Tag Archives: Cereal

Update Time

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Is anyone else excited that there are only two more days until the weekend? I am! I have my second and last sprint triathlon of the season on Sunday and I can’t wait, should be a good time :) .

So the last few days have been busy. I can’t believe I felt so detached after not blogging for two days. How would I feel if I took the week off? I missed you guys.

Anyway, even though I haven’t been blogging, I have been doing other things like exercising, going to work, and of course eating. I figured I’d update you guys on all of the important stuff.

Exercise
After the Big 10k and a brick on Sunday, I took Monday off to recoup. Monday also happened to be the first day of my new job so it worked out well. I slept in a little and had plenty of time to get ready and get to work on time.

Tuesday I wanted to run but woke up to thunderstorms. I packed up my swim bag and walked over to the gym. The rain stopped right before I left and it ended up being a beautiful morning to run (grrr..). I waited 30 minutes for a pool lane and only had enough time to swim a quick 1,650 meters before heading home.

Wednesday I finally got in my first run of the week. I completed an easy 7 miles at a little bit under an 8 min/mile pace. I was pretty proud of this considering I did not sleep well Tuesday night. This morning I ran 6 miles in 48:21 (8:03 min/mile) and will run the Terrapin 5k with Ian tonight. Speaking of that race, I totally thought it was next week until I double checked an e-mail yesterday. Whoops!

Eating
Oddly enough I haven’t been all that hungry this week. I’m not sure if it’s stress/change or my metabolism catching up with last week’s less intense workouts but I haven’t had much of an appetite.

Breakfasts have been whatever I can grab and eat quickly before heading out the door. Monday and Tuesday were both cereal days.

puffed millet, puffed rice, sunflower seeds, roasted & salted pecans, banana, blueberries, blackberries, almond butter

maple buckwheat flakes (gf), pepitas, 1/2 banana, blueberries, blackberries, cashews, almond butter

Wednesday I had a little more time and threw together cherry oatmeal using 1/2 cup oats, 1 1/2 cups water, 1 tsp chia seeds, 1/2 whipped banana, cherries, and maple sugar.

Topped with cashew butter (mine is so hard!) and homemade granola. It tasted better than it looked!

I have been incredibly grateful that I had the foresight to make pasta salad Sunday night and it (along with fruit) has been my lunch every day of the week except for yesterday when my research team ordered in thai food. I’ve also had it for dinner a few times too. I love the convenience factor.

Dinner’s have either been leftovers or quick throw together meals. I haven’t wanted to spend much time in the kitchen.

pasta salad (inspired by this recipe), BBQ cheezy kale

carrots, snap peas, zucchini, and mushrooms in a spicy peanut sauce made using PB & Co’s The Heat is On

I also got to avoid cooking dinner one night because we went out to celebrate Ian’s birthday :) .

The J-O-B
I obviously can’t see too much for privacy reasons and because I just started and am not entirely sure what the day-to-day will be like but I’m really enjoying my new job. I’m working for a different university on a different study and love the change of scenery. My office also has a great mix of young people and senior people with lots of experience and everyone has been really wonderful and nice so far. Right now my main task is to learn as much as possible about the study (I work in health research) and the health condition and I’m finding everything really interesting. So far so good!

The Blog
I moved over to a self-host (not sure if you need to update google readers) but you shouldn’t see anything too new yet. I’m hoping to start working with someone soon to redesign everything and make my site easier to use. I’ll keep you updated though!

Now it’s your turn, catch me up on what you’ve been doing! 

Monday Things {07-23-2012}

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1. Friday was my last day and I got to leave work before noon. It was a beautiful day, not too hot or humid, and I knew that I should spend time outside. Instead, I parked my butt on the couch and played Temple Run on my iPhone while watching a Laguna Beach marathon. Very productive right?

(image source)

2. Oh, but I did manage to stand up long enough to bake these delicious oatmeal raisin cookies!

3. Ian and I went out to dinner on Friday to celebrate my job change and went a little crazy on oysters. They were so delicious though, too bad they’re pretty pricey.

4. Saturday morning I completed my usual brick workout. It was nice and cool and riding my bike in the breeze felt so nice. Unfortunately, my legs were pretty tired and the ride was slow but it did really clear my mind.

5. Ian and I spent all day Saturday on Lake Michigan in Harbert, Michigan with Ian’s family. We laid out in the sun, tossed a frisbee around for Ian’s brother’s dog, and swam. It was pretty cloudy out so the sun wasn’t too strong and it wasn’t overwhelmingly hot. Unfortunately, I took zero pictures while we were there. Oops.

6. For dinner Saturday night we all collaborated and put together a great meal. We had grilled zucchini, a huge cucumber, tomato, and mint salad, hangar steak with chimichurri sauce, lentils, roasted corn on the cob, bread, burrata, and fancy apricots (black velvet?). I piled a plate with zucchini, salad, lentils, and apricots. It was delicious!

7. On Sunday, I woke up early to do a non-RnR half-marathon. I was planning on running my usual 13 mile route but after looking at the Rock ‘n Roll course map I realized that wasn’t going to happen. I made a new route with lots of small loops and out-and-backs on the same route and headed out. It was just not my run. I forgot water again and by mile 9 when the temps started creeping near the 80′s I needed some. I wove back and forth across a major street looking for a water fountain and eventually begged a Dunkin’ Donuts employee to give me a cup. It. was. so. pathetic. I also tripped at one point and almost bit it, I could feel blisters forming along the bottom of one of my feet, my right foot started to hurt (I think I might have a minor case of pf), and my hamstring gave a twinge afterwards. I finished it but it wasn’t pretty even though for the most part me legs felt strong the entire run. Frustrating….

8. Due to the above, I’m taking this week easy/not running this week. Marathon training starts in a little over a month and I want to be pain-free by then.

9. I hadn’t prepped anything cold for breakfast and considering the sweaty mess I was when I got home, hot food was not going to cut it. I decided to make a huuuuge bowl of cereal that included puffed millet, puffed rice, walnuts, sunflower seeds, half of a banana, blackberries, blueberries, a mix of rice and almond milk, a glob of almond butter, and a drizzle of honey. You could call it fancy cereal :P

10. Ian’s friend threw a BBQ on Sunday and Ian had promised that we would make chocolate covered bacon (we’ve done this for his buddies bbqs before). It’s simple in theory but takes awhile to execute.

What’s really interesting is that some people love the taste and others cannot stand it. I think one guy ate the majority of the container yesterday!

11. The BBQ was a blast. Ian’s friend hired a man to come and make fresh tacos for everyone and there were plenty of snacks, games, and a pool to play in. I ended up cooking brown rice and black beans ahead of time and then adding some guac and salsa to them at the party. For once my food allergies worked in my favor because there were no veggie taco options anyway.

12. We were absolutely exhausted when we got home last night. Sitting on the couch, playing with Sonic, and watching Teen Mom was about all we could muster the energy to do.

13. Speaking of Sonic, he seems to be doing a little bit better. We lowered all of the blinds in the apartment thinking he may be getting hot from the sun and he seems to be out and about more. I’m home Monday-Thursday of this week though and I’m not sure that I’m going to like living in the dark so we’ll see how it goes.

14. Because I didn’t have to get up for work this morning, I slept in until 7:30 (a record?) and then made a warm oatmeal breakfast.

I cooked 1/2 cup oats and 1 tsp chia seeds in 1 1/2 cups of water. When it began to bubble, I added 1/2 of a smashed banana and whipped it into the oats. After a few more minutes, I added chopped cherries and maple sugar. Delicious!

15. It’s supposed to be almost 100 degrees today so I’m going to relax in the apartment, go for a recovery swim at some point, and then clean, organize, and take care of some online things. Yay me!

What did you do this weekend?

Girl & the Goat

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Ian and I have been wanting to try Girl & the Goat for a long time. I’ve always been interested because I’m a huge Top Chef fan and Stephanie Izard is an amazing chef. Ian has always been drawn to the creative menu and interesting brews. Let’s just say we were pretty excited when his sister started working for the restaurant a few months ago ;) .

We finally made it over to Girl & the Goat last night and all I can say is wow, why did it take us so long?

I decided to wear my new BCBG dress that I bought at Nordstrom Rack for $175 less than its original price. Love it.

We arrived at the restaurant a few minutes before our reservation slot of 7:30 and were asked to step aside and wait. The restaurant was incredibly busy, they were even telling people with reservations that they would have to wait another 45 minutes to an hour. We ended up skipping the wait because we were “friends of the goat” but I can’t imagine coming to a restaurant with a reservation and then waiting a long time. Lesson learned, plan ahead!

I had requested a vegan menu to avoid any problems with dairy or egg and was given one upon seating. I had decided before dinner that I would do my best to avoid corn and soy but I wasn’t going to worry about cross contamination or demand they skip the oil on a dish. How often do you get to eat in a Top Chef’s restaurant? Instead, I focused on avoiding my main allergens.

P.S. I loved how they had compiled a vegan menu. They had vegetarian and gluten free menus as well.

The Girl & the Goat is small plates style and they suggest about 2-3 plates per person. As this was our first trip to the restaurant, we decided to try a lot of different things.

We started with one of the oysters of the day. I forget exactly what it was called, but the oysters were marinated in a vinegar sauce and topped with chopped herbs. They were really really tasty!

We also split the warm marinated olives. They were good as well (the bright green ones were my favorites) but the serving was big for two people. We still managed to eat the majority of the portion though ;) .

Next, I had the kohlrabi salad with the dressing on the side. The salad was good but could have used a few more blueberries. It was another large portion and I was thankful that Ian helped me out!

Ian also ordered a broccoli dish that came with a blue cheese sauce (not pictured). He loved it and even brought some of the leftovers home!

For my “main”, I ordered the eggplant caponata. It was a mix of eggplant, onion, and other veggies, fried masa, and a green chimichurri sauce that was to die for. I seriously wanted to lick the bowl.

I did try to avoid the fried masa but failed on a few occasions. Oh well, I wasn’t too upset about it :P

Ian ordered the grilled pork ribs and they came with a tomatillo-mushroom slaw. He raved about how good they were. The meat was literally falling off the bone.

The food was good but not incredibly heavy (maybe because we didn’t order a bread or anything fried?) so we decided to indulge in dessert. Ian ordered the quatro leches and I had the blackberry sorbet (vegan).

The sorbet is from Black Dog Gelato and seriously changed my life. I have been to Black Dog before but the sorbet has always been overshadowed by the gelato. Not anymore. I want to eat their sorbet for breakfast, lunch, and dinner… it was that good!

I really liked our experience at Girl & the Goat. The food was excellent, the wait staff was friendly, and our meal was perfectly paced. I hate feeling rushed! It’s a must-try in the Chicago area, particularly if you’re a Top Chef fan!

This morning I woke up at 5:00 and saw this:

I immediately nixed the idea of running outside. I debated running on the treadmill but I wasn’t feeling it. I’m not training for anything long distance right now so I didn’t want to force myself to run on the dreadmill and decided to go for a longer swim instead

I hopped in the pool with the intention of doing an interval workout but I fell into a rhythm during my warm-up and decided to swim for distance. I completed 2,400 meters which a a new PDR for me, yay!

All I wanted for breakfast was big bowl of cereal so that is exactly what I had!

1/2 cup brown rice cereal, 1/2 cup puffed millet, few sprinkles of walnuts & pepita, blueberries, strawberries, banana, dollop of almond butter in the middle, and a drizzle of honey. Delicious!

I love it when cereal looks fancy ;)

This week has me all confused but I believe it’s time for work. Have a great day!

Date Night {Arami}

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This past week was incredibly busy. It was so busy that Ian and I didn’t have much time to spend together. In fact, we hadn’t had a meal together since Wednesday night. We had to fix that and we did it in the best way possible, a date night!

We went to Arami Sushi, a smaller sushi restaurant in Ukranian Village. Arami is known for their innovation and their fresh fish and everytime Ian and I’ve eaten there the food has been delicous and the service wonderful.

Things were a little tricky given my elimination diet but a quick e-mail to my doctor assured me that fish, rice, and seaweed would be okay but that I should be mindful of fried rolls, sauces with mayo, and soy products. It seemed like a great excuse to order nigiri! (I also asked for fresh wasabi as some of the other varieties contain gluten).

We ordered two salmon and two yellowtail nigiri (my doctor also suggested I avoid tuna due to the higher mercury content) and Ian and I had one of each.

The salmon was phenomenal and I’m not usually a salmon sashimi fan (love it in rolls though). It was incredibly fresh and full of flavor, even without soy sauce or ginger.

I also had two pieces of grilled avocado nigiri.

At first I was nervous because the avocado was drizzled with a spicy mayo sauce but I found out that it was a vegan mayo and even though I’m not sure the ingredient list would have stood up to the elimination diet I’m doing right now, it didn’t contain any of my allergens so I went for it. They were really good and I feel okay so far today so my fingers are crossed it continues!

I also ordered one of the special nigiri of the night, Korean red snapper.

This was also really tasty and had more flavor than the yellowtail but was not as good as the salmon.

Ian also ordered kani nigiri and a roll to fill him up.

After dinner we plopped ourselves down on the couch where I had a pumpkin smoothie and some veggies in hummus (I was still a liitttle bit hungry) and watched some Mad Men. We need to pick up the pace a bit, we’re only in season 3!

This Morning
This morning I woke up early to beat the heat AND the runners with a brick workout (I don’t think I beat either ;) ). I got out my bike and headed to the lakeshore path where I rode 6 miles in one direction, turned around, and rode the 6 miles home. It ended up taking me about 50 minutes on the path and an hour counting biking to and from the path. Considering all of the bikers, runners, and walkers, I’m happy with the pace.

When I got back to my apartment, I locked my bike up front and headed out for a two mile run. I arrived back around 7:30 a.m. and it was already really warm. Yikes! I’m going to have to wake up even earlier to fit in my run tomorrow morning :-/.

I ran a mile out and then turned around and ran home. My first mile clocked in at 7:36 and my second at 7:14. I was actually quite impressed with my legs but I don’t know that I could have kept that up for another mile, at least not in the heat after biking for an hour.

All I wanted for breakfast was something cold so I had a big bowl of cereal that included 1/2 cup brown rice cereal, 1/2 cup puffed millet, 1/2 T walnuts, 1/2 T pumpkin seeds, a sliced banana, almond butter, and then a drizzle of honey on top of everything. I also used rice milk. It was so good!

I’m off to relax. I’m debating going a nap because we have another busy weekend ahead of us (are they ever not busy?). Plans for today include a trip to the Printers Row Lit Fest, errands, and a Sox game (I’ve never been!). Have a wonderful day!

What do you have going on today? Anything exciting?

WIAW {03-14-2012}

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Happy WIAW! Today I’m going to show you what I ate on Monday (or Moanday har har). If you’re unfamiliar with WIAW or want to link up, check out Jenn’s blog Peas and Crayons for more information.

{6:45 a.m.} Breakfast

I woke up feeling extremely dehydrated, so while I waited to feel hungry (and while the coffee was a’brewing) I drank an entire water bottle of water. Crazy right?

Breakfast was a bowl of toasted oatmeal flakes, multi-grain o’s, walnuts, raisins, banana, and blackberries with almond milk and a peanut butter spoon. I heart cereal :)

{11:45 a.m.} Lunch

My stomach started to growl earlier than usual so I dug into my lunch of mushrooms, leftover steamed vegetables, kale, tempeh, pizza sauce, and mozzarella.

I also tried one of TJ’s pre-packaged yogurt/granola combinations.

I liked the flavor but not the size. I could never just eat one of these for breakfast.

{3:30 p.m.} Snack

I didn’t want to get hungry during my exam, so I had half of an apple and the last of this mini chocolate bar before leaving work for class.

{7:00 p.m.} Appetizer

While I was “making” dinner, I snacked on some chips, mushrooms, and this new amazing dip from Trader Joe’s.

{7:15 p.m.} Dinner

Because I didn’t get home until late, I made a bag of TJ’s frozen polenta for dinner. Unfortunately it was teeny tiny! I divided it in half so that Ian and I could split it and that was my portion. It sure was tasty though :)

{8:00 p.m.} Dinner Part II/ Snack

Small dinner means bigger dessert/snack right? I had a cottage cheese parfait with mango butter, granola, cashews, and sunflower seed butter. Mmmm

And that’s that.

Now your turn, tell me one thing you ate today or [on a different note] your favorite non-food related treat (i.e. pedicure etc).