Strange But Good: Plantain Ginger Protein Bread

September 20, 2013 By Laura

Blog trends are fun.

And often strange to the rest of the world.

When I say the Purely Twins’ Plantain Bread I couldn’t wait to whip up a protein-laced version of my own.

It may not quite count as strange at this point, as it’s caught on like a wild-fire. BUT I’m going to say it qualifies for Strange But Good because my co-workers would definitely ~~think it’s weird~~ look on with curiosity.

Naked bread.

Since I an unable to make anything that isn’t protein-laced (I’m beginning to think it’s an addiction), I tool the liberty of pumping up the plantain bread concept. It was easy enough to do with a little protein powder.

The part when I took a little more creative license was the flavor. These cooler mornings have made me crave a fall treat – gingerbread! Why not combine two of my favorite breads? ~~Banana~~ Plantain Gingerbread!

All dressed up

The icing on this breakfast treat was a mixture of quark with a little stevia, cinnamon, and vanilla. It tasted like cinnamon roll frosting. Seriously.

Round 1 was eaten with blueberries (not bloobs… that is the worst blogger trend). Round two was topped with smashed raspberries… and eaten in the car. Yes, this bread is hearty enough to pick up and eat while ~~driving~~ ~~inching along in traffic~~ at a complete standstill in a jam.

Have plantain bread, will travel.

[Tweet “This #glutenfree plantain bread has a whopping 20g of protein!”]

Plantain Ginger Protein Bread

1 medium plantain, fully ripe*
1/2 cup liquid egg whites
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp Golden Lakanto (or brown sugar/other sweetener)
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp no sodium baking powder
1/8 tsp cardamom
Pinch of cloves
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I used Growing Naturals Rice Protein)

Preheat oven to 350.

In a small blender (I used a Magic Bullet) blend all ingredients except the protein powder.

Add protein powder and blend again until just combined.

Pour into a prepared pan (I used 8-in round) and bake for 15 mins.

Makes 2 servings.

*A plantain is fully ripe when the skin has turned almost black; it will be aromatic and sweet.

Approximate nutritionals (for 1 serving): 198 calories, 0.3 g fat, 123.6 mg sodium, 32.5 g carbohydrates, 2.6 g fiber, 13.9 g sugar, 19.8 g protein

How have you enjoyed making co-workers, friends, or family stare with strange but good creations this week? The link up rules can be found here or by clicking on “Strange But Good” in the menu bar above. In short, I want to see what concoctions have earned you weird looks from co-workers, family and friends! Post your Strange But Good creations, grab the logo below for your blog, and link up here.

Remember to use #strangebutgood in any Tweets and Instagrams of your creations. 🙂

***

I LOVE my new job… but lawd I am so happy its Friday.

Have you tried any of the plantain recipes floating around?

Do you eat breakfast on the way to work? I wish Atlanta had better public transportation!

Sweet Potato Pizza Crust

September 19, 2013 By Laura

My name is Laura. I hoard booze.

Really.

Many of you were surprised that I could keep this pumpkin beer in my fridge – untouched – for 2 months. That’s actually easy for me. It’s mine. It’s not going anywhere. It won’t spoil. It will be there for me in 2 months (after my next figure competitions).

Going out… that’s another story. That lamb-stuffed squash blossom is seasonal! The beers on tap rotate! I might not remember to come back to try the bacon Manhattan! (Ok, ok… it’s unlikely I’ll for forget bacon). You get my point.

As such, this is (part) of my collection:

I don’t store my beer in the wine fridge. It was posing for the pic.

Many of you commented and tweeted about YOUR favorite pumpkin beers that I should try. Thank you for the suggestions! I would like to officially announce that I am open to donations. 😉

Enough about my sobriety. You know what goes well with beer? PIZZA! Kat has an awesome Sweet Potato Pizza Crust to share today!

I’m not-so-secretly hoping she’ll make me one to drink with my pumpkin beer in a couple of months…

Mix it up: Night Running and Sweet Potato Pizza Crust

This weekend, I (Kat) mixed it up by visiting a place I used to live, Savannah, GA. I had a great time with friends, and sat at a booth with/for the Stonewall Bar Association at Pride. I also got to visit with great old friends! It was super fun. Now I’m trying to mix it up at home and outdoors.

I have been trying to mix it up by running with more friends (which is more difficult than you think). I get turned down all the time, and people don’t invite me on group runs very often (Editor’s note: My invite must have gotten lost in the mail…). So I decided to inquire about this lack of running buddies.

I find that the friends who know what kind of distances I run are afraid to run with me because they think I’m fast. WRONG. I am not actually that fast, but I can run super far, for a super long time (Editor’s note: Lies. You are fast. But you are a patient partner.). That being said, I enjoy running at an 8:15-9:15min/mile pace in the city, and depending on the trails and the distance, 10:30-13min/mile. So, run with me! Let’s mix it up! 🙂

I have also found that running in the city on pavement, especially flat surfaces, really hurts my body. My knees and feet ache terribly if I run on pavement more than 7 or so miles. So, I stick to the trails as much as possible, and throw in a bit of yoga for strength and flexibility (Editor’s note: You should come lift with me!).

While for many people, trail running is a great way to mix it up, because that’s my usual form of running, I’m taking extra measures to mix it up! This Sunday at 7:30p.m., I am going night trail running with some friends. It’s huge rush that heightens your senses, and it actually makes me run faster. Check out this fun article on trail running at night. If you want to join me, let me know, and I’ll forward you information on the run. I wish I could go during the full moon, tomorrow night!

Speaking of mixing it up, my friend Julie from Savannah told me about a Sweet Potato Pizza she tried to make when I mentioned Laura’s Cauliflower Pizza. When I got home, I had to try this! I didn’t love any of the recipes I found online, so I tried my own! (Editor’s note: Story of my life.. also prepping this post made me come home and pull one of my cauliflower crusts out of the freezer for a pizza dinner!)

I wanted to capture a picture of it picked up once I realized how great it was, but I was near the end of the slice… excuse my excess Sriracha (I put that sh** on everything). ← Don’t we all? 😉

This pizza, like the Cauliflower pizza, can be picked up like a piece of pizza (Editor’s note: It’s not pizza unless you can hold it in your hands!).

It’s a little chewy and a little crispy. It has a bit of sweetness, and a bit of heartiness. Really, a GREAT gluten-free pizza crust option!

Sweet Potato Pizza Crust

½ C sweet potato (mashed)
1 egg (I bet this would be great with Chia, too)
¼ C almond flour
¼ C buckwheat
1 T flax meal
Pinch of Salt
½ tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 375.

Beat the egg, add the sweet potato, and then mix in everything else. It should form a sticky dough.

Spread the dough onto a piece of parchment paper (about ¼ inch thick) and bake for 18 mins. The middle should be firm when it’s done (you should be able to pick it up).

Load with veggies/toppings of choice. Bake for another ~7 minutes to heat. Devour.

Also, if you like that bad-ass pizza cutter, check out Pequea Valley Forge. They have AWESOME kitchen utensils, etc. I found this on my trip to the beach in August, and it’s my new favorite thing (which results in eating way more pizza).

My pizza has sautéed peppers and onions, Daiya mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and spinach. Delish!

xo,

Kat

***

I told Kat yesterday that I was going to require taste tests from now on. Quality control, right?!

How are you mixing up your running/lifting/workout routine to get an extra rush?

Did you try Laura’s Cauliflower Crust? Do you think the sweet potato or cauliflower does/would work better? I wonder if we could combine them…

Pumpkin Pie Protein Bowl + WIAW

September 18, 2013 By Laura

When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

Not until I started competing did I realize how true this saying is.

My food prep is saving me this week, once again. Starting a new job where I’m in the office every day (I used to work from home a lot) has forced me to be more structured and has tested me mentally.

Planning workouts and meals has become SO important. Otherwise I’d never get out the door. Preparation and constantly reminding myself of my goals and why I do this crazy thing is a necessity.

I feel more like I’m going it alone during this competition prep. I’m adjusting my workouts to meet my needs/limitations post surgery, and I have more fat to cut than I did in the past.

It’s new and it’s scary. It’s also going to be awesome when I prove to myself that I can get out of my own way to reach a goal.

This is WIAW is a little glimpse into how I use my prep to stay in line, despite a new routine and later workouts. It’ not easy. But it’s not impossible. ~~I think.~~

Read on for my San Francisco treats, and then check out Jenn’s blog. for some more “normal” days of food.

Breakfast:

You may have seen me post on Instagram that I’m changing up my morning cocktail. I decided to try out new aminos in my draaaank. Why? I still love the taste of the old one, but their customer service is so bad (read: non-existent) I can no longer use the product. Their ingredient list wasn’t the *most* clean anyway.

This new one came highly recommended by my local nutrition store. It is pretty good. Doesn’t mix quite as well, but I like the mild taste and it still provides good energy!

I went on a bulgur kick a while ago with this Blueberry-Green Tea Bulgur… then forgot about it. It made a comeback in this week’s food prep!

I mixed this delicious raspberry blend up to grab as a ran out the door to an early morning meeting. It tasted like raspberry cream.

Raspberry Overnight Bulgur

1/4 C bulgur (raw)
1/2 C Greek yogurt
Water or almond milk, to mix (I think this was about 1/2 C… you can always add more in the AM)
1/4 C raspberries
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
6-7 drops orange liquid stevia (or other sweetener)

Mix everything together in a small bowl or jar and store in the fridge overnight.

Remove from fridge in the morning, add liquid if necessary, and enjoy!

Mid-Morning Snack:

This was Turbot with a random (salt-free!) Indian spice blend I found at the Asian market and a side of my tabbouleh with hummus.

I had just finished re-heating my fish in the break-room when two ladies walked in. One commented: “It smells like dead fish in here.” #sorryimnotsorry

You may find it weird to eat fish before noon and/or at work. I find it #strangebutgood.

Lunch:

Turkey on a bed of spinach with my new lentil hummus, Ezekial bread, and raw zucchini sticks. This was going to be a sandwich before I realized I had more stuffing than bread. Typical…

Mid-Afternoon Snack:

This is like a treat meal to me. If tuna is the chicken of the sea and swordfish is the steak of the sea… sea bass must be like the pork belly of the sea. Without the fat (or the pig). It’s absolutely decadent!

The salad with it was broccoli slaw and radish mixed with a quick sauce: nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, cumin, turmeric, and smoked paprika. And I ate it off of a Zoo Pals plate. 😉

Dinner:

Dinner has become snack-like on my new work/workout schedule. I now have to workout right after work, so dinner actually is at 9pm and looks like dessert most days.

This is my chocolate-beet smoothie (it’s become a serious addiction), extra spinach blended in. I left out the coffee since it was late, and topped it with pre-roasted kabocha and granola.

Dessert:

A dessert-like dinner doesn’t stop me from doing it again! Since declaring this pumpkin pie protein bowl The Most Amazing Bowl of Deliciousness Ever, I’ve had it 3 nights in a row. After the first night I began freezing it for an hour or so.

Pumpkin Pie Protein Bowl

1/2 C Greek yogurt
1/2 C pumpkin purée
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1/2 tsp pumpkin spice
1/4 tsp butter extract (vanilla or almond would be good too)
Optional topping: cocoa sauce (cocoa powder, stevia, and almond milk), peanut butter, pumpkin seeds… etc.

Place ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth.

Freeze for ~1 hour for a frozen custard, or enjoy right away for a more batter-like snack.

***

It’s oddly motivating to be really sore post-workout today. I guess it’s like feeling the reward of hard work?! #strangebutgood

Do you have any tips for staying focused and getting out of your own way? Help. Me.

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve brought to work to eat?

Sunshine and Pumpkin Pan-lettes

September 16, 2013 By Laura

It’s a sunshine-y day!!!

Hey, we’re supposed to start the week on a positive. #cheese

This weekend was beautiful and sunny in Atlanta. I spent Saturday morning working out, then did some shopping. I purchased fresh eggs from the farmers market before heading to Fresh Market for some goodies:

I really love the wraps and the lentil hummus! Hatch chilies aren’t new to me, but I was thrilled that they were grilling them fresh outside the store to sell. Score! They went really well with the shrimp I bought (pre-cooked and tails removed – I can’t stomach doing those myself just yet).

Then I got dressed to watch two of my favorite people get married.

Admittedly, I was a little anxious about the reception. Open bar, lots of tasty reception food… and cake. I mustered all my motivation and commitment.

I knew I wouldn’t last without my own treats, so I came prepared.

Bring your own food to a wedding?! Why not? I made a quick turkey salad with my hatch chilies, parsley, and tomato. That was tossed in a sauce of nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, cumin, and smoked paprika. I also brought some green bean chips, a chocolate calcium disk, and kombucha. The kombucha was awesome to have so I felt like I had a “drink.”

Confession: I took a teeny cake sample. It was worth it. So there.

Isn’t the bride gorgeous?!

Sunday there was more marvelous with a great workout followed by a trip to Whole ~~Paycheck~~ Foods. On bike.

It was supposed to help with self-control… but really it translated to weighted cardio on the ride home. It’s 6.5 miles round trip! The need for kabocha is not to be denied!

See that beer in the middle? It’s a pumpkin beer. I’m afraid it will all be gone by the time I can drink it after my competition, so I asked the beer man (Max) to recommend the very best.

I purchased a single and it will remain in my fridge until mid-November. Wish me luck.

I’ve been tagged by a few people for the Sunshine Award. Thank you!!!

The last one I saw was from Janetha… based on the first question alone, I knew I had to answer. 🙂

1. Do you believe in aliens? Why or why not.

I don’t know… I’ll say yes. Because who are we to think we’re all that’s out there?!

2. If you could do ANYTHING in the world and have that be your career and your skills, paycheck, or anything else was not an object… what would you do?

I’d travel. That my one day get boring, but being able to explore and experience the world without the chains of time or monetary needs is my idea of heaven.

Like that time I ended up in Chile by accident and found myself on board a US Navy ship…

3. What is your earliest childhood memory?

That’s tough… I don’t remember? Maybe dancing around the living room to old records at Christmas time with my dad.

4. What’s for dinner tonight?

How about last night? That’s what I have a picture of. 😉 It was one of my new wraps spread with salsa and topped with shrimp, broccoli slaw, and a little local #yolkporn.

5. What was the most fabulous vacation you have ever been on in your entire life?

Italy. 2 weeks traveling to small towns on a self-guided food and wine extravaganza. I almost didn’t come home.

~~Often I wonder why I did.~~

At the tartufo festival in Alba, Italy

6. If you HAD to give up one of your senses (touch, taste, sight, hearing, or smell) which would it be?

NOT taste or smell! Maybe hearing? It seems like that’s the easiest one to accommodate for, especially if you’re able to hear prior.

~~I’d rather not hear half the shit that comes out of people’s mouths anyway…~~ 😉

7. Would you rather always be super freezing cold or ridiculously overheating hot? (and no, you can’t have a warm blanket or AC to combat the issue!)

Bring on the heat! I hate being cold. I have Raynaud’s Disease and it’s uncomfortable and creepy when my fingers go white-purple.

8. Why did you start blogging?

My mom told me to. Seriously. I was reading a lot of blog and getting inspired to make all of this #strangebutgood stuff and my mom said “you should start a blog!” So I did!

This is not at all strange for us.

9. What was the last compliment you received and what was the last one you paid to someone?

Yesterday I Instagrammed a sneaky selfie from the gym and my girl Meg sent me the sweetest text that made my night:

“Wow girl you’re looking phenomenal. Be proud of yourself.”

That Pumpkin Pie Smoothie recipe is on the Instagram post. 😉

*Please don’t be offended, Zumba people. I just thought it was funny. I tried it at Blend and it was HARD for this white girl.*

I’m struggling through this prep and someone noticing progress that’s hard for me to see in myself feels really, really good.

I paid it forward by telling a girl in the elevator that the homemade (paleo!) fudge she was bringing up looked amazing. Then I tried to steal one.

10. What is your most favorite thing to eat?

I hate this question (sorry Janetha!). I love different foods for different reasons, and it depends on the mood!

Right now I’m digging the Pumpkin Pan-lette (remember when I did it with sweet potato?) I made Saturday morning. There’s no flour in it – the base is just pumpkin and egg whites. Like a pumpkin omelette, but cooked like a pancake. Pan-lette. Get it?

Whatever you call it, it is a fluffy cake of fall deliciousness. I topped with a peanut flour sauce, which we all know I’m addicted to.

Pumpkin Pan-lette

1/2 C pumpkin puree
1/2 C egg whites
1/2 tsp butter extract (or vanilla)
1/2 tsp pumpkin spice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of cloves
4-5 drops vanilla liquid stevia (optional)

For the sauce:

1 T peanut flour
1 T Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 drops vanilla liquid stevia
Almond milk or water, to thin

Combine all pancake ingredients into a medium bowl and stir until smooth. Pour into a prepared (I used PAM) skillet and cook as you would a pancakes (~2-3 mins on each side).

Note: I made this as one huge pancake, but I’d advise you to turn it into 2. It required some serious acrobatics and two spatulas to flip.

Meanwhile, stir together sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

Plate your pie-cakes, top with peanut butter syrup, and enjoy!

***

Don’t forget to check out all the other marvelous in the world over at Katie’s link up!

The Sunshine rules say you have to come up with 10 questions and tag 10 people. Everyone and their brother has already done this… so I tag YOU!!! Choose one of the questions above and answer it below. Sharing is caring.

Would/have you ever brought your own food to a wedding?

Strange But Good: Thai Peanut Kabocha & Cauliflower

September 13, 2013 By Laura

I am a kabocha nut.

Not a bad thing – it’s good – but time to branch out.

Admittedly, I got in a rut with it. I have been preparing it the same way for weeks. Tossed in this Mexican chocolate spice blend and roasted before being doused with a sweet peanut sauce, it has been my favorite “dessert.”

Possibly strange to “normal” people. Definitely good. But no longer unique. When Heather chose it was the “K” ingredient for the MMAZ link up, I knew I needed to step up my game.

Today I bring you a strange non-dessert kabocha creation. Not to worry – it’s still good.

Peanut flour again makes an appearance (I guess I didn’t branch that far out…) but this time it’s as a savory Asian-inspired dish. If you don’t have peanut flour, you can certainly use peanut butter!

Sriracha is my favorite way to add heat, and you could use it here. I avoid the sodium this close to a competition, so I added my own sriracha-esque ingredients to the peanut flour. Red pepper flakes and rice vinegar, plus garlic and a dash of cinnamon. Trust me on the cinnamon.

After a quick toss, I roasted my pea-nutty kabocha until it was ~~nearly burnt~~ nicely crisped. If you want to make it more strange, add in some cauliflower. It’s another dessert of the vegetable world – it tastes good in pancakes or spiced up.

Don’t forget to head over to Heather’s blog on Monday for everyone else’s kabocha creations!

Thai Peanut Kabocha & Cauliflower

2 T peanut flour* (or peanut butter)
2 T unsweetened almond milk (or other liquid)
1 T rice vinegar
2-3 cloves of garlic, pressed
Red pepper flakes, to taste
Pinch of cinnamon
1 C kabocha squash, cubed
1 C cauliflower florets

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil.

In a small bowl, mix together first 5 ingredients.

Place cubed kabocha and cauliflower on baking sheet. Pour peanut mixture over the veggies and toss to coat.

Place in oven and bake for 20-30 min, stirring once half way through.

Makes 2 servings.

*I order my peanut flour from iHerb. Use discount code USO924 for $5-10 off your order!

Remember to use #strangebutgood in any Tweets and Instagrams of your creations. 🙂

***

This week has been insanely busy with work and travel. I’m so sorry I’m behind on replying to comments and emails. I promise to catch up this weekend!

What’s your favorite squash? Have you tried kabocha yet?

Do you ever eat your veggies sweet?

Easy Dijon Baked Chicken

September 12, 2013 By Laura

You may have noticed that simple is hard for me.

But the things I make really aren’t hard!

I like ingredients, and I find its easy to toss together a bunch of spices quickly. But I get it. Long ingredient lists are intimidating. So here’s a recipe that couldn’t be any easier.

Dijon Baked Chicken only calls for 3 necessary things: chicken, Dijon, and red wine vinegar (you could use *almost* any acid you have on hand). I have made it as part of my food prep 2 weeks in a row! Click here for a full post on that.

The simplicity of this dish doesn’t make it any less delicious. In fact, this is one of the best baked chickens I’ve made yet (and I make a lot of chicken).

Two things will make this better than your average chicken: use a GOOD mustard (I used a beer dijon) and tenderize your chicken. Tenderizing is a pain in the arse, but it makes such a huge difference that I always, always do it. I hate touching raw chicken, so I put mine between 2 sheets of wax paper before beating it.

Easy clean up and it’s not a bad stress reliever. 😉

You know me. I couldn’t leave it at just the 3 ingredients. I added rosemary, black pepper, and a touch of lemon stevia (honey mustard!). And red pepper flakes. Add your favorite flavors or keep it super simple. It won’t disappoint either way.

I used this chicken many ways, but the simplest meal was for lunch over a bed of spinach and broccoli slaw. Tossed with a little hummus dressing (hummus mixed with apple cider vinegar and a little cumin), it was the perfect midday meal!

Easy Dijon Baked Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/4 C Dijon mustard
1 T red wine vinegar
Optional adds: lemon liquid Stevia, rosemary, red pepper flakes, black pepper… etc.

Preheat oven to 425.

Tenderize chicken breasts and place in 9×13 glass baking dish.

In a small bowl, mix together mustard, vinegar, and any additional flavors.

Pour mustard mixture over chicken, taking care to coat each one.

Bake for ~30 mins, until 165 degrees.

Tip: I only cook mine to 160 degrees to keep it nice a juicy. I take it out and let it rest, which allows it to cook the rest of the way, and for the juices to soak in.

***

I made so much of this… and then I made it again. Chicken for days in the freezer when I get home and I couldn’t be happier. 🙂

Do you have a go-to way to make chicken? (Or tofu… the vegan chicken. 😉 )

How about some mustard love – have you tried any of the fun flavors? Sweet potato and caramelized onion mustard is also delish in this!

What I Ate in San Francisco (from home)

September 11, 2013 By Laura

Leave it to me to go to a food city and bring my own.

Not my first choice.

A HUGE part of the commitment to compete is a commitment to your diet. It’s not easy. It’s not always fun. HOWEVER… abs are made in the kitchen.

This trip to has been especially hard for me because it’s my first with my new job… and I have a really fun team to hang out with. So far I’ve been good, even working out twice in 12 hours due to scheduling.

Preparation is key. This trip I packed up some old staples. These are items that “save” me:

Homemade fro-yo: I take single serving containers of plain Greek yogurt, add my on mix-ins, and re-cover them to freeze. Freezing the yogurt makes it easier to get through security (it’s a solid) and it acts as an ice pack for your other foods. And it’s tasty. This week I had peanut flour-strawberry and vanilla-mango.
Packaged foods: these are a great to have on had. I pack up single-serving protein powders, bars, stevia, tuna, and rice cakes.
Oatmeal: Usually I plan to get this from room service, but I wanted to try something new. I pre-measured out my oats and adding in ginger and cinnamon. All I need to do is add water/protein powder/hotel fruit to make oatmeal in my room!
Jerky: I don’t often eat jerky, but Perky Jerky offered to send me sample of their (preservative-free) product. I really like the turkey version only has 110 mg of sodium! Score.

Of course I brought more… see below… 😉

________________________________________________________________________________________

I’ve done detailed travel posts before, so this is WIAW travel food-edition going to be more of an overview. I did manage some new (strange?) travel eats this time around.

Read on for my San Francisco treats, and then check out Jenn’s blog. for some more “normal” days of food.

________________________________________________________________________________________

On the Plane:

Overnight oats in a jar make getting up early just a little easier. These were packed with fig, cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla protein powder.

Yes, they made it through security.

Round 2 on the plane was the baked chicken from my food prep (recipe coming tomorrow), carrots, and airplane pretzels.

The fro-yo kept it nice and cold!

Hotel Breakfast:

This has become an art. The Westin St. Francis has been fabulous with my crazy food requests. They brought up apple cider vinegar so I could have my morning cocktail!!! I downed that along with half a muffin (brought from home) to fuel a morning workout. Check out the view I woke up to!

Then the full meal was delivered: plain oats with a side of berries, cinnamon, and coffee. I mixed in my own protein powder, and added coffee to thin it out. Perfection!

Other Mini-Meals:

You can actually find acceptable food to eat in cities like SF. I got to enjoy a kale-barley salad with chickpeas and shrimp for lunch on our first day here:

This was the peanut flour and strawberry fro-yo creation I brought from home. Can you tell how fantastically frozen it was?!

I ended up having to do my workout at midnight east coast time… this was just the treat I needed after. I spent half the workout thinking about it.

This next snack happened at the conference. People seemed a little surprised when they discovered I brought the egg from home. I can’t imagine why…

It turns out hard-boiled egg travels really well! Tomato Brownies travel well too. I took it straight from my freezer from home, and by day two it had thawed and tasted delicious! I didn’t reveal the secret ingredient to my co-workers. ~~They’d have been too jealous.~~ 😉

Of course, there have been other eats. When we go to restaurants I order veggies with a plain grilled protein or I bust out my “emergency” tuna. It’s really no too hard too eat out (temptation side).

***

If anyone wants to send random tweets of support and keep me honest… that wouldn’t suck. 😉

Do you struggle with diet? It’s the hardest part about competing for me!

Do you like hard-boiled eggs? This was my first time making them for myself!

Braving the Marvelous

September 9, 2013 By Laura

Flattered.

Does anyone else think of flatulence when they say that word?

I am absolutely flattered when people try out the #strangebutgood recipes I subject you all to. It’s high time I share some of the evidence and creative edits!

Jicama Tofu Nachos

This may be one of my favorite recent creations. I was really excited to see it popping up on Instagram! This version is by Hannah:

Meghan @ The Lyon’s Share braved these nachos and made it her own with mushrooms and a vegan cheese sauce.

Fluffy Cauliflower Pancakes

Meghan truly is a brave soul because she made my Fluffy Cauliflower Pancake recipe last week too! And she made it ~~even more strange~~ green by adding spinach and doubling the cauliflower!

(Cheese-less) Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Continuing with the cauliflower theme, Tiffany @ Love, Sweat, & Beers (minus the beers for now, baby mamma) made my Cauliflower Crust Pizza!

Since she’s eating for two, she even had room left for dessert. Clever thinking. 😉

Chick-Less Nuggets

Arman @ The Big Man’s World is a #strangebutgood enthusiast, so I was thrilled when he made my Chick-less Nuggets. He compared these TVP-based vegan nuggets to falafel, which makes total sense since I also used chickpea flour to make them.

Even better is the fast that he ate them with roasted cauliflower and brussels, two of my favorite things (rain drops on roses aside).

150 Calorie Chocolate Mug Cake

My girl Heather @ Better With Veggies is training for her first bikini competition on a pescatarian/dairy-free diet. She’s rocking it out and I was super flattered when she tried my 150 Calorie Chocolate Mug Cake.

She had the brilliant idea to mix the ingredients in advance so all she could take it to work and “cook” it in the microwave there.

Peanut-Coconut Flour Pancakes

Inspiration goes both ways! Arman made my nuggets, but my Saturday pancakes were inspired by the peanut butter-coconut recipe he entered in the #strangebutgood linkup on Friday’s blog.

The I made it more strange but adding roasted jicama and strawberries with a Mexican chocolate twist – I tossed them in cocoa, cinnamon, and cayenne pre-roast. So good!

Flattery, not to be confused with flatulence, is marvelous.

Check out Katie’s link up for more blog-land marvels!

***

I mentioned Friday that I have a new job. In order to give myself time to ramp up in my new role, I’m going to be posting a little less frequently. I don’t know what that schedule will look like yet. Just know if I miss a day (probably tomorrow) I’m not dead. If you notice. 😉

What blogger recipe have you tried lately and loved?

Is there anything making your Monday particularly marvelous? I’m in San Fran, which doesn’t suck.

Strange But Good: Plantain Ginger Protein Bread

Plantain Ginger Protein Bread

Sweet Potato Pizza Crust

Mix it up: Night Running and Sweet Potato Pizza Crust

Sweet Potato Pizza Crust

Pumpkin Pie Protein Bowl + WIAW

Breakfast:

Raspberry Overnight Bulgur

Mid-Morning Snack:

Lunch:

Mid-Afternoon Snack:

Dinner:

Dessert:

Pumpkin Pie Protein Bowl

Sunshine and Pumpkin Pan-lettes

Pumpkin Pan-lette

Strange But Good: Thai Peanut Kabocha & Cauliflower

Thai Peanut Kabocha & Cauliflower

Easy Dijon Baked Chicken

Easy Dijon Baked Chicken

What I Ate in San Francisco (from home)

On the Plane:

Hotel Breakfast:

Other Mini-Meals:

Braving the Marvelous

Jicama Tofu Nachos

Fluffy Cauliflower Pancakes

(Cheese-less) Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Chick-Less Nuggets

150 Calorie Chocolate Mug Cake

Peanut-Coconut Flour Pancakes

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