Food...and lots of it.

This post is going to be all about food because I have a million pictures to show you. I have been pretty busy lately, so as a result, my blog posts have become more sporadic. I have eaten some delicious things, so lets try to catch up!

Last Saturday, myself and a few other bridesmaids threw our friend, Erica, a bridal shower. I think it turned out delicious. :)

Favors for each guest - a bottle of red wine with a customized label.

Cheese/Crackers/Apples

Baked Brie wrapped in crescent dough w/ Pecans and Brown Sugar

Shrimp Wontons

Fresh Fruit

Fresh veggies and dill dip

Chicken Salad (Served in lettuce wraps and sprinkled with cashews)

Bongo Bongo Dip (This was a staple at one of the restaurants in our college town, basically a cheesy spinach dip)

Cookies (Chocolate chip and Oatmeal-Almond Butter)

The Cake!

There were people at the shower too. The bride-to-be is front and center.

Saturday night, Kevin and I took his sister out to dinner at Canton Dockside restaurant. I have had steamed crabs here a few times - and they are OUTSTANDING - but tonight we stuck with the regular dinner menu.

House Salad w/ Apple Cider Vinaigrette. This salad dressing was incredible - light, but full of flavor.

I ordered Rockfish in a beurre blanc sauce w/ a side of green beans for my main meal. The fish was fresh and cooked perfectly, but the sauce was just OK.

After dinner, we headed over to Harbor East to catch a movie - Gran Torino. We were early, so we stopped by James Joyce Irish Pub and I got a Irish Coffee. Warmed me right up.

Sunday, I made a quick and simple Butternut Squash soup using my Vitamix!

• 1.5 T light butter
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled & chopped
• half butternut squash, peeled & chopped
• chicken stock
• salt, black pepper, red pepper to taste

Melt butter in large pot and mix in all vegetables. Saute over medium-high heat for 5-10 mins. Pour chicken stock in same pot until it covers all vegetables. Add seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cover. Simmer until all vegetables are soft - about 15 mins.

Transfer contents of pot to Vitamix blender (I am sure another blender or food processor would work) and mix on HIGH for 1-2 mins.Check out that color and consistency! super creamy.

I served the soup with sauteed broccoli, baked tofu, and a slice of whole wheat toast w/ smart balance.

Monday, we had a "major" snow storm in Maryland, so I decided to stay home from work. I made a great bowl of oatmeal. (oats, raspberries, walnuts, bananas, spoonful of barney butter)

Had a sandwich for lunch. Sliced granny smith apples, white cheddar cheese, smart balance, and a drizzle of honey on toasted wheat bread.

Played with Oscar in the snow. He loves it.

Made a nice dinner. Salmon w/ herb and garlic butter from Let's Dish, green beans, and Near East Mediterranean Curry Flavor couscous.

Whew! Are you hungry from checking out all those eats? I know I am.

I promise I have been keeping up with my workouts, but more on that later because this post is long enough. Have a great day!

Read more...

Random Thursday Thoughts

The Fresh Market

Has anyone been to this place? I took a trip up there during my lunch break yesterday and was so impressed. I could have spent 3 hours just looking around.

I took this photo from their website to give you a quick peek inside...since I was one of the only people in there and felt weird snapping photos. Beautiful, right?

I had been given a tip from Ashley (another MD blogger) that they sold Barney Butter there...I definitely opened it in my car and took a taste. ahhh - love it. :)

Since I have been on a beet kick lately - I grabbed these as an impulse buy. I ended up deciding on a California Roll for lunch. Mainly because there was a sushi chef there rolling it, so I knew it was fresh. It better be, at the FRESH market.

Annabel Lee Tavern

Last night, Kevin wanted to go out to dinner. I don't think I have ever said no to that suggestion. We walked 2 blocks to a local favorite - Annabel Lee Tavern. One of my favorite things about city-life is being able to walk a few blocks to a great restaurant.

Annabel Lee is semi-new and has an Edgar Allen Poe theme going on - if you couldn't already tell by the name. Inside, it has a very cozy feel. There are always a ton of unique, mouthwatering specials and I have never been disappointed with any dish I've ordered.

Another nice thing is that Kevin went to college with one of the bartenders there, so that translates to extremely heavy pours of wine and maybe even a discount here and there. :)

I forgot my camera, so the pictures above have been borrowed from the website to give you a peek inside. But, the point of this story is that I overindulged.

It all started with my HUGE glass of red wine. Then, we ordered shrimp potstickers as an appetizer and I got roasted vegetable ravioli with a gorgonzola/mushroom sauce for my main meal. Kevin got the shrimp/scallop/crab risotto special that I, of course, tried a few bites.

Hello - self-control? You there?

Thursday

I vowed to get up early and go to the gym. Well, I got up early (5:30!!), but realized that Exercise TV was much more convenient than going to the gym. I also found a 1 hour "Boost Metabolism" workout with Jillian Michaels that sounded perfect to help burn off my dinner. Jillian is no joke and makes sweat pour out of me - I love that.

I worked up an appetite for oats.

• 1/2 c oatmeal
• skim milk to cover oats
• sprinkle of cinnamon
• handful of blueberries
• drizzle of agave nectar
• sprinkle of bee pollen
• spoonful of Barney Butter! (this stuff is a little runnier than I remember, but still has the same great flavor)

Running Resource

I wanted to provide a good resource to the running folks out there - my dad's running blog - Running with Tom!

I am not sure if I have provided it before, but he lists out a bunch of different treadmill workouts where you can adjust the starting speed to your pace and then follow his intervals. His friend actually manages the blog, but my dad provides the input.

He is waaay faster and a more experienced runner than me - so I know he would be happy to answer any running/training questions you have. He has run over 50 marathons and at least 10 ultras!

Have a great Thursday!

Read more...

Back to Work and Barney Butter is in!

It is always extremely tough going back to work after a long weekend - today was no different, just a blah day.

Breakfast was Oatmeal with skim milk, half a banana, raisins, almonds, SF maple syrup, and a spoonful of PB.On the way to work, I was in desperate need of a coffee, so I stopped off at Dunkin Donuts for a hot, skinny, caramel latte with 1 splenda. It kept me warm in my COLD office. well, I dont actually have an office - its cubicle world where i work, but the building is cold.

While I was on the phone for an hour with tech support because of Word crashing, I snacked on my cashew cookie larabar.I had a meeting run from 11:30am to 1pm, so when i got out, I heated up my leftovers from last night and also had this raspberry smashed fruit thing. I was still hungry after this stuff, so I went for my pomegranate greek style yogurt and added in some oatmeal squares and almonds. First time trying this flavor and it did NOT disappoint. Later, around 4pm, I snacked on a sliced apple with some PB.
I was home for about 5 mins after work when there was a knock on the door. My BARNEY BUTTER was delivered! I was so excited to try it - that i tore into one of the 90 calorie packets right away. It was really good!
Tonight's workout was a light jog around patterson park with Oscar. My legs felt good and I wasnt sore at all, which surprised me. But my arms were SO sore from yesterday's pushups. Tomorrow is another pushup/ab workout and a longer run.

Tonight for dinner, I wasnt in the mood to actually cook, so I threw together a flatbread wrap that included:
- grilled chix (this is from the pre-made section in TJs) I know - lazy.
- 1 flatbread
- garlic/herb laughing cow
- half a roma tomato
- spinach leaves
- sliced pickles

This is going to become a new staple - i can feel it - it was really goooood. On the side, I had some multigrain pita chips with hummus and a few baby carrots. Oh and I made another sparkling mango as my drink. I am totally addicted to these now.
Dessert is going to be a small scoop of this caramel/vanilla ice cream. It is the half the fat kind, so that makes it only half as bad. right? ;)

Read more...