Tag: peanut butter

Nuts for salad + laundry debacle

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My second PB2 experiment took place this morning when I decided on the world’s best oatmeal combo: pb-chocolate-banana.

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In the pot, I cooked 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats with 1/2 cup unsweetened silk, 1/2 cup water, 1/4 whipped banana, 1/4 chunked banana, dash salt, and 1 packet chocolate pb2. The cooked oatmeal went into the bowl on a bed of 1/2 cup yogurt, and I garnished with 2 sliced strawberries, unsweetened coconut, 1.5 chopped pieces of lindt hazelnut chocolate, and unsweetened cocoa powder.

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Yum! But, I couldn’t really taste the pb2 chocolate and peanut flavors that strongly. If I were to make this bowl of oatmeal again, and I probably will, I would mix cocoa powder into the pot to cook with the oatmeal and save the pb2 to pour on top. Mixing it in led to too much flavor dilution!

For lunch, I had the grilled chicken/chicken parm leftovers salad that I brought home from my coworkers on Friday. I actually only used half of the chicken that was on the salad and saved the other half for tomorrow. I bulked up the salad with the grape tomatoes, radishes, chopped endives, and cheese cubes from Friday night and topped it with a drizzle of Annie’s lite gingerly dressing I found in our fridge + freshly ground black pepper.

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Post-picture, I decided I needed more crunch and added two chopped and toasted almonds to the top 😀

My eyes were bigger than my stomach (as my dad would say), and I made a second course that consisted of the rest of the chicken parm toast with homemade almond-cashew butter + the last cup of Friday night’s leftover fruit salad and a sprinkling of vanilla-almond granola.

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I ate the toasts and realized I felt full, so I held off on the fruit salad for another hour or so until I was ready.

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Here’s another picture, just because I’m not looking forward to going back to my paper as soon as this post is done.

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I’m leaving in a little while to meet the comm girls for coffee in honor of Diana’s recent ENGAGEMENT :D, and then it will be back home and to the books!

In unrelated news, I went to do my laundry this morning only to find the big metal gate down and the laundromat dark and empty. I spotted the manager parked a few cars down and went to inquire. Apparently, the metal gate was broken and he couldn’t get in! He told me to leave my clothes with him and come back tonight to get them. I was caught off guard, so between that and the language barrier, I got flustered and agreed. But now I’m thinking: (1) Is he going to wash my stuff for me and then charge me by the pound (which will undoubtedly cost more than I normally pay to do it myself)?; (2) Are all my clothes going to shrink because he doesn’t know what can go in the dryer and what can’t?; and (3) Was I completely off-base, and did he just mean he would hold onto my laundry until later so I didn’t have to drag it all the way back home, and I’ll still need to do it myself tonight?

Yes, I could just go back over there and check, but I’m feeling lazy and the suspense is more fun. What do YOU think will become of my laundry?

Renewal

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Well, today has certainly been all about recovery after my wild eating spree at the book signing last night! 1pm came along and I still wasn’t the slightest bit hungry. This is highly abnormal for me because I’m usually ravenous within one hour of waking up. I had been up since 7:30! I decided that a run was in order to speed the process along. On my way out, I grabbed a date for healthy sugar power:

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My whole body felt creaky and achey at the beginning of the run, but all my muscles and bones and joints seemed to start communicating with each other more effectively after a few minutes. I was in the mood for sightseeing, so I ran out to the mansions at Flatbush Malls — the most beautiful neighborhood in Brooklyn, according to me — and around the outside of Prospect Park. Stats: 5.75 miles, 61 minutes, 509 calories, 152 average heart rate, 182 max. I totally zoned out during the run and ended up really enjoying it. I felt so refreshed after — but alas, still not hungry!

I sorted my laundry for the ‘mat tomorrow, I dyed my hair, I did some other things on the list … and I finally felt a little bit hungry around 4pm! I did a happy dance and then whipped up the balsamic-strawberry yogurt sundae that I’ve been dreaming about ever since I created these Balsamic-Strawberry Oaties earlier this week for the BSI.

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Also involved in that sundae were 1/2 cup Greek yogurt mixed with vanilla and cinnamon, more chopped strawberries, and a drizzle of homemade balsamic syrup. Yum! Definitely lived up to my fantasy.

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Then, miracle of all miracles, I was still a little bit hungry! I re-toasted a piece of herby chicken parm toast from yesterday and covered it in 2 tsp homemade almond-cashew butter and cinnamon:

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The traces of herby tomato sauce on the bread actually complemented the almond-cashew butter brilliantly. Hmmmm, I wonder what I can do with this knowledge in the future …

I continued to give my body what it needed with a pot of Yogi Renew green tea from the samples I received last week:

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The tea actually tasted a little bit like grass. But, hey, I guess you have to suffer for your renewal, right?

At some point a little later, another mini-wave of hunger hit me. I decided it was time to break out sample #1 of PB2! I cut the packet open and tasted some of the dry powder — hmm, tasted like peanuts.

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The directions said to mix the packet with 1.5 tbsp of water … so I mixed it with 2 tbsp yogurt. Magic:

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My pb-yogurt sauce became the dressing for a cup of last night’s fruit salad:

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(I also mixed in a couple of chopped strawberries and topped it with a sprinkle of vanilla-almond granola.)

The verdict? As much as I did not want to like PB2, I have to admit that I think it has sucked me in. There are so many potential uses! Would I buy it? I’m doubtful, especially now that I’ve mastered the art of making my own nut butters from scratch. But, I have the rest of the samples to go through and an entire jar on its way from the Foods That Fit giveaway, so we’ll see how addicted I get!

In other giveaway news, you can win yet another chance to mix your own granola, thanks to Diana at Soap & Chocolate. I’d LOVE to win this one, but I really think I’ve been too lucky! I can still hope, though …

Speaking of Foods That Fit, Abbie posted a fun recipe for wheatberry salad today that I knew I had to try since I had all of those pilfered cranberries from last night.

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I made a few substitutions based on ingredient availability — I subbed a rye berries/kamut/barley/brown rice mixture for the wheatberries and cooked the grains in leftover whey from making Greek yogurt; dried apple rings and dates in place of the apricots; and chopped almonds in place of the pistacios and pine nuts. I “tested” a couple of spoonfuls when it was done — delicious!

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Just like Abbie said — perfect salty-sweet combo!

The cooking continued because I can’t stop once I start! I combined two recipes to prepare the other half of my tofu block: the coco loco tofu Emily made earlier this week and soy-lime tofu from Eating Well. I soaked the tofu slices for two hours in a marinade of 2 tbsp white rice vinegar + 2 tbsp lime juice + 2 tbsp soy sauce + 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil and then dredged each slice in unsweetened coconut and baked like this. I tested one slice on another piece of chicken parm toast with 1 tbsp almond-cashew butter:

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The coconut flavor was surprisingly strong, and that made me happy. I can’t believe I haven’t thought to put coconut on tofu before. Thanks, Emily!

For dessert, I had about 2 tbsp of half-frozen homemade chocolate mousse (freezing it seems to make it even MORE chocolate-y, if that’s possible) with a crumbled basil-spice meringue kiss and coconut sprinkles:

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Hmm, for a day of no appetite, this has been a surprisingly long post!! My tum is feeling ALMOST back to normal, so I’m hoping for a crazy appetite when I wake up in the morning :-D.

What do you prefer: big appetite or no appetite?

Classy classy

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Good morning! Before I get started on today, I just want to mention that I have entered Saturday’s crazy pre-run breakfast — the pb-pumpkin hummus on a toasted bagel with a sweet ‘n’ spicy black bean-salmon patty open-faced sandwich — into The Great Peanut Butter Exhibition #5 – Sandwich contest!

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If you can’t remember how gorgeous this sandwich was, here’s a visual reminder:

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And just to be specific about it all, the pb-pumpkin-hummus spread contains 1 tbsp of each of those 3 components, along with hefty sprinkles of cayenne and cinnamon, yum!! Now I want one of these sandwiches again …

But, I’ll have to make do with this breakfast cookie (oh darn, hehehe):

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Today’s cookie contains 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats, 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 tbsp peanut butter, 1/2 mashed banana, 2 tbsp unsweetened soymilk, 1 chopped piece of Lindt hazelnut chocolate, and 1 tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds.

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I finally got the proportions of dry-to-wet correct, so no freezer necessary today! It was hard enough from the overnight in the fridge. But I’m also kind of thinking that I might like it better with that extra frozen ice-creamy texture …

Mmmmmm, chunk of hazelnut chocolate hanging onto the edge:

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On the side, I had a pot of tea made from the Yogi Himalayan Apple Spice tea sample I received last night:

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The tea was ok. It just tasted like regular old herbal apple spice tea. I guess the big selling point is supposed to be that it also contains black tea and has caffeine — it’s part of the “revive” series — but again, nothing particularly special about the flavor.

I was planning to go for a run this morning, but I didn’t get to bed until pretty late last night because I was up working! Adjusted plan is to do the run when I get back from class this afternoon — which may actually work out better since it will be sunnier and warmer then. I’ll be back post-run with a report on the day!

(And p.s., I had this little dish with about 1/4 cup of pineapple and 1 tbsp granola before I went to bed last night:

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If I even have the slightest bit of hunger in my belly at bedtime, I can’t fall asleep!)

Can you sleep when your tummy is growling?

** Also, go check out The Fitnessista because she, too, has “comfort” up for grabs today! **

B ‘n B

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Yup, I’m fully blogging in bed right now — in my pjs, under the covers, teeth brushed, mouth guard in place, contacts out, glasses on, earplugs in, and ready to pass out as soon as I hit publish. Can’t wait 😀

But let’s do a little review of the day first, shall we? I walked into the office at 9:20, and the first thing Belkis said was, “Sarah, there’s bread in there.” [Gestures to conference room right next to my desk.] And bread there was!

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Belkis had brought in a whole loaf of bakery-fresh Dominican bread. The thought of saying no never crossed my mind. I cut off a big slab, about an inch thick, and dipped it in my milky earl grey tea. I think that might be a little weird. I dunk everything — cookies, crackers, bread. How do you feel about soggy carbs?

After my big slab o’ bread, I went back for the end pieces:

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I’m not crazy about the heels of regular sandwich loaves, but they’re always my favorite part of any kind of fresh bread or baked good … brownies from the edge of the pan, yum!

After that loaf-fest, I didn’t really get hungry again until about 2pm! As an appetizer, I had two of these little balls that Inginia (of the pumpkin kibbi fame) brought in. She slaved away all weekend making them for a party and wanted to share the wealth:

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This is also from some Middle-Eastern dish, and I’m not sure of the exact ingredients. I think Inginia is going to bring me the recipe, but in the meantime, they were basically fried bulgur dumplings with some ground meat and seasonings inside:

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Very tasty! Once I get the recipe, I’ll see how I can go about healthifying them — I think they’d also be delicious baked.

Lunch was a cup of spinach-chickpea dal:

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And a one-cup mix with 1/2 yogurt and 1/2 pumpkin gingerbread crockpot oats:

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(I sprinkled some of Jessica’s Honey Bunches of Oats on top for visual variety.)

Around 3:00 I had my packed cup of fresh pineapple (same deal with the cereal):

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And then I heard some paper rustling suspiciously. I followed the sound with my eyes and saw this:

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That’s Nydia and Jose bent in deep contemplation over a pile of Valentine’s chocolate!

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I took one of the pink hearts for later 😀

Around 3:45, I had three Kavli crispy thin crackers with 1/3 cup homemade guacamole (1/3 mashed avocado, 2 tbsp salsa, juice from 1/4 lime):

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And the guacamole necessitated a mint (my first of the day!):

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I went into a session a little after 4, and when I got back to my desk after, this sight greeted me:

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Yes, two potatoes mysteriously showed up on my desk. Apparently, I am now the designated recipient for anonymous food drops (but I’m not complaining!). Potato donor, reveal yourself!! Even though potatoes are the one food that I seriously dislike (this rule does not apply to sweet potatoes, obvi), I am clearly the best person to take on the task of finding them a new home. At this moment, I imagine the potatoes are journeying into the depths of Brooklyn with Gina … and I have full confidence in Gina’s ability to use them appropriately!

Because I was planning on running club at 6:30, I decided to have an early 5pm dinner at work. Especially since the club no longer gives free food after (grrrrrr!), I have found that this dinner-first arrangement works well (at least it has worked well all two times that I’ve done it, haha) to keep me energized through the run and not wanting to gnaw my arm off after. The dinner I packed for tonight was 1/3 wheat bagel with 1/4 cup pumpkin-pb spread (1 T peanut butter, 3 T pumpkin) and two black bean-salmon patties:

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I toasted the whole thing in the work toaster oven, and it was so delicious and saucy, mmm:

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Dessert was a given: the Dove chocolate heart from Nydia:

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I followed that advice and had another mint as I walked out the door :P.

Gina, Kate, and I met at 6:30 for running club and did 4 sort of stop-and-go miles in Central Park, including a loop around the reservoir, one of the most beautiful places to run in the city at night! But Kate and I were talking after about how these running club runs just seem to drag for ages. We ran over 9 miles on Saturday with minimal struggling, but 4 miles at running club always does us in! I wonder if it has to do with the time of day …. Anyway, stats for the run: 49 minutes, 357 calories, average heart rate 140, max 156.

In the subway station post-run, I broke out the breadstick and marinara sauce that Jessica and Nydia brought back for me from Pizza Hut because they couldn’t finish it at lunch. Kate, Gina, and I split the bounty between the three of us after Kate and Gina hand-modeled the goods for me:

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I had my final snack of the night when I got home: 1/4 of a broiled banana (the banana also came from Belkis today) topped with 1/4 cup chocolate mousse and a tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds:

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While I was washing dishes and before I was able to drag my mouth to the toothbrush, I may have also peeled off one whipped cream-soaked cookie from Brigitte’s remaining log of birthday cake and eaten one or two pieces of Lindt hazelnut chocolate …

News of the Day:

1. Heather, the queen of raw chocolate-avocado mousse herself, is definitely NOT giving away anything you’d want to try to win here.

2. Neither is Itzy here.

3. There’s a new BSI contest this week, and it’s a good one! Get more info here.

4. I was reading the January issue of Self while I was on the elliptical this morning, and I found a little blurb in there about the dangers of resting your laptop computer directly on your lap — I think it mentioned causing irritation to your thighs and emitting radiation that can lead to cancer (like everything does) and suggested using some sort of lap tray between your legs and the computer. (As I type this, of course, my laptop is directly on my lap.) Does this worry you? Where do you rest your laptop? Do you put something between your legs and the computer?

5. And remember the most important question of all: How do you feel about soggy carbs?

6. There’s a 99.999% chance I’m sleeping as you read this.

Stories of inflation

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Hahaha, wordpress just advertised that I could make this blog “narrativeofincrease.com” for only $15. I guess they’re big into synonyms?

The first hunger pangs hit around 10:30, so I had a cup of freshly cut pineapple:

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Don’t worry — that’s not mold on the pineapple. Just some bits of skin (?) that I didn’t quite cut off!

And I also had this bite of a raspberrry entenmann’s danish that was left from a meeting:

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I know it looks enormous in that picture, but it was only about an inch or so long. I also had all of the icing crumbs out of the box once the danish itself had disappeared (thankfully, someone else took care of eliminating the remaining danish before I had a chance to) …

We ended up cancelling the parents’ group today because of torrential rain, thereby putting me a meal short for the day since I usually eat lunch with the group. The same thing that happened last Monday because of the snow! Dear weather: Please stop messing with my lunch plans and food budget. Thanks.

So my planned dinner became my lunch instead. I ate the last of Rooms’ black bean salad from Saturday’s lunch (mixed with avocado and salsa — great idea, Gina!) with five broken tortilla chips from Wednesday’s lunch:

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Second course was a mix of 1/2 cup of yogurt and 1/2 cup of my leftover pumpkin gingerbread crockpot oats from last week:

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My 2pm visit wasn’t home when I called to confirm at 1:40, so I went back into the conference room to keep lunching with the ladies. The continued lunching involved three Kavli crispy thins with 1/2 tbsp office pb (I meant to bring guac for these but forgot!):

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After that, I had mint #3 (of 5 total) for the day in order to keep my mouth busy:

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I was expecting to go into a counseling session at 3:30, so I had another cup of pineapple (also left from the morning meeting) around 3:15 to carry me through:

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But my client never came! My tummy was feeling a little empty still (maybe not enough fat/protein in my lunch?), so Jessica poured a box of Honey Bunches of Oats down my throat handed me a box of Honey Bunches of Oats. I had about 1 1/2 cups:

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I left work at 5 to head down for my class — and my group presentation! We presented for the first hour of class (when I normally eat my dinner), so I was pretty hungry when we finished (but yay, we finished!). As I mentioned before, the group lunch cancellation bumped dinner into the lunch slot, so my actual dinner was more of a haphazard affair.

Manchego cheese samples from the market as my appetizer:

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(Yes, those are cookie crumbs coating the cheese samples . I do all of my sample-grabbing with the same skilled fist …)

My dinner main course was half of a giant raisin-nut muffin (also left from the morning meeting at work) with 1 tbsp office pb (in an attempt to impart some nutritional value) and cookie-crumb samples:

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The peanut butter is all bubbly because I microwaved the muffin and toppings for 90 seconds in the school cafeteria to get it melty. But since I couldn’t eat it while I was presenting, it lost the warm and gooey immediately-post-microwave effect and gained the hard and crunchy microwaved-an-hour-ago effect. I still enjoyed it, though. It felt like a giant cookie.

Dessert was another one of these guys:

img_5479Like I’ve said before, bars are good in a pinch, but not something I need to incorporate into regular grocery rotation.

I was hungry again 10 minutes later (no surprise there with all the empty carbs and sugar), so I ate the other half of the muffin.

Obviously, I overdid it with the added sugar. I suppose I kind of overdo it most days, but due to the limited food options today, the sugar overage was actually planned. Tomorrow’s food is going to be much heavier on healthy fats and proteins to make up for it (or at least that’s true of the lunch I packed …).

When I got home from class around 9, I quickly got all of tomorrow’s food ready (nibbling at it as I packed) and then had a small treat to coat my belly with health and reassure it that it was well-nourished for the long night (of sleep) ahead. A half cup of plain heated pumpkin topped with a spoonful of chocolate mousse:

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Ahh, that mousse is SO good. And my belly is now SO happy.

So … thoughts? Does “Narrative of Increase” strike a chord with you? 😛

Sleep tight!