Caroline Dines

Ahhhh….the day after Christmas. Time for complete relaxation, playing with your presents and reflecting on the year past. I have been doing all three of these things but before we get to the present moment let’s back up a bit to recap Christmas 2009! Here’s my family on Christmas Eve after Church (yes, my Dad is wearing a Santa Hat).

Darin and I packed up the sleigh car, early Thursday morning for the 3.5 hour ride up to Maine. The backseat was completely packed as was the trunk.

Before we got on the highway we made a quick pit stop at Starbucks. I always go into Starbucks (as opposed to waiting in the car) because honestly I don’t always know what I want. Also my drinks are so complicated! Darin told me to wait and that he would take care of my order which was a little scary giving up control! However, he did a darn good job ordering a tall, skinny, peppermint mocha latte with only one pump of each flavor and no whipped cream!

He also came back with an early Christmas surprise for me, this CD Starbucks was selling to help fight AIDS in Africa. I love little surprises!

Breakfast was a banana that was consumed too fast and too haphazardly to have pictured. A few hours into the trip we both gnawed on a raw carrot and munched on the last of the Chex Mix.

I also perused the first gift of Christmas that I received the night before from Mr. Dee (our volunteer baker at the house). I was so blown away that he picked this out for me, it was dead on! Clean, local, seasonal food? I mean, come on! (said like G.O.B. on Arrested Development)

Soon after we arrived home, it was time for the Christmas Eve church service. This year there was a 4 p.m. service that we decided to go to instead of the 7 p.m.

It was lovely to return home at 5 p.m. and have the whole evening to enjoy. We got down to business preparing a Christmas Eve spread that included spiked egg nog, fondue, crudite, french bread, and sweet and sour meatballs. The fondue was made by my brother and included all local ingredients: butter, raw milk, Maine Gruyere, dried basil and thyme, and Maine sea salt.

The only thing missing was a proper fondue pot! No problem though, we ate everything fast enough.

After dinner we settled down for a Christmas Classic, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Normally we would watch “It’s a wonderful life” but since Darin and I had watched it earlier in the season and we hadn’t seen Christmas Vacation as a family yet, we opted for the later. It was just as funny as always and especially enjoyable since I was on “Christmas Vacation” for the first time in years! My bro, Andrew is home on break from the farm and since my parents both work for the school system they have a nice long vacay as well.

Christmas morning was filled with traditions and laughs. My mom had prepared a raspberry loaf that we all enjoyed along with some yogurt and Maine blueberries and a few wedges of Clementine.

I would say that the majority of our stockings contained food items, which isn’t surprising if you know my family. One of the cutest was this Cadbury Truck tin that my Dad gave to my Mom. We of course had to open one of the bags for sampling. The little chocolate covered graham snacks hit my sweet tooth just right at 9 a.m.!

Everyone did a fantastic job with presents this year. We all made an effort to not over buy and instead try to find meaningful and practical gifts for each other. We did have to spoil the cat though with a little surprise: cat nip! Smudge wasn’t sure what it was but I am sure we’ll find it destroyed in a few days.

After our Christmas at home, we packed up the car and drove an 1.5 to my Aunt’s house in Hallowell Maine. I am always impressed with her attention to detail, it takes a lot to pull of a meal for 12 people!

Over the course of the afternoon I had three drinks but started off light with a Mike’s Pomegranate.

The meal was exquisitely done. The highlights for me was of course the sweet potato pie (on the right), the creamy risotto, the horseradish cream sauce on top of the beef tenderloin and the stuffed mushrooms. O.K. I guess that’s everything except for the crescent roll which was delicious as well! No complaints here!

My great Aunt brought with her a little dancing hamster that she has had for years and years but still works. We had a great time entertaining ourselves with his little song and dance.

At one point you could even here my Aunt, my Mom and myself singing Josh Groban’s “Angels we have heard on high” from the top of our lungs. We had to sequester ourselves on the second floor though so as not to “disturb” the rest of the family.

After we had digested the meal, it was time for what else, dessert! My Mom’s family knows how to do dessert. Along with an apple and pecan pie there were homemade peppermint patties and texas sheet cake cut up with crushed candy canes on top,

Swedish Cardamom Cookies

Classic Sugar Cookies,

and a new treat, Ritz crackers covered with semi-sweet chocolate and sprinkled with crushed candy canes.

My plate contained the following: Tiramisu, a frosted sugar cookie and a peppermint patty. Keep in mind I went back for MANY more.

With dessert I sipped a Chambord Champagne Sparkler with real raspberries which could be a new favorite.

Our family has the tradition of a Yankee Swap which usually turns out pretty fruitful for all involved. Our limit is 10.00 but I have a feeling some went over! Darin was #2 (poor guy) and started out with a great gift which ended up being snagged. This is a Maine Marinade made with Maple Syrup and Passion Fruit. When he opened it I immediately started thinking about all that I could make with it, that was until it was swapped!

The evening wrapped up around 6:30 and once we got back home all of us realized we were hungry again. I whipped together a batch of tuna and we all ate a simple sandwich together. After all those sweets, a savory sandwich tasted unbelievably good.

Darin and I had saved our presents for last which is always the way it ends up. I was so excited to open mine and was blown away when I saw what he had picked out for me.  Special jewelry like this always makes the top of my list. I would so much rather have an authentic present like this than have him buy something off a list I had provided him with.

Now I am almost up the present moment, and thought it necessary to share the lunch out that I enjoyed a few hours ago with Darin and his sister Darcy at the Phoenix House and Well located at “the mountain”, Sunday River. They were offering a “Stimulus Package” Special which meant that you could get a beer, wine or other beverage for 1 penny if you ordered something off the “lighter fare” or pizza menu for lunch. I celebrated the beginning of vacation with a 1 cent Chardonnay!

Darcy was able to get away for her lunch break and we were happy to meet her at the mountain since the Phoenix is known for having some interesting eats. Darin and Darcy wanted the calamari to start with and I wasn’t about to argue with that! The banana peppers were by far the best part but the actual calamari wasn’t bad either. There were capers and a lot of vinegar in the mix which hit my palate just right.

I was in need of some serious vegetables but because I went with the drink special I wasn’t able to get a salad. I instead opted for the veggie panini.

It came with Mozzarella and Provolone but to cut down on calories I opted for no Provolone and asked them to use only a small amount of Mozzarella. The end result was perfect: heavy on the eggplant, zucchini, tomato, peppers and onions and light on the cheese. The pesto spread helped to spice it up a bit too.

My favorite part was the olive/pickle skewer sticking out of the top. I ate them all, even the orange wedge at the bottom!

After lunch, Darin and I spent some time relaxing. We had plans to go see a movie but ended up napping through the show. Nothing better than taking a nap on a Saturday afternoon. I ended up eating dinner at my house which worked out well because my Dad had cooked a turkey earlier in the day. We didn’t do potatoes which worked out fine because we had stuffing and none of us were THAT hungry after all the good eats over the past few days.

Dessert was a tiny scoop of Edy’s Egg Nog ice cream (reduced fat) and a square of the Texas sheet cake. Now that I am about to bust, I am off to put on comfy clothes and enjoy a movie with the Fam. I hope that you all had an enjoyable and relaxing holiday filled with good food and good memories.

…I just haven’t been documenting as much! With Christmas fast approaching, work and personal business have been taking priority over my daily posts. I have been working extra hours so that I can take a nice long break beginning Christmas Eve all the way through the New Year! I am so excited since I will be heading home to Maine to be with my family and Darin’s family and will be cross country skiing (my favorite form of exercise!), sledding, skating, maybe even snowboarding. So as I said, you can rest assured that I have still been consuming food, (probably too much with all the sweets around here!) but with holiday parties that don’t allow for paparazzi shots I am feeling like quite the neglectful blogger. Either way here are some of my highlights for the past few days.

Breakfast on Wednesday was a lovely Multi-Grain Bruegger’s Bagel which was “scored” from the Community Social at the house which took place on Wednesday instead of it’s normal Tuesday this week. I added Light Herb and Garlic cream cheese to my hollowed out vessel.

After breakfast I hustled off to the Haley House which turned into a very rewarding shift. I had quite a few customers and also some individuals who stopped by to just get warm (I actually gave one a free cup of coffee). Since the Haley House is not JUST a bakery and it’s primary goal is to provide community to individuals in the South End who may not have a home to call their own, I felt really pleased that the regulars were starting to become familiar with my face and felt comfortable talking to me. I put out our fabulous cupcakes as free sample; partly because I wanted to try a bite and also because I knew they would draw people in!

The rest of Wednesday was spent working and saying goodbye to a co-worker who is moving to Denver and will be dearly missed. We went out to a local bar called The Mission which had delicious bar food in my opinion. Sadly I have no pictures from the evening but I am sure you can picture in your mind such dishes as Sweet Potato Skins, Mussels, Bruschetta, and a killer Nacho plate. I had a Magner’s Cider with my appetizers which was such a treat since I was actually “working”. The next morning I was craving some fruit and “carby” goodness so I dug into my last ruby red and prepared a peanut butter toast to eat with it. The flavors here weren’t exactly complimentary but it hit my cravings perfectly and provided adequate nutrition I believe.

I’ve been hitting yoga hard this week and after my session on Thursday I came home ravenous. Lucky for me I had a fresh bag of TJ’s Salsa chips and a tub of Sabra Hummus.

I don’t think I have ever tried these chips before but let me just tell you if you have any love for Doritos and just can’t justify eating them anymore, try these! They are not as heavily doused in seasoning but have a great taste which allows the chip to stand alone fine or pair with salsa, hummus or any other dip you can think of.

This morning I woke up thinking about breakfast. This hasn’t happened in awhile (maybe I have been too full from the night before?) so I decided to resurrect an old classic: GREEK YOGURT MESS! This one contained one little tub of Strawberry Oikos, a sprinkle of blueberry muesli, some walnuts, and unsweetened coconut. SOO good and even though it’s not very seasonal the coconut looked like snow so that has to count for something right?

Yoga was another awesome sweat sesh and I came home ravenous. I actually dreamed this sandwich up on my frigid walk home and it came out better than I had expected.

I toasted two slices of my low carb When Pigs Fly bread, smeared one slice with Sabra hummus and the other with TJ’s roasted red pepper spread. Then I cut two slices of cheddar cheese and topped it off with two Claussen sandwich stackers.  Such an awesome sandwich! A good cheese sandwich is sometimes so satisfying in my opinion.

It was “oh so photogenic” too, don’t you think?

And I would be remiss if I didn’t include the dessert from last night since a bite or two of it did make it’s way past my lips today. I had a full “tree” last night and was able to photograph them without many questions since I just said in front of the families that they were too cute not to picture. After all they ARE too cute! They are a brownie base with green colored frosting, m+m’s for decoration and a candy cane trunk., They’re supposed to be Christmas Trees if you couldn’t tell!

After a long week I am so ready to be done with work related stuff. Luckily I have plans to meet up with Meg C. for a vegan dinner at Veggie Planet in Harvard Square and hopefully some drinks afterwards. Happy Friday everyone!

This morning I woke up craving something sweet. This rarely happens (usually my sweet cravings only kick in after 8 p.m.!) so I decided to go with it and fixed myself a mug of hot chocolate. For a pepperminty twist I hung a mini candy cane on the rim which added just a hint of flavor while it dissolved in the hot, creamy beverage.

I simply couldn’t do the cereal this morning but wanted something “carby” and was delighted when I remembered that I had some “When Pigs Fly” Low Carb bread in the freezer. One small piece toasted with a smear of Kate’s Homemade Butter was the perfect accompaniment to a serving of Honey flavored Oikos yogurt.

I have been having the SAME routine for days now and it’s starting to get boring, thank goodness Christmas break is just around the corner. I need to mix things up a bit! After my yoga class I was starving and came home to a warm bowl of Tomato Soup. This is the Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup from TJ’s to be exact. I had the Low Sodium version for some reason and ended up adding salt! Whoops. I also added some cheddar cheese chunks for the oooey goooey goodness!

Since it’s almost Christmas, I wanted to share with you a few of my “holiday decorations” that have been keeping me company during the day. These little guys always put a smile on my face when I look at them sitting quietly on the book shelf. The big snowman was a present from Darin about 6 years ago, the little snowman was given to me by my Mom around the same era, and the reindeer I won in a Yankee Swap this year! They keep each other company.

I also wanted to highlight a few of my ornaments that MAY be of interest to you healthy food bloggers out there. First off the infamous Pickle Ornament. My Dad gave me this since pickles are really his thing and we always had one on our tree growing up.

I think this little Red Raspberry ornament is pretty old, I am almost certain it was my Mom’s as a child. Either way it reminds me of berry season which can’t come soon enough!

What foodie tree would be complete without a gigantic cupcake? Darin’s sister found this ornament two Christmases ago and knew that it would be right up my ally, she was right, I LOVE this ornament.

She also bought me this one which was picked out carefully as well since we completed a Tri-Athalon together a few years back and were both quite proud of our accomplishment!

And the last ornament I will highlight for you all is a special one because it was made for Darin and me by my mom the first year we lived together. This was on our first tree and I hope it will be for many more to come.

Alright, enough personal stuff, back to the food! For an afternoon snack I literally ripped into this red grapefruit. Such a mess but so delicious.

It was a good thing I had such a filling snack because dinner was being prepared for the house tonight by the Emergency Room Fellows at Children’s Hospital and I was not in control of when we got to eat! I was so hungry by the time everything was done! Check out the spread!

They did a fabulous job and I made sure they knew how much I appreciated all the healthy options. I mean look at this plate! They had spinach balls, lentil stew, turkey chili, salad, grilled chicken, and baked ziti.  Sorry the picture isn’t high quality, I had to snap it on the run since I didn’t want to draw attention to my food blogging ways with such a crowd.

Good thing I saved some room for dessert because there was NO way that one of these was going to get by me. This is a Gingerbread Cupcake with a half a gingerbread man sticking out the top (incase you couldn’t tell!). The frosting was H-E-A-V-E-N and the cake wasn’t bad either! YUMMMM. I love my job.

I had a craving for yogurt this weekend and decided to act on it since I had some  coupons for Stonyfield’s Greek variety, Oikos. Whole Foods didn’t have any of the “plain” variety, surprising I know, so I went for some flavor and was not disappointed.

I would have liked some granola for the top but I made do with my trusty Shredded Oats. I have had this box for weeks now and have no desire to eat it. I think it’s because I was eating the cereal around the time when I got sick and so I have this weird kind of aversion to it now. When have I ever been able to keep a box of cereal around for that long!? NEVER!

After my yoga sesh I came home and devoured this little guy.

I then made a huge salad mess that was TO-DIE-FOR! I used real spinach, Sabra hummus (the local MA variety), Apricot Stilton crumbles, TJ’s roasted red pepper dip, Claussen sandwich stackers (vegetable, no?), and balsamic vinegar.  

I used some Blue Diamon Pecan thins as dippers/croutons. All the flavors worked lovely together but the real standout was the Roasted Red Pepper dip!

I quenched my thirst with a lime seltzer on the side. AHHHHHHH…..

After a busy afternoon of cleaning, laundry and dinner prep it was time for work. I baked a spaghetti squash earlier in the afternoon so that when dinner rolled around and I was “on the job” I would have an easier time of preparing my meal. After baking at 350 for an hour and ten minutes, I let this cool for a good hour. I then set to work scraping out the insides.

The last time I baked a spaghetti squash I ended up topping it with meat, sauce and cheese. This time I wanted to take it a slightly different route and make a Spaghetti Squash Pie! One of my favorite meals growing up was my Mom’s Spaghetti Pie. She got the recipe from Cooking Light so it was healthy. This creation resembles the spaghetti pie my Mom used to make but doesn’t contain any acutal pasta. Perfect for people watching their carb intake. Here’s how I did it:

First, I stir-fried about 1 lb of local bison meat (tastes just like beef but is actually much leaner!)

Then, I added about a pound of fresh spinach leaves and cooked until they were all wilted.

I poured in an entire jar of pasta sauce into the mix.  In this case I used Whole Foods generic brand, the sundried tomato and basil variety.

I then added two wedges of laughing cow cheese and melted them into the mix. This could be left out but I wanted to simulate the cream cheese in my Mom’s original pie recipe.

Once the cheese was all melted, I began layering. First a layer of spaghetti squash then the meat mixture and then a layer of whatever kind of cheese you prefer. I used a mix of grated Fontina, Asiago and Parmesan.

Finally, I put the whole casserole in the oven at 350 and cook just until hot.

The final result was a winner! This made about 8 servings which means that my freezer has a nice portion for a night when we have no food! We both remarked at how you don’t need actual pasta in this dish. I loved that it cut like a real casserole too, check out the thick slice you get! And since the spinach is already in there, it’s a true “all-in-one” meal.

I should have been satisfied with that delicious dinner but you know my sweet tooth can’t be stopped some nights. Lucky for me, there was a yellow cake with raspberry icing dropped off earlier in the day.

So I am assuming you all guessed by the picture that our last little stop in Bethel was to purchase this years Christmas tree? We didn’t waste any time setting it up (it went up Saturday night) and have both been enjoying the comforting glow ever since. Christmas trees are very personal in my opinion. Everyone has their own taste and opinions about lights, garland, tinsel, ornaments etc. Growing up my family always had the BIG colored lights because that’s what my parents grew up with. While most people frown on these lights since they could be considered a fire hazard (whatever!) and are generally accepted as “tacky”, I still love them. I consider myself especially fortunate to have a boyfriend who feels the same way I do about Christmas lights.  Big colored lights all the way (and a few strands of tinsel for good measure!).

Now that you have seen our little tree in all it’s nightime glory, let’s rewind to talk about the delicious food for today. With no food in the house, breakfast was kind of decided for me. It was an o.k. meal but I am kind of getting sick of these muffins and the little yogurt cups from last week.

It was enough to get me through a SUPER intense yoga sessino though so I can’t complain that much. I started up with Baptiste Power Yoga again yesterday. I took the month of November off due to sickness and injury but am completely committed (financially and mentally) for the month of December. It feels great to be back in the 96 degree studio even if I was dying today after what seemed like the 98th Chaturanga Dandasana (low plank). After yoga, I made my to Stop and Shop to pick up some things that I find hard to get at TJ’s. I got myself home as quickly as possible since it was raining and I had a heavy load (I always buy too much on foot!). I was also starving by the time I arrived back (close to 1p.m.) and made myself exactly what I was craving.

I drank an entire bottle of Poland Spring Seltzer while devouring this salad plate. It consisted of the following: regular spinach, hummus, sliced Boar’s Head turkey (I hadn’t had my fill from T-Giving), organic baby carrots, feta, and balsamic vinegar. This has got to me one of my favorite lunches of all time. The way that the balsamic mixes with the hummus? I am truly salivating right now and I just ate dinner!

The perfect ending was this delightful clementine that I bought on sale today. There was a whole bunch of them in the “reduced” produce section and I scored about 15 of these little guys for $1.69!!! It’s citrus season!

After lunch I just “bummed” around the apartment. I had every intention of cleaning up a little bit but somehow I ended up on the couch watching a movie! I think yoga wiped me out. I got myself up and showered just before work (sometimes it’s really nice living where you work). I grabbed a handful of these before heading into the office.

Work was particularly busy tonight so I didn’t get to eat until around 8:00 p.m.! Luckily I had pulled out two containers of Chili and two pieces of cornbread from last month’s Recipe Night for Darin and myself. Nothing better than an already made meal on a night when you have no time to even eat. This chili tasted exactly the same as it did a few weeks ago, if not better.

I added shredded cheese and crumbled the cornbread right over the top so that it soaked up all the flavor. Chili is my ultimate comfort food I do believe, chili and cornbread that is!  Every bite was a blend of veggies, ground beef, beans, cheese and corn bread. I love mixing the textures and flavors.

And since I had a somewhat “light” day of eating I decided to go for a petite vanilla scone which were donated by Starbucks.

Are you bored of breakfast shots yet? I am. The hard thing is I rarely feel like making anything in the morning and cereal is just so darn comforting to me that it wins out every time. This morning my Shredded Oats were strewn across some Apple Yogurt. I actually went back for another scoop of cereal, this time with some Almond milk. No matter how hard I try if I have cereal and milk around I just need a bowl at least once a day.

Today was one of those days where there is a lot that needs to get done but you feel yourself dragging with every task. Laundry x3, Baking x2, and cleaning consumed most of my morning and early afternoon. I took a break with a fresh out of the oven Apple Cinnamon Muffin. The recipe is from Elana’s Cookbook so I can’t share the exact proportions but I will give you an idea of the key players. These guys had Almond Flour, Agave, Grapeseed Oil, Apples, and Cinnamon and a few other ingredients that you probably suspect. I was pleased at how cakey they came out and how rich the cinnamon flavor was. They got a little bit burned on top which probably has something to do with the Agave which tends to burn faster than sugar. All in all they tasted great and I am happy to be bringing them to Maine for a breakfast treat this Thanksgiving weekend. That is, if I don’t eat them all first.

After all the laundry was folded and the apartment was starting to look recognizable again, I broke for lunch. This was one of the quickest and most satisfying lunches to date. Left over Spaghetti Squash. Feta and Marinara sauce are definitely one of my favorite combos. Some might find it weird but I just can’t get enough. The spaghetti squash didn’t lose any of it’s “al-dente-ness” from last night. It still tasted like pasta to me!

I managed to get my squash dish all prepped for dinner on Thursday too. I basically made them but didn’t top them with cheese for the second baking. I’ll do this right before we eat so that it’s fresh and bubbly out of the oven! I think I am going to pick up a little more squash tomorrow and make it up with some butter and brown sugar (the way my Grandfather loved it) to have on just incase anyone wants the regular version. Also, it will mean left overs which I think you can tell are my favorite part of any meal. Dinner was a classic that I haven’t done in awhile. Tuna Fish Sandwiches!

Since today was Bagel Tuesday, I wanted to incorporate the super fresh bagels that had been taunting me all day long. I scooped out the middle (I know I saw someone on here do this but I can’t remember who!) which left me with a perfect shell to scoop the Tuna Fish. I really recommend this method for any of you who love bagels but could do without all the calories and carbs. My favorite part of the bagel is the outside anyway and I really didn’t miss the handful of doughy bread that I scooped out.

My Tuna was made with Light Hellman’s Mayo, Garlic Salt, and Pepper. I use a lot of Garlic Salt which probably isn’t the best for you but I need my Tuna salty, it’s just the way it goes. On the side I had some carrot spears with a little dipping sauce (mayo and ketchup! weird I know but it’s tasty), and pickles (the last of the jar).

This meal totally hit the spot and left me pleasantly full. I am trying to avoid the Fro Yo tonight because I might have had a bit too much last night. My sweet tooth may allow me to skip dessert and replace it with a cup of hot tea tonight. I know that the next few days are going to be full of decadent desserts so I am trying to balance things out early!

Alright, I’ll admit it. I love the red cup from Starbucks. I know this might seem like a contradiction of my post the other day about Christmas Music, but for some reason the red cup is acceptable before Thanksgiving. I am not a total Scrooge! You’ll find the beloved cup later on in the post but first let’s talk about breakfast. You will see from the pics below that I found my appetite this morning (albeit a bit smaller than normal, but nonetheless there). I started the day off with a yogurt/cereal mix which was all thanks to a Mom who left behind some of her child’s Stonyfield Organic Yogurt.I tried the Apple flavor and was happy to find that it was very, very mild with just a hint of cinnamon-y apple flavor. Just what I was looking for.

Normally I wouldn’t go near Whole Fat yogurt but since I was seriously lacking yesterday, I figured a little extra today couldn’t hurt. Plus since these little containers are only 4 ounces, the whole milk yogurt only amounts to 110 calories and 4.5 grams of fat. Not horrible.I put a small amount of Shredded Spoonfuls over the top (small because my throat can’t handle ALL that scratchiness).

It was good enough to lick the bowl clean.

After breakfast, I started to get ready for my shift at the Haley House. However, I quickly realized that I never told my shift supervisor that my ankle was better (I called out last Wednesday) and that I would be in this week! Since I couldn’t call, (I just email, no phone number) I figured it would be pointless to go down there since I am sure someone was covering. I did send an email out though to let him know that I would DEFINITELY be in next week and thanked everyone for their understanding with my injury. Even though my ankle is better and I could have gone today, it’s probably a blessing in disguise since it might not be smart for me to be serving up food to people with this lingering virus. I was determined to get busy today though and since I was all showered and ready, I set out to Starbucks.This location is a mad house! I actually got a table which was lucky but I waited a solid hour before getting my drink because the line was out the door! Lucky nobody seemed to care that I hadn’t purchased a drink and was just “hangin out”.

I had a project to work on that has been bugging me for a week or so now. I can’t seem to focus in the apartment and needed a change of scenery to help with the writers block. A crowded public space was just what I needed. I managed to get a great start and am closer to finishing than I thought! After I had a good chunk written, I broke for a coffee. After a little research I settled on a Tall Skinny Hazelnut Latte (90 calories, 0 fat). I have never had the Hazelnut kind before and was in the mood for something different. I had thoughts of getting a Peppermint Mocha but after checking the stats for a tall nonfat, no whip (220 calories, 2 fat) I thought better. I kind of think it’s a crime how awful some of these drinks are for you. It’s also sad that the only way I can justify a “fun” drink from here is by opting for the sugar free syrup which I normally try to stay away from. Isn’t there a way we could make “healthier” coffee beverages?

Alright, time to get back to business. I have Colbie Caillat blasting from my headphones and I am feeling the caffeine start to kick in. Must write!

P.S. It’s really too bad that Photo Booth makes that little beeping noise when it’s counting down to take the picture. Otherwise I would have been able to take self portraits without anyone knowing.

P.P.S. If you are interested in winning some Chobani Yogurt, stop over to Kasondra’s blog: More to Life than Food and enter to win!

Since yesterday I have been feeling a little off. Today I was hit with cold symptoms (runny nose, cough, slight chills) and have spent the day resting and hydrating like a mad woman. Breakfast this morning was an old classic but in a smaller bowl than normal. My appetite hasn’t been all that strong today, so I listened. Plain yogurt, apple butter, 1 barney butter packet and a sprinkle of muesli on top.

My plan was to stay in the house all day but we have NO food and it was a bit of a crisis. I saddled up my “granny cart” and walked to Trader Joe’s (not that far at all) to stock up. When I got back I was hungry for lunch. Funny how grocery shopping always does this to me. I thought up this lunch on my walk back and I think it might be a new favorite!

2 rice cakes (reduced salt) with 1 laughing cow cheese spread over both. I used to love cream cheese on rice cakes as a kid and this was just as good if not better. Actually the final topping on each made the meal. I topped one with pumpkin butter…

…and the other with a TJ’s eggplant spread. One sweet and one savory.

I even stuck with the sweet and savory theme for my accompaniments: pickle and apple slices. The apple was my first Macintosh of the season. I have been sticking with the honey crisp variety this year and since my farmer’s market is closed I had to buy apples at TJ’s today. Since the Mac’s were local I went with them and was not at all disappointed. A good local Mac is just as good as a Honey Crisp.  :)

Since this meal was on the light side, I finished with a serving of peanut butter filled pretzels (TJ’s, no salt variety). My Nana had these this weekend and I kind of became addicted! I am going to be limiting myself though to the serving size though!

Not feeling up to par is really messing with my appetite. I am basically just drinking tea and seltzer water and haven’t felt like much else all afternoon. Dinner tonight was one of my favorites of the month: Thai Food. I couldn’t just miss it all together, so I made sure to try a little bit of the three dishes: Veggie Pad Thai with Tofu, Basil Fried Rice, and Yellow Curry with Tofu. My favorites were the curry and the pad thai. The Basil Rice was too spicy/weird-ly flavored for my taste. This food actually tasted really good to me, despite feeling off. I am not really surprised since Brown Sugar does Thai right.

Hopefully this thing passes by me and I start feeling better tomorrow. Maybe it’s allergies? I have no fever so as long as I am not running a temperature I will continue working (just basically sticking to my office rather than mingling with families). I’ll keep my purell by myside for now. How about you guys? Anyone feeling sick or just getting over it? Any suggestions on how to beat it off?

Morning! …..Afternoon! This morning totally got away with me with a work meeting and a lot of internet surfing but I have something exciting to report. Last week I placed an order for some Glo Bars from Angela’s Glo Bakery and they came yesterday!

I was so excited to try the new flavors since I had only tried the original at the Healthy Living Summit this past August. I bought the Coffee Lovers variety pack because it was on special I am not a HUGE coffee lover by any stretch but I do like coffee flavored things and who couldn’t use a little burst of caffeine in a bar right? This morning I tried the “Empower Bar” which is Dark Chocolate and Roasted Coffee flavored. I had a little bit of fun with it.

I decided not to crumble this bar on top of my yogurt because I really enjoy eating it as a bar. I knew I wanted a little calcium and nut butter as part of my breakfast too and that’s when things got fun. I took a bite of the bar without anything else on it at first and was stunned at how delicious it tasted. These bars are seriously so moist and flavored just right they make me want to eat them all day, every day. The coffee flavor matched with the chocolate was hard to beat and that means a lot coming from someone who doesn’t drink coffee. I definitely felt a little rush after it and felt totally empowered!

Greek yogurt frosting if you will? I am so glad that I bit the bullet and ordered a box of these bars. The shipping to the U.S. is a little tough to swallow but I am happy to support a fellow blogger in her new and promising business venture. It makes it easy when the product is so superb! I know these bars have been making there way around the blogging community, so have you guys found any favorite flavors yet? I am interested to hear since I will probably be placing another order sometime soon!

Happy Halloween Everyone! I am so excited that Halloween falls on a Saturday this year and not only that it’s  a gorgeous 70 degree sunny Saturday here in Boston. This will make for some happy kids trick-or-treating. Growing up in Maine it was usually chilly by this point and our costumes usually had to be worn OVER snow suits or at least a lot of layering. Not very cool looking. Anyway tonight Darin and I are going to a Halloween Party being thrown by one of our friends. I am so excited to hang out with everyone and to see all the fun costumes. I’ll keep you in suspense a bit longer about ours but I will say that it involves a lot of fake blood, duct tape, a respirator, and some plastic wrap. I woke up bright early for yoga this morning and manged to eat this bar on my way to class. I was kind of running because I was late which was difficult to do while scarfing a lara bar. Not the best but it worked.

1 1/2 of yoga was exactly what the body ordered after the extra long run yesterday. I literally melted into my mat and ended up doing a lot of child’s pose because my muscles weren’t excited for more toning. It felt great though and I am so glad I went. I came home to shower and made myself an extra messy yogurt mess with shredded oats cereal, plain yogurt, pumpkin butter and cranberries.

The morning was spent getting costumes finalized, hydrating, and a walk outside to enjoy this beautiful weather. I came back thirsty and had some more of this apple cider which I haven’t been able to get enough of. It’s so good!

And because they were out for the kids in the house, I had a mini bag of smart food. I NEVER eat this stuff and figured it had a bit more nutrition than a kit-kat bar which I could have easily gone for.

The rest of the day will most likely include some resting in preparation for tonight. I wont be posting again until tomorrow morning so I hope you all enjoy your evening and take lots of pictures! I can’t believe tomorrow is November 1st and we set the clocks back an hour! It’s kind of good timing since I’ll need the extra sleep tomorrow but it will be hard to have it get dark that early!