This morning I had some things to do before work so I woke up at 5, headed to [...]]]> Thanks so much for your words of encouragement about the running situation… as of now, I’m still planning to run the half-marathon on the 21st, but I’m going to take it one day at a time.

This morning I had some things to do before work so I woke up at 5, headed to the gym for 30 minutes on the elliptical, and came home to git ‘er done.  I had a delicious breakfast cookie waiting for me when I got home; I made a similar mixture last week and it was so good that I had to try it again!

• 1/3 cup oats
• 1/2 mashed banana
• 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
• splash skim milk
• 1 tbsp chocolate PB2
• 1 tsp chia seeds
• toppings: goji berries, Greek yogurt, pumpkin, dried fig, agave

I brought an orange and apple to work… I’m always paranoid about my apples being too noisy, so today I sliced it beforehand.  Did the trick!

I also had a slice of Gluten Free Bran bread… I love more each time I have some! This recipe is a keeper.

My lunch salad did a good job of cleaning out the fridge…

In the mix:

• mixed greens
• steamed broccoli
• celery
• grape tomatoes
• goji berries
• dried cranberries
• TJ’s Vegetable Marsala burger (I missed these!)
• Goddess dressing (mixed in at work)

Danielle had bought a package of Lemon Poppyseed Heart Thrive bars and wasn’t a fan, so she gave me the remaining bar.   I love these!  They were great snacks when I was in Russia, and just as good today.

Dinner required little planning, but worked out perfectly.

I made SELF’s Creamy Lemon Shrimp, halving the recipe and making a few substitutions:

• Greek yogurt in place of plain yogurt/ sour cream
• celery in place of chives
• agave in place of sugar
• spinach in place of arugula

It may not look so pretty, but I really enjoyed this!  It was healthy, voluminous, and filled me right up.

I packed half for lunch tomorrow; I love when I don’t have to think about what to prepare for the next day.

Dessert was Banana Soft Serve with a melted square of Bakers chocolate.

A superoon may have also sneaked its way in

Off to watch Gossip Girl!  It’s a lovely, lazy night.  Have a great one.

5:01 AM WHY am I awake?!

5:08 AM May as well get up and go to the gym…

5:48 AM My brain (and calves) are not having any of [...]]]> 4:55 AM GAH! What time is it? Squint in vain trying to read clock.  Should have located glasses before removing contacts… which I remind myself every morning.

5:01 AM WHY am I awake?!

5:08 AM May as well get up and go to the gym…

5:48 AM My brain (and calves) are not having any of this.  Why did I want to run a half-marathon again?

6:20 AM Done! 6 miles in 58 minutes.  I really don’t feel like working my abs right now… okay, maybe just a few sit-ups.

6:38 AM Breakfast!

Rye Bread with SmartBeat and honey; 0% Fage with diced apple, pumpkin, peanut butter and agave.

7:05 AM Post iHerb giveaway.  (Have you entered?)

7:5 AM Is there any point in straightening my hair if it’s snowing out? Only if I don’t want to look like a broom.

8:38 AM “Ladies and gentlemen, we are being held by the dispatcher because of the train traffic ahead of us.  Please be patient.” This always happens when the weather is a little off…

8:53 AM “Ladies and gentlemen, we are being held by the dispatcher because of the train traffic ahead of us.  Please be patient.”  Key heart palpitations.

9:02 AM Made it!

9:50 AM Starving already?! Hello, orange!

10:25 AM Hungry again already?!

10:38 AM Apparently.

What, you don’t eat jerky before 11?

11:50 AM Lunch is going to be a little later than usual today… apple time.

12:30 PM Oof.  Too much fiber…

1:20 PM Trek out into the slush and rain to meet…

1:30 PM Ilena and Eileen!

Eileen treated us to lunch at FreeFoods NYC, Matthew Kenney’s midtown restaurant.  I’ve been here once before with Ilena, but it was such a treat to be able to meet for lunch in the middle of a workday!   I ordered the Chopped Mexican salad with red chili chips, avocado, black beans, jicama, chopped tomato, cilantro, white corn, goat gouda, tomato-chili dressing.

3:59 PM Tiiiired.  Hungry?  Tired. Hungry.

This is Clif’s answer to the Larabar.  It’s gluten-free, 70% organic and made with dried fruit, nuts and sea salt.  I was pretty excited when I found these in stores the other day!  Today I tried the blueberry flavor.  It has two layers: dates on the bottom, blueberries on the top.  The dates have an almost cakey texture that I loved.  I was expecting to see (and taste) big grains of sea salt, which I think would have made the bar a little more interesting.  It was still pretty good though, and I’d buy it again.

4:52 PM Canceled plans with Leslie   Darn “snowicane”!  I miss you, L!

5:12 PM Head back into the freezing rain, plunge my foot ankle-deep into a dirty, icy puddle, but get home in one piece.

5:59 PM Ari is starving, orders Thai.  I’m still pretty full from all of my snackage, but we share fresh vegetable rolls.  Rather, he takes one bite and proclaims, “I do not like these!” and I eat the rest.

6:27 PM Finish watching Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead (loved, and am now in love with Marisa Tomei)… it’s only taken me five days to watch.

7:40 PM Make a batch of Annie’s mac & cheese with a can of salmon, Laughing Cow Light cheese wedge, chili flakes, salt, pepper and nooch.  Have possibly been daydreaming about this all day.  (Ari gagged when he smelled it.)

8:15 PM Break out The Lite Choice‘s Hazelnut Fudge soft serve while watching Glee.

8:27 PM There’s not that much left in the carton… I should probably go finish it.  So I do.

9:02 PM Grey’s Anatomy is a re-run   My night of vegging will now consist of lying horizontal, soothing my food baby.  Life is pretty exciting, let me tell ya!

Have a great night

Before I left I had a slice of [...]]]> This morning when I woke up, I was not feeling my 7 mile run.  I checked the weather: 15 degrees.  It seemed like a much better idea to just lie in bed… but I knew I’d feel better about my training plan if I did it.

Before I left I had a slice of whole wheat toast with coconut butter and raspberry jam.

It was really cold.  I finally got to the point where the wind didn’t hurt anymore, but when, after 5 miles, I popped back into the apartment for a quick pit stop to answer nature, I found that my legs were completely numb! So… it was quitting time.  I may not have gotten 7 miles in, but I made do with 5.

Breakfast was a quick bowl of savory oats; that cute lil’ egg shape is the result by whisking an egg and than microwaving it for 45 seconds.

• 1/2 cup oats cooked in 1/2 cup water
• cottage cheese
• 1 whole egg
• Frank’s Red Hot sauce
• black pepper

I also had an orange to help get me through my reading and laundry-folding…

Er… woke up two hours later. So much for that burst of energy!  I made a big salad for a quick lunch…

In the mix:

• spinach
• dulse
• tofu (1/3 block)
• tempeh bacon (2 slices)
• mushrooms
• steamed broccoli stems
• Rosemary Quackers (from One Lucky Duck)
• rice wine/olive oil/mustard vinaigrette

After lunch I made took my grocery list and went to my new favorite supermarket to stock up for the week.   I really could have spent hours in there! Unfortunately there was no time for that… when I got back home and put everything away, I plunked back down to work, snacking on a Granny Smith apple with cinnamon and a pinch of cayenne.  I like this combination! The extra zing! kept me awake this time.

It was Family Dinner night at our house tonight! (Read about our first Family Dinner here.) My contribution was a big salad with Boston lettuce, radicchio, Fuji apple slices, shaved parmesan, dried figs and parsley.

I also made plantains (sliced and sautéed in marjarine until lightly crispy)… they were so good that we all just ate them out of the pan with our fingers! (Forgot to take a photo of these, sorry.)

Ilana made fettuccine with wild mushrooms and parsley…

… and Chrsitine made a delicious strawberry and blueberry pie!  She topped our slices with dollops of Vanilla Chobani.

I’m so impressed with our Family Dinner endeavors… we already have our next date booked.   I’m on entrée duty next time… what is your favorite weeknight crowd-pleasing dinner?

Back to the grind.  Hope your week is off to a great start!

Good morning!  Sorry about my little disappearing act, but I had a late night and just wanted to hit the sheets!  I hope you had a nice day.

A couple days ago I went on a mini grocery shop to pick up a [...]]]> Ari was interviewed on Fret 12! Check out his videos

Good morning!  Sorry about my little disappearing act, but I had a late night and just wanted to hit the sheets!  I hope you had a nice day.

A couple days ago I went on a mini grocery shop to pick up a few things to hold me over until I had time to do a bigger shop.  While in the dairy aisle, I stumbled upon this Olympus Greek Yogurt.

It was pretty expensive ($2/ 6 oz), but I’d never seen it before so I gave it a try.  It was thick and very creamy, but I don’t think I’ll be buying this on a regular basis.  The Chobani yogurts were on sale for $.99, so I stocked up on those instead.

I mixed the Olympus with a banana, Trader Joe’s mini blueberry bran muffin, cinnamon and honey.

At work, I snacked on an orange.  I’m pretty sure I will turn into a navel orange one of these days; I eat so many!

Danielle and I had planned all week on going to Chop’t, a fun salad place that stands out amongst the more basic, boring salad bars in our work neighborhood.  We couldn’t remember quite where it was, though, and spent a good twenty minutes walking around in circles trying to find it!

It seemed like half the city must have had the same idea; the line was at least 30 people long. It went quickly, though, because so many people work, assembly-line style, to get people in and out as fast as possible.

I ordered the Vegetarian Powerhouse Salad (any salad can be made into a wrap), and added gouda cheese.

Each salad comes with a strip of whole wheat pita.   I dressed my salad with Rocket Fuel:  a spicy, oil-free dressing that kind of reminded me of cocktail sauce.

These salads were huge! Definite two-pounders… but we finished them!

Have you been to Chop’t or a similar salad bar? What did you think of it?

Danielle brought me two of Anne‘s Sweet Potato Cranberry Coconut Muffins.  Even though I was pretty satiated from lunch, I had to try one!

Delicious! They’re moist without being greasy, and have the perfect consistency: smooth and chunky.  I think I’ll be making these myself one of these days!

After work I went home to do a little cleaning to make the house presentable for my little red-headed friend.   Lunch held me over really well… until it didn’t.  Hunger hit me full-force, but not wanting to spoil my appetite, I just had a couple clementines.

Kalle and I went to Locale for dinner.   It was delicious as usual, but the service was so strange!  Our waiter literally came over upwards of 20 times, giving us about a minute in between each visit to ask if we were ready to order.  As a former member of the service industry I know it’s tempting to try to move a table along, but this was excessive and downright rude.  Grr!  But… we didn’t let it spoil our fun.

We started with Mario Maschio Cabernet Sauvignon…

… enjoyed foccaccia with olive oil…

… and I was so close to branching out and ordering a different dish, but in the end I had to go with the linguine with seafood.   I love it!  It was really salty this time, for some reason, though.

We shared an order of warm chocolate cake with hazelnut ice cream and berry coulis for dessert.

After we left the restaurant, we went back to the apartment and pretended we were 15 again.  The hour got late, more wine was had, and after Kalle left I went back to the fridge and had a little party with the leftover pasta I didn’t finish at dinner.  And may have made myself a Reese’s cup or two.  What’s life without a night or two like this?  Nobody can be perfect all the time.

Well, I have a full day ahead of me so I’m going to sign off.  Have a great day!

This morning I did not want to get out of bed.  I snoozed and snoozed, finally rousing myself at 7:20 to put a pot of coffee on.  Showering at night saves so much time! [...]]]> Evening and happy humpday! Even though this is a four-day week, it definitely felt like a steep climb towards Wednesday.

This morning I did not want to get out of bed.  I snoozed and snoozed, finally rousing myself at 7:20 to put a pot of coffee on.  Showering at night saves so much time! I made a bowl of Tutti Frutti Nutti Oats and climbed back into bed to watch the news.

• 1/2 cup oats made with 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp chia seeds
• 1 tsp unsweetened coconut
• 1 banana
• 2 dried apricots
• 1 scoop flaxy peanut butter (almost finished with the jar!)
• cinnamon
• stevia

I was pretty busy today, but I managed to snack on a Fuji apple during a calm moment.

At 1, Danielle and I took our lunch outside to eat.

I had a bowl of Moroccan Gazpacho with pita and a small salad with romaine, mushrooms, green beans and tomato (they’re under there, I promise!).

This soup is a keeper! Instead of using pine nuts (as the recipe calls for),  I used chopped almonds.  And because I’d made this soup on Monday the raisins were nice and plump, and the sweet spicy flavor was really brought out.

When I got back to my desk, I had a vegan energy bar. So much for waiting until later in the afternoon! It did hold me over for the rest of the day, though.

After work, Leslie and I met at Galaxy Global Eatery for dinner.  I’ve passed it hundreds of times and had no idea what it was.  Even when inside, Leslie and I couldn’t quite figure out what kind of atmosphere GBE was going for! It was sort of like a combination dive bar, old-school diner, and health-food restaurant.

We shared an order of sweet potato tamales with cilantro butter, which came out less than two minutes after we ordered them.  They were okay, but I definitely prefer Peacefood‘s. The cilantro butter definitely made the dish!

Leslie and I ordered the same entrée, thte Starlight Caesar Salad with romaine hearts, frissé, fried caper blossoms, cornmeal crusted tofu, avocado, lotus crostini & vegan hemp caesar dressing.

Galaxy Global Eatery may not have been my favorite restaurant, but the company made it memorable.  We’ll have to get together again soon, Leslie!

I was more than ready for dessert when I got home, and headed straight for the freezer before I even took off my coat.  I had Naked, Mint Galactica, and Chocolate Hazelnut Fudge Coconut Bliss Ice Cream, eaten straight out of the carton, topped with chipotle and cardamom hot fudge.

It’s almost 9:30, and my goal is to be in bed having showered, made tomorrow’s lunch, watched Grey’s Anatomy (from last week) and practiced light yoga by 11.  Doable? You know it!

On a scale of 1-10, how stressful is your average day?

This morning I woke up a few minutes earlier than usual, spandex-ed myself in hyperspeed, and tore out [...]]]> Evening! This post is going to be so quick, it’ll be over before it’s done.  It’s 11:45 and I’ve been home less than an hour, and am only now climbing into bed.  Old biddy strikes again!

This morning I woke up a few minutes earlier than usual, spandex-ed myself in hyperspeed, and tore out of the house for a 2 mile run before work.  I didn’t even remember my watch (or RoadID), but I know I was fast today.  When I got back, I kept the fast track going and got all ready with enough time to enjoy breakfast without leaving for work a minute late than usual.

Breakfast was a big bowl of yogurt, granola, banana + cinnamon.

Mid-morning, I snacked on a navel orange.

Lunch was over a pound of chili and cornbread.  I was full for the rest of the afternoon!

My new water container was quite a hit today… it stands up all by itself, and holds 16 oz of liquid, more than the average bottle!

Sadly, while at work I missed The Upwelling‘s interview on Fearless Radio… did anyone happen to catch it?

When the workday ended, I met my parents at Turkish Cuisine in Hell’s Kitchen for an early pre-theater dinner.  We toasted Tuesday; my mom had a glass of Chardonnay while I had Pinot Grigio.

Before my dad arrived at the restaurant, my mom and I split an order of Zucchini Cakes with tzatziki sauce.   These were so good.  Dr. Praeger, you’ve got nothing on these little fellas! We raved about them so much that my dad had to order them for himself.

We ate it with warm pita.  I wasn’t too hungry for it at the time, but don’t worry… the remaining pieces came home with me!

For my entrée, I ordered grilled salmon with salad.  The salad dressing was fantastic; it had all kinds of spices in it, like cumin and coriander!  I’ll have to try this.  I ate all of the salad but filled up about halfway through the salmon.  Dads are good at times like these.

Before the play, I popped across the street to The Lite Choice for a small cup of almond butter frozen yogurt with chocolate chips.

The play we saw was the third and final in the Orphans Home Cycle series.  It was my favorite of the three, and I was sad to see it end!  I even stayed awake for all three acts.

I’m off to dreamland.  Have a fabulous Wednesday!

I was up at 8:30 on my own and was anxious to get the day going.  Now that I don’t have as much free time as I used to, I don’t like to waste any of it!  I had a quick, scrumptious [...]]]> It’s been quite the productive day, if I do say so myself!

I was up at 8:30 on my own and was anxious to get the day going.  Now that I don’t have as much free time as I used to, I don’t like to waste any of it!  I had a quick, scrumptious pumpkin cake to start the day on a good note.

• canned pumpkin (last dregs of the last can… must restock ASAP before they leave stores!)
• egg whites
• 1 tsp TJ’s pumpkin butter
• 0% Fage Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp flaxy pb
• 1 tsp lemon curd
• agave nectar
• cinnamon
• nutmeg

After breakfast I made a meal plan for the week, then went out to shop for it.  Although I went to four stores, I got most of my groceries not at the expensive health food store, but in the ethnic aisle of my local supermarket!  Get a load of this hot ticket:

That would be Coconut Oil from Guyana.  If I had purchased a similar item at aforementioned health food store, it would have cost me $15.  This little guy was $2.49!  What’s the most interesting food item you’ve found where you were least expecting it?

I spent the rest of the morning making a few lunches for the week; I’m going to be out at least two nights so lunch will be one less thing I’ll have to worry about.  Despite a gloomy forecast, it was beautiful out  and still early in the day so I decided to go for a run.  It was great! I really needed to get outside and breathe fresh air, see living trees (we have a fake plant in our bedroom), and just go.  It was a success!

Total distance: 4.5 miles

Total time: 42:19 minutes

When I got back I did a quick ab series, then made lunch.  Hugh dropped by, too!

In the mix:

• curly-leaf kale
• spinach
• carrots
• celery
• tempeh bacon (finally found it!)
• grape tomatoes
• goji berries, soaked to plump
• dried cranberries
• pumpkin seeds
• Rosemary Quackers
• agave/rice vinegar/soy sauce/toasted sesame oil/sesame/salt/pepper vinaigrette

I made some of Mama Pea’s Vegan Energy Bars to put in my desk at work…

… which had to be sampled to make sure it was good, off course.  It was

I got into bed to read for work nap, and woke up hankering for a crisp Fuji apple. (Recycled photo alert!)

Ilana, Christine and I had the first of many Family Dinners tonight, served pot-luck style.

“I’m cooking!”

We sipped probiotic cocktails…

Ilana made delicious green beans, mushrooms, and broccolini using a family friend’s trusted recipe.

Christine made a refreshing veggie-full salad with mixed greens, green + red pepper, grape tomatoes an scallions.

She also made vegetarian chili + cornbread!

We certainly did not go hungry; we feasted like queens!  Everything was delicious, and I’ll be very happy to eat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

For desesrt, I made the same vegan chocolate mousse that Dynise (the Urban Vegan) made at the cooking demonstration on Saturday.  It’s so easy: 3 ingredients, and it only takes 5 minutes!

My food baby (Claude) is quite content tonight

I’ve been having trouble fitting my huge metal water bottle into my purse to bring to work every day; Christine found these genius collapsible, BPA-free and environmentally friendly water bottles.  Look how cool they are!

I’ll let you know how I like them.

Please excuse me while I take my time catching up on your e-mail questions… I’m a little behind. Off to do some reading for work… hope to be asleep by 12!

Have a great night