What I Ate Wednesday

March 30, 2016

Oye. Please disregard any previous post in which I may have talked about being busy, overwhelmed, and/or stressed. This week I really mean it. What I Ate Wednesday this week is more like “I was so busy today that I barely remembered to EAT two out of three meals today, let alone snap pictures of them…” Bear with me.

It’s been a rough [read: insanely busy] few weeks at work. I made it through Monday but was so exhausted Tuesday morning I snoozed the alarm for over an hour. Yikes. I finally dragged my booty up and slurped down this delicious green smoothie for breakfast. It was a frozen bag of banana, mango, protein, spinach, spirulina, and turmeric. I threw in a few pieces of fresh pineapple I cut up this weekend and it was delightfully sweet and refreshing.

I had a minor meltdown around 10am but some Berry Energy Bites were a crunchy bite of goodness and brought me back down to earth. My mom likes to give me Easter/ holiday baskets filled exclusively with goodies from Whole Foods. It’s like she knows me or something… Love ya, Mama!

Some “Smart” tea [from Aloha] warmed my heart, tummy, and brain and powered me through a few more checklist items.

I didn’t take a picture of my lunch. Straight up, I was so busy plowing through work and shoveling salad into my face that I completely forgot. Good news is, it was literally an exact replica of the Vegan Nicoise Salad I made this weekend. Well, it was jammed into a tupperware and not nearly as pretty. But same ingredients, different day.

When I finally escaped my To-Do list around 4:30pm, I was majorly hangry pants. Couldn’t even wait until I got home to sink my teeth into this juicy organic Fuji apple. I’ve been eating 1-3 apples a day and I’m 0% mad about it.

The rest of said apple was devoured with a few spoonful’s of my fav fancy peanut butter. Wild Friends Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter is unbelievably good, and especially with an apple. MMMM! Another cup of hot [Aloha] tea alongside made for a perfect snack.

John and I met up with a friend and her hubby for happy hour and dinner at Club 185 and ya know what? I forgot to take a picture of that too. Fail. What’s even more hilarious, it was almost exactly the same as my lunch- a leafy salad with green beans, potatoes, olives, cukes, and an herby dressing. So let’s just pretend this empty plate is filled with the beautiful, colorful salad above too. Cool? Cool.

I want to share a lesson I learned today with you. The last few weeks, I’ve been afraid to reach out for the help I needed because I didn’t want to look stupid and because I thought I was too low on the “totem pole” to ask high-level executives in my department. Today, I sucked it up and asked for the help I needed. And you know what? I got what I asked for. I got valuable feedback, support on tasks, and more assistance than I thought I even wanted. Ask for help. Never be too proud or shy or afraid to ask for what you need.

That’s it folks. Thanks for listening to my adulting struggles, you rock.

Vegan Nicoise Salad

March 28, 2016

Sun, glorious sun!! Ahh how wonderful the turn of the seasons is. Tulips popping up, sunlight into the evening, and best of all, perky spring veggies at the store! It’s only March, and in Ohio that means we’re totally not out of the woods (or the cold) yet. BUT, I’m feeling optimistic! I couldn’t resist these juicy green beans at Lucky’s, and a Vegan Nicoise Salad was the perfect was to showcase them!

Neee-swawww. Nicoise. If you’re unfamiliar with this odd French word, it comes from a particular olive-curing method. And a salad nicoise is a composed salad of tomatoes, tuna, hard-boiled eggs, (aforementioned) Niçoise olives, and anchovies, dressed with a vinaigrette. Green beans and potatoes aren’t part of the classic French preparation, but they’ve long been associated with the crunchy veggie entrée and wild variations are more the norm than the classic these days.

Just because 3 of this classic’s main ingredients are no-no’s for me, sure didn’t stop me from creating my own version! When cruising Pinterest for inspiration, I was blown away by the plethora of colorful toppings people piled on top of this salad.

What’s even cooler, you can make this salad with or without a bed of greens underneath. Lettuce think about that… Personally, I’m of the mo’ greens the betta’ mindset, but you’re totally free to do your dang thing here.

I’ve most frequently seen this salad with boiled potatoes but as a texture snob, I just HAD to roast them. All about that crunchy skin. Yum!!

Oh and if you hate all these toppings, don’t like salads [boo], and aren’t interested in making this recipe, make. this. dressing. It’s classic French, refreshingly bright, and delightfully addicting. Then pour it on all the things. Because vegetables are basically just vessels for dressing, right…?

Vegan Nicoise Salad

Yield: 4 salads

A classic French salad, with an animal-free twist! Vegan Nicoise Salad is amazingly satisfying and perfect for spring!

Ingredients

1 head leaf lettuce, washed & torn
1 lb. fresh green beans, snipped
1 lb. fingerling potatoes
½ large cucumber, thinly sliced
4-5 radishes, thinly sliced
1 can chickpeas, rinsed & drained
1 avocado, thinly sliced
Dry-cured, kalamata, or other olives
Fresh alfalfa sprouts

Herb Vinaigrette

1 shallot, minced
2 Tbs. white wine vinegar
1½ Tbs. Dijon mustard
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup water
½ tsp. each, dried oregano & thyme
2 Tbs. fresh dill, minced (or ½ tsp. dry)
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper

Instructions

Make the dressing: combine all ingredients in a jar and shake vigorously to combine.
Prepare the veggies: preheat oven to 450 F. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, add potatoes, and cook for 8 minutes. Drain in a colander and allow to cool and dry well.
Toss the potatoes with a small amount of olive oil and a healthy amount of salt and pepper. Roast for 15 minutes, until slightly browned.
Meanwhile, refill the pot with salted water, bring to a boil, and blanch the green beans for 2 minutes. Drain over a colander and rinse immediately with cold water.
Assemble the salad by tossing the lettuce with dressing, then layering on toppings. Drizzle a bit more dressing, if desired. Enjoy!

http://areyoukitchenme.com/vegan-nicoise-salad/

What I Ate Wednesday

March 23, 2016

Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday… Oh wait. There’s a reason no one ever wrote a song about Wednesday. It’s really just a launch pad into the end of the week. A gateway to Friday. A pathway to sleeping in and brunch. But regardless, we must eat. What I Ate Wednesday is a must!

John and I did a juice cleanse this weekend. Yes, you heard that right, the junk food crazy boyf’ agreed to a juice-only, liquid cleanse. [Actually, it was his idea!] That said, after cleaning out our guts I’m trying to keep it squeaky clean this week! I feel soooo great after the cleanse, I just want to ride this headache-free, happy-gut high all week!

I forgot to take a picture of my morning banana. If a banana falls into my mouth and it doesn’t get photographed, does it even count? If I eat a meal and don’t post it to Instagram, did it even happen?!? Will I ever be free of these daunting life questions???? #dramatic

Hopped back on the smoothie train for breakfast and it was dreeeeamy. Went with my typical recipe, found here. Tried this coffee coconut water- pretty good!

Since yesterday was the first day we’ve worked out in a few, I was HANGRY by 10am. Two sliced oranges totally hit the snack spot.

Lunch was a simple salad of mixed greens with some of my falafel, which a crumbled over the top and smothered in balsamic. Noms.

Sipped on [ok, chugged] my favorite Kevita during a meeting. Happy, happy tummy!

I knew I’d never make it through yoga without a snack so I snagged these Asian Carrot Noodles from Alchemy when I tagged along with a coworker. I just can’t resist…

For dinner, my sweetie roasted up some asparagus and which we put over romaine lettuce, along with some frozen corn & edamame and a quick dressing of tahini, spicy mustard, and water. Unfortunately, the asparagus was meh. Just not quite in season yet. Still a yummy salad!

A nice cuppa tea before bed and I was out like a light. Stay happy [and hungry!] my friends!

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