Raging and Man Friends (WIAW)

Hey ya’ll! Wow, I haven’t blogged in a week. Shocker, but not really. I’ve been busy with school and MAN FRIENDS. Yes you heard it right here. I finally have a man friend (after being a jealous person over Kara and Britt’s man friends), but technically I’ve sort of had him for a while. Details don’t really matter. Anyways, he came over for dinner on Saturday night because he didn’t believe that healthy food can be delicious. Totally proved him wrong. Winning. Then we went to this insane concert. I fell in love…not with him, but with electro house music. Oh no she didn’t. Oh yeah, sadly after teasing it for so long, I finally have understood the magic behind it. Plus who doesn’t like sick lights to a dope beat? A crazy person probably. Plus you get to dance dance dance. Literally I couldn’t walk the next day. My body hurt so bad. Lets get to the good stuff: The fooooood.

Oh yeah, can’t believe I forgot to say thanks to Jenn for hosting my favorite day of the week. It is probably one of the main reasons I always remember to blog at least once a week. I need to get better about that.

This is the concert I was at in Austin. Wolfgang Gartner. Check it out.

Back to the food.
Lemon and Strawberry Heaven Pie Oats:
1 1/2 c. water
1/2 c. oats
1/8 tsp vanilla extract
1 packet truvia
1/4 c. cottage cheese
1 banana
1 tsp of Lemon pudding powder
slices of strawberries

1. Prepare oats with water in microwave for about 2:55 minutes.
2. Slice up banana into small slices then add to oat mixture and microwave for 1:15 minutes.
3. Add in vanilla, truvia, and cottage cheese.
4. Add lemon pudding powder and mix thoroughly.
5. Slice strawberries and throw into bowl.

Oh lord, this combination is so delicious. Who knew that adding a little pudding powder to your oatmeal would take it over the edge? Thank god for that discovery. The oatmeal is not overly sweet or sour, it just has a nice hint of lemon and when mixed with the strawberries it is like the perfect pairing ever. Not only is this tasty, but it is also really cheap. Pudding is like .40 cents a box. I’m going to run to the store now and load up for a lifetime. Not even kidding. I just bought butterscotch, pistachio, and chocolate. Yummmmmmy.

Speaking of pudding powder, I have discovered another lovely creation from the blog world:
Pudding in greek yogurt. Just go out, buy a huge thing of plain chobani or whatever brand you like, and add in pudding powder. This bowl here is chocolate pudding with strawberries. Can you see a trend here? Yes, I love strawberries. No, they are actually on sale right now, so the Jew in me is like MUST BUY every week until not on sale. Good deals get the best of me usually all the time. Anyways, this is such a tasty snack to have every day. I can’t wait to try out my other pudding flavors on this bad boy. Also I should probably invest in some other types of fruit. I think I’m going to go the frozen route that way I can get a variety of fruit for a cheap price. I really need to stop Jewing everything.

Mmmm my version of a burger salad. Chopped up extra lean turkey burger, sliced up pickles, onions, lots of lettuce, and top it all off with dijon mustard. So good. I love salads that are jam packed with a bunch of stuff. Especially pickles. I’m a freak about pickles. My roommate eats my pickles sometimes, and I literally want to kill her. Yes, I’m crazy. I pay for my own food, so please don’t eat it or I will turn into a bank and ask for money. Sorry. Too much drama. Can’t you tell that I’m excited to find a new apartment and live with my future roommate?

J-E-L-L-O. Jelloooooo. Totally not kosher, but when you want a low calorie snack that in my opinion tastes really good (especially with whipcream) then Jello is going to be your best friend. Make sure it is the sugar free version because I think it is actually 0 calories or something close to that. Jello should be weightlosses best friend. Beat those cravings with Jello. I should advertise for them or they should at least give me free jello packs.

Now to the dinner that shut the guy up. I used this amazing recipe from my new favorite website: Skinny Taste. Not only are all of Gina’s recipes super beautiful to look at, but they are tasty and really low calorie (also random plug, if you are doing weight watchers, she has all the points on the website for each recipe). I made the Chicken Rollatini with spinach. It turned out so amazing. I wish I would have remembered to take a picture of the dish that had all the chicken in it because it looked sooo beautiful. Anyways, I served it up with a side of spaghetti squash and gluten free rolls. Man friend was like wow this is actually good. Well obviously it is good, I made it. Also eating healthy is actually tasty, you just have to know what you are doing.

Remember how I told you I was sewing an apron? Well I actually finished it a while ago, I just forgot to post a picture of it. I made man-friend dinner in this cute little thing. I’m actually thinking about opening an Etsy account with a friend and selling them on there along with artwork and other things made by us. What do you think? Do you think people would buy these aprons? I would also do custom ones too. Let me know. I want the money, honey.

Other good news: My $200 Lulu Lemon giftcard has finally arrived (helloooo shopping), I’m going to Houston this weekend with my mom to relax from the stress of school (lezz be honest, I’m going to shop till I drop), and I have a job interview tomorrow (with a nutrition company). I’m so excited. I hope everyone is having a great week!

What are your plans for the weekend?
Have you ever been to an electro house concert?

A Case of The Mondays

Hey ya’ll. I’m sort of on the breaking point of exhaustion and delusion. I have been stressing like no other for my graduate class final exam that is tomorrow after my anatomy final (which I don’t really care about because it will be easy), so I’m exhausted from cramming so much into my brain. To add on to the misery of studying, I had a treatment for my arthritis and let me tell you that these just keep getting worse and worse. The nurse is so incompetent. Not to be mean, but you went to nursing school and you should know how to stick an IV in someone’s arm because you only do it every day, but no you had to blow three of my veins, so now I get to look like a heroin junkie on my trip to Israel. What sexy Israeli will want that? Luckily, I’m awesome and they will want me anyways. My mom was super pissed though, so she is going to make sure that nurse never sticks me again because this is the second time this has happened, and the old nurse used to always get it on the first try. Enough with that. Even though I’m having a pretty ugh Monday, I have had some good eats.

Birthday Cake Oatmeal (Gluten Free)
1/3 c of gluten free oats
1 1/3 c of water
1 tbsp of french vanilla powdered pudding mix
1/4 c. cottage cheese
1 packet of truvia
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 banana
Sprinkles
2 tbsp PB2

1. Make oatmeal like the normal method the night before.
2. Slice up a whole banana, place on top of oats, and microwave for 2 minutes or until “melted”
3. Stir well then add in all the ingredients (pudding mix, cottage cheese, truvia, vanilla extract, sprinkles)
4. Top with more sprinkles and Pb2

This is a party in a bowl. Not even kidding. It tastes like the liquid form of birthday cake. Next time I’m going to figure out how to make a sort of icing for it because that was all that was missing. Too bad I ate this before going to my treatment session because then I may have been in a better mood for the rest of the day if I ate it after. Oh well. I’ll just have to make it again. Hmmm maybe I’ll have that tomorrow before my exams, so I’m in a good mood. Success.

It can’t be a day without some hot cocoa. I seriously have an obsession with whip cream and sprinkles. It is getting a little crazy, but how can I turn down whip cream when it is only 74 cents at the grocery store. They sure know how to play at my Jewish parts. Evil.

Mmm so good. BBQ tofu with broccoli. I didn’t come up with this recipe myself, but instead I followed this recipe over at Clean Eating Chelsey. It is pretty simple, quick, and not to mention gluten free. I made so much tofu, and it was so good that my roommate’s cat tried to eat some of it. Maybe it just tried to eat it because my roommate hadn’t fed the cat, so it was hungry and would eat anything. Oh well, I’m going to pretend it is because I’m an excellent chef.

Baked Apple
1 medium sized apple
cinnamon
brown sugar
sprinkle of raisins

1. Slice up apple into small chunks and place into a microwavable safe dish
2. Sprinkle cinnamon on top, as much as you would like, and add a pinch or two of brown sugar.
3. Top with raisins and cover with plastic wrap.
4. Place in microwave for 5 minutes
5. Be careful when removing from microwave because when you pull back the plastic wrap the steam will burn you (I’ve learned this from experience – ouch)

This is my go to night time treat. It is super healthy for you and tastes like an apple pie without the crust.

While most of the day sort of sucked, I got to know Adam tonight, which pretty much changed the day to a much better one. He is freaking hilarious. I think we were meant to find each other because we have similar personalities and we can be real with each other. Let me tell you that is refreshing in the blog world because a lot of people put on this facade and are not being honest with themselves and others. That is there loss because I’m awesome, Adam is awesome, and if people don’t like us then screw them because at least we have each other. Hahaha. Adam, aren’t you glad you talked to me? Now he is probably like oh crap, what did I get myself into.

Anyways I hope ya’ll had a much better Monday than I did. I’m really just looking forward to getting the heck out of dodge once I finish my final for Functional Foods tomorrow. I’m driving straight to the airport to start my epic journey to attractive man land. I’ll be coming back with some good stories.

Do you ever get the case of the Mondays?
How do you make them better?

Eat Your Eggs

Hey ya’ll! Hope everyone had a good Friday night. I tried to go to bed early, but no someone wanted to ruin my good night of sleep by throwing a loud party next door, screaming bloody murder about things I could not even understand, and talking loud on the phone or computer (not really sure which one). Enough with complaining because that won’t do anything for the situation. It has been a productive morning though. I have gotten through most of my ten page anatomy and physiology review, so I’m in a good mood again. Plus UT women’s volleyball won last night in an extremely close match against Kentucky in their home stadium. Oh yeaaah. Tonight we play UCLA and I’m super nervous already because they sweeped Penn State (an enemy of UT).

Today I’m bring something new to my blog. I’m going to start focusing on more food, health, and nutrition related stuff because when I started this blog that was pretty much the purpose, but my funniness and goofiness sort of took over. Each week, usually on Fridays, but because I got that award I’m doing it on Saturday this week, I will do a post totally focused on some important nutrition fact. Today I’m focusing on breakfast. My favorite time of the day. Ya’ll know why. OATMEAL, but there is more to breakfast than just oats.

In my mind, breakfast is probably the most important meal of the day. Due to the gap between our last meal from the night before and the next morning, our brain and muscles need a source of energy to function. Without a real meal, you will still be able to get through the day, but having a hearty meal allows you to concentrate better, be more productive, and feel less lethargic. Besides providing general body function, eating breakfast has shown to actually help you lose weight instead of gain. Most people assume the opposite, but by not eating breakfast people tend to eat more later on in the day not realizing that calories add up quickly. Metabolism is key in this because by eating breakfast it allows your body to keep your metabolism running instead of slowing it down, which is key in weight loss.

“I don’t like breakfast foods”, “I don’t have time to eat breakfast”, or “I don’t get full from breakfast” are some of the common things we hear when it comes to morning meal discussion, but don’t worry I have some healthy choices for you to eat.

Blackberry Cheesecake Oats (Gluten Free)
1/3 c. Gluten Free Oats
1 1/3 c. water
1/2 c. low fat cottage cheese
3/4 c. blackberries
1 packet of truvia
1 tsp of vanilla extract
2 tbsp of PB2

1. Make the oats either the day of or the night before by microwaving oats and water for 2:55, letting sit in microwave for 5 minutes, then placing in the fridge.
2. Place cottage cheese, truvia, and vanilla extract in oats and mix well.
3. Microwave half of the blackberries for about one minute or until warm and there is blackberry juice present.
4. Pour microwaved blackberries in oatmeal and mix well.
5. Top with remaining blackberries and 2 tbsp of PB2

Of course I’m going to say oatmeal is a good option for breakfast, but it is not just because I love it. Oatmeal is a good source of fiber, protein, and it is low fat. Due to its fiber and protein content, it allows you to stay full longer than a sugary cereal or granola bar would. Besides having just a good nutrient composition, oatmeal can also be considered a functional food because oats have shown to lower cholesterol, blood pressure, blood triglycerides, increases insulin sensitivity, and lowers the risk of coronary heart disease. Sign me up please. Besides the oats, adding fruit increases the fiber content even more and blackberries are also a functional food. The cottage cheese is a source of dairy, and the peanut butter is a healthy fat. Now that is a meal that packs a healthy punch, will keep you full for hours, is easy to make if you are in a hurry, and you can create a bowl of oatmeal to your liking.

Finally I make a perfect omelet and the picture comes out blurry. Just my luck. Anyways, eggs are always a good option for breakfast. Personally I use egg whites instead of whole eggs because the yolk in eggs contains high cholesterol and fat, and when you switch to egg whites you are still getting a ton of nutritional benefits. Most of an egg’s protein is actually from the egg white or albumin, so by consuming egg whites only you are not missing out on benefits. The protein will help keep you full until your mid day snack or next meal. Egg whites are low in calories, so you can increase your nutrient intake and add more food items to bulk it up with flavor and calories. I usually fill my omelet with a minimum of two vegetables (but usually more) and another source of protein. In this omelet, I have mushrooms, onions, green peppers, slices of ham, and low fat shredded cheese. The vegetables provide fiber, the ham increases the protein amount, and the cheese is a good source of healthy dairy. This is pretty easy to cook, the eggs coagulate pretty quickly, and yet again you can customize an omelet to your liking. I choose to make this breakfast before I go to the gym and head to class after I work out, and it tends to keep me full until after my class. Pretty successful, don’t you think?

While I’m not an advocate of quick breakfasts, sometimes you are in a real rush and you don’t have time to whip up an omelet or a bowl of oats, so frozen products can be a healthy alternative depending on what you are choosing. Obviously you shouldn’t be eating toaster pastries, but by choosing products that have flaxseed and more nutritional ingredients you are saving yourself from the harms of high fat foods. These are Vans Gluten Free Blueberry Waffles with sliced strawberries and sugar free syrup on top of them. In order to make a quick product more filling, add things such as fruit to increase the amount of filling fiber in a meal. Another alternative you can do with waffles is make a sandwich with an egg, a couple slices of meat, veggies, and cheese. This way you are eating a more filling meal that will help you get through the long hours in a day.

Some of my random breakfast advice:
1. Drink a glass of water while preparing your breakfast, and then another while you eat. This will help you make sure you get all of your daily water intake.
2. Do not eat bars for a meal. They will not fill you up, they do not provide an adequate amount of nutrients, and you will end up consuming more. If you do this at least make sure you pair it with some fruit and other small items like a greek yogurt.
3. Just don’t skip breakfast!

Hope everyone has a lovely Saturday! I will hopefully be attending the UT mens basketball game, but if not I’m going home to my mom’s for a couple of days to do some last minute things before Israel and to get some peaceful sleep before my two biggest finals.

What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
What is your best advice to others in regards to breakfast?