Peanut Butter & Thai

Hello bloginas and bloginos (I know there's at least one of you...)! I hope you have all had fabulous Tuesdays. I love being able to blog more than once a day; I feel much less overwhelmed when I don't have to upload 38 pictures at once!

I lazed around the house for awhile today (I loved reading what you all do to get comfy when you come home... I thought the jewelry/jeans thing was just me!) and finally decided around 2 to head out to the gym. Before I left I had a banana, which I nestled in a sweater so that he could be cozy, too.


Today was my first day using my beautiful new heart rate monitor. I'm still learning about how to use it, so bear with me while I figure it out... my stats are kind of incomplete today but I'll do my best.

Stairmaster- 20:00 minutes
Elliptical (I think that's what it was... it was kind of this free-form flying contraption)- 7:00 minutes (the machine turned off when I went to get water)
Bike- 15:00 minutes

Calories burned: 449

I also did my usual arm series (4 machines, 3 sets of 10). My abs are in so much pain because of my new yoga habit, so I decided to give them a rest and only did 60 crunches. I spent the rest of the time using the roller... I could roll around on that thing forever! Nothing feels better than stretching out sore muscles.

I decided to have breakfast for lunch (if that's what you can call it at 4:30) and had a delicious (if not aesthetically pleasing) bowl of peanut butter and jelly super protein oats.

1/2 cup oats
1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
2 big scoops nonfat plain yogurt
1 tsp peanut butter
1 tsp blackberry jam
dried currents

This was a great combination (sadly I cannot take the credit for pairing peanut butter and jelly). I wonder what it would taste like hot... and cooked, for that matter!

I went shopping for dinner in Chinatown tonight. Let me tell you, if it wasn't so out of the way I would go there every day! They have great produce, and everything is so cheap! I got all of this for under $20. (Those long purple things are Chinese eggplants.)


Dinner tonight was from Moosewood Cookbook: New Classics. You've probably already figured out how much my family and I love Moosewood recipes. They never fail to disappoint! I would love to go to their restaurant, but I'm not sure when I'll find myself in Ithaca.


Stage 1: some tofu, red bell pepper, and snow peas.



Stage 2: Add some rice noodles, a little egg, some hot chili paste, rice vinegar and soy sauce...


Lime garnish, bean sprouts, a little lime, fresh peanuts and TA DA! Pad Thai.


This was one of the only times we've all gotten to sit down and eat together, and it was pretty nice.

Look at that crazy eye!


Finished my meal off with a Grolsch and a golden delicious apple. Interesting combination.


And then, because the night couldn't end without a little chocolate (trend of the week!) I had a vanilla Skinny Dipper. Yum. I'm also reading one of the best books I've read this year... well, the only book I've read this year, but of 2008 as well! I'm only halfway through, but I hope to get another nice big chunk read before Ari finishes working for the night.


Have a great night!

(I just banged my knee into the corner of the bed... the other one is already bruised AND bloody, since, after 10+ years of shaving, I still always nick my legs with a razor! Maybe in 10 more I'll grow out of that...)

Not a creature was stirring...

Yep, everyone at home is in bed but I seem to find myself wide awake. I hate when that happens!

After my Chinese food fiasco, I took a little nap and woke up famished. Quick fix: clementines!


And a box of blackberries. So sweet and juicy!


We made a shrimp curry for dinner with snow peas, corn, red pepper and coconut milk. Pretty yum.


We also whipped up some chapatis. Here, you can see the Chapati King is hard at work:



Triscuit+ cheese+ blackberry= surprisingly tasty combo.


I had one tuna/eggplant chapati...


A glass of wine...


Emergen-C and vitamins...



I ate the curry with a little basmati and two chapatis.


Mystery dessert... what could be in the box?


A Bûche du Noël! Also known as a chocolate yule log cake.





I've been criticized a lot recently for the quality of my photos. So, sorry about that folks.

Hope you have a wonderfully happy holiday. Night night!

Greetings from the East!

Hello, Sleeping Beauties.  I am finally home, after an uneventful flight (no screaming babies, just chatty businessmen).  I'm going to make this quick... I'm blogging from Ari's fancy shmancy computer (so sleek! so fast!) and we're going to watch movies! 

I managed to make it to the gym, although my cardio session was a little shorter than usual. 

Bike

4.0 miles

196 calories burned

22:17 minutes

Machines

pulldown- 3 x 10 @ 30 lbs

chest press- 3 x 10 @ 10 lbs

shoulder press- 3 x 10 @ 10 lbs

row/rear deltoid- 3 x 10 @ 15 lbs

I wanted to have a real lunch before I left, so I made my favorite Gliding Calm tofu, Kashi pilaf with peas, and three rebel carrots.   I washed it all down with a big glass of skim milk.

Leftovers "salad": more Kashi pilaf, sprouts, tofu, red pepper, tomato, avocado. I brought this to the airport, and because I didn't want to deal with the liquid/ziplock baggie issue, I just poured some sundried tomato vinaigrette on it before I left.  The sogginess actually wasn't horrible.

I somehow misplaced ALL my travel snacks (careful planning will only get you so far) so I bought one of these for $2.19 at the airport. TWO NINETEEN!

My dad picked me up and drove me to Ari (what a nice daddy) and, as usual, came with snacks. I had four of these California rolls, and some grapes I didn't take a picture of. 

Who is this fuzzy man?  

 Hope everyone's almost done with finals... I still have one to write unfortunately.  Bonne nuit!

Are we there yet?

No Katie, we are not. I'm stuck in the library trying to get two research papers done, but I can't seem to focus at all. (There's a group of girls in my study room being SO LOUD... GRR.) I've never been very good at all-nighters, and the cafe that sells coffee and tea is closed... HMPF. Well, I'll stop my whining and get onto the real beef... er, fake beef (...tofeef?)


My uncle brought me a jar of his very own maple syrup on Sunday, and tonight was the perfect opportunity to use it! It was soooo good. Had I not been trying to restrain myself, I probably could have eaten the whole jar with a spoon!

I made maple mashed sweet potatoes, Gliding Calm tofu (1/3 of a block), and Kashi Original Pilaf with peas.


Look at all those textures!


Everything tasted better than usual today. The tofu was perfectly caramelized, the sweet potatoes were light and fluffy, and the pilaf (which I'd never tried before) was a nice surprise.

I packed some study snacks to take to the lib: carrots with Justin's Organic cinnamon peanut butter, a fat free blueberry yogurt, and a Z bar.


I ate the Z bar at 9:30 (almost 2 hours ago); it was pretty good! I think it's probably tied with the chocolate chip flavor.

Depending on how long I can make myself stay here I'll probably eat the rest of my goodies. For now, it's glasnost and perestroika...

I'll be home in three days, I'll be home in three days...