October 2010
3 posts
Sick-o
So last week I was horribly sick. NO FUN AT ALL. I know that when I am sick all I crave is comfort food. Unfortunately I was the kind of sick where you can’t move and all you do is eat.
Not a good week for me. However I did make some awesome vegetable soup, but we’ll get to that later. Even after I started to feel better I still never made it to the gym to get some miles in because I...
Airplane food. Yummmy
Do you ever notice that when you travel, you either constantly eat, or don’t eat at all? I feel like whenever I travel I always feel like I have to eat the snack they give you and then you have to eat when you are in between fights (in case you can’t get any food on the plane… like that is going to happen). Its especially bad for me on international flights and when you cross a...
Height/Weight chart - with Photos! →
It’s always really interesting when people try to guess how much I weigh. Generally they guess less than I actually do, which is probably a good thing. I was reading another blog about weight loss and apparently a lot of people have this issue where you don’t look your weight. I came across this link while reading the blog and its a height/weight chart, but with photos. Its interesting...
September 2010
5 posts
Tailgating Dilemma
It’s finally fall! And that means that its football season! For the game this weekend some of my friends and I are setting up our first tailgate without the help of a fraternity or our parents. (finally!) However, this has created a few problems for me. Being that these tailgating friends are all guys, they were planning on cooking some hot dogs and thats about it (other than the required 2...
This could be one of my favorite articles EVER!
Laughter, Weight Loss and Chocolate
Laugh your way to calorie burning and weight loss.Lee HarrelsonBy: Tammy Beasley, R.D. Weight loss doesn’t sound or feel like a laughing matter. But a new study from Vanderbilt University reports that genuine laughter, the kind that lasts about 10 to 15 minutes, burns the same number of calories found in a medium square of chocolate. That translates to...
food obsession?
I feel like recently the entire world has become obsessed with food. Maybe its just because my family’s favorite channel is now the food network and we get just about every food magazine imaginable delivered to our house, but it seems like the rest of the world is jumping on the band wagon.
There are now food shows on the travel channel and Bravo and they are even coming out with the...
What the World Eats →
This is an awesome photo essay about what families eat around the world in a week. Some of the photos are really surprising! The author has just finished a new photo essay called “What I Eat: Around the World in 80 Diets” that shows how much one person eats in a day and the caloric content of their food. You can check out the new book here.
August 2010
4 posts
Thanksgiving - does it have to include the turkey?
So as I was talking to a friend last night about my plans for Thanksgiving (a food lovers ultimate holiday) I started thinking about what I was going to eat. I have been a vegetarian now since March, and it has made me feel more healthy and helped me to lose some weight so I don’t have plans to stop being veggie anytime soon, but this creates a problem with Thanksgiving. Every year my family...
My New Obession - Whole Foods Peanut Butter
OMG. This is literally the best peanut butter I have ever had in my entire life. If it wasnt so calorie dense I could probably eat an entire tub of it in one sitting.
In the bulk foods department at whole foods they have this really nifty machine that grinds peanuts and almonds and cashews into nut butters. Its great and there is nothing in them but the nuts, unlike many other nut butters you...
Crazy for Coconuts
I found this really interesting concept at Whole Foods when I was there last week. They make cultured coconut milk, that tastes like yogurt and is non dairy….
I was slightly skeptical when I opened the carton…it looked a bit translucent and watery at first. After I mixed it up though, it started to look pretty much like yogurt except it was a little more transparent. The amazing...
July 2010
5 posts
Carnivores
So why is it that whenever I tell anyone that I dont eat meat, I get a weird look. Its not like I live in Texas where being veggie is pretty much a crime! You would think that the good ol’ Pacific Northwest would be pretty used to it by now.
If we are going out to eat, either my parents get irritated that we can’t go to a certain place or someone has to suggest we go to some hole in...
Killing 2 birds with one stone
So yoga outside is my new favorite thing. While I love Bikram in the hot room, I am a poor recent college grad and can’t afford the expensive classes. Besides, who wants to be cooped up inside during the summertime? Not me.
Other than getting so weird tan lines from my sports bra, doing the Bikram poses outside on my yoga mat is one of the best ideas I’ve ever had, if I do say so...
Cool, Creamy, and.....Nutty?
I don’t know if any of you read hugrygirl but she loves Almond milk. After reading about it on her website, I have fallen in love. Almond milk is very similar to soy milk, but made from almonds. AND if you get the unsweetened kind, it also has about 40 calories per 8oz compared to 90-110 for 8 oz of soy milk.
I eat it with blueberries every morning for breakfast and it is fast and filling....
June 2010
6 posts
Got Bread?
My mom had a party again this weekend (I swear she has more of a social life than I do…) and we had tons of leftovers. People didn’t eat anything but dip! Whats up with that? Anyway, we had to think of some things to do with the 2 loaves of leftover bread we thought people would eat.
Sandwiches are always great for leftovers but at some point you have to get tired of the same sandwich...
Cedar isn't just for building anymore
This weekend one of my friends came to visit me and since it was the first time he had ever been to the Pacific Northwest, we of course had to have salmon. He kept talking about this great recipe he had back at home. Unfortunelty, it was back at home… So we went to Barnes and Noble to look it up. After about 30 mins of looking around for the book, I finally convinced him to ask for it. The...
Favorite grains - Quinoa
Quinoa is my new favorite grain. Its nutty and flavorfull and it cooks really quickly compared to other whole grain favorites that can take as long as an hour and a half. You can cook up a cup of quinoa in about 15 mins! The light and fluffy texture makes it great as an addition to any meal as a side dish or even main course with veggies.
Its nutrition qualities are similar to brown rice and...
May 2010
12 posts
Summertime Sides
Coleslaw is one of the go-to foods for summertime. Unfortunetly, the creamy dressings are not very good for you with sour cream or mayonaise. (And I know a bunch of you love mayonaise…..but its not my favorite and its made from gross fatty things)
Coleslaw can be really good without the creamy dressings and so much better for you. I really like cabbage and carrots with soy dressing. If you...
Asparagus for Breakfast?
The chef at my sorority house used to make the best asparagus frittata for breakfast in the mornings. It was my favorite!
Its not the best thing thing for your waistline but its sooooo yummy I couln’t resist.
This recipe is not exactly the same as our chef used to make but it’s still pretty good.
Asparagus Frittata from Sunset
I changed it a to be a bit more like the one back at...
Simple Ideas
In my opinion, the best way to eat asparagus is without a lot of creamy sauce and letting the asparagus be the star.
I love it steamed and then chilled with a bit of olive oil and grated parmesan cheese.
Its also really good with just a bit of salt, if you have really fresh asparagus.
Grilling asparagus is great in the summertime, and makes a yummy side dish to steak or fish fresh off the...
Asparagus Galore!
One of my favorite parts of spring is that its asparagus season!
I used to hate asparagus because the only way that my mom ate it was dipped in a soy sauce, mayonnaise mixture. Mayonnaise is not my favorite so of course I didn’t like it. However, while I was in Denmark last year I discovered you could do a ton with those little green spears.
I really like roasting them with a bit of a...
High Fiber Salads
Another way to add more whole grains and fiber to your diet is to make whole grain salads. My mom makes a really good couscous salad in the summer time but there isnt much fiber in couscous. One 1/2 cup serving only offers 1 gram while 1/2 cup of bulgar offers 4 grams of fiber.
Some great whole grains are bulgar, quinoa, barley, and faro. You can treat these whole grains just like a pasta salad,...
Yummy Pear Appetizer →
This is a really yummy way to use pears and get some extra fiber. Also a plus, the fiber will help to fill you up so you don’t eat as much durning your meal.
Burn, Baby, Burn
One of my best friends got me hooked on Bikram yoga while we were still in school. I haven’t gone in almost a month because of exams, a busy schedule and being broke (its rather expensive!) but I went for the first time today. I have always looked at this yoga place when I drive by because it is only a few blocks from my house.
After spending 5 mins trying to figure out how to get to the...
Fruity Fiber
Pears have a surprising amount of fiber in them. Half a pear has 3 grams, as much as one slice of whole grain bread.
I love adding pears to salads and sandwiches. They are perfect additions to baby green salads with crumbly goat cheese or paired with turkey on whole wheat.
The best pear salad I have ever had though was when I was in Rome last summer with my family. It was a delicious appetizer...
Runners Paradise
On a side note, yesterday was the first sunny day we have had since I have been back home.
I thought that it would be a good idea to get some new running shoes to get ready for the great summer months where I can run outside. One of my friends recomended that I go to this place called Roadrunner. They have anything you could ever need as a runner and so much more. They have a great program called...
Bulk up your risotto
Risotto is one of my favorite foods. Its cheese and rice at their best. But, it doesnt offer a lot of fiber.
One way to increase your fiber intake is to swap out the arborio rice and use a whole grain like barley instead of rice. I made a barley, asparagus and parmesan risotto last night that was delish!
Barely can be cooked just like rice in a risotto, by sauteing onion and garlic with the...
Fiber Granola →
Here is a great idea to pack in more fiber. I modified the recipe a bit by making a fruit juice syrup out of 1/2 cup of cranberry juice, 1/4 cup of orange juice (aka what I had in the fridge) and several tbs of honey instead of using all the corn syrup the recipe calls for. It gave the oats a nice fruity, tart taste.
The Skinny on Fiber
Last week I graduated from college, it is my first day back at home and I’m already bored. Since I left sunny California for the gloomy Northwest, most of my outside activities have been postponed by the rain and I don’t know what to do with myself. Since one of my great loves is food, I’ve decided to get rid of my boredom by sharing some of the information I’ve learned...