Hi everyone!

You’re looking at a girl who jumped on the Foodie Penpals bandwagon…and I love it. I totally see myself participating in this every single month! I’d read about the treats other bloggers I follow would receive and wanted in on the fun. So I did it too. And boy, am I ever happy!

The lovely Emily (a reader) sent me a fantastic package.

How cute is this sticker?!

I couldn’t believe all the great stuff she got me! She had emailed me prior to find out what I liked and didn’t like. But she did say one thing: “hope you like coffee!” But of course! She knew I was a vegetarian after visiting my blog and knew I liked healthier treats, but wasn’t afraid to indulge in some sweet treats ;) I told her I liked things made local. Being from Ann Arbor, REB and I strive to buy local from the farmers market, local grocery stores, locally-branded items, etc. So anything I could have that was Portland- or Oregon-related, I was all for it!

She didn’t disappoint.

In this delightful package was a bountiful array of delicious treats!

• Variety of Justin’s individual nut butters (maple almond butter, chocolate almond butter, honey peanut butter)
• Variety of individual Tazo-brand tea bags
• Portland COFFEE! – fresh beans to be exact (it’s the first thing I smelled even before opening the box!)

This hot sauce. Did I mention she also listened to me when I said “I love spicy things!”…? This habanero hot sauce is not only spicy and delicious but it’s also made in Oregon! Twofer!

Two bars (each 2 oz.) of Dagoba brand dark chocolate. The one there on top is lavender and blueberry: sweet and delicious. The one on the bottom is the one I REALLY like, though.

This bar was xocolatl flavored aka chocolate with hints of chilies! Again, she listened to me when I said loved indulging in sweet treats and this one was not only dark chocolate (my fav) but it had that great kick to it. I’ve been enjoying a tiny piece each day after I finish my lunch. Perfect (and healthy!) way to end a meal if you ask me!

I can’t even begin to thank Emily. She is not only one of the sweetest people I’ve had the pleasure to get to know (if only through email), but she listened, delivered and provided some excellent things for me to try! So thank you Emily! You are a true gem of gems! :)

And for those of you who are curious, I sent my FPP package to the lovely Alexis of Pumped Pumpkin. Go check out her blog to see the goods she got from yours truly ;) But really, read her blog. She’s a fitness enthusiast and has some fabulous, healthy recipes on her blog!

Want in on the fun? Head over to Lindsay’s blog The Lean Green Bean to sign up!
Here are the deets:

• On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions. 
• You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal! 
• The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
• You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
• Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
• Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. So, I’m going to keep two separate lists and match US w/ US and Canada w/ Canada!

Hello friends!

You heard me right: no couch potatoes allowed! I’m officially trying to run again and if you haven’t already picked up on it (or read any recent Facebook statuses or tweets) I’m doing the Couch To 5K program again!

The Journey Begins…

I first tried the program about 3 years ago and never finished it. Truth be told, I just couldn’t motivate myself to finish it. I didn’t even get past week three!…Or make it to week three I should say :P

I’m determined to finish it this time though! One of the things on my bucket list for as long as I can remember is to run a race. It doesn’t have to be a marathon or Iron Man or anything (some of my friends are hardcore and I admire them so much for it!) but I do want to complete a race and feel good about it.

Let’s Back Up A Second…

I realized when I first tried the program I was a lot heavier. And when I didn’t finish it, I stopped working out all together. Not good. I know the program is designed for everyone, no matter the size. But lemme tell you, the size did matter. I couldn’t even finish the first week without feeling like I was going to die and therefore didn’t feel motivated to continue with it because it just wasn’t fun.

September 2009

Not only was my motivation at an all time low, so was my confidence.

Left: November 2010.....Right: May 2011

I guess I was naive in thinking I was heavier. I didn’t think I was and when I looked in the mirror, I didn’t really see it.  But pant sizes, shirt sizes and that scale definitely weren’t lying. I had to finally admit to myself: I’m at the biggest I’ve ever been.

Engagement Photos April 2011

I had gotten good at playing with angles: having my photo taken from the waist up, turning my chin down, standing straight forward so no curves could be seen…anything to make it seem like I wasn’t as big as I actually was.

After REB and I got our engagement photos back, that was our wake up call. It was time to get healthy. We had a short time to look good (and feel good) for our wedding and we’d be damned if our photos looked anything like our engagement photos did.

It wasn’t just about losing weight, though. It was about making healthy choices, eating better, being more active and adapting an overall healthier lifestyle. We are in our late twenties and we aren’t getting any younger. Our amazing metabolism from ten years ago was long gone and we took it for granted then, so it was time to do the 180 and make it right.

In the job I had before my current one, I was traveling every two or three weeks living in a hotel for two weeks at a time. It was so easy to eat horribly on the road and think it didn’t matter. Not anymore. The first thing I did was cut my diet in half. I started eating around 1200 calories and hated it, but I basically disciplined myself to cut out processed food, exercise (do SOMETHING every day for 30-45 min.) and drink only water. When I got home from trips, REB and I would do Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred religiously and we’d bulk up on protein while maintaining a relatively low-carb diet.

By the time our wedding rolled around, he was down about 50-55 pounds and I was down about 25 and 3 pant sizes smaller. The scale wasn’t lying then and it wasn’t lying now. We both looked good. I can honestly admit that. But more importantly, we felt good, better than we had in a very long time!

I wasn’t at my ultimate goal weight (I’m still not), but I had set up small goals…and I had surpassed the first one. And even though I didn’t feel like I was the number I was, I could tell that I was toned in all the right places. There was no need to turn the chin down, stand straight, or anything.

Post-Wedding…

Our honeymoon came a month and a half later and we still adapted that healthy lifestyle after our wedding. We made the conscious effort to exercise daily, eat right (eating every 2-to-2-1/2 hours equaling about 5-6 meals per day) and even on our trip although we indulged, we didn’t go crazy.

Thanksgiving 2011

Couch To 5K (Six Months Since Wedding)…

So now we come to the Couch To 5K. I felt like I could tackle this again. I’m already past the point from the last time I tried it and quit. Granted, I have gained back some weight since the wedding, I’m at least still on the healthy track! I’m about to finish up week 3 and yesterday I had a true milestone or PR of my own.

Usually I’ve been averaging about 2.25 miles when I’ve had to do the run on the treadmill (stupid rain), but I ran outside yesterday and when I was done and looked at my activity log, I couldn’t believe it!

True, my pace wasn’t that great (thanks, bum ankle), but I was scrolling through the distance-meter-chart-graph thing and at one point I was running between an 8.30- and 10-minute mile. I’m still slow and trying to figure out the pace that works best for me. It seems I start off too strong and then taper off and slow down near the end, so I want to get better about pace. But I’ve been trying to maintain good form and hopefully by the time the program is done, I’ll be better than I was during Week One! I had mapped out a run that would last at least 3.1 miles but the actual distance was something like 3.30 (had to walk home from the middle of my apt complex lol), but when the 5K training program for the day had ended, I had completed 2.78 miles! So, while I didn’t run the full distance, I continued to walk until I completed it just to get my body used to the distance.

But on my off-running days I’ve still be doing cardio and want to start up Jillian again to get my strength training back. I miss my toned arms and butt. Maybe one day my gut will disappear too…but baby steps :)

Almost One Year Later…

I think what pleases me most is that my endurance is better than ever. I don’t feel good if I don’t work out and I enjoy doing it now. I never thought I’d say those words. It’s not something I crave or anything, but I weigh out the options: do I want to feel flabby and gross, or do I want to do something active to at least help myself out? The latter usually wins.

I’ve been hovering over the same weight for a few weeks now and I’m only about 12-15 pounds away form my goal weight (well second goal weight. I still haven’t really decided if that’s going to be the ultimate goal weight or if I want to strive for something more) at this point. I’ve heard it’s always hard to lose the last ten, and I guess that’s becoming true for me. I’m not in a hurry to do it this time though. I’m trying to maintain that healthy lifestyle, cut out most of the junk in my diet, exercise daily and I know slowly the pounds will come off.

The Journey Continues…

It’s still a personal and mental struggle for me to look in the mirror and not see the girl from one year ago. I know with time that will get better, though :)

I can’t even begin to thank all of you (bloggers and readers!) out there who have similar fitness and lifestyle goals. It helps me a lot and I love reading about new workouts, recipes, power drinks, etc. that I should try. I also have to thank my friends for their constant encouragement and support!

Of course, REB. He’s on this journey with me and knowing we have those goals together makes it so much easier to work out and be healthy and do this together. He always encourages me, supports, helps me. and I don’t know what I’d do without him!

It is a continuing journey and I’m not sure it’s one that will ever end, but at least for now I’m in a happier place than I was. A place I can be proud of getting to because I really did work hard to get here.

Has your weight loss journey had its share of ups and downs?
What keeps you motivated? 

Hiya! It’s Wednesday!!

It’s what I call Wednesday Funday. Wednesdays and Sundays are officially (for now anyway) my favorite days of the week. Sundays are Sunday Funday dinner with our friends and Game of Thrones night. Yeah it’s close to the new work week, but having that last bit of fun makes the weekend just that much better! As for Wednsday? Wednesdays are right in the middle of the week and nothing too stressful ever really happens and each Wednesday night is trivia with my girls! Plus it’s always a What I Ate Wednesday kind of day :)

So I was looking through the pics on my phone and saw that I really only ever took pictures of the dinners I ate. So here are some highlights from this past week!

It’s finally starting to feel like spring. It’s still windy as hell and kind of cold in the mornings, but at least it kind of looks like spring around these parts.

Saw these beauties on my way to the bus stop

We did have some rain though. And the rain prevented me from running outside which I’m always not fond of :P I’m never going to be able to run a race if I have to keep getting my runs in on a treadmill :P But at least the way it feels after the rain (or now anyway) is breezy and pretty instead of hot and muggy like I know it will be when summer hits.

Purty

And with the spring-like weather comes spring-like food. REB and I headed to one of the Zingermans branches (they have five here in A2) for some comfort food and deliciousness.

The first thing on I saw on the menu were these:

I don’t know how they got heirlooms already or how they incorporated it into polenta, but any time I see the word “heirloom” and it’s not in a meat dish, it’s a given I end up ordering that. I also never had polenta before (pause for surprised gasps) and I have to say the texture and flavor was really, really good!! I’m excited to try cooking with it sometime soon!

Polenta aside, there is one reason anyone ever goes to Zingermans Roadhouse. And anyone who tells you otherwise is either naive, a newb or delusional.

Mac and cheese. They have an entire section of their menu with different kinds of mac and cheese. I always usually get the one loaded with spinach and roasted peppers, but this time I tried a new one that’s usually served with grilled chicken, but I 86′d that sucker. It was the Smoked Chicken and Monterey Jack, except no chicken. It had grilled corn, green chilies, Monterey Jack and 2-year Vermont cheddar. Outta site. I was only able to make a small dent in it, but it made for a great lunch/dinner the next day!

So let’s fast forward to Saturday! REB and I went to our first Tigers game of the season. We try to go to as many games as we can each year, but there is one game we never miss: the game with the promotional calendars. If you’re one of the first 10,000 fans, you get a Tigers calendar! Sadly, because of how good the Tigers were last year, the crowd at the stadium was out of this world! I’ve never seen that many people at a Tigers game before. And because of this, no calendars for us :(

It was still a pretty day for baseball, even if it was cold and windy where we were sitting :) It was also a double header and they played like crap for us but then ended up winning for the night game. Thanks guys :P

After the disappointing game, we drowned our sorrows in really good, authentic Italian food at Roma Cafe. It’s an old firehouse near Eastern Market in the D and it is widely known for their amazing, delicious Italian food! It’s rumored that the mafia used go there and might still make some appearances there from time to time ;) It totally has that vibe. The portions are HUGE. I had a LivingSocial coupon to use ($20 for $40 worth of food for dinner!) so REB and I feasted!

REB got the pesto and I got the arrabiata and it was really, really spicy (but really, really good). I had maybe 4 or 5 bites then packed it up had it the next day for lunch. Good stuff!

For Sunday Funday and Game of Thrones night it was our friends turn to host. REB wasn’t feeling that well (turns out he had a sinus infection and bronchitis! Eeps! He’s doing SO much better now, though. I just hope it doesn’t come to me!) so he stayed home. But my friends were so nice that they packed up a little container of food for me to take him to him :) On the menu for Sunday Funday? Veggie burgers, Mediterranean pasta salad, baked brie and I brought dessert! FEAST.

Wine + Brie + Fire = cozy!

The pasta salad my friend Amber made was out of sight!

She piled it high with roasted veggies (corn, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes), a little bit of feta and some toasted pine nuts. It was such a spring-like meal that I kind of wished REB didn’t like the portion I brought home so I could just eat it all ;)

And there’s a week of spring-like weather and spring-like food!

Remember to hop over to Jenn’s blog if you want in on the fun!

Wednesday Funday = What I Ate Wednesday!

Let’s get to it! A re-cap of Tuesday’s meals.

It was a bit of a crazy Tuesday morning for us…but I won’t go into details about it.  I couldn’t eat my usual breakfast (boo) but here we go!

I made a great salad of mixed greens, broccoli, cauliflower, green peas, cucumbers, some cottage cheese (as the dressing!) a black bean burger patty and hot sauce! Delish.

No explanation needed:

In the evening, I had a work shin dig and they served us dinner. I filled up on a good sized salad although the toppings were sparse, and the food selections were all carblicious but delicious ;)

The best thing about the party was the open bar. Luckily no one (that I saw) took horrible advantage of that, but we all did have a nice cool glass to enjoy the gorgeous evening!

Spring in Michigan means Oberon season! Om nom nom. I didn’t even finish the whole glass though. Beer is just too heavy for me now :\ Oh well.

So yeah! Not the most exciting day, but still a pictorial journal of all the eats! Head over to Jenn’s blog if you want to join the party!

Update on Couch to 5K: it’s going well! I’m on week 2, feeling good and and ankle is feeling good. I’m still trying to find a comfortable pace and maintain good form, but I know as the days/weeks of the program go by, that will hopefully develop! So far so good though!

Are any of you out there runners? Any tips for me?

My parents are in India. Surprise, surprise. My parents are out there in the world traveling some where. They’re living it up though! About 12 years ago, my dad, who is a professor of engineering, started teaching at a university in Germany. He would go during spring term and for three months he and my mom lived in a little apartment in Konstanz (southern most city in Germany). I even got to visit them over there one year and I completely fell in love with that city. I could see why they kept going back! I actually picture them retiring overseas. Anyway, this year my dad is teaching at a university in India so they’re there until July. The downside is that once again they’re going to be gone for three months and they will be in India during the worst months to visit: summer. The upside is that my mom will be able to visit family in India while my dad is teaching, which is always a win.

My family is huge and they’re all awesome! The women in my family are amazing. They’ve all been through so much in their lives, are very well educated and best of all: they’re amazing cooks.

With my mom in India for three months, and all my aunts living there already, there is something I miss that they all make: Mango pickle, also known to me and my sister as avakaya (ah-vah-ky-yah). It’s this amazing, spicy pickled fruit condiment that is usually served on the side of any dish, but I love to mix it with my yogurt and rice. You can buy jars of it at the Indian grocery store and it will last for months in the fridge and years in your pantry when unopened!

But my aunts and mom make some really, really good mango pickle. My sister told me she has memories of my aunt and mom making pickle in India and then putting the sealed jar out in the sun to help it break down faster. She told me it was weeks before she could eat any pickle, but then realized maybe it was only days and as a kid it only seems like it’s slower ;) Too cute.

Photo provided by my cousin K

This is my aunt. She’s not only a genuinely nice person, but she’s beautiful, an incredibly talented singer and of course, a phenomenal cook. She makes the spiciest and tangiest (and yes those combos can be done!) mango pickle there is. I don’t know how she does it, but I remember my parents bringing it home one year from India and it was wrapped in so many plastic bags to ensure the oil wouldn’t leak all over everything. And it was spicy! I remember everyone saying the spicier the better!

Photo by yours truly. It's one of my favorites of mi madre <3

This is my mom. She’s one of the most incredible and beautiful women I know. I see so much of my sister and I in her. Her mannerisms, her kindness, her need to please people (we definitely get that from her!), her temper and maybe one day, we’ll even adapt her cooking style.

She’s taught us well, though, don’t get me wrong! Our husbands are pretty happy with the Indian food we can make them and we owe that all to my mom and the aunts and cousins in our family. There’s nothing like the kind of home cooked food my mom makes. She also makes yummy pickles. She makes good mango pickle and lime pickle (the latter my sister absolutely loves!)

Well because my mom is overseas and most of my family is overseas, I figured it was time to be a grown up and figure out how to make mango pickle on my own. And that’s just what I did! Then when I made it, my uncle sent me my aunt’s recipe and I was so happy to see that what I made is exactly what she makes! Guess it runs in the family ;)

It’s very simple to make too!

Don’t let the list of ingredients scare you. This makes about 1 1/2 cups of pickle and the serving size is about 1 teaspoon…if that. Mine didn’t turn out quite as spicy as I would like, but as a first pass, I think it turned out pretty well!

I only had the spices in whole format, so I just ground up the seeds to make them a powder! I do have a grinder just for spices ;) Brown and proud. What can I say?

It’s literally that simple! It might not be exactly like my aunt’s or moms, but it will definitely work in the mean time. I actually took it to work and some of the Indian ladies there told me it turned out really well; one of the best pickles they had.

So I guess the women of my family taught me well. And maybe one day in the far, far, far, far far future if and when REB and I have kids, I can pass some of those recipes onto them too.

Is there someone in your family who inspires you in the kitchen?

For the first time ever, I actually remembered to take pictures of what I ate on Wednesday! It will probably never happen again. It’s also not the most exciting day of eats, but some of the items should come as no surprise to you! So here are eats from April 4!

Breakfast:

Oats with chia and granola, and a big ol’ cup of coffee with sugar free creamer and Splenda! It totally got me through the busy morning I had.

Lunch:

I had my leftover ghallaba pita, some hummus and bread for my lunch. Uh, can we say carblicious. I promptly worked out when I got home to avoid feeling guilt ;) But hey! At least the food got eaten and didn’t go to waste.

Snacks:

Fiberlicious and delicious, these Gnu Foods Flavor & Fiber bars are just what my afternoon need!

As if you didn’t already know ;)

After work:

April 4 was National Walking Day! After the workout, I did my cool down by taking the pup on a much needed long walk.

I think he appreciated it ;) Then again, walks are his favorite thing after fetch and food. It’s the little things.

…Well it was last week. This week it’s been cold, rainy and I even saw a few flurries on Tuesday. Gross. Make up your mind, Michigan!

After a quick shower, I got ready and headed downtown to have dinner with my girls and play music trivia like every Wednesday!

Walked by Faerie Village on my way to the restaurant. I’m sure you’ve seen pictures I’ve taken of the fairy doors around town. It’s probably one of the reasons Ann Arbor is so great! We have fairies living in our little city :) You can read more about the Urban Fairies here. It’s total cute overload ;)

Dinner:

Dinner was at Prickly Pear where I had the sweet potato enchiladas with black beans and rice on the side. I wasn’t a fan of the rice, but those beans are delicious! So were the enchiladas ;)

And just in case you guys don’t think all I ever drink is tea and water…I do in fact drink other things!

As always, if you want to join the party, head on over to Jenn’s blog to find out how! Happy Wednesday!

Hi friends :)

It’s already April! Can you believe it? I certainly can’t. Jenn is doing another fun thing for April’s edition of What I Ate Wednesday: an extra cup of veggies! I seem to accomplish this more for lunch, but something is better than nothing.  Deets and info on participating in WIAW at the end of the post!

Here’s a recap from Monday and Tuesday:

We're watching my parents bird, Chibi, while they're overseas. She has a lot of nicknames ;)

Breakfast from Monday and Tuesday

Lunch from Monday and Tuesday

But of course

After-work routine

Monday Dinner @ Jazzy Veggie: veggie "crab" cakes, baked sweet potato fries, chick'n' Caesar wrap (veggie dressing), plantain chips!

Good bangs day:

Yours truly

Tuesday dinner: Ate the delicious bread and some hummus, and my mini fattoush. The actual entree went into a box and came home.

Tuesday workout. 472 calories burned!

I’ve mentioned before how I hurt my ankle years and years ago. And, instead of being responsible and going to a doctor at the time of the injury, I was a dumb teenager who thought it would just heal on its own. Sure, it did heal because I can walk now, but it’s not 100%. Since then I haven’t been able to run for long distances or time without it starting to hurt. I was a smart one :P

I’ve been doing Andrea’s walking-incline-treadmill workout as my primary form of cardio lately since it burns a ton of calories for me and keeps me moving for 50 minutes straight. For some of the faster walking bits, I’ve started jogging since I can’t walk fast at 4.5 mph. Granted it’s a slow run, I was able to run a full 10 1/2-minute mile straight without stopping and without feeling like I was going to die! My ankle started hurting shortly after that, but I was stoked that I took a minute off my past mile time and felt completely revved up the rest of the work out.

This makes me think that maybe I should do the Couch to 5K again. I never did finish it the first time I tried it. But now? I’m more fit now than I’ve ever been, I work out at least 4 times a week as it is, and follow a healthy diet. Maybe I should give it a try and use that as my PT to get my ankle back to where it is! After all, one of the things on my bucket list is to run a race and not feel like I’m going to die a minute into it ;)

So there we have it!
You know the drill! If you want to participate, head over to Jenn’s blog and find out how :)

Hi everyone!

I know the title of this post seems a bit weird, but it was the first thought I had when a fellow blogger awarded me with this:

Becca over at Amuse Your Bouche tagged me and now I get to  tag more peeps!

The first thing I need to do is thank Becca because I was pretty surprised. I hardly think my blog is versatile! Well OK, maybe it is a little versatile. It took me a long time to figure out what the main focus of this blog would be, but it became clear to me after REB and I came home from our honeymoon this past fall. The things I love are simple: food, photography, my dog, my hubby, living in Ann Arbor and traveling the world!

I’ve had this blog since 2007 (back then it was hosted through wordpress and had a whole different name) and in 2009, I became a grown up and decided to buy a domain name and all that jazz. So anyway, thank you Becca! P.S. If you haven’t checked out her blog, you must!! :)

So the next step is to select 15 bloggers who I think are also versatile. I don’t think I can come up with 15, so I’ll name the blogs that I read on a regular basis in my Google Reader. How’s that sound? Here we go:

Sarah Learns - Sarah’s blog is all about healthy living, healthy workouts, healthy recipes. I love it!
Veggie Next Door - Another fellow vegetarian, Diana has awesome recipes and adventures.
The Lean Green Bean - Lindsay is the founder of Foodie Penpals and has one of the most amazing health blogs I’ve seen.
Onion In My Hair - Living healthy in Chicago, Andrea cooks up vegetarian recipes and offers great workout tips.
Keep It Simple Foods - Jen makes food look beautiful and has recipes that are simple, comforting and can remind anyone of home.
Adventures of Amberherself - Amber writes about her every day life, her adorable dogs and adventures she and her hubby have in life and new home ownership!
Masala Herb – Helene makes some truly outstanding, unique Indian dishes I’ve never heard of, but bottom line: they look and sound delicious! Plus you can hear about her adventures in Goa, which is a place in India I’ve never visited but is definitely on my list!

If you don’t already read these blogs, you need to! They’re all phenomenal photographers and their recipes are fantastic. Plus they’re the sweetest people ever!

The last and final step is telling you seven random facts about myself. I don’t know if I can do that since I think most of you know me by now! But here goes nothing:

1. When I was a kid and people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always answered with, “My mom.” Face it, she was Wonder Woman!

2. One of my goals in life is to see all the wonders of the world. I realize this is not only a very expensive thing to accomplish, but it’s also impossible (considering some don’t even exist anymore!) I have all the places printed out on a sheet of paper and cross them off after I’ve visited one. I’m actually very happy to say I’ve seen quite a few!

3. I obsessively (yes, obsessively) count every single calorie that I eat. It’s sick really. I know it annoys a lot of people and it’s a personal struggle of my own, but without knowing what I’m eating and burning each day, I fear I’ll go back up to that scary number I was a year ago. I know mentally it isn’t healthy, but it does keep me at ease when I’m on track. I hope it becomes more of a comforting thing than “job” of sorts.

4. I just opened up about something I was too scared to share with anyone.

5. I started a side photography venture and it has me excited! It’s also sort of taken off and while I’m not busy all the time, when I do get hired to take photos for maternity, children, engagement, couples, etc., it excites me more than words can describe! It only proves that photography is a huge passion of mine!

6. I’ve been in talks to partner with some companies to help sponsor my blog! I hope this will get more exposure for this piece of Internet and I hope you all continue coming over here :)

7. If you thought I was a jet-setter, you should meet my parents. They’ve been every where in the world. Literally. Every where. OK, not Antarctica but still! Last year, when I asked my dad where he and my mom would be going while he was on holiday in Germany, he literally stopped, thought about it and said, “I’m not sure. We’ve been every where at this point.” Must be nice ;)

And voila! Some more things about me you might not have already known. I hope those of you who are tagged will write a few things about yourself and pass the buck! :)

Happy Friday everyone!

Off topic, but what are your weekend plans?

Happy Hump Day readers!

It’s that day again! The all mighty Wednesday. So it’s time to share what I ate, except I’m going to show what I ate on Tuesday. Again.

Breakfast/Mid-morning Snack

Breakfast was a Nutrigrain bar, banana and coffee! Don’t you just love the new coffee mug? Some of you might have seen my tweet from Monday about how my Michigan State coffee mug has a crack and is no more :( It was a sad day. I had bought this monkey cup and another cup (you’ll see that one in a sec!) over the weekend. This one was originally for REB. He stole my other monkey mug, which he uses at work for tea and coffee as well, so I thought I could buy him a new one and I could have that one back. …But I might just keep this one for myself until I get a new MSU mug ;) Donations are welcome for the “Replace Par’s MSU mug and sanity” fund. Inquire within ;)

So instead of a snack, I just spaced out the food and had the banana later in the morning!

Lunch

I went to the cafe next door and got one trip to their salad bar. I loaded up on mixed greens, spinach leaves, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, green peas, 1/2 hard boiled egg, cucumbers, shredded carrots and a few chickpeas. I had some light raspberry vinaigrette on the side as well as that cottage cheese! It was the perfect lunch :)

Afternoon Snack

My new obsession thanks to Andrea (it’s a good thing!). I love these things! All the flavors are good, they’re almost 50% of your daily fiber intake and they’re all between 130-140 calories.

TEA!

In addition to all the water I’ve been drinking, I’ve also been drinking tea as usual.

Isn’t this the cutest little cup?? I got this when I bought the monkey one from earlier. Just an FYI: go to Pier 1! I love that store for so many reasons, but all their cute kitchen stuff is probably the main reason I go there.

Dinner

I have a super busy day tomorrow so I can’t make it to trivia. So instead, I met up with my friend for our weekly dinner on Tuesday and we went to a Coney to get some brinner. I also forgot to take a picture of what I ate – whoops. So anyway, I kind of splurged on an omelet, taters and toast. Sigh. At least I loaded the omelet with mushroom and spinach. That’s something, right? Right?? :\

Once I got home, I played fetch with the dog and took a quick walk with them. Since it was still kind of early, I was able to get a quick 35 minutes on the elliptical in our complex gym! It made me feel not so bad about the dinner (since face it, hash browns are delicious but not the lowest calorie food) and I’m glad I was able to work out tonight! Hooray motivation.

All in all, a good day of eats – nothing spectacular. Not like the pot pies I made on Sunday – yum!! I’m just glad I loaded up on protein and lots of greens – going with the WIAW theme this month!

Remember to head over to Jenn’s blog if you want to participate in WIAW too!

Hello you lovely readers :)

Did everyone enjoy their weekend? Did you do anything fun?

I certainly didn’t do a whole lot. REB is in Chicago for a few days for a conference and he left on Saturday and will be back on Wednesday night, late. I had a pretty low key weekend though, hanging out with the furballs, folding laundry, cleaning, and of course cooking!

I haven’t cooked in about a week. How horrible is that? With the travel to Chicago last weekend and eating salads at home or making them at Whole Foods during the week, I just never got around to making anything exciting. I need to make sure such a hiatus doesn’t happen again. But no matter! I remedied that on Sunday. I was in deep need of some comfort food. There was nothing wrong or any particular reason except that I wanted some comfort food.

What screams comfort more than pot pies? I had never made pot pies before and I couldn’t believe how easy it was to make. I made them vegetarian but I also threw in some tofu for added protein and meatiness. You could certainly use Boca-brand Meatless Crumbles, Morningstar Chick’n Strips or just leave out the meat substitute completely and keep it with just veggies! Of course you can make them with meat for any meat eaters in your family. The possibilities are absolutely endless.

Individual Tofu and Vegetable Pot Pies

•6 oz. firm tofu, cut into small cubes
•Non-stick spray
•2 teaspoons olive oil
•1 shallot, finely chopped
•2 teaspoons minced garlic (1-2 garlic cloves)
•1 carrot, diced (about 1 cup)
•2-3 stalks celery, diced (about 1 cup)
•1 medium-sized Yukon gold potato, diced (about 1 cup)
•1 cup (8-oz. carton) baby Bella mushrooms, diced
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/2 teaspoon black pepper
•2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
•1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
•1 tablespoon cream (you can use less)
•1/2 cup frozen baby peas
•2 teaspoons dried thyme
•2 teaspoons dried parsley
•2 sheets puff pastry, thawed

Method

Preheating your oven to 375°F

Start by cooking the tofu in a pan with non-stick spray until browned on all sides, about 3-5 minutes. When it’s done, transfer to a bowl that has a little water in it, to help keep it moist, and set aside.

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the shallot, garlic, carrots and celery and cook until the shallots are translucent and softened, about 2-3 minutes. Add the potatoes and mushrooms, salt and pepper and stir. Cook until the mushrooms are softened and reduced in size, about 5-8 minutes.

Sprinkle the mixture with flour and stir well until all the vegetables are coated well. Let it cook a minute or two or until the flour is dissolved and you’ve cooked the flour taste out of the dish. Add the vegetable broth and cream and stir well. Leave uncovered and bring to a simmer. Near the end, add the cooked tofu cubes and stir. Once the tofu is heated through, turn off the heat and add the frozen peas and herbs (parsley and thyme). Stir and set aside.

It’s time to prepare your ramekins! I bought some ramekins recently and they worked perfectly. They were about 8 or 10 ounces and I loved the color and texture! Anyway, roll out the puff pastry (you may need to flour your board and some of the pastry sheet) and cut 1/2-inch strip and wrap it around the edge of each ramekin. Then cut a circle larger than the size of the ramekin. Wet the strip that’s already on the ramekin, and place the larger circle on top. Using a little more water, press down the sides so the bowls are covered. Take a fork to crimp the edges and cut some slits in the top to let out the steam while they bake.

Now they’re ready to bake!

Optional: You could do a simple egg wash (one cracked egg mixed with milk or water) on each pastry and then sprinkle with coarse salt so it bakes up suuuuper golden

Bake them for 20-25 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. The smell in the house was absolutely amazing!!

So I guess TECHNICALLY you should let them sit for 5-10 minutes to let them cool before you dig in. But what’s the fun in that?

The filling was so hot and gooey, the tofu and vegetables cooked perfectly and the pastry? Ohhh the pastry. So flaky, golden and delicious. It all turned out so great and it was so, so easy to make! I enjoyed one for myself and then put the rest in the rest in the freezer so REB can have some when he’s home later this week <3 :)

Storage tip: Once the pies are completely cool, take some parchment paper and place on top of the pastry. Then wrap the entire ramekin tightly in aluminum foil (be careful not to crush the pastry crust), and then place in a Ziploc bag. Let as much air out before you seal ‘em up! Label and freeze! They should be OK for 1-2 months! When you’re ready to re-heat, set it out to thaw for 20 minutes, preheat your oven to 375 and bake for 30-45 minutes.

Comfort food is a necessity – in moderation – and it totally hit the spot for me!
Each pot pie is just around 400 calories, so it’s not too terrible!

Enjoy!

What’s your favorite comfort food?