Archive | June, 2010

Then You Roast the Mallow

30 Jun

I have officially made a dent in packing. Woooo. I know you may think I’m doing this extremely early, but it is soo helpful to start laying things out and realize a few things you forgot. Now I still have a lot of time to pick up a few extra things. It’s hard to pack 5 months worth in two suitcases, but by the looks of things I’ll be fine. I’m heading to California to visit my friend Natasha for a few days and then heading on a flight from LAX to Melbourne! I’ve already bought a fuzzy travel pillow and multiple books in preparation for the 14 hour flight.

I really wanted some more breakfast this morning…

S’mores Oats that is

"First, you stick the chocolate on the graham"

"Then you roast the mallow"

 

"Then...you stuff it"

Sandlot quotes are a great thing.

S’more Oats

I combined the following ingredients in a pot

  • 1/2 c water
  • 1/2 c milk or non dairy milk of choice
  • 1/3 c oat bran
  • 1/4 c wheat bran
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1 tsp chia seeds

Then I topped the oats with some more ingredients

  • graham cracker crumbs
  • suzannes ricemallow (basically it’s vegan marshmallow fluff)
  • carob chips
  • cinnamon
  1. Boil water with a pinch of salt
  2. Add oat bran and wheat bran
  3. Whip banana  and milk into oats
  4. Add chia seeds
  5. Toppings!

After watching come crushing upsets in Wimbledon I did a quick sessions at the gym before a few errands and doctors appointments.

  • 20 minutes on the rowing machine
  • 30 minutes of circuits and weights

Do you ever make meals that looks absolutely disgusting, but taste delicious? I think that a good presentation makes food better, but lately I’ve found that sometimes the ugliest food tastes the best. Consider this a warning that the following picture should not be judged by its cover.

Looks like cat food. Tastes like cheesy goodness.

This is the second time I made this Tofu Scramble recipe. I pretty much followed the recipe to a tee, expect I used sunflower oil instead of olive and I added some Daiya mozzarella at the end. It tastes exactly like scramble eggs and would be great in a tortilla, topped with hot sauce, or on its own. You can even add in tortilla chips at the end to make Migas.

Night!

Casey

What food do you love that looks a little suspect?

 

A Cross Between Hogwarts and a Sorority

29 Jun

I was TI-YERD this morning. It was one of those exhaustions that multiple cups of coffee couldn’t cure. I think it’s the mental block of getting everything packed that’s wearing me out. It’s odd to think that I’m packing 5 months worth of things. I’m usually an under-packer, so it’s not that hard ;) , it’s mostly the toiletries that will take up room.

Fruit bowl:

Peaches Black Plum, Blueberries, Blackberries. Topped with milk from Trickling Springs Creamery.

 

I had a repeat salad from last night for lunch on-the-go. Today was full of running a bunch of errands for Australia and organizing luggage. Lets talk Australia and food. I’m lucky to be going to a country much more educated on local and sustainable farming. I’m also in a cosmopolitan city where vegetarian fare shouldn’t be impossible to find. I am residing in a residential college, so I will only have access to a mini fridge. I’m going to have to part ways with a kitchen again :( .

A residential college has been described to me as a cross between Hogwarts and a sorority. It has the same feel and looks as Griffindor with the community/dorm living complete with a castle style dining area. It’s like greek life because there many themed parties throughout the year and each college becomes a family over time. I’m excited that I got into my first college of choice, Queens College, and I’ve been told living on campus is the way to go.

So, food survival. I think that like any other time your taken out of your comfort zone, you have to learn how to make the best of the situation. I’m going to feature a post soon on my tips for eating in a college dorm room providing various ways to be creative when eating a balanced diet in a hectic lifestyle. In the meantime, I want to focus on eating as many vegetables as humanly possible. I know from experience that’s the one thing I will miss most without a kitchen.

Before dinner, I made an appetizer of Low + Slow potatoes using purple sweet potatoes.

Pre-bake

Royal Potatoes

I didn’t notice a difference in taste between regular sweet potatoes and the purple variety. But the purple ones definitely look prettier!

The Low + Slow Method makes the potatoes crispy on the outside and pillowy soft on the inside.

Arctic Char seasoned with thyme, rosemary, dill, and lemon. I paired it with onion, tomato, and dill goat cheese.

Next time I’m adding a sauce with horseradish in it to this. It could use a little more bite.

Ciao bellas,

Casey

Are you an underpacker or an overpacker? Do you wait until last minute to pack or plan ahead of time?


Goals and Achievements

28 Jun

“A good athlete always mentally replays a competition over and over, even in victory, to see what might be done to improve the performance the next time.”

-Frank Shorter

Yesterday was full of PR’s. The funny thing is that after you accomplish a PR, you spend less time soaking up the glory and more time planning your next goal.

My mom ran in her first 5k! This woman is a warrior. She was sick the night before and the night after, but she was so determined to run this race. She ran the entire time and finished in 33:58!

So proud of her

Nows she’s talking about getting better times and running more 5ks.

 

The Fuel:

French Meadow Hemp Bagel with Almond Butter and Mushed Banana.

Yes, I believe mushed is a technical term.

I also PR-ed with a time of 28:14. That’s 16 seconds better than my previous best. Of course, as Frank Shorter put it, I was immediately assessing my performance afterwards. I knew I still had more left in me after the race, so a new goal was set: break 28:00 and eventually get to 27:00.

I think setting goals are important. It’s what drives us to be better, to practice more, and work harder. Whether it is signing up for a race, beating our personal best, or just simply finishing. What we sometimes fail to do is to recognize the accomplishment instead of focusing on the next challenge.

The race was gorgeous. It started at the inner harbor and finished right next to the water. There were a handful of locals playing guitar and cheering along the course. This 5k was an all-women event and I loved how the focus was on being healthy by getting out in the community and doing something active. It was very female empowerment centered too. All finishers received a rose at the finish line and mother-daughter participants received a medal.

After the race we went to the farmers market under the JFX. This farmers market was HUGE, but I was disappointed by the lack of organic products. They did have a wealth of fabulous looking lettuce and grass-fed meats. I chatted with the owner of Neopol and bought some of her delicious looking goat cheese. Wish I hadn’t forgotten to bring my camera to the market! She was extremely nice and all of her products looked delicious. I bought dill goat cheese, she also had vegetable tarts, smoked salmon, and other varieties of goat cheese.

Dinner was a salad made with mostly farmers market finds.

Arugula, Spinach, Edamame, Peppers, Tomatoes, Dill Goat Cheese.

The arugula and spinach mix was do fresh. And the dill goat cheese: OUT OF THIS WORLD. Must find more varieties at some local farmers markets immediately.

← Older Entries

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 29 other followers