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 [...]]]> 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:

• leftover salad
• plantains
• sweet potato falafel balls
• Goddess dressing

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!

This morning I woke up a little hazy from last night’s escapades, but made do with a strong pot of coffee and a good breakfast. I ate in parts: Peach Chobani Greek [...]]]> What a good day.  I slept in, saw friends, ate well… what could be better? More hours in the day, but alas.

This morning I woke up a little hazy from last night’s escapades, but made do with a strong pot of coffee and a good breakfast. I ate in parts: Peach Chobani Greek yogurt, sweet potato cranberry coconut muffin, Honeybell orange.

After taking my sweet time getting ready and lazing around, I met Caitlin for lunch at Sacred Chow, an organic vegan (and Kosher) cafe downton.

We both got the Souper Hero Combo (soup + 1/2 sandwich); I got a bowl of Sweet Potato and Cassava Soup with dill and Orange Blackstrap Seitan (orange-molasses seitan w/ red-hot onions and Thai ginger bbq sauce on a whole wheat baguette).

This was so good.  My babysitter used to use cassava in her soups and I forgot how much I love it! The sandwich was quite hearty as well, and left my mouth burning (in a good way!).

We also hit up the In God We Trust sample sale, where I fell in love with this beret.  I’ve never been a “beret person”, but this was too cute to pass up!

Caitlin and I parted ways, and I met my friend Levi to see the new Mel Gibson movie, Edge of Darkness.  I really liked it! It reminded me a lot of Michael Clayton, with more blood.  We snacked on gummies in the theater.

I had big plans to do some work while using the bike at the gym, but it was 7:15 by the time I got home and I was just ready to wind down the day.  No biggie, but I really need to start being smarter about cross and strength training… I feel like I’ve taken a sort of lackadaisical approach to this half-marathon I’m supposedly training for. I have a 7 mile run scheduled for tomorrow but my knee still hurts from Thursday’s… if it gives me trouble in the morning, I’m just going to run myself over to the gym and get on that bike instead.

So, in place of gym tales, I present you with a tasty treat:

Sweet Potato Falafel Salad

I’ve been thinking of ways to recreated One Lucky Duck’s Falafel Salad at home without a dehydrator or pricey ingredients.  I’d planned on making a sweet potato version of baked falafel with chickpeas, but lo and behold: no chickpeas in the pantry! I made do with black beans instead, and it turned out mighty fine if I do say so myself.

Sweet Potato “Falafel”

Inspired by this recipe

• 1 handful parsley or cilantro, chopped
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 sweet potato baked or microwaved until fully cooked, mashed
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup cooked black beans
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• salt
• garnishes: paprika, sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 375.  Mix first 6 ingredients together, gently mashing beans with a fork.  Season with salt, to taste.

Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.  Form balls out of 1 tbsp worth of sweet potato mixture and sprinkle with sesame seeds and paprika. Bake for 30 minutes, turning once.

Makes about 12 balls.

Tahini Sauce

• 1/2 cup sesame tahini
• 1/2 cup water
• juice of 1/4 lemon
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp agave nectar
• salt to taste

Mix ingredients together in a bowl. Lick spoon.

Raw “Tabouli”

• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/3 head of cauliflower (about 2 handfuls)
• 1 handful parsley/cilantro

Pulse cauliflower in food processor until finely chopped. Pulse in red pepper. Pulse in parsley until the mixture resembles confetti.

Not a bad alternative, I’d say! My version is on the left… and doesn’t cost $17.

For dessert, I made strawberry banana soft serve with chocolate chips.  However, I got a little impatient and didn’t wait for the fruit to fully freeze; it ended up being more of a smoothie!

It’s 10:30, but I really want to get some work done before I go to bed, so I’m going to shower, make the bed, and read 100 pages or so.  Big plans for a Saturday night at home!

Do you have “casual Fridays” at work? Every Friday at my office, everyone wears jeans!  It really does make the environment a little more relaxed.

A very long week has drawn to a close, and even though ti’s 8:45 on a Friday night, I can’t think of a place more appealing than bed right [...]]]> Ahhhh.

Do you have “casual Fridays” at work? Every Friday at my office, everyone wears jeans!  It really does make the environment a little more relaxed.

A very long week has drawn to a close, and even though ti’s 8:45 on a Friday night, I can’t think of a place more appealing than bed right now!  I got up at 5 this morning in order to get everything done before work, and although I rode a pretty steady stream of energy all day (bless you, Mr. Coffee), I “crashed” just after dinner.  Old biddy is right!

I waited until 7 to make breakfast this morning, then mixed up the ingredients for Tina’s 3-Minute Oatmeal Raisin Cookie, substituting dried cherries.

It popped right out of the bowl without sticking at all! I topped the cookie with Greek yogurt, a banana, and agave nectar.

I was expecting this to be soft and moist like Gina‘s cookies, but this version had the texture and consistency of a real, baked cookie!  I love them both; I’ll definitely use this recipe the next time I have a cookie craving but don’t want to make a whole batch.

At work, I snacked on a Fuji apple.

My lunch was of the “kitchen sick” variety; I shopped so well when I planned my meals that there was nothing extra in the fridge.  I need to re-stock my produce tomorrow!

In the mix:

• sushi rice
• seaweed
• TJ’s Sorrento salad blend
• pineapple
• 1/3 block tempeh
• grape tomatoes
• feta cheese
• marinara sauce/ balsamic “dressing” (didn’t quite do it for me, so I borrowed some of Danielle’s Italian dressing )

I also had yogurt…

Sunflower seeds…

And a Chocolate Peanut Butter Luna Protein Bar later in the afternoon.  I loved this one, too!  Again, it doesn’t exactly taste like a Reese’s, but it’s pretty delicious.  Yep, there was a little mindless eating going on… just a case of the Fridays, I guess!

After work, Ilana and I tried to see the Tim Burton exhibit at MoMA, but it was completely sold out by the time we got there.  I’ve heard similar reports from other friends who have tried to go; I think the only way to actually get in is to go when they first open in the morning.   I do hope I get to see it before it closes :-/

Dinner was quick, comforting, and straightforward: Annie’s Mac & Cheese with one small sweet potato, a can of tuna, and chili flakes.  Loaded mac & cheese never gets old!

I wanted a special- but fast- dessert, so I made a dark chocolate peanut butter cup using a mix of flaxy peanut butter and almond butter.  I kind of want another one, but I think I’ll be asleep by the time it freezes!

Tomorrow’s pretty booked, but I want to make sure I take some “me” time this weekend.  I’ve been a little stressed this week, and I need to relax and rejuvenate.  Any suggestions? The first step is getting some sleep!

Bonne nuit

I seem [...]]]> Hey hey-yo! How are you? How was your Wednesday? I can’t believe that one week from tomorrow is Thanksgiving!  I usually try to wake up early enough to catch some of the parade, then my mom and I make our famous sticky buns.  Do you have traditions you keep up every year?

I seem to have unleashed the oatmeal beast within me yesterday, because that was just what I wanted this morning.

In the bowl:

• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup pumpkin
• frozen berries
• frozen pineapple
• flaxy peanut butter
• cinnamon
• agave

The rest of the morning was spent preparing for an interview.  I went into the city an hour and a half early so, subway problems or not, there’d be no chance of being late.  I had so much spare time that I went into a deli to go over my notes and read some Canadian snail mail.  To secure a seat, I bought some fruit salad.

The interview went well, I think; I was given an assignment to complete for Friday, so I went straight home to get started.  I needed some brain fuel, so I made a quick salad:

Our house guest came into the kitchen while I was assembling it, took one look at the bowl, and said, “Are you really going to eat all of that salad?! You must have a really fast metabolism!”  It was a salad of great girth, I’ll give him that. But of course I ate every scrap

In the mix:

• spinach
• grape tomatoes
• 1 grapefruit
• 1/2 avocado
• leftover salmon
• dressing made with rice vinegar, sesame oil, sesame seeds & chili flakes

The Lindt store on 5th  was handing out holiday truffles on the street today, so I snatched one up and had it for dessert.

My body must have needed sleep because I nodded right off after lunch! Today is the fourth consecutive day I’ve gotten up significantly earlier than I’m used to, and the rest of the week will be no different.  Hopefully in the next few weeks there will be more early mornings and regular hours, if you catch my drift! When I woke up, I made some coffee and snacked on these Jalepeño Honey Mustard Pretzel Sticks from Kay’s Naturals.

These are my favorite of the Kay’s products I’ve tried; they’re satisfying, and didn’t leave me with horrible garlic breath the way the protein chips did.

The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent working.  When it was getting close to dinner time, I simmered and marinated some tempeh using the recipe for Hot Sauce-Glazed Tempeh from Veganomicon.

After about an hour, I plopped the tempeh onto the George Foreman, the apartment-dweller’s best friend.  Aren’t grill marks satisfying?

I proceded to make one of the best sandwiches on earth: The LVP Reuben.

A reuben sandwich is traditionally made with corned beef, Swiss cheese, saurkraut, and creamy salad dressing.  I don’t remember eating one even when I did eat meat, but my version is much more appealing to me.  It’s based on one of my all-time favorite sandwiches: grilled cheddar with Granny Smith apple slices on Peppridge Farm Cinnamon Raisin Swirl bread.  Tonight, I went a step further…

Grilled cheddar with Hot Sauce-Glazed Tempeh, Gala apple slices and baby spinach on Cinnamon Raisin Ezekiel bread.  My tum is grumbling at the memory.  I also had a bowl of Sweet and Spicy Sweet Potato Leek Soup, garnished with cinnamon, nutmeg, shredded coconut and parsley.

Dinner for 1, at home, does not have to be boring.

Luckily I had the foresight to plan my dessert early in the day; I had two bananas sitting in the freezer and  waiting  to be processed into Chocolate Banana Soft Serve.  Three words: Move over, Stögo! I topped mine with roasted almonds and walnuts.

It was rich, creamy, and far better than anything packaged I’ve bought recently.  You better believe I licked up every last trace of “batter.”

I can’t wait to play around with this! There are so many options based on what’s in the pantry alone.

After dinner I finished my reading, and just as I was about to e-mail my notes to myself (I type everything out on my Blackberry… it’s an odd habit), the memo deleted itself.  I searched IT message boards, asked people I knew with Blackberries if there was any way to retrieve data that wasn’t backed up on a computer… nothing.  Seven hours of work has been LOST.   So… tomorrow will be another early morning.  It’s not the end of the world.

Bonne nuit

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!

Yesterday, my last day in Minnesota, was quite relaxing.  I slept in a little, then woke up, had some fruit…

I did quite a [...]]]> Evening, chickadees!  How was the rest of your weekend?  I can’t believe it’s over already… the days are just flying by, and I can’t seem to do a thing about it!

Yesterday, my last day in Minnesota, was quite relaxing.  I slept in a little, then woke up, had some fruit…

I did quite a number on those grapes!  Produces isn’t safe when I’m around.

We had a 12:30 reservation for brunch at the club, so I didn’t want to fill up too much… but I did caffeinate.

I loaded my plate to the brim on round one at the buffet…

In the mix:

• mixed greens
• artichokes
• hearts of palm
• peppers
• cottage cheese
• cherry tomatoes
• pumpkin seeds
• cauliflower
• balsamic vinaigrette
• seafood salad
• citrus- marinated mushroom
• strawberries, cantaloupe & pineapple

The halibut cake (about the size of an orange slice)  called to me on round 2.

I took a little bit of everything for dessert: mini magic & fudge bars, the bottom of a piece of pumpkin cake, and fresh berries.

I sipped on a cup of Darjeeling tea throughout the meal…

Don’t silk tea sachets feel so fancy? I love it!

With good reason, brunch held me over for hours.  We went straight to the airport from the club, with just enough time to check in and board.  I snacked on Pink Lady apple on the plane, more out of boredom than hunger.  (Hopefully I’ll finish this book before the year is out… it’s been long enough!)

When I got home, I made something quick and easy (although perhaps not as aesthetically pleasing as one might hope): Annie’s Mac & Cheese with a Morningstar Farms Pizza Burger, one small sweet potato, chili flakes and a scoop of nutritional yeast.  The entire thing was made in the microwave! Unfortunately, not all of my meals can be like the ones I ate over the weekend.  If only!

As per Sunday tradition, I ate my dinner while catching up on Thursday’s episode of Grey’s Anatomy.

I wanted something sweet (because I hadn’t quite had my fill already ) so I microwaved a banana for 90 seconds and topped it with Pure Dark cardamom chocolate, cinnamon, and agave nectar.

The first thing I ever cooked by myself on the stove was a version of this… I used to eat it while watching Wishbone after school.  Pretty cool.

Well, I’m off to get dinner started.  Please excuse my foreseeable absent-mindedness over the next few days… I have a lot to do to organize myself, and a wedding to go to at the end of the week.  I’ll do my best!

Have a great night

Yesterday started off on a good note with [...]]]> Hey there! How was your Tuesday? Mine began in a hurry and ended with ice cream, and now I’m in bed watching Michael Clayton.   Ari’s leaving tomorrow to go Vigilante and we’ve all got things to do, so this is going to be a quickie!

Yesterday started off on a good note with a generous portion of Oats In A Jar.

In the mix:

• PB jar w/ about 1 T PB
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• 2 dried apricots
• 1 dried fig
• dried cherries

Mighty fine, I tell ya.  I should finish jars of nut butter every day!

After breakfast, I hustled over to Starbucsk to get some work done.  I sipped on a Grande Skim Misto with a shot of espresso for a few hours…

… and spaced my lunch out over about four hours to maximize my efficiency.  Every 100 pages, for example, I could eat another part of my meal.  It’s a pretty good trick! I had honeydew…

… samples of marble cake and hazelnut-espresso truffle drink (too sweet for me)…

…mixed greens with fake chicken nuggets…

TJ’s plain nonfat Greek yogurt with YouBars‘ Chocolate Peanut trail mix…

… rebel carrots…

… and a grapefruit.   When I was really young I used to snack throughout the day rather than have square meals, and there’s something to be said for this! It works nicely when I’m trying to be productive, but I think I prefer eating three times a day, plus snacks.  Do you eat three meals or snack throughout the day?

Dinner was a really, really big salad.  I love these! I eat almost an entire head of romaine or bag of spinach at a time.

In the mix:

• 1 handful spinach
• 4 romaine leaves
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 Gala apple
• 1 TJ’s frozen salmon patty
• dulse flakes
• cilantro-chili vinaigrette

I overdid it on dessert a little bit… I just kept going back for more Edgies!  My tum was a little unhappy with me when I went to bed, but I’m pretty sure the brownies were worth it

I thought I was going to wait until tomorrow to share this with you, but today my physical therapist gave me the okay to run.  With the exception of the two minutes I ran on the treadmill during my first therapy session, I haven’t really run since I hurt my knee during my 10K race.  My therapist only let me run for 15 minutes, but it felt great! I didn’t feel any pain in my knee, and felt proud that I had followed the doctor’s and therapist’s orders to stay off my legs until the time was right.  But baby, I’m back!

What made you proud today?