Ch-ch-ch-chiaaa!

Salut mes petits choux! (I've been feeling particularly francaise all day...I think this girl's awesome posts might have something to do with it!) It’s been a pretty interesting day for me food-wise, so I’ll get right to it!

I woke up at six to get a workout in before class. On my way out the door, I ate a S’Mores Luna Bar (sorry for the bad pic, I had to use my flash in a dark room!):

I’ve never met a Luna I didn’t like, and this flavor is no exception! Perfect pre-workout fuel. At the gym, I did 7 miles on the elliptical in an hour and some change. My training plan includes race-effort cross-training to keep up my stamina while giving my knee a break!

Breakfast was the last of my Nature’s Path SmartBran cereal, topped with frozen strawbs and almond milk:

Before I left for class, I decided to get a little creative and make some chia pudding-slash-overnight oats to incorporate into my lunch somehow. I combined ½ c rolled oats, ¼ c chia seeds, and 1.5 c almond milk and left it in the fridge for about three hours. When I came back from class, I was super pleased by how well it had turned out- a nice, puddingy consistency with a definite chew from the oats. The trouble came when I added some mix-ins!

With a sliced banana, 2 T maca powder and a spoonful of Naturally More

The dry ingredients were definitely the downfall of this lunch, since as soon as I added them, it became super thick and difficult to blend. Not one to waste food, I ate it anyway! I have to say that the flavor combination was great- the maca gave it a nice malty flavor, which was balanced out by the blandness of the oats, the sweetness of the banana and the saltiness of the PB. The texture didn’t bother me at first, but halfway through the bowl, it started to gross me out. I performed emergency surgery with another half cup of milk, plus a spoonful of melted Naturally More. Definitely an improvement, but I still had trouble enjoying the chia consistency- next time I need to use less, especially if I’m adding oats as well! I also had some unpictured baby carrots with lunch.

Later in the afternoon, I was craving carbs after a very long and boring science lecture:

 

Once Again Sunflower Seed Butter on Ezekiel bread, Mary’s Crack remnants

Not long after, I noticed I had a package notice on my door! Receiving mail always gets me excited. I was even more excited when I picked it up and realized it was from Liz!

Best package ever! She sent me 2 PowWow bars, gum, raisins, a few cute headbands she made, a sparkly pen, and a sweet note! Of course, I wanted to break right into the PowWows, but decided to wait until after dinner as a non-dessert J

For dinner, I met Jillian at Eva’s and got my absolute favorite salad. Seriously, I have dreams about this combination! I got the non-dairy vegetarian super salad, which has hummus, eggplant salad, falafel balls, stuffed grape leaves, black olives, tomatoes, escarole, and brown rice, all tossed in balsamic and EVOO and served with a pita. I didn’t snap a pic, but here’s one from the archives:

Definitely one of my favorite dinners ever! It was made even better when I came home to a PowWow bar for dessert:

Won’t Make Your Monkey Chunky bar

Holy yum was this good! Super moist and peanut buttery, with a subtle banana taste and big chunks of peanuts. It tasted like peanut butter banana bread! Amazing!! Liz definitely has a calling in making these…thanks again girl!

One question I wanted to ask all of you is whether you use Ecto to write your posts. I’ve been seeing it mentioned all over the blogworld lately (usually with problems attached, though!), and I’m wondering what exactly it is and how it’s better than regular Blogger posting. Any input would be appreciated!

Alright, it’s back to work (and some study snacks!) for this chica- this week is relentless with homework! Bonsoir!

What’s your favorite salad combination? Mine is definitely the Eva’s I had tonight, but I also love any salad with tempeh in it!

PS- Don’t forget to enter my Le Creuset giveaway!

Le Creuset Giveaway!

Hey everyone! The awesome people over at CSN Stores have graciously offered to let me host a giveaway for all of you! CSN is a great network of stores that carries just about everything you could use in your home, from treadmills and yoga accessories, to bakeware to kitchen appliances, to counter stools and home decor!

 This winter has been especially brutal and cold for a lot of us, so in honor of spring’s return in a few weeks, I’m giving away this Le Creuset Petite Stawberry Casserole!

 “This Petite Strawberry Casserole is the perfect size for accenting a table with dips, condiments, cheeses, and pudding. The lid makes it practical for heating up sauces in the microwave or keeping snacks fresh. You can bake charming individual portions while entertaining guests. Crafted from high-quality durable stoneware, this piece will not chip, scratch, or stain. The Le Creuset Petite Strawberry Casserole is a stylish and creative serving piece for your next party!” –from cookware.com

 There are three ways to enter:

 1. Go to this site and take a look around, then leave me a comment here telling me what counter stools or other item you’d most like to decorate your house with! Please do this to be eligible for the other two entries!

2. Link back to this giveaway in your next post. (For those of you who don’t have a blog, just leave me two comments of something you’d like from the site!)

3. Follow my blog, or add me to your Google Reader or blogroll!

 Please leave a separate comment for each entry! The deadline for entering is this Friday, March 5, at midnight. I’ll announce the winner on Saturday!

 Thanks so much for everyone’s participation, and good luck! 

Wham, bam, thank you ma'am

Bonsoir mes belles! Hope you’ve all had a lovely Monday- I can’t believe it’s March already! I’m definitely not complaining, we’re that much closer to spring!

I’m going to keep this short and sweet since I have a mountain of reading to do and want to get to bed early! One of my roommates was up until 2 last night working on a project and I just couldn’t fall asleep with the noise and light L

No surprises with breakfast:

Nature’s Path SmartBran, frozen blobs, almond milk and cinnamon

I think this might actually be one of my favorite cereal/fruit combos. SmartBran tastes just like Rice Krispies and is the perfect complement to the blueberries. And I love adding cinnamon to my cereal- the milk that gets left behind is delicious!

After yesterday’s long run, I wanted to take things easy today. My legs were feeling kind of tight this morning though, so at the gym I did 10 minutes of walking at 4 mph on the treadmill to move my legs, followed by a bunch of abwork and some serious stretching. Wham, bam, thank you ma’am!

Lunch was a delicious humnut pizza consumed before classes:

Ezekiel tortilla topped with Muir Glen fire roasted pasta sauce, zucchini stirfried in EVOO and balsamic, tomato slices, crumbled Dr. Praeger’s Tex Mex burger, and humnut sauce

I had a tangerine for dessert, plus an unpictured dive into the Naturally More jar in celebration of National Peanut Butter day J

Snacks were packed to enjoy between my afternoon classes:

Ginger Snap Larabar, organic Gala apple

I’ve had this Lara flavor once before, but I forgot how much I loved it! It tastes just like a ginger snap cookie, which always reminds me of my grandfather. They’re his favorite snack!

After a long afternoon of classes, I came home HANGRY and wanted something quick and easy for dinner! Thank goodness for Amy’s Kitchen!

Amy’s Breakfast Burrito, with a mountain of steamed broccoli covered in nooch

Perfect east dinner! Last time I had an Amy’s wrap, K let me in on how good the wraps are to eat alone. Boy, was she ever right! I ended up decapitating it and eating the tofu, tomato and bean filling first, then enjoying the wrap part second. Both were outstanding :)

Dessert was a banana hammock with Once Again Sunflower Seed Butter, the last of my dates and another unpictured dip in the Naturally More jar (this holiday only comes once a year, I have to celebrate while I can!).

 

Well mes amours, I’m off to put a dent in that reading! Be sure to check by tomorrow morning, when I’ll be announcing another giveaway!

What’s your favorite way to enjoy peanut butter? I love it just about any way, but I like it best on a sandwich or just off a spoon!