Check Plus

Best Sunday Ever.  My to do list is beyond checked:

Write my plans for the week.  Make my materials for the week.  Go to Staples for supplies.  Do my grading.  Eat tons of fantabulous vegan food!  All checked off.

I woke up this morning around 10:00 and felt like doing some work before I made breakfast, so I snacked on some Quackers samples from my swag bag.

Noontime breakfast was soooo good, Cinnamon Bun Oats!

I made a 1/2 portion of oats which I topped with “icing,” candied pecans, and cinnamon sugar.  The “icing” was Stoneyfield soy vanilla yogurt mixed with maple syrup.

And here is the recipe for the candied pecans (I made A the same breakfast),

• 1/2C chopped pecans
• 1/2T Smart Balance Light
• 1.5t sugar
• 1pinch salt
• Melt the Smart Balance in a small saucepan and then reduce the heat to low.  Pour in pecans and turn to coat.  Sprinkle in sugar and salt, mix and heat until golden (about 2minutes).

I used 2T of pecans on my oats.

So much better than Cinnabon could ever do!

We did work, work, and more work and then headed to Staples.  While we were out we took the time to take a walk.  I bought A an O’Soy chocolate yogurt to try the other day and now he’s obsessed, so we needed back to the “hippie store.”  We bought a very late lunch to go while we were there.

I loved the bbq, so today I tried Sweet and Sour tofu.

Very tasty.  To be honest though, I didn’t drink soda most of last week and I enjoyed my Diet Coke Plus even more!

For dessert I ate one of these tasty Enjoy Life Caramel Apple snack bars.

After more, more, more work A confessed that he had used up all of the rice I was planning to cook for dinner, so we headed back out to the little store by our house.  We had to spend $10 to charge so we picked up a few things, including Sugar Free Jelly Bellys.  I’ve never had them before, but I’m sure you’ll be seeing them soon.

A very late dinner was based around more new items; TJ’s soy chorizo and a can of lentils.

I’d never had lentils before, I am definitly a convert now!  We heated the proteins in a skillet and then mixed them into 4 servings of rice for a delicious 5serving pot.

For a side we used this giganto head of cabbage.

We are officially naming it The Beast, look at what it did to A’s knife!

He was a trouper though, and when I finally had a pile of shreds I put them into a pot where I had evoo over low heat.  I doused the slaw with apple cider vinegar and A1 Steak Sauce and covered it for 5minutes.  Yum, yum.

All together – Rice and Beans Revamped with Steamy Steaky Slaw.

I must have told A how good this was 8 times during our meal!  I actually have one more grading task to do before bed so I’ve got to run, have a great night readies!

Mondays can suck, what are you excited for tomorrow? I am excited to get back to the gym!

*****Updated to add – while I posted I ate a serving of beans (80calories).

The flavor was right but the texture was pretty weird.  I will finish the bag but I will be sticking to the regular beans for now on.

Facts

1. I did not go to the gym.
2. I hate myself a little.
3. I’m really glad I got a chance to decompress.

I kind of just sat.  I watched some Wife Swap, read a few magazines, made dinner.  I was feeling tired and super hungry and I let it get the best of me.

As I sat around I ate a HUGE handful of (unphotographed) nuts and the rest of the baby carrots with about 2T TJ’s hummus.

I also had another serving of chocolate soymilk.

This was VitaSoy.

For dinner I said “screw this vegan crap,” and made burgers and fries!

Just joshing – they were oven baked fries and black bean burgers.  For the fries I thinly sliced two small potatoes, sprayed them with Smart Balance cooking spray, sprinkled with salt, and baked at 475* for 25minutes.

The burgers were 2cans of rinsed and drained black beans, mashed with 1t poppy seeds, 1t oregano, and 1pinch salt.  I made 8 mini patties which I “cooked” with 2T evoo.  We have enough for leftovers tomorrow.

I scarfed the fries and ate 1.5 of my patties, with ketchup.  My guilt is forcing me to set the alarm early to work tomorrow so I’ve got to go, don’t let the bedbugs bite!

How do you feel when you miss a gym session?

Super Bowl Super Bowls

In honor of the football game (YaY Steelers!) I ate my dinner, and dessert, from a bowl.  I actually didn’t really watch the game, it was more background noise to my school work.  I have absolutely no team alliances.  A enjoyed it though, and I am officially up to speed.  It’s going to be a busy week, so I wanted to be sure I was ready.

After I trecked out to Staples, I made yummy bowl #1

This SuperBowl was a healthy nod to a few gametime favorites.

• 1/2C frozen Tj’s white corn, microwaved
• 1/2C butter beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 Tysons chicken nuggets, cooked and chopped
• 1oz smoked Gouda, chopped
• 1 sprinkle of paprika

Prepare all of the ingredients separately and combine in one bowl.  Stir to combine, and microwave for 1minute to get the cheese nice and gooey.  It was the perfect meal to eat while I worked.

Later on it was time for dessert.  I’ve had this idea in my head for a while, and tonight I finally put it to action – Strawberry Gobbler (like cobbler, but healthy, so you can gobble it up!).

First you combine 1C of strawberries and 1/2C of skim milk, and microwave until warm (2-3minutes, depending on your microwave).

Next you top your mush with 4 crunched graham cracker squares,

1T ground flax seed,

and a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar.

Strawberry Gobbler!

This was the perfect way to end my day.  I thought it was so good I am submitting it to OSG’s fun new contest!  I think this is a great example of a healthy, festive, Valentine’s treat.

I’m headed to bed, Sweet Dreams Cardinals fans, and Sweeter Dreams Pitt fans!

Under the Sea

A recap and a theme night!  I get super excited about anything involving a theme (I probably really  should have done the sorority thing in college!) and A and I made a  list of fun theme nights a bit ago.  We finally got to do the first one, but more on that later.

I scrapped the whole “wake up early” thing this morning and instead snuggled with A for more than an hour! xoox.  When I did get out of bed, late, I scrambled to the subway and bought this for breakfast.

(yes, I am wearing purple tights!)

For lunch I packed a salad made with the second half of the butter beans.

• 1/2 a can of butter beans
• chopped red, orange, and yellow peppers
• 2T feta cheese
• and homemade dressing – I shook the last of the mini jar of raspberry wasabi mustard with 1/4t evoo and 1/2t rice vinegar – yum!

I was starving all day today.  Prior to lunch I actually felt like I was going to pass out in the middle of a class!  I had to stay for afterschool so I ate one of the school provided snacks – “heartzels” and apple juice.

At less than 200calories and no saturated fat I think this is a pretty good “government food.”

When I got home I couldn’t resist eating a big fork of peanut butter though!

And then it was on to theme night # 1 – Under the Sea!  We rented Finding Nemo and ate these fantastic fishy foods:

We ate in three courses while we watched the movie.  First, I swam a few mozzarella goldfish in some Pacific roasted carrot soup.

I ate most of my crackers on the side though, the soup wasn’t really a mixing flavor.

 Next I ate my fish sticks.

And finally I topped slow churned vanilla ice cream with some homemade strawberry jam and some gummy fish!

 

I’m excited for my pd tomorrow; the topic sounds fun and I don’t have to go to school!  I got an e-mail saying that breakfast would be provided and lunch was available for purchase at the museum cafe.  Since we have less than $5 challenge dollars left the plan is to eat breakfast at home, snag a free snack, then pack a small meal for lunch.  Catch ya in the AM!

Butter and Cheese*

*title is a pun – that makes my english-teacher-self glee-full!

I have a self-imposed bedtime 20minutes from now so this post will be quick – just like my breakfast.

I had a Kashi pumpkin spice crunchy bar on the train.  Sidenote: have any nyc readers been able to find the seasonal iced gingerbread Cliff Bars in the city?!?!  They were mentioned on EatLiveRun and now I’m obsessed with finding some!  I also snacked on this x3 throughout the morning!

For lunch I packed the world yummiest sandwich!

It doesn’t look like much but it was crazy good – a mini bun with 1.5 sliced of turkey, a slice of white cheese, spread with some hot pepper peach preserves; pepper peach pleasure!  Alongside a honey Oikos.

I love the texture of this yogurt, but the honey was watery which made the mixed result runny.  I would really like to try the rest of the Oikos flavors but I don’t think I can shell out the money again after this one.  Hopefully I will see them on sale.

I stayed after school for tutoring and then headed up into the city for a 7pm doctor’s appointment.  I knew I’d have to buy a beverage (I’m not together enough right now to manage carrying around my Sigg) so I bought this.

I have waited more than a year since I first saw these to buy one, but ultimately, meh.  I threw it out about halfway through.

When I got home A had dinner waiting for me!  Buttery Pasta!

No butter actually, butter beans!  A made a box of Annie white cheese shells and added in 1.5C of brocoli and cauliflower towards the end of the cooking time.  I topped my portion with half a can of butter beans.

Sorry to be gross, but I feel like I should explain why I keep going to the doctor.  While I have been sick a few times this year I’ve actually been going to a dermotologist.  I have a planters wort on my foot.  And then it was two.  And today I found out that I conquered one but have developed a new one!  I had a planters wort once before and the saga ended up with a major surgery and a summer spent on A’s couch so I try to be vigilant.  I’m going a little crazy though!  The doctor said some people have a propensity to get them and that my immune system is probably compromised due to lack of sleep and stress.

So, in the idea of reducing stress (and adding in my cheese) I wanted to let you all in on some of the things I am currently excited about:

1. I received an e-mail this morning that I passed the education test a took a month ago.  this mean (I think) that I will offically be a certified teacher soon!
2. by the end of our challenge our shelves will officially be bare which means I finally get to do a full-scale restock and shopping trip at the Trader Joes that opened in Brooklyn more than a month ago!
3. I am attending a pd on Thursday (about teaching nonfiction to middle-schoolers) which means I get to skip a day of school and hang out with grown-ups!

What upcomming things are YOU excited about?

A Worktastic Recap

I need to start this morning off by going back to yesterday morning (but it needs to be quick, I’ve still got work to do).

I had to start the day with a pecan pie chocolate!

Then A and I decided to use our free meal for the week because we will be in PA this weekend, we went to Stone Park Cafe for breakfast!

There was a 30minute wait so we walked around 5th for a while, even stopping by this new farmers’ market!

We also shared this tea.

Stone Park Cafe had a great sounding menu, we want to go back soon to try the other choices, but I settled on the Pan Seared Bluefish Cake.

 

I didn’t eat the slaw, but I shared with A and we devoured it!  The toast was sourdough, my favorite.

A and I split up and I headed over to Ozzies to work on my grading.  I had a medium skim cappuccino and a spice cookie while I worked.

I went home around 5 for more work.  Things were going well, and I was even going to go to the gym, until I realized Staples closed an hour earlier than I thought and I had to run around like a chicken with my head cut off to get my copies done!

We made Mexican Rice Bowls for dinner.  It’s really not a “recipe,” but they’re yummy.

• stew four portions of chicken, I added apple cider vinegar to the boiling water
• cook four portions of brown rice according to the directions
• roast 2 red peppers and 3/4 of a pint of cherry tomatoes(we did 20minutes at 425* with a little Pam and salt)
• Mix veggies, rice, and chicken together with a can of low-sodium black beans
• I topped mine with a few shakes of Chipotle Tabasco, an ounce of New York sharp cheddar, and a dollop of nonfat plain Chiobani

 

Dinner was awesome (which I told A about 8 times during dinner!), but I was still hungry.  I was craving peanut butter, but we are out of bread, so I melted about 2Tbsps of natural peanut butter and mixed it with about a 1/4 C of Kashi Go Lean.

Perfection.

I also snacked on these mints while I planned.

Now THIS morning, blogging took longer that I thought and I have to run!  I’ll post dinner after school!

Eat, Drink, and Be Happy

After my relaxing start the day got much more hectic!  I was busy every moment and even had to give up my prep to go to a meeting about the after-school program.  I was pissed, particularly because I had no time to even eat lunch, but at least now “tomorrow’s” lunch is packed and ready to go in the school fridge!

My classes were stressful today; I was super excited about my lesson and I didn’t really get to teach it.  Part of it is being in a middle school (I’m a high-school teacher at heart) and part of it is the management issues, but I really missing teaching.  That sounds silly but it’s true.  Has anyone else experienced this?  I also had a major altercation with a student that left me in tears I was so angry (I’m really not comfortable with details, but suffice to say he is 17years old and in 8th grade and when I tried to call security about him today he pushed past me and slammed down the phone).

After tutoring I headed into the city for my doctor’s appointment, I ate half of this Kashibar on the train up.  I like the fact that this is loaded with fiber and protein, but it just tasted too sweet.

My appointment got out late and I was starving by the time I headed home so I grabbed a pack of Mentos (I ate all of this, probably not the best move) and a Snapple drink.  I don’t believe in the metabolism boosting properties of this, but it was 20calories per bottle and pink!

My appointment ran late and I was pretty upset by they time I got home.  And then I encountered this:

My mommy sent me a gift package!  A gold scarf, a new color of the Gap t I own 10million of, Chanel nail polish in what apparently is the cool shade of the season, the new Gregory Maguire book, and a beaded necklace from St. John.  The gold purse actually belonged to her; I’m obsessed with it and borrow it whenever I’m home.  Because I’m an only child, and my mom is the nicest lady ever, this is actually the second cool bag I’ve “inherited” from her!  This made my night; I was squawking at A like a crazy person about how excited I was for at least 20minutes!

I played Holly Homemaker for dinner, and finally got to tackle the Eat, Drink, and Be Vegan recipe I’ve been salivating over ever since my mother gave me this cookbook for my birthday.  I made the “Cocoa Coconut Chili,” alongside some corn bread cake (from a Jiffy box mix).

While I snacked I ate more of these than I should have, about 1.5servings.  We usually don’t have chips around but I was majorly craving them.

I topped my chili – which was fantabulous! – with a little bit of nonfat plain Chiobani.

And topped my cornbread slice with some PromiseActiv and a sprinkle of paprika.

All together.

My mouth and stomach are quite satisfied and I’m looking forward to left-overs tomorrow.  Also tomorrow is a very early wake-up call to finish some work, so I’m off to cuddle with the hubby!  Happy snuggling all!

Franks for the Memories

I’m done with a big stuff for the week!  I still have projects to do, but I’m feeling good.  I used the following ingredients to create a yummy dinner -

With broccoli A made (sprinkled with wasabi sesame seeds) and some vegan wontons.

Fabu!  The hot dogs were soooo good.  I’m very much looking forward to leftovers tomorrow.  These wontons are wonderful as well.

Later on I also had a small bowl of FiberOne caramel squares topped with granola that I forgot to photograph.  There’s been another House rerun on, so it’s been a good night.  See you in AM!