Posted in Banana Bread, Juice on March 3, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Mood:
Zombie
I’m so, so tired. And I woke up feeling kind of gross, because I think I had carb overload yesterday.
Food:
Breakfast: My sweet husband made me a fresh juice (carrots, oranges, apple, ginger) and later at work I had banana bread. How original!….and a cup of Yogi Chai Green Tea.
(taken with old camera)
Wednesday, please go by quickly. Puh-lease!!
Posted in Banana Bread, Bargain, Beans, Burrito, Chicken, Made by me, Recipe, Uncategorized on March 2, 2010| 2 Comments »
A cold front blew in this afternoon. Chilly & windy! It made for a nice run home, and the electric gray-blue sky served as a beautiful backdrop. There’s nothing like the colors of the sky of a cold front. Powerful.
Food:
Afternoon snack: Slice of banana bread and a cup of mate cocido
Dinner: 1/2 of a mega chicken burrito (with black beans, cilantro lime rice, mild tomato salsa, cheese) from Chipotle, which serves “food with integrity;” our kind of food! We used our coupon…what a value! Two meals in one. Of course I could have eaten the entire burrito, but I wanted to have something left for lunch tomorrow.
Dessert: Today has literally been banana bread, morning, noon, and night! I can’t get enough–it’s dangerous to have around!
Healthy Banana Bread Recipe: (trust me, the ingredients do not compromise the taste; I think they make it even tastier)
Dry Ingredients
-1 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
-1/4 cup oat bran
-1/4 t salt
-1/2 t baking soda
-1 t baking powder
-1 t cinnamon
Wet Ingredients
-1 egg
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1/2 cup honey
-1 t vanilla
-2 bananas (the riper, the better. If the peel is black, that’s the best!)
1) Mix dry ingredients in medium size bowl.
2) Beat egg in a medium size bowl. Add wet ingredients. Mix well.
3) Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir until combined.
4) Pour into a loaf pan (or any pan is fine–we’ve used springform before)
5) Bake in a preheated oven at 325 for 50-60 minutes.
Makes 1 fabulicious loaf.
Posted in Banana Bread, Eggs, Running, Salad, Work out on March 1, 2010| 1 Comment »
Mood:
Tired, but fine
Food:
Breakfast: I made that beautiful banana bread that you see before you! I am posting the recipe later tonight. It’s super moist and flavorful AND healthy (olive oil instead of butter, honey instead of sugar, you get the idea)…..We were low on fruits/veggies, so I only had enough to make a half glass of juice this morning (a few carrots, an apple, and some ginger)…..At work, I had a couple of slices of the banana bread and a cup of tea.
Lunch: Fresh spinach topped with shredded cabbage, brown rice and zucchini, lightly heated in a skillet, and an egg on the side.
Fitness:
-45 minutes at the gym (stretching/abs/legs)
-Plan to run home if it’s not raining (4.5 mi)
Monday’s over!!!! 🙂
Posted in Banana Bread, Rice, Salad, Spinach on March 1, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Whew! I’ve been on my feet all night. P-R-O-D-U-C-T-I-V-E! I don’t think I’ll manage to hit up everything on my agenda, but I tried.
Tonight’s agenda:
–clean house
-light grocery shopping (decided to save the time and work with what was in the fridge for tonight’s dinner)
–laundry
-creative writing online critiques (still plan to do a few)
–make week’s menu
-practice piano (probably won’t get around to this)
–make banana bread
Food:
Snack: Small blueberry yogurt (non-organic)
Dinner: Brown rice topped with ground pepper and freshly grated parmesan cheese and a spinach salad with zucchini slices, sunflower seeds, shredded cabbage and a agave-dijon dressing
Dessert: Small blueberry yogurt (non-organic)
Time’s a wasting. How much more can I get done before bedtime?
Good night!
Posted in Banana Bread, Leftovers on March 1, 2010| 2 Comments »
Lucas and I spent the later part of the morning and most of the afternoon at the Greenbelt. Perfect weather for a bit o’ this and that: walking, relaxing, snacking, journaling.
We packed our backpacks and hit the road. The Greenbelt entrance that we like is in southwest Austin, about a 20 minute drive. Not a lot of people were out at 11:00 this morning, which made it all the more serene. We hiked down to the river, then walked along the trail for about .75 mile to Sculpture Falls. There we sat upon a large rock and took in the scenery: big boulders, naked trees, blue-green river water and frothy white falls. We shared a small snack, then headed back the way we came towards another waterfall, where we had a few snacks and relaxed in the hammock. What a perfect afternoon! Yet another one of the reasons I love Austin. The great outdoors is right at our fingertips.
The afternoon, in pictures….
Food:
Snacks: I ate one Medjool date, about 1 and a half slices of banana bread, 1 and a half tortillas (non-organic), and various spoonfuls of white bean salad (olive oil, garlic, parsley).
Late lunch: Leftovers from last night! I really took my time eating, savoring each bite and enjoying the wonderful flavors. Basmati rice, lamb curry, chicken coconut curry, spinach naan, and plain naan. I don’t know if it was because I was hungry or if it was due to taking my time rather than inhaling the food, but it tasted so much better than last night!
A most excellent weekend!
Fitness:
I was pretty wiped out after being out in the sun all day. Considering I got a bit of walking and uphill trekking in, I’ll settle for that!
Tonight:
-clean house
-light grocery shopping
-laundry
-creative writing online critiques
-make week’s menu
-practice piano
Posted in Agave nectar, Apple, Banana Bread, Chicken, Chocolate, Dried fruit, Happy Rice, Kale Chips, Parmesan, Running, Salad, Sweet potato, Taco, Tea, Work out on February 23, 2010| 1 Comment »
Fitness:
-Ran 30 minutes in my neighborhood hills. Saw a gorgeous sunset and some cute deer.
-My Netflix workout (40 minutes boxing moves & abs)
Food:
Afternoon snack: 2 teensy-weensy pieces of dark chocolate…and…. 4 Medjool dates. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. They taste like PASTRIES!
Pre-dinner: A large apple
Dinner: I made chicken tacos; I had two. Ezekiel tortillas topped with lemon-pepper chicken, spinach leaves, and sauteed onions. Fabuloso!
Dessert: Peppermint tea and a thick slice of banana bread
Weekend Recap:
Where did we leave off?….Here’s a nice little summary for you.
-Saturday:
Fitness: Day off
Afternoon snack: Lucas and I shared an oatmeal raisin cookie and large coffee with half & half at JP’s Java.
Dinner: Spaghetti with meat sauce
Dessert: Strawberry gelato sweetend with agave nectar—made in our juicer! That juicer can do anything. Ate my gelatto while watching “Amadeus.” I forgot how long that movie was–but it’s so good! So is the song from the 80s. We were singing it all weekend thanks to the movie!
-Sunday:
Fitness: 10k at Town Lake
Brunch: Whole Foods: A breakfast taco (spelt tortilla with vegan chorizo, black beans, cheese) and later Lucas and I split a humongous Carmelita bar. Ooooohhhh my goodness. The best. Hands down. Ammmmazing. I love WF Carmelita bars.
Pre-dinner: Salad greens with Happy Rice.
Dinner: I made oven-roasted vegetables (potatoes, Japanese yam, onions, carrots) and Kale Chips.
Kale Chips!! Don’t be fooled by their healthy, green appearance. Kale chips = potato chips without the guilt.
Kale Chips!! Finally I know what all of those food bloggers have been fussing about.
Kale Chips are nothing short of a miracle. Basically, it’s kale (a leafy green) tossed in salt and olive oil, topped with some Parmesan cheese, and baked in the oven. After baking, they become potato chips. Basically. If you blindfolded me, I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between the two. Honestly. Try it. Do yourself a favor. You will be amazed. Really!
Before the oven….
After….
Light, crispy, melt-in-your-mouth salty goodness. Unbelievably tasty.
This is a recipe I got from Kath’s blog:
Posted in Banana Bread, Carrots, Onions, Potatoes, Reuse, Salad, Sweet potato on February 22, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Food:
Mid-morning snack: More tea and banana bread.
Lunch: Leftover baked veggies (Japanese yams, potatoes, carrots, onions) on a bed of salad greens
At work I like to have either New Age (Sky FM) or Classical (KMFA 89.5) playing on my computer….New Age makes for great background music, but well, sometimes, it’s very kooky, and I have to smile. The one song that just finished playing had dogs barking and owls hooting. Hahahaha!
Green heart:
Today I finished a second draft for a student pre-departure handbook, and I printed it out on paper that had already been printed on one side before.
Tonight I will post some of the meals from the weekend—and the recipe for Kale Chips, which I have just discovered and will try desperately to get you to make them, because they are just that amazing!
Posted in Banana Bread, Juice, Tea on February 22, 2010| 3 Comments »
Mood:
A-
I have a great job, but like most people I think, I don’t exactly look forward to coming to work on a Monday morning after a pleasant weekend. But today I was excited because I was coming to a newly cleaned and reorganized workspace. What a nerd!
Look at this banana bread! It’s huge! Lucas made a double recipe in a springform pan, so it came out in a cake shape. Hmmmm. It’s funny. I originally taught Lucas this banana bread recipe four years ago, but now he is the one that makes it all the time now. I don’t even remember the recipe anymore, so now if I make it (um, which is when?) I have to ask him for the recipe!….and of course his version is better (and healthier), so what can I do but eat and enjoy?
Food:
Breakfast: I made a fresh juice for Lucas, then he made one for me. Awwww, isn’t that sweet? My juice had carrots, oranges, celery, and ginger…..Later, I had a thick slice of banana bread and a cup of Yogi Chai Green Tea. Spicy!
Yesterday was BEAUTIFUL! Warm, sunny, perfect. But as in typical Texas weather fashion, snow is predicted tomorrow….I hope it snows!
Posted in Banana Bread, Taco, Work out on February 17, 2010| Leave a Comment »
I’d like to write a bit longer post, but I’m just so tired right now, so I will make it snappy instead.
Fitness:
-Ran 2 miles with Alex and Melanie. Afterwards, we made a game plan for triathalon training. I actually don’t know if I’ll be able to do the triathalon due to a schedule conflict, but I’m going to try to keep up with the training part.
-My Netflix workout: 40 minutes boxing moves & core work
Food:
Afternoon snack: Slice of banana bread
Dinner: Grabbed something to eat at Whole Foods before we did our grocery shopping. Vegetarian taco: spelt tortilla topped with vegan chorizo, lime rice, black beans, roasted veggies and cilantro. Plus a half cup of tortilla soup–I couldn’t handle the spiciness, so I let Lucas finish it.
Dessert: Kashi GO LEAN Crunch! Honey Almond Flax. It’s really sweet, but I like that.
Remember my little To-Do list from this morning? The only thing I accomplished was work and a work out! Where did the day go? We were at Whole Foods forever….maybe that’s the problemo.
Anyway, so I’ve noticed that no matter how often or how well I tidy up the house, it seems to get cluttered the next day. So I’m trying a little something new before I go to bed: set the timer for just 5 minutes, and tidy up as much as I can in those five. I’ll test it out this week and see if this is worthwhile or not!
Ooops! Just realized I had NO fruit today. 😦
Posted in Banana Bread, Cereal, Juice, Tea on February 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Fitness:
Day off, although I did take a leisurely 45 minute walk
Food:
Afternoon snack: Peppermint tea and a slice and a half of banana bread
Dinner: Light tonight. Fresh juice (oranges, apple, celery, carrots, ginger, lemon). Refreshing, delicious. I am soooo glad that we got the juicer. We’ve had it for several months now, but I tell you, it’s magic in a glass, everytime.
Post-dinner snack: A cup of Kashi GO LEAN Crunch! Honey Almond Flax. Reminds me of Honey Smacks!
I’m exhausted. Time to do some dishes then go to bed.
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