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Contemplating Carnivore + WIAW

April 25, 2012 By Laura

Don’t cry for me, Argentina…

 

 

I recently decided on my 2012 international trip and there’s no crying here!  Two of my best friends from grad school and I are going to Argentina AND Uruguay!  Leaving just 6 weeks from today!!!

 

Here’s my dilemma: Argentina is known for meat.  I love to travel and try new foods, and I always said that whatever veggie-food thing I have going is out the window when I travel.  No restrictions.  But now I am scared I’ll get sick… and meat just doesn’t appeal to me like it used it.

I did eat 3 bites of meat at dinner tonight… so far so good.

 ______________________________________________________________________________________

 

Meat dilemmas aside, Jenn (who called me a genius last night) @ Peas and Crayons is hosting  What I Ate Wednesday this month in the theme of veggies:

 

 

Check out my veggie eats (plus a couple of meats) below; then click here to see what everyone else enjoyed for WIAW.

 

Breakfast:

This morning I woke up feeling jumpy… in a plyo way.  I bounced out of bed and down to the gym for 60 mins of Plyo with Tony Horton (from P90X).  In case you haven’t tried it yet, this plyo DVD with kick your butt.  It left me hot, sweaty, and STARVING.

I ran up to my condo for a tasty Banana-Maple-Ginger Smoothie accompanied by a (vegan) Raw Cookie Dough Ball, compliments of this recipe by Lisa @ Healthful Sense (I always keep a batch in the freezer for a quick snack or smoothie topping).

 

Banana-Maple-Ginger Smoothie

  • 1 small banana
  • 1 C spinach
  • 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
  • 1 tsp maca (optional)
  • 1/2 C unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 T ground flax seed
  • 5-6 drops vanilla liquid Stevia
  • 1/2 in piece of fresh ginger
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp maple extract

 

Lunch:

Working from home makes me happy because I get to MOVE so much more.  Bring chained to a desk is really hard for me.  In the interest of movement, I walked to one of my favorite spots – MetroFresh – to meet a friend for lunch.

MetroFresh’s menu changes daily, but they always offer 5-6 soups, 7-8 salads/sides, and a couple of sandwiches.  They also designate which items are vegan, vegetarian, or gluten-free.  Love that.

 

Today I had a Swiss Chard and White Bean Stew and a Maple-Citrus Wild Rice Salad with Mushrooms, Feta, Cucumber, Black Wheatberries, and Dried Cranberries.  Finger-lickin’ good.

Side note: Did anyone watch Doogie Howser or Party of 5 growing up?  The owner of MetroFresh, Mitchell Anderson, played roles in both hit shows!

 

Snacks:

My lunch was pretty filling, and I knew I was going out for dinner so I was a little light on the snacks today.  I did enjoy a Kombucha, a banana (topped with a failed attempt at chocolate-peanut butter – the texture was nasty), and a piece of chocolate (to help me feel better after the PB fail).

Dinner:

Apparently is was a day for dining out.  I had dinner with my mom and cousin at a local Indian spot called Cardamom Hill.  This place is amazing – I blogged about it here when they first opened, and they have only gotten better since.

For appetizers we ordered Pork Vindaloo (pork shoulder slow-cooked in a flavorful vinegar sauce with turmeric and cardamom served with a side of appam), Coconut Curry Vegetable Stew, and a Squid special that was cooked in a red chili sauce and served with a side of fried plantains.

 

I did take a bite of everything… it was the first time I’ve had pork in months.  It was delicious, but I still couldn’t imagine eating a whole order.  The vegetable curry soup was my favorite!

 

Remembering how delicious it was the first time there, I ordered the Vegetable Platter.  It wasn’t quiiiite as good, but that is a preference thing.  They do change-up pieces of the dish, and on my first trip there was more heat incorporated.  I love spicy food. 

 

From L to R: Avail (lightly steamed vegetables in a shaved coconut sauce), Sambhar (a stew with okra, carrots, and potatoes), stack of sliced warm Beets layered with housemade yogurt and mustard seeds, and seasoned rice.

My favorite was the Avail.  That shaved coconut sauce was perfect – not too sweet or heavy, complimenting the root veggies it was served over.

The winner was my mom’s dish (unpictured).  She ordered the Kerala-Style Fried Chicken, served over vegetable pileau (rice with veggies).  Yup, I took another bite of meat… I don’t regret it.  This chicken was among the best I’ve ever tasted.  Don’t skip it if you are in the neighborhood (and you eat meat).

 

Dessert:

Someone once said there is a whole separate part of your stomach for dessert.  They weren’t kidding.  I should have been stuffed after all of that… yet I came home and enjoyed a So Delicious coconut ice cream bar.  The bar is dairy-free and contains only 1g of sugar… and you would never be able to tell.

 

So Delicious, indeed.

 

***

Another reminder to enter my NuNaturals giveaway – there are 4 chances to win the new NuNaturals Orange and Lemon Liquid Stevias!  Contest ends Thursday at 11:59pm EST.  Click here to enter.

Have you ever been to Argentina, or South America?  Any suggestions?

Have you ever gone back to eating meat?  How did you ease back in to it?

 

Filed Under: Recipes, Restaurants, Smoothies, Travel Tagged With: Argentina, breakfast, Cardamom Hill, dinner, Indian, lunch, MetroFresh, P90X, smoothies, snacks, Uruguay, vegetarian, WIAW

Home Brewing + WIAW

April 18, 2012 By Laura

I drink a lot…

 

 

…of KOMBUCHA!

At $3 a bottle, it’s an expensive habit.  When Stacy Tweeted to tell me about a deal on OpenSky (click for invite!) for a Kombucha Home Brewing Kit  from Kombucha Brooklyn I jumped at the opportunity.

 

 

My kit came with a jar, tea bags, sugar, and my very own scoby.  The instructions were idiot-proof easy to understand… with very little effort I’m 14-28 days away from home-brewed kombucha!*

*I fully realize that you can brew Komubcha without buying a kit.  Still, $30-something to get started is still less than what I spend on the stuff at Whole Foods.  And I actually DID it.

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Two weeks ago marked the beginning of the Green Giant Veg Pledge to add an additional cup of veggies to my daily eats.  Despite some terrible food choices over the weekend (french fries happened… I can’t say I regret it), I’m back on track this week and greening it up with everyone for What I Ate Wednesday!

Jenn @ Peas and Crayons is hosting  What I Ate Wednesday  this month in the theme of veggies:

 

 

Check out my veggies below; then click here to see how everyone else incorporated extra servings.

 

 

Breakfast:

After a quick tabata-style workout found on Pinterest, I needed to cool down before getting in the shower.  Don’t you hate when you’re still sweating AFTER getting out of the shower?

 

I slurped down up a little Liquid Sweet Potato Pie Smoothie topped with hemp seeds while I got a head start on work email.

 

Lunch:

Massive collard greens are everywhere in Georgia grocery stores.  Traditional Southerners cook them with things like ham hocks.

Not me!  I use the greens as raw taco shells!

 

I filled my “tacos” with raw asparagus, carrots, celery, cucumbers, red pepper flakes, and a massive amount of my new favorite hummus.  The spinach-flavored hummus is made by a company called Roots.  Not sure how widely available it is, but I found this a Whole Foods. The rest of the container was enjoyed with some Sesame Wasa crackers on the side.

 

Snacks:

Unpictured was the daily Kombucha, a piece of dark chocolate, and handful of cashews.

An apple with peanut butter and a surprise from Nature Box did make it for a photo shoot:
 
I really loved the Smokey Pepitas and Dried Pears.  More to come on this awesome company later! 

 

Dinner:

Baked is my favorite way to do tofu.  The outside gets all crunchy and the inside becomes marshmallow-fluffy.

Tonight’s dinner was a Baked Sesame Tofu with lemon roasted asparagus and an heirloom tomato.

Tomato season has arrived down South!  That was the sweetest tomato I think I’ve ever had.  I made the mistake of cutting the tomato too early… only 2 little slices remained to go with dinner.

What was left of my tom was delicious with the light spice and nuttiness of the tofu marinade.  Recipe to come tomorrow!

 

 

Dessert:

It was a healthy post workout dessert – a chocolate protein shake topped with cereal.  Packed with spinach, of course.

 

***

I can’t believe I didn’t like tomatoes until a couple of years ago.

How are you doing with the Veg Pledge?  Have you been incorporating an extra veggie serving each day?

Have you ever brewed your own Kombucha?  How about beer?

 

Filed Under: Products Tagged With: breakfast, dinner, hummus, Kombucha, lunch, Nature Box, protein, smoothies, snacks, tofu, vegan, vegetarian, WIAW

Spring Endive Boats + WIAW

April 11, 2012 By Laura

Endive Boats are the perfect party salad.

Boats make salad a finger food!

Last Christmas when I catered this party I served endive boats rather than a salad dish.  They went over really well, so I decided to make a spring version for the wedding shower.

This spring version contained raspberries, raw asparagus (thin stalks), and pecans.  Over the top I drizzled a light raspberry vinaigrette.

A lot of people are surprised by raw asparagus, but it is quite tasty.  In season, the asparagus is especially sweet and the crunch it added was perfect.

The raspberries were just a tad sweet, but still have an early-season tartness that was well-balanced with the fruity vinaigrette and rich, nutty pecans.

Like the deviled eggs, there weren’t any leftover by the end of the party!

Recipe at the bottom.


Last week I announced I was taking the Green Giant Veg Pledge to add an additional cup of veggies to my daily eats.  Many of you said you would join me… have you been doing it?

Jenn @ Peas and Crayons is with her  What I Ate Wednesday theme for April:

Check out my veggies below; then click here to see how everyone else incorporated extra servings.


Breakfast:

Do you ever wake up starving?  Having followed the P90X workouts this week, I cannot get enough food!

Carrot Cake Smoothie:

  • 1 C spinach
  • 1 medium carrot
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/2 in piece fresh ginger
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 7-8 drops liquid vanilla stevia
  • 1 T rolled oats
  • 1/2 C unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp maca (optional)
  • Pecans (optional – for topping)

Lunch:

The veggie-theme was full force at lunch today.  I had a conference call, so I ate it in two parts.

Part 1: A slice of whole wheat multi-grain bread from the farmer’s market with my Chipotle Corn Hummus, raw asparagus, zucchini, and carrots.

I brought the veggies to work in that carrot bag.  The bag was almost empty, so I piled my asparagus and zucchini slices rather than wasting another baggie.  I’m a total hippie.

Part 2: Garden Lites Cauliflower Souffle

Tasty, but I may have over-microwaved it.

Snacks:

With my 2-part lunch, I didn’t do much snacking… there was the daily Kombucha with raspebrries, a Think Thin, Wasa flatbread, and unpictued stuff (nuts, 1/2  cupcake, cereal):

Dinner:

It was a pizza night at a favorite pizza joint, Double Zero.  You cut the pie with scissors and they have one of the best Italian wine selections in ATL.  My pie was tomato, mozzarella, arugula, roasted garlic, and chilis.


Spring Endive Boats

  • 6-8 endive heads
  • 2 pints raspberries
  • 1 bunch thin asparagus, chopped
  • 1/2 C chopped pecans
  • Raspberry vinaigrette

Assemble endive leaves evenly across a large tray.  Divide raspberries, asparagus pieces, and pecans evenly among boats.  

Lightly drizzle with raspberry vinaigrette just before serving.

Serves 30.

***

I was going to post that mac ‘n cheese recipe… but I had to go endive for the veggie theme! 🙂

How are you doing with the Veg Pledge?  Have you been incorporating an extra veggie serving each day?

What is the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

Filed Under: Recipes, Restaurants Tagged With: breakfast, catering, dinner, Double Zero, entertaining, hummus, lunch, pizza, salad, snacks, vegan, vegetarian, wedding, WIAW

Facebook and Eating Disorders + WIAW

April 4, 2012 By Laura

Facebook may lead to eating disorders.

Last week it was narcissism, this week it’s eating disorders.  Poor Facebook is taking a hit!

 

 

A new study that found that “51% of respondents felt more self-conscious about their physical appearance after looking at pictures of themselves on Facebook.”  These Facebook users are checking out their friend’s photos, which leads them to be more critical of their own physiques.

I don’t know about this… you can compare yourself to other people just walking down the street.

Read the full article on Newser by clicking here.

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Want to know how to feel better?  Eat some veggies!

Yesterday I asked you all to join me in the Green Giant Veg Pledge to add an additional cup of veggies to your daily eats.  Jenn @ Peas and Crayons is also taking part in the challenge, so this month her  What I Ate Wednesday theme is…

 

 

Check out my veggies below; then click here to see how everyone else incorporated extra servings.

 

 

Breakfast:

Do you ever wake up starving?  After Sunday’s jam-packed day of softball and plyometrics, I was in need of an extra-filling breakfast.  I mixed this concoction and let it sit in the fridge to thicken (~15 mins) while I downed a glass of water and got the coffee started.

Those blackberries on top were incredible – the first perfect berries of the season!

 

 

In my oat bowl:

  • Rolled oats
  • Chia
  • Greek yogurt
  • Chia seeds
  • Unsweetened almond milk
  • Vanilla extract
  • Cinnamon
  • Blackberries

 

Lunch:

I failed to take a picture of the final result… but here’s what my veggie-centric lunch consisted of:

 

 

 

I am fully aware that gazpacho is easy to make yourself… but with my crazy schedule, Whole Foods’ soup had to happen.  It was delicious with some red pepper flakes and avocado (unpictured) on top.

I devoured this with some spinach, broccoli slaw, and ak-mak crackers.  These crackers were new to me – they were delicious and reminded me of Wasa crisps.

 

Snacks:

It was a snack-y sort of day – handfuls of this and that here and there.  A few munchies:

 

KIND bars are my new addiction

Bowls of grapes and edamame

 

My two favorite drinks - coffee and kombucha

 

Dinner:

I was starving by dinner time.  You know what that means…

 

 

All that remained were 2 strips of tempeh when I remembered to take a pic.  My cousin and I hit up a local vegetarian spot called World Peace Cafe for dinner.  It was my first time there, but certainly won’t be the last!

That tempeh was sitting on top of a huge salad with shredded beets, carrots, and tomatoes.  On the left is a bowl that held a delicious mushroom–kale–lentil soup.  The crumbs around to bowl belonged to a slice of rye toast.  The tea pot in the background was filled with lemon-gnger tea.

We also split a piece of vegan chocolate-almond cake.  It was divine.

 

***

Adding veggies isn’t so hard… I think I could eat edamame all day long.

Did you incorporate an extra veggie serving to your day?  If so, how?

Any thoughts on the Facebook story?  Do you think it’s any worse than the millions of other way you can compare yourself to others?

 

Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes, Restaurants Tagged With: breakfast, dinner, Facebook, Kombucha, lunch, oats, salad, snacks, soup, vegan, vegetarian, Whole Foods, WIAW

Narcissism + WIAW

March 28, 2012 By Laura

Facebook is an indicator of narcissism.

Raise your hand if you’re in trouble…

According to a recent study, there is a link between the number of “friends” you have and narcissism.  The participants were assessed on the based on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI).  Who knew that even existed?!

The study wasn’t fully representative, but the theory is that a high friend count indicates you need excessive attention.

Clearly these people never played in a ~100 person roller derby league or went to grad school.  That’s like 50% of my friend count!


 

But I digress.  Today is the last  green themed What I Ate Wednesday!  Give my day of eats some attention, and then give Jenn’s blog some attention by clicking here to see what everyone chowed down on.


 

Breakfast:

I was in a rush, so I did a quick 15 min HIIT workout before breakfast… which left me starving.  I scarfed another Raspberry Barked Oatmeal To-Go (perfect in-a-hurry-meal), along with slices of the best grapefruit I’ve ever eaten.

This fruit was so sweet I couldn’t believe it wasn’t an orange or maybe an Ugli fruit.

Lunch:

Again with the busy theme, I ate lunch on the road.  Literally – I was driving with my knees with a cell phone in one hand and my burrito bowl in the other.

Safe, I know… at least is didn’t try to take a picture!

I wish I had gotten a pic because Willy’s is the only Mexi-rito chain I have seen that offers tofu.  Vegan tofu burrito bowl, FTW.

Snacks:

Random, but yummy:

  • Cashews
  • Squash sticks dipped in marinara
  • TJ’s Sweet Potato Chips + Eggplant Garlic Dip (sooooo good!)
  • Grapes
  • Beer… it was a pre-tennis snack! 🙂
  • Rick’s Picks Mean Beans – spicy pickle green beans

Dinner:

A quick post-tennis veggie stir-fry served with apple slices, and seed bread over a bed of mixed greens.

In my quickie stir-fry:

  • Yellow cauliflower
  • Squash and zucchini
  • Collard greens
  • Onion
  • Garlic
  • Nutritional yeast
  • Liquid aminos
  • Thyme
  • S+P

Dessert:

One of these Chewy Granola Cookies from the freezer.  I love a low-sugar quickie dessert.  I may have had 2.

***

In the theme of narcissism…. it’s the last time I’ll post my weekly vote plea.  A nomination as a “Best Healthy Eating Blog” for the 2012 Fitterati Blog Awards on FitnessMagazine.com blew me away.  I know I’m never going to reach the 1000+ vote mark, but I’d be honored if you felt inclined to click here and vote for me. 🙂

What is your favorite burrito-chain order?

Let’s talk Facebook… do you believe the theory?  How narcissistic are you?

Filed Under: Breakfast, Fitness, Products, Restaurants Tagged With: breakfast, cookies, dessert, dinner, Facebook, lunch, restaurants, salad, snacks, tofu, vegan, vegetarian, WIAW, Willy's

A Cure + WIAW

March 21, 2012 By Laura

The mystery has been solved.

I think.

Since mid-January I haven’t been able to run due to a strange knee pain.  After seeing a PT and seeing no improvement, I paid a visit to my old chiropractor.  This is the guy that fixed my right knee a couple of years ago.  Why did I wait so long to see him for my left knee?

The theory is that I have Patellofemoral Syndrome.  In English, I have Runner’s Knee.  Damaged cartilage under my knee cap (patella) from years of abuse.  I didn’t realize your knee cap wasn’t supposed to crunch when you push down on it…

 

 

The plan is for me to see the Doc regularly and do some daily “homework.”  I have one exercise to strengthen my inner quad, a quad stretch, a way to push on my knee cap to break up scar tissue, and then I end with 10 mins of ice.  In one week I try running again and see what happens.

 

Speaking of afflictions… in Georgia we have had record pollen counts.  Thank god I don’t have allergies.  A stuffy nose would certainly affect my taste, which would make Jenn’s What I Ate Wednesday less fun!  Who wants to eat when they can’t taste?

The green theme continues… and is especially appropriate since I ate lunch outside and fell victim to the yellow-green pollen film.

 

 

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Breakfast:

I pre-gamed my workout with this Raspberry Barked Oatmeal To-Go.  Delicious from the freezer and zapped in the micro for 30 seconds.

 

 

My post workout protein smoothie was a lovely red and green.  Translation: brown. 

 

It was this Beet-Citrus creation from Valentine’s Day; however, I added more spinach this time.  Hence the brown.


Lunch:

Like any good American, I love Mexican.

Today’s lunch featured a couple of tacos made from collard greens.

 

In my tacos:

  • Pinto bean dip
  • Dr. Praeger’s Veggie Burger
  • Carrots
  • Avocado
  • Tomato
  • Salsa verde
  • Cumin
  • Nutritional Yeast

 

Best new lunch idea in recent memory.  These are going into regular rotation!

 

 

Snacks:

It was a carb-y snack day.  Mostly brought to you by Trader Joe’s: Rice and Bean Chips, Sweet Potato Chip Rounds, Popcorn, and a Cherry-Dark Chocolate KIND bar.

 

 

Un-pictured: kombucha and mixed nuts.

 

Dinner:

A  night out with mama at a new -to-us place called Three Sheets.  Cute name, right?

Hummus, falafel, veggies, and lamb for mom.  Of course, there was a bottle of wine involved. 🙂

***

I wish I could type what I’m thinking right now… la-la-la-la-la….

Weekly vote-begging time! I was honored with a nomination as a “Best Healthy Eating Blog” for the 2012 Fitterati Blog Awards on FitnessMagazine.com.  I know I’m never going to reach the 1000+vote mark, but I’d be flattered if you felt inclined to click here and vote for me. 🙂

Are you getting dumped on by pollen too?

What is your favorite Trader Joe’s treat?

 

Filed Under: Products, Recipes, Smoothies Tagged With: breakfast, dinner, lunch, oats, protein, smoothies, sweet potato, vegan, vegetarian, WIAW

Feeling Irish on a Green WIAW

March 14, 2012 By Laura

I’ve never had a Shamrock Shake.

Out of curiosity I want to try one of the “healthy” Shamrock Shakes everyone has been posting… but I really don’t like mint desserts.

This time 2 years ago I was in Ireland!  Time flies… I was there on St. Patrick’s Day by accident.  When I booked the trip that happened to be the week I had free.  It wasn’t until we were leaving that I realized it was St. Patrick’s!  Only me.

Check out my Top 5 Things to Do in Ireland and the souper spinach-asparagus soup pictured below by clicking here.

Since I don’t post on weekends, it seemed that today is the perfect time for an Irish shout out because it’s a green-themed What I Ate Wednesday.

Green is my favorite food-color; however, I managed to fail a little at eating food that was colored green.  It was all plant-based though!


 

Breakfast:

Surprise, surprise… I had a smoothie!  Thank god it’s getting warmer because my smoothie addiction is only growing as I find more and more things I can thrown into the Vitamix.

I’ll be drinking all of my smoothies this week from my trusty Guinness pint glass. 🙂

In my smoothie:

  • Spinach
  • Raw beet
  • Carrot
  • Cucumber
  • Celery
  • Flax meal
  • Ginger
  • Maca
  • Vanilla protein powder
  • Unsweetened almond milk
  • Almond extract
  • Stevia
  • Ice + water

Lunch:

Salad box!  This is such a convenient way to travel – I toss veggies and dressing in a half-eaten container of greens to take to work.  Easy and there are no dishes to clean up!

In my box:

  • Broccoli sprouts
  • Broccoli and carrot slaw
  • Cabbage
  • Celery leaves
  • Celery
  • Spinach
  • Asparagus
  • Spicy Peanut Flour Dressing

Snacks:

I was bad about picture-taking with all my snacks.  Un-pictured was a kombucha, a sweet potato with nooch, and a handful of almonds.  My Piñata apple did make it (barely)!

A new (to me) waffle was scarfed down as well.  I normally buy the Kashi brand, but I liked this Nature’s Path waffle even more!

The actual waffle didn’t make it to the camera, but I assure you it was delicious with protein sauce (protein powder, almond milk, cinnamon, and stevia).

Dinner:

Parsnip rice finally happened.  I think I like it even better than parsnip fries!  I enjoyed it with roasted veggies and a cashew-curry sauce that will be posted tomorrow!

***

Doesn’t it feel like it should be Friday already?

Vote-begging time! I was honored with a nomination as a “Best Healthy Eating Blog” for the 2012 Fitterati Blog Awards on FitnessMagazine.com.  Not to sound desperate (I’m never going to reach the 400+vote mark, I know), but pretty please click here and vote for me. 🙂

How are you celebrating St. Patrick’s Day this year?

Have you ever traveled to a city/country specifically to celebrate a holiday there (other than to grandma’s house for Christmas 🙂 )?

Filed Under: Products, Recipes, Smoothies, Travel, Vitamix Tagged With: breakfast, dinner, Ireland, lunch, salad, smoothies, snacks, soup, vegan, vegetarian, WIAW

Packable, Healthy Lunches + WIAW

March 7, 2012 By Laura

“What healthy foods can I bring to work/school?”

 

That is one of the most common questions I hear.

The good news is: it’s not hard!  If you have some fresh veggies and dip, you’ve made a good start.  Add some fruit, a carb, some healthy fats, a protein…. and you’re in business!

 

 

One of the easiest sack lunches is leftovers.  Make extra of whatever you’ve had for dinner the night before.  Stick that in a container and take it into the office.  Simple!

 

Another option is a salad.  No, not another boring salad!  Think outside the box with toppings.  You can easily add items like:
  • Roasted veggies (ex: eggplant, zucchini, asparagus, squashes, beets)
  • Fruits (ex: blueberries, raspberries, pineapple, grapefruit sections, apples)
  • Seeds or nuts (ex: sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, pepitas, almonds, walnuts)
  • Other greens (ex: spinach, sprouts, arugula, shredded cabbage, kale)
  • Legumes (ex: black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils)
  • Herbs or spices (ex: cilantro, parsley, oregano, cumin, red pepper flakes, Chinese 5 spice)
  • Proteins (this is where leftovers really help – ex: grilled chicken, tempeh, tofu, lentils, quinoa, veggie burgers)

 

Citrus Chickpea Cilantro Salad (click for recipe)

 

Dressing your salad is another way to shake things up.  A few of my go-tos:
  • Use salsa to add some heat (really good with avocado and black beans)
  • Thin out hummus with apple cider vinegar (1:1 ratio)
  • Leftover pesto (like this beet sunflower pesto pictured below) mixed with a bit of balsamic or water to thin
  • Mash an avocado with lemon juice for a creamier dressing
  • Fresh lemon/lime/orange juice with a drizzle of olive oil
  • This low-fat Spicy Peanut Sauce


Sunflower Beet Pesto on salad (click for recipe)

 

Need your carbs?

Bring along a tortilla, pita pocket, or whole grain bread to eat on the side or stuff your salad into. Or have a healthier chip alternative on the side – I’m really digging PopChips and Pirate’s Booty.

________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Jenn’s What I Ate Wednesday this month is in the theme of green.  I wasn’t as green as usual… but it was a veggie-laden day for sure!

 

It’s also a “What I Ate at Work” WIAW.  I’ve been going to CrossFit right after work this week, so I’m eating more snacky things all day long so I am not starving before class ends.

 

 

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Breakfast:

My routine lately has been to get up, do a quick 15-20 workout (from Pinterest or BodyRock), and make a protein smoothie to cool off and refuel.  It’s an addiction.

 

 

This morning’s smoothie:

  • Spinach
  • Pineapple
  • Cucumber
  • Celery
  • Flax meal
  • Ginger
  • Maca
  • Vanilla protein powder
  • Ice + water

 

Lunch:

Post-cleanse my favorite addition is CARBS.  Peanut butter is a close second.

I brought my tortilla and the makings of a wrap to work.  These get constructed on-site so the tortilla doesn’t get soggy.

 

 

In my wrap:

  • Broccoli sprouts
  • Broccoli and carrot slaw
  • Roasted banana squash
  • Celery leaves
  • These sprouted chickpeas
  • This raw sweet potato hummus

 

 

See the container in the background?  I (once again) over-filled my wrap so half of the fillings were eaten with a fork on the side.  🙂

 

Snacks:

Yes, I snacked all day.  You might even say that I skipped dinner in favor of snacking.

 

My snacks:

  • Carrots, cucumber, and red pepper with raw sweet potato hummus
  • PopChips
  • Apple
  • Kombucha
  • Leftover airplane peanuts
  • Vegan jerky (Thai Peanut is the BEST!)

 

Dinner:

This is really 2 snacks eaten 2 hours apart.  I had the ice cream first.  Duh.

 

 

I’m still working on this one (it deserves its own post… and I’ll make one sans spinach so the pics are prettier 🙂 ), but let’s just say it was incredible.  The Vitamix continues to be the best purchase I’ve ever made.

 

Round 2 of dinner was a piece of Ezekiel bread topped with hummus, tomato, cilantro, and a vegan mozzarella cheese slice (which tasted nothing like mozzarella).  I stuck it under the broiler for 3+ mins… let’s pretend I didn’t forget it in the oven… burnt non-cheese isn’t too bad!

 

 

***

Crossfit #3 tomorrow.  I’m already sore from tonight.  Translation: I’m in love.

Annnnd another shameless plea: I am honored to have been nominated as a “Best Healthy Eating Blog” for the 2012 Fitterati Blog Awards on FitnessMagazine.com.  If you’re so inclined, pretty please click here and vote for me. 🙂

What are some of your favorite items to bring to work/school for lunch?

What is your strangest/favorite salad topping?

 

Filed Under: Recipes, Smoothies, Vitamix Tagged With: breakfast, CrossFit, dessert, hummus, lunch, salad, smoothies, vegan, vegetarian, WIAW, workout

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