Sammie in a cookie

Tonight for my baking adventure I re-invented one of my favorite sandwiches, in cookie form! I tested Lindsay's recipe for PB & J cookies, and liked them so much I had 3 for a snack with some grapes tonight! For some reason I was really hungry after dinner, so this was the perfect filling dessert to end my night.


Tomorrow I have another race I'm pretty excited to do, although I am a little nervous because I haven't been training as hard lately due to lack of sleep. I'm getting a good night's rest tonight though, so hopefully I'll be ready tomorrow! The race isn't until 1pm, which is much later than most races I do- so I'll have to fuel myself well throughout the morning.

I'm off to read and relax before my much anticipated night of rest. See you all tomorrow!

Finally awake

I was exhausted when I started to run, so I only ended up running for 30 minutes, but then I felt surprisingly energized while walking, so I walked on an incline for another 20 minutes before showering.
After my run I made myself a fruit filled smoothie with 1/2 cup vanilla hemp milk, 1 banana, 1/2 cup each frozen mango and blueberries, and the last 3 fresh strawberries. This held me over perfectly during grocery shopping!

I went to the Alternative Food Co-op for some fresh organic produce, (including a bunch of HUMUNGOUS grapes I'm dying to snack on!) and also picked up some pistachios and whole wheat pasty flour from bulk, FYH vegan monterey jack, vanilla soy yogurt, blue corn tortilla chips, white beans, organic veggie broth, a new Nature's Path cereal to try, just the basics, we have a lot in the house already.
It was hard to resist the scrumptious looking vegan cookies, but I plan on baking tonight so I stayed away!

When I came home, I put together a delicious new recipe I found I just had to try- Susan from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen's Turkish Pilaf with Pistachios and Chickpeas. YUM!
Made with basmati rice, eggplant, onion, tomato, chickpeas, parsley, and topped with crunchy pistachios... it was so flavorful, had a great texture, and was a pretty simple recipe to make! I loved it, and so did my family- we all had big bowfuls!

All made:

My bowl:


Tonight is definately going to be a low-key night after all my running around these past few days!
I'm planning on baking, reading, and sleeping... some of my favorite pasttimes!

Leftover lunch

I'm still very tired, so I wanted a pretty easy, but healthy and filling lunch to have before I exercise and go out for groceries.
So, I headed to my fridge to assess my options and decided to make a veggie-filled lunch using leftovers from Thursday's party-
I used an Ezekiel sprouted grain hotdog bun, and topped this with the last two of Lindsay's Grammy's Meatless Balls, some vegan marinara, and a sprinkle of vegan parm for a "meat"ball sub, and had a salad of some mixed greens, cucumber and olives topped with 1 tbsp Annie's Woodstock dressing, and some carrots.

This was the perfect sized lunch, although it didn't have any fruit (all I've had for fruit so far today is an orange slice- so not me!) so I've already decided a big smoothie is looking reallll good for a snack later on =)

Ok, I've already done enough laying around this morning (tried to nap, read my book...) so now I'm off to get some real stuff done! Hope your Saturdays are going well- everyone who didn't see Sex and the City last night, GO SEE IT TONIGHT! I promise it's the perfect Saturday night movie!

Tired but satisfied!

Despite being extremely tired, I had a great night with my friends last night! I met up with my friend Eric after work, and we some gelato while waiting for Danielle- I had mudslide and vanilla.

We headed up to the movies, and although we had pre-ordered our tickets, Danielle had not and the show we were planning to see actually SOLD OUT... so we traded in our tickets for an even later show, which didn't start until 10:45! But it was totally, absoultely worth it, even though I am exhausted this morning!

When we got home, my stomach was growling, and Eric didn't have much but sweets in his house, so I settled on a big bowl of dry Raisin Bran Crunch instead of cupcakes (which I thought was a better choice!) and we all stayed up late, talking because we were so excited after the movie we couldn't sleep!

I woke up fairly early anyways, and we went out to breakfast at my favorite restaurant in town, Crazy Burger! I had a totally vegan, totally delicious breakfast of Tofu Scramble, which was mixed with soysage, brocolli, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes and topped with soy cheese and avocado. There was also a side of home fries (vegan, not greasy!) and some brioche toast. I managed to finish all the tofu scramble because it was just so darn tasty, and about 1/3 of the homefries dipped in some of their home made ketchup. Then I was stuffed full, so I stopped, even though I probably could have eaten the rest of the yummy potatoes!

Today I was planning on going for a run outside, but as I was coming home it started to thunder, and just as I got out of my car it began to downpour... so I guess I will be exercising inside today! I also plan on doing some grocery shopping later as well. I might need a nap though... I feel like I'm going to fall asleep!!

Busy day

What a busy day today is...luckily I'm off to a good start! I went for a nice 4 mile run, came home and packed my bags for the day, made my dinner for tonight and prepared myself an early lunch. Hopefully I made my lunch big enough to hold me until I can take a quick break for a snack... I filled it with plenty of protein, fiber and healthy fats which is usually the key to satiety!

I made myself a delicious tofurky sandwich on Ezekiel sprouted grain bread with my favorite additions; whole grain dijon mustard, a slice of vegan mozarella, some sliced avocado and baby spinach. Mmm... On the side I had some carrots as usual, and a good sized pear.


For a snack later on, I packed a cashew cookie larabar- one of my favorite flavors. These really hold me over, and they're so tasty!

For dinner I didn't have much in the house to choose from, so I decided just to bring an Amy's bowl with me for my entree with a couple sides.

Amy's meals are very convienent in a pinch- they're all vegetarian with many vegan options, healthy and yummy to boot! I love this one, it has brown rice with veggies (broccoli, carots, mushrooms) in a mushroom gravy with black eyed peas. Since this was a pretty small bowl I also packed some baby zucchini and the rest of the red grapes we had in the house.


After work I'm meeting up with my friend at the Podhead, so a scoop of gelato is likely, and once my other friend gets off work we're off to the movies! I think I might be going out to breakfast tomorrow morning as well, so I'll post that when I get home. I'm excited to start my weekend!!

Rested

After a couple days of hardly any sleep, I finally got a good night's sleep last night! Now I'm wide awake, well rested and ready to start my funny day....
I say it's a funny day, because I'm working 12-7; a very weird shift for me, I've never worked one like that before!
So my plans as of now are going for a run, having an early lunch, packing my snack and dinner for work and then going out after to see the movie. Probably going to be another long day, but fun (after work) for sure!

I was happy to discover my mom picked up some of my favorite Lifestream Flax Plus waffles at the store the other day- so I had two in my favorite form today, as a wafflewich with 2 tbsp PB, a big banana, a drizzle of maple syurp and a few strawberries on the side. Should jump start my day, and hold me until my early lunch.


I'll try and post most of my meals before I leave today, hopefully I'm not in a big rush like the other day. Have a wonderful friday, all!

Mangia Italia!

Tonight's dinner was a huge success!
I went for a run in the afternoon, doing my usual 4 mile hilly loop through my neighborhood, and finished my dinner preparations when I returned. I snacked on a strawberry banana Silk soy yogurt topped with 1/4 cup home made trail mix to hold me until our feast was ready!

The theme for dinner with my grandparents and family tonight was Italian all the way! I made a simple insalata of mixed spring greens, sliced yellow pepper and black olives, with Veganomicon's Mediterranean Olive Oil and Lemon viniagrette, which was very flavorful and delicious, definately a great dressing for a simple salad.

For dinner, I made my Grandpa's favorite- Spaghetti and Meatballs! I cooked up some Bionature Organic Whole Wheat Spaghetti, and we had this with Lindsay, the Happy Herbivore's Slow Cooked Marinara sauce, which was the best home made sauce I've made so far, and one of her tester recipes for Meatless balls. What a winner this was! We each had 3 HUGE meatballs, and my grandpa ate every last bite of his big serving of pasta and sauce! He asked what the "meat"balls were made with, and wanted my grandma to make them for him! Now, I couldn't give her the recipe yet but I'm definately going to help her incorporate some meatless recipes into my Grandpa's meals now that we know he likes the faux stuff! I ate my entire big serving too, and thought it was fantastic!

For dessert, I made up my own recipe for a Fresh Berry Crisp that turned out awesome! I used inspiration from a few different cookbooks to put together a sweet 4-berry filling with a wheat-oat topping, that turned out better than expected! I've only created baked goods from scratch a couple times in the past, and this one was by far my best attempt. I love experimenting, maybe I'll make up my own cake or cookie recipe next! My family enjoyed the crisp as well, I served each bowl with a scoop of my favorite So Delicious vegan ice cream, and no one noticed it wasn't real ice cream! My meal was 100% vegan, and so was my Mom's (the others had real parm on their pasta, my mom and I used Galaxy Food's vegan parm, but otherwise it was all vegetarian!)



I'm stuffed, but I'm so glad it went well!

Here's the recipe for my dessert:

Kristin Nibbles on... Fresh Berry Crisp (I need a good name for this one- any suggestions?
(Makes 4 big or 6 small servings)

Filling:
4 cups of your favorite fresh berries
(I used sliced strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries; 1 cup each)
1 heaping tbsp arrowroot powder
1/4 cup unrefined sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger

Combine all ingredients in a square 8" glass pan, until sugar and arrowroot are dissolved, set aside to make topping

Topping:
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/8 cup unrefined sugar
1/8 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
cinnamon
pinch salt
4 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
1 tbsp cold water
1 tbsp agave nectar

In medium bowl, combine oats, flour, sugars, coconut, cinnamon and salt
Slowly work in applesauce and water until mixture forms a sticky dough, stir in agave
Spoon oat mixture on top of fruit mixture, spreading with fingers until fruit is covered in a layer of crisp

Preheat oven to 350
Bake for 35-40 minutes until fruit is bubbling and topping is crisp (will still be chewy)

Enjoy with a scoop of your favorite non dairy ice cream, gelato, or soy yogurt!

Ok, I'm off to bed soon- I've had a late last couple of nights and I'll be up again tomorrow night- I'm going to see Sex and the City with two of my best friends tomorrow night after work, it's a 10pm show but I just have to see it opening night- it's my alltime favorite show!
Anyone else going to see it?

Have a great Thursday night, the weekend is almost here!!

Food, food and more food!

Well, I've got a sinkful of dirty dishes, but also a crockpot of slow cooking marinara, a garden salad and home made herb viniagrette in the fridge, a fruit crisp ready to be prepared... I'm on a roll!
I paused in my preparations to make myself a light lunch- I was definately hungry, but not too much, probably because I'm super exhausted. I'm contemplating taking a nap if my run doesn't wake me up this afternoon.

For lunch I made myself a hummus wrap using the last of my roasted garlic hummus (about 4 tbsp), some spinach, cucumber, avocado and sliced mushrooms. On the side I had some carrots and a bunch of red grapes. This was a tasty lunch, just the right size for my mediocre appetite.



I'm off to finish a little more prep before I head out for a run and start making my "meatballs"! This day of cooking has been pretty relaxing, but I'm sure I'll be getting to bed verrrry early tonight.

Another late night, early morning

As much as I love hanging out with my friends, I can not keep up this "stay up late, come home early" thing... it's pretty darn tiring! Either that or I should carry breakfast with me and sleep in more often.
The other thing is, when I do hang out with my friends after work they always seem to have loads of food, and although for the most part I try to resist the unhealthy extras, lately I've been finding myself saying "yes" to little extra treats more often than no... convincing myself a little isn't bad (it's just one big piece of leftover birthday cake...) when really, I know that a little is ok, just not every night (and it has been every night). So this behavior has been very uncharacteristic of my usually very balanced, moderation-stressing attitude towards eating... I guess I got a bit out of control and should reel myself back in. But a couple nights of extra treats are only a couple nights, they're behind me now and at least I realize I was getting a bit off the healthy track for a while. I'll just have to learn to say no to my friends, remembering my health is important to me and my friends should accept this.

So, this morning I came home and started my day off in a healthy way with a big bowl (probably about 2 cups) of Kashi Go Lean in 1 cup hemp milk, with a juicy nectarine on the side.

This was very tasty and satisfying, should be good fuel to start my cooking projects for the day! I'm making a slow cooked marinara early this morning, then I'm going to exercise, prepare my dessert, salad, "meat"balls and pasta later on... it's going to be quite the busy day of preparation but it should be fun, I always love entertaining!

Night time nibbles

This bright and sunny afternoon, I took a nice 4 mile run outside before getting ready for work. I packed up my dinner- a Morningstar Italian Chik patty with some marinara sauce to dip, cooked broccoli and cauliflower, and a few baby carrots.

I had a snack to hold me through the first couple of hours of work; a brown rice cake with 1 tbsp PB and 1 tsp raspberry preserves, along with my favorite fruit of the moment- a juicy nectarine.

For later tonight, I packed myself and my friends a few pieces of leftover banana bread for a healthier night time snack.

Sorry for the quick post- I'm off to work, see you all in the a.m.!

Hungry?

For some reason, although I felt stuffed right after breakfast this morning- I've had this funny hungry feeling in the pit of my stomach all morning... like I wanted to eat, but knew I wasn't really hungry. Strange.
I had an early lunch anyways; I made myself a big mexican-inspired wrap using leftovers from last night's burritos. I put some mixed greens, leftover bean/corn mix, grilled pepper & zucchini, avocado, a bit of thinly sliced FYH cheddar cheese in a wheat wrap and warmed this for a bit in the microwave. I folded this all up and ate it with some peach salsa and a big organic pink lady apple. I also snacked on a few blue corn tortilla chips while making my wrap, but there were only crumbs left in the bag.
This was spicy & tasty, and cured my hunger at least for now!


My kitchen is organized, everything is set for tomorrow... but I'm kind of just lazying around for a bit. I'm super tired, but I still want to get a run in before work because it's so beautiful out! I hope I get some sleep in tonight- I'll be a waking zombie cooking for my grandparents tomorrow if I don't!!

I'll be back for a snack/dinner post later on!!

Home for oats

I ended up staying over my friend's house last night because we were up so late watching a movie, but I drove home early this morning because I was hungry, and remembered I had prepped a big bowl of swiss oats to have for breakfast. All my friend had was cheerios and milk... yuck. I needed to get back to get some stuff done anyways, so I was on the road and back home in no time, ready for some delicious oats to start my day. I made the oats the same way as usual; 1/2 cup dry oats, 1/2 cup vanilla hemp milk, cherries, walnuts and cinnamon, then added a banana and 1/2 cup plain soy yogurt this morning. I also had small bowl of grapes that were delicious, but I felt a bit too full after finishing them... my swiss oats fill me so well, I should remember not to have any extra fruit with them because they always leave me stuffed!

Today's plans include a run (it's sunny out!) and organizing my kitchen for tomorrow- I'm making my Grandparents a big dinner; Spaghetti and Meat-less balls because Spaghetti and meatballs are my Grandpa's favorite! I can't wait, I love making big meals for family and friends!
I work later on this afternoon, and then I'm sleeping over a friend's house again tonight so I'll try and post before work and show you my planned eats for the evening!

Have a great Wednesday!

Baking with Bananas

I just made the most amazing banana bread I have ever made- and it just so happens to be vegan! I tested Lindsay's vegan Banana Bread recipe, from her upcoming cookbook, and it was fantastic. It came out looking gorgeous, and it tastes just as tasty as it looks. I had two slices, one hot out of the oven and one a few minutes later because I just couldn't resist. And it was worth every last banana-y bite =)

Melty, Messy Mexican

Woah, that big, delicious lunch held me over until dinner! 5 hours! Ok, I did snack on a few pieces of dried fruit I was craving, but I probably didn't even need them.

For dinner, I made myself, my mom and my sister spicy burrito melts- inspired by Erica's post- with a few changes. I mixed up some sweet corn and black beans with tomato sauce, lime juice, taco seasoning, a dash of salt and pepper and a spoonful of salsa, and spooned that in the middle of a whole wheat wrap. I topped this with some red bell pepper and baby zucchini slices sauteed in veggie broth, about 1/3 of an avocado each, and rolled it all up, pinned it together with a toothpick, popped 'em in the oven for a few just to melt the cheese (their non-dairy but not vegan cheese melted better than my vegan mozz slice) and they were done!

I topped mine with a big spoonful of peach salsa, and had a side salad with mixed greens, mushrooms, cukes and a drizzle of Annie's Woodstock dressing. YUM! I am SO full right now, but it was absolutely delicious. Spicy and flavorful, but super messy- I ended up eating the majority of it with a fork and knife because there were beans and corn everywhere! Still tasty, I'm just glad no one watched me eat it... hehe


My doctor's appointment went well today, I have gained 7 pounds in 8 weeks, so this is really good progress- I'm only a few pounds away from my overall goal weight and am much healthier. After the doctor's I picked out a new cell phone (mine has been broken for too long) that I'll get when my current plan runs out, and then stopped by the grocery store for a few items. While browsing I discovered my favorite Health Valley chili is being discontinued from the store, and was 50% off, so of course I had to buy 6 cans!! That was a fun discovery, I just hope I can find it at another store close by I'm addicted!

Later on tonight I have plans with my friends again, but not until late so I think I have time to do that baking I've been planning =)

Hope your Tuesdays went well!

Progress

Today has been a very productive day so far! I'm making a whole lot of process organizing some stuff I've been meaning to organize (including recipes!), and the puppy is learning how to "go" outside! After only one day! I was so proud of him =)
Although my breakfast was delicious this morning, I didn't feel energized enough after 2.5 hours to run, so I had a pre-run snack of a mini clif bar. Then I ran for 35 minutes, walked 15 on an incline and felt like I got a good, strong workout in.

Afterwards I made my mom and I an incredibly delicious lunch- "Chicken" salad from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch.

I served it on two slices Ezekiel sprouted grain bread, with some carrots and a nectarine on the side. I halved the recipe, but it made so much it didn't all fit on the bread, so I had a little left on the side as well. It was a big lunch, but it should keep me nice and full through my doctor's appointment!

Deceptive weather

From what I had heard, this entire week was supposed to be warm, sunny and beautiful- so I decided to take a couple days off from running because I was so tired after staying up late and working long hours- so I walked two days in a row, promising to take a nice long run the rest of the week.
Well, I woke up this morning and it's raining out! Yuck. So, I'll still be running- but most likely inside, it doesn't look like it will be clearing up anytime soon. I should learn to stop listening to the weathermen.

For breakfast Kahlua helped me (by chasing my feet around the kitchen) make myself a big bowl of granola. I tried Honest Food's new Granola planks- Pomegranate Walnut Crisp flavor, and I was pleasantly surprised! A serving is 1/2 a plank, but I went for the whole plank for some extra healthy calories, and it was quite filling! I'm sure that 1/2 plank would have filled me. It was a really interesting texture- soft and chewy, but crunchy at the same time. Very delicious! Almost like a big granola bar torn up. I mixed it in with a silk vanilla soy yogurt and 3/4 cup blueberries for a very satisfying breakfast. I can't wait to try the other flavors!


Today I'm just running inside as I had mentioned, then I have a doctor's appointment later this afternoon and I think I might be meeting up with some friends later on tonight- another busy day!

I hope everyone's long weekends were great and you're all energized to start the work week again!

Doggie treats

Ok, my snack tonight wasn't a doggie treat- but my day kind of felt like one! Treat after treat =)
I was thinking about baking, but got so distracted by this adorable little face I decided to hold off until tomorrow!

Instead, for dessert tonight I had 1/2 a big Alternative Baking Co Espresso Chip cookie and some cherries. Ohmigosh, this cookie was beyond good! Absolutely delectable! I love these cookies, the perfect treat... and just the hint of espresso. Mmm!

I guess my day was filled with coffee flavored treats- Kahlua and cookies!

Just another walk...

So I went on a walk with my mom this afternoon, and we walked straight into a PUPPY SHOP... and we BOUGHT A PUPPY! I'm not even kidding... he is the cutest little thing you have EVER seen. I promise I will post pics soon- he's an 11 week old Pekingese named Kahlua, and I am absolutely in love.
And that is my excuse for this late post!

Work was long and a bit tiring today, I snacked on a small handful of almonds to hold me over in the morning, and my lunch was great- I ate everything but a couple snow peas that looked yucky. After work, I snacked on a juicy nectarine and a mini clif bar to fuel my walk with my mom.

We walked 2.5 miles, all the way to the puppy store, where we fell in love with Kahlua and immediately went home to grab my sister and the checkbook! We were with the owner for a while, so I was STARVING by the time I got home. We had originally planned on burritos, but we decided to wait until tomorrow for them and go a quicker route tonight- chili dogs! I cooked up two smart dogs (they're only 45 calories each!) and topped them with some Health Valley vegetarian three bean chili I heated, and melted on some FYH vegan cheddar, all on an Ezekiel hot dog bun. It was big, messy and delicious! On the side I had a salad with mixed greens, yellow pepper, mushrooms and two sliced mini zucchini. Absolutely perfect meal, very healthy and filling, and super quick!




I'm about to go play with the puppy for a while, and later I'm meeting up with a couple friends so I probably won't be back until tomorrow morning. I have been a busy girl and I'm loving it!

The power of change

I just had a conversation with my mom about Oprah's 21 day cleanse, in which she is basically taking on a vegan diet for 21 days and blogging about it. I haven't read any of her entries yet, but I am very curious to see what comes out of it. I think Oprah is an incredibly powerful woman, and the kind of change she can evoke is mindblowing. Imagine what would happen if Oprah went vegan?? I think some incredible changes could come from that, and what good that would do for the world... I can only imagine. I hope she gets something good from this cleanse!!

For my breakfast, I veganized swiss oats again- prepping 1/2 cup oats with 1/2 cup hemp milk, some walnuts, dried cherries and cinnamon last night and stirring in 1/2 cup plain soy yogurt, a big banana and a drizzle of agave this morning. I also had the last few big strawberries on the side. This was a delicious, filling meal that should hold me for a few hours at work!

For lunch at work today, I'm bringing a tofurky sammie with a few slices of tofurky, a slize of vegan mozzarella, whole grain dijon, spinach and cucumber on Ezekiel sprouted grain bread, along with some carrots and snow peas and a big organic pink lady apple. No forgetting pictures today!

After work today if it's still nice out I think I'll be going for another long walk (this time with my mom!) and then I have no idea what I'm doing for dinner- I currently have nothing planned because I had plans with friends that fell through... so I might be experimenting!

Off to work, have a great Memorial day!