Saturday Oopps!

I am sorry for not posting yesterday! My head is in the clouds these days and I am stressing a bit about starting school and not Set Decorating as much anymore :( I thought my Friday night was to consist of a friends Birthday Party but Sean didn't get off work until 10:30pm so we called it a night and I stayed in with Ella and had a glass of wine to myself.

Saturday's Eats:

Oatmeal with cinnamon, 1 cup water, 1/2 cup oats, 3 part shot of raisins, Craisins, and Bare Naked granola with a big scoop of Fage 0%! It was spectacular!

An Apple a bit later

At work I had 2 nonfat Chai tea Lattes made by yours truly! And finally tried one of the sandwiches we make at the cafe! I tried the Veggie on Olive Bread with hummus, goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes, cucumber and sprouts! For me it could use double sprouts, less sun dried tomatoes (too salty for me) and some other form of greens; spinach or lettuce.

When I got home I had this wonderful bar: A few hours later I snacked on these with Sean:

For dinner Sean and I had Mexican from my fave Paco's where else??? We got it to go because the wait was 50 min!!!! I had the Albondigas Soup with Corn tortillas!!!!! This soup was so fresh and delicious! It has beef meatballs made with rice and onions and spices, zucchini, carrots, turnips, potatoes, celery, and green beans!

Sunday's Breakfast:

This morning I decided to try the new blogger's oatmeal: Egg White Oatmeal!!!!!

I had no idea how to do this exactly but I improved! I boiled a cup of water with one overripe banana sliced, added my 1/2 cup oats and waited until they boiled. Close to the time I would take them off the stove I poured the Egg Whites once around the pot and stirred constantly until thick and one consistency.

Here they are in my bowl:

I added one part shot of raisins and Craisins. I added 1/2 shot Bare Naked granola, and 1/2 shot roasted peanuts!

This is my new fave bfast for sure!!!!! The aroma when you are cooking these oats is like Crepes! The egg makes the oats so fluffy and creamy!!! I want this meal again for lunch!!!
I had a cup of Yerba Matte Chai with skim-still no French press :(

I am off to clean the apt and have a bit of a Sunday home with my honey! Later this afternoon we are going to my parent's house for dinner with some family friends! I will see ya'll later! Have a productive and relaxing Sunday afternoon!

C

When cookies come to work.....

Hello Bloggeristas!!!!

I will start with what snacks I had last night after I blogged, here are the goods:

Yogi Licorice tea, again!

The wise mantra:

I totally agree! Moving right along to this morning. I had a cup of coffee accompanied by the one and only straptastic Strap Perfect! My dad of all people saw this on tv and bought it for me, my sis and mama- hehe! I also had a bowl of oatmeal, with 1/2 cup oats, 1 cup water, 1/2 shot Craisins, 1/2 shot raisins, 1/2 shot Bare Naked Granola, sprinkle of Cinnamon, 1 med banana with 1/2 smashed in and 1/2 on top:

Thanks to everyone who checked out my blog for the first time!!! I love ya'll for taking a liken to the Kale and Tofu and my handy dandy shot glass measuring tool! It really works! And a special shout out to my girl Meghann at graduatemeghann.com/. Her blog is great for recipes and tips on staying fit! She is a marathon runner and is such an inspiration to me!!!

Continuing right along. On my way to work I had a few of Mrs. May's almond clusters:

They are super good! Toasted nuts are so yummy and crunchy! As I said I would I wore my HRM for test #2- a day on set.

The totals:

Time- 5:40

Calories- 1058!!!!! Heck yea!
As I assumed I burned more calories on set versus at the coffee shop due to the vigorous work. Today was an unusually short day so I am sure with a regular 14 hour day the numbers would be outrageous!

For my mid morning snack I had a Luna Bar in yummy Lemon Zest- an old time fave, this was the first Luna bar I ever tired oh so long ago! It is sitting foggy on a pile of MDF that we broke down today.

MDF is very expensive and so is the Chroma paint. We usually have no use for it when the show is done and it usually gets trashed :( This show we aimed to be more GREEN (no pun intended) and put an add up on a free recycler website! We got a ton of replies to pick it up! We gave it to a girl doing a low-budget music video who offered to bake us cookies!! They were Sea Salt Oatmeal!!! Strange, good and crispy! I had a few bites of this cookie:

I prefer chewy cookies to crunchy so it was not my fave, but free cookies hey why not! For lunch today we went back to Grub! This was the lunch menu only so the table goodies were not sugar cereal but VEGGIES, pretzels and ranch dressing! I had a few cucumber spears, carrot sticks and cherry tomatoes-yumm.

For my meal I had the Mediterranean w-RAP! Here is the description: No, this ain’t a Greek Fisherman singing about his woes…It’s a yummy combo of Couscous, Spicy Lemon Hummus, Kalamata Olives, marinated Artichoke Hearts, French Feta, Tomatoes, chopped Romaine & Basil in a Spinach Wrap…”My baby left me for the sea, she, she, she…

I ate half at lunch and rest for my afternoon snack! It was sooooooo good a tad bit too salty for me (I rarely use salt in my cooking) with the feta and the kalamata olives, but very filling! The best part......Betty was there today and when she served us she called me pumpkin!!! I was star struck for sure. That woman can cook!

I had a minor disaster tonight! My wrist has been super sore from Saturday's painting and lifting and it has only gotten worse since-yikes! So tonight after work I decided to go check it out. I went to Kaiser and waited for a good 2 hours before I was diagnosed "a strained wrist to be medicated with ibuprofen and try to not use it for a few days" Hello! I could have told you that! GRRRRRR! A waist of time and moola, but at least I know it's nothing serious.

For dinner I planned on eating my left over Kale and Tofu but wanted to change it up so I could have it tomorrow! I microwaved a huge Yam cut it in half and topped it with a dab of butter and pepper. On the side I had Romain, cucumber, a Roma tomato, broccoli and a heaping spoon of Eggplant Hummus! It was satiated!

For dessert I snacked on some more of my popular dried fruit medley:

I am going to get to all your blogs tomorrow because I am a dork and want to watch the premier of American Idol!

In honor of my fellow blogger's in colder climates I am leaving you with some pics from my Spain trip:

"ooo la la whole wheat pasta!"

Good night everybody! And have a great hump day tomorrow!

C

Calorie Burning Monday

This day has been very productive for me! I slept in a bit -8:30- but it felt so nice and I am not ashamed :) When I got out of bed I had a stretch and went straight to the kitchen to make a bit pot of oats! I made 1/2 cup oats, 1 cup water, dash of Cinnamon, 1 shot Craisins, 1 shot raisins, 1/2 handful of Quaker Oatmeal Squares and 1/2 shot sliced almonds:
I also had a cup-o-coffee not pictured. I showered, cleaned up bfast dishes and got dressed for work. I am having a hard time adjusting my lunch meal around my 11PM shift. I don't know whether to eat before I leave or at my 3PM break or what! So even though I was still quite satisfied from bfast I forced down a snack to hold me or possibly replace my lunch. I had a big red delicious some Mrs. May's and a Cliff bar:

At work I was glad I had a snack because I didn't end up taking my break until 4:30PM! I had a couple cups of Mogicha Tea and I made the Perfect Non-fat Vanilla Latte! My first officially "good foam" added to 2 shots Espresso and a shot of sugar free vanilla-yummmm! Sorry no pic, I can't even bust out my phone at work so a camera as of now if off limits.

I wore my HRM during my shift today to see how it compares with a day of sitting on my butt and working on set. This is the first test and here are the results:

Time: 5 hours

Calories: 900-whoop whoop!

I then walked to Albertson's to get ingredients for dinner. That burned 40 more calories! Can you believe 940 calories with no intended work out! I am curious to see what the totals are tomorrow where I will be wrapping the set I built on Saturday, and on Thursday where I will be in Traffic School-bummer I know. I think this is the ultimate experiment- variables included!

When I returned home I was pretty tired and needed some fuel for cooking so I snacked on this and read my new magazines. Eggplant Hummus with carrots and edemame:

So lately I have been craving an old time favorite of mine that I am surprised I haven't made sooner; Kale and Tofu with brown rice!!!!

Kale and Tofu Recipe

It all starts with this:

I have not tried this pre-cut and pre-washed package of kale before but it is a huge time saver and I love the no clean up!

Ingredients:

• 1 package Kale or 1-2 bunches chopped
• 1 package Tofu
• 3/4 cup water
• 3 tbsp Soy Sauce
• 1/2 tbsp Hot Sesame Oil or not hot
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp Pepper
• 4-6 cloves garlic minced

The brands I use:

This is how I cut my tofu- 12 pieces 1 inch thick. The thinner you slice the tofu the quicker they will brown and they absorb more flavor. Because I use med-firm tofu it falls apart a bit and you can mix it like a hash, but you can use firm tofu and the kale and tofu will stay separated. It is your choice.
Add oils to pan and saute garlic

Add tofu in one layer and add 1 tbsp of soy sauce

Brown Tofu on both sides over Med High heat Mix water, pepper and 2 remaining tbsp of soy sauce. Add whole package of kale to pan on top of tofu. Pour water mix on top and quickly cover pan. Steam fry for 3-5 min until kale stems are soft. I like my kale like I like my broccoli- aldante!

Remove lid and toss gentlyServe with brown rice!

Tonight I am trying a new product from Costco; pre-cooked brown rice! All you do is microwave it!

Here is my plate! I had 2 servings like this!!!! I could really eat the whole pot, but I will savor it and have some tomorrow too! I like to make a lot of this at once and heat it up or eat it cold!

Hope you enjoy my favorite meal! I am off to watch some tube and get a good night's rest- tomorrow I will be doing some serious manual labor!

C

Monday Blues

Yes I have had the Monday blues all day :( Mostly because I started my day by sleeping in and not going for my run. What can I say I was tired.

Next was breakfast, that is always a good part of the day! I had coffee and 1/2 cup oatmeal, 1 cup water, 1/2 mashed banana, 1 shot of blueberries, 1/2 shot of Bare Naked granola, 1 shot Keifer, 1/2 shot raisins and a few Quaker oatmeal squares on top. With it I had a big glass of water.

I then headed out to school to see whats what with my classes and payments. I arrived at a parking lot that I thought was for students, but was staff only. Then directed to a street with metered parking that was OVER full, only to circle the block 3 times and then head home. I was not only discouraged and intimidated but very frustrated. GRRRRRR! On my way home I decided that now was as good a time as any to hit the pavement and look for a job. I basically picked up applications from every restaurant and coffee shop in my city. Some seemed promising, like the macrobiotic cafe mcafedechaya.com/- mmmmmmm my favorite place ever! (I will have to eat there soon to show you how amazing the food is) I also got good feedback from a Japanese fusion restaurant for a hostess position, and an organic coffee shop that said they were hiring. It's hard because I have never worked in food service before and everyone seems a bit skeptical. But I did my best so fingers crossed! I also applied at an AWESOME sporting goods store just for women!!! While I was there I picked up a sample of the mini Luna bars, and a flyer for their second annual 5k run/walk!!!!!!! So I am signing up for sure!

Here is my little treat- the flavor was new to me and I must say a new fave.

After a long day out I was HUNGRY! It was already 2pm when I got home so I did what I know best and made a wrap. In my WW tortilla was: 3 spoonfuls of hummus, green beans, red leaf lettuce, 1/2 tomato, slice of sweet potato, red onion and a splash of Tapatio.

I had my quick wrap with 3/4 cup baby carrots and 1 tbsp of Dijon mustard. Funny thing about carrots; when my sister was in town she asked me if I had been "molding clay", and I said "no why?" She asked to see my palms and said they were "orange". I had to laugh because I had done this once before in high school....eaten too many carrots and my skin actually turned ORANGE! Well this time it was odd because I really didn't think I was eating that many, but there was the proof I "was caught orange handed" LOL. Have you ever had this happen?

After lunch I wanted something sweet, and sticking to my no refined sugars I pulled out this guy outta the fridge- Coconut Date Roll- yumm quite a bit of heaven! I had a cup of Vanilla tea with skim to complete it.

Then I buckled down to filling out my apps and a couple of hours later I had this big glass of ice cold skim milk. I used to be Lactose Intolerant so now any chance I get I enjoy a cup like this. And since drinking milk I have noticed my nails are much stronger, coincidence....I think not!

I dropped off my apps and came home a while later to start dinner. I started with leftover veggies and made what my boyfriend is calling a "Persian Christmas Salad".. ok.

In it is:

-6 Persian cucumbers peeled and chopped

-2 vine ripened tomatoes chopped

-1/2 a green bell pepper

-1 red pear chopped

- 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

- 1/2 tbsp olive oil

-1/2 tsp sesame oil

S&P to taste. Mix gently and store in fridge for 30 min until crisp and cool. Serve over lettuce, in a wrap, over rice, or by itself!

I also made stove top Brown rice, frozen Spanakopita ( I love these and they are not crazy bad for you...but very addictive so I had 2...then 2 more:) And I finally made my Lime Chicken!!! It was sadly disappointing. I marinated it overnight, probably close to 24 hours. I wonder can you over marinate something??? Well either way the flavors melded in a bland way and made it all one note. Hmmmm must re-try and see. All together my plate looked like this:

Now off to do something fun so tomorrow I can focus on getting to school and actually walking in! Hope you all have a fun evening too!

C