Anyways, long story short, my sister ended up canceling because she didn’t have clean workout gear and we both realized how sore we were from bootcamp on Saturday. Rest day it is! What did I do instead? Went out to brunch with Adam at Toro and had a real bloody Mary with vodka. Ha. Quite the switch.

Toro is a famous tapas place in the South End, and has been on our “must-go list” for ages. Unfortunately they don’t take reservations and we rarely have the patience to wait for a table, let alone wait for 2 hours (which is what happened on our last attempt to go there for dinner). So when Adam suggested brunch, and I remembered about Toro, we thought we’d give it a try. Plan B would have been brunch at many other restaurants that are right there in South End. Luckily, at 10:40 am, there were plenty of tables. Sweet!

Toro is very “New York” – modern space with high ceilings. Definitely our favorite kind of vibe.

As mentioned, I couldn’t help but order a Bloody Mary. I mean I’ve been drinking the virgin ones all week long.

To tell you the truth, I prefer McClure’s bloody Mary mix. It has more pickled flavor which obviously I love. I still drank the whole thing… of course!

For my entree, I ordered the huevos rancheros – eggs over easy, black beans, crispy tortillas, salsa roja and cotija cheese

This was different. I didn’t see any “roja” in the salsa – it was kind of like runny eggs in a pool of black beans with some soft corn tortillas for dipping. It was more flavorful than my description but the consistency was “off” for me. I enjoyed it overall (maybe ate 2/3?) but I wouldn’t order it again.

With my eggs, I also ordered a side of grilled avocado:

The enchilada-like sauce was a surprise and I really liked it.

And then I saw the waitress walk by with these gorgeous corn on the cob plates. This wasn’t on the menu but I ordered one right away. This is a half serving – 2 pieces.

Checking their dinner menu, I see that this is a house specialty (I think I’ve heard of it before and maybe that’s why was subconsciously attracted to them) and is called Maíz Asado Con Alioli Y Queso Cotija – grilled corn with alioli, lime, espalette pepper and aged cheese

This was cheesy and rich yet sweet and fresh (with corn kernels exploding in your mouth). I was already pretty full from eggs + avocado (working on stopping before I’m uncomfortable) so I only managed a few bites. Adam polished the rest off and declared it was the best thing he’s ever eaten. He says that a lot but these really were great!

Oh, what was also great was his home-made chorizo. It was so fresh and tender and flavorful. I had a few bites, feeling a bit guilty about breaking my self-imposed rule about not eating “conventionally” raised meat. And then I found out from the Toro website that they are a green restaurant and do many things to support the environment, including using mostly local ingredients and humanely raised meat. What? I am going back to Toro tomorrow and ordering a side of chorizo to go. I’m so happy right now. Thank you, Toro, for being so awesome. I can’t wait to go back!

So that was breakfast. Lunch was a few hours later – also known as froyo from Red Mango. It was Adam’s idea. I promise.

Small original froyo with mango, watermelon and almonds

I tried watermelon in froyo because Janetha swears by it. It sounded weird but was really not bad. Kind of fun for a change.

Topping close-ups….

Dinner was simple – I utilized 2 products I received through the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program.

Buitoni Riserva – quattro formaggi agnolotti

+ Bertolli arrabbiata – spicy tomato and red pepper sauce

I bulked up the ravioli, um excuse me, the agnolotti, with steamed broccoli and sauteed mushrooms, and finished the dish with some shredded prosciutto.

Sorry, this is SO not photogenic but it was incredibly delicious. The agnolotti was very cheesy so a little bit really does go a long way. A serving is 360 calories and nearly 30% of daily sodium so I ate a little less than 2/3rds (or 4 agnolotti) and it was plenty with all the other add-ins. I also really enjoyed the Bertolli arabbiata sauce. It wasn’t really spicy but it was flavorful and tasted homemade to me. You could tell they used good quality tomatoes.

A yummy dinner for sure!

I ate a little less than an ounce of roasted almonds later at night and taste tested the frozen yogurt I made. More on that in the next post.

Do you keep a “must go to” restaurants list? If so, how many have been on there for a little too long? I encourage you to take the plunge. You’ll probably be sorry you haven’t tried it sooner.

A giveaway coming tomorrow…..

So we are back to semi-regular food journal blogging. After a weekend away, I jumped back on the cooking wagon right away. That’s the best way to ensure that I’m eating nutritious foods. Here are the highlights:

I dug deep into my freezer and found an old box of Holy Donuts, which made an appearance in Monday morning breakfast.

I don’t know what kind this was. It was a bit stale but still filled me up.

I added something new to my green smoothie – sprouts. They made the smoothie taste a bit “healthier” but the almond milk + banana + peanuts still added a good amount of sweetness. Not bad. Not bad.

Lunch was a grilled veggie + Samira’s Homemade jalapeno hummus + Foxboro Cheese fromage blanc wrap. Yummy. No picture.

Dinner was AMAZING! Adam mentioned he was craving Chinese food over the weekend. Before I even had a chance to say: “I’ll make some” he added: I want it to be authentic and greasy. No can do on the greasy part. Sorry. I still made a Chinese dish for our Meatless Monday dinner and it was authentic tasting.

Pineapple tofu stir-fry (recipe from Eating Well can be found here)

The sauce was sticky, sweet, sour and a little spicy (I added chile-garlic sauce). This was seriously perfection. I HIGHLY recommend this recipe.

TUESDAY…

started on the right foot. With brunch! Well actually breakfast since it was 8am but it tasted like brunch.

Grilled eggplant, tomato and bacon egg & cheese

+ a bloody mary (virgin don’t worry, I don’t drink before work )!!!

I picked this McClure’s bloody mary mix up in Brooklyn before we left and I’m so happy I did. This mix is spicy and super pickly (not a word, but you get it, right?) – just how I like ‘em! I actually had another glass after dinner. This time I used about 1/2 mix and 1/2 water and it was a little less “I’m drinking tomatoey pickle water”… even though honestly I totally could. Yes, I am obsessed with everything-pickle. I may just make a quick one right now to take to work.

Conclusion: if you see this mix, buy a case!

LUNCH

Leftover pineapple tofu stir-fry in a wrap + carrots. Yep, still amazing.

DINNER

I picked up some grass fed beef at the farmers market the other day and decided to make Lauren’s beef, potato and root vegetable stew for dinner last night (recipe can be found here).

Yes, I know it’s basically summer but I don’t care. This was made in my crockpot (I just threw everything in after browning the meat) and was delicious. I did add a whole bunch of hot sauce, extra salt and pepper and garlic powder to flavor the broth a bit more. After about 6 hours in the crockpot, the meat was tender and the broth thickened up around the veggies.

Summer or not, I still enjoyed this inside our air-conditioned condo.

In other news: I tried a pecan pie larabar yesterday and thought it was incredible. Have you tried it yet? You should.

Oh and of course I promised a giveaway. This one is mostly to Boston readers. Remember the Healthworks event I attended at Alibi? Remember that crazy awesome swag-bag? One of the things included was a free cut + color from a new hair salon on Newbury Street – Rock Paper Scissors. I’ve tried enough salons to know that I can’t cheat at my girl Amanda at Jerel 119 but maybe you’re up for a free hair-do? Sues and Colleen really loved the experience there and have some pretty awesome cuts to show off.

So here are the giveaway rules:

1) Leave a comment if you are interested in entering the giveaway.

2) For an extra entry, blog or tweet about this giveaway (and come back here and let me know you’ve done so). If you don’t have a blog or a twitter account, tell a friend about this giveaway and after they enter, come back and tell me you’ve referred them here.

I’m going to have this open for a few days. If you win, please take some before and after pics and share them with us. Cool?

The rest of you are welcome to comment on anything else in this post. I think there is some good material here, no?

All right, it’s time for me to make my bloody mary and run to work. Happy hump day!

I’ve dined solo many times, mostly while traveling. It’s actually kind of relaxing and weirdly empowering. I like bringing a book with me otherwise I just eat too fast. Tonight though, I ended up just throwing a quick dinner together. Hopefully we can go out together with Adam some other night, once his work crisis is averted.

Before we get to my average dinner and some other “business,” let me quickly announce the winner of the CSN Stores giveaway. I had 230 eligible entries, and the winner is…. #119 (Blair).

Sorry mom, you can’t cheat the system – you’re going to have to buy that crockpot yourself. Perhaps at cookware. com? Blair, please email me your address asap – elina@healthyandsane.com

Those of you who didn’t win, you will be happy to know that I have ANOTHER giveaway for you. Through my amazingly persuasive powers (kidding), one lucky reader will receive an Oikos package that will include – 4 free 5.3 oz coupons, 2 multipacks, and one 16 oz oikos coupon + an Oikos tote bag. I’m pretty excited about this one. I’m a giant fan of oikos and I want you to taste it (if you haven’t already) or get a little more addicted if you’ve already tried it.

So here are the rules (they are a bit different this time so read carefully):

1) Leave a comment on this post telling me a random fact about the dairy or organic industry. Here are a few resources for you:

• My last post about the Stonyfield luncheon
• The importance of organic farming (from the Stonyfield website)
• The organic center
  

2) If you have a blog, let others know about the giveaway and link back to this post.  If you don’t have a blog, tell someone about this giveaway and let me know that you’ve done so (after they enter the giveaway by commenting). You can also tweet about this giveaway *Either one earns you 2 bonus point* Please come back to this post and tell me you did so (twice).

I will announce the winner of this giveaway next Tuesday, June 1st.

All right, let’s talk about food. I had a good day of official healthy living checklist err checking.

BALANCED BREAKFAST – check!

I got a few Siggi’s coupons in my Healthworks swag bag. I’ve seen Siggi’s yogurt all over the blog world but to be honest never cared to buy it because it’s not organic. Like I said, I’m a pretty die hard oikos fan. I buy TJ’s european style organic yogurt too because oikos is so expensive. I kind of alternate between those 2. The free siggi’s coupons made me purchase a few and this morning I tried the grapefruit kind.

… with a zucchini spelt muffin + coffee

I was surprised at how thick siggi is. Almost thicker than greek yogurt. I liked that. What I didn’t like was that it was a bit grainy and I was definitely not a fan of the grapefruit flavor. I actually don’t even like grapefruit but for some reason I thought this yogurt would be awesome. Maybe it’s the pretty picture.

What I did like… all of these things:

Milk from grass fed cows (weather permitting)? No artificial stuff? Music to my ears. What’s also cool is that Siggi’s is lightly sweetened with agave nectar (the plain variety is not sweetened at all). And then there is this super cool label recycling option:

Love it! Let’s hope their plain yogurt tastes good because I really like what they’re doing here. I also plan on meeting Mr. Siggi soon and find out why his yogurt is not organic. Changing the world one yogurt at a time

SNACK #1 – check!

Chocolate cherry granola bar

MOVE FOR at least 20 MINUTES – check!

It was brutally hot in Boston today and I knew I would have a terrible run if I attempted it. So for the first time in months, I treadmilled it. It was actually a great 5 miler. I alternated between 5.5-7.0 mph at 0.5-2.5 incline. I cooled down with a 1/2 mile walk and stretched a bunch. Great workout!

BALANCED LUNCH

Leftover slice of grilled veggie + fromage blanc pizza

Potato slices sauteed with 1t EVOO, garlic and dried thyme (yum!!)

Simple salad – mixed greens, pea shots, grape tomatoes

BALANCED DINNER – check!

Canned salmon salad with hummus, carrots and tomatoes

Snow peas, carrots, pickle

SNACK #2 (unpictured)

An orange + somersaults

TREAT

Baked brownie (test recipe #1 for the brownie bake-off). I’m going to try to make all of the ones you commented about.

This is 1/2 piece – I ended up eating the other half too – they’re good!

All right, I want to hear about your dining solo stories and if you’re interested in some free oikos coupons, you gotta follow the rules.

Yesterday was another busy day as I was trying to tackle the rest of my to-do list, complete a longer run, and prep for a casual bbq. Adam was a HUGE help. I gave him a grocery list with like 50 items on it (some kind of obscure) and he bought everything but one (which I was fine without at the end of the day). Awesome! I love grocery shopping but sometimes a little help in that dept helps!

My long run was kind of bluh. It was HOT out by the time I got out (almost at noon) and I took lots of water breaks and gave up kind of early. I think I covered 8 miles (maybe a bit more) but maybe ran 6.5 of them and not all in a row. Oh well, hopefully there will be better runs this week!

My breakfast/pre-workout meal:

FFL english muffin with BB, strawberry rhubarb jam and 1/2 banana + coffee

Sorry for the terrible photo. I wasn’t even going to take a picture because you’ve seen it a million times, but then I took a quick one just in case. haha

I ended up kind of grazing for the rest of the day, so let’s call the eats below snacks, lunch and dinner.

Shrimp, mango & avocado ceviche in mini fillo shells. I think I’m going to submit this recipe to the phyllo contest. It turned out delicious after a few tweaks.

I munched on an orange and some cottage cheese while prepping these babies (unpictured).

Then the boys brought over some chips and salsa to munch on during the Celtics game. OMG, this black bean is like crack. So spicy and flavorful. I wanted to eat a whole jar with a spoon and call it dinner.

Let’s see the label a little closer. You guys need to find it asap!! I added it to my grocery list right away.

I did eat an actual meal eventually – Applegate Farms grass-fed organic hot dog & sauerkraut + grilled veggies

Did I mention how much I love grilled veggies? I think I did.

Dessert: bake-off test recipe #1 – break-up bars (recipe here)

I tried these  bars for the first time at the cookie swap party in January and they were definitely a favorite. I omitted the toffee (couldn’t find it + they are rich enough without it) but otherwise followed the recipe closely.

I’ve never baked with so much butter (more than a whole box was used for this batch) but man – these truly are incredible!! They took a while to set (I suggest throwing them in the freezer as the last step) but the wait was well worth it. So rich and decadent. I cut them into 64 little two-bite pieces and I think they can be enjoyed in such moderation guilt free (I had one of the bars pictured).

Shortbread + caramel + fudge = sounds like a winning recipe to me!!! I’ll keep on testing though, just in case

My birthday is this Saturday so I’m calling this my birthday week. I’m actually excited for it. See you later!

A few weeks ago I was reading a cooking magazine and saw an ad for single serving almond boxes. Hello, these have my name all over them!! I bought one of each color (so I can have one in every purse).

How cute are these guys?!!

Then yesterday, I received my spring eco sample pack from Eco Luxe Life and realized I never shared this site with you. I love the concept behind it. I purchased a yearly membership early in the year and now receive quarterly eco-friendly samples of cosmetics and household products. Since I’m constantly on the look-out for new environmentally friendly products, I find that it’s a great way to discover them. The company asks for feedback on all products in the packages and also sells them in full size if you want to stock up. Isn’t it a neat idea? Here is what I received this spring:

I can’t wait to try the organic shampoo and conditioner but let’s see if I can actually use this fancy Moroccan rose water.

Mints, laundry detergent and bug spray will definitely be used soon.

Have you come across any new cool products? Do share!

Yesterday was supposed to be my day of tackling my to-do list. I was getting crazy stressed out about everything and Adam made me realize that it’s time to trim down that list and work on not adding anything new to it. Yeah, that’s going to be a toughy.

I printed out a list and got to work. Making waffles was first on the list!

BREAKFAST

Multigrain waffles with Barney Butter, fresh peaches, yogurt and maple syrup

For the waffles, I used this recipe from 101 cookbooks. I substituted whole wheat pastry flour for rye but otherwise followed it to the T. I came out with 4 thin waffles (see 3 of them above) and 15 “normal” sized ones. These were the best waffles I’ve ever made!!! The “secret ingredient” was butter. Definitely an indulgent breakfast to start the weekend on the right foot.

WORKOUT

I plan on going on a long run as soon as I finish typing this post, so I kept Saturday’s workout to a simple pilates class. It was great for core work and minimally taxes my legs. Hopefully I can bang out some miles today!

LUNCH

We had some mashed potatoes left in the fridge from Mother’s Day dinner at my parents’ so I put them to use in a samosa  quesdailla (recipe here, found through Musings from the Fishbowl). Enjoyed out on our patio. I love sunshine

I added a good amount of garam masala to the mashed potatoes for a more pronounced Indian flavor and couldn’t resist a few gorgeous tomato slices for some freshness. Such a yummy lunch!

Yes, I went a little crazy with the pictures.

Kale massaged with lemon juice and basil EVOO + fresh tomatoes complemented the creamy quesadillas perfectly. I have a slight obsession with massaged kale, I think.

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK

Some blue baby carrots, a boiled egg + edamame “hummus”

Oops, I was on custom (morning) white balance mode on my camera, shooting in the afternoon light. The blue lighting makes it a bit more mysterious looking, no? Ok maybe not, but hard boiled eggs + hummus is heaven. That I can promise you.

DINNER

No wonder I didn’t get THAT much done. There was quite a bit of cooking going on. I can’t resist sometimes!

For dinner, I marinaded some chicken following this Ellie Krieger recipe (missed it a few weeks ago for CEiMB) and Adam grilled it for us.

The marinade was great – super fresh and flavorful – perfect for a light summer meal!

I also attempted to grill some fresh artichokes but they came out tasting like cardboard. I steamed them for 15 minutes, then plopped them on the grill. Have you ever grilled artichokes? Any tips? I really want to try it again!!

Since our designated veg was a giant failure, I threw together a super quick salad – mixed greens, arugula, pea shots, feta, tomatoes + walnuts, in lemon juice and basil EVOO

Near East parmesan couscous was our delicious starch for the night. The company sent me 2 boxes to sample and we really loved it! The couscous came out a bit sticky which was really fun. I wonder if I can roll the leftovers into balls and do something with them. Mmm, I bet that would be pretty awesome. On the other hand, on its own the couscous was super flavorful, so maybe there is no need to mess with perfection.

Dinner was fresh and lovely. Adam and I shared a cherries, chocolate and peanut butter granola bar for dessert (recipe can be found here).

Since my white balance was all screwed up, this picture looks terrible but the bars were phenomenal. Mine have more sugar than Lauren’s (I used chocolate pb, 1/2 cherries/1/2 raisins, regular choc chips and rice crispy cereal – since that’s what I had on hand) but I’m okay with that – this way I can eat them for dessert and they’ll also provide me with plenty of (quick) energy before a workout. I’ll try taking some better pictures another day because these seriously were amazing!!

All right, are you tired yet? This post ended up being way too long and my mile-long to-do list is waiting for me. Wish me luck on my run. That’s next!

]]> http://healthyandsane.com/2010/05/cool-stuff/feed/ 8 http://healthyandsane.com/2010/02/sweet-valentines-day/ http://healthyandsane.com/2010/02/sweet-valentines-day/#comments Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:26:12 +0000 Elina http://healthyandsane.com/2010/02/sweet-valentines-day/ I’ve had the best Valentine’s Day weekend this year, and it’s not even over!!! Adam is taking me out tonight to a (supposedly) very romantic French restaurant, Chez Henri, but in all honestly I already feel like this weekend could not be more perfect! It involved some really great workouts (an 8 miler yesterday with my favorite running partners – my sister and Molly, and a kick-ass boot camp class today with my sister and her boyfriend), a date with a friend I haven’t seen in over a year (hi, Kathy – hope you found the blog!) and quality time with my family (mom, awesome dinner last night.. mmm gorka) and Adam’s parents. Speaking of Adam’s parents, they are too cute for words. They insisted on dropping by today to hand deliver a little Valentine’s day gift for me us.

These are Black Dinah Chocolatiers truffles

The company firmly believes in sustainable agriculture – all chocolate used to make the truffles is organic and fair-trade. The fillings are inspired by local (Maine) ingredients. My parents in law (who have a house in Maine) were telling us that the owner goes to the farmers market every week and incorporates all the fruit, nuts and flowers purchased there into her chocolate treats. I am SO all about this kind of business. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Jim and Jane! I promise to savor every bite (and maybe share a few with Adam if he’s lucky ). Just thinking about these little gems puts a big smile on my face!

I had 2 right away…

The milk heart truffle supposedly had pistachios and hints of rose. I couldn’t tell. Nonetheless, both truffles were so fudgy inside and perfectly fresh. Absolutely incredible!!! Kate, the Black Dinah Chocolatier, was also recently featured in the Martha Stewart magazine. Have any of you seen that article? Pretty cool.

All right, all right – I’m pretty sure I can go on forever about chocolate, small businesses (and how I love them!) and sustainable agriculture, but I have a few other eats to share with you that were consumed earlier in the day.

First there was the coffee date at Starbucks with my friend Kathy and her husband Pat. It was SO good to see them. You know those friends that you may not see for months or even years, and then just pick up from where you left off and everything is just so easy? Kathy and I clicked from the first time we met our freshman year in college and I’m so sad she lives hours away. Kathy, we need to meet up somewhere in the middle soon. I want a girl-date with you!! Breakfast included a tall coffee with milk and 1 packet of sugar…

+ an eggwhite, spinach, sundried tomato and feta wrap

The egg white wrap was actually pretty good! There wasn’t much spinach or sun-dried tomato but the egg whites were nice and fluffy and I really liked the actual wrap. At 280 calories, this is a great healthy breakfast option if you’re on the go.

After our breakfast date, we picked up my sister and her boyfriend and headed to the gym for a boot camp class. Inna’s boyfriend, Derek, actually requested that we go. Hey, I wasn’t going to object! The boot camp class was crazy. The instructor decided to do something different today. Have you ever heard of 10 by 10/ 100 workout? You basically have 10 sets of 10 exercises with 10 reps of each. That’s 100 reps per exercise. We did 2 of those blocks (so 20 exercises * 100 reps = 2000 reps – whoa!). It moves FAST. My heart was pumping like crazy just because there was no break at all, until you were done with all 10 sets. Holey moley. All three of us loved it! Yup, we are masochists.

I came home to make a small lunch. I kind of had a feeling my parents in law had some dessert in store for us.

Mixed greens, fresh broccoli, shredded carrots, TJ’s savory organic baked tofu, goat cheese, artichoke antipasto, and Jenna’s spicy sesame noodle sauce

The artichoke antipasto was definitely the star ingredient. The baked tofu is pretty awesome as well.

My PILs also brought us some homemade food that does not require a microwave. Sweet!

Cold cuts calzone - whole wheat dough, reduced fat cheddar, natural meats

Pasta salad - whole wheat organic pasta, olives, grape tomatoes, asparagus, radicchio, fresh spinach and peppers in EVOO + light mayo

I nibbled on these to tie me over until dinner. Speaking of which, it’s time to get prettified See you guys tomorrow with a restaurant review. I also owe you 2 other posts (yesterday’s foods – ALL blog worthy) + Friday night’s dinner. So much food, so little time. Hope you’re all having a fantastic weekend!!

Adam and I already donated to several relief programs. The most delicious donation came through the Bake Sale for Haiti. Last week I received some yummy peanut butter chocolate chip cookies that I bid on and won. Today I got another package with brownies prepared by Stan (he has no blog but generously donated his time and baking skills for a good cause). Thank you, Stan – the brownies are really fabulous!! I am expecting some granola bars in the mail tomorrow as well. Donations can be so delicious!

So yes, I feel like my small family of 2 has done just a little to help a good cause, but I want to do a bit more. I’ve decided to donate 100% of this month’s blog proceeds to a Haiti relief program (I will do more research over the coming weeks and will mention the exact program the money will be donated to). So now is your turn to help! Click away on my blog, press the refresh button a few times, spread the word about this so others can come here and get a few clicks in. Any page views from February 1 through February 28 will count. The more impressions I get, the more I can donate to a Haiti relief program at the end of the month. It will cost you nothing! Thanks, guys!

Now onto today’s eats…

BREAKFAST

Yesterday’s breakfast pizza really hit the spot. I decided to give it another go with different toppings this time. Today’s breakfast pizza was topped with Barney Butter, nonfat yogurt, pear slices, Zoe’s granola and pecans

It got a little too crispy, but still SO good! We may have a new breakfast favorite around these parts

[393 calories, with coffee]

MID-MORNING SNACK

Barney Butter stuffed banana… not really a looker this time, but definitely a delicious pre-run fuel!

[127 calories]

WORKOUT

On my training schedule today was “4 miles fast.” My ankle felt fine again so I decided to make it happen. I was a bit nervous on my way to the gym. Why do I get nervous before my runs? Such a strange feeling! I guess I don’t want to disappoint myself. I started with a 15 minutes abs class and then got on the treadmill. I wanted to average a 7.0 mph pace. I warmed up at 6.5, then went to 6.8, 7.0, 7.2, then down to 6.8, and up to 6.9, 7.0 and 7.1 (alternating inclines from 0 to 0.5 to 1.0) and then down again to 7.0. 6.9, 6.8, 6.7, 6.5. It was a really hard run!! I wanted to give up so many times. My head was doing most of the psyching out and I just kept on mentally picturing finishing strong and how proud I’d feel after I’m done. I knew I was in a good enough shape to handle 4 miles. And oh yes, I felt proud upon finishing!! I definitely did not average 7.0 but the inclines made the run harder than if I stayed flat at 7.0 the entire time. I love workouts like these!! Tomorrow on the schedule – yoga at lunch, an interval run after work. Should be interesting…

LUNCH

V8 tomato soup + TJ’s Reduced Guilt fillet of sole with butter beans & spinach

Now this was definitely the ugliest lunch of all lunches. I took close-up shots but I’ll spare you. Not pretty. The filet of sole was also SO bland. That’s what majority of Americans (and apparently TJ’s chefs) feel healthy food tastes like. Very disappointing. You and me know that healthy food can be flavorful and craveable!! The soup was pretty yummy; I also had 2 AK MAK crackers with it and this portion of lunch was definitely better than the fish.

As I was finishing the above pictured eats, my brownie package arrived. I couldn’t be happier!! I dug right in and shared a bunch with some co-workers. We were all happy campers. The brownies were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside – lots of choc chips inside as well. So so yummy. It was hard for me not to keep digging into the box. I did ok there for a while.

[all together = 464 calories... I assumed 160/brownie]

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK

3T hummus + baby carrots

[93 calories]

DINNER

Star ingredient of dinner:

It’s a mixture of artichokes, olive oil and garlic. I’m in love! Dinner’s panini had a few spoonfuls of the artichoke antipasto, turkey, laughing cow cheese and dijon mustard on TJ’s ww Tuscan pane

+ a garlic sour pickle for good measure Pickles are vegetables, right?

[345 calories]

And then I opened the box of brownies to show to Adam….. and ended up eating another THREE!!! Not my proudest moment.

[estimate: 480 calories]

I put one in my lunch bag for tomorrow and the rest went in the freezer.

Total calories consumed: ~1930. I wish it was lower, but I’m probably around break-even for the day with my calorie burn at the gym so I’m not beating myself up over it either. The brownies were goooooood

Have you made any charitable donations lately?

Before I found out that nobody was coming, I made myself an egg, cheese & bacon for BREAKFAST. Since our pans are all packed up, I microwaved the bacon for 40 seconds, then 1 egg + 1 egg white for 1 minute, topped them with a slice of American cheese (another 10 seconds) and plopped them on a toasted FFL english muffin. This reminded me of the breakfast sammies you get at Dunkin Donuts – I guess because they microwave all the fillings as well. Not great but will do in a pinch. The hearty english muffin was very satisfying.

[343 calories]

Then we were off to pick a granite slab for our counters…

Granite, granite everywhere!

We still couldn’t make a choice. Nothing was perfect

LUNCH

After hours of granite related activities, Adam and I were both starving. The Cheesecake Factory was an easy way to get some fuel in us so we could keep on going. I do NOT trust their menu (see this very old post with a link to their nutritional info) so I always order the same exact thing when I’m there – the Weight Management Asian chicken salad – grilled chicken, romaine, snow peas, carrots, bean sprouts, crispy noodles, almonds and sesame seeds, served with a low-cal sesame soy dressing. Despite the embarrassing name, it is actually delicious and compared to its peers – relatively harmless (especially if you don’t eat the whole thing).

The salad was GIGANTIC. I asked Adam to take a picture of me just so you could see that it was wider than I am!!!

I ate maybe half of it (maybe less) + a little slice of their honey wheat bread (no butter).

[1/2 salad + slice of bread ~ 331 calories] Adam got a cashew chicken dish that we later found out was 1,800 calories. See why I always stick to the same exact thing?!!

On the way to the kitchen faucet store (isn’t our life just so exciting?!) I munched on this Healthy and Sane trail mix. It was my chocolate fix for the moment.

[200 calories]

And then we decided to stop by the Whole Foods in Dedham to stock up on some groceries.

OMG, I was in heaven!!!!! This is the nicest WF I’ve seen outside of Austin. It’s giant, gorgeous and has so many specialty sections – like a bulk salt/spice section with salts from different parts of the world and these ones…

… a local products/specials aisle!

… a lunch box food aisle!

This was perfect for picking up some individual packaged baked goods. Hopefully it helps with portion control in the office and will prevent trips to the vending machine for Hershey bars (eww).

DINNER was leftover olive pizza and a few cookies from my new WF loot. I’m in love already

[50 calories]

Only 30 calories/macaroon and they are amazing!! They also are made with 6 simple ingredients (one of which is filtered water!). Could these be my new-found secret to staying slim while enjoying baked goods? I think these may just do the trick!

Total calories consumed: ~1650

What healthy foods have you recently found that you are super excited about?

[Food for Life english muffin with peanut butter and banana]

… a few healthy snacks…

[Man, I forgot how delicious clementines are when they're in season!]

[My favorite healthy "dessert" - Clif Mojo Mountain Mix]

[60 calories = 3 very juicy prunes. Yum! ]

… a great workout – what else? Bootcamp! (although I had to take it easy since my lower back continued to hurt!)…

… a yummy salad for lunch (eek, ugly pic in the cube)

[Mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, wheat berries, goat cheese, Samira's Homemade baba ganoush (I'm SO obsessed with this stuff!!!)]

… and then it was time to party with my co-workers so my picture taking stopped (we went to Lir for a farewell party for one of our Japanese expats).

To save this post I decided to feature a giveaway. That’s even better than seeing what I whipped up for dinner, isn’t it! I’m very excited about this one because I have a mild obsession with this product. You’ve seen it on the blog before… it’s somersaults giveaway time!

I tried the sea salt sample a few months ago and was blown away – they were crunchy, nutty and a little salty. I was in love! I immediately went online and purchased a few large bags of the sea salt and the cocoa variety (the cocoa is not my favorite, btw). Upon going through that stash, I purchased more at Amazon to save on shipping. You can definitely say I’m a huge fan!

I wanted my readers to try these, so I contacted the company for a giveaway, and they decided to send one lucky winner a whole case of somersaults. Get excited!!

Here are the giveaway rules:

1) Leave a comment on this post!

2) If you have a blog, let others know about the giveaway and link back to this post.  If you don’t have a blog, tell someone about this giveaway and let me know that you’ve done so (after they enter the giveaway by commenting). You can also tweet about this giveaway *Either one earns you 2 bonus points*

3) If you have a blog, add Healthy and Sane to your blogroll or follow me on Twitter (if I’m already on your blogroll, let me know – it counts!).  If you don’t, shoot me an email and give me some feedback on my blog. *This also earns you 2 bonus points*

I will announce the winner next Tuesday night, December 22. Ready? …. GO!

BREAKFAST

Groupon featured discounted gift certificates for YouBar so I decided to order a Healthy and Sane trail mix

These little baggies are perfect for portion control and quick breakfasts or snacks (although not cheap, even with the discount)! My mix included lots of healthy and sane ingredients: pecans, almonds, organic dried cherries, organic dried apricots, hazelnuts, raw goji berries, chia seeds, chocolate chips and chocolate covered raisins. So many yummies in one bag!

TJ’s nonfat yogurt with 1/2 banana, TJ’s Raisin Bran and 1 Healthy and Sane mix baggie

The mix was super sweet… did I overdo it on the “sane” portion? Note to self: don’t underestimate the sweetness of dried fruit!!

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK

What else? Cookies!!

LUNCH

Quinoa, black bean and veggie stuffed pepper

DINNER

We seriously had no food at home, so this frozen pizza came to the rescue before we hit the grocery stores (where I had all sorts of unpictured cheese and chocolate samples).

I ate 1/2 of this mushroom and black truffle flatbread. It’s my favorite!!

How is your week going? Do you ever feel guilty for taking unplanned rest days, even when your body is in pain? I do.