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Sign of Fatness

“Loving Food and Living Cheaply”

March 28, 2011 Spring, where are you???

It is freeeezing outside. I spent my weekend almost exclusively indoors because of this, and I was not pleased! I’m ready for warm weather; which means no more coats, no more jackets, no more heat in my car, and no more staying indoors. The cold was the main reason why I didn’t go for a run this weekend and instead cooked/ate way too much. Seriously cold weather turns me into this grouchy monster that just sleeps and cooks;it’s scary stuff.

This weekend I made curried tofu with quinoa, spinach dip (for the basketball games/pitas were on sale for 66 cents!), fudge balls,  almond butter cookies, cauliflower mash, overcooked steamed shrimp, and banana soft serve with chocolate sauce/crumbled almond butter cookie. My favorite meal was most definitely the curried tofu; it’s a recipe from a book (I forget the namE) at the bf’s house, and it’s really, really good. As far as desserts go, the banana “ice cream” with the chocolate sauce and almond butter cookie was amaaazing. Below are the recipes, and I highly reccomend giving them a go: they’re all easy to make and healthy so win/win.

Curried Tofu

Ingredients

One blog of Extra Firm Tofu

1 bell pepper

1 tbsp of olive oil

1 onion

1 green chile

1 package of curry paste

2 cloves of garlic

3 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp tumeric

1 tsp of pepper

Directions

Press the tofu, making sure to press all the excess liquid out (I did this by pressing it in between two plates for around 20 minutes). Sautee onions and garlic until the onions are translucent, then add the peppers. Cook for around 5 minutes and add the curry paste and soy sauce. The curry paste can be pretty thick, so to loosen it up we added some water as well. Cook for another 5 minutes and then add the tofu. Simmer for 20 minutes and then serve.

Almond Butter Cookies

1/2 cup of almond butter

1/2 cup of steel cut oats

2 eggs

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 cup of chocolate chips

4 tbsps of brown sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine ingredients in a bowl, mix well. Put the mixture into little dollups on a baking sheet (size is your preference). Bake for around 10 minutes. Take out and let it cool.

Banana Soft Serve with Chocolate Syrup

Ingredients

2 frozen, chopped bananas

2 tbsp greek yogurt

1 tbsp of agave syrup

1 tsp of unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions

Take the banana and greek yogurt and put into your food processor. Mix ingredients until there are no banana chunks and it resembles soft serve. Put the mixture into two bowls. In another bowl, combine agave syrup and cocoa powder. Microwave for 20 seconds to make it a little warm, pour over the two bowls of soft serve. Enjoy.

Fudge Balls

Ingredients

1 cup of almonds

15 dates (I used less to conserve dates)

1 tbsp agave syrup

2/3 cup of cocoa powder

Directions

Put the almonds into the food processor and blend well. Add the dates, followed by the cocoa powder and syrup. Add water if the mixture is too dry. When done, take scoops out of the processor and form into little balls (or just little scoops). Just to warn you, this is not a pretty dessert and can be really messy but they’re pretty popular.. for a reason ;).

March 25, 2011 Calorie Freakout

Today I completely freaked out. Had a good start to my morning with some overnight oats that were nice and chocolately.

Cocoa Overnight Oats

Ingredients

1/2 cup of rolled oats

1/2 tbsp of unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup of almond milk

1 banana

Directions

Combine ingredients in a bowl. Put in the fridge overnight. Open the next day and eat.

 

Later on this morning I had a meeting, and afterwards  I decided to treat myself to a chai. I gave up coffee drinks for lent so I opted for a tall soy chai latte. Not only was that sucker expensive, but after I drank it I discovered it’s 270 calories. That’s ridiculous! Most grande skinny lattes are less than that. Anyway I was freaking out for a good hour, debating about whether or not I should skip lunch, etc. So I had an unnecessary calorie freakout, but then I figured I’d kick it into gear with cardio this afternoon and just have my polenta mini pizzas, instead of the mini pizzas and celery sticks with almond butter. It doesn’t completely make up for the chai latte blunder, but it’s certainly not the end of the world. Lesson learned, check calories before purchasing/relax a little bit.


March 24, 2011 Food Rut and a Wish List?

So I haven’t blogged in like a day because I’m currently in the midst of a food rut. Working out has me coming home later and later so I haven’t felt energetic enough to make anything creative. What’d I have last night? Just a big ‘ol bowl of pasta. So lame… and yet so warm and comforting, just what I needed during that thunder storm the other night.

I did however make the mini polenta pizzas that I found from Poor Girl Eats Well, and they were pretty good. Not too filling so I would definitely make a side, or you can be silly like me and munch on celery, olives, a cheese stick… etc.

I promise next week I’ll add my grocery list that left me with only $22 in food stamps left until April 12th.

Anyway, hopefully my food rut will be over this weekend. Visiting the bf and bringing lots of goodies to cook with should put me out of my funk. In the mean-time, I’ve compiled a foodie wish-list. Hopefully one day my dream will come true!

It consists of:

1. Keurig Coffee Maker

– These things are amazing and my work’s Mr. Coffee isn’t cutting it or my latte cravings.

2. Sunwarrior Protein Powder

– I see this protein powder in all of the blogs I read. It looks great and has half the calories of Amazing Grass.

3. Chia Seeds

– Again, frequently on the blogs I read. I’m dying to make Chia pudding or stick some of these suckers in my overnight oats.

 

March 21, 2011 Mouse, Poison, and 5k

So today at the gym I did it: I ran a 5k!! I was able to turn my bad mood into motivation to run faster and faster until i hit the 3.1 mile mark; it was a great feeling. I followed the 5k with 35 minutes on the elliptical, and then came home and did a biggest loser sculpting workout at level 2.

I decided to treat myself after my workout to muffins. As I was making them, a MOUSE ran on my foot. I screamed and dropped a bunch of stuff on the floor. I then decided to just finish the muffins and have some dumplings for dinner and call it a night. After I already made my muffins, my roommates came in and informed me that they had cleaned the oven out with chemicals yesterday and had yet to clean out the oven… good thing I ALREADY ate three muffins. Crossing my fingers I’m not poisoned… To be continued?

Some more exciting news: I went to Emergen C’s website awhile ago and filled out a form for free samples, and they came in! So after tomorrow’s grocery store trip I’ll be giving those bad boys a try.

Berry Oat Muffins  (Update: They aren’t poisonous)

Ingredients

1 cup of whole wheat flour

1 cup of rolled oats

1/4 cup of apple sauce

2 tsps of vanilla

1 cup of TJ’s frozen mixed berries

1 egg

2 tsps baking powder

1 tbsp of agave

1 cup of water or almond milk

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375. In a bowl mix the oats and water, and let them sit for 5 minutes. In another bowl combine the flour and baking powder. In yet another bowl, whisk the egg and combine with the agave, vanilla extract, and apple sauce. Combine all the ingredients together and put into 12 muffin tins. Put in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Take them out and pray that your roommates didn’t just clean the oven.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 53 g
Amount Per Serving
Calories

76
Calories from Fat

5
% Daily Value*
Total Fat

0.5g
1%
Cholesterol

0mg
0%
Sodium

3mg
0%
Total Carbohydrates

16.0g
5%
Dietary Fiber

1.3g
5%
Sugars

1.3g
Protein

2.0g
Vitamin A 0% • Vitamin C 4%
Calcium 4% • Iron 5%
Nutrition Grade A-
* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

March 21, 2011 New Week, New Goals

I’m considering downloading the WordPress app on my phone (but it’s 2 dollars, ugggh) so I can update on a regular basis. But until I do that here’s a quick run down of this weekend, which was really great and relaxing. Again, maybe not a successful weekend for lent…I splurged. Friday the bf’s roommate broke out the grill since it was 75!!! degrees out. He offered me a hamburger, and I simply couldn’t turn it down because a) it was free b) nothing beats a grilled burger. Afterward we all headed to a local bar, and I indulged in a couple of drinks; it was Friday after all! Saturday the bf and I journeyed to Trader Joe’s where I bought the world… well not quite, but certainly splurged. That night we made this recipe I found for Greek baked shrimp from YumSugar, and it was totally worth the extra dollars we spent to make it happen. We paired it with some red wine, and spent the night watching some basketball and hanging out with his roommates and the cute puppy they’re babysitting.

Awww sleepy puppy..

Since Sunday is not considered a day of Lent, Sunday has become my cheat day. Because of this, I made an avocado/anchovy dip I found from YumSugar and paired it with chips!  I’m trying not to go too overboard on Sundays,  but with that dip and my favorite Tostitos chips… I may have, just a weeee bit. And because Arizona ended up winning against Texas, the bf and I had some victory froyo from Yogurt City in Newark. I had a red velvet/cheesecake/cookies and cream combination with cookie dough bites, walnuts, pineapple, and kiwi. So okay, yeah, I overdid it.

New Goals

I’m keeping up with Lent, and I really am going to try and be better during the weekend. To my credit, I did go on a hike on Saturday and did not go out to eat at all. So go me!

I’d also like to make some more concrete fitness goals. Namely, I am definitely doing the April 15th  5k. I’m nervous because I’ve only been doing treadmill running, but I think I’ll be able to do it. Also, I have one big goal: next year, I want to be able to complete the New York Half Marathon. I know it’s a year from now and who knows where I’ll be living; but right now completing a half marathon seems crazy. Every blog I see and every time I log onto Facebook people are completing them; and if I keep up with running I think maybe I can do it too. So wish me luck!

March 17, 2011 3 miles!

Today I DID IT! I ran 3 miles, no stopping. I know to most people this doesn’t sound like much but to me it IS. I am NOT a runner; I am NOT athletic. One of my goals for leading a healthier lifestyle has been to participate in an actual running race. It’d be nice to be able to accomplish something athletic. It’s been a struggle because I find myself getting discouraged frequently; so many of the blogs I read have these women who can run 5 miles+ no sweat. Also my friends seem to run with ease, even after they haven’t worked out for months. For me it’s not easy, and I’m still pretty slow. I actually refuse to run with the bf (who’s one of those people who can up and run 5 miles) until I feel fully confident that I can run at a good pace. My goal is to be ready for a 5k by April 16; there’s a 5k for Clean Air in Philly for only 30 bucks so I feel like it’s the perfect opportunity to get my feet wet. Hopefully the fact that I’ve been training on a treadmill won’t completely hinder my performance. I know it’s better to run outside, but I happen to live in a pretty bad area and it’s dark by the time I get home/I never feel like up and running after work and the 40 minute drive. Well, hopefully come April 16th I won’t make an ass out of myself and actually complete my FIRST race.

http://www.5krunforcleanair.org/

After my run, I hopped on the elliptical for 30 minutes of high intervals and increasing resistance to give myself a nice rear-end/thigh workout. I don’t focus as much on speed on the elliptical as much as strength and endurance, and it helps when I have a Cooking Light magazine to leaf through while going at it. When I finished on the elliptical, I ran around the gym using various weight machines working out my twiggy arms. Since I started working out my arms have already started toning up, but it’d be great to see more definition. After two hours, I scooted my butt into my car and headed home because I was STARVING.

Tonight I decided to keep with the tortilla theme. I made a sort of rueben burger with a whole wheat tortilla, chopped up turkey burger, mushrooms, saurkraut, TJ’s sweet/hot mustard, and some goat cheese. I kid you not this thing was out of this world! SO good! A little messy but wow… definitely a repeat, for sure. Sadly no can do for lunch tomorrow, gotta use up some leftover refried beans! I may try combining the beans with saurkraut… in some kind of weird burrito. We’ll see.

I also tackled roasted brussel sprouts. I googled recipes all over and decided I could just throw a bunch of stuff on them and hope for the best. I’d make them again but they were completely overshadowed by my wrap/nowhere near as good. Here’s the recipe I used in case you’d like to give a try.

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Ingredients

1 package of brussel sprouts

1 tbsp of olive oil

1/2 tbsp of sea salt

1/2 tbsp of apple cider vinegar

2 tsps lemon pepper

2 tsps garlic powder

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400. Cut the ends of the brussel sprouts and then cut them in half. Toss the brussel sprouts with the rest of the ingredients. Put into a pam sprayed-pan. Pop in the oven for 30 minutes. Take out and munch away.

March 17, 2011 Healthified Shamrock Shake.. Just not the Same

I don’t think I’ve shared one of my weaknesses: the McDonald’s Shamrock Shake. Yes yes yes I’m fully aware of how gross McDonald’s is, but I can’t resist the creamy goodness of the Shamrock Shake (or the Big Mac sauce.. but that’s another story). Because I gave up fast food AND sweets for lent, the Shamrock Shake is a no-go. I’m also trying to forbid McDonald’s completely from my diet, which isn’t hard considering I have it maybe once every six months. But St. Patrick’s Day makes me think of the shake more than anything, probably because I hate all other foods associated with St. Patrick’s. Despite my Irish heritage I can’t stand any of the foods and the fact that I’m not a big meat eater doesn’t help. So the only food I enjoyed with this time of the year was my dearest Shamrock Shake; you are missed my friend.

This morning for breakfast I decided to try and make a healthy green monster version of my Sham Shake. The result? I mean it was good, but next time I’ll substitute mint leaves instead of peppermint extract. I only went with the extract to avoid wasting a bunch of mint leaves. Also it still was nowhere near as creamy and sweet as the Sham Shake, but i figured that would happen. Had I used vanilla froyo maybe it could have been done, but sadly that doesn’t fit in with my lent promises. But hey, give it a try if you want a green and nutritious boost to your morning. I would have something else as well, although it’s filling it’s not quite filling enough for breakfast (I had another pumpkin quinoa muffin).

Green Monster Shamrock Smoothie

Ingredients

1 cup of spinach

1 cup of vanilla almond milk

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1 chopped up frozen banana

1/2 tsp of peppermint extract (do not do a full tsp, ick too pepperminty)

Directions

In the following order, place in the blender: spinach, bananas, almond milk, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract. Blend until smooth. Drink it up!

And for more green monster recipes, check out: http://greenmonstermovement.com/

Now back to my tortilla struggle…. I still have SO many left! For dinner last night I made a delicious quinoa burrito. It was filling and flavorful, and it took maaaybe 3 seconds to make. I paired it with a couple of celery sticks and black bean salsa (desperately trying to eat my celery too). I even made another one for lunch today (along with a celery stalk/peanutbutter), took no effort. Give it a try! And I apologize for the classy paper plate/bad pic (photography/using a real camera are things I need to embrace still).

Quinoa Black Bean Burrito

Ingredients

Almost 1/2 can of TJ’s Refried Black Beans with Jalapenos (you can change the amount, it’s up to you!)

1 serving of Chevre Goat Cheese

1/2 serving of cooked Quinoa (so about 1/4 cup cooked)

1 tortilla

2 tsps of hot sauce

3/4 cup of mushrooms

2 tbsp of veggie broth

Directions

Cook quinoa (see box for details). Meanwhile in a skillet, combine black beans, broth, and mushrooms. Cook for around 5 minutes or until warm. Place cooked quinoa, cheese, and bean-mushroom mixture in the tortilla and sprinkle with hot sauce. See, easy-peezy.


March 16, 2011 Bracket Time

Within the past 24 hours I’ve been invited to three March Madness pools. I’m pretty excited; it gives me a reason to watch college basketball and do the occasional trash-talking with my friends ;). Only problem is I have no idea what I’m doing… I’ve done brackets before but I’m not exactly the authority on college basketball. This morning I was enjoying a muffin snack and blueberry tea while I tried to figure out my work bracket. I did my other two yesterday… I decided my strategy will be to make all three of mine different, that way I’ll improve my odds? Let’s hope so!

Now onto what’s really important…Da FoOdz.

It’s that time of the month right before I go grocery shopping where I’m scrambling to finish things before they go bad and don’t go to waste. What’s this month’s food rescue operation: Tortillas, mushrooms, spinach, goat cheese,  and chicken sausages. I have around 10 tortillas left and need to use all of them because they’re starting to get a little stale (and they were supposed to expire a couple of days ago). Also my mushrooms, spinach, goat cheese, and chicken sausages need to be used asap (although I should probably just freeze the chicken sausages). For lunch I made a quesadilla with my flax whole grain tortillas, 1/4 cup of TJ’s light sharp cheddar, spinach, and mushrooms. Packed that along with a grilled chicken sausage and a little bit of black bean salsa. My guesstimate would be that the meal was probably around 350 calories… give or take a few. Most importantly it was satisfying and nutritious.

March 15, 2011 St. Patrick is Out to Get Me

Seriously the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations refuse to end! This past weekend was yet another all day event complete with green beer and good friends. The downfall? Beer isn’t exactly diet friendly and when you’re out all day…you eat out. Luckily I ordered a veggie burger on a whole wheat bun with a side salad so that’s not exactly anything to fret about. But the next day I wasn’t feeling too hot so we ordered pizza (veggie with white sauce on a whole wheat crust). So my lent promises kind of went out the window this past weekend. But…. it’s looking like this weekend will be a calm, nice weekend complete with tons of eating in! I also haven’t felt up to working out these past few days (terrible stomach pains) so I’ve had to slice my calorie intake… luckily my appetite hasn’t been very high.

But last night/today I got it together. The bf and I cooked some salmon last night which was delicious. Just a simple dill sauce and some salmon filets. Today I made eggplant parm once again because I needed to use the rest of the tomato sauce. But for lunch tomorrow made myself a nice veggie quesadilla with chicken sausage on the side and for breakfast, I made pumpkin quinoa muffins. They’re pretty delicious and moist, but not very sweet (good for me maybe not good for some). My only complaint would be that I needed to add some kind of dried fruit (sadly I hate raisins and am out of craisins) to add some more texture and flavor.

Pumpkin Quinoa Muffins (Adapted from Carrots and Cake)

Ingredients

1 cup of whole wheat flour

2 tsps vanilla extract

1/4 cup of brown sugar

2 tbsp smart balance light butter

1/2 can of pureed pumpkin

1/3 cup of chopped almonds

1/2 cup of cooked quinoa

1 egg

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine ingredients in a bowl. Pour the mixture into muffin trays. Cook for 25 minutes. Take out and let them cool. Spread some butta or something else if you need a little extra something ;). Makes around 12, Save the rest for breakfast!

March 11, 2011 Overnight Fail

So last night I decided to quickly make some overnight oats. This batch consisted of:

1/2 cup of rolled oats

1/2 cup of soy milk

1/4 scoop of chocolate Amazing Grass

1/4 cup of Dried Pineapple

1/3 cup of Tj’s Frozen Berries

Now these oats were pretty okay and filling but… kind of a fail. The dried fruit became really hard on the fridge and everything didn’t mix too well. Oh well lesson learned; always mix the ingredients before putting them in the fridge. After my morning oats I stopped at Dunkin for some coffee with skim milk (I miss lattes) and all morning I’ve been eating my peanut butter chickpeas (probably around 10 of them). At work everyone’s ordering Chinese… I tried saying I was fine but I was getting weird looks and comments so I just opted for some steamed veggie dumplings so hopefully those won’t be too bad. Oh well, guess I’ll just kick it into overdrive tonight with my workout.

For dinner I’m bringing the bf some salmon and mushrooms.. so it’s off to search my inbox and the internets for some delicious salmon recipes!