I’m back home!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Okay. I’m not really THAT excited. But I’m trying to be positive. I was home alone yesterday for only 1 hour while my mom went out to run some errands and it was SO. QUIET. I was aching for the NYC hustle and [...]]]> …but you can’t take the NYC out of the girl!

I’m back home!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Okay. I’m not really THAT excited. But I’m trying to be positive. I was home alone yesterday for only 1 hour while my mom went out to run some errands and it was SO. QUIET. I was aching for the NYC hustle and bustle that I am used to hearing so clearly through [even my closed] window every day. Even if I’m inside in NYC, I still feel like there’s so much going on all around me!

But truthfully, it’s nice to be home. Like Diana said in response to yesterday’s post, ‘there’s nothing like being close to family’.And the quiet and calm of Winnipeg can sometimes be nice. I think it will be a good change for me… for now

On my last day in New York I finally got a chance to see BF’s office

The view of the yellow cabs below

Brushing up on my commercial law knowledge

Then it was off to Gotham Comedy club for a show. And then to Blue Water Grill for my final NYC dinner.

Sipping on an amazing summer cocktail made with mango-infused rum, lychee juice, lemon juice and Riesling

We spilt the Blue Water Grill Chopped Salad with cucumber, feta cheese, tomatoes, kalamata olives, roasted peppers, capers

And the Shrimp and Lobster Spring Rolls. Both were super yummy!

And we each got Jumbo Shrimp & Diver Sea Scallops with lemon-mustard vinaigrette as our entree. I’m going to have to recreate that lemon mustard sauce… it was tangy and amazinnng!
  
And then bright and early the next morning I was in a cab on the way to La Guardia, leaving the city behind.
 
A few hours later I was home…

My mom took me straight to the grocery store to get my “special food”. I was pleased to discover a new “Natural Foods” section!

The even had goat cheddar!

And goat yogurt!

When we got home I made us wraps for dinner with whole wheat tortillas, lettuce, tomatoes, basil, cheese (new goat cheese for me!), hummus and salsa!
 
Fresh and delicious.

Then I proceeded to attack a watermelon
 
It was for its own good!

And this article from today’s Winnipeg Free Press was a nice welcome home

Complete with a list of famers’ markets I can visit!!!

Also, I think I may invest in a bike. I’m not the worlds best driver, and I need SOME way to get around town without endangering others on the road! If you have any tips on buying a good bike or helmet, let me know!!!

How do you get around? By bus, car, subway, bike, on foot?

Welcome to Day 4 of Vegan for a Week!

~The Vegan Eats~

I was a bit lazy with dinner last night and made myself and Amy’s California veggie burger.

I don’t think I’ve ever had an AMAZING frozen veggie burger. Amy’s are my favorite, but I still find them a bit bland. So my take on frozen [...]]]>

Welcome to Day 4 of Vegan for a Week!

~The Vegan Eats~

I was a bit lazy with dinner last night and made myself and Amy’s California veggie burger.

I don’t think I’ve ever had an AMAZING frozen veggie burger. Amy’s are my favorite, but I still find them a bit bland. So my take on frozen veggie burgers is that – CONDIMENTS AND TOPPINGS ARE KEY!
 
Now you don’t want to go throwing any old condiment on there, they have to work together. I find that a salsa, hummus, nutritional yeast combo works pretty well for me. As for the toppings I like lettuce, tomato, pickles and onions. But this time I only had lettuce on hand. I also added in a bit of whole grain mustard. It might not work for everyone, but I liked the tang it gave!
 
I had my burger on a toasted Ezekiel english muffin.

Other condiments I like on veggie burgers (not necessarily together) are pesto, relish, tomato paste, goat cheese, roasted peppers, sautéed mushrooms, caramelized onion (sooo goood), pineapple, balsamic, basil….the list could probably go on

I think homemade are definitely superior. Know any great homemade recipes?

Breakfast this morning was a bowl of oat bran topped with sliced banana and a scoop of almond butter and a side of New York magazine.
 

And I just finished a lunch of leftover Southwestern Rice Salad with mango for dessert. I STILL have tons of rice salad leftover. I might have to make a burrito out of it for dinner tonight

~Interview with a Vegan~
 
Today’s vegan blogger is Sarah of See Sarah Eat!

How long have you been vegan for? I have been vegan for almost 9 months; since October 1, 2009. I was inspired by another blogger to try going vegan for an entire month just to see if I could do it. I loved it!

Why do you eat a vegan diet? I originally started eating a vegan diet for health reasons, mainly because of digestive issues I was having. I couldn’t tolerate dairy very well and it took me a long time to figure that out. Too much meat wasn’t digesting well for me either and I often felt weak and sluggish after I ate it.

But I was also worried about the hormones and antibiotics that are given to the animals that we get our meat, eggs and dairy products from. I had also read a lot of studies on the health effects of consuming animal products and it was frightening.

Over the past few months, I have been learning more about the animal abuse and environmental issues surrounding the consumption of meat, eggs and dairy products, which has just given me even more reasons to stick with my current lifestyle.

Do you think a vegan diet is "healthier" than a vegetarian or omnivorous diet? I think it depends on what a person’s definition of healthy is. Personally, I know you can lose weight or maintain a healthy weight without being vegan because that is what I did a few years ago. But what we also need to be concerned with is what is going on inside of our bodies and not just how the outside looks. There is so much to consider.

For instance, there is a link between heart disease (our #1 killer) and the consumption of animal products including meat, eggs and dairy. Based on that and many other factors, in my opinion, vegan is indeed healthier. But it has to be done the right way. Eating too many processed foods isn’t a healthy idea either and many of us know that Oreos are vegan; doesn’t mean they are healthy. Eating vegan to me means eating mostly nutritious plant-based whole foods, not just animal-free foods.

Do you take any vitamin supplements? Not consistently. Every now and then I take a B12 supplement and occasionally calcium, but I try my best to get all of my vitamins and minerals from real food or fortified non-dairy milk, juice or cereal.

Do you miss anything about not being a vegan? Not much! But I do sort of miss the ease of ordering out at certain restaurants, especially with my husband who is not vegan. Family gatherings where food is involved can be tougher these days too. But the challenges I face are few and well worth it to me because I feel the best I ever have in my life.

Do you think you will be vegan your whole life? It hasn’t even been a year yet, but yes, I really do think so. There have been a couple of times when I have been frustrated about something (like finding a "hidden" animal product in a food I ate) and I have thought about relaxing the “rules” and eating certain foods again just to avoid that stress. But I just think of how that would really make me feel, physically and mentally. In addition to the obvious health benefits, I have more energy, physical stamina and much more focus and peace of mind than I ever have. Plus I am helping animals and the environment. Why would I change that?

What are some of your favorite vegan dishes? I love falafel! I also like making my own veggie burgers, vegan meatloaf and tofu stir fries. There are a ton of vegan recipes on the internet created by some really talented cooks. Also finding other vegans on social networking sites has turned me on to a lot of great recipes and products I otherwise might not have found. You can make just about anything vegan, so you don’t ever have to miss any of your favorite dishes!

Thanks Sarah!!!

Question of the Day: What would your ultimate burger (veggie or otherwise) consist of?

I really love the combination of mushroom and goat cheese. So, my ultimate burger would the BEST mushroom veggie burger (whatever that is ) on a toasted whole wheat sourdough bun, with bibb lettuce, a couple slices of heirloom tomato, roasted red pepper, caramelized onion and topped with goat cheese and balsamic reduction. YUM!!!!

Welcome to day 3 of Vegan for a Week!

Yesterday I went to Yoga at the Great Lawn in Central Park. There were a few other people in attendance…;)   10, 000 people were due to show up to what was supposed to be the worlds largest yoga event! I arrived [...]]]>

Welcome to day 3 of Vegan for a Week!

Yesterday I went to Yoga at the Great Lawn in Central Park. There were a few other people in attendance…;)
 
10, 000 people were due to show up to what was supposed to be the worlds largest yoga event! I arrived around 5:45 to a MASSIVE line. 2 hours later, I was still in line, finally nearing the great lawn when it started to rain. The lucky yogis who arrived earlier actually managed to get ON to the lawn and definitely had a much better experience than those of us stuck in a line for 2 hours.
 
But even those lucky enough to get on the field had to leave as it started to pour and the event was cancelled. Thousands of New Yorkers scattered outside Central Park, some using their free yoga mats they received from the event (I was too late to get one) as a shield from the storm!

They’ve having a makeup event, I might go… but I’m not so sure I want to wait in a line for 2 hours again.

~The Vegan Eats~

Last night for dinner I made Oh She Glows’ Chickpea Coconut Curry. I used olive oil instead of coconut oil and coconut yogurt instead of soy.

And I had it with soba noodles instead of rice. It wasn’t my favorite dinner – mostly because I overcooked the noodles, and the flavor was a bit muted. I think more spice or coconut oil would have given it more oomph.

TEMPTATION/CONFESSION! – Last night BF was mean and ordered pizza for himself for dinner. I must confess – It looked so good, and because I was a little unsatisfied with my own dinner, I stole one of his pieces and scraped off the cheese to eat it! Still vegan though! Right? RIGHT??? Oh man, it was only day 2! What can I say, I love my pizza. Dear BF, stop tempting me with your cheese-filled dinners!

Afterwards I sliced up a mango to eat while we watched Youth in Revolt.

B-Fast this morning was standard banana oats with a (big) dollop of almond butter.

Midmorning snack was a few handfuls of some curry cashews. Guess I didn’t get enough curry last night!

And now for my lunch/ a wonderful vegan recipe for you!

Southwestern Rice Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 cup brown rice, cooked and cooled
• 1 cup corn
• 1 cup black beans
• 1-2 scallions (green onions) diced
• 1 medium or 2 small bell peppers diced
• 1/4 cup sliced black olives (or more if you’re an olive fiend like me!)
• 1 cup salsa
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T lime juice
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Combine veggies and rice in a bowl 

Top with salsa, cumin, garlic, cilantro and lime juice and mix together.
  
Chill for at least an hour. Overnight is best. It lets all the flavors develop and mix together.
Then serve!

I love this salad. Mostly because I LOVE the combo of lime juice and cilantro!

~Interview with a Vegan~

Today’s vegan blogger is Lindsay of Cooking for a Vegan Lover

How long have you been vegan for? I have been vegan for 3.5 years and vegetarian for 14 years.

Why do you eat a vegan diet? I eat a vegan diet for animal rights reasons, health, and environmental reasons.

Do you think a vegan diet is "healthier" than a vegetarian or omnivorous diet? I do think that a vegan diet can be healthier than that of a vegetarian or omnivorous diet as both of those diets are based around animal products which are filled with saturated fats, and unless you are getting high quality organic products you are filling yourself full of hormones and antibiotics that are in the animals/animal products that you eat.  Plant-based diets have been proven to reduce diabetes and heart disease which gives further evidence that a vegan diet is healthier. This all being said a vegan diet is only healthier if the individual who is eating a vegan diet is eating vegetables, fruits, whole grains, plant based proteins and not pop and chips.  There are many junkfood vegans out there you I would not consider any healthier than some vegetarians or omnivores.

Do you take any vitamin supplements? I take a raw prenatal vitamin and I have taken B-12 but do not currently.

Do you miss anything about not being a vegan? There is nothing that I miss about not being vegan however there are some items that I wish would come in a vegan version- however most things do nowadays; I just wish they were more  accessible like vegan creemees (soft serve for those of you not from Vermont).

Do you think you will be vegan your whole life? Yes, definitely.

What are some of your favorite vegan dishes? I have a number of favorite vegan dishes honestly more than I could ever name but here are a few:

http://cookingforaveganlover.com/2010/04/07/creamy-miso-morel-pasta-with-peas-leeks/
http://cookingforaveganlover.com/2010/04/11/recipe-vegan-lobster-roll/
http://veganyumyum.com/2007/04/soy-mirin-tofu-over-rice-with-broccoli-and-peanut-sauce/

Thanks so much Lindsday! That creamy miso morel pasta with peas & leeks looks delicious!

Alright I’m off to find something sweet to eat…or perhaps something minty, I have some serious garlic breathe after that lunch! I can’t help it, I love my garlic.

Have a great hump day!

Question of the Day: Are you an onion/garlic fan. I feel like either you love em or you hate em. Same with cilantro. Do you love it or hate?

Me? I LOVE ONIONS AND GARLIC and I LOVE CILANTRO!

Good Afternoon! Today is day 2 of Vegan For a Week! It’s been going pretty well so far and I just did a big vegan grocery shop today so I have lots of fun meals in store!!! Today I’m first going to show you the food/ what groceries I picked up, then talk about the [...]]]>

Good Afternoon! Today is day 2 of Vegan For a Week! It’s been going pretty well so far and I just did a big vegan grocery shop today so I have lots of fun meals in store!!! Today I’m first going to show you the food/ what groceries I picked up, then talk about the vegan issue of the day: Vitamin B12 and then feature our first “Interview with a Vegan”!

~The Vegan Eats~

Dinner was quick and simple last night because I came home late after ballet class!
 
I haven’t taken a ballet class in years! But now I have a class package at Alvin Ailey and am looking forward to dancing a lot in the next few weeks

My class was held in this first floor classroom (below) where people can watch from benches outside. It was pretty neat having an audience!

I loved the class, it was the perfect level for me and the teacher Kat Wildish was hilarious!

Dinner was spelt pasta with vegan “meat” sauce (a crushed up veggie burger cooked in tomato sauce) and green peas 

Topped with some nutritional yeast
 

I was running out the door this morning so I grabbed a quick Mango, Orange, Banana smoothie for breakfast and enjoyed it while waiting for the train.
 
And then it was grocery shopping time!

The loot!
 
Ezekiel english muffins, mushrooms, corn, onion, lettuce, avocado, orange pepper, cuke, carrots, zucchini, summer squash, scallions beans, black olives, green olives, almond milk, bananas, grapes, lemons, limes, mangos, larabars and so delicious coconut milk yogurt! WHEW!

Lunch was an extra large salad with lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, beets, chickpeas, navy beans, lentils, vegan tuna salad from Whole Foods, and some hotttt pepper. It was a SPICAY salad!

Right now I’m snacking on some green olives and think I’m going to have a snack of some snappy organic red grapes soon!

For the vegan issue today I wanted to talk about Vitamin B12. When veganism is the subject, you’re likely to hear about Vitamin B12. According to the Mayo Clinic, vitamin B12 is important for nerve health and red blood cell creation. Vitamin B12 is also critical for making DNA. Deficiency can cause anemia, degeneration of nerve fibres and possibly irreversible neurological damage.

The average adult needs about 2.4 micrograms of B12 per day. The problem with veganism is that the only reliable unfortified sources of vitamin B12 are meat, dairy products and eggs. There has been considerable research into possible plant food sources of B12 but the current nutritional consensus is that no plant foods can be relied on as a safe source of vitamin B12.

So what is a vegan to do? Those practicing a vegan diet can turn to a range of B12 fortified foods such as yeast extracts, textured vegetable protein, fortified non-dairy milks, vegetable and sunflower margarines, and fortified breakfast cereals. Additionally, they can choose to take a sub-lingual (under the tongue) B12 supplement. It has been shown that when ingesting a B12 supplement very little  actually gets absorbed in the stomach and intestines, therefore sub-lingual supplements are advisable because they are meant to be absorbed through the mouth.

Today’s vegan blogger is Nicole of Rambunctiously Soft-Spoken and Another One Bites the Crust!

How long have you been vegan for?
I’ve been a vegan for almost four years now!

Why do you eat a vegan diet?
I eat a vegan diet because there is no need for me to be eating animals.  I just don’t believe that an animal should be sacrificed so that I could eat it, when there are plenty of other options out there for me.  On top of that, the factory farm industry is horrifying, and I don’t want to support that.  The health benefits of a vegan diet are also a plus!

Do you think a vegan diet is "healthier" than a vegetarian or omnivorous diet?
I do think that it can be healthier than a omnivorous diet, for me at least.  I believe my body is able to heal itself much better now that I follow a strict vegan diet.

Do you take any vitamin supplements?
I do take supplements.  I take a multi-vitamin, zinc, and probiotics.

Do you miss anything about not being a vegan?
Nope, not really!  I never liked eggs before I was a vegan, so definitely not missing those.  For everything else, there’s such a close substitute that I don’t even think about non-vegan options anymore.  The only thing that bums me out every once and a while is that there aren’t many vegan ice cream shops widely available.  I’d be nice to be able to get a non-dairy ice cream cone at an ice cream shop every once and a while!

Do you think you will be vegan your whole life?
Yes, for sure!  I really can’t see my mindset changing too much.  I’ve learned so much about veganism and animal rights in the past four years and I don’t think there is any going back for me!  Plus, why would I need to eat non-vegan food when I’ve got so many delicious options?

What are some of your favorite vegan dishes?
Oh gosh!  There are so many choices.  I love hemp ice cream sundaes, chana masala, tofu scramble, sweet potato hash, and pretty much anything with avocado or hummus!

Thanks so much Nicole!!!

Question of the Day: If you could only eat one type of fruit for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I love so many fruits, but I think the easy answer for me would be mango. Mangoes are without a doubt my favorite fruit, so if I could continue eating them, I wouldn’t feel TOO sad about losing the the other fruits.

As you may recall, I made a list of 24 things I wanted to accomplish in my 24th year. #8 on that list was “Go vegan for a week”. I guess you could say that veganism is something I aspire to and admire. However, knowing myself, I will probably not fully take that leap [...]]]>

As you may recall, I made a list of 24 things I wanted to accomplish in my 24th year. #8 on that list was “Go vegan for a week”. I guess you could say that veganism is something I aspire to and admire. However, knowing myself, I will probably not fully take that leap just yet. As of right now, if you had to label me, I guess I would be a “pescatarian”. But I really dislike labels so I like to say that I generally eat a a lot of vegan and vegetarian meals and will occasionally have fish or seafood. I think, if I had to, I could cut out seafood from my diet… but dairy and eggs are another story!

As someone who is incredibly affected when I see videos like these, I constantly struggle with my choice to continue eating dairy products and eggs. However, I do try my best to purchase my dairy and eggs from organic brands I trust or from a farmers market. It’s difficult, especially as an aspiring nutritionist, because I have heard and read so many conflicting views on whether some animal product consumption is necessary in the diet. Obviously there are many cases of extremely healthy and lively vegans, however everyone responds to things differently, and I’m still not sure if it is the right thing for me.  It’s also difficult coming from a meat-loving family. It’s hard enough being the “vegetarian” at dinners, I can’t imagine how difficult being a vegan would be!

Enter: Vegan For a Week! From Today (June 21, 2010 until June 27, 2010) I’m going vegan to 1)Challenge myself and 2) See how I respond/feel while eating a completely vegan diet. I will be blogging most, if not all of my meals, writing about different vegan “issues” and questions throughout the week and letting you know how I’m feeling along the way. You are more than welcome to join me

*Disclaimer: Going vegan is not something to take lightly. It will be an easier transition for me because I eat a largely vegetarian diet already. However, if you are planning to cut out animal products from your diet, you should be aware of how to go about doing it in a safe way to make sure you are getting the proper vitamins and macronutrients!*

A note before the food: I’m counting honey as vegan. Some think it is, some don’t but for the purposes of my challenge honey is fine!

Breakfast this morning was a quick one as I had an exam to run to!

A bowl of cereal containing: Honey rice puffins, granola, almond milk and a drizzle of almond butter
I had a smaller second bowl of just granola after this!

I would usually add some fresh fruit to my ceral, but we’re currently out! Must stock up!

For lunch I picked up a couple of prepared veggies and combined them in an overflowing bowl of veggie goodness!
 
There were green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, green and black olives and gigande beans

That was TASTY! And super filling because of the potatoes and beans!

And some cubes of watermelon for dessert!

Not sure what’s on the menu for dinner tonight but I’m sure I’ll be getting meal inspiration from these lovely ladies (to name a few!)throughout the week!

What is your favorite vegan meal?

*CALL FOR VEGANS! – I would love to ask a few questions to any vegans out there willing to be interviewed for the blog this week!*
Please email me at justflourishing [at] gmail [dot] com or tweet me @justflourishing if you would like to!

Dinner last night was a scrumptious thin-crust Kashi Mushroom and Spinach pizza. I sliced up a tomato I [...]]]> Good Afternoon! TGIT! Thursday is my new Friday I don’t have class Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I know, it’s awesome, but I totally deserve it after not having a Friday for the last 5 months!

Dinner last night was a scrumptious thin-crust Kashi Mushroom and Spinach pizza. I sliced up a tomato I had on hand and put in on top before baking.

I really like Kashi pizzas. It is fun to make one from scratch, but when you’re pressed for time, they are so convenient and tasty!

I was craving oatmeal for breakfast but when BF asked for scrambled eggs I thought it would be a good idea to join in, so I could get in some veggies in at breakfast!

Heating up some peppers, onions and tomatoes in the saucepan

Adding in the eggs
 
Order up – Eggs for 2! Topped with goat cheese.

I added a slice of wheat toast with Earth Balance and some hot sauce to mine!
 
I feel like the only time I have veggies for breakfast is in an omlette or egg scramble. For some reason veggies just don’t scream BREAKFAST to me like oats, eggs or fruit. But lately I feel like I’ve seen a lot of people eat veggies for breakfast all the time like its no big deal!

I though to myself “Wouldn’t it be great if I could incorporate more veggies into my breakfast routine?” I’m not sure why we all have it ingrained in our heads that breakfast has to be either sweet or eggs! Who says you can’t have veggies for breakfast!!

So, I decided to do a bit of brainstorming and came up with these ideas so far…

• Lentils and veggies – I woke up late and had this for an early lunch one time and I l quite enjoyed it as my first meal of the day!
• Savory Oats -  I’ve never been bold enough to try them, but I think I might have to one of these days
• Israeli Breakfast – A classic Israeli breakfast consists of an Israeli salad (finely chopped fresh vegetables), scrambled or fried eggs, soft cheese, and fresh bread

I ended up going out for lunch and had a mediocre veggie burger. It was okay, but full of soybeans (which I usually tend to avoid)

I was still a bit hungry when I came home so I made myself half a banana with honey almond butter. Mmmm one of my favorite snacks!

Alrighty, I’m going to relax for an hour and then head to gym to pump some iron

 Do you eat veggies for breakfast? Any other ideas for me on ways I can incorporate veggies into my breakfast menu?

Something to Think About: “INFAMOUS” – I’ve seen this word thrown around in the wrong context lately. Something like “Yesterday I made Aunt Sally’s infamous casserole” sounds nice, but really, it’s not. Something that is infamous has a very bad reputation, as in "September 11th will live in our minds in infamy."  I got corrected for using it in the wrong context once and thought I would be a huge nerd and share the grammatical love with all of you

What a fun weekend!!! Here are some highlights….

We grabbed a quick bite on Friday afternoon at Clear Conscience Cafe before doing some shopping on Newbury Street.

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup… perfect on a cool day. [...]]]> That pretty much sums up my Boston experience…well if you also include Shopping and Dancing!

What a fun weekend!!! Here are some highlights….

We grabbed a quick bite on Friday afternoon at Clear Conscience Cafe before doing some shopping on Newbury Street.

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup… perfect on a cool day.

Afterwards we met up with Amanda’s family and some of her friends for dinner and drinks at Laurel.

Risotto galore, some fish, some fries, some mussels…and lots of laughs! 
 
 
 

And later there was a dance party, lots of singing and an unforgettable night out

In the morning we were craving eggs. So we whipped a scramble with peppers, scallions, onions and pepper jack.  
My plate with wheat bread and hot sauce on the eggs!
 
After having a lazy relaxing day we headed to Muqueca for dinner
 

It was so good.

I started off with a Brazilian Summer juice. Pineapple and Mint. I WILL be recreating this at home. And you should too.   |
For dinner there were plantains and 2 different types of Moqueca with shrimp, fish, calamari, crab and mussels.
  
  
Oh right. And there was dessert. A chocolate truffle and a Tapioca & Coconut flan. 
Um….I have no words

Today we started our morning off with Maple Oats: Oats + Almond Milk + Maple Syrup

And then we took a sweaty modern class at The Dance Complex. It was incredible. Why am I not dancing more in New York??? It’s not like there are a shortage of classes! I actually talked to Amanda about it and I think it’s because I’m nervous. I haven’t danced regularly in so long and I’m scared I’ll be bad and the other people in the class will look at me like “What is SHE doing here?”…  which is silly right? I just need to get over it and go. I always have fun when I do

We were starved afterwards and made our way to Petsi Pies!

Soup, paninis and an apple crumble pie were devoured here!

 

My panini was so good I didn’t want it to end! And of course the pie was amazing

I had such a great time and Amanda is such a good hostess, I couldn’t have asked to have better food or more fun!
Boston is such a great city. But now it’s back to another great city… 

Bye Bye Boston!

p.s. If you ever go to Boston you should definitely hit up ALL of these places. I highly recommend them!

Summer is HERE! Well, at least summer SCHOOL is here. Today is my first day of summer classes. Organic Chemistry! Woo!

So, since on our Coney Island day we didn’t eat the best food, we decided to make yesterday an extra healthy day.

We started off our day with big bowls [...]]]> Happy June!

Summer is HERE! Well, at least summer SCHOOL is here. Today is my first day of summer classes. Organic Chemistry! Woo!

So, since on our Coney Island day we didn’t eat the best food, we decided to make yesterday an extra healthy day.

We started off our day with big bowls of oatmeal.

Mine was chocolate banana PB oats. Mmm mmm
 
Banana oats, topped with raw cacao powder, a drizzle of agave and PB

Next, we did a bit of apartment cleaning and then we were off to the Union Square Greenmarket

The apples and rhubarb were plentiful

And there were mushrooms the size of my head!
   

And one stand had some of the most beautiful tomatoes I had ever seen

I picked up two… FOR EIGHT DOLLARS! Slightly expensive, no? I hoped they were worth it!

We also picked up some pink potatoes and grass-fed, local beef to make a burger for BF.

After the market we relaxed for a while, I did some shopping (didn’t get anything though ), then we took another walk to get the BF a snack. And then went to the gym.  

I did mostly weights, but warmed up for a about 10 minutes with…SKIPPING! It is seriously an amazing cardio workout. I used to be a rhythmic gymnast, so I am very familiar with the rope. I like to alternate between criss-cross skipping, regular skipping and double skips.
But if skipping is new to you try this (but, believe me it’s NOT EASY!)

After the gym I made dinner…fresh from the market!

$8 tomatoes topped with goat gouda, EVOO, balsamic reduction and S&P
They were worth it

Balsamic reductions are very easy to make. Pour a cup of balsamic vinegar into a saucepan and put it on medium-high heat. Let it reduce until it can coat the back of a spoon. You can also add some sugar to sweeten it if you like. I prefer mine unsweetened.

I made BF a simple burger, with ground beef, S&P, EVOO and a dash of red wine.
Topped with Australian cheddar

And a veggie burger sans cheese for me!
 
We had our burgers on whole wheat sourdough buns.

With a side of streamed pink potatoes
  \

It was all delish!

Dessert was organic strawberries. And nope, they’re not topped with chocolate sauce.
 
They’re topped with the rest of the balsamic reduction from the tomatoes! YUM!

Off to school….

Did you ever do gymnastics as a child? If not, what kind of extra-curricular stuff did you do growing up?

I was very into performing when I was young. I did dance continuously since the age of 3, from ages 9-11 I also did competitive rhythmic gymnastics, and for a couple years (until I was 13 or 14 I think) I was a member of a junior musical theatre company. I even got to perform at Disney Land with them!

Our first stop was Nathans to get the rest of the crew some world famous frankfurters 

And, of course, enter the Hot Dog eating contest Can you believe the world record for males is 680!!!! And [...]]]> Me, BF and two friends spent the day at Coney Island yesterday.

Our first stop was Nathans to get the rest of the crew some world famous frankfurters 

And, of course, enter the Hot Dog eating contest

Can you believe the world record for males is 680!!!! And females is 410!!! Ew…

The dogs
 

While the others enjoyed their beef I got myself a GIANT slice of pizza

It was huge, it was greasy. And it was delicious.

Our table
  

And then, it was beach time.

Not quite the Hamptons… but a beach is a beach.
 

I got about 2 pages into my new book before I passed out in the warm warm sun.

That would be a pina colada beside my book…and later I had an un-pictured ice cream. Ugh. Tummyache.

Later our group showered off our sandy, carnival covered selves and got prettied up to go to Yerba Buena

Highly HIGHLY recommend this place.

Watermelon fries

Hamachi Taquitos

Grilled hearts of palm

And spicy shrimp with rice, hearts of palm and tomato salsa
 

And then we went for dessert at Cafe Reggio. I got chocolate mousse. It was huge. And rich.

And un-pictured. Sorry! Also un-pictured was some more pizza that BF and I shared when we got home.

YIKES! I was stuffed. And am still stuffed this morning. TOO.MUCH.EATING!

I’m keeping it light today. And then…back to school tomorrow.

What did you get up to this memorial day weekend?