Yesterday I woke up feeling a little adventurous and decided to try out Heather’s Asian Fusion oats using tahini, [...]]]> Afternoon and happy New Year’s EVE!  Last year I was working at a restaurant when the ball dropped… not ideal, but it could have been worse.  This year’s going to be a lot more fun!

Yesterday I woke up feeling a little adventurous and decided to try out Heather’s Asian Fusion oats using tahini, miso and honey.

It was good, but I guess in my heart of hearts I was still half-expecting a sweet, nutty breakfast and I just couldn’t get past that.  So, although I hate to waste food, I tossed that batch and made a new bowl of oatmeal with banana, almond butter, and Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter.  I was a happy girl.

There was no time to waste.  After running some errands in the neighborhood with Ari, Josh and I went to a local deli to build-our-own-salads.  I got a small bowl of mesclun with chick peas, red beans, artichoke hearts, corn, carrots, cucumbers and sesame ginger dressing on the side.

Then I met up with my friend Will, who I haven’t seen in almost 2.5 years! Luckily we were able to meet up during his short visit to the city.  We went to Starbucks (and lamented the lack of independent coffee shops on the UWS); I got a grande skim mocha.  ‘Tis the season!

After coffee, I met up with Ari to do some last minute sale shopping (you can always find the best deals between Christmas and New Year’s), then found my little redheaded friend in the same neighborhood for dinner.

We happened upon a cute little Italian restaurant on the Upper West Side; we were so excited for dinner that we didn’t even take note of the name!

As soon as we sat down, we were given plates with soft, warm focaccia and olive oil.

We shared a bottle of Estrella Cabernet Sauvignon to warm our cores…

For my entrée, I ordered the Tre Colore Gnocchi with portobello and shiitake mushrooms, goat cheese and marinara.   A warm bowl of past was just what I wanted, and this was perfect.  Don’t you love gnocchi?!  I did a pretty good job on the dish, and just about finished it.

After spending a couple hours catching up and eating, we made our way to Magnolia Bakery for dessert.  I got the cupcake of the day: German Chocolate!

I wolfed it down in about two bites   Then I made my way downtown to meet Ari and the rest of the family and we piled in the car and drove to their parents’ house for the holiday.  Not everyone had eaten, so we made a pit stop at Roy Roger’s (more on that later!)…

Good times.

Have you sent me your questions entered my giveaway? Git ‘er done!

Have a safe, healthy and AWESOME New Year’s!!! What are you doing to ring in the New Year?

While this is going to be more of a “greatest hits” [...]]]> Good evening and happy Sunday!  How was your weekend?  I just got back from Westbrook, Connecticut, where The Upwelling’s former tour manager got married.  The boys were part of the wedding party so they came back from tour and we all went together.

While this is going to be more of a “greatest hits” post, I want to share a new dressing with you: coconut mint.

Coconut Mint Dressing

• 1/2 tsp shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1 small handful fresh mint, chopped
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp olive oil

“Muddle” the mint, coconut and lemon together before adding the rest of the juices.  This releases the flavors and lets them really pop!  I drizzled the dressing over a tempeh/sweet potato/apple/feta salad…

… but it would make a great marinade for fish, shrimp, or tofu as well.   I’m getting so much mileage out of this bunch of mint!

In the car, I had the healthiest and most delicious “candy bar” imaginable: dried fruit stuffed with roasted almonds and bittersweet chocolate chips. These are so good.

Ari bought me a slightly more processed version, but still a favorite nonetheless.  There’s no wrong way to eat a Reese’s.

When we got to the hotel, I took advantage of the time the groomsmen spent rehearsing to go to the gym.  I ran 3.1 miles (5K), walked another .4, and stretched.  As the Gina always says, no one wants to miss out on the fun, so I try to plan timely activities (like workouts and… ahem… the time I spend getting ready to go out) while everyone else is either sleeping or doing something else.

The bride and groom are both Jewish, and because the rehearsal dinner fell on Friday, we had a traditional Shabbat dinner.  The challah abounded!  Somehow I ended up with three pieces of bread on my plate, but Josh and Ari picked at most of it.

The entrée choices were Vegetable Risotto with Arugula Pesto or Cappelini Rustica; I wasn’t sure which (if any) option was vegetarian, but figured the risotto was a safer bet.  They both turned out to be meat free, and I loved the risotto! It was very rich, though, so I only ate about half of it.  And the flower.  Which I’m pretty sure wasn’t of the edible variety.  Whoops!

Strawberry sorbet for dessert…

… and a fun-size Cookies ‘n Cream Hershey’s bar.   This is one of those weird LVP-isms; I really don’t like white chocolate, but a couple times a year I get cravings that can only be quenched by this particular bar.  The bride and groom must have known this when they stuffed it in our goodie bag!

Also in the bag were these personalized M&Ms; they had the wedding date, photo, names and words printed on them.  Very creative!

We may or may not have gone to a casino late that night (this girl’s first time) to further my blackjack education and lose $5 on the slots.  It was a strange, strange place, I tell ya!  It was HUGE, and the lights are pretty dim and there aren’t any windows so there’s really no way to tell if it’s 4PM or 4AM.  Drinks are free, and you can walk everywhere with them!  People also smoked inside; it’s strange that a few years ago that was the norm everywhere.  The stores were opened past midnight, so Ari and I split a Godiva pumpkin truffle.

We got to the hotel really late, and with the exception of Stew, all slept in past noon.  We woke up famished, so we set out in search of brunch.  Where did our journey take us, you ask?  To the Grand Slam at Denny’s. Yes, you read that correctly.

The Grand Slam is a magical deal that lets you pick four breakfast items for only $5.99.  For an extra $.49 per item, you can choose from three “premium selections” like yogurt, granola or fruit.   We were all very excited.

We placed our orders, then  set to work.  When was the last time you colored at an eatery?

Ari ordered a festive pot of peppermint tea (which came with an unsolicited squirt of peppermint syrup):

I drank my coffee black.

The food arrived: I ordered (dry) whole wheat pancakes, egg whites, oatmeal and a cup of fruit.

I ate all the fruit and eggs (which were buttery but delicious), half of the pancakes and left all of the oatmeal.  Even had I not been an oatmeal snob, I don’t think anything else would have fit in my stomach.

Brunch understandably held me right up through the wedding, and left me with more than enough time to shower, dress (Hollywood Tape did not come through for me as I’d hoped)…

… and watch three hours worth of Married With Children episodes.

The ceremony was beautiful, and while it was traditional in some respects, there were some nice personal touches: the groomsmen walked down the aisle to Semi-Charmed Life, the bridesmaids to Bittersweet Symphony, the bride to Do You Realize?, all performed by a string quartet. There may have been some tears in my corner.

At the dinner reception, the guest seated to my right taught me a helpful trick to remembering where your bread and drinks go in relation to your place setting.

Make the “OK” signal with both of your hands.  Your left forms a lower-case “B” (for bread), and the right forms a “D” (for drink).  How handy!

Speaking of bread, this roll was particularly tasty…

… and where drinks are concerned, I stuck to vodka- sodas.

While we were eating our smoked mozzarella and pesto ravioli appetizer, Josh and Ari played an acoustic version of A-Ha’s “Take On Me” for the bride and groom’s first dance. This was really good, but I let it get cold and only had a few bites.

I didn’t leave a scrap of arugula salad with toasted walnuts, shaved parmesan, and mandarin oranges, however.  The couple next to me thought it was too big, but I would have gladly alleviated them of their portion!  This was my favorite part of the meal.

The entree was grilled salmon with mashed potatoes, green beans and carrots. It was good, but I was pretty full by the time this came around and only ate about half of the fish (but all of the veggies!) and gave my taters to Ari.

We danced around on the floor for a bit, but really just enjoyed being with friends and each other.  The band is booked through February with a short break in December, so it was nice to be able to spend the weekend together.

The cake was sliced and brought around: chocolate with strawberry and vanilla buttercream.  I ate about half, then went back out to tear up the rug.

Our eyelids started drooping around midnight, and we were asleep by 1.  We had to hustle in the morning to get back to the city, but we had enough time to have a nice brunch with the wedding party.  I had half of a sesame bagel with cream cheese, eggs, fruit (plus some unpictured grapes), and half a slice of French toast. Coffee abounded, as usual.

It was such a nice weekend.  I really cannot express how grateful I am to have been able to spend a weekend- more like a mini-vacation, actually- with people I love.  The next few days will be pretty busy… The Upwelling goes back on tour tomorrow, and I have a couple interviews for potential jobs.   My healthy habits have been slacking a bit, but one month from this morning (Sunday, December 13) is my 15K race.  I’ve updated my training plan, and will stick to it… I went on a 4.5 mile run late this afternoon.

Regular posting will resume tomorrow.  I hope you had a fabulous weekend, and congratulations to the newlyweds!

On Sunday morning, Josh, Ilana, Ari & I got [...]]]> Hi there! How was your Monday?  Mine was nice… everything is going to be A-OK!  It’s like Shakespeare’s Wheel of Fortune: what goes down must go up again.  I just need a little reminding from time to time, so thanks for coming to the rescue.

On Sunday morning, Josh, Ilana, Ari & I got up and headed over to the diner for brunch.  No such luck! Not only was it packed, but there was a long wait!  Too bad, because I’d finally decided I was ready to have one of their omelets again after having burned out on them a few months ago.  Next time!  Instead, we went to Locale.   I’ve only been there for dinner before, but their menu looked pretty good.

I ordered the Baby Spinach & Goat Cheese Omelet, and asked for it to be made with egg whites and tomatoes as well.  Instead of homefries, I ordered shoe string fries.

I added ketchup, hot sauce, salt & pepper… any and all condiments, please!  In retrospect, I should have gone with a salad instead of the fries.  Since I was little, I’ve never been a huge fan of French fries (except when they’re made with sweet potatoes), and these just didn’t do it for me.  I was more than happy to share, though!

After brunch, I attempted my Vegan Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Squares.  Now, I’ve made these about six times in the past year, and Anna even blogged about them! For the second time in a row, they have not turned out.  I don’t know if it’s because I had to use regular whole wheat flour instead of whole wheat pastry flour, or that I used about 1/8 cup vegetable oil with the olive oil, or what. But they were gummy and had a sort of “oatmeal-y” texture, as Ari reported.  Very frustrating, because these are pretty much my go-to treat for Fall!

Brunch filled me up for the rest of the day, but I snacked on an apple with yogurt and cinnamon around 5.  I had to eat it in another room because Ari HATES the smell of yogurt!

This open bag of pretzels also kept me company on my trips to the kitchen.

I wanted dinner to be easy and nutritious.  I baked one sweet potato and 2/3 of a block of tofu in a little olive oil and Emeril’s Original Essence at 400 for about 30 minutes.

When it was ready, I plopped half of the mixture on top of a spinach/carrot/tomato/red pepper salad with pumpkin-miso dressing.

With half a glass of the end of a bottle of wine, I ate my dinner while catching up on Grey’s.  This is what my “TV rig” looks like when I have to stream old episodes! Pretty classy.

Dessert was more light Phish Food.

Yesterday morning I woke up determined to change the pattern, get out of my rut and be productive.  I started with a good breakfast.

As soon as Sarah posted the recipe for her Microwave Pumpkin Pie, I knew I had to make one.  They only took three minutes to make…

…plus 30 more seconds to dump a container of Trader Joe’s Organic Greek Vanilla Yogurt and crushed walnuts on top.

Really, this is too fast and delicious for you to miss out on.  I made it again this morning!

After breakfast, I packed up my things and took myself to Starbucks.  Goal 1: Get out of the house. Mission: Accomplished!  I got a grande skim misto with a shot of espresso, and was given a free packet of their new Via instant coffee to try out.

I always put all of the different powders (Vanilla, Cinnamon, Nutmeg & Chocolate) in my foam.

A little later, my eyes started to droop despite the caffeine.  I snacked on a Trek Mix bar and woke right back up!

Ari stopped by around 12:30 and we re-located to Panera so he could get lunch.  When his free WiFi expired, he ran some errands and I ate my lunch while keeping him company.  I had leftover baked tofu & sweet potatoes with black beans and red peppers.

I also had an apple…

… and, when I got home, a package of Kay’s Naturals Lemon Herb Protein Chips.  I wasn’t exactly hungry, I just felt like mindlessly snacking

These were good! They did, as usual, make me feel like Edward Cullen wouldn’t go anywhere near me, they had so much garlic…. I also always forget that one bag is 1.5 servings, not 1.  Very tricky!

Soon after, I left to accomplish Goal 2: Go to the gym.  I brought a magazine and hammered out 45 minutes (+5 minute cooldown) on the bike, arms and abs. I have physical therapy tomorrow, so I’m not going to work my legs out until the therapist tells me what to do.  The PA at the orthopedist’s office returned my call yesterday; the bone density test results showed I don’t have a problem with osteoporosis or anything like that, so I can rule it out as a cause of my injuries.  We’ll just have to keep looking!

I left the gym and headed over to Starbucks to meet my friend Lisa for tea.  She had Passion, I had Green. (Didn’t end up using the honey.)  Lisa just got hired full time after months of sending out resumés and cover letters, so I have hope!

When I got home, I followed my 5-minute meal plan and based my dinner around Trader Joe’s Lentil Rice Biryani.

I sautéed 1/3 block of tofu in olive oil and Emeril’s Original Essence, and added it to the rice.  I also steamed some green beans. Fast, easy, and just in time for Gossip Girl.

For dessert I gave Gena‘s raw banana soft serve a go.

I got a little impatient, which is why it looks a little smoother than it should… I melted Pure Dark chocolate and made a little sauce, and sprinkled cinnamon on as well. Yum!

Erin tagged Lilveggiepatch the other day as an “Over the Top” blog.  If you haven’t read Erin’s blog, “Living and Loving in LA” yet, you really should!  This lady ran her first marathon a couple weeks ago, and is a really sweet blogger I am proud to call my friend.  Here are some fun, random questions and answers…

1. Where is your cell phone? Charging
2. Your hair? Down, bangs pinned up. I need a haircut!
3. Your mother? Lunch tomorrow
4. Your father? Dinner Thursday
5. Your favorite food? Ice cream!
6. Your dream last night? Hmm.
7. Your favorite drink? Water. Vodka-soda. Wine.
8. Your dream/goal? Food. Books. Arts. Travel.
9. What room are you in? Bedroom.
10. Your hobby? Cooking, running, reading, playing.
11. Your fear? Unemployment.
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Settled.
13. Where were you last night? In bed watching Heroes.
14. Something you aren’t?  Settled.
15. Muffins? Vita.
16. Wish list item? A job…
17. Where did you grow up? Manhattan.
18. Last thing you did? Made banana ice cream.
19. What are you wearing? Two shirts, a cardigan, and leggings.  It’s all about the comfy layers.
20. Your TV? Gossip Girl!
21. Your pets? Leila Chihuahua.
22. Your friends? Love them.
23. Your life? Close to perfect.
24. Your mood? A little rickety, but on the mend!
25. Missing someone? QT
27. Something you’re not wearing? Socks, a ring, a watch.  They always come off first when I get home!
28. Your favorite store? Owl’s Lab
29. Your favorite color? Never chose one…
30. When was the last time you laughed? A couple hours ago.
31. Last time you cried? Saturday.
32. Best Friend? Several. You know who you are.
33. One place that I go over and over again? Subway tunnels.
34. One person who emails me regularly? Mama.
35. Favorite place to eat? Cozy in bed or at a favorite restaurant.

Thanks again, Erin! Because I hate to choose my, everyone should feel free to answer the trivia!

For Greek yogurt lovers: Kristina from Stonyfield Farms wants me to let you know about a great coupon opportunity that’s going on on Facebook.  When you buy any two (2) containers of Oikos organic Greek yogurt, you get a coupon for $2.00! Check it out here.

Off to my internship! Have a great day

I have a [...]]]> Good Sunday, y’all.  How are you spending the last hours of your weekend?  Dinner in bed? Catching up on shows from the week? It’s 8:30 and I’m just getting dinner ready, and will spend the rest of the night doing some internship stuff and possibly watching Thursday’s episode of Gray’s Anatomy.

I have a confession: I’ve been putting off blogging all day. Why? Well, I’ve been in kind of a weird place the last few days, and haven’t wanted to whine about it.  But whine about it I must (for a few seconds), or I have a feeling I won’t post for days.  Either that, or I’m having a blogging identity crisis.

There’s only so much time one can sit in front of the computer applying for jobs and reading blogs.  I haven’t been exercising at all… the thought of sitting on a stationary bike makes me cringe (and it’s a 45 minute ride to the gym, each way) and I haven’t been able to find enough energy, motivation, or opportune time to try a workout DVD. I feel like my muscles are weakening and that by the time I can run again, it’ll take me months to build back up to where I was.  There was one instance yesterday when I seriously thought about just going for a quick two mile run to blow off steam.  I’m not proud about it, but didn’t run, and won’t until I’m given the okay.  But frankly, what it comes down to, is that I’m just plain bored.  Bored and broke.

As happy as I was about quitting my table-waiting gig and spending that lost time looking for a “real” job, I think it’s gotten to the point where I might have to start looking for something like that again.  Hopefully it will be temporary, but I’m not generating any income and it’s getting pretty tight over here.  I haven’t started looking for another waiting position yet, but I really think it’s in my future again, unfortunately.  Unless I win the lottery… I never bought a ticket on my 18th birthday, and have put off doing so because I think I know that in the back of my mind, when I do it will be the winning ticket. Good logic, eh?

For now, though, I think the key is to just do something outside of the house every day.  If I have to read, I should find a place to read.  Preferably near the gym, so that I’ll get myself moving again.  Things will look up, but I have to set that process in motion.  Ho, ho, ho!

Self-pep-talk over, I promise.

Breakfast yesterday was inspired by Katie‘s “brulée” style oats.  I zapped this banana in the microwave for one minute:

I combined it with a serving of steel-cut oats, pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and almond butter.   A sweet and rich way to start the morning!

Ari and I spent the morning running errands, going back and forth between the city and home.  We got a lot done! I knew lunch was going to be late, so I snacked on some Greek yogurt to tide me over.

When I did get around to making lunch, it ended up looking a lot like the killer salads of recent days, and it was mighty fine.  I think I’ve figured out the formula for a perfect salad: plenty of greens, a variety of other veggies, fruit, savory protein, and a unique salad dressing.

This was made of:

• spinach
• shredded carrots
• red onion
• 1 Gala apple (yep, the whole thing)
• meatless meatballs
• Dressing: raw agave nectar, olive oil, rice vinegar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt & pepper

A little later, I snacked on a couple chunks of energy.

Dinner was another nod to college life; this time, I made a batch of Annie’s Mac & Cheese and mixed in a mashed sweet potato and black beans.  The result? Delicious! And oh so festive with the Halloween colors.  I realize you might not all be sold on this one, but try it!

After dinner, I went into the city to meet Caitlin at the 92Y Tribeca to see the premier of Sufjan Stevens‘ film The BQE.

Source

If it’s not 100% obvious from the above photo, he is a total fox.  And a ridiculously talented fox at that, so ladies, should you decide to join the ranks of rockstar girlfriends, he earned my seal of approval.

After the show I met up with Ari and Ilana, and we all went home together.  I wasn’t really hungry, but all I could think about when I opened the front door was how much I wanted ice cream.

Phish Food isn’t as good as I remember it being… I think there needs to be some peanut butter in there.

A few days ago, a reader asked for the recipe for my miso soup with collards and seitan.

It’s easy peasy: Simply take 1 cup of spicy miso soup , eliminating the tofu, and pour it into a pot over four loosely chopped collard green leaves, until just covered. Steam until leaves turn bright green, about 4 minutes.  Add 1 serving chopped seitan and heat through.  Serve and enjoy!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNpoDmsuEPk]

I’m off to get some work done.  Hope you had a fabulous weekend!

[D]on’t stir…take your spoon straight down through the yogurt and pull some fruit up with the yogurt.  I at first was reluctant…but then I said “oh what the heck…”  I won’t stir my yogurt [...]]]> Shari wanted me to let you know about the correct way to eat what I’ve referred to as “fruit-on-the-bottom” Chobani:

[D]on’t stir…take your spoon straight down through the yogurt and pull some fruit up with the yogurt.  I at first was reluctant…but then I said “oh what the heck…”  I won’t stir my yogurt ever again….  It completely changes the dynamics of the yogurt.

I tried it out, plunging my spoon directly into a Blueberry Chobani.

Very smooth and very creamy!

What do you do when you can’t decide what to have for breakfast? Have it all! I threw quite a few ingredients into my bowl.

I warmed some frozen strawberries, sliced up half a banana, grabbed a handful (or two!) of Puffins, and scooped a generous spoonful of almond butter.

It mixed wonderfully with the yogurt.

The rest of the morning was spent reading in bed in total coziness, taken in the aroma of scented candles.  In the past few days I’ve taken quite a few baths and burned through a lot of candles.  It’s not so great for the environment, but I figure I’m just making up for the baths I didn’t take in the dorm bathrooms in college.  Mid-morning, I snacked on a crisp Macoun apple.

.

Caitlin came over for lunch, and I heated up some leftover Smoky Greens & Beans.  This time, I added in pieces of seitan.  The physical therapist told me that since I’m going to be trying to build up muscle and heal myself, I’m going to need eat a LOT of protein. Each serving of seitan packs a whopping 18g! This was Caitlin’s first time eating it, and I think it was a hit! We ate the stew with warmed up pieces of lavash.

After lunch, we headed to Starbucks to get coffee and read. I couldn’t remember exactly what went into a dirty hippie… where was Luke when I needed him?!  I ended up just getting a Double Grande Skim Chai.  There’s always next time!

We ended up doing more talking than studying, but it was needed! I hadn’t seen this girl in three weeks.  When I got home, I started dinner by peeling and cubing a sweet potato.  I covered the cubes in a little olive oil, salt & pepper, an baked it at 400.  About 20 minutes into the baking time, I added pressed and cubed tofu to the mix, making sure to coat the pieces in the extra oil mixture that covered the bottom of the baking dish.  10 minutes later I removed the sweet potato, and baked the tofu for 15 minutes longer.

I added the sweet potato and tofu to a bed of spinach with a white heirloom tomato, pomegranate seeds, and a little gorgonzola cheese.  Aren’t the colors lovely?

Using pear-infused vinegar, pomegranate molasses, olive oil, sea salt & pepper, I whipped up a light dressing.

This was one of the best salads I’ve had in a long time, and felt perfect for a chilly Fall night.

After dinner, I went downtown to meet Lauryn for frozen yogurt at Red Mango.   She moved to Manhattan over a month ago, but we seem to be operating under completely opposite schedules and this is the first day it worked out.   I’m so glad it did!

We both ended up ordering the pumpkin frozen yogurt (tart and creamy, and perfect for Fall!) even though it was fuh-REEZING out and were were sitting right in front of the door.  It came with free graham cracker topping, too! I’ve never been one to turn down a freebie…

We ended up talking non-stop for three hours, and literally closed the Red Mango down.  Couldn’t have asked for a better Saturday night!  I ended up getting home after 1, by which point I was already hungry again and ate a giant apple.  I didn’t go to bed until after 2… I need to find a job ASAP because this rando schedule just ain’t doing it for me.

Well, I’m off to go meet my little red-headed friend for dinner.  Hope you’re having a great night!

Yesterday, as I mentioned, I slept [...]]]> Good morning and happy Wednesday! How is your day going so far? Mine’s going just fine, although I can’t figure out how it’s already 10:30! The same thing happened last night: I got home at 7:30, had dinner, and all of the sudden it was after midnight.  Crazy!

Yesterday, as I mentioned, I slept through the alarm.  My training plan had 2 easy miles scheduled in for the day, and since I had to intern and go to an event in the evening, there was really no other time to go.  So I threw on my exercise clothes and raced – slowly, of course- out the door, jamming along to the Gaga.

Total distance: 1.96 miles

Total time: 20:54

Maximum heart rate: 176 (89%)

Average heart rate: 166 (84%)

Calories burned: 216

When I was back and showered I was already running late, so made a quick breakfast of plain Chobani with 1/2 banana, and a piece of whole wheat toast with the rest of the banana, honey and cinnamon.

There didn’t end up being too much for me to do at work, so I was able to leave after lunch.  My mom also had a little time in the morning before her flight to Paris, so she met me in the Village and we had a nice lunch at Doma.

I found this cafe on my first day of back in June, then couldn’t find it again until yesterday. I have a pretty terrible sense of direction.  I wanted a salad but couldn’t decide which one, and at the last minute decided to go for the soup + 1/2 sandwich combo.

The soup was black bean (I removed the white and creamy sour cream):

I chose a grilled gruyère sandwich to feel a little more française.

Everything was good, but the sandwich was a little tough and I left craving veggies.

After lunch, we strolled around and somehow found ourselves in front of a pet store.  I took this to taunt Ari with send to Ari…

No, a pup did not come home with me.  It was sad, but it would be sadder if I couldn’t afford to feed it.  Anyway, Mama and I moseyed along until we hit The Light Choice.  We both got what we agreed was the best Tasti-type flavor yet: Almond Joy! It tasted just like Gena‘s Raw Almond milk, but frozen.

We also stopped and picked up two late-birthday presents: a new gym bag (I’ll post pictures of my old one later… it was gross) and new running shoes. My mom finally had to leave to go to the airport (I really had to twist her arm ) and I went home.

My friend Howard invited me to a cocktail party and kitchen demonstration at Smallbone of Devizes, an upscale kitchen boutique on the Upper East Side.  I knew there would be a lot of good food and I didn’t want to be ravenous when I got there, so I had an apple before I left.

The party was hosted by Architectural Digest and catered by Daniel, one of the fanciest (and tastiest) restaurants in New York.  Everything was amazing, and I really wish I could have documented it for you! Unfortunately, AD was covering the whole thing and wouldn’t allow outside photography.  Trust me when I say that my fingers were itching to whip out my camera and snap photos of the chef poaching partridge breast in Napa cabbage leaves.  I may not eat those myself, but I can appreciate the skill it takes to prepare such a lovely dish. Two glasses of wine later I left and went home to eat dinner.

My knee was really hurting so I didn’t want to schlep all the way out to the grocery store; instead I stopped at Gourmet Garage and picked up some sashimi.

I also had a few bites of cold pasta.

Although I’d already had a treat once today and enjoyed two glasses of wine, I’d been thinking about dessert all day.  I really wanted to contribute to Julie‘s tribute to Gourmet magazine, so I made myself an individual portion of the magazine’s Caramelized Banana Splits with Hot Chocolate Sauce, from their 2009 “Quick Kitchen” booklet.

I adjusted the recipe to be a little more LVP-friendly, substituting Brummel & Brown for butter, skim milk for heavy cream, and La Loo’s Mission Fig Goat Milk Ice Cream for regular old vanilla.

This ice cream, by the way, is unbelievable.

The Banana Split was amazing: the bananas were perfectly caramelized, the toasted nuts gave the smooth chocolate a spectacular crunch!, and the fig ice cream was a wonderful surprise that complemented each different flavor.

We still have the November issue of Gourmet to look forward to, but I can’t imagine a holiday season without their Christmas cookie special.  I’m sure Gourmet‘s demise is going to open all kinds of doors in the world of food media, but it’s going to take a lot of getting used to.  I foresee poring over back-issues from the 1970s in my future…

Except for the lack of vegetables consumed, it was a pretty great day.  I did, however, spend the last few hours with my knee bound up like this…

…icing on and off.  When I went outside to walk Charley, I felt like I could barely walk.  A man, who was clearly on his first few days of crutches, passed me on the street.  I will admit, I’m a little discouraged.  I’m really hoping this isn’t serious, because I am just starting to feel like a real athlete, and that maybe the 2010 NYC Marathon is a goal within reach.  We’ll see.  I’m going to take it slow; I’ll try using the bike at the gym today and see how that feels.

Do you push through an injury or go straight to the doctor?

Have a great day!