Now the Body Talks

Dear Michelle,

After last weekend’s sugar coma, the stomach is currently giving you the silent treatment. So the rest of the body will speak.

Breakfast was a definite improvement.

The bread was perfect. Doughy and fresh.

(I picked up this bread last night. It was halfway gone this morning)

While the almond butter was worth it in the end, the arm is a bit tired from stirring the new jar for 15 minutes. Ahem.

The hand got a bit carried away with the honey on one of the slices, but the mouth enjoyed it nevertheless, cause I mean really its almond butter and honey on toasted Great Harvest bread. AHHHHMAZING!

The entire body appreciated the buzz from the green tea frappachino. Please feed me more of this. I like my caffeine and veggies thankyouverymuch.

A little slip up with the couple of bite of leftover chocolate chip muffins. Ahem. We will let it slide.

Your outfit for your internship was mature.

And a great way to dress up the feet!

A fabulous lunch of TJ’s Indian Fare Jaipur Vegetables over quinoa.

No weird ingredients. Your stomach told me to tell you that it appreciates that.

Finished up the afternoon with some retail therapy. It’s great for the soul.

I would like to thank you for cleaning up your act a bit.

Sincerely,

Your body (minus the stomach… he’s still not talking)

Homemade Lemonade

G’day Bloggers! I got off of my internship a bit early today. Though my boss put me to work it was a bunch of fun. I have no idea why I get such a thrill of writing up an Evacuation Operating Plan, but I do.

Breakfast today was two bowls of cereal. Two bowls because each bowl is filled with about a cup of puffed millet, so a total of 120 calories. Also topped with about a 1/2 cup of Organic Raisin Bran cereal, so about 190 calories. Add in some almond milk and it’s about 390 calories total. I really didn’t feel like photographing it though. I didn’t add any fancy berries or anything, so it wasn’t too exciting! haha.

Lunch

I ate lunch at the office of the internship. I made a veggie volcano–to go!

I steamed broccoli, carrots, green beans, and baby carrots this morning as well as made the quinoa. Topped with TJ’s Satay Peanut Sauce and packed it up. I definitely needed more veggies to top it off, but I’m notorius for putting too many veggies on.

I also noticed that the original veggie volcano came with another sauce that was white. I think it’s close to a mint chutney sauce. I’m going to try adding that on to the volcano next time I make it.

Snack

I was craving a cool, refreshing lemonade when I got home. Enter homemade lemonade.

One fresh squeezed lemon, water, 7 drops of vanilla liquid stevia

So refreshing. I have another  lemon in the fridge so prepare to see this again. Maybe with some raspberries?! OOOOH

I’m off to do some errands with my mom!

Do you make your own lemonade?

My Baby

ARG! Today has been monsterously heartbreaking. Today my baby stopped working. My baby being my beautful Macbook pro. One minute I put her down, the next her screen won’t turn on. The computer itself was running, but the screen was blank. I went to the mac store where the geniuses tried to fix her, but to no avail. She is currently being sent to the mac super genuises in California where hopefully she will be patched up and she will be back in my life in 5-7 days. However, they said that there is a chance that they might have to give me a new hard drive, and not give me back my old one. I don’t have any of my food blogging pictures or my final archicture projects backed up on it! I’m really nervous about that, but it shouldn’t be a hard-drive issue so hopefully my baby’s memory will return.

Well I am now going to be blogging from one of the slowest computers on the planet, but at least it is a computer.

Breakfast

Today actually started off well (obviously before my baby died)

A bowl of oatmeal topped with half a coconut quinoa cookie.

In the Mix:

• 1/2 c. quick cooking oats (I was too hungry when I woke up to deal with the steel-cut stuff)
• 1 T chia seeds
• 1 T flaxseed meal
• 1 1/2 T goji berries
• 1 T raisins
• 1/2 c. almond milk
• 1/4 c. So Delicious Coconut Milk Creamer
• 1/4 c. water

Topped with

• Coconut Butter
• 1/2 a Coconut quinoa macaroon cookie

I think there was enough coconut to last me a very long time. The only sad thing was that the cookie absorbed a lot of the moisture from the oats and got rather soggy

Lunch

Well, after breakfast my baby died. Thankfully I had a mommy and me massage right after this so I didn’t quite panic yet. After the massage it was time for some lunch.

Tempeh sandwich with laughing cow cheese, pesto and red bell pepper

Carrots and celery dipped into some TJ’s original hummus

I had a delayed dessert (about an hour or so) because I was trying to revive my baby.

I thought cottage cheese and carob nibs sounded like a great combo

It sure looked like a great combo. But it was nasty. Maybe I’m just not a huge cottage cheese fan or something.

Dinner

My mom, my best friend and I were going on a great shopping trip for more clothes for convention. I knew we were going to be coming home around 7 or 7:30, so I chopped up all of the makings for shish kebabs before leaving

Then put them in their own containers

When I came home I just shish kebobed all of the makings on and my dad put them on the grill.

Super tasty. I also made Krista’s Coconut Quinoa recipe for the parents and my mom absolutely could not stop raving about it. They said that the dinner was a keeper.

Whew. I just got done putting on all 8 dresses that I am going to wear at convention. My mom and I even coordinated all the accessories to each dress. I am so exhausted. Time to catch up on some blog reading, take a shower and sleep!

Have you ever had your baby die on you?

Veggie Volcanos

Good news bloggies! My stomach has been doing great today!

Lunch

I was excited to recreate the veggie volcano dish I loved at Holy Cow Cafe in Eugene.

In the veggie volcano:

• a bed of quinoa
• mix of steamed vegetables (zuccini, broccoli, parsnips, carrots, red pototos)
• topped with Trader Joe’s Satay Peanut Sauce

This, times two. My bowl simply wasn’t big enough.

I’m surprised how perfectly I was able to recreate this dish! It was so simple and yummy

Gifts

As my mom and I cleaned out the pantry, we noticed that we had a lot of salmon given to us as housewarming gifts, that we will never ever eat.

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

There would be an exhibit C or D, but I threw them out before my mom could say anything.

I swear its a typical gift in the Pacific Northwest. Moving in? Retiring? Promotion? You’re getting a salmon. Ohhh you’re coming from out of the country? Here’s a salmon. Welcome to the Northwest.

It’s madness! And makes me laugh. Sometimes people switch it up and give us canned crab. Yippee!

What is the typical housewarming gift in your region?

Relaying it Up

Hey bloggies! I feel like I have spent the longest time away from my computer since I have started blogging. I was relaying it up at my University. Relay for Life is an event that takes place on a track where you create a team and you walk in a relay along the track overnight. This Relay was 15 hours long, from 5PM Saturday to 8AM Sunday. I was on the committee, however, so I was there from 1PM Saturday to 9AM Sunday. 20 hours!

At the beginning of the event with my roommate Richard, and two friends from the dorms last year. Please don’t mind my friend in the striped shirt. That is just her pose. She’s very proud of her many assets ;)

Since I was on the committee, we had the least priority to get food that was served during the event so I packed my sexy cooler full of goodies

Carrots and celery sticks with quinoa and tuna fish salad underneath for dipping

Cantaloupe

Tempeh Sandwich with Crofters fruit spread, laughing cow cheese and spinach

Banana and sunflower seed butter in a tortilla

sour cream and onion pirates booty

And this healthier version of gatorade kept my electrolytes up while I was baking in the sun

There were also many baked goods sold as fundraisers so I consumed a lemon-coconut-cranberry cookie, a blueberry scone and 1/2 of a chocolate donut. I did not expect to be craving something so starchy during the late night and early morning hours or else I might have packed something to help soothe this craving.

One of the main events at Relay is the Luminaria Ceremony. A college student spoke about his fight with cancer while still attending Oregon and taking finals that didn’t seem so stressful compared to other aspects of his life. Another college student played a couple of beautiful songs on his guitar that he wrote. He was so amazing. Someone needs to give him a recording contract.

After the speakers, we walked around the track in silence remember those who have fought or passed away of cancer.

These were the bags that I dedicated in honor of my family members.

The wee hours of the morning were spent enjoying my newfound single status, so I ended up flirting quite a bit Eventually the sun rose and the committee was pretty delirious by this point. Sights included:

Attempting to get an Oreo from your forehead to your mouth with out using your hands

Dancing to the hokey pokey

And rubbing cupcakes over other’s faces

The last lap of Relay

Richard and I at the very end (warning: I’m looking pretty grody.) That blanket had been attached to me since 3 in the morning.)

That blanket had been attached to me since 3 in the morning.

After an hour of clean up I headed home, ate an unpictured bowl of cereal and slept for 3 hours. I woke up hungry and made a quick lunch of a pulled pork sandwich, an apple and celery stick in the tuna and quinoa salad

My appetite is going strong right now. Time to have my 50th snack of the day.

Have you ever participated in Relay for Life?

Burned and Sidekicks

So I’m on a burning spree with my foods right now.

Breakfast

It started with this veggie and turkey omelette. Low on the veggies, heavy on the burnt.

Surprisingly with a non-burnt sidekick of grapefruit sprinkled with some truvia

It wasn’t too bad considering the omelette was heavily burnt.

Lunch

While eating my breakfast, I was busy burning lunch

A burnt tuna & quinoa sandwich. The toaster oven didn’t turn off when the timer was done. I knew I always hated that thing.

And a non-burnt sidekick of greek yogurt and oranges

I have recently fallen in love with the orange + greek yogurt mix. I love dipping the oranges into the yogurt. It’s tangy and sweet, and just perfect for summer livin’.

Anyone else been burning their foods recently? I used to undercook my food like a typical newbie, but I think I’ve just gotten way to comfortable in the kitchen (and a little bit too distracted)

Many commenters seemed interesting in my grocery-shopping tactics, so stay tuned for a guide to how I make my grocery lists later today!

An Apple Saves the Day

Hi bloggies! I hope everyone is celebrating mother’s day with their madres

Breakfast

I enjoyed some very chocolate Overnight Oats this morning

In the Oats:

• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 3/4 c. almond milk
• 1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder
• 1 c. water
• 1 T chia seeds
• 1 T flaxseed meal
• a sprinkle of cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 T chocolate chips

Thrown into the fridge overnight and 1/2 a banana sliced on top.

These were definitely really yummy, but I might like it with out the protein powder, it got a little too choolately.

Snack & Crash

I went into my studio this morning to work on a project and munched on some unpictured trail mix that contained corn puffs, Life cereal, raisins, coconut and lots of chocolate chips. It was at the end of the mix so there was an insane amount of chocolate chips. Apparently this made my blood sugar level spike, then absolutely crash. I started to get dizzy and lightheaded, so I decided to come home for lunch.

Lunch

By the time I got home my limbs were feeling numb and shaky, and it was hard to stand up. I immediately ran to the kitchen and chowed down on an apple.

Though I was still a bit shaky while making my lunch, I started to feel a lot better.

Lunch was inspired by Katie with a quinoa and tuna salad. Thankfully I had quinoa leftover from yesterday, so I just combined that with the rest of the ingredients.

In the tuna salad

• 1/2 c. leftover quinoa
• 1 can tuna
• a couple of blobs of Chobani greek yogurt
• 1/2 a pickle
• onion
• pepper

on top of a bed of spring greens and a chopped organic carrot

It was a phenomenal mix. I’ve never added quinoa to a tuna salad, but it was definitely a winning choice.

Later

Time for an update on my goals from last week and some goals for this upcoming week as well!

Lunchtime Book Review

And now for a quick check of the weather: it is stunningly gorgeous outside. So we’ll make this quick.

Lunch

I saw Oh She Glow’s Quinoa + Mushroom Tomato Sauce wrap and knew I had to try it. I had all the ingredients anyways.

I wrapped this baby up and paired it with the last of my cantaloupe

It was really good. I naturally got my chocolate-kick afterwards so I ate the last of my Attune bars.

Mmm mint chocolate. I loved the bit of crunch to this one. It’s a toss up between mint chocolate and milk almond as to which is my favorite.

Book Review– In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan

In Defense of Food really made me think. Ever since starting my healthy lifestyle I always thought about just eating healthier, but this book outlines how to eat healthier. Easy things such as looking at the label. Can I pronounce every ingredient? Are there more than 5 ingredients? Does it contain high fructose corn syrup? These questions made picking out food a lot more simple. Also, I always knew that I should get food as local as possible, but Pollan clearly explains why. I honestly did not think that I would like this book, but the last few chapters absolutely astounded me with a great outline of how to eat healthier and why. I highly recommend to all of those Type A’s who love a clear defined organization of a book, as well as anyone else who wants to learn how to eat a healthier diet. This book gets 10 almond butter covered fingers up

Time to soak up the sun a little bit more (slathered in sunscreen of course!).

I feel like a lot of you bloggers have read In Defense of Food, so what do YOU think of it?

Oi!

Hey bloggies! I hope everyone had a relaxing Sunday. I got a chance to update my blogroll earlier in the day and clean my entire apartment later on.

Smoooothie

After the hike I definitely needed some refueling. The girls and I went to Jamba Juice, but I really just wanted to create my own smoothie. I held out and created this beauty.

In the smoothie:

• coconut milk
• blueberry kefir
• frozen strawberries
• 1/2 a frozen ‘nana
• 1 T goji berries
• 1/4 of an orange
• ice

It was absolutely phenomenal! I think the bananas on top was my favorite part. I find it easier and more enjoyable to eat smoothies when they aren’t green.

Dinner

After reading In Defense of Food (and texting the ex-boyfriend and the guy I currently like all at the same time. Oi!) for 2 hours it was time for some leftovers

Coconut Quinoa and Nut Butter Parsnip Fries from yesterday with a side salad covered in nooch.

It was so delicious!

Goals

During winter term I always had weekly goals and I forgot to start doing that for this term again!

This week has been full of so many unpictured snacks, bites, samples and desserts. Like wayyy more than usual. And not surprisingly I haven’t felt my best this week. So I’m going to make it my goal to monitor what I eat a little bit better. As in don’t start eating the trail mix because it is sitting on the desk or eating the banana bread because someone has to enjoy it before it becomes stale. I’m not going to restrict food if I’m hungry or anything!  In addition to not mindless eating, I also want to consume 3 green monsters this week and drink more water (at least 60 oz a day!). Wish me luck! It will give me something to focus on besides boys. Oi!

Do you have any goals for the week?

Quinoa, Parsnips and a Book Review

How is everyone’s weekend going?

Last night I finished Change Your Brain, Change Your Body by Daniel G. Amen. Overall it was a great read for someone just transferring into living a healthy lifestyle. The author emphasizes eating lots of fruits and veggies and exercising. I would absolutely love to give this book to my overweight dad to push him to adapt a healthier lifestyle.

However, one of the negatives of this book was that it felt like I should be a hypochondriac. A lot of the chapters went over lots of different disorders and I felt that I have about half of these I took the test at the end which told me that I might have bipolar disorder because I sometimes have mood swings (um, because I am a girl and have a period thank-you-very-much) as well as a few other disorders.

I personally found this book slightly repetitive since I already know that living a healthy lifestyle is great for you in the long run. It wasn’t my favorite book, but it was in interesting read with some great facts such as the reason women have softer skin is because of our high levels of estrogen.

I’m excited to start a new book:

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, a health food bloggers staple. I’m excited to start reading it tonight!

Lunch

Before heading to a track meet I pretty much screwed up my lunch.

I had a beautiful wrap planned since I need to use up the brown rice I have in the fridge, but instead I killed it by eating 1/4 of a loaf of banana bread. I actually feel ashamed with myself. I just cut off a piece, then another, then another, and then there was only a wee bit left. And thankfully I left it on the plate, but I still feel awful.

I also had a berry smoothie

In the smoothie

• 1/4 c. blueberry kefir
• 1/2 c. very cherry frozen berry blend
• 1/2 c. almond milk
• 2 handfuls of spinach
• 1 T flaxseed meal

It was a relatively good smoothie, but I hate the little seeds that are in the berry blends! They just really annoy me

I wasn’t feeling super hot about such an overall awful lunch. I’d much prefer to have a homemade pita pizza or a wrap instead a ton of banana bread and an ok smoothie.

Snack

I got pretty hungry after the track meet and going into studio for a bit and I ended up having two snacks. An unpictured cup of brown rice and then half of a banana with sunflower seed butter

The second snack finally filled me up enough for a good hour nap.

Dinner

I have been pretty adventurous since starting the blog and just couldn’t help but cook Krista’s Coconut Quinoa and Oh She Glow’s Nut Butter Parsnip Fries.

Both recipes were absolutely mind-blowing! I have never liked quinoa until this recipe!!! I absolutely can not wait for left overs tomorrow.

I hope everyone has a great Saturday night. I think I’m going to have a nice night in.

What is your favorite quinoa recipe?