On a more fun note, I'm searching for some great vegetarian/vegan friendly restaurants in midtown, NYC for my one-dayer this spring break... any suggestions? I've found some cool places so far, too bad I'm only there for 2 meals! I might have to have two lunches if I can't decide!! hehe

Relieved

Philosophy exam- check. (1 hour, 10 paragraphs on the one topic i hoped she didn't ask about. we'll see.)
Chem notes- 1/2 check... saw my friend from high school while studying and ended up talking for an hour!
Chem class- check. (boy am I not looking forward to the exam in a week!)
Drop study abroad application off- check. (I might be going to Italy this summer!)
I am SO relieved to have gotten the bulk of my day finished early!

I still have a BUNCH of studying to do... as well as outing club this evening, but my green tea is brewing and I am VERY happy to be back at the dorm.
Oh, and on my way here, I passed by Richard Gere and he smiled at me. How fun! He's filming a movie on campus, and I never thought I'd actually see him! He's just as good looking in person, even at his age ;)

For lunch I FULLY enjoyed my chick'n salad! Def. making this again soon, sooo tasty and incredibly filling! I brought it in a ziploc container and scooped it into two halves of a whole wheat pita I stuffed with a bit of baby spinach, and had some carrots on the side. Delish!

An exciting new way to start the day!

Mmmmmmm!
Delicious!
I am eating the creamiest, most tasty bowl of oats I have made so far at school. Yum! I tried the hemp milk, and LOVE IT! I'm definately sold, I love the consistency it makes the oats- creamy and a bit sticky with the peanut butter I added! I made 1/2 cup (dry) quick oats with 1 cup vanilla hemp milk, 1 tbsp REAL pb from whole foods (the good fresh grinded stuff!), the other 1/2 of my morning banana, a few leftover bluberries and a tablespoon of flax. Perfection!



This morning I went for a 35 minute run (after my 1/2 banana).
I have my philosophy essay exam this morning... should be a challenging one, hopefully I have time to say what I want to say!
Plus, I'm looking forwards to my yummy packed lunch afterwards, so that should make it less painful. =)


Have a great Tuesday!

Packing success

Despite the fact that my dorm room now smells pleasantly of onion (I'm sure my roommates love my cooking!), my chick'n salad making was a success!
I can't wait to taste it tomorrow; here's a sneak peak of the process:





It's all ready to go in my fridge, we'll both have to wait and see how it tastes tomorrow!

Now I'm snacking on a whole bunch of yummy red grapes while I do my chem reading, and then dishes, and bed... early morning tomorrow! I get to try my new hemp milk in the morning though, I'm pretty excited about that =)

Just a bit sloppy

Tonight I had the BEST leftovers... seriously, I swear these meatless sloppy joes are even better the second time around! I wish I hadn't saved some for my dad/sister (who enjoyed them fully- even my dad who HATE bbq sauce!) and had taken the rest home with me! haha (I'm a bit food selfish) But I'm glad I got to enjoy them twice.
Tonight I had 1 cup of "sloppy joe" on my last whole grain english muffin with 2 cups leftover roasted veggies (also still fantastic!)






I'm nice and full now! I think tonight if I get enough work done I'm going to make Jenna's variation of Skinny Bitch in the Kitch's "Chick'n Salad" to pack for lunch tomorrow... yum!

Surprising Breeze!

Today was a pretty surprising day, I my test turned out to be a breeze... I whipped right through it in under 50 minutes. It was only 80 questions, and I'm confident I did pretty well.
I got out sooo early, so now I'm getting a bit of work done before I eat dinner, study and get my lunch ready for tomorrow!

Today I stopped by the dining hall for a big salad for lunch.
I loaded up on the veggies: mixed greens, carrots, tomatoes, cucumber, mushrooms, broccolli, about 1/3 cup each kidney beans and chickpeas, a couple tablespoons feta cheese and about 1 tbsp (estimated) dried cranberries for a bit of sweetness! I topped this with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, and had an apple on the side.



Got my veggies in, and it filled me... but only for a bit. I got super hungry before my exam, so I snacked on a KIND fruit, nut & yogurt bar for some brain food while studying at the library between classes. No tea today; it felt too warm!
It turned out to be a nice, mild, sunny day today... good because I hear the upcoming week is going to be pretty nasty.



Work and dinner time, I'll post again soon!

The Nerves are kicking in...

So I'm starting to get a bit nervous about the two exams I have this week... Well, I was nervous before but they're getting worse! I know I understand the Nutrition stuff, I'm just afraid I'll forget little details! And philosophy is an essay exam... I hope I don't babble!
I guess I'll just have to make it through... I might go to Yoga on Tuesday to calm myself down, not sure yet. It all depends on how much MORE work I get!!

Enough complaining. This morning I woke up and had 1/2 a peanut butter crunch clif bar (soo yummy!) before going for a 45 minute run on the track.



For breakfast, I finished up my pumpkin flax granola (3/4 cup) along with 1 Fage 0% and about 3/4 cup blueberries (added a few extra!)



Mixed it up of course!


I'm nice and full, I think I'm going to work on some more philosophy before Kinesiology...
I'm going, going, going today so I'll be back after dinner!

Regular Snack

I'm glad to have gotten some organic yogurts at Shaws today; but I still have a couple Yoplaits left, so I snacked on a harvest peach Yoplait Light while finishing my Chem Lab tonight!



I don't feel ready to start this week. It's going to be a stressful one! Time for some relaxing tea.

Spicy, Sweet, Sour and everything in between!

I've been studying since my last post- this philosophy is taking longer than expected! Theres so much to each theory... I hope I can analyze all of them before I crash tonight (I guess its still early!)

My stomach started growling, so I took a dinner break.
Yesterday at Whole Foods I was intrigued Boca Brand Hot&Spicy Chick'n Wings, made with organic ingrediants! I have loved the Morningstar Buffalo Chick'n wings, and had orginally planned on getting those, but these are less calories, fat and saturated fat as well as more protein than the Morningstar brand, so I decided to give them a try. I was very glad!
But boy, were they spicy! Tonight I had 4 with a bit of dijon mustard on the side... after a couple dips I decided a sweet twist with some honey mustard might be a better option, so I had a dollop of that to dip instead.
On the side I made myself a spinach salad topped with some chopped baby carrots, cucumber, celery and about 1 tbsp Annie's Gingerly Dressing. Yum again!
To finish it all off, I realized I hadn't had too much fruit today (a rareity for me!) so I had the other 1/2 of my grapefruit from last night. This one is so good- sweet and just a little sour, just how I like it!
Now I'll full and ready to tackle Simple Subjectivism!







This dinner was ~400 kcals

I'm sure I'll be back for a snack a little later...

Much anticipated Mexi Lunch

After an amazing Yoga class this morning, I was pretty hungry... I guess I usually have a bit more fat with my oatmeal, because I usually use flax/walnuts and just used 1 tbsp PB this morning, because I got hungry after about 3.25 hours...
But, I still had some groceries to pick up before we headed over to campus so I drank some water, ignored my growling stomach and headed to Shaw's for a bit of produce and a couple other things I needed.
I ended up picking up:
A couple plums
2 anjou pears
Blueberries (2 for 1!)
Celery
Cucumber
Wheat Pitas
Organic Lentil soup
Some frozen brussels sprouts and seasoned veggies
Organic yogurt
a new kind of Yogi tea that was on sale... Mayan Cocoa Spice.
Mmm! I'll definately be trying some of that tonight with my late night snack =)

I was STARVING by the time we got through with everything, so I devoured my lunch!
We stopped at Tio Mateos and grabbed Veggie Burritos... I asked for mine on a wheat tortilla, and they were SOOO good!
They had lots of sauteed peppers, onion, tomato, tons of black beans, corn, and a bit of cheese. I ate my entire burrito, and I dipped it in a tiny bit of sour cream and some salsa (ate about 1/2 of each of what's pictured). Although I was famished when I got there, the burrito still filled me up and I didn't touch the tortilla chips!
It was just what I wanted this afternoon, a nice mexican lunch with Mom =)





Now I HAVE to go work on my dreaded philosophy stuff... Big essay exam on Tuesday!
I'll be back for dinner!

Fantastically Irish

I just had THE most delicious, creamy oats I have ever had! I tried the Quick cooking Irish Steel-Cut oats; I wanted to get the regular but decided to try the quick kind first. I made them with 1 cup vanilla soy milk, and stirred in 1 tbsp honey roasted peanut butter, topped it with a perfectly ripe banana and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Absolutely Delicious. The extra honey in the peanut butter made it just sweet enough, and it was SO filling; the perfect Sunday meal for sure! I'll definately be making this again when I'm home for the weekend! Perfect!





Last night before bed I had 1/2 a grapefruit I never ended up posting, and when I woke up this morning I went for a quick 30-minute incline walk on the treadmill to start my day... we're going to Yoga in a bit, and then out to lunch and shopping for the rest of my produce before I head back to campus once again!



The beginning of this week is tough... I have exams on Monday and Tuesday, but I only work 1 day and have some fun plans for the weekend so I have something to look forward to!!

Busy Grocery day!

What a busy day!

After I ran at home this morning, my mom, sister and I headed to Crazy Burger for brunch!
I started with a hot cup of peppermint tea with a bit of honey



For bruch I had one of my favorites- design your own omelet! I had mine with egg whites, goat cheese, steamed broccolli and sauteed mushrooms... yum! There was a bit more goat cheese than usual, but it was delicious! I dipped it in a tiny bit of homemade ketchup (about a tsp) and ate all the fruit that came along with it! (I substituted fruit for the homefries that were on the menu). It came with brioche, but I was too full from the omelet and fruit, so I gave them to my sister!



Afterwards, we headed up to Whole Foods for my much anticipated grocery trip!
I had some great successes finding a bunch of new products I want to try! Lots of new stuff up and coming =)
I have heard awesome things about sunshine burgers and hemp milk, so I'm excited to try those for sure!

Here are the goods:

A few items I got to keep at home:
Vanilla low fat soy milk (I wanted almond!), Steel cut oats, honey roasted PB


Produce: (I'm getting the rest locally tomorrow!)


And the rest:
I didn't end up buying too much yogurt, my local grocery store has a sale on Stonyfield so I think I'll grab a few of those! (I was excited about the Fage 2% with Cherry though!)




On the way out, I grabbed a few items from the salad bar and a small side salad for a light late lunch to hold me over.
I had some edamame and brown rice, chickpeas with garlic and tomatoes, and a bit of sesame tofu, and some mixed greens with veggies and apple cider vinegar.





I also bought some stuff for tonight's dinner: I made Jenna's recipe for Meatless Sloppy Joes and they were fantastic! I made enough for dinner AND leftovers for this week!
Absolutely delicious, and very easy! We had them with Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted grain buns (a new favorite!) and fresh brussels sprouts/cauliflower I roasted with a bit of EVOO and S&P... another one of Jenna's ideas!

Cooking it all up:


Roasted Veggies:


The meal!



Now I'm sipping some sugar cookie tea and studying for my Nutrition Exam on Monday!
What a great Saturday =)