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Freaky Friday

Nora — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 11:38:50 +0000

BOO!Pumpkin-Chia Greek Yogurt. Homemade Gingersnap Granola. Banana. Almond Butter and Crofter’s Europe Superfruit Spread.

Breakfast was terrifyingly delicious. It all started with a spooky base of Chobani Plain Greek Yogurt, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, cloves, all spice, pumpkin pie spice and chia seeds.I love the little chia seeds. They make the pumpkin yogurt even more festive. We are having a Halloween celebration at work today so I felt that it was appropriate to start the day with spooky food.Yes, I am in my 20′s, but sometimes it is okay to play with your food.

Spooktacular,

Nora

What are your favorite Halloween foods?

Save a Bowl, Recycle a Jar

Nora — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 11:31:10 +0000

Oats In A Jar:

1/4 cup rolled oats, 1/8 cup oat bran, 1/3 cup vanilla soy milk, 2/3 cup water, 1/2 TBS chia seeds, 1/2 sliced banana, pinch of kosher salt, cinnamon, and vanilla extract cooked on the stove top. Topped with homemade pumpkin butter, Crofter’s South America Superfruit Spread, crushed almonds and walnuts, ~ 1 TBS crunchy peanut butter residue.

Eating hot oatmeal out of an almost empty nut-butter jar is one of my “guilty pleasure” breakfasts. I love stumbling upon a spoonful of warm peanut/almond butter. Each bite is like a little gift. And, I mean, how fun is it to eat out of a jar? It keeps me young.

I appreciate that eating my oats in this fashion. I have one less dish to wash by hand (I’m dishwasher-less) and it gives me a legitimate excuse to lick every morsel of my peanut or almond butter jar clean. This is something that I would do anyways, so it saves me the embarrassment of getting my hand stuck in the jar.

Fun/Sad Fact: When no one is looking and I’ve had a really good meal or dessert….I lick the plate. Actually, every time I have dessert in the luxury of my apartment not a crumb or molecule of ice cream gets left behind. No shame.

Forever Young,

Nora

What are your “guilty pleasure” foods?

Hot Feet, Cold Brews

Nora — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:31:44 +0000

I know it’s only Thursday, but I am already excited for Sunday. While I was at work yesterday I received a special e-mail from my dad:

“Hot Feet run in the morning, then cold brews in the afternoon.”

YES PLEASE! I was having a crazy day so his message was really appreciated. I spent much of yesterday driving to appointments, running around at work and making phone calls. Did I mention that it all started with an 8am fender bender? It was nothing serious. I was rear-ended at a traffic light and my bumper has a few scratches. I’ve never had to deal with something like this before and spent a good amount of time on the phone with a lady from my insurance company. Despite the craziness, all was not lost. I think I found an apartment with a real kitchen . Is it weird that I already have a list of goodies I want to make? At the end of August my blog will become a LOT more interesting. I can’t wait!

I went for a run this morning to prepare for my Sunday. I am planning to run about 10-miles so preparations are necessary. I fueled with a Super-Charge-Me Cookie and ran a light 3-miles. I have been playing around with a few “pre-run” foods and think I am going to wake up early and have peanut butter and banana toast before my long run. The best fuel for me seems to be some combination of banana and peanut butter.

When I got back I made a Green Monster Smoothie in a Bowl. I love cooling down with a refreshing breakfast. And this one had Dark Chocolate Dreams!

Blender: 1 frozen banana, 1 cup vanilla soy milk, 1 scoop Dark Chocolate Dreams PB, 1 Scoop Vanilla Whey Protein Powder, 2 handfuls of spinach, cinnamon, ice.

Toppings: Vanilla Granola, Coconut Butter, Handful of Blueberries (at the bottom of my bowl haha).

Lunch today is another “whatever-isn’t-spoiled-in-my-fridge” production.

Salad: Spinach, Cucumber, Tomato, Radish, Olive Oil/Balsamic

Sandwich: Thick slice of 8-grain 3- seed bread, sunflower seed butter, Crofter’s Europe Superfruit Spread.

I actually was really satisfied with lunch yesterday. I had a small snack later in the afternoon but it held me over quite nicely. The 8-grain 3-seed bread is really dense and hearty. A thick slice with nut-butter filled me right up! Amazing and delicious.

Planning a little treat for dinner tonight, can’t wait!!

Weekend Plotting,

Nora

Do you make weekend plans during the week?

Double Trouble

Nora — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 11:18:50 +0000

I’ve never actually been hit by a bus, however; I woke up this morning feeling like I had. I could not fall asleep last night until sometime between 2:30 and 3am. I am estimating this time frame because I recall seeing the clock at 2:15am and then woke up sprawled out on my futon at 3:15am when I made my way to bed. These are dreadful hours when you have to wake up at 5:30am. Not good.

Needless to say, it was a two cup morning. One cup full of coffee, and the other for overnight oats. I have no real reason for making my oats in a cup other than I really, REALLY wanted to use my new teaspoon! My obsession for dishes also extends to utensils and let me tell you this was FUN to eat with! Is it sad I’m looking forward to making granola topped smoothies so I can use this spoon to “dig” for sunken granola? I lead an exciting life.

In my glass overnight: 1/2 cup rolled oats, 1/2 TBS chia seeds, 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk, 1/4 Kefir and cinnamon. Topped in the morning with: 1 large banana, raw honey, sunflower seed butter and Crofter’s South America Super Fruit Spread (Maqui and Passion Fruit. I forgot how much I liked this spread!).

I think I finally found my ideal overnight combination! This breakfast was delicious, filling and helped me wake up!

My lunchbox is packed with a hummus/veggie wrap, a large carrot and an Empire apple.I always need a veggie fix at lunch time .

Hopefully these foods will keep me focused and counteract my lack of sleep!

Working Away,

Nora

Do you have any tips/tricks to help you fall asleep?

Turn up the VOLUME!

Nora — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 11:15:23 +0000

It took me approximately 8 years to finish my breakfast this morning. Oat bran my friends, is not for the faint of heart.

In my oversize cappuccino mug: 1/4 cup oat bran, 1/4 cup rolled oats, 1/2 banana, 1 TBS chia seeds, 1 cup (plus ~1/3 cup added after stirring and cooking) water, cinnamon and vanilla extract topped with 1 TBS crunchy almond butter and Crofter’s Asia Superfruit Spread (my favorite of the four flavors FYI!).

It was worth taking the extra time to eat because this bowl was delicious and quite filling. I polished off the last of my vanilla soy milk last night with a few super-charge me cookies, so I was skeptical about how it would turn out. I love adding a half milk, half water combination to my oats because it contributes to a luscious and creamy texture. I missed the milk, however; this bowl was extremely fluffy on it’s own from the oat bran. I nearly had ANOTHER kitchen disaster as the oats began to rise above the rim of the cup in the microwave! AH! I’m still finding glass shards/ getting pieces of glass stuck in my hands and feet, I can’t deal with any more mishaps.

I’m so happy to have hot oatmeal back in my life!

Breakfast Lover,

Nora

How do you like your oatmeal? What types of oats do you use?

In With The Old

Nora — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 11:21:22 +0000

Happy Wednesday!

I thought you might be getting sick of my daisy bowl and cold oats, so I decided to switch things up for today with a new combination. Actually I’m lying, the daisy bowl is dirty. Enter: dancing crab bowl. For the first time in months I was craving hot oatmeal for breakfast. I needed some warmth and comfort before venturing out into the rain and 50 degree temperatures (remember when it was 80+ and sweltering last week??). This breakfast reminded me of my love for hot banana, creamy oat bran, crunchy chia seeds and coconut butter.

In my dancing crab bowl:

1/4 cup oat bran, 1/4 cup rolled oats, 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 mashed banana, 1/2 TBS chia seeds, cinnamon and vanilla extract. Topped with Crofter’s North America Superfruit Spread, Coconut Butter and Brazil Nuts.

With a breakfast like this, I already can tall that it is going to be a good day despite the weather.

And now for some BIG NEWS!

: Swimming 500 yd Freestyle in 2006

That’s right, I’m back in the pool! On Monday, June 7, 2010, I ended my 2 year and 4 month swimming hiatus.

I grew up swimming and even participated at the college level for two years as a distance freestyle and backstroke swimmer. Sadly, I became “burned out” and it took me a very long time to gain motivation to get back in the pool. My return was painful. My once rippling arm muscles (okay, maybe not quite rippling but I was strong!) have completely dissipated and now resemble chicken wings. I felt so weak and was only able to complete about 1/8th of the distance I had done in the past but it was a noble start.

Why am I getting back into swimming? Ever since I took my bike out of storage a few weekends ago, I haven’t been able to shake the idea entering a sprint triathlon. If all goes according to plan, I am entering my first sprint triathlon on September 19, 2010!!

Motivated,

Nora

Have you ever given up something that you loved?

Using My Resources and PBC&J

livelifeeatright — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 19:36:02 +0000

Among my, lets call it ’5′ , different types of breakfast cereals sits an almost full bag of muesli. I made this purchase a few months ago and have only used it once. I have a month left of school, and decided it was time to start liquidating my supply. Today I made a very random overnight mix using muesli and open can of pumpkin that has been sitting in my fridge.

Layer 1: 1/4 cup Bob’s Red Mill Muesli, 1/4 cup almond milk

Layers 2, 3 and 4: Pumpkin Yogurt (1/4 cup canned pumpkin, 1/2 cup Greek Yogurt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves) and 1 medium sliced banana.

Layer 5: Galaxy Vanilla Almond Granola

I realize how disgusting this looks, but I have to reassure you that it was fantastic. I am also going green and recycling my apple sauce jar as a dish again. I think I prefer using Muesli for overnight oats, compared to regular rolled oats. I really like the elements of the sunflower seeds and raisins, and the texture they obtain overnight. It creates a creamy and flavorful bowl rather than something on the chewy side. It made a world of difference to incorporate the Greek yogurt and pumpkin a head of time. When I was mixing it together last night it had a soup-like consistency and this morning it formed into the perfect custard. I layered the Pumpkin Yogurt with sliced banana to give it a bit of sweetness. I like adding textural elements to dishes, especially when the main component is creamy. Galaxy Granola is perfect, it holds its texture better than any other I have tried, providing a nice crunch in every bite.

After breakfast I strolled to class and took in the beautiful weather. All that separated me from the weekend was a 10 minute presentation, then FREEDOM! After class, I went to the gym and did 20 minutes of light elliptical and 30 minutes of arm weights (dumbell curls, side crunches, front raises, lateral raises and rows all 3×10). Immediately after, I was anxious to get my number one mission out of the way: operation get a new blender. I packed my old blender up and went to Target to see if I could possibly exchange without a receipt. Normally I would just let it be (I have had it almost a year and didn’t even have the box!), but this blender had a 2-year warranty. I was able to get an upgrade on my blender and it only cost me $8! SCORE! I was happy to make the exchange but it came with a few sacrifices: LUNCH!

I ended up getting stuck in traffic and I could hear my stomach start to rumble. It was nearly 1:30pm! By the time I got home I knew what I wanted: PB and J. I read somewhere that it was National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, and I needed some quick protein so it was essential to have this classic lunch. However, I did have to put a spin on it. On to my peanut butter base went Crofter’s North America Superfruit Spread (a tart spread with cranberries and blueberries) and Shredded Carrot. I’m not sure what possessed me to do this but it worked! On the side I had a Gala Apple with cinnamon, an unpictured Adora chocolate calcium disk COVERED in more PB, and a Mini Monster.

Oh…this mini monster…NOT my best effort. I really wanted to use my blender, and since I lifted a bit at the gym thought I needed some extra calories and protein so I came up with this concoction: 1/2 cup almond milk, splash of water, 2 ice cubes, 1/2 frozen banana, 10 frozen cherries, 1 scoop Chocolate Amazing Meal and 2 handfuls of spinach. Too much spinach not enough sweetness!! I should have added some regular cacao powder and less spinach. Live an learn. It wasn’t so awful, I drank it all, but the prominent flavor was spinach.

I’m headed home tomorrow for Easter and CANNOT WAIT to see my family! Not that I dislike being at school, but I find the most comfort when I am home surrounded by loved ones and have lots of good home cookin’! I plan on doing a bit of cooking with my mom too, so hopefully I’ll be able to snag a few photos before we devour some good eats!

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Nora

What meals do you turn to when you are in a crunch for time?

Fried Eggs and BIG NEWS!

livelifeeatright — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 02:31:09 +0000

I think Sundays are officially going to be my yoga and fresh juice days (except for next week because I will be home with my family for some yummy Easter eats!!). After an afternoon of work, I decided to wind down from my week with a Vinyasa class. The Sunday instructor is SO hard and I was basically DRENCHED in sweat by the end of the class! I was in need of some fresh juice to recover. I wanted the same “Lean ‘n Green” I ordered last week, but they ran out of celery so Beetnik it was. I actually LOVE this drink. The apple, carrot, beet combination is deliciously sweet and earthy; I think I finished it in about a minute flat. I find that there is a noticeable difference in the way I feel when I do and do not have juice post yoga/activities. Drinking raw juice instantly restores my energy levels and my muscles feel less tired and shaky.

After yoga it was POURING rain outside, and I decided to do a little grocery shopping to stock up on some much-needed produce, and some ingredients for the Cooks Mission. To my surprise, they ran out of one of this week’s ingredients: celery root. Who would have guessed that celery root was such a hot item to cook with? I’ll have to find some time and try again tomorrow, because I would be disappointed if I couldn’t participate in such a fun activity. I did manage to find my favorite Mint Cookies ‘n Cream Fro-Yo, pumpkin and oat bran. Oh yea, you can look forward to some interesting oats this week!

It was nearly 7pm when I got home, and I had oddly been craving runny eggs all day. I can’t even remember the last time I had fried eggs, but hey, you have to feed your body what it wants!! I wilted a bed of spinach and topped it with, sautéed white mushrooms and spanish onion in balsamic, 1 sliced Roma tomato, 2 fried eggs, goat cheese, nutmeg, pepper, cinnamon and hot sauce. On the side I had 1 slice of Ezekiel’s 4:9 Sprouted Grain Bread with Crofter’s North America Superfruit Spread. I love having breakfast for dinner. It was a simple and cozy meal for a rainy night. For dessert I had a bowl of Mint Cookies and Cream topped with frozen raspberries. I’m not entirely sure where or why I came up with this combination, but it works!

Tomorrow is the start of another busy week. I have a long day of classes, projects and I am attending a very late (Almost 9pm!) dinner with a friend for Passover. I do not celebrate this holiday, but have a lot of interest in cultural/religious traditions, especially when they surround family, community and food. I am so excited that I am able to share this with her and can’t wait for the experience! Hopefully I’ll be able to sneak a few photographs, but no promises since it is a religious ceremony.

NOW FOR SOME BIG BREAKING NEWS! A little less talk, a little more action……..I BOUGHT A JUICER! Hopefully it will be getting here in the next week or so!!! I cant wait to start making some fresh juices of my own! I decided on the Breville Multi-Speed Ikon Juicer. I can already tell I am going to have WAY too much fun with this!

To Another Week of Good Eats,

Nora

What is something you haven’t had in a while?

Snack Bar Collection Revealed

livelifeeatright — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 16:06:24 +0000

Before I get into my snack bar reviews, lets start with my favorite meal of the day: breakfast. Unless I have something in mind (Let’s be honest, I usually think about what I am going to have for breakfast before I go to bed!), my breakfast cravings tend to be non-existent in the morning; I have to debate with myself as I am getting ready about what I am “in the mood” for. Today was an exception to this, and I woke up thinking, “WARM SPICED APPLE, WARM SPICED APPLE.” I quickly entered the kitchen and made stove top oats with natural chunky apple sauce. In my mix: 1/3 cup natural apple sauce, 1/3 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 1/4 cup water, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla extract, 1/3 cup rolled oats, 1/2 TBS chia seeds, 1 TBS natural crunchy almond butter, Crofter’s North America Superfruit Spread, 1 TBS Bear Naked Fruit and Nut Granola. It was warm and delicious! I’ve never tried almond butter that is JUST ground almonds and was surprised by the runny consistency. I actually really liked it in my oats, but for spoonfuls of nut butter, I think I prefer the sweetness of MaraNatha Crunchy No-Stir.

I have a massive snack bar collection that I need to start cutting down on before graduation! I don’t even know how many Larabars, Kind Bars, Clif Bars, Luna Bars, Kashi Bars and other random bars I have in my apartment. WHOOPSIES, I’m a snack bar pack-rat. I was hungry slightly after breakfast this morning, and decided to try the Bumble Bar, that I purchased a few weeks ago. It was somewhat bland but extremely hearty packed with sesame and flax seeds. I think I am more of a fruit/nut bar person, so this wasn’t my favorite but the toasted sesame flavor was on key.

Before heading back to school yesterday I had a photo-shoot with my princess-cat, Rose, and tried the Ginger Snap Larabar. This bar contains: Dates, Almonds, Pecans, Cinnamon, Ginger and Cloves. I am SO impressed with the flavor! It was spicy and warm; perfect with a cup of orange tea. I immediately ran to my mom’s spice cabinet to investigate the prominent flavor in this bar. The result: Ground Cloves. I love the cozy feeling of this spice, and think it might be making some appearances in my cooking soon!!

I’m having a bit of cookers-block. I have been trying to think of new dishes I want to create but the more I search recipes etc for ideas the more confused I am about where my flavors are coming from, and the combination’s I want to try. This is semi-frustrating, but I know it will pass…well I hope it will pass because I plan to participate in this week’s Cook’s Mission!

I wish I could take after my Princess Rose and lay around all day. How nice it must be to live the life of a cat.

Warm Wishes,

Nora

What are your favorite spices and how do you use them?