Weeeeedddnnneeessddaaayyy
Posted: February 3, 2010 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: almond butter, chocolate, cucumber, dessert, green monster, hummus, popcorn, veggies, yogurt 29 Comments »Wednesdays seem to drag on…no? The longest day of the week, followed by my favorite day of the week tomorrow! I started off this long day with a brisk walk (for the doggie’s sake), and a batch of chocolate protein + almond butter.
I also took a green monster to school and drank it around 10:30 – half a banana, 1 cup of frozen (and thawed) spinach, ½ cup frozen raspberries, 2 cups water, 3 tbs. flax seeds – blended for 1 minute.
Yes, that’s an old pickle jar. I drank this while teaching and my class was thoroughly disgusted by it. I told them it was spinach juice – I didn’t really want to get into the whole explanation of a green monster.
At 11:30 – my lunchtime – I pulled some goodies out of my lunchbox, but only ended up eating the hummus and cucumber sandwich. The cucumbers were cold and hurt my teeth – but otherwise it was yummy.
The oranges are still sitting on my desk, waiting to be eaten tomorrow. I opted for another sweet treat – a mom in my class sent in a divine lemon/blueberry custard that I had for lunch dessert.
It was as yummy as it looks. (Thanks, TONA!!)
When the kids were hustled off to PE, a fellow teacher and I ran to Starbucks for a Wednesday pick-me-up.
A grande latte. I like the fat in 2% milk…it’s yummy and it keeps me full. I also had a cornbread vitatop – which was surprisingly sweet. I like sweet surprises.
At my after school job (answering phones in the office) – I ate a bag of popcorn while I graded reading tests…which is my least favorite part of my job. (grading reading tests…not the popcorn)
Actually, I have a little problem with popcorn. The taste is good – but it is so hard for me to eat! I’m sure that sounds bizarre – but I just can’t pick up a few pieces, and get them from the bowl to my mouth. Whenever I eat popcorn, I inevitably end up with popcorn all over me, the floor, and my desk. I feel like a clown, and it drives me nuts. Almost enough to deter me from eating it. Almost.
I went grocery shopping after school – which was kind of a drag, but at least we have food in the house, now!
After a 12 hour day, I really didn’t want to cook, so I had snacks – which I enjoyed just as much as I would have enjoyed a “real meal”.
½ cup plain yogurt, ½ sliced banana, 1 scoop chocolate protein powder, Kashi: honey sunshine – and I added a big scoop of crunchy peanut butter after the picture.
Plus veggies and hummus. Always a wise choice.
Highlights from the 3rd grade world…
For some reason, my class was into singing pop music today. First it was Lady Gaga, and then it quickly turned into Beyonce’s Single Ladies. However, halfway through the chorus of Single Ladies, I discovered that a substantial portion of the class thought that instead of: All the single ladies, all the single ladies…
The lyrics were: All the
scenery, all the scenery…I made them repeat it like 100 times, and laughed my head off the entire time.
What lyrics have you mistaken before??
Jambalaya and a crawfish pie and fillet gumbo…
Posted: January 19, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners | Tags: banana, cayanne pepper, cinnamon, jumbalaya, leftovers, spinning, The Biggest Loser, yogurt 18 Comments »My day started off with an incredibly energizing and vigorous spin class at 5:30. I can’t even tell you how much I enjoyed myself. Not only was the gym unbelievably nice, but the spin studio was out of control! While spinning (in a room with about 50 bikes!) the instructor put on a movie (muted with subtitles) to distract us. The spin music was pumping, the instructor was pushing us, I was sweating, and Mr. and Mrs. Smith was playing on an enormous screen.
Talk about motivation. Staring at Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie only made me peddle faster…in hopes of looking as attractive and fit as either of them. I plan to go back to the same class two more times this week. Nothing like knocking out a stellar workout before the sun comes up.
Before the class, I had a lot of water and a piece of toast with peanut butter and banana slices. Good fuel.
My real breakfast was yogurt +banana + the best cereal
I love breakfast.
Lunch was eaten quickly in the lounge before running to pick up my kids from lunch. I had recess duty and I was late. It was a sweet potato with yogurt and a few bites of leftover enchilada.
Snack at 3pm
Tortilla with peanut butter, cinnamon and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper – thanks to Kate for the new spicy addition, I loved it.
Dinner tonight was a new recipe – Jumbalaya
Found inside a mail order spice catalog.
I couldn’t stop singing this song as I was making this.
I ended up adding a handful of lettuce to cool things down and add a little more green.
Aaand it’s Tuesday night which means The Biggest Loser is on! I am off to watch it, but not before…
Highlights from the 3rd grade world…
It was a cursing day in Mrs. Unger’s room. Not me…the 8 year olds. There is something funny about kids cursing (or unintentionally flipping off their teacher) – and I always have to stifle a laugh. The first incident was when a boy mistakenly read the word sharecroppers as sharecrappers about five different times. The second one was much more deliberate. A little girl in my class got a shitzu puppy (yeah, you can probably already see where this is going) and one of my students raised her hand and said “Mrs. Unger, do you know that when you have a shitzu puppy, and you take the zu away…you are just left with shit”
No Such Thing
Posted: January 9, 2010 Filed under: Breakfast | Tags: coffee, fig spread, pancakes, starbucks, yogurt 24 Comments »When the students in my class asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I had the same answer every time.
“There is no such thing as too many Starbucks cards”
They’re pretty good listeners.
I took my cards this morning (really, I only needed one) and went to Starbucks for a grande latte before running to the bank and the post office.
Then came home to whip up a batch of pancakes…it had been too long. I’ve used this recipe for years, and it has never failed me.
Topped with plain yogurt and fig spread.
Latte and kitty in the background.
I had one more after this, sandwiched with crunchy pb…
Now I’m full of coffee and pancakes, and feeling blissful.
As content as I am, I’m actually, I’m feeling a little under the weather this morning, so I plan on taking it easy all day. Errands are done, pancakes have been eaten, and coffee is in hand.
Happy Saturday.
When I grow up…
Posted: January 7, 2010 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Amy's soup, apple, artichoke hearts, banana, cinnamon, egg, hummus, peas, risotto, siracha, sun butter, tortilla, veggies, yogurt 28 Comments »First of all, thank you all so much for your incredibly kind comments about the student who transferred out of my class on Tuesday. I can’t tell you how much they meant to me. It sure has been a crazy couple of days.
Last night, I came home and literally fell into bed, and slept until this morning – when I woke up and took Punky for a brisk walk. It was negative 16 degrees at that point – what a wakeup call.
Like my life, my eats have been rushed…but rest assured, I am still well-fed. That won’t ever cease.
Yesterday’s breakfast – eaten at school.
Bottom to top: plain yogurt, banana slices sunbutter, puffed rice, fig spread and cinnamon.
Lunch was an exciting can of soup (no, it really was exciting because I won it in a giveaway!
Yes. I’m so happy I won these soups – I had the red can – it was southwestern veggie, and for canned soup, it was fantastic.
Dinner was non-existent because, like I said…I came home and fell into bed.
After my chilly walk this morning, I came home to make an egg sandwich.
Toast, hummus, siracha, one whole egg, one egg white. Halfway though this deliciousness, I remembered that I was going to participate in Vegan Thursday – whoops!
Luckily, I had already (unintentionally) packed a vegan lunch.
Steamed broccoli, carrots and cauliflower – doused in balsamic vinegar and hummus. Small tortilla on the side. Wait, are tortillas vegan? Hope so.
Even better was the bowl I ate it out of
(Cait, is this the same bowl you have?!)
Mid-afternoon I snacked on a perfectly crunchy apple and trail mix brought to me by a student.
Sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, craisins, dried blueberries.
Dinner tonight was a new recipe – Artichoke Heart Risotto.
Risotto + artichoke hearts + peas + half a piece of Dempsey chicken. – Again, not vegan…I guess I’ll start next week!
Highlights from the 3rd grade world…
- Yesterday, a little boy asked me: “Can I be gay when I grow up?”
- Today, a little girl handed me a piece of paper on which she had written: “Elvis’ birthday is tomorrow and in 1958, he was drafted into the Army” – how’s that for a fun fact?
- I am teaching my kiddos to write instructions and so I had them write recipes for PB&J sandwiches yesterday. There was a lot of creativity, but one little boy included bacon in his sandwich (which he spelled samwich)
When you were young and someone asked you: “What do you want to be when you grow up?“…what was your response?
What do you think of bacon in a pb&j…disgusting or genius?
SNOW DAY!!
Posted: October 28, 2009 Filed under: Breakfast | Tags: coffee, fig newman's, pumpkin, snow, yogurt 29 Comments »Yup, it happened. It’s a snow day.
I woke up at 5:00, looked out the window and thought… “no way” – there was hardly any snow. However, I checked anyway (hoping for a delay, at best)…and I found out the entire school district is closed. That’s wild.
I tried to go back to sleep, but was too giddy about the day, so Meeker and I got up and went for a winter wonderland walk in the wee morning hours.
While we were out…it really started snowing. The storm is here!
I know, I know…if you follow my blog, you have heard me express my disdain for cold weather on numerous occasions, but when it gets me a paid day off of work, I can’t really be upset.
Punky loves me and the snow.
To warm up…I made nice, strong coffee and a pumpkin baby-food-like breakfast.
Plus, Fig Newman’s.
- ½ cup plain yogurt
- ¼ cup pumpkin
- Heap of cinnamon (plus more for sprinkling on top)
- Maple syrup
Mix all together and throw it in the microwave for about 40 seconds. Then top with mini-chocolate chips (they melt better). Deliciousness.
Now I am off to do day 3 of the 30-Day-Shred. (Thanks for the challenge, Nat!)
I hope you are staying warm and cozy today! Enjoy the day.
Top Ten
Posted: October 20, 2009 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: apples, avocado, broccoli, cake, carrots, cinnamon, cookies, milk, naan, yogurt 18 Comments »
I’ve been pretty bored with my own posts/eating lately – so I’m mixing it up. I present to you…my top 10 foods, and how I like to eat them. In order…
#1: A is for Apple
Maybe it’s because I’m a teacher. Maybe it’s just a fantastic coincidence. Either way, I love big, crispy, juicy apples. And I usually get them as gifts from my students – which is the best thing ever. Gala is a chart topper, but Braburn, Red Delicious and Granny Smith are also major contenders. However, the second I detect a hint of mush or a mealy texture – they go to the dog.
#2: Broccoli
Steamed, roasted, pureed, sautéed…I like it all. No matter how you prepare it, I like love it. To accompany this delightful, filling and oh-so-satisfying vegetable, I like balsamic vinegar, hummus and spicy mustard. Once I went through a raw broccoli/ranch dressing kick – but I found out it makes my breath smell like dog poop, so the streak ended.
#3: Plain Yogurt
The basis for my yogurt love is its versatility. Sweet? Sure. Savory? You betcha. Snack? Uh-huh. Breakfast? Almost always. Baking? Absolutely.
This is my favorite brand, too. It’s made very near my home and is always reasonably priced and it always delivers. Plus, with Holly’s new discovery, Greek yogurt can literally be created in my sleep. On a side note – I detest yogurts with fruit already in them – but love to add my own fruit to plain yogurt. Weird, I know.
#4 Milk
Okay, not a food. But I have so much love for this drink, it deserves a spot. Almond, soy, cow, chocolate – makes no difference: I love them all. WHY I love milk (I won’t even begin to talk about its ability to join cereal in making a heavenly combination), but when I have that insatiable hunger, a glass of milk always fills in those hunger-cracks and is satisfying, too. It’s probably the fat, and I love it. Another side note – I didn’t like milk until I was in college.
#5 Cookies
Were you wondering when I was going to get to something sweet? I was. I am a major sweet person. I don’t care for chips, popcorn (unless its kettle), pizza, or pretzels. But, I’ve never met a cookie I didn’t like. The big-fat-chocolate-chip variety is my favorite.
#6 Cinnamon
Again, not really a “food” – but I combine it with SO many foods that it also deserves its own spot. My favorite cinnamon-loving-foods: lentils, sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, pancakes, yogurt (see #3), ice cream, all baked goods (especially scones), coffee, and chili.
#7 Naan
Puffy, fluffy, warm Indian bread. I had this little basket with my lunch today and it reminded me that I really need to learn how to make this stuff on my own. Anybody out there have a good recipe?
#8 Carrots
I’m okay with raw carrots, they make really easy snacks, and are wonderful with hummus. But throw them in a 450* oven for 30 minutes…drooooool. The perfect dipping sauce for these little buggers involves #3 and some spicy mustard. I also really like them glazed.
#9 Avocados
This one is partially for my friend Lana. She loves avocados as much as I do. One of my favorite ways to enjoy these fruits is with a little salt and a spoon. But they make perfect, creamy, smooth, satisfying additions to salads, soups, sandwiches, cottage cheese and so much more…don’t even get me started on guacamole.
#10 CAKE!
Duh. It’s the in the title of my blog. To me, cake represents an indulgence – something I fully believe in. It is my tenth favorite food because I honestly love foods that make me feel fantastic – and cake doesn’t always do that. But it sure tastes good. I love chocolate cake the most, but I don’t discriminate. Coffee, spice, carrot, white, apple…you are all welcome. Yes, I want cake.
So there you have it. What are some of your favorite foods?
Nothing wrong with toast
Posted: August 31, 2009 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners | Tags: granola, grapes, hummus, toast, veggies, yogurt 11 Comments »After an invigorating bike ride this morning, I was craving yogurt. But I know my metabolism, and yogurt doesn’t usually cut it until lunch time, so I added some fun things.
- About a cup of plain yogurt
- 1 handful (about 5) grapes – cut in half
- 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
- 2 tbs. Nature’s Path pumpkin flax plus granola
Oh it was soooo good. The perfect combination of textures – creamy, crunchy, juicy…yes! It kept me full all morning, too!
Lunch was un-photographed because there was no time. It was a boring sandwich and some more yummy/ juicy grapes.
I also licked the frosting off of a chocolate birthday cupcake. I threw away the cake.
I missed my husband so I came home while my kids were at PE (I live 3 minutes from my school) and had another yummy treat!
Iced coffee cubes and milk!
I like to freeze my leftover coffee into ice cube trays, and then combine them with some good ole’ milk, a little sugar and a sprinkle of cinnamon. It is so delicious.
This held me over until 7pm! (Or it could have been the sandwich and the frosting 
)
At the end of the day, a certain kiddo asked me to edit a story he had written. We are working on having very set characters in our story, rather than just rambling on about random things. Before I read it, I asked him “Who are your characters” and he said Salt and Pepper and Ginger.
I though…Okay, probably pets. But when I read it – I realized he had actually written a story about salt, pepper, and ginger – the spices! Hhaha! Who would have thought an eight your old boy would know what ginger is?! Much less write a story about it as a character. Kids = the best.
I came home, took Punky for another long and tiring bike ride and then dug into something so lovely and simple and satisfying:
The carrots and cucumbers are self explanatory, but the blobs are (1) roasted red pepper yummy hummus and (2) a sour cream dip Meeker made.
This is just what I wanted! I enjoyed every bite. Next I HAD to have some more of this granola that EVERY blogger I follow has been raving about. I had about 3/4 cup.
It lives up to all the hype. It is hands down the best granola you can buy. Homemade is obviously the best – but this is fantastic for a store bought thing.
And I rounded out my dinner with some old school heel-of-bread-broiler-toast with butter.
Ain’t nothing wrong with toast.
Nourishment
Posted: August 30, 2009 Filed under: Breakfast, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: oats, peanut butter, yogurt Leave a comment »Woke up this morning to clouds and fog. At first I was kind of excited, since there is no running on Sundays, I could just curl up on the couch with some coffee and enjoy it.
But, then the coffee went berserk, and I was cold, and the house was a mess and I felt like screaming. When I looked up and realized that it was 10:15 and church starts at 10:45, I almost started crying. It just seemed easier to crawl back in bed. But I know myself, and church was just the thing I needed on a morning like this. In my experience, food and exercise can only go so far in the nourishment of a soul. This morning, I needed – and received the inspiration and the community of love that I relied on to pop me right out of my funk.
Additionally, I was particularly grateful for this easy breakfast this morning. This is the little nugget that the man at Sprouts so kindly allowed me to have for free yesterday.
When I first took it out the wrapper, I though…ick. It looked like it would taste awful, but the first bite in, I was very pleasantly surprised! It was very tasty – almost like a little candy bar with a bit more of an “earthy” taste. But, I also thought – no way will this hold me all through the morning. Wrong again. I actually had no choice but to put it to the test since I was running late. I threw my hair in a pony tail, put on my favorite pair of jeans, a comfy sweater and dashed out the door. Only 5 minutes late!
And even though the Nut Butter Ball only packed 170 calories, all the fiber and fat in there held me all the way until 12:30, without any tummy rumbling. It may actually have been worth the $1.19 (that it was priced for).
When I started getting a little hungry – I opted for a very cozy and nourishing meal. Oats – with all the fixin’s
In this bowl:
-
½ cup oats
-
1 cup milk
-
¼ cup plain yogurt
-
Handful of chocolate chips
-
Coconut
-
Justin’s Maple Almond Butter – from yesterday
-
Sprinkle of cinnamon
Talk about LOVE –
Oh my goodness, this was fantastic. It tasted like dessert, and I actually found myself wishing that we had vanilla ice cream that I could scoop down over the top. That might have been a little outrageous – but I will have to try that sometime. However, this bowl stood alone. It was so incredibly comforting and delicious. All the right flavor combinations.
For the rest of the afternoon, I will be parked on the couch grading my life away…
In this tub: 25 math tests, 25 reading tests, 50 “creative paragraphs” and 25 spelling tests. I’m really in for it. J
Yes, I want lettuce wraps.
Posted: August 24, 2009 Filed under: Delish Dinners, Mid-Day Yummies | Tags: canteloupe, lettuce wraps, salad, yogurt 2 Comments »I spent the better part of my day dealing with an angry parent. Grrr. That is by far the worst part of my job. I try to remember that I am not a parent yet, and I remind myself that if/when I am – I will probably act like the seemingly nutty parents of my students. Deep breaths. Deep breaths.
Okay, venting over and on to the food; I decided to have a brunchy lunch today because I always feel my best after eating breakfast, so I thought – why not just eat more breakfast for lunch?
Breakfast + a salad = the best thing.
I started with the salad
Mixed greens, bean sprouts, shredded carrot, cucumber, balsamic vinegar
Then, the “breakfast” part
On top of yogurt = this mess:
The bar was just okay. It tasted a little…earthy. But mixed in with the plain, tangy yogurt – it was just right. It didn’t fill me up, so I dug into an apple that was given to me by a student
The kiddos always put their “gift apples” next to the golden apple that always sits on my desk. Cute.
After a long, loooonnngg afternoon/evening, I came home craving lettuce wraps. We didn’t have any leaves of lettuce – only the bucket of greens we bought yesterday. So I made a “lettuce wrap inspired salad”. When I told Meeker what we were having, he said “That sounds complicated” – but it wasn’t at all.
I started with these ingredients (plus two shredded carrots) and added that to some very lean ground beef:
The unlabeled container under the minced onions is garlic powder. The bottle on the very left is a sweet chili sauce. The rest is self explanatory.
I put the ground meat over a bed of greens, bean sprouts, and green beans
The sauce/dressing on top was spicy mustard mixed with soy sauce and water. Sounds bizarre, tastes great.
After 1.5 bowls of this (which tasted almost EXACTLY like the lettuce wraps I was craving) I was still hungry, so I balled up some cantaloupe with a teaspoon measuring spoon.
A sweet, and happy ending. And now I feel much better and better equipped to deal with parents tomorrow! I guess that is what a good meal will do for you.
Monday, Monday
Posted: August 17, 2009 Filed under: Breakfast, Delish Dinners, leftover lunches | Tags: chicken, Odwalla bar, salad, trail mix, tuna melt, veggies, yogurt Leave a comment »Remember how yesterday I said that if I had plain yogurt and a chocolate Odwalla bar… my breakfast would be stellar?
Well, look who was hiding in the back of the pantry…
plus 1/2 cup plain yogurt, a splash of vanilla, cinnamon and chopped almonds =
Ah, perfection in the form of breakfast.
What a good start.
Then I came into work and found this kind treat on my desk:
“Mrs. Unger, Happy Monday! Have a great second week of school!”
This is from the sweetest boy in my class (his mom wrote the message) and it made my morning.
Despite a handful of the good stuff above, a busy, busy morning left me starving (as usual) by 11:20am – when my kiddos go out for recess. Luckily, I had planned ahead today.
Leftover veggers from last night topped with more leftover rotisserie chicken.
Two more punkin’ cookies sitting on top of my lesson plan book.
When the kids were gone by 4pm – I was so hungry I didn’t think I could go on, so I had another handful of the trail mix gift, and…I am really ashamed to say this…a roll with butter that a student left in the classroom. Gasp. I can’t even believe I did that. Even typing those words is difficult. In my defense, I was really hungry and it was either the trash can or my mouth. The kid wasn’t coming back for it and it wouldn’t have been good tomorrow morning. (Nope, that doesn’t help me justify it…I am awful.)
I was – again – a hungry hippo when I came home at 6ish. We decided on a quick fix with tuna melts!
Smashed flat as a pancake. Mine was just tuna salad and some muenster cheese. Here is a link to my tuna salad recipe. Meeker’s looked much more appealing because he added a lot more tuna salad, more cheese, tomatoes and 2 slices of turkey. I am including a picture of his because it was simply more photogenic.
Plus, a good ole salad to round out the meal
That’s a wrap! I am fairly satisfied (there may be dessert in my future) and I am enjoying the sounds of Monday night football coming from the TV in the other room. I like watching football, but I love the sound of football. The cheering, the commentating…all of it.
