Little Purses of Flavor

I was at serious risk of skipping my workout today due to work craziness, but I walked back to my desk at some point around 2:30 and just knew that, if I sat down, I wouldn’t go for my run. Instead, I checked my email one last time to be sure I wasn’t missing anything critical and then picked my stuff up and didn’t look back. Boy, am I glad I did! Even though I didn’t get to work out for very long (the curse of a lunch time workout), I managed to run 4 miles in 35 minutes and then get back to the office in under an hour. Where there’s a will there’s a way, right?

I walked home from work, thankful for my workout and thankful for the unseasonably warm weather we’re getting in NYC. I also took Bodhi out for an easy 1 mile walk and I was starving by the time I got home! For dinner tonight, I wanted something flavorful and filling. I boiled a package of these adorable little perline pasta purses from Trader Joe’s (seasoned with dill, stuffed with cheese and prosciutto) and topped them with a mixture of orange and red pepper sauteed in a bit of olive oil and flavored with oregano, garlic, sage and cracked black pepper.

I had a big bowl of salad on the side topped with homemade vinaigrette.

For dessert, I had a (unpictured) small bowl of Haagen Dazs chocolate sorbet topped with raw cashew pieces and dried cherries.

Right now, I’m cuddled up on the couch watching The Biggest Loser and am super excited that Larabar was featured this week! Goooo Larabar!!

Have a great night!

Citrus Overload

As cold and flu season swiftly descends upon us, I hear every day about preventative measures and remedies. Some are clearly a crock of gross sugary cereal. Others seem to be hyped up by the media to foster fear and panic. This year, as has been the case in the past for me, I will not be getting a flu shot. Mom, I know you read this, and you can scold me if you want, but I’ve made up my mind. No injections, no huffing drugs (I’m pretty sure I was taught that’s a bad thing to do anyway!). Instead, I’ll fight seasonal disease the same way I’ve done before – adequate sleep, proper nutrition, moderate exercise, lots of vitamin C and plenty of hand washing. Granted, the Steelers kept me up a little late last night, but their 28-10 win was well worth it. Since I’m running a little short on sleep, I decided to make up for that deficit in the other factors of my “stay healthy” plan. For breakfast, I had a big bowl of Stonyfield Fat Free French Vanilla yogurt with a cup or so of Kashi Go Lean cereal.

In one of my favorite, albeit slightly bruised and battered, mugs:

I’ll opt to walk to work, rather than taking the Cesspool (aka 6 Train) and I’ll wash my hands when I arrive at the office. I’ve also packed my at-work eats with nutrients as well – I’ll be brimming with good, naturally bioavailable vitamin C thanks to the three clementines and large orange:

After a quick jog during lunch, I’ll replenish my depleted energy with some raw foods (Cherry Pie Larabar) and with a sinus-clearing, metabolism boosting spicy chicken vindaloo from Trader Joe’s.

The spices traditionally found in many Indian dishes are fabulous immune system boosters – turmeric, ginger and garlic especially. And the relatively short ingredient list lets me know I’m not packing my body full of junk it’ll have to work hard to process.

What natural preventative measures do you take during cold/flu season?

PS If you do happen to get sick, you could check out these frozen soups I just found out about – they look tasty, nutritious, and (most importantly) comforting!

Two-a-Days

So even though I didn’t work out today, I felt the title was appropriate for this post since I’m watching football (and since this is my second post today). Oh Steelers, how much stress you cause me.

As far as eats went today, I was pretty well on track but I did have to supplement the food I’d packed in the afternoon. Around 3, I realized I was just about ready to pass out from hunger so I bought a bag of Soy Crisps to tide me over. I generally don’t eat tons of soy (too much of anything is bad, even if it’s not the commonly accepted “bad foods” like meat and dairy or chocolate and candy), but I love how well Soy Crisps satisfy me. Unfortunately, 6:30 rolled around and I was still at work so I dipped into my emergency stash and had a small handful of raw almonds.

And, not surprisingly, dinner ended up being kind of a mish mash of munching – a small pita with feta, a handful of almonds and then the main course – chicken breast stuffed with cranberry and apple stuffing. I went a little bit crazy at Trader Joe’s on Saturday and picked up a pack of stuffed chicken breasts. No pictures because, well, I was too hungry and lazy. But take it from me, this makes a pretty nice dish if you slice the chicken to highlight the stuffing. I can imagine this being a perfect dinner with a side of sauteed spinach or roasted brussels sprouts and a small sweet potato. It’s pretty much the super duper lazy woman’s Thanksgiving dinner, but with chicken. Yea, I know.

Anyhow, I’m finally relaxing at home with the Huz and our pup and I’m going to focus my energy on the Steelers getting a W-I-N in the thin, cool Denver air. If you’re looking for something more to read this evening, check out the following:

Katie’s Operation Chocolate Covered Kindness

Holly’s awesome giveaway! Healthy Everythingtarian giveaway

We’re already on Week 5 of Project Feed Me. Check out photos from other participants and consider signing up – it’s not too late!

Read up on small ways of reducing your spending without eliminating the expenses that really count in the long run. Thanks for this great post, Melissa!

Have a great night!

Would you like some sandwich with your salad?

Slept terribly last night thanks to Bodhi being up and about. We got him a new dog bed yesterday at Costco (I love the smell of cedar!) and I don’t think he’s very happy about the change. He’d had his previous bed since we adopted him though and, quite frankly, it STUNK. So it was high time to upgrade. Sadly, he wasn’t as thrilled as we were and we got to listen to his nails click clacking on the hard wood floors all night. Since I was so groggy when I woke up, I opted to keep today’s eats very simple. For breakfast, I had oatmeal with cinnamon, dried blueberries and pumpkin seeds (and a drizzle of Vermont maple syrup):

For work eats, I’ve packed 4 clementines (so glad they’re in season again!), a massive Jonagold apple from Trader Joe’s, and my super easy fall back lunch – turkey and cheddar sandwich:

In the sandwich today, I included honey roasted lean turkey, low fat sharp cheddar, 1 tsp. light mayo, 1 tsp. honey mustard and a massive pile of mixed greens from a bagged salad.

I toasted up two slices of Nature’s Pride Whole Wheat bread for this tasty treat and I look forward to enjoying it after kickboxing today.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend and have a great Monday!

Poor Woman’s Croutons

Now that soup season is upon us, I am always on the look-out for add-ins. As many people can probably understand, there just isn’t enough time in the day to always have fresh homemade soup ready to take to work or school. Sometimes I resort to picking up a cup of Au Bon Pain’s delectable Harvest Pumpkin soup or Hale and Hearty’s vegetarian Three Lentil Chili. But once I’ve entered one of these places, smelled the scents of freshly baked goodies and seen the rows and rows of cracker and bread options, I inevitably add a crispy, seedy breadstick or hefty bag of oyster crackers to my tray. Aside from the caloric expense these tasty treats bear, they also have a monetary price. Since the holidays are speedily approaching (yay for festive tunes like Domenic the Christmas Donkey and Feliz Navidad!!), the Huz and I are looking for ways small and large to trim our spending.

Last weekend, the Huz found two large french baguettes for $4.49 at Costco. The first was destined to be toasted in the oven covered in a luscious goat cheese, sundried tomato and garlic spread when we went to the Huz Parents’ for dinner. The second, regrettably, languished on the counter for several days. Before we knew it, the baguette was hard as rock and on its way to the garbage when I had a thought – what’s another name for hard bread (in my world)? Croutons! And what do croutons taste delicious on? Soup!

Before work this week I sliced several pieces of the baguette and broke each slice into pieces. Into the toaster oven went dry, stale hunks of old bread.

Out came light, golden brown croutons that were the perfect complement to smooth, velvety pumpkin, tomato and butternut squash soups.

Do you like croutons or crackers in your soup?