Kristin

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Rhode Island, United States

Saturday, September 5, 2009

WORDPRESS SWITCH!

Have you guys found me yet? 

I've switched to wordpress.com, but I'm still Kristin's Nibbles... yet I have no readers yet!! 

Switch your google readers, my new page is http://kristinsnibbles.wordpress.com

xo
Kris 

P.S. If there are any bloggers out there who could give me a shoutout on the blog just to let people know my address has changed that would be greatly appreciated!!

Friday, September 4, 2009

CHANGING IT UP!!!

Good Afternoon!! 

All my posts are now being transferred to... 


It is still in the works, and www.kristinsnibbles.com will be up again soon as well!

Thanks, I'll be back with my day's post later on this evening!

xo
Kris 

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Taking It easy

Evening guys! 

This morning's workout was... well... better than the other day's HIIT, but the fact that I can not walk was an issue! I have to admit, I definitely pushed myself too hard. So I took it easy for a while this morning on the treadmill instead of jumping right into my intensity training. I don't want to hurt myself! 
This morning's HIIT: 
1 min @ 4.5 
1 min @ 4.8
1 min @ 5.2
1 min @ 5.6
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @ 6.8--> getting faster!
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @ 6.5
1 min @ 7.0
1 min @ 7.5
1 min @ 8.0 --> made it to 9!
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @6.5
1 min @ 7.0
1 min @ 7.5
1 min @ 8.0
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @7.0
1 min @ 8.9--> up to my "10"!! 
1 min @4.0
5 min @ 3.5, reading a mag to cool off 

After I eased into it and got going, it was a great workout! I was glad I made it back up to my 8.9mph high point again! 

As for my eats, Meal #1 was one of my fave combos
1/2 c eggbeaters cooked with Mrs. Dash Garlic & herb, wilted spinach and mushrooms, LCL cheese wedge and a banana on the side 

Meal #2 was a deeelicious repeat... 
0% chobani, juicy juicy juicy chopped nectarine 

All day I have been sipping on these babies: 
Mojito-water! I've been sprucing up my regular h20 with some fresh mint and lime juice, and voila! Mojito water!

Lunch (Meal # 3) was leftovers, reinvented. 
Bean and corn salad and cajun chicken over mixed greens with chopped cucumber and salsa on top. HUGE MONSTER SALAD= amazingly filling and delicious. Perfecto. 

Meal #4  was also filling + tasty... 
1/2 c lf cottage cheese, blueberries

I spent the day organizing the files on my computer, cleaning the bathroom, and just lazying around!

Dinner was the REAL star meal of the day... 
I sauteed my shrimpies in 1 tsp of EVOO, 1 clove of garlic and added s+p, parsley and basil and a splash of white wine (the good stuff- Riesling from Canada!). Then I placed them atop a bed of 1/2 c brown rice with more asparagus on the side. 

Droool.... little pieces of buttery heaven, with no butter used! Amazing! 

Well, these kept me full for a while but my sweet tooth was kickin' in so I grabbed meal #6 a couple hours later- "Chocolate Milk" and a Kiwi! 
I used Protein Powder + 8oz h20 + a splash of almond milk. Creamy! 

In other news... I hope you enjoyed my Installment # 1 of my Winery posts... (If you haven't read it, it's the post right before this one!) 

And I have to thank Angela from Oh She Glows (And Glo Bakery!) for helping me send my boyf a fun 1-year gift (it's on Sunday)... Cookies! He loves them! =) 

I'm going to bed. Night!

Crush on Niagara


Crush on Niagara: Part I

As promised, I’m going to take you through my 2 spectacular days of wine touring through the countryside of Niagara, Ontario. I apologize for this post being so late; I've been caught up in organizing!

Who knew the land in Canada would be so great for growing wine grapes? Surely no one gave it a bit of thought for some time, because the wine business in Niagara has only been thriving for 60-some odd years. But now with the rising popularity of Icewine and vintages such as many 2007 varieties gaining worldwide popularity, the wine industry in the Niagara peninsula and further has put Canada on the map for wine making.

On both Sunday and Monday, I participated in two 4-vineyard wine tours throughout the Niagara area, put on by Crush on Niagara wine tours. For five hours each day, Nick and I were led from vineyard to vineyard on a company bus, learning more and more about the wine tasting, varieties and the industry and how far it has come today.

Our first tour guide was a retired man named Paul who simply does the tours because he likes to. Informative and candid, he picked us up right on time at 12:45 and we headed to downtown Niagara on the lake to pick up one other couple, from California, and take us to our first winery.

The first winery we went to was a fairly small 12-year-old winery called Strewn, which produces around 25,000 cases per year. Our guide brought us downstairs into the wine cellar where we were among the barrels as she taught us the basics of wine tasting. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the “rules” of wine tasting, a brief overview:

  1.     Look at the wine for color and clarity, or any sediment (aged wines can collect sediment over time)
  2.      Sniff the wine first without swirling it to get a pure sense of the wine straight out of the bottle. THEN swirl it around, and smell again. Notice what smells you pick up. Remember: wine is purely made of grapes. Essences of other smells may come through, but really, anything you smell is possible.
  3.           Take one sip to clear the palate of whatever else you had in your mouth last
  4.      Take another sip, and then another. Now what do you think of the wine?

·       Is it dry  (not sweet)?

·       Or if it is sweet, how sweet? Wineries tend to use a sweetness scale, from 1- semi dry, to 20 or above being very sweet (as a dessert wine usually is)

·       Does your mouth tingle and dry when the wine hits your tongue? Those are the tannins in the wine causing these sensations.

·       Do you pick up certain flavors or spices, fruits or maybe an oaky taste from the barrel it was in?

All of these will help you develop a sense of the true taste of the wine- to you, that is. Good wine is good wine, but everyone has their taste preferences and that will never change.

I loved doing the tour because I felt as though I heightened my taste for certain wines, and have more of a general idea as to what I prefer. But the perfect wine can always change that! More on that later.

In the cellar at Strewn, we were presented 3 wines; a white, a red and a late-harvest dessert wine.


The white- a 2006 Riesling Gewürztraminer. This was a scale 1 semi dry white wine. I could instantly smell the fruit- very peachy. With a little bit of spice. I liked this a lot, it was great for a white because I usually prefer red. Hmm.  Maybe I just haven’t been trying the right white wines for my taste?

The Red- a 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon. We were lucky enough to have the opportunity to try the red from both the barrel, and from the bottle. The straight-from-the-barrel wine was as expected; bitter and lacking depth of flavor. The tour guide also explained to us that the wine in the barrel came from all of the same vineyard, whereas bottled wines contain many different barrels and many different vineyards. The bottled version was much more mature, and much heavier. It was good, but not my favorite- a bit too spicy for my taste. 

The Late Harvest- Late harvest wines are harvested in Novemeber versus September, so the grapes are much sweeter, and the wine serves as more of a dessert wine or an aperitif with cheeses. This late harvest Riesling wine had a Level 4 sweetness- I liked it a lot. Definitely for dessert, not the table, but I would have a glass for dessert any night of the week! It is similar to Icewine, just not as sweet. 

All of the Strewn wines are VQA labeled, which stands for "Vitners Quality Alliance," which means all of the grapes in every bottle come from Ontario vineyards. 

The second winery we went to was Caroline Cellars, a smaller family-owned winery that produces approximately 10,000 cases per year. 

For only ten thousand cases, that is quite a selection! 

I had a lot of fun at Caroline cellars, because we were able to mix and match wines of our choice to try. Nick and I each decided to choose our four and share so we could get a taste of 8 wines!

We tried two white, two red, two fruit wines and one Icewine. 
We ended up buying a red 2007 Merlot- it was fantastic! Nick doesn't normally like reds, and he picked this one out! The fruit wines were amazing as well, I had never tried them before, and fell in love at first sip! We tried a cranberry and a blackberry- the cranberry was my favorite! 
The Icewine was good, very sweet! 

After Caroline Cellars, we made our way to Iniskillin for a tour of the large factory, as well as a tasting. 

We saw the machines where the wine is made... 

The only difference between white and red wine (aside from the taste)?? White and red grapes both give off clear juice- red wine has the peel added for color!

Iniskillin has the most history of the wineries we went to. It is a large winery, producing over 120,000 cases per year! It is famous for it's Icewine, a special sweet dessert wine only available in Canada. 

A few fun facts about Icewine: 
  • Icewine is produced from grapes that have been left on the vine and are FROZEN 
  • The sugars in the grape are condensed, so the wine ends up being extra sweet. 
  • It is incredibly expensive to buy white wine, because you need far more grapes than you do for regular wine 
  • A 12-pound puck is used to crush the frozen grapes, and only a few droplets of wine are produced in each large batch 
  • The word "icewine" is patented, and can only be used for wines that are naturally frozen in Canada!
  • There is evidence Icewine was produced in earlier times by the ancient Romans, and proof it was produced by the Germans (called "Eiswein") but the climate is not cold enough in either regions to produce a sellable quantity of icewine! 
We tried three wines at Iniskillin- a white, a red and an Icewine (of course!)

The White- A good table wine. It was very dry- not my favorite so far, but a quality wine. 
The Red- a very high-tannin Merlot. My mouth went tingly instantly after a sip of this, but it was better than the white. 
The Icewine- Incredible. And how could it not be? I don't think I've tried an icewine I haven't liked!! It was incredibly sweet, but not overly so, I think I could drink an entire bottle myself!
Too bad it was $70 =( 

The final winery we went to on Sunday was Reif Estate Winery. We were led in through the big doors of the boutique to a small room in the back for a special wine-and-cheese pairing. Being such a foodie, I loved this!! 


Pairing # 1- Vidal White + Montasio  
-It was a great white wine- very fruity and sweet, so I don't think personally I would drink it alone, because I prefer a dryer white. I liked it with the montasio but I think I would have liked it even better with a soft cheese such as a Brie. 

Pairing # 2- Ontario Sharp Cheddar + Cabernet Merlot 
-Sharp Cheddar and red wine are always a perfect pair in my book! The Cab was smooth and deep, with hints of blackberry. I loved both the wine and the cheese combo.

Pairing # 3- Icewine + Bleu cheese 
-The most unexpected pairing of the trio, this one was my favorite by far! I loved the way the creamy tanginess of the bleu cheese combined with the sweet notes of the Icewine. I loved this wine alone as well- so much so that Nick bought a bottle to bring home to my parents! It wasn't as sweet as the others I had today; definitely more for my palette, although I enjoyed all of the icewines of the day. 

That is all I have for Day #1! I will post day #2 soon!! 

I hope you enjoyed my write up, I sure enjoyed my tastings!

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Healthy just tastes better

Evenin'! 

This a.m. I did my first LBWO (lower-body workout) and let me tell you- my legs already hurt!!! HIIT may be slightly difficult tomorrow. We shall see. 

Here's what I did: 

Quads
Leg press
12 @ 110 #
10 @ 130 #
8 @ 150 #
6 @ 170 # 
12 @ 130 # 
Barbell squats- 12 @ 30 # 

Hamstrings 
Dumbell lunges 
12 @ 10 #
10 @ 16 #
8 @ 20 #
6 @ 20 # ----> my legs were shaking, couldnt make it to 12!!!
12 @ 16 # 
Straight leg deadlifts- 12 @ 20 # 

Calves 
Angled calf raises 
12 @ 10 # 
10 @ 16 # 
8 @ 20 # 
6 @ 24 # 
12 @ 20 #
Single legged calf raises- 12  @ 20 # 

Abs- I didn't think the pyramid pattern would be effective for abs, so I've chosen to do more ab exercises- one for each part of my abs (upper, lower and middle) and work up to more each week. 
Today I did: 
Decline sit-ups- 50 (1 did them in between the calf exercises)
Floor crunches- 50 (1 min rest b/t 10)
Twist crunches- 50 each side (1 min rest b/t 10)

Phew! Definitely got some muscle-building in! 

I came home and had some mud for breakfast... 
Ok, it's not really mud... ;) 
But it was some very watery (it thickened up a bit before I ate it) Chocolate protein oats: 1/2 c dry oats, 1 scoop chocolate EAS protein powder. 

I had meal # 2 a couple hours later... 
You can't see it, but there is 0% chobani greek yogurt underneath the mass of delicious juicy nectarine. Yummm.... 

This baby kept me full for a few hours, until I used leftovers to make a very reminiscent lunch... I always used to make Meatloaf sandwiches with (gasp!) melted american cheese, and loads of ketchup on white bread (gross!) when I was a kid, after mom had made it the night before. Well mine's a little healthier! 
1 piece leftover meatloaf, sliced in half and placed between 2 pieces of Ezekiel bread with a LCL cheese wedge and a squirt of ketchup. Carrots + cuke to round it out!

I made a lot of progess on my room today- my closet and desk are all organized, as is all my school stuff! Finally, I'm feeling on top of things =) 

I also went on a 30-minute walk to stretch my legs out, and then I had to get ready for my sister's volleyball game. 

So I grabbed this for meal #4 on the way out the door-
WOW! These bars never fail to amaze me. This tasted like a cross between a Reese's cup and a peanut butter brownie!! Must. Buy. More. 

And the best part? It held me over until I could make my dinner
(Ali's team won, by the way- Congrats Lady Mariners!) 
I lightened up my cajun chicken AND my bean and corn salad. The bean and corn salad contained: 
  • black beans 
  • corn 
  • quartered grape tomatoes 
  • red onion 
  • lime juice 
  • salt 
  • pepper
  • Mrs. Dash Fiesta Chipotle 
And it was amazing! I served myself a slightly large portion, but I measured and had PLENTY of leftovers, so I'm sure the carbs were ok. For the protein I covered the chicken breasts with cajun seasoning and a dash of ss+p and baked the chicken at 375 for 30 minutes. Came out perfect! 
And no fat added to EITHER of these dishes... I truly believe healthy just tastes better. When the food is fresh, the ingredients are wholesome, and the spices are spot-on... it just tastes BETTER!

That's all for tonight folks. I'll update on my Meal #6 status later or tomorrow morning. Night!


Tuesday, September 1, 2009

The Good, the bad and the lumpy...

Happy September!!! 
I love fall, do you? 

As I'm sure you can tell from my post title, today was good and not so good
The not-so-good was my morning workout. I don't know if it was the fact that I was boiling hot in my crowded basement or if I was still asleep, but my HIIT was NOT as good as the other day!!
At least I made it through the 20 minutes, and was still drenched in sweat at the end!
HIIT- Day 3
1 min @ 5.8
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @ 6.5
1 min @ 7.0
1 min @ 7.5
1 min @ 8.0
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @ 6.5
1 min @ 7.0
1 min @ 7.5
1 min @ 8.0
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @ 6.5
1 min @ 7.0
1 min @ 7.5
1 min @ 8.0
1 min @ 4.5-->here's where it went downhill... 
1 min @ 6.0
1 min @ 7.0
1 min @ 7.8--> High Point, I was DYING at this point!!
1 min @ 5.4
Then I did another minute at 3.5 walking to cool down. 
Not horrible, but those last 5 minutes were killer!!! I wish I could have made it all the way through at the highest level, I guess there's always the next HIIT day!! 

At least I started the day with some delicious breakfast... 
LOVE this combo- Wilted spinach, mushrooms and grape tomatoes cooked with 1/2 cup scrambled egg whites, sprinkle of Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb and a laughing cow light cheese wedge. With a banana! 
Savory, full of protein and tons of nutrients from the veggies! One of my faves!

So onto my good news... 

I got a new job!!! Nothing big, but I needed a second job (Rite Aid doesn't have as many hours in the fall)... and I start Saturday! I'm just working at events at the University- Saturday is a football game, but it's sweet because I get to see all the games/hear all the concerts as well as make some $$!!! Sounds good to me =)

Around 11 I had meal #2 on my way to my interview... 
(I keep forgetting to take pics of my bars!) 
This bar was AWESOME. It truly reminded me of a chocolate brownie! And it held me over because I didn't eat lunch until 1:45... 

Meal # 3
I didn't realize you couldn't see inside the pita before I put this up! Sorry! 
It was awesome though- I used leftover salmon (from dinner last night), a squirt of honey dijon mustard, sliced tomato and cucumber and a handful of sprouts in an Ezekiel Pita (only 100 calories!) with some baby carrots on the side. 
Filled me up well! 

Meal #4 was also very tasty... Today's meals were a hit!
Ok, very lumpy and not so photogenic. But it is 1/2 cup lowfat cottage cheese mixed with 1/2 cup Dannon Light n' Fit cherry yogurt, to make for a tasty mid-afternoon meal! 

Dinner was my own invention... 
I had been craving meatloaf (I know, weird for me- the ex veggie) and I knew my mom's version was not so healthy... so I created my own! 
This contained: 
-1 lb 95% lean beef 
-3  tbsp nonfat milk
-1/2 c egg whites (2.5 eggs)
-1/2 c whole wheat panko breadcrumbs 
-a couple squirts of organic ketchup
-heaping spoonful tomato paste 
-1/2 c diced onion 
-salt, pepper, parsley, oregano, basil, garlic powder 
All mixed up in a bowl and pressed in a sprayed loaf pan with a tiny sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. 
Baked in the oven at 350 for 1 hour. 

I also made mashed red potatoes with garlic, and roasted brussels sprouts and squash (with italian seasonings and the tiniest drizzle of EVOO). 

It was tasty! Almost as good as the original I served myself too much taters so I gave a scoop to my sis. And I went back for another 1/2 serving of veggies, just 'cuz. 

I'm tired again tonight! Maybe it's because I have given up coffee?? Or I'm just tired from being lazy. I don't know, but I need to get my act together- school starts a week from tomorrow!

Not sure if I'll have meal #5... I'm not too hungry! We'll see! 
Edited to add: Craving something sweet, had a nectarine- I know I'm not balancing protein + carbs well for my last meal... but if I'm not hungry, why go overboard??