I got a new bike!

Whew! Okay, I finally have a chance to sit down and blog (but only for a bit). I woke up this morning, ran on the treadmill, and then cooked my family breakfast. I baked them my favorite breakfast pizza and some multi-grain pancakes, which I topped with some Triple-Berry Jam.

I also tried the new Starbucks Via Iced, which I got from my mom. It was good, but I my coffee prefer unsweetened.

For lunch my sister and I had McAlister’s. I kept it simple with a sweet tea and a croissant. I also stole my sister’s pickle.

But, I got a new bike! It was a graduation gift (although I paid for 30% of it, no complaining though) for my Master’s. Doug, the very cute sales person, helped me pick out this beauty: Trek’s Allant WSD. It is a cute light olive green color. I love it! I also bought a lock, helmet, and front basket. Yippee!

I came home starving so I had a bowl of Crispix and an apple.

So, I haven’t had a bike since Jr. High…Do you have any biking tips or advice!?

An Uneventful, but Relaxing Friday

I finally made it home without turning around again to see if I turned off the oven. Lars met me in Indy, and we decided to hit up the local Irish pub.

I ordered my favorite meal: a grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of roasted tomato soup.

Lars enjoyed some fish and veggies. Did you know I hate seafood? Ashley FACT!

Afterwards, Lars and I grabbed refreshing Iced Passion Tea.

I was glad we ate before my brother’s going away party, because I would have eaten worse foods. The party was fun, but we left my brother to his friends. Lars and I decided to get frozen yogurt, which is self-served. I had marshmallow and strawberry frozen yogurt, topped with strawberries and raspberries.

While I type this, I eat a bowl of Cinnamon Life. I was so hungry. Oh well, listen to to your stomach.

I must go to bed, I have a packed morning: a workout and the farmer’s market! Oh, news flash: my family loves the cupcake-shaped cookies.

Let’s Play A Game

Tomorrow is Friday, which doesn’t really mean anything to me (because I have to work everyday), but I’m sure it is a fantastic day to be alive for others. So, Happy-soon-to-be-Friday. I’m no longer sick, but I feel like an unproductive walking zombie. I had small snack/meal of sorts around 3 PM that consisted of leftover stir fry (to help Lars clean the fridge) and Smokehouse almonds. It was good since dinner would be late.

Then, I made muffins! I used this recipe for healthy, Low Fat Apple Bran Muffins from Cooks.com. I personally think the recipe needed sugar, because it was a bit bland. I HATE when you try out an recipe and it is like blah. I will experiment though and get back to you. They were not bad, though. They would be good with jam/jelly/honey, but I wouldn’t recommend them on their own. But again, I will share a revised recipe after I play around with it more!

Lars and I made a fantastic dinner. We made Grilled Pork Tenderloin Marinated in Spicy Soy Sauce from EatingWell.com (click name for recipe) and Oven-Roasted Green Beans from Cooking Light. We revised the recipes a bit and jotted down some notes. Please note below:

Grilled Pork Tenderloin Marinated in Spicy Soy Sauce

• Lars and I used pork loin cutlets instead of pork tenderloin, and it was all good.
• We only marinated for 30 minutes and it worked out perfectly, but more marinating time can only make it more fantastic.
• Verdict: Lars said, “This is the best thing EVVVVERR.” I agree. The pork was a spicy Asian-inspired dish with a sweetness that complimented the soy sauce. It came out so juicy!

Oven-Roasted Green Beans

• The recipe said to roast them for 8 minutes. We did 20 minutes. Haha. We like them crispy. We would have cooked them even longer, actually. I think it is up to you.
• An easy, highly-rated recipe.
• I recommend putting foil down on the pan because it doesn’t get all oily and I have a theory that it helps the beans get that crispy quality I like.
• Verdict: GREAT! We might add pine nuts next time!

I also had a Snapple Tea with my dinner. Yum!

My day was lame and will continue to be lame. I suppose we all have those days.

You know what isn’t lame? Yogurt and giveaways. To win the chance to make your own yogurt EVERY DAY go to Eatventures for a chance to win. Click on the link and you are ready to go!

Let’s Play a Game:

Please finish the sentence: “You know you’re a food blogger when…”

I love Coffee Shops

This morning I sat around watching episodes of the Bachelorette on Hulu, while blowing my nose every five minutes. I walked around the apartment making Snooki-like moans with a trail of tissues following. I needed to stop feeling bad for myself, so I decided to finally go to the coffee shop. It took too long to cover my red nose with make-up, but I finally made it. I hadn’t had lunch yet and planned to get some soup, but I’m sick of freaking soup. SICK OF IT. Plus, I haven’t been hungry at all today. So, I decided to just eat the snacks I brought with a nice cup of “Get Well” tea from the coffee shop. You know what, I’m also sick of tea. When I’m done being sick, I’m buying a latte.

So this is my lunch: “Get Well” tea, an apple, a Luna Protein Bar (it’s Chocolate Peanut Butter), and a bag of tissues from home. Yes, I put my apples in Ziploc bags. I don’t want them to get all germy in my bag. Oh, I’m a germ freak. You should have seen me with the antibacterial gel during the Swine Flu outbreak at my college. Student papers are germ central.

People Watching

So in the last post I said I liked people watching while I’m at coffee shops. I love coffee shops; they are one of the only places where I can get my caffeine fix and my work done. But ya know, when you study…your eyes wander when you are bored. Thus, the people watching. I was hoping I would see some interesting people today since this coffee shop is notorious for it. There is one woman, for example, that whenever I see her I have to text Lars. Why? Because of two major incidents:

Incident 1: There were plenty of open seats in the shop, but she chose one at this random man’s table. She sat there and drank tea, quite calmly. Then suddenly the ambulance came and picked her up. She walked right into the back door of the ambulance and they were off.

Incident 2: There is a piano in the coffee shop. On college campuses coffee shops are places for study, but people are social under a certain sound volume. She decided to start playing the piano and she wasn’t good. The incident was just very random and loud.

I hope she shows up soon with some new drama.

What do you order at coffee shops?

Sicky Birthday

So, I woke up sicker than ever. Great, it is my birthday. I was only able to sleep 6 hours because of my throat. Luckily, Lars brought me tea in bed this morning. It made me feel better for awhile. I’m posting later, because I couldn’t decide what I wanted for breakfast. Everything sounded horrible; food sounded horrible. Then to make matters worse, my parents had to cancel my birthday dinner, because everyone else is sick. It is a sicky birthday, for sure.

Further, I was having a horrible hair day. Nothing could be done with my “bangs.” Thus, as of now, I have only a hair appointment planned for my birthday. I am excited about this, though. I’ll post pictures post haircut (unless it is butchered). Anyway, this is a food blog. Lars convinced me that I had to eat. For some reason I wanted a scone and tea. That was it. So we drove to a local coffee shop (well 2) and got me a plain whole grain scone.

This was perfect for my sicky self. This scone was slightly sweet, but it wasn’t overpowering in flavor. This is great, because I was sick and the thought of food made my stomach turn. It also paired well with the “Get Well” Tea I bought at the local coffee shop.

The tea (along with drugs) is really working. Hopefully I can salvage what is left of my birthday! Sorry, I am so emotional! I think I’m still trying to recover from last semester. And, being sick on your birthday is not fun! Thanks for the birthday wishes.

Birthday Eve

Lars and I hit the road after lunch, but I needed an ice coffee first. I was up since 4:30, after all. I also ate the rest of my Luna Protein Bar from before while on the road.

We drove separately, but decided to meet up at the Amish Cheese Shop off the highway.

Sorry about the eyes, it was windy! I’ve been meaning to go to this place for a while. I always see the billboard sign, and even made up a jingle. I have to drive a lot, so I have to entertain myself! I bought sugar free Triple Berry Jam. Cannot wait to try it!

When Lars and I finally made it to his place it was time for dinner, BUT we had no idea what to eat. We searched through cookbooks and websites, but nothing seemed good enough. This went on for too long and we were starving, so we went out to eat. We decided to go to a vegetarian cafe in downtown: Peaceful Greens.

The waitress was so sweet. She picked out a tea especially for my sore throat, and even brought me honey!

I ordered the bruschetta with a side of quinoa. The bruschetta was so fresh. I have a theory that they picked the tomatoes off a vine out back. Yum. It was my first time eating quinoa, and it was okay. It lacked seasoning, but I’ll definetely try quinoa again anyway.

Lars got the “We Need Another Investor” Burrito. It was a black bean burrito with mango, pineapple, cilantro, red onion, and jalapeno. It was served with coconut rice and a wheat tortilla. It also came with salsa (which Lars loved) and sour cream. Lars was recommended this dish, and he was glad he was. He loved it. He got the sweet potato wedges as a side. We weren’t too thrilled about these.

Overall, a fun meal. I think a nice waitress/waiter really helps make a meal pleasant.

Tomorrow is my birthday and I cannot decide where to have my birthday dinner. Have you ever had a day where you cannot make decisions? So frustrating!

What would you want for your birthday dinner?

Sicky Gourmet

Hello everyone. Thanks for all the get-wells. I am feeling a bit better. I have been watching crappy television and drinking plenty of water and tea!

I am moving out sometime soon, and I have so much crap in my cupboard. So, this post is brought to you by my cupboard. I found this tea for sore throats. Score! I was scared it would taste like potting soil. I had images of sitting in a tent in the middle of the desert taking this potion to cure my sickness, or whatever happens in the movies. It actually didn’t taste bad, and I think it worked! I drank this while laying in bed, but around 11 I was famished. So, I went back to the cupboard.

I toasted this baby bread (this has not been sitting in my cupboard ), and then covered it with Trader Joe’s Bruschetta. This was a nice lunch treat!

To help with the sickness, I made the soup. It was a little bland. It was less sodium, though.

While I’m sick, Bazzle the basil plant is better than ever. I haven’t killed it yet!

Well, I’m going to keep napping/relaxing/drinking tea! See you all at snack time. Happy Hump Day!

Don’t be Tardy for the Party

Hey y’all. I have been completely out of it today and so hungry! Lars convinced me to play a video game, but I had to eat before I saved fictional lives. It was the first time I had this tea, and liked it.

Then, before dinner I got hungry again. What is my deal! I had some almonds and an apple. These almonds are addictive.

My roommate was ordering greasy pizza for the party, so I decided to take Lars out to dinner so that I wasn’t eating dinner at the party. We went to a local all-types-of-food restaurant. Our waitress was super intense. She had a visor with her name air-brushed on it and talked so fast. She brought out the bread and we were afraid not to have a piece. So, I started off the meal with a small piece of sourdough. It was warm .

Awesome picture, I know. Lars got the salmon burger and apple sauce (with cinnamon, as suggested by intense waitress). He loved it. He says, “It was delicious. All the parts went together like a poem” (this is what English graduate students say about food).

I got a salad with romaine lettuce, mandarin oranges, sliced almonds, and chicken. It came with strawberry vinaigrette on the side. It was good, but I could only eat half.

I helped prep for the party by throwing these cookies in the oven.

So here is what I have to say about these cookies. They are good, BUT they do not turn out well. No, I didn’t over cook them. Yes, I made them in two batches to prove my theory. The theory is that the caramel oozes all over the place and ends up creating a crusty, not-so-chewy barrier around the cookie. I had to throw 12 of them out, so I had a cookie emergency. To save the party and my reputation, I made no bake cookies. Ashley saves the day.

Well, I must go and make a fairy tale/nursery rhyme costume in 10 minutes. Wish me luck. Party pictures to come soon!

What is the coolest/oddest/lamest costume-themed party you have gone to?