mad skills September 9, 2008

i threw a little something together last night to use up the produce i just bought. i was pretty happy with the result. next time i will sautee the squash first and make the spinach layer a lot thicker. i’d also like to use black beans instead of the canned refried ones i used this time. other than that, this was a perfect way to use a lot of ingredients and have plenty of leftovers for the week. and quinoa is good.

i started with a layer of beans.

then i added the quinoa. it was only a 1/4c. (and i of course prepared it beforehand in boiling water).

uh, for some reason i didn’t photograph the next two green layers. i have nothing against my greens, these were both my favorites. i just got excited layering and skipped the photo… whoops. first it was a modest sprinkling of diced jalapenos from the can. i remember how friggin’ hot they were last time i used them with a grain (the bulgur bean stuffed peppers) so i went easy on them this time in order to take advantage of all the flavors i would be using. then i threw the spinach on after them. i really wish i had made a thicker layer of it.

next up was the squash. you can see the spinach underneath. again, i really i shoulda sauteed them first.

then i added a generous helping of corn.

a fresh diced yellow bell pepper…

and finally two fresh diced roma tomatoes.

here are all the layers before going into the oven.

i stuck it in there for 20 minutes at 450 and got perfectly roasted peppers and tomatoes and perfectly wilted spinach. had i made the other modifications it would have been perfect all around but it really was tasty just like this. i sprinkled the last of my shredded mozz right when i took the whole dish out of the oven so it melted very nicely.

here’s my portion topped with avocados and some of mom’s salsa with the leftover corn on the side.

i’ve gone too far August 22, 2008

i would have gone next door to pick up some lettuce for my lettuce wrap idea but my stomach was too hungry and decided it was too far to walk. so i just split this big bowl with dad. i ate about half and gave the rest to him.

and, for good measure, a close-up of all the goodness this bowl of spicy bulgur madness has to offer.

for the record, step class was ok. i was more concerned with getting the steps right than keeping my heart rate up so i’ll need to work on that if i go back but i was sweating the whole time and we finished the class with some killer weightlifting.

today i’m going to bodyfit at 430 for some more killer work with free-weights. immediately afterwards me and my workout buddies have plans to enjoy ladies night at a wine bar nearby. my sisters are invited, too, so i hope they come! it should be a fun night.

en-lazed August 21, 2008

as my dad would call it. i shouldn’t dread blogging as much as i do, and i guess dread isn’t really the correct word to describe it. i just feel like it’s more of a chore than anything. it’s holding me accountable to what i eat and i’m grateful for that so i’m gonna have to come up with a way to make it more fun. obviously, once i get going it’s not so bad and i really have a lot to say. but writing has always held this mixed emotion for me, even though it remains the most eloquent and efficient way i’ve found to express myself just because of my generally perceived superior grasp of the english language (perceived to me at least)…

no more soapbox, i have food to post. i had a z-bar pre-workout yesterday.

but it was like 2 hours pre-workout. i was certainly not properly fueled for spin class yesterday and i found myself worn out after just the warm-up. to be fair, i really hit it hard starting out and didn’t really save any energy for the rest of class so i tried to stick with it as best i could but i wasn’t able to push myself as hard as i would have liked. i was really hungry afterwards, too. i wanted to make good on my promise to cook so i went about it normally but nibbled on a kashi peanut granola bar while everything was being prepped and cooked.

i made spicy bean stuffed bell peppers straight from the recipe on kath’s blog. they were absolutely delicious, i was super happy with the way they came out. they could have used a bit more time in the oven to fully roast the peppers but i mis-read the recipe and sprinkled the cheese on before i put them in initially instead of after the first 20 minutes just to melt it. i like my yellow bell peppers crunchy anyway.

it was hella spicy though. i used hot diced jalapenos (as opposed to medium or mild) and it gave the filling quite a kick. i could only finish one of those suckers and it definitely cleared my sinuses. my mouth was literally on fire after eating this and there is only one dessert in the world that will do after a spicy meal and that’s ice cream. i had 1/2c. of vanilla slow churn with some caramel tea cookies and a drizzle of sugar-free maple.

that settled my mouth and my tummy. and i can’t feel guilty about it because i was down 1.4 pounds this morning!

hurry August 16, 2008

this will be a hurried post because i don’t want to be late to my mom’s birthday party and i haven’t posted since yesterday lunch because i’ve been super busy. the pictures are taking forever to load so i’m gonna write everything up and then just put the pictures in at the end.

i had a z bar pre-workout and my workout was good. it was real good, i’m still sore. lots of awesome guided strength training. after working out i headed home to freshen up and pack my bag for the night so i could sleep at my parent’s house since the wine bar i was going to is closer to their place. i stopped over there to eat dinner with them before i went to meet the girls for wine. i snacked on a small handful of honey wheat pretzels before dinner was ready. then i had a small serving of the chicken and vegetables with black beans my sister made for everyone. at the bar i started with a glass of white, an Argentinian Torrontes. then we ordered some bruschetta, of which i had two halves. one of prosciutto, brie and fig and one of salami, manchego and pesto. i washed that down with a Malbec Rose. and then we shared a tuxedo chocolate cake for dessert. the girls really wanted to be on my blog so they posed for me

this morning i wasn’t hungry before my workout so i jazzercised without a snack. i got back to my place and made banana oats the same way as yesterday to fuel me for yoga. then i went to yoga!

after yoga i had pb&j on wasa crackers. and the rest of my h2h with soy yogurt and agave nectar with almond slivers. and just now i had the rest of my cucumber, sliced, with tomato quarters and lemon-yogurt hummus. and that’s all i’ve eaten since my last post…

pics!

hardly working August 13, 2008

yet i always have time for lunch. weird.

today it was two blocks of leftover bbq tofu

and a big salad, same as it has been since saturday when i bought all the ingredients except today’s didn’t have blueberries because i ran out of those. this salad used up the last of my mushrooms as well

spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms and cucumbers with annie’s goddess dressing. and as an afterthought because i didn’t bring a vegan cookie and i’m saving my larabar for pre-workout:

times 2

one week every month i just can’t stay away from chocolate, even milk chocolate, and these just happened to be sitting on the doctor’s desk. and four weeks every month i can’t stay away from dessert in general.

homemade pesto June 3, 2008

i blended some basil, olive oil, grated parmesan, pine nuts, and garlic over the weekend to make pesto sauce but it is pretty thick, more like a pesto spread. it tastes really good though, it debuted today in my lunch.
i had a carbo loaded lunch because i’m trying to use up the stuff in my fridge before i go restock. so it’s forcing me to be creative with my combinations. this one isn’t that exciting but i actually had everything i needed to re-create a flavor i miss dearly, pesto pizza.

i used my last half piece of lavash (good riddance, ridiculous amount of calories and too many carbs) for the “crust” and a wedge of laughing cow for the cheese. so it was more like a quesadilla because i had to fold it. but i chopped up the grape tomatoes for cute little slices that would lay flat. then i spread the pesto over them and heated it in the microwave for 20 seconds. nothing earth shattering but very tasty nonetheless. i had a 1c. of spaghetti squash on the side.

altogether 300 calories. i have got to find a way to get my proteins in. that’s my challenge for dinner.

pita pockets=love June 2, 2008

i might eat everything i ever consume for the rest of my life inside a pita pocket. they’re amazing, i get the sandwich feel for half the calories. i mean, who can eat only one piece of bread at a time anyway? i gotta have my filling surrounded by bread on each side, call me crazy.
lunch was a whole wheat pita pocket with mashed avocado, leftover tuna salad from this weekend and some spinach leaves with a cup of grape tomatoes on the side for a grand total of 395 calories.

i know, i’m awesome. check this out:

and i got to eat it! i can’t wait to see how many combinations i can come up with to fill these suckers. stay tuned…