Chewy Chewy Chewy!

Brunch today was a deliciously chewy bowl of steel-cut oats!

So much texture!

The mix was:

• 1/4 cup steel-cut oats (170cal)
• ~1 tbsp chia seeds (38cal)
• pinch sea salt
• 3/4 cup water

All cooked together and then topped with:

• 1 tbsp Nuttzo (90cal)
• 1 tbsp Crofter's Superfruit Spread in "North America" (30cal)
• 1-2 tbsp 2% milk (15cal)

There's me in the spoon hah.

I'm not sure why my photos are so extra terrible today.

=343 calories

A bit later I snacked on this juicy sweet apple:

=~90cal

Dinner tonight was some incredible pasta!

Pappardelle pasta with ground buffalo mixed into Rising Moon's Garlic and Chanterelle Mushroom pasta sauce that I jazzed up a bit with some spices.

Pappardelle pasta is so cool looking. I love how thick it is- so chewy!

My serving was:

• ~70g dry pasta (250cal)
• 1/2 cup sauce (40cal)
• 1/3 lb buffalo (218cal)

I also had a nummy little end piece of garlic bread toasted in the oven with butter (150cal?)

=658 calories

=1091 calories for the day

Eat Your Veggies!

You're going to be seeing a lot of me this week! I decided that I haven't been eating enough veggies lately, so I'm making a push towards cleaning up my food. Blogging helps me hold myself to my goals :P. Oh annnnd I may even be counting calories ha ha.


Anyyywayyys,  after some cleaning, I started off the day with a fistful of vitamins and supplements and a green smoothie!

I tried something different with my smoothie today. Instead of my usual blob of nut butter, I added in some peanut butter chips that I've had in the pantry from a baking endeavor. I got them at Whole Foods and they are made using Maranatha peanut butter which is one of my favorite brands. Unfortunately, it wasn't as good as usual. It was by no means bad, and it was fun sipping up little chunks of peanut butter chip, but it just can't compete with a big ol' blob of nut butter plopped in.
The mix included:

• 120g frozen banana (107cal)
• a huuuge handful of baby spinach (5cal)
• 1 tbsp ground flax (30cal)
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (40cal)
• 15g Sunspire peanut butter chips (80cal)
• a few ice cubes

=262 calories

Dinner this evening was a recipe that I have made before- Yoga Hot Pot. 

Seriously, amazingly delicious! Plus, it makes a ton and it's even better as leftovers! It's super comforting and oh-so-satisfying with a healthy kick from the spices :]

My version included:

• 1 tbsp coconut oil (120cal)
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped (60cal)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, ground
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of sea salt
• 1 head of broccoli, cut into small florets (60cal)
• 1 smallish fennel bulb, sliced (70cal)
• 2 carrots, chopped (50cal)
• 1 zucchini, sliced (20cal)
• 1 (28 oz.) can plum tomatoes (175cal) + 1/2 can water
• 2/3 cup red lentils (453cal)
• 1 can chickpeas (420cal), drained and rinsed

=1428 calories for entire recipe

Basically you just saute the onion, garlic, ginger and spices in the coconut oil until the onions are translucent. Then add the other veggies and saute for 5-8 minutes. Next, add in the tomatoes +water and lentils and boil for 25 minutes. Add in the chickpeas and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Top with fresh cilantro and feta cheese and serve!

I had maybe 1/4 of the recipe (476cal), which is about 20 ounces, topped with cilantro and 2 oz. of feta (150cal).

I also had two tiny pieces of toasted french bread with butter on the side (maybe 150cal at the most)

=776 calories

My dessert this evening was a slice of homemade Hot Milk Sponge Cake with Whipped Cream and Balsamic Berries, MMMMMM! Recipe to come over on my other blog.

=maybe 500 calories?

I am NOT looking forward to working on my English paper tomorrow :(.

=1538 calories for the day

Well hello there

Hiiiiii *waves*
How have you been? I've been buuuusy! I'm in the process of trying to write my 10-12 page final paper for my English class along with just finishing up a final project for my archaeology class. It's crunch time since school is almost over, but guess what? I got a 100% on my last archaeology test! Whooo!
I also managed to get terribly sick with a sinus infection and a bad case of bronchitis, but I'm all better now!
Here's a few delectable delights that I have been munching on the past few weeks:


This was an awesome salad that I had:

consisting of:

• baby spinach
• chickpeas
• goat cheese
• a blob of hummus
• Annie's Naturals Lite Honey Mustard Vinaigrette
• lots of sea salt and fresh cracked pepper
• a few Dr. Kracker's Sunflower Cheddars on the side

served with an AMAZING sliced pear:

It was super juicy and sweet!

This strawberry-lemonade cupcake from Trophy Cupcakes was one of the best cupcakes I have EVER had:

This is a delicious salad that I had at Panera:

It's new for summer and it's called the Strawberry Poppyseed and Chicken Salad. It's really refreshing and loaded with fruit: mandarin oranges, pineapple, strawberries, and blueberries, plus it also has crunchy pecans and a low-fat poppyseed vinaigrette. It's quite good for you too at only 280 calories for a huge full-size salad! I got mine with a little apple and it was one of the best lunches ever!

And this is a baby granola bar that I got as a sample at VegFest!:

Theses Earnest Eats ars are so amazing because they are made with almond butter- total yum! After trying them at the booth at VegFest I went out and bought five so that I could try all the flavors! I highly recommend them (they are formerly known as Honest Foods).

:/

Well, I promise I haven't forgotten about this blog. I've just been seriously neglecting it. To be honest, I'm not entirely sure why. I just, haven't really felt like posting on it I suppose. That's the worst excuse ever, I'm aware, which is why I am no longer making promises about what I post and how often I will post. What you can count on is my other blog: Spache the Spatula!
So, I will still be posting here, and it may be for 3 straight months, every day, and then not for a few weeks, or only like once a week. Just know that I'm not giving up on this blog; I'm simply getting real about how often (or not) posts can be expected :P.


Oddly enough, though I haven't been posting, I have still been taking pictures. Here's some random eats I've had since my last post:


Honey Bunches of Oats with Pecan Bunches (such a nummy cereal!):

This is an awesome pasta dish I created with linguini, Marcona almonds, and arugula with a olive oil/lemon/garlic/white wine sauce and sprinkled with freshly grated parmigiana reggiano:

Pacific Natural Foods Cashew Carrot Ginger soup with some chopped roasted cashews and fresh grated ginger on top:

PITA PIT! (my typical hummus/feta/veggies pita served up with Kettle Sea Salt & Vinegar chips obv.):

And finally, check out how completely and utterly gorgeous Seattle has been lately!:

Mt. Rainier:

Here I am :]

So what have I been up to? This is going to be a very quick run-down.


Thursday:


I had a delicious Nature's Path Chococonut Granola Bar before my archeology lab and english class. I love Nature's Path! I think I've said that before, but seriously... everything they make is delicious!

After I got back from class, I had a slice of the Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bread that I baked. Shortly after, Mikey showed up with his friend who was in town for the weekend and after a couple of hours we went and got some dinner at Mexico Cantina. I was SO happy to see that the Curry Burrito that I used to always get but was taken off of the menu was on special for the night! I ate my entire humongous burrito!


Friday:


Lunch was at Specialty's Cafe and Bakery where I got my usual sandwich- "The Vegetarian" sans mayo, ranch, and provolone cheese. I also got a cup of their Ratatouille soup which came with a small whole wheat roll. I ate about 2/3 of the soup, 3/4 of my sandwich, and the roll :].


At around midnight we went to grab dinner at Earl's where I got the Los Cabos Chicken Tacos appetizer: two grilled soft corn tortillas, spicy tomato poached chicken, avocado corn salsa, melted cheddar and monterey jalapeno jack, shredded lettuce, chopped cilantro, and salsa picante. The tortillas were a bit chewy, I thought. I also got a martini called "Doctor's Orders": blueberry smirnoff vodka, acai mangosteen juice and agave nectar, and fresh squeezed lime juice. It was good, but kind of small and not good enough for $7.


Saturday:


We went to Panera for lunch where I got a You-Pick-2 (go figure). I got a 1/2 Greek salad, the garden vegetable and pest soup, and a whole wheat baguette for my side.


For dinner, we went to The Ram. I got the veggie burger which comes on a whole wheat bun, and I doused it in hot sauce :P. My side was, naturally, sweet potato fries. I also got a cocktail (yes two nights in a row hah)- a delicious mojito made with Bacardi Dragonberry and strawberry puree.


Sunday:


Lunch was Panera again, hah, another You-Pick-2 with a 1/2 Greek salad, French onion soup, and a whole grain baguette.


I had a piece of banana bread a bit later, and for dinner I had cereal- a mighty large bowl:

Honey Bunches of Oats with Pecan Bunches with a small sliced banana and raspberries.


For dessert, I had a deliciously refreshing Dreyer's Acai Blueberry Fruit Bar (popsicle).

Whew! Now for today (Monday):


Lunch was an amazing salad:

• baby arugula
• chopped, oven-roasted asparagus (drizzled with a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and fresh cracked pepper and popped in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes)
• 2 soft-boiled eggs (drop eggs in boiling water for 4 minutes then transfer to cold water and peel)
• parmigiano reggiano cheese
• dressing: extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, sea slat, fresh cracked pepper, fresh dill)

I also had two little slices of toast on the side to sop up the dressing/yolk.

For dinner, Mikey and I went to his parent's house where they had prepared an excellent dinner of scallops, steak, steamed asparagus, and salad. I had 4 little scallops, 1/2 a piece of steak, a side salad (topped with onion, tomato, croutons, various nuts and seeds, and a dressing of roasted pepper olive oil and aged balsamic), and a small slice of garlic loaf with butter.

Dessert was an itsy-bitsy piece of pie that I made for the occasion- Momofuku Milk Bar's Crack Pie which I will have up on my other blog asap because it is freakin' amazing!