THE UPWELLING’S FULL-LENGTH DEBUT, AN AMERICAN STRANGER, IS

Yesterday started off with a breakfast mess:

Daisy Brand 2% cottage cheese with grapes, a banana, Puffins & cinnamon. Mmm!

After breakfast, we set to work on scouring the room.  Before:

Yes, that closet mess is mine.

We finally had time to set up our Ikea bookshelf, which we got, oh, two months ago.

I was Pam to Ari’s Tim.

Pretty good, huh? It makes such a difference in terms of space. And now I’m allowed to keep my magazines! I have to go home and get my cookbooks… I can’t WAIT.

Ari drilled a hole in the back of one of our shelves so we can keep our phones plugged in… I was more than a little skeptical that he wouldn’t break the whole thing, but the man knew what he was doing.

And yes, that’s your’s truly. See? Same haircut!

There are still some boxes in the closet, but it’s a LOT better than it was.

I can actually find my clothes!

We broke for lunch and went to Panera.  I got the sandwich and salad combo with a Mediterranean Veggie sammie:

I also got the Strawberry Poppyseed salad. Yum.

I didn’t end up eating the apple…

…but Panera was freezing (and as usual, I forgot a sweater) so I got a skim cappuccino and sprinkled Sugar In The Raw on top, just like my mama does.  She used to let me eat the foam with a spoon when I was wee!

After a little more cleaning, I was feeling snacky so I had a date with almond butter.  I could eat these guys every day and be very, very happy.

A little later, I went on a KILLER run with Ari’s brother.  He’s run four marathons, so I figured (correctly) that I would run harder and better with him.  As I’ve said, I’m a stronger runner with other people. We went about four miles, and I had to stop for a minute at the halfway point because I thought I was going to collapse!

Total time: 38:52 minutes

Maximum heart rate: 197 (99%)

Average heart rate: 179 (90%)

Calories burned: 475-500 (HRM is being fickle again)

All in all, a great run.  I didn’t stretch though (tsk tsk), and I’m feeling the burn today!

After I was clean and presentable, Ari and I went out to dinner. I’d kind of wanted to cook, but we don’t get to spend evenings together so often and this took less time.  We went to Locale, a new(ish) place in Queens.

I had a spicy olive that we were brought as soon as we sat down.

We split the bruschetta trio: warm eggplant ragu, portobello/mozzarella/pesto, classic tomato.

For my entrée, I ordered the fish special: grilled Wild Atlantic salmon wrapped in seaweed with a stone fruit coulis.  It also came with sautéed spinach and fingerling potatoes, but I subbed those for a mixed green salad instead.

Ari was feeling pretty sassy all through dinner.  Imagine wearing a Yankees cap in Queens!

I’d planned on having my usual dessert platter, but he suggested Cold Stone. I’m not one to turn down fully-loaded ice cream, so I ordered a “Like It” cup of Sinless Sweet Creap with hot fudge, peanut butter, and a Reese’s PB cup.  Does Sinless + Decadence = Zero? Cuz it should.

This was actually way too much for me.  I ate it all, but I felt a little sick afterwards.  I stopped at the grocery on the way home to get ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.  When baking, I usually substitute applesauce for half of the butter or oil to make it a little healthier; unfortunately this does NOT work for cookies.

I tested one out, saw that it looked more like cake, and turned the rest into a peanut butter banana cake. It’s pretty good, actually!

Batch #2 was straight-up Toll House.  Unbeatable.

It was kind of a perfect day, overall

I’m off to the gym to squeeze in some cardio before work.  I hope you have a FANTASTIC weekend!

Anywho, let’s backtrack to Thursday! I started the day with a bombdiddlyicious bowl of oatmeal.

• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• Daisy Brand 2% cottage cheese
• 1 apricot
• walnuts
• cinnamon
• drizzle of agave

The savory/sweet combination was superb… I’ve forgotten how good cottage cheese is in oats!

After a 2 mile run, I went into the city to meet Greg for lunch at the Metro Diner.  He’s moving out of state, and this was the last time I’ll see him for a while

I got my usual veggie burger, which was especially good today.  I ate half the bun and the pickle, but I’m really not a fan of creamy cole slaw.

As promised, here’s a sexy shot of the girth on this bad boy.

I used almost half the bottle of ketchup.  My name is Katie, and I am a Heinz-a-holic.

Since I was in the neighborhood, I took advantage of being so close to my parents’ house and raided their fruit drawer picked up my mail. I had a delicious yellow plum and some blackberries:

When I got downtown, I was so parched that I dashed into Liquiteria and got a 16 oz cup of Ginseng Gingersnap: carrot, apple, ginger, ginseng, Vitamin C & bee pollen. DELISH!

I was really snacky at work (probably because it was so slow) and over the course of my shift, had a Babybell light cheese, an apple, and a fig bar.

I couldn’t take a picture of my dinner, but I had a mixed green salad with apples, beets, tomatoes and walnuts.  Another winner.  The chefs at the restaurant are the best!

Anyway, I’m off to get ready for the wedding.  Apologies again for the tardiness of the posts… hopefully the internet traffic will clear up soon.

Have a great weekend!

AND… drumroll… I no longer have to work at the restaurant on weekends! My official schedule is now Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday… I can have a life again!

Yesterday, I fueled up for my internship with a bigger breakfast than usual.  I had a slice of whole wheat toast with blueberry preserves and almond butter:

I also had a big bowl of Daisy Brand 2% cottage cheese with grapes, an apricot, and strawberries. I sprinkled it with a generous amount of cinnamon, of course!

It was the perfect amount of food, made all the more satisfying because there were so many different tastes and textures.

I didn’t have time to make coffee, so I stopped at Dunkin’ Donuts on my walk from the subway to the office and got a medium iced coffee with skim milk.

My boss sent me to Fed Ex/Kinko’s to have some manuscripts bound and sent off.  He offered to get me a cab, but I wanted to spend some time outside so I walked instead.  On the way back to the office, I snacked on an energy ball.

My mom works near the office, so we were able to meet for lunch today.  She brought me some of my mail, including a box of Larabars! I’m so excited to have more of the PB&J bars, and I can’t wait to try the German Chocolate Cake Jocalat bar. Thanks, Larabar!

We went to lunch at Havana Alma de Cuba, a restaurant that opened right when my mom moved to New York after she graduated from college. We both ordered the Ensalada Matanzas with watercress, baby arugula, frissé, avocado, cherry tomatoes, roasted red peppers and spiced shrimp in a balsamic vinaigrette.  It was delicious: light and refreshing, the perfect summer meal.

My mom ordered a mango bostada (I think that’s what it’s called).  I had a sip… it tasted just like a mango lassi!

I had a slice of grilled, buttered bread, which was excellent with the vinaigrette.

About an hour after I got back to work, I started falling asleep.  I pulled out my Chocolate Chip Z bar, which I ate less because of hunger and more to wake me up.  It worked!

After work, I got my booty to the gym.  I hadn’t been since last Tuesday, and hadn’t had time to work out at all since Friday.  Unfortunately, I was exhausted, so I just did 30 easy peasy minutes on the bike (while reading my book) and some arm work.  Better than nothing!

I was on my own for dinner, so I just heated up the rest of my coconut soup from Sunday night.  I added in tofu and sprinkles of cinnamon, ginger, and curry powder.  It was even better two days later!

I also had some steamed broccoli and a Golden Delicious apple:

Washed it all down with some broc wat:

For dessert, I had my favorite comfort sweets: dried fruit, almond butter, and dark chocolate.

Well, I’m off to go for a quick run before meeting a lovely girl for lunch, and then work tonight.  Have a great day!

Breakfast yesterday was weird, but very tasty:

Daisy Brand 2% cottage cheese with 1 plum, a few strawberries, 1/2 banana and 1 T PB2.

I haven’t had time to get to the gym much this week, as you may have noticed, so I’ve been running more often than usual.  I went for a 2 mile jog yesterday, stopping to walk a couple times for 20-30 second breaks on the way back.  When the end is in sight, I often peter out and get more tired.  Does anyone else have this problem? I think I need a running buddy! When I ran in Michigan with Judy, I did 3-4 miles easily.

When I got back from the run, I did Level 3 of 8-minute Abs.  I forgot to turn my HRM off, so these stats aren’t 100% accurate:

Total time: 42:42 minutes

Maximum heart rate: 191 (96%)

Average heart rate: 136 (68%)

Calories burned: 318

On the way into the city for my haircut, I snacked on an apple:

My hairdresser (whom I hadn’t seen for 15 years; he used to cut my hair when I was little and pretty much gave me the exact same haircut I had when I was 2… I love it! I’ll have to find you an old photo) was in Caitlin‘s neck of the woods, so we met up for lunch at Bouley Bakery.

I’ve been wanting to try out David Bouley’s new place for so long, and this did not disappoint.  It has everything! Fresh organic meat and fish:

A hot bar:

Cold salads:

They even have sushi!

We both decided to build killer salads.

Mine had:

• spinach
• arugula
• tomatoes
• feta
• whole wheat pasta shells with walnuts
• beet salad with walnuts
• marinated Chinese mushrooms & tofu
• asparagus
• lobster/bean salad

I dressed it with a little oil and vinegar.

I wanted some bread, so I got a whole wheat roll with sesame seeds.

Our tummies were pleased.

After lunch, we wanderd over to Moomah, a coffee shop that, we agreed, is like Alice’s Teacup for toddlers.

The design is whimsical and artistic, like stepping inside a children’s book.

Yes, I’m that creeper who takes pictures of the bathrooms…

… but even that is beautiful!

They sell handmade toys and gorgeous dresses (that, rumor has it, Caitlin’s mom is trying to get them to sell for “big girls” like us).

Everything is perfect, down to the plastic to-go coffee cups.  I was low on cash and pushing my 3 PM-coffee-cutoff (which I think I’ll be adjusting to 5 PM on days that I work), so I just admired Caitlin‘s iced latte.

Then, just as the rain was starting to come down, we scurried underground and took the subway to MoMA.  The exhibit was absolutely beautiful.  So many colors!

I especially liked Paul Signac’s Portrait of Félix Fénéon:

We started to get a little tired and needed a Smarties pick-me-up.  C and I first discovered our love for Smarties on a camp trip to Quebec in 2002; when I saw these in Berlin I had to snag her a box.  They’re like M&Ms, but with a harder shell and better chocolate.

After we looked at a few more exhibits, we parted ways and went home.  Dodging raindrops (who needs an umbrella?), I ran from the subway to the house to be there in time for Ari’s Bubby and aunt’s visit.  After catching up with them a little, we all went to Sac‘s for dinner.  There aren’t any kosher restaurants within walking distance, so we decided on Italian instead.

I had 1 piece of tomato focaccia:

I was a bad girlfriend and ordered spinach fettuccine with shrimp in garlic & oil (shellfish is not kosher).

I ate all the shrimp and half the pasta.  The bottom of the bowl was filled with about 1/2 inch of oil; it’s odd that I ordered this considering I work in an Italian restaurant and can get it for free any night, but I was in the mood.

After saying goodbye, we left to go pick up the rest of Ari’s family from the airport.  There were all kinds of complications with their flight (baggage claim, missed connections, customs, etc.) and we ended up spending three hours at the airport.  No matter, because on the way home, we stopped at… Coldstone!

I went all out and ordered a “Like It” cup of Sinless Sweet Cream w/ 1 Reese’s PB cup, peanut butter, and hot fudge.  Coldstone is no Oink‘s, but I still savored every bite.

We were pretty exhausted by the time we got home (Ari’s sister had been up for 24+ hours) and went right to bed.  It was a good day

Hope you have a great Friday! I’ll be working, but I have a good feeling that this week will be much better than last. What are you up to this weekend?

I started the day yesterday with an Ezekiel English muffin with almond butter; half had honey and half had blueberry jam.

As is becoming the tradition for Mondays, I went to my parents’ house to get some work done.  When I got there, I found a big box of Daisy Brand cottage cheese waiting for me:

Daisy Brand generously sent me a huge supply of cottage cheese.  I’ll give you a full review soon… Thanks, Daisy!

After getting a little reading done, I headed to Starbucks to do the rest.  We didn’t have any food in the fridge, so I got Starbucks’ Classic Salad with romaine, cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, cheese and hard-boiled eggs with a balsamic dressing.  I didn’t eat the yolks… I don’t like the texture when they’re so well done.

With my salad, I got a coupon for a $2 grande iced drink if I ordered it after 2.

Come 2:00, I’d finished my reading and was ready for a little pick-me-up.  I got a grande caramel light Frappuccino with sugar-free syrup. I love these! I drink them so quickly, though.

After leaving Starbucks, I got some groceries for dinner and then headed home for a run.  I ran about 3 miles in Riverside Park, and the time just flew by thanks to a new Jillian Michaels podcast.  It’s official: I’m addicted to these!

When I got back, I started doing a Core Yoga session, but after 10 minutes my arms were giving out and I had to stop.  Sometimes it’s just not in the cards. Instead, I had a snack: a Daisy Brand 2% cottage cheese parfait with blueberries and strawberries.

It was missing a little something: cinnamon.  It’s hard to find a food that isn’t improved by this spice…

Then I took a long, hot bath, read a magazine, and just relaxed.  Perfect.

A few weeks ago, I noticed one of Heidi‘s recipes that looked particularly delicious: Almond Soba Noodles.  The key: a sauce made with almond butter and red curry paste. Mmm.

A soba lesson

I think this was my first time cooking soba noodles.

A Soba Lesson:

[Source]

Soba is a type of thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour. It is served either chilled with a dipping sauce, or in hot broth as a noodle soup.

Soba is traditionally eaten on New Years Eve in most areas of Japan, a tradition that survives to this day: Toshikoshi soba. In the Tokyo area, there is also a tradition of giving out soba to new neighbours after a house move (Hikkoshi soba), although this practice is now rare.

100 grams of soba yields 344 kcal of energy. In terms of essential amino acids, soba scores higher than pasta or bread. Soba includes a lot of lycine, and therefore a good balance of amino acids.

Soba contains a type of polysaccharide that is easily digested and assimilated. Soba noodles also contain rutin an antioxidation ingredient, one of the flavonoids, and choline. Rutin helps to prevent high blood pressure so it reduces risk of heart disease. Soba has other antioxidation ingredients beside rutin, notably quercitin, proto catechu aldehyde. Choline is needed to make acetylcholine, which is used in the brain and affects memory and intelligence. Soba also contains many water-soluble vitamins like thiamine (about twice that of polished rice) and riboflavin.

Here’s a quirk: whenever I make tofu, I have to eat a piece with salt & pepper. Every time. Isn’t that odd? Do you have any weird habits like this?

Instead of pea shoots, which I couldn’t find, I used broccoli florets.

I snacked on most of this apple (or, what was on the plate before I ate it all ):

Return of the broccoli water!

I had a few sips of milk, but I filled up before I could finish it.

I had the noodles with cucumber salad (oil, vinegar, salt & pepper), carrots, and radishes.

My only complaint with this recipe was that it required quite a bit of salt for seasoning.  Otherwise, though, I really enjoyed it, and I would make it again.

For dessert, we all went to Tasti D The Lite Choice.  (The Lite Choice apparently bought Tasti, and now there is a Tasti opening up right across the street from TLC.) I got a small cup with half peanut butter, half banana, and chocolate chips.

I can’t wait to tell you about the dinner I just had… stay tuned!

Bonne nuit