Food Makes Fun Fuel

Firstly, I’m glad I have tough readers who don’t let a little mold scare them off from their favorite food. As a testament to the kind of company Oikos is, Kristina, the representative who first introduced me, came across that part of the post and offered to send replacement coupons. Thank you, Oikos; Clearly I’m just not eating my tubs of yogurt fast enough, but that’s fixable. My breakfast yesterday must have filled me up with protein because I was not hungry at all by the end of Greek. Looking back, between the oatmeal, egg, greek yogurt, and peanut flour, there was about 40 grams in all–and much tastier than just eating a piece of grilled chicken, too! I muddled around my room a bit, went to the Ratty, and got the PERFECT inspiration for lunch:

Lentil Soup, Broccoli, Mustard Maple Tofu

Mustard Maple Tofu

I know I’m not the only blogger who has drooled whenever Kath makes her tofu; I thought hers always sounded really interesting, so I worked with what I could. I tooke 3oz chopped tofu from the salad bar, tossed with 2 teaspoons mustard and maple syrup, and microwaved for 40 seconds. She was definitely right about the flavors here because they’re AMAZING. It’s not quite sweet like maple, and not quite savory like mustard, yet it’s very earthy and subtle. The lentil soup completely failed in comparison to the tofu. Is anyone else always surprised when they find lentil soup? I know how much water it takes to make regular lentils so I can never imagine how much water is needed for lentils AND soup.

I was originally going to go to Whole Foods after Days with my friend, Adam, but he said he didn’t want to go today since he just went grocery shopping yesterday. What, normal people don’t go grocery shopping every single day and don’t find browsing the aisles fun? What’s up with that? I went by my lonesome, but I think that’s a good thing because I took so long he would have gotten really frustrated. I had this in my pocket to snack on:

Spooky Smores Z-Bar

So loving these right now. And why not, ’tis the season. They have a bit more saturated fat than my other faves, the chocolate brownie and the peanut butter, but they also have more whole grains. And I swear, if you have any intention of eating a Z-bar during the day, keep it in your pocket beforehand. Some people swear by microwaving these, but I think the pocket is a much better method because it heats from the outside, more like an oven. After a few hours it’s really soft and slightly melted–unbelievable. So what did I end up getting at Whole Foods?

Whole Foods Organic Lowfat Yogurt

Just my yogurt. I browsed the kefirs to see if there was any I wanted to try, but I wasn’t sure what brand to go for, what flavor, etc., so I let that one be for now. Besides, after this I have 2.25 left in my food allowance for September and with today being the last day I really want to try to start October out on the positive. And I like the Organic Lowfat variety; in my opinion, lowfat gives the best combination of nutrition and texture out there, and Whole Foods doesn’t make a non-organic version of it. When I got back to my room, I downloaded the new google chrome, which has made uploading pics so much less of a pain, and made a snack:

Oats With Vanilla Peanut Butter And Grain Sweetened Dark Chocolate Chips

This is another Naturally Nutty flavor that puzzles me but I really like. I’m convinced if you try it unknowing, you can’t tell that it’s not regular peanut butter, yet you’ll like it a lot more than plain. The vanilla adds a subtle something that does a good job at just enhancing the nuttiness. And dark chocolate chips… speak for themselves. I ate this while catching up on Heroes. Now that the episodes aren’t 2 freakin’ hours long, I can get a lot more into them and appreciate the plot; it looks like this will be one hell of a season. For dinner, I met up with my friend at the V-W since the online menu looked more appealing:

Curry Tempeh, Broccoli, Green Beans, Carrots, Beans And Bacon Soup

Enter soybean source number two of the day. I’ve only recently tried tempeh since eating at the dining halls and I’ve really enjoyed it thus far. It’s much meatier than any other meat-alternatives I’ve had and I’d love to try some of the great blog recipes I’ve seen if I ever get back into a kitchen. The curry added a nice mild spice to this. The bacon soup was a bit to soothe my bacon tooth I had last week that went untouched; it didn’t really do much more than give me plenty of gas. Bacon in soup is just sad and flabby, whereas bacon should be salty and crisp(and, some people might argue, in dark chocolate bars I eye every time I’m at Whole Foods). The soy definitely won out in this meal.

NBC officially has me on Tuesday’s. First up was 2 hours of the Biggest Loser. Is it just me, or is this the nastiest, meanest, most depressing season yet? Isn’t it great in a horrible way? I think Bob and Jillian must be tired with the show or have HUGE egos because they have gotten pissy–love it. The last scene before they went into the elimination room was so emotional, it was almost hard to watch. Of course, there was snacks throughout:

Coffee, Gingerlicious Cookies, 10-Grain Bread With Peanut Butter Cookie Spread

Peanut Butter Scone With Smart Balance Peanut Butter

Plenty of good eats for the night. See my mug? Oh yeah, I’m a devoted fan(/it was dirt cheap at the NBC store in Rockefeller center since no one else wants them). Where to start, where to start. Holly’s post last night had me drooling at her amazing pumpkin molasses cookies. I’m definitely adding those to the to-bake list, but for the meanwhile it reminded me I had some frozen gingerlicious cookies to devour. I’m sure they aren’t as good as Holly’s but at 50 calories each with fiber and a veggie puree base, they aren’t shabby at all. I finished off a tub of cream cheese in making my peanut butter cookie spread toast; I was thinking of oats in a container at first but somehow I don’t think the plastic and hot oats would be friends. And the scone was made with a recipe from The Peanut Butter Boy. That’s definitely one of the favorite recipes amongst the members of my house. I made mine with flax and almond milk so they’re vegan. Note to self: flaxy scones + flaxy peanut butter might be a bit too much fiber for the stomach right before bed. I wound down the night with Jay Leno’s new show. I really like it and hope it’s here to stay because it’s a reliable source of entertainment. I’d rather be watching Flipping Out at that time but we don’t get Bravo here so no dice.

This morning was another “why do I get up early to run morning”, but run I did nevertheless. I didn’t even look at milage/time on the treadmill because I think it takes so much longer if you obsess about those numbers. Instead I just kept my eyes focused on The Today Show and the drama that is Jon And Kate Plus 8(Sorry, but I can not stand this show or all the press around it). I ended up going 8 miles in 68:30 minutes; I think the older woman who’s there every morning like me thinks I’m a bit crazy for running even after the treadmill shuts itself down; then again, I can’t disagree with her. I think my breakfast speaks for itself today:

Fluffernutter Oatmeal, Banana Goodness Bread, Banana Nut Vitatop

Normally, I try to vary up the plate with dairy, fruits, carbs, and healthy fats, and normally I’m pretty good at that, no? I mean, what doesn’t say balance better than a bowl with oats, egg, and steak sauce. This morning balance just did not appeal to me, and I wanted bready carbs. I almost got the toaster out to add a slice of 10-grain bread, but showed restriction after the oats. The banana nut vitatop was clearly one of the winners from the sampler I recieved; though I must say it has serious competition with my Banana Goodness Bread with dark chocolate chips. And fluffernutter oats, ah fluffernutter oats, nothing else is so universally satisfying. See, there’s fruit on the plate in the banana jam. That counts, right? I used Butter Toffee Peanut Butter by Naturally Nutty for this batch because I think the flavor just works well with banana(and who doesn’t love B-alliteration?).

I’ve been in such a rush this morning, I haven’t even looked at what the new sales are at Whole Foods. Can you imagine that? Please excuse me while I fix that. But I want to leave you with this hilarious quote I came across yesterday, that is just too true for words:

“My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four; unless there are three other people.” – Orson Welles