Lilveggiepatch » crab

The Snooze Game

admin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 03:10:53 +0000

Even though I went to bed on the early side last night, I could not get up this morning. I had a lot of reading to do for work so I had planned to get up around 5:30 and read on the bike at the gym, but when my alarm went off, my eyes felt like they were glued shut. I snoozed until 6, and continued to delay getting out of bed until 7:40, at which point I really had to move in hyperspeed in order to get to work on time. Needless to say, only the bangs were blow-dried, and I sported a ballerina-style topknot all day. Pretty hot.

Breakfast (inhaled in under five minutes) was a bowl of pumpkinyogurtPB&J oatmeal… there are oats under there, I promise.

1/2 cup oats cooked in 1/2 cup water
0% Fage Greek yogurt
pumpkin
Maranatha no-stir creamy peanut butter
raspberry jam
cinnamon

Luckily I’d gotten my lunch and snacks ready the night before:

apple
orange
baby carrots (two days’ worth)
big salad with spinach, small Gala apple, celery, grape tomatoes, tempeh bacon, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, tamari peanut dressing

I had lunch with three lovely ladies (including a surprise visit from my friend Ilena!)… we spent our meal dishing over our favorite 101 Cookbooks recipes and how great life will be when we can collect social security and reap the benefits of life among the elderly.

Danielle was nice enough to share some of her Ritter Sport milk chocolate w/ Cornflakes… it had a nice snapcracklepop! feel to it.

When I got home, I was greeted with a HUGE package from Miss Blue Eyed Heart: the prize from her blogiversary giveaway.

I couldn’t believe all of the great things in the box: cozy socks, a journal, a candle, crossword puzzles, White Chocolate Wonderful peanut butter (!) nutrition bars, chocolate, pretzels, and more! Thanks so much, Miss Blue.

She sent a gorgeous pair of earrings that would have gone perfectly with my outfit today… I haven’t quite acquired her ear photography skills, but I’m working on it

I was pretty hungry, so I dug into a bag of steamed broccoli while I played with Charley…

… and some crudités and cheese…

… and raw carrots with sea salt when my mom got home. I certainly can’t be criticized for not eating enough veggies! (My tum is feeling that fiber, though…)

My mom picked up a great dinner at Citarella: Crab cakes (these have been my favorite for years), pasta salad and green beans.

My dad picked up two equally delicious desserts at Silver Moon Bakery, which we split three ways: a pear tart and chocolate-hazelnut bombe. Mmm.

Now I’m off to go do some work in the tub. Warm water + candles makes it so much more bearable! A bath will also be good for my knee; it’s better than yesterday, usually the worst after I’ve been sitting for a while. I see some yoga in my future this weekend, which will be perfect because the weather is supposed to be quite shoddy.

Have a great night!

Guess Who I Found?

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:21:29 +0000

This guy came home today!

But first…

This morning I woke up at 5, a good hour and a half before the sun came up. No matter! I was actually surprisingly alert after 5.5 hours of sleep; I packed up my work, laced my sneakers and headed over to the gym. I planned on just zoning out on the bike and getting a good chunk of reading in, but the bike turned off after 20 minutes so I moved to the stairmaster. It’s a little harder to read when you’re trying not to fall off a five-foot tall machine! I climbed for 15 minutes, then headed home to work some more, shower, and get ready for work. Days are a lot longer when you get up early!

Quick side note: I used to post my exercise statistics after a workout (with time, calories, etc.) but I didn’t know if that was “useful” or not… I’ve gotten a few e-mails recently requesting them, so please let me know if you’d like me to post them!

Breakfast was another darn fine jar of oats.

1/2 cup oatmeal cooked in 1/2 cup water
canned pumpkin
pumpkin butter
1 tbsp chunky peanut butter
l tsp lemon curd
stevia
cinnamon

I left for work an hour early to get some things done at the office. Because I’d been up so long I ate all three of my snacks before lunch: apple, orange, and Haribo gummies (how’d those get in there?!). When you’ve been up since 5, eating candy at 8:30 in the morning doesn’t sound so crazy.

For lunch I had a Pomegranate Chobani and a big salad.

In the mix:

I ate at my desk and worked through lunch… busy busy day! Around 3:30, I snacked on a Chocolate Peanut Butter Forze Bar. I know this is Melissa‘s favorite flavor!

This bar reminded me of a combination Chewy granola bar, Oreo granola bar (remember those? I used to bring them to day camp in my lunch box), and Reese’s crisp. In other words: I can’t believe it’s not loaded with chemicals!

Ari got home while I was at work, and we set up a last-minute dinner date at David Burke Townhouse for Restaurant Week.

We started with warm rolls and fancy butter that was carved into a tree.

I started with the Pretzel Crusted Crab Cake and Sweet Chili Prawn with orange confitand poppy seed honey. Sweet lordy, this was one of the best crab cakes I’ve ever had, and I’ve tasted my fair share of crab cakes. 8/10

Ari, mushroom fiend that he is, got frothy mushroom soup. This was good, but a little bland… no salt on the tables. 6/10

For my entrée, I took the Scottish Salmon with braised Napa cabbage, charred tomato and curried apple slaw. The salmon was very tender and I liked all of the different textures, but again, was a little bland. 6/10

Ari ordered the Mustard-Crusted Tuna with mushrooms and chicken consommé. I didn’t taste this because of the chicken, but Ari gave it an 8.267/10.

Dessert was an easy choice for both of us: we both chose the Bittersweet Chocolate Cake with peanut butter mousse, roasted banana ice cream, caramelized peanuts and marshmallow. 8/10!

It was a lovely evening with delicious food and fabulous company. We decided to save money and have wine at home instead, so we’re sipping a little white and watching Gone Baby Gone in bed. I’m hoping to be asleep by 11… I’m a grandpa even on date nights!

Sweet and Spicy Sweet Potato Leek Soup

lilveggiepatch — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 02:20:12 +0000

First things first (and I might get in trouble for this later)… HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARI! Feel free to send him a little hello He’s not a big “birthday person,” but I still wish we were together. When he gets back from tour, though, I’m going to make him a mighty fine cake! The first Upwelling fan’s tattoo has surfaced… what’s the farthest you have gone (or would go) for a band, artist, writer, _____ you love?

Last night, once again, hunger pangs dragged me from bed. I grabbed an apple and snuggled back under the covers.

I think it’s because I’ve been eating dinner earlier than I’m used to… growing up, we ate dinner between 8 and 9, but now when I cook for myself, I eat around 7. Interesting!

This morning I got up early to finish some work for my internship, and by the time I was ready for breakfast I’d worked up quite the appetite. I made my first batch of oatmeal in a couple weeks, and it did not disappoint.

I microwaved 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup oats, pumpkin and frozen berries all together at the same time. Saves time, and I didn’t have to wash an extra dish. I topped the dish with brown sugar and a scoop of flaxy peanut butter.

Things were a little busier at the office today, and before I knew it it was time to meet my mom for lunch. We went to AOC, a cute French bistro in the West Village.

We had some buttered bread while we waited for our orders to arrive.

I ordered the Salade Nordique, which was not only beautifully presented…

…but it was fully loaded with delicious ingredients! Poached salmon, smoked salmon, jumbo lump crab meat, a poached egg with grainy mustard, grapefruit, mixed greens, and tomatoes.

It was delicious. My favorite bites were forkfuls of smoked salmon-wrapped grapefruit… I really have to try this at home. I didn’t come close to finishing the salad, and took a lot of the salmon home. It’ll make a delicious lunch tomorrow!

We each drank a cup of coffee, then went to The Lite Choice for dessert. I got a small cup of frozen yogurt with half Fluffernutter, half Dark Chocolate Truffle.

My mom went back to work, and I went home to get some things done. I went for a 2 miles run as my training schedule directed, then did some ab work and played around on the foam roller. Sweet pain.

I wanted to make something fast, easy, delicious, and comforting for dinner, and came up with a new twist on an old favorite. It’s low in fat, high in flavor and smells like heaven.

Sweet and Spicy Sweet Potato Leek Soup

Serves 1-2

Ingredients

1 medium-sized sweet potato, peeled & chopped
1 leek, finely sliced
1/4 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 inch ginger, minced
1 T olive oil
1 bay leaf
2 cups vegetable broth (I made my own using Better Than Bouillon)
3 cloves
1 tsp curry
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
parsley (optional)

Heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are near-transparent, about 5 minutes. Add ginger and cook 1 minute more, being careful not to let the ingredients burn.

Add leeks, potato, stock & bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Remove bay leaf.

Transfer to a food processor or blender and pulse until soup reaches desired texture. I prefer mine smooth, but you can easily leave a few chunks of potato.

Add spices and pulse until cloves are ground and incorporated. Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley and additional spices, if desired.

Serve and enjoy!

I enjoyed a bowl of soup with a toasted Ezekiel English muffin. One half had almond butter and raspberry jam, the other had melted cheddar and Bragg’s.

It was a perfect dinner for one, followed by the perfect dessert: dried fruit stuffed with roasted almonds and dark chocolate chips. Natural candy, if you will. I have a little trouble with portion control when I eat these… they’re so good that I can’t help going back into the kitchen to make more!

I’m hoping to get to bed early so I’m nice and fresh for tomorrow. What was the best part of your day?

The Ladies Who Lunch

lilveggiepatch — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:50:28 +0000

I packed these for work, but there didn’t end up being too much for me to do in the office so I went home early and just ate the dried fruit.

My mom and I had planned on having dinner together at De Santos, but since I got off work early we decided to make it a lunch date instead. But wait! This was not just any lunch.

We wandered into L’Ecole, the restaurant inside the French Culinary Institute. It’s staffed and run by the school’s students, who, while enrolled in classes, are simultaneously working at the restaurant to prepare and present delicious meals.

I didn’t want to spoil my appetite with bread, but my mom said it was delicious! After we ordered the prix fixe lunch deal (which is a real NYC steal), we were brought amuse boûches of smoked trout and chive puffs.

The whole menu was creative and interesting, so we wanted to share everything. We started with the yellowtail tartare with lemongrass, coconut & wonton citrus salad:

Crab consommé with shiitake mushrooms and lemon jam with the most unbelievable crab broth… the broth was brought out in a teapot and poured over the crab and mushrooms. Presentation is so important!

Sautéed sea scallops with oyster mushrooms & coconut curry sauce… these were my favorite:

Grilled halibut with béarnaise sauce and summer salad:

Oof, it was a lot of food. It was all so delicious that we pounced on every scrap and practically licked the plates clean. And then, of course, came dessert…

Hazelnut and plum Napoleon… it was out of this world. From the sweet hazelnut cream to the crunchy, nutty layers… I could eat this every day.

Peach tarte tatin with crème fraîche ice cream:

It was all so good, and such an unexpected meal to have at lunchtime! We loved it. I went home in a bit of a food coma that only daytime television could revive me from. Finally, I roused myself from the bed and, after much deliberation, decided to go for a run. I was still upset about Monday’s run, so I decided to take every precaution.

I started out with Yoga For Runners to stretch and warm my muscles. I debated going for my long run, but ended up playing it safe and running 2 miles in 19:40. Not bad. No failure! When I got back, I did Level 3 of 8-minute abs. Although I’d been tempted to call an informal “rest day”, I ended up getting a total-body workout! Not bad, not bad at all

After having a heavy, five-star lunch, I was in the mood for something very simple for dinner. It ended up looking a lot like breakfast! I had an Ezekiel muffin (last one ) with almond butter, jam & honey, baby carrots, and a strawberry Oikos. I ate in bed while watching Nights in Rodanthe (uh…) , which was nice, but… although I am very, very proud of Ari, I miss my boo very much.

“Dessert” was an orange, eaten in rapt excitement as I watched the season premiere of Gossip Girl online. Did anyone recognize Joanna Garcia from Reba?

Around the blogosphere:

Is your mom more hip than you? Mine is! I didn’t even know about the Foodbuzznominations that are going on until she told me! Head on over to vote for your favorite bloggies.

Have a great day!

Hopping on the train

lilveggiepatch — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 21:00:07 +0000

… the challenge train, that is! Everyone around the blogosphere seems to be finding interesting new ways to challenge their eating habits, and I’ve decided to join that bandwagon. Last month, Caitlin’s challenge, “Crap-Free Week,” was particularly, well, challenging!

Based on her overview of CFW here, I’m going to try very hard to adhere to these guidelines.

Yay: Dairy, Fish, Soy, Oatmeal, Grains in “grain-form” (i.e. rice, quinoa, bulgur, etc., but no bread, waffles, pancakes, etc.), Fruit, Vegetables, Nuts, Nut butters, Dried fruit, Beans, Olive oil, Vitamins/ supplements, etc. Basically, anything fresh or in its near-”original” state.

Nay: Frozen meals, Protein powder, Nutrition bars, Baked goods (cookies, brownies, cakes, breads, etc.), Coffee (I tried this for three days last semester, and nothing catastrophic happened), Alcohol, Jam/Jelly, Sugar/honey/syrup, Chocolate, Ice cream, Bottled salad dressings, Canned or packaged soup, Table salt, Cereal/ granola, etc. Nothing that relies on sodium to stay fresh.

I want to clarify that this is not a diet. I’m not trying to lose weight or change my body in any way, I’m trying to become more educated about my own eating habits and how they affect the way I physically feel. I will still eat when I am hungry and my meals will be normal-sized. I’m curious to see which foods I rely on (coffee! chocolate!) and which I can live without. I’ve also mentioned before that I’ve had some pretty serious issues with energy and the lack thereof. I started taking iron supplements (which I will continue to take) to try to combat this issue, but it’s possible that it’s related to something else.

I’m going home for Spring Break on Friday, and I know that as soon as I’m there I’m going to want to enjoy my favorite foods, so this is going to be more of an experimental Crap-free Five Days. I think the biggest problems I’ll have is with chocolate and coffee; I’m going to drink caffeinated tea, at least for the first few days.

Did you follow Caitlin’s challenge last month, or any other challenges like this? What did you learn? What tips do you have for sticking with it? I’m not always so great at sticking with things like this, but I hope I can do it. That’s why it’s a challenge! And now that it’s on the internet, I have to hold myself to it.

Enough of that, on to my eats!

This morning I was not happy when my alarm went off an hour early, Daylight Savings Time and all. Ari’s leaving for Europe today so we were up late watching Golden Girls on iChat, and I just couldn’t fall asleep after that. I pressed snooze until the very last minute, then pretty much just rolled out of bed, brushed my hair and went to see my grandparents for lunch.

I took an orange for the car ride:

Their club is closed for the season, so we went to Sunsets for lunch instead. I was very tempted to order a coffee, but I stuck with some hot tea instead.

We all ordered the Shrimp and Crab Louie Salad: Mixed greens topped with shrimp, lump blue crab, tomatoes, black olives, egg and fresh lemons. I got the dressings (vinaigrette & poppyseed) which I only just now realized is against CFW. Whoops! The picture doesn’t do this salad justice, because it was HUGE. There were at least 12 pieces of shrimp, plus all the crab and everything else! I ate all the egg whites and left the yolks, all the crab, and left 5 shrimp… I don’t think I could have finished the whole thing if I tried.

I went to Target on the way home and for once only bought what I went in there to get. Alexander McQueen is designing for GO International this month, so it’s a good thing they were all out of my size!

When I got home I was starting to feel hungry again, so I had a banana with almond butter.

Even though I am so very tired, I’m going to be a big girl and resist the urge to crawl back into bed and get started on some work instead. Hope you’re having a happy Sunday!