A Little Something For Everyone

Posted on February 8, 2010 by Evan Thomas

I love hearing that a lot of you have seen the Emmy’s Organics macaroons but just haven’t picked them up yet! Well, I don’t like that last part, but I will say you’re lucky in that I’d never seen these before they showed up at my door and do suggest you give them a shot(Better yet–get a different flavor and tell me how that one is!).

For lunch I “planned” for a fly-by sort of meal where I would just go with whatever’s quick and simple. Who “plans” for grabby meals like that? Apparently, me :-) I ended up with a plate that had a little something  for everyone on it(but all for me really).

2 Eggs, Feta & Spinach Chicken Sausage, Tempeh Bacon, Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookie

The Wow Baking Company Gluten Free Cookie

This was a lot of fat, a lot of protein, and a little bit of carbs, and it totally worked for me! At least at this meal it did. I thought the idea of having (vegan) bacon and eggs was cute, as was the idea of having eggs and chicken (sausage). Sooo why not have it all? And with a gluten free cookie on the side? Perfect! A little something for whatever your eating habits may be. :-) This sausage was a new one to me; I loved how delicious salty it was! It wasn’t very feta in flavor, but it certainly had flavor and would be a perfect basic sausage.

The Wow Baking Company Oregon Oatmeal Cookies

The Oregon Oatmeal cookie was part of the pack from The Wow Baking Company. It smelt sooo good! Like fresh cinnamon–yum! I loved the base of the cookie, with rich tones of butter and thick, hearty oats. But the fruit I thought was a little bland and lacking. And this was a LOT of sugar. I mean, what can you expect from a cookie overall? Definitely something fun to eat, but it didn’t really WOW me.

Thumb Cut

I actually was a supreme clutz today. I managed to burn my bicep(yes, my bicep) with the pan I was cooking eggs with. Can’t figure out how one does that? It’s very complicated, and I’m clutzy enough. Later on I got a package from the mail room and managed to slice my hand open with my room key trying to open it. Not a big cut but I did manage to finish off a roll of paper towels throughout the afternoon stopping the bleeding–joy. It was worth it though because the package had goodies from Honest Foods such as this bar I snacked on:

Honest Foods Almond Trail Mix Granola Bar

First off, this bar was another product where the smell was just amazing. This time, I swore I was sniffing an open bottle of amaretto :-D Holy sweetness. But the flavor was underwhelmingly almondy after all that; it was good but had a lot going on with other seeds and fruits. I loved the nutrition, though! Not many bars have a healthy fat source higher than sugar on the ingredient list; that’s rocking! Keeping up with the almond theme, I tried a new butter.

Trader Joe's Almond Butter With Roasted Flaxseeds

Monica convinced me I needed this in my life, so that last time I was at Trader Joe’s I grabbed it off the shelf. As if it weren’t enough of a fat source, I thought I’d throw it over some pudding.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding With Trader Joe Almond Butter

Chocolate avocado pudding made with almond milk, to be exact. The combination of almond and chocolate wasn’t so perfect here–not sure why not :-( TJ’s almond butter was awesome and so well salted. But I wasn’t a huge fan of the flax seeds. Too sweet, maybe? And I don’t like having to chew them to get the nutrition from them :-/ What can I say? I’m lazy.

For dinner, I had planned to meet up with some friends in one of the dining halls. At this dining hall, you don’t have to use any meal credits to get in and only pay or what you pick off the line, so I was able to bring my whole meal without using my meal plan. Beforehand, I made some of my favorite foods in the oven in my dorm, wrapped them in foil, and was good to go!

Maple Baked Tofu, Sweet Potato Fries, Roasted Broccoli, Orange Zevia

Roasted Broccoli, Sweet Potato Fries

Better than cafeteria food? I think so. No matter how many times I roast sweet potatoes, they never cease to impress me. I think maple baking tofu is the simplest way to add flavor, but I’m definitely on the lookout for new recipes to switch it up. It was great to catch up with things from the past week in some case and the whole of winter breaks in another; one of my friends is a fellow runner and might have another half marathon to turn me on to! I’ll have to see. The only downside was getting into my dorm at 8:30 and thinking “Gosh I’m home late”. And when exactly do I get my senior citizen discount? In my defense, I have my alarm set for a 6:15 run!

Did this post provoke you to think of new things to try? I’ve found plenty of recipes for almond milk, and it’s much simpler than I would have imagined! I have yet to track down some Jungle Peanuts, but rest assured I will ;-) In the meantime, here’s an appliance giveaway, a coconut oil giveaway, a chocolate giveaway, an iherb giveaway, and another coconut oil giveaway.

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Not So Blissful

Posted on February 8, 2010 by Evan Thomas

OK, the title is a bit of an exaggeration on my evening, but it’s punny as you’ll see ;-) First of all, way to go Saints! I wasn’t even watching the Superbowl and didn’t have a team, but after hearing it was their first time ever winning, that made me happy for them. Everyone deserves their 15 minutes :-) Instead of watching it, I was mostly glued to Fox and Modern Family, as well as my plate.

Emmy's Organics Raw Vegan Coconut + Vanilla Macaroons

Emmy’s Organics sent me some delicious sounding raw macaroons which I could not wait to try. Naturally, anything raw deserves a big ol’ raw platter to be served on.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding With A Coconut + Vanilla Macaroon

I only needed 1/2 of one of my 7 avocados to make this pudding; that means I’m going to have plenty of pudding I’m guessing :-) The Coconut + Vanilla Macaroon was simply remarkable. Normally, I’m skeptical whether vanilla things are going to be flavorful; the whole vanilla beans put my mind at ease but then the true vanilla flavor really wowed me! And I also tasted the rich hint of coconut oil. These cookies were definitely a winner. While I was on a roll, I thought why not try another new coconut product:

Artisana Cacao Bliss

From Artisana, I decided to eat this on some oatmeal. At first it was very clunky, but after sitting a while in the microwave it melted… sort of.

Oatmeal With Cacao Bliss

I’m not going to agave nectar sugar coat it: I had high expectations for this Cacao Bliss and was really let down. Another blogger has toted this as “like frosting” and plugged it like crazy recently, so I thought it must be amazing, right? It was actually a bit more like chalk than frosting and bitter than sweet. The nutrition was stellar, but I needed something really chocolaty to get over the disappointment.

Justin's Chocolate Almond Butter

Justin’s Chocolate Almond Butter to the rescue! Maybe the cacao bliss will be better in cold applications–I don’t know. I’m certainly up for ideas.

This morning it felt so good to get back up at 7 and hit the gym(didn’t think I’d be saying that any time soon). Surprisingly, all 3 of the working treadmills were already in use! I’m happy more people are working out, but a little sad how that pushes me aside. I biked a bit while I was waiting for a free one and snacked on this.

Nature's Path Organic Peanut Choco' Chewy Granola Bar

Mmm, yum! This was a Nature’s Path Organic product that I won off their Facebook contest. I just love these Peanut Choco’ Chewy Granola Bar because of the whole peanuts and how sweet they are! Then again, their first ingredient is sugar :-/ Oh well, a good workout warrants carbs anyway so then was definitely the time to enjoy it if ever.

Running Stats

I eventually got my ‘mill and ran the 8 miles scheduled in 71:30. If you’re wondering “Why does he take pictures of random lengths and times?”, I don’t really. I take a photo at the end after running 60 minutes. At that point, the treadmill turns off and resets itself. For example, today I ran 6.74 miles in the first hour, and then really finished after the last 1.26. Well after that, breakfast was a favorite of mine.

Vanilla Yogurt With Peanuts, Pumpkin Oatmeal With Chocolate Peanut Butter

Oikos With Vanilla Stevia And Peanuts

More Justin’s nut butter, this time the Chocolate Peanut Butter. I love it because I feel like I’m getting my chocolate peanut fix but not straying far from just average peanut butter nutrition(had to do it). I was going to use some store bought peanut granola for the oatmeal when I decided to go with an even better, nuttier, 1-ingredient, gluten free granola: peanuts! So much simpler and better, and definitely less processed–love it.

New things

Obviously, I love trying new things. At the end I recapped all the new reviews I did for this post(as always, the * means it was a sample from the company and the absence of them means I bought it or something along those lines). I also love hearing about others try new things. Ginger Jul recently tried my pumpkin bread and said she loved it. I hope she took pictures for her blog! If anybody else makes a recipe of mine, I’d love to hear it. I also thought it’d be fun to pick some new things I want to try but have no immediate plans to; right now, I want to eat jungle peanuts–never had these before and think they might be interesting–and I want to make almond milk from scratch! What about you? Anything new you want to put into your life?

Peanut Choco’ Chewy Granola Bar

*Coconut + Vanilla Macaroon*

*Cacao Bliss*

Chocolate Almond Butter

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A Friendly Face Gets You Places

Posted on February 7, 2010 by Evan Thomas

Are you smiling? Should you be smiling? Maybe your team is winning the Superbowl or already did; don’t ask me because I didn’t even know it was on until people downstairs started yelling and I found it on TV. There’s never a dull(or quiet) moment living in the dorms, but I think I secretly like that about it :-D Backing up 10 hours, I was at home getting my grub on.

Oatmeal With Justin's Chocolate Peanut Butter

Greek Yogurt With Fig Jam

Is it crazy that I brought Justin’s Chocolate Peanut Butter home for the 3 days? I’m just glad I remembered to bring it back :-D I love sunny Sunday mornings and eating on the floor with the circulars. I don’t know why it has to be on the floor, but it does with me. It feels more homey. The slightly sour part to this breakfast was the Chobani yogurt.

Skimpy Chobani

Does that look a little empty to anyone else, too? I thought mine did yesterday, and then this one was the same. I weighed it and it was only 4oz instead of 6oz. Crazy much? I think I got a bad batch :-/ I bulked it up with a little full-fat yogurt and jam anyway, but not quite sure what was happening at Chobani that day.

We ended up loading the car and starting our drive before lunch, mostly since my grandmother was too busy gambling to eat with us; oh, old people. After the customary “Oops, I forgot that. Let’s go back”, we rehit the road and were at a Whole Foods half way for lunch.

Lightlife Smart Chili, Redwood Vanilla Goat Milk Yogurt

Most definitely a random combination. What I really wanted to do(besides eat of my arm) was load up on veggies, black beans, and guacamole from the salad bar. BUT that would have taken $20 worth of food easily; I hate how they make it cost by the weight :-( Instead, I kept it cheap and simple by buying these 2 premade things and heating up the chili in the microwave. I must have looked a little silly eating from the bag but it was pretty delicious and totally worth it.

Nintendo DSi

After lunch we grocery shopped a bit; avocadoes were on sale for $1 so I got 7! That’s going to be a lot of pudding :-) Then I went to a game store for–what I thought–was a lost cause. My old gameboy’s screen clearly was broken and I knew I needed to get a new one, but hated the thought of $170 dollars for it. I also couldn’t find any good deals on used one, so I went to the store to see if maybe I could get a little money for my old one to soften the blow on my wallet. The cashier who worked with me on the trade in couldn’t have been sweeter; she didn’t quite seem like the typical video game clerk and I was excited for that. Even though she could tell the screen was not properly working, with some sweet casual conversation and a smile she gave me a great discount and knocked $75 off the price of a new one! It goes to show how far being friendly and wearing a smile will get you.

Room Clutter

No amount of smiling, however, can make there be more space in my room(or less food. Either one would work at this point). After we brought things back in, it began to look a bit ridiculous. In my defense: I am eating for a half-marathon, after all ;-) I threw things in places I won’t even remember and grabbed a snack.

Next Generation Organic Dairy Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

Is there anything more perfect than cheese in stickular form? I think not. Thanks, Next Generation Dairy, for sending me this one, too! For the pros, it was very easy to grab and keep working. And it was definitely made healthier by being raw and probiotic. But, oddly, it didn’t taste too much like the mozzarella I was expecting :-/ I think of mozzarella as a more sweeter, mellow cheese and this was a bit tangy for my taste. Maybe it was just the “raw” flavor imposing itself?

Running Stats

Whatever was with the flavor, it fueled me nicely for a 5 mile run. I was itching to get back onto campus and on the treadmill this weekend and it felt so natural, once more! I even managed to keep a friendly face going after that.

Post-Workout Smile

I think I look a little more nervous than friendly, lol. I was clearly excited to get some fresh produce from the dining hall(assuming that’s fresh) and get to some recovery eating.

Apple, Cherry Amaretto So Delicious Coconut Milk Ice Cream

So Delicious! The apple made this healthy ;-) I finished off the pint of this amazing ice cream. My only complaint would be that there were no cherries in this last 3/4 cup :-( I think I might have scooped them all out last time I ate from this. Oops. It was still so creamy and delicious. And even though I’m not very into the Superbowl doesn’t mean I’m not into football grub…

Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper Krinkle Cut Kettle Chips

Of course we had to buy 2 bags of chips because they were on sale and we had a coupon. And one of them had to be mine. And these just happened to find their way into my dinner. I need people to stop feeding my chip addiction! I have so many dealers, it’s really a beautiful thing :-D

Broccoli With Hot Sauce, Salt & Pepper Chips, Al Fresco Buffalo Style Chicken Sausage

NOTHING says football food quite like buffalo wings–wouldn’t you agree? Immediately I knew I wanted a buffalo style Al Fresco chicken sausage–love these! And I have to think it’s a lot better for you than just grabbing a few wings in your plate, too. On the side I had broccoli with Benito’s hot sauce for volume(!!) and my crack chips. Last time I got these, I mistakenly got the baked variety. I’m sorry but hear you need the krinkle cut. Just tell yourself those are healthy fats, too :-)

This week I’m looking to get back on track! I don’t know that I was ever off track, so this might just be switching tracks. I don’t know. Trains are confusing. Here’s what I do know!

1. Running. I pretty much run what my body(or head) wants rather than stick with a half-marathon plan. I will keep that up, and here’s what I think should work well for this week.

  • Monday: 8 miles
  • Tuesday: 5 miles
  • Wednesday: 9 miles
  • Thursday: 5-6 miles, time dependent
  • Friday: 8 miles + 30 min biking

9 miles will be my new long run; I have to say that it feels incredibly doable and I’m loving being at high mileage again.

2. Worktime/Funtime. I have an awesome schedule this semester, in case you haven’t heard. But I need to get better about using that schedule. It may be a little late for this week, but my new goal is to go 100% at homework from Friday-Monday when I don’t have class, and then soak up whatever free time I have Tuesday-Thursday without a car in the world(other than attending classes). Who knows; maybe I’ll really bust out the effort tomorrow for that to be the case.

3. Meal Planning. I don’t feel the necessity to go 100% at this. But I do remember that, the 1 week I used meal planning, everything felt incredibly organized, nothing went wasted, and it eliminated time spent thinking “what am I going to make?!”. That’s why I think it’s a perfect thing to work back in, even if it’s only 1 or 2 meals in advanced. For instance, tomorrow’s dinner will be baked maple tofu with roasted sweet potatoes and broccoli.

Lastly, I would very much have a friendly face if I won this Candid Contest; I love my smart balance agave sweetened so I must see what’s with this new “rich roast”

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Eating Raw With Bloggers

Posted on February 7, 2010 by Evan Thomas

Good morning! I meant to set something up last night that’s exciting to auto-post, but clearly that didn’t pull together in time. Such excitement will have to wait for the week, but I can show you what exciting things did happen. Lunch was about a 7 on the excitement scale.

Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, And Cauliflowe With Grass-Fed Steak And Colby Cheese

Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, And Cauliflowe With Grass-Fed Steak And Colby Cheese

I think 7 is very good for leftovers. I steamed some vegetables and shredded some raw & probiotic colby cheese on top(but remembered not to stick it in the microwave because that would defeat the purpose of raw!). On an inside grill, I reheated the leftover steak in grass-fed butter, and then poured the drippings after cooking on top. OK–the steak was good, but the drippings were fantastic. Butter and beef fat–yumm. After lunch I made a little dessert.

Raw Vegan Brownies With Frosting

Raw Vegan Brownies With Goji Berries And Hulled Hemp Seeds

Before you start drooling too much, this was only 1 pan. The first photo was a before and the second an after shot :-D But I didn’t make these all for myself(though I could have); last night there was a Boston blogger meet-up at Grezzo’s Restaurant which is all raw so I thought this would be an appropriate(and tasty) dessert, recipe here. Let me also show you my new adoration:

Bob's Red Mill Hulled Hemp Seeds

Bob’s Red Mill hulled hemp seeds. I don’t know where to begin. The nutrition? Fantastic. The preparation and care they put into providing and packaging their product? Amazing. The inherint, nutty vanilla flavor? Sock it to me. These were perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding With Chocolate Coconut Oil And Hulled Hemp Seeds

Now that’s exciting. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite as filling as I was expecting. Was there not enough fat? o_O Sooo, after reading other blogs, I decided vanilla froyo must be the missing secret ingredient. We may not have self-serve frozen yogurt around Boston, but we do have freezers and delicious varieties of name brands.

Elan's Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

My favorite, for anyone keeping track.

Elan's Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

That hit the spot and held me over for dinner. It’s cool. It’s creamy. It’s everything a vanilla should be. Unfortunately, that’s all she wrote for it.

Empty Container

:-/ At least I made plenty of space in the freezer for another container!(which will probably be an exact replacement of this one :-P ). Right before leaving, I found more evidence of my exciting insensibility: Something that I thought I brought to school, looked all over for, decided I left at home, looked all over for and could never find turned out to be in my backpack all the while. Thank God I can laugh at myself because I give me a kick :-D

At 7 I arrived at Grezzo’s and found a great number of bloggers and readers. There were 9 of us in total; it was all set up by Melissa at Crunches For Cupckakes. Thanks, Melissa! I think I was the only one to have eaten there before(documented here). That didn’t matter much because the menu had completely changed for dinner. I wasn’t sure what to order but I ended up going with a pasta dish(I know–I was surprised with me here, too!) that 5 other people also got.

Gnocchi Carbonara

The “gnocchi” were made out of cashews and oat flour, I believe, and in a nut-cream sauce. It was delicious! They were soooo rich and doughy and simply melted in your mouth. I think I liked them way more than regular gnocchi. The cream sauce was also good, but I only ate about 6 peas; I’m just not a fan of raw vegetables.

Bloggers

One of the interesting things brought up at the table was if we thought we could eat like this much. The easy consensus was no. For 1, raw takes sooo much preparation; some of our food was made and sat for days in advance. That’s simply not easy to do on a working schedule. The other reason was simple: We love hot food! Oatmeal, baked vegetables, microwaved vegetables–I know I, for one, couldn’t give up things like that. A big bowl of baked veggies and tofu with maple syrup is totally my comfort food. At first I wasn’t planning for a dessert, but… c’mon ;-)

Chocolate Mint Cookie With Chocolate Frosting

Surprisingly, this was one of their less extravagent desserts; can you believe it? Check out Lauren’s blog for a shot of her brownie sundae. Next time I go, I most definitely want to try their gelato. The rawest ice cream I’ve had is banana soft serve so that would most definitely be a kick. All in all it was a great night and my first chance to meet some awesome bloggers. I even got a few new ones to add to my blogroll! After stopping at a party where my parents were to say hi to old friends, we didn’t get home until late. Let’s just say it’s been a while since I’ve seen Saturday Night Live live. I also wasn’t terribly tired and a little voracious. I think the cookie had ton of agave nectar, which won’t spike your blood levels but will keep you going and going and going(I was like the Energizer Bunny!). The other half of that was that eating raw meant so much less volume of food, even if it was calorically dense. The solution?

Pumpkin Oatmeal With Vanilla Peanut Butter

Pumpkin oats! Another example of why I could never go raw :-) I certainly enjoyed my night and I can’t wait to go to my next blogger meet-up someday!

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Leftovers At Breakfast

Posted on February 6, 2010 by Evan Thomas

Would someone tell my cheese tooth to reappear soon? I think my sweet one may have gotten loose.

Soy Yogurt With Milk Chocolate Sunspires

How does So Delicious make their soy yogurt so delicious? My guess is a heavy hand of agave nectar–love it. At least there’s plenty of fiber from inulin here, too. And those Sunspires have healthy nut fat… just enrobed under milk chocolate ;-) Anyway, ghost whisperer I thought was excellent last night; I love it when they’re a bit creepy and not at all touchy-feely. Later on was The Best Thing I Ever Ate. Not the best one I’ve ever seen, but good nonetheless. I don’t think there’s anything better than professional chefs talking about food *drool*. The subject of the episodes was snacks, speaking of which…

Goji Chocolate Chip Goji Gourmet Cookies And Coconut Oil Chocolate

No oatmeal last night. Instead, I celebrated cookie friday with some of the Goji Gourmet cookies I won. I was so happy to get to try their new flavor!

Chocolate Chip Cookie With Coconut Oil Chocolate

The goji chocolate chip cookies were sooo yummy. The chocolate chips were a little dull; they definitely weren’t Trader Joe brand(my favorite). But the cookie itself was so buttery and vanilla-infused it didn’t even matter. A little dip in some chocolate and these were perfect; I couldn’t not eat the whole 4-pack!

This morning I lazed out of bed; I figure this’ll just count as a mini-”vacation” being home :-) After deciding to keep it a rest day, I showered up and found some natural sweetness in the pantry for breakfast.

Bob's Red Mill Dried Blueberries

NuttZo

Neither of these have added sugar, but you’d never know it! That’s the great thing about dried fruit: natural sweetness with all the fiber. As for the NuttZo… frankly, I have no clue why it’s so sweet. But I’m glad it is!

Breakfast

Greek Yogurt With Dried Blueberries

Sweet Potato Oatmeal With NuttZo

Just to drive the sweet-theme home, I used 1/2 a leftover sweet potato for my oatmeal instead of pumpkin. It came out sooo much better this time than on Thursday. I can’t wait to set up an oats page for instructions on how I make banana, pumpkin, egg, and now sweet potato oats; each needs a little special attention but it’s worth it. These blueberries were delicious; they tasted soft and gummy, almost like candy! Probably a better decision than real candy for breakfast, too ;-)

Check out this giveaway to find out how to win NuNaturals! My favorite stevia sweetener(another superfood) :-D

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Sweets And Cheese

Posted on February 5, 2010 by Evan Thomas

If I had to summarize in two words what I ate today, it would be “Cheese” and “Sweet”. I’m pretty sure those are the only two tooths I have in my mouth(and I embrace that).

Pirate's Booty Aged White Cheddar

The first culprit was this bag of Pirate’s Booty. I was sent a ton of flavors to review; none were particularly “sweet” so I went for the cheesiest mother of them all. At the same time, I had the oven going and baked some maple tofu.

Aged White Cheddar Pirate's Booty, Maple Tofu, Steamed Broccoli

Maple Baked Tofu

Maple baked tofu–simple, sweet, and so(y) delicious. The tofu came out particularly good because I had it pressing all morning and changed the towel thrice; when you get a ton of water out, you really notice the difference. These corn puffs were good, but didn’t really blow me away; I liked the flavor but the texture was just OK and overall they were “meh”. Maybe one of the other flavors will impress me more.

While I was watching this I got around to watching my DVRed Oprah with Michael Pollon. I know–I’m so behind! But I really liked this episode and was able to connect with it a lot. The part with Alicia Silverstone and Oprah talking about their business had me rolling on the floor! I do get what they’re saying, though. I also found it funny that Alicia “slips up” on cheese sometimes. It gets the best of us :-D

Count-To-10 Workout Sheet

In the afternoon I did my Count-To-10 workout. This’ll be perfect for any readers lamenting being stuck in doors for the storm! In case you forgot, it’s super simple:

  • 10 flights of stairs
  • 10 push-ups(15 for me)
  • 10 flights of stairs
  • 10 sit-ups(20 for me)
  • Repeat 10 times.

Obviously, I use a checklist just to keep track. While I was doing this, the mail came, and I got a “sweet” surprise.

Uli Mana's Raw Desserts

Uli Mana sent me a sampler of some of their sweet and raw treats. The seal on them was broken, but since these came straight from a closed USPS box, I assumed they were untampered and safe.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding With Goji Berries And Raw Chocolate Sauce, Raw Hemp Brownie

Umm, sweetest post-workout recovery meal ever? I think so. Where to start? This brownie was simply amazing. I’ll count it as my “Cookie Friday” treat(like I don’t have one of these every day). This was the 3rd bought raw brownie I tried, along with the 2 that I’ve made, and it was by far my favorite; it tasted sooo fudgy! I think the secret must have been in the cacao butter. I need to find me some. Any good brand suggestions? Or even just brands? The pudding was delicious and antioxidant rich with Navitas Naturals goji berries, but I added a little something to sweeten it up even more…

Xagave Raw Agave Nectar

Xagave sent me some of their agave nectar to bake and experiment with. Again, where to start? Simply put, from the 1 time I’ve used this so far, I’d highly recommend it. I mentioned on Monday(and even got some agreeance from readers!) that the agave nectar I used just didn’t taste sweet at all. Well, that was “Trader Joe’s raw agave nectar” for anyone curious. This, on the other hand, tasted sweet. It tasted really sweet, like I’ve been told agave nectar should. I can’t wait to bake more with it! Since I don’t prefer sweets for dinner, it was back to eating cheesy.

Next Generation Organic Dairy Raw Probiotic Garlic Parsley Cheddar Cheese Sticks

Yet another flavor of Next Generation Organic Dairy cheese to review. I knew this’d make a great addition to dinner not only because it’s no-carb, and high-protein and fat, but because of the added probiotics.

Lemon Cauliflower, Garlic Parsley Cheddar Cheese Stick, Grass Fed Beef Medallion

Dinner was also particularly good since we found out that Whole Foods(at least the one in Providence) sells grass-fed beef; sooo much cheaper than from a restaurant! And perfectly cooked so long as you know what you’re doing :-D It tastes fantastic and I had my whole medallion. I was a bit underwhelmed though with this cheese stick; it tasted cheesy for sure, but the complexity somewhat stopped there. I suppose if it were too garlicy, that also would have been a problem, so I’m not sure where the perfect balance would have been. I do just love that they even make these in stick form; perfect for probiotics on the go!

And now, I’m thinking more sweet than cheesy for dessert. Wouldn’t you agree :-) For some interesting reading, here’s an article on the benefits of goat’s milk yogurt!  That’s a bandwagon I can get on. And here’s a jam giveaway and a granola giveaway

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A Little Clunky But Not Wholly Displeasurable

Posted on February 5, 2010 by Evan Thomas

1) That’s what she said.

Packed Bag

2) That’s a pretty good description of coming home for the weekend, too. I definitely forgot how much I loathe packing. But, I managed to keep it very simple with 1 bag and only 2 peanut butters(plus my backpack and some dirty laundry). Annoying? Yes. But not as wholly displeasurable as having to completely move out and then back in over break.

Like I mentioned, our first stop was Chocolate Fest! There was tons of samples throughout the stores of different chocolate creations. First, I scoped it all out. Then I decided that some of it was skippable(I mean, I can cover a banana in melted chocolate, too :-| ). Finally, I dove in :-D

Chocolate Cherry Braised Beef

Raw Chocolate Truffle

Mexican Chocolate Chili

Salmon In White Chocolate Butter Sauce

Sweet Scoops Mocha Mudslide Frozen Yogurt

The braised beef–was absolutely fantastic! It might have been my favorite of the night. It might just be my inner carnivore saying that. But I really loved it because first you got the really fatty meat flavor that just fell apart in your mouth, and then you got a kick of cherry at the end. The raw truffle was really good, too. I could totally make this at home, though(and I snatched the recipe to do so). The chili was another winner; I told you I was a carnivore :-D The salmon, on the other hand, was really bad. What were they thinking if they tasted it? I thought it had potential because white chocolate and chickpeas are a fantastic combo, but apparently that need not apply here. And, for dessert, some Sweet Scoops frozen yogurt. I’ve actually been thinking of buying that flavor for a while, and it was really good. I don’t know, though, if it’s worth the price compared to Elan’s Decaf Cappuccino frozen yogurt(which also is decaffeinated and so better for night time snacking).

That actually wasn’t that much, so when we actually got home after an hour I was hungry… for the supper not waiting for me :-( I decided to just throw something a little cooky together that’d be veggie-tastic and filling.

Brussels In Grass-Fed Butter Sauce

Chocolate Avocado Pudding With Goji Berries And Coconut Oil

This dinner was a bit clunky but not wholly displeasurable. Actually, it was pretty tasty :-D I don’t think I’ve had brussels in 2 weeks! What a shame. They really soaked up the butter. On top of my pudding, I added some Navitas Naturals Goji Berries and coconut oil; I loved the goji berries here for a good dose of antioxidants! The coconut oil tasted a little out of place, oddly :-/ I think coconut butter would be better here(butter is always better ;-) But that’s another story). Speaking of Gojis, I had a sweet surprise waiting for me…

Goji Gourmet Cookies

How yummy does that all look? Among a few packages I got was this one which I won from totalfitgirl’s contest(ironic, I know, but there weren’t any gender rules for entering as far as I know :-) ). I’m pretty sure it was only for the chocolate cherry cookies, and the rest of this was thrown in by my friends at Goji Gourmet. Thank you! Now I’m stocked well with one of my superfoods.

Was it just me, or was Grey’s not so good last night? Should I have gone with The Office and 30 Rock? That’s quite possible. A few more things made coming home a little clunky. A) I had noo toothbrush. Whoops. B) I had no alarm clock and freaked out until I dug out a really old one. I then decided that I wouldn’t even set it and let myself sleep in. C) I found out that one item I specifically came home for might very well actually be in my safe at school. Ugh. After most of that was resolved, I was happy for oats.

Cornbread Oatmeal With Mighty Maple

Cornbread, because I could. In the batch went 1 egg white(sorry, yolk, but I didn’t need you right then :-( ), 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum and 1/2 a teaspoon aluminum free baking powder. This came out perfectly corny.

Like I said, I didn’t set my alarm this morning and slept in a full hour. A full glorious hour. You need to take advantage of things like no drunk people in the hallway and nothing to do once you’re actually up :-) A few more things that made my trip not wholly displeasurable:

Trader Joe's Oatbran And Tofu

Food! More specifically Trader Joe goodies my mom grabbed on her way home just for me(like anyone else here would be picking out tofu or know which one to get) :-) You can bet that I already have some tofu pressing for lunch as we speak(and using the oatbran as a weight! Haha). Beyond that, I also used the oatbran in breakfast.

Pumpkin Oatmeal With Nutritional Yeast And SB PB

Plain Oikos With Vanilla Stevia

A bit cheesy, but not wholly displeasurable. No wait–wholly pleasurable because it’s a bit cheesy. That’s how I would describe the pumpkin/nutritional yeast/smart balance combo. There’s something so “homey” about it. AND now I’m about 1 bowl away from OAIJ!! It’s shaping up to be a splendid trip home.

Language Lesson: This is directed to no one in particular; this is just something I thought of as I was making my breakfast and want to address now. If you are buying your Greek yogurt and buy more than 1 container of Oikos, please do not say that you picked up some “oikoses”. That is just wrong. Oikos is a Greek word meaning house. It is the nominative, singular form. For plural, you’ll want to say you picked up some “Oikoi”. Sounds a little funny? Welcome to Greek. If you all want to be super overachievers, do 1 better by saying “Oikous”. That’s the correct form when it’s the object of a verb. But, I’d totally be happy if I ever just heard Oikoi, too :-D

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Eat As I Say, Not As I Eat

Posted on February 4, 2010 by Evan Thomas

Hi, Pies :-) (I’ve had such an urge to say that since Erin left the blogosphere :-/). Just a quickie(and early) one tonight. The moral of today(if you can find any “moral” on the internet): Don’t be a hypocrite. Now let me show you all the ways in which I’m a hypocrite saying that :-D

Lightlife Sausage With Cheese, Green Beans, Broccoli

Peanut Flour Greek Yogurt

What I say: I have a slight gluten intolerance.

What I do: Eat processed soy with concentrated wheat gluten.

What I say(now): Oops. It’s… erm… tasty?

Something here–maybe the gluten in the sausage–did not sit well with me during Greek History. It also might have been the yogurt; I’m not sure that much cream should meet that much salt. It might also just have been this was a complete protein bomb and that’s never good. Who’s to say? The lesson? Know yourself, and what you should do, and(hopefully) do it. I know certain things make my tummy funky, and that I do best with a plate comprised mostly of fat, low-cal vegetables, and a small amount of protein. I will try to do that.

Like I said, that made Greek History not so fun for me, and Latin not so fun for the people around me I’m sure(use your imagination). After that, though, I was free… from school at least. I love these 3-day work weeks. The first thing I did was run into my room and brew plenty of coffee. Decaf coffee works for me. So do I show restraint? Not at all.

The Wow Baking Company Cookie

Oprah this afternoon was all about diabetes, eating healthy, and working out. What did I do? I reached for an oversized chocolate chip cookie from the WOW Baking Company, knowing that I might not get a good run in until Monday(more on that in a bit).

The Wow Baking Company Chocolate Chip Cookie

I’m sorry, Oprah, but this cookie was amazing! Eat as Oprah says, not as I do. But, if you are going to have a cookie, why not a big, soft, gluten-free one? I got this as well as some others to review in the mail today and clearly it did not last long. But it was so delicious and unexpectedly soft, I truly truly loved it. And my stomach feels fine, too. Maybe that’s because it didn’t have gluten? More likely because chocolate chips and sugar have never been particular stomach-troublers. Totally worth every sugary, gluten-free calorie :-D

And what am I doing now? Why, waiting for my dad to come and then go to Chocolate Fest. Yes. Chocolate Fest. Real healthy right? It only happens once a year(unless you hit up each Whole Foods near you in which case it’s more like 5-6 times in 3 days), so you know I’m going. It’s either going to be really fun, or just a Whole Foods shopping trip(which is also fun). And then I’ll be home for the weekend to do some fun stuff around Boston. Did I mention there’ll be cooking/baking? Oh food processor, how I miss you! And now… Chocolate!

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Sweet Oats

Posted on February 4, 2010 by Evan Thomas
*Don’t forget to enter the Coconut Oil giveaway I’m hosting here*

I’m a distance runner, and Tuesday-Thursday has felt like a sprint! I can do it though; we’re all most there! I think I can, I think I can, I think I can. Or, if you’re more for Dory, Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming. Onto the eats:

Q.Bel Vegan Dark Chocolate Wafer Bars

You would think all of Q.bel’s dark chocolate would be vegan, right? Well not so. They put milkfat in the regular dark chocolate, but not in this one. It was pretty good–actually tasted strikingly similar to the other dark chocolate bars. It must have been good because before I knew it these were gone while I was watching Modern Family and The Middle. I knew the former was hilarious but never watched the latter; it was really good! I’m glad Patricia Heaton is back on TV, too.

Oatmeal With Cookie Dough Peanut Butter

I was so beat last night, and was the first to admit it. I did something appalling: I shut off my computer before 9:30 to start going to bed. And oh God did that feel good. After being freed from technology(and work), I turned on Idol and had a big comforting bowl of oatmeal with cookie dough peanut butter–such an amazing combo! And I’m almost done with the jar, and you know what that means ;-)

I think I was asleep by 10:20, which is remarkable considering Wayland Wednesday was happening downstairs(think: music and booze). And I only woke up a few time! Some crazy dreams led to crazy cravings, though. I’m completely convinced I need to get some organic strawberry poptarts next time I’m at Whole Foods to settle those(speaking of organic junk food).

Nature's Path Peanut Choco' Granola Bar

I woke up right at 6:15 with my alarm and had to get going to the gym unfortunately fast. Already I could tell my stomach was feeling like a pit and I had to grab this bar on-the-go. It was good, but more chocolatey than peanutty; it reminded me a lot of a Kudos bar.

Running Stats

I don’t have a ton of time at the gym in the morning on Tuesdays and Thursdays; my goal is to be done by 7:30, though I can probably push that 20 minutes or so when I get better into a routine. Instead of distance, I worked on consistant speed and picked it up a bit from the past few days. I felt really good after these 5 miles! I definitely could have done 2 more at that pace, but time was not on my side(I didn’t even get to when Pokemon is on :-( ).

Peanut Soy Yogurt, Sweet Potato Oats With Justin's Chocolate Peanut Butter

Sweet Potato Oats With Justin's Chocolate Peanut Butter

My breakfast in 3 words: On-the-go, orange, and yummy. I mixed some partially defatted peanut flour in the soy yogurt to make it more proteinous(and obviously delicious); I think the key is salt and vanilla stevia–my two staples! For the oats, I tried something completely new to me; I had leftover sweet potatoes and mashed 3oz in my oatmeal with stevia and salt. This came out sooo good! Now I see what the fuss is about. I think it would have been even better with maple peanut butter but I still had a chocolate peanut butter craving from the bar.

Apple

At least my first class doesn’t feel like an overwhelming subject or have a very intense professor; I couldn’t handle that at 9am. But when I got back to my dorm I was hangry! So far it’s feeling like a bottomless pit day :-( Maybe a delayed reaction from yesterday’s workout. It’s important to keep in mind always that if you’re eating good foods and your body’s still hungry then it’s what it needs to refuel, so by all means dig in!

I have plans to make review pages for a) The new Q.bel chocolate, b) The Nature’s Path granola bar and c) Justin’s chocolate almond butter, but since none of those were sent for reviewing I might meander and take my time getting around to those. In the meanwhile, here’s a Q.bel giveaway, a Tropical Traditions giveaway here, and a chocolate giveaway.

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My Quick-And-Dirty Dinner Exposed

Posted on February 3, 2010 by Evan Thomas

In addendum to my last post, I want to add that I have no shame in admitting I went through today knowing it’s been far too long since I’ve made the time to shave, though I think that’s more socially acceptable with a man’s face than anything else. That aside, lunch featured 2 Trader Joe products I’d never bought before.

Trader Joe's Sesame Oil And Tempeh

Even though I’ve had plenty of tempeh, I’ve never had Trader Joe’s. Unfortunately, I might not again after this one, either. Even though it’s so perfectly priced, it’s made with gluten forming grains :-( My intolerance is so slight, I could eat a ton of bread and still feel fine; but then again, why not weed it out where it’s not necessary? I heated the sesame oil in a pan, and quickly cooked some tofu and tempeh. Towards the end, I added soy sauce and broccoli. It smelled just like teppanyaki!

Stir Fried Tofu, Tempeh, And Broccoli

For a final touch, I added a little cold sesame oil once it was out of the pan

Tip: Not sure how much oil to add at the end for a little flavor? Don’t pour haphazardly; use the cap of the bottle as a measuring device.

I packed this in a to-go container and met my friend, Adam, for lunch to reconnect after the long Winter break. The gist of it: Nothings really changed :-) We decided that, since I’m almost off the meal plan entirely, it’s easier to meet for lunches occasionally rather than at night. I think this semester is taking shape wonderfully.

After lunch I went back to my room, squeezed in some work, and then went to my 2 1/2 hour class. The entire first half of it was devoted to a librarian talking about how to use the internet for resources. That was about as exciting as it sounds like it was. I find it ironic whenever somebody in their fifties is telling my generation what to do with a computer. I was sooo happy for break, at which point I whipped out my snacks.

Pomegranate Chobani, Paradise Walnut Pistachio Bora Bora Bar

Like I Tweeted, I really didn’t want a “bar” exactly. Instead, I brought a yogurt and a Bora Bora bar which I won from Avery.

I suppose it was still a “bar”, but it felt a lot more like a trail mix with nuts and fruit being the first 3 ingredients and fat being half the calories.

Pomegranate Chobani, Paradise Walnut Pistachio Bora Bora Bar

I ate half like granola and half on its own. Either way, this was absolutely delicious! It really did taste nutty, spicy, and fruity, and not at all like a grainy “bar”, which I just could not have gotten through at this point. I wonder if they sell these at Whole Foods? To be honest, I’ve never looked.

Random Chandelier

I also never looked for a chandelier in a classroom, but this was right there in the classroom across the hall from mine. What exactly could they need that for? It’s in a tiny room with a front board and a lot of chairs. And is 110% out of place. On the other hand, I could see this being my “escape lounge” if I ever need to take my laptop and go somewhere quiet. When I got back into my room, I was beat. First things first:

Naturally Nutty Butter Toffee Peanut Butter

I think the 2 minutes after walking in the door after a long day, when everything you have yet to do(such as taking off your coat) start running through your mind, is the worst 2 minutes ever. After that, though, I brewed some coffee and got to work–Not nearly as much as I would like but c’est la vie. For dinner, I just did not feel like much, so I went for my “quick-and-dirty” meal.

Lightlife Soy Sausage With Cooked Onions And Organic American Cheese, Green Beans

Flavored soy products are my blessing! I could probably eat this meal 10 times and not have it get old. I mixed 3 servings Lightlife gimme lean sausage with 2 squares Trader Joe’s organic american cheddar and some green beans from the dining hall 2 nights ago–quick and simple. I absolutely love the Trader Joe’s cheese here; not only is it organic, but it’s so processed it needs to be called a “cheese product”. Sign me up! I eat up contradictions like that(clearly).

Any other organic junk foods you crave? Newman-O’s, perhaps?

Here’s a giveaway for coconut peanut butter from Tropical Traditions. Here’s one Amazing (grass) giveaway. And here’s a Chobani giveaway.

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