So, the paper is done!!! And I am way beyond sleep-deprived. And it will take my body 10 years to recover from all the sugar I’ve downed in order to get through this. And I still have a presentation to give tonight. But, after that, I will be school-free for four whole days. That means I will have a four-day vacation from getting utterly drenched in torrential downpours on the way from work to class only to sit in an over-air-conditioned room for 3.5 hours.

I may have been smiling on the outside, but I was crying on the inside.

So were Deborah, Lucia, and Pura:

Anyway, I’ve at least been pairing my sugar overages with some green. When I eat too much junk, it’s always in addition to and not instead of a healthy base. Hopefully, my body will thank me by not letting diabetes spontaneously develop overnight.

My packed lunches this week involved a variation of this recipe for Catfish and Tomatillo Salsa from EatingWell. Except I used chicken instead of catfish because that was what I had. And I completely ignored every part of the recipe except the part that told me what to put in the salsa. Well, that’s sort of a lie. I used more tomatillos and more onion than the recipe required because I wanted to use everything. By the way, if you don’t know about tomatillos, you should get acquainted.

They resemble green tomatoes on the outside and somewhat on the inside, but the flavor is more like a Granny Smith apple.

I used two of my CSA garlic scapes in place of the garlic, and I also had to improvise when the recipe wanted japapenos and I did not have any. Instead, I poured in this super spicy green salsa that Lillian had left over from her tacos last week at work:

I chopped 1.5 chicken breasts (I’ve had them in my freezer since November at least!) and placed them on the bottom of a baking dish. The huge pile of salsa went on top.

I covered the dish and baked for 40 minutes at 400, and then I uncovered the dish and broiled for an additional 15 minutes to get this:

For the side, I decided to mobilize the rice I’ve been storing in my freezer for months. I defrosted Vianni’s veggie rice and chicken (and you know this is old because Vianni left my agency over six weeks ago!), Myrna’s rice and sardines, and stepdad John’s leftover coconut curry rice from a Thai restaurant and mixed them all together with BRM triticale berries to satisfy my whole-grains-loving conscience:

For an extra kick, I mixed all the rice-y goodness with the last of the TJ’s SPICY jalapeno-lime salsa (the origin of those orange bits in the picture above) from Elisabeth.

Outdoor patio lunch in action (the same day, incidentally, that afore-mentioned perfectly-timed-with-my-commute flood drama took place):

Food marriage has a much higher rate of success than people marriage:

As I’ve mentioned before, my agency has very Catholic roots and was started by nuns. This pious (?) man is probably a prominent Catholic figure, and he watched vigilantly over our lunch:

Word is, if you stare long enough, he actually starts to move closer. A religious miracle or a trick of perception? You decide. Or, if you don’t want to talk about religion and miracles, you can just tell me your best caught-in-the-rain story …

Thanks to my CSA share, eggs have been playing quite the starring role in my life over the past few weeks.



When I buy eggs from the grocery store, I have no problem letting them hang out in my fridge for several weeks as I slowly work my way through them. (These eggs lasted me for six weeks!) With these fresh eggs, however, I’ve been feeling the pressure to use them while still at their peak!



My dad always told me: when in doubt, boil water … so that’s what I’ve been doing with these eggs! It doesn’t hurt that my favorite way to eat an egg is poached 😀

Ellie recently asked me how I poach my eggs. I actually have an excellent Revere-ware pan with six egg poaching cups that used to belong to my grandma … but the truth is that I prefer free-style poaching because I love the wispy bits of egg white that form. I boil a bunch of water in a saucepan and then crack the egg right into it:



I like my eggs “hard-poached” and not runny (Brandi and Olivia are probably experiencing a succession of massive heart attacks at that statement), so I usually let them cook for about 8 minutes. Sometimes I turn the heat down and cover the pot, and sometimes I just let it boil uncovered the whole way through. I guess it depends on my mood.

And a sampling of my poach egg perfection over the past week …

On half of a toasted sandwich thin with three-leaf pesto, all over 1/2 cup of habichuelas I rescued from the work fridge during the weekly clean-out last Friday:

Somehow, I always end up arranging my food in circles of decreasing size. I wonder if this is a habit I’ve developed to facilitate photography for the blog? I don’t think I used to do this!

I topped the poached egg stack with freshly ground black pepper, freshly ground coriander, and homemade grated parmesan.

The absolute perfect internal texture for me:

On the side, I had a teeny teeny bite of lasagna that I also rescued from the work fridge on Friday!

Poached egg on a sandwich thin, round 2 (with my CSA bok choy blossom centerpiece!):

This time around, I spread the toast with the pesto and 1/8 of a mashed avocado, mmmmmmm:

I could stare at avocado all day long …

One of the beauties of free-style poaching, this yolk decided it wanted to sit on top in a giant ball:

Again, internal perfection:

I can’t stop with the photos!

Finally, I incorporated the poached egg into Vani-inspired savory oats topped with a Brandi-inspired egg (though the non-runny part is Sarah-inspired, of course):

In the overnight mix of oats, I combined 1/4 cup Scottish oats, 1/4 cup unsweetened soymilk, 1/4 cup plain yogurt, chili powder, cayenne pepper, cumin, coriander, oregano, coarse sea salt, a drizzle of my mom’s homemade herb-infused olive oil, and steamed spinach:

In the morning, I topped the oats with another fun free-style poached egg shape, 1/8 avocado, freshly ground coriander, and freshly grated homemade parm:

These oats were amaaaaaaaaazing — Vani, you’re a genius! — and I’ve been eating them for breakfast all week:

(That’s not a runny yolk! It just shifted in the course of photographic manipulation.)

OK, time for work and then more paper-writing all night long. This paper is due tomorrow, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I can get it done! I miss sleeping, and you don’t even want to know what’s happened to my eating habits with all of this late-night work … but I’m hoping everything can get back to normal by the weekend for a little reprieve before summer session 2 starts next Tuesday!

Do you eat eggs? Why or why not? If you do eat eggs, what is your favorite egg style?

… but only when it’s the most efficient way to get there!

Sunday morning, I took a little study break (that ended up taking way longer than expected) for a free sample of Ben & Jerry’s new “flipped out” ice cream cup!

The ice cream giveaway was on the complete opposite side of the park from where I live (about two miles away), so the most efficient way to get there was literally to jog. The B&J truck was supposed to be there from 11-1, so Gina and I planned to meet there at 10:45 in case of a crowd. I arrived right on time and joined Gina on a bench while setup took place.

And took place.

And took place.

Meanwhile, tortured thoughts of my unwritten paper were running through my head.

Gina and I got restless and posed in front of the “flipped” Brooklyn Bridge.

Finally, at 11:45, the samples were ready! We collected our ice creams, bowls, spoons, and coupons …

… and headed to one of the little tables B&J had set up specifically for the event.

Gina gave a demonstration of proper “flipping” procedure:

Mmmmmmm, gooey chocolate.

It was yummy (and yay for free!), but the brownie pieces did taste a little off. They probably would have been much better if I had let the ice cream thaw a little before eating it, but I was too impatient. I had really been wanting to try the peanut butter flavor, but chocolate brownie was all they had. It was free and allowed me to get a mini-workout in, though, so I won’t complain!

Gina and I walked back through the park toward my neighborhood (everyone was out picnicking!) while we ate our ice cream.

I left Gina at the subway station and came back home to work on the paper. My planned one hour ice cream adventure took two, but I won’t complain about that, either!

Thanks to Julie, my former classmate-turned-reader (Hi Julie!), for tipping me off about the event. It was a perfect excursion to break up the paper-writing monotony.

Of course, ice cream always needs to go along with cake. Even if ice cream and cake can’t be eaten at the same time, they should at least be eaten within 24 hours of each other. I took care of that requirement on Saturday afternoon with this slice of heaven:

If you’ve been following along with Olivia as you should be, you’ll know that she held a John and Kate divorce viewing party last week and made a special John and Kate Plus Cake to celebrate. I wasn’t at the party, but Olivia (incredible hostess that she is), thought to save me a slice without me even requesting it first! The cake made its way to me via Kate’s freezer after our CSA pickup on Saturday. The cake was of stroke-inducing deliciousness caliber. How could it not be? Moist dark chocolate cake base:

Peanut butter-mascarpone icing:



And peanut m&ms:



Does it get better?? Probably not. Mmmmmmm. Mmmmmmmmmm. Thanks Olivia!

And because I’m all about balance, I might as well throw some green in here for you, too.



Saturday’s CSA loot included mesclun, spinach, baby bok choy, kale, 1 baby zucchini, eggs, garlic scapes, snap peas, strawberries.



I love the baby bok choy flowers, so pretty!



Plus, my arugula garden on the balcony is coming along nicely:

As is the garden of some people who like to rub in how they can afford access to actual naturally-occurring dirt in NYC whose backyard faces my balcony:



Yay for health 😀

How have you created balance lately? And what makes you run?

Correspondent Kate here with a very rewarding experience!

I took the cupcake truck 2 train up to Harlem last week for a volunteer opportunity that included three things very near and dear to my heart: kids, family, and healthy food.

The NY Coalition for Healthy School Food organizes monthly Family Dinner Nights during the school year for students to enjoy a free meal with their families, along with cooking demos and nutrition lessons. Busy parents get a night off from providing dinner and learn how to integrate meaningful changes in their lives.

I discovered this organization when I attended their Politics of School Food Conference this past October and learned about some very frightening statistics:

• 50% of children between the ages of 2-15 have fatty streaks in their arteries, literally signifying the beginning stages of heart disease.
• 33% of children born in 2000 will develop type 2 diabetes at some point in their lives.
• School Food Service Directors are asked to create a healthy meal with just 90 cents food cost (not including labor) for five components: entree, milk, grain, and two servings from the fruit and vegetable group. (How can this be possible when some people pay almost 4 times this for their daily latte?!?!?)

Those bullets represent just a small fraction of the issues brought up during the seven-hour conference. By the end of the day, I had decided that I needed to get involved. Eight months later, here I am, signed up to volunteer at the Family Dinner. (Hey, better late than never!)

Because I was heading to volunteer straight from work, I missed the first part of the event: the fruit smoothie demo 😦 I did, however, arrive just in time to snap a paparazzi shot of the special guest chef Franćois Payard!

Kindergarten through 8th grade students gathered around as the world class pastry chef demo-ed the vegan pizza and chocolate mousse he was preparing for everyone.

The vegan pizza contained tomato sauce, tofu and lentils.

I didn’t have a chance to taste it, but I know the kids were definitely trying some new ingredients! There was also a table of more healthy snacks which included hummus, crackers, and veggies. (Unfortunately, I’m not a professional blogger, so I didn’t think to capture this on film.)

They put me on water patrol. My responsibilities were to continuously fill a three-gallon water jug with a Brita pitcher that filtered slower than molasses(!!) for 100 thirsty people. Spills happened if I abandoned my post even for a second, so I had to monitor water distribution thoroughly. Despite being slightly overwhelmed, I just kept reminding myself of how happy I was that these kids were drinking water instead of soda!

The stress faded away when one of the organizers insisted that I take a break for chocolate mousse:

I inhaled it on my 80th trip to the sink, but I will definitely be paying a visit to Payard so that I can savor their chocolate mousse properly next time!

After dessert, there were door prizes, including a gift certificate to Candle Cafe [Editor’s Note: Good thing the certificates were for the cafe and not Candle 79!]. This organic, vegan restaurant co-hosts these dinners, and their chef makes a healthy, vegetarian lunch for the school at least once a week! This news segment profiles their extraordinary efforts:

As if it couldn’t get any better, each family was provided with a pre-planted herb and instructions on how to care for and cook with it. There were a few left over, so I took home this lovely parsley plant … even though my kitchen is overflowing with herbs from the CSA I share with Sarah!

I am honored to have taken part in this event! In our culture that is full of unhealthy and processed food, programs that encourage healthy habits for kids make me feel hopeful.

What programs have you seen/heard about/participated in that encourage healthy habits for kids?

I’m off doing too much work for grad school, so in the meantime, please allow my dad to entertain you with this impeccably thorough recap of his “traditional Maryland Eastern Shore Mid-Summer Dinner” last weekend …

Rae Ann and I spent last weekend in Rock Hall, MD visiting my old school friend George Hardy and his wife Jane, April Verch and her band, and my sister Mary.

Back row in photo are George and Jane, Clay Ross (guitarist), Mary, and Rae Ann. In front are Cody Walters (bass), you-know-who, and April.

These flowers from our table setting were cut fresh from the garden:

And here’s the recipe for Cap’n George’s Crab Cakes!

1. In a medium bowl, mix together the following ingredients to make the sauce: 1 egg, 1/2 cup mayo, 1 tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, and a few generous shakes (I am using 15) of Old Bay. Experiment here. This is the variable flavor/heat ingredient. Other recipes use Tabasco.

2. In a plastic bag, crush a 1-2-inch stack of Saltines.

3. In a large bowl, place one pound of backfin lump crabmeat (jumbo lump is not needed — $19 vs. $25). I usually don’t bother to pick it over.

4. Add the crushed Saltines and mix with the crab, using your hands.

5. Add the sauce and mix thoroughly. Don’t over-mix because it will just break up the crab. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes.

6. Form 3-4 crabcakes, and place on a cookie sheet. (Everything up to this point can be done in advance.)

7. Broil for about 4 minutes on each side. When the tops begin to brown, turn them over or take them out. Use color more than time to judge when they are ready.

8. Enjoy with fresh market corn.

9. Add salad with greens, tomato, and avocado:

The finished product:

10. If it is Father’s Day, you should have cake to celebrate:

P.S. S, here’s one of me imitating you. L,D

It’s Sarah again! I hope you’ve enjoyed this trip down south, courtesy of my dad, a native Baltimoron 😛 What is your favorite “southern” meal?