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A Blue Danube Dinner

August 2, 2009 by

We had such a great evening listening to live classical music outside in a picnic-like setting. The orchestra was playing famous waltzes, including the Blue Danube. I don’t know how to waltz but when they played the Blue Danube, I really wished I knew!

Before the performance, we walked around the concert park to browse some of the vendor tables. They had a children’s instrument petting zoo, where kids could actually play a variety of instruments from strings to brass. Whole Foods also was exhibiting. The store was giving away granny smith apples (Yes, I took one for tomorrow’s lunch!) and samples of a bunch of all-natural hair/skin care products. Check out my loot…

Jason Conditioner

This is Jason’s Lavender and Rosemary curl defining conditioner. I’m looking forward to using this because I have naturally curly hair and need everything I can get to tame it!

Avalon Peppermint cream

And this is Avalon Organics Peppermint Hand and Body lotion. I plan to put this on my heels and feet before I go to bed. I’m hoping it makes my rough runner’s feet a little smoother.

The concert started at 5 PM sharp and our classical music entertainment was complemented by an awesome picnic dinner:

Picnic dinner

We brought rotisserie-like chicken, white cheddar cheese, French garlic rounds, and…..

Hummus2

Three-layer hummus from Trader Joe’s! I bought this a week or so ago and have been waiting for the right occasion to try it. The hummus included the flavors of red pepper, regular, and cilantro. My husband raved about the cilantro flavor and I loved them all.

Hummus3

We also had some super juicy watermelon chunks.

Picnic watermelon2

We brought cut-up veggies as well, but I’m still a little veggied out from my huge, but disappointing, salad at lunch. So no dinner veggies for me.

The performance only lasted until 6:30 PM, so we waited until we returned home to eat our dessert…

Raspberry cake1

A raspberry white chocolate swirl cake. It was so light and fluffy and just the right amount of sweetness. I’m not usually a white chocolate fan, but I loved this cake!

Now, it’s off to bed for me because I have a really busy week and it all starts tomorrow. Have a great night everyone!

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Morning Glory Run

August 2, 2009 by

It was an awesome morning for a run! It was 60 degrees, sunny, and no humidity. Perfect. So, it really goes without saying, I was so in my glory running this morning. On my way around the lake, I even threw in a few speed intervals on my 5-mile run because I had so much energy.

By the time I came home from my run, I was quite the hungry girl. For breakfast, I made a beautiful blueberry breakfast parfait…

Parfait2

Here’s what you’ll need to make the parfait:

Blueberry Greek Yogurt Parfait

  • 1 4-6 oz container Greek yogurt (I used Trader Joe’s nonfat blueberry)
  • 3 tbsp. chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup fresh blueberries

Put a couple of heaping spoonfuls of yogurt in the bottom of a parfait glass (a glass mug or martini glass will also work), then add 1 tablespoon of nuts and about 1/3 of the blueberries. Continue to layer the ingredients in this order until all the ingredients have been used.

Serves one and is about 200 yummy calories. Enjoy!

Parfait1

I just love adding walnuts or pecans to yogurt, because in between all of the creaminess, you get a surprise crunch! And the colors are so pretty, don’t you think?

After breakfast, I spent most of the morning inside making the house acceptable again. Then, my husband and I headed out to do a few errands. We also made time for a little lunch at a local Italian cafe…

Chopped Salad2

I had a huge Italian chopped cobb salad which was brand new on the menu. And I do mean a HUGE salad- it could easily have been split by two people. It included smoked chicken, salami, chickpeas, tomatoes, salad greens, provolone, and tons of fresh basil. It sounds sooo good, right? Well, I thought so too. But after a few bites, the balsamic vinaigrette  dressing was a little too much for me and the basil was really overpowering the taste of all of the other ingredients.

Chopped Salad1

I ended up only eating about 1/3 of the salad. I really wanted to like this salad, but I don’t think I’d order it again.

Now, we’re packing up the car with our picnic supplies. We’re headed to another outdoor concert – this time to hear a variety of waltzes, including the Blue Danube, which is one of my favorites (ok, I’m really not that old, I’ve just heard it so many times that it’s grown on me.) 

Dinner is going to be great though – fresh chicken, hummus, and a raspberry white chocolate roll cake. Can’t wait.

I’ll post pictures later.

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Split-Pea Perfection

August 1, 2009 by

My Barnes and Noble trip was less than productive. I had planned on reviewing a bunch of videos for a project I’m working on, but realized that I forgot my headphones. Obviously, it would have been very rude of me to listen to the videos out loud at B&N cafe. So, I worked on a few other small things then headed for home. 

On the way home, I stopped at Fresh Market to pick up a loaf of freshly-baked whole-grain bread and some garlic French rounds – both for the awesome split-pea soup my husband and I made for dinner.

Pea soup1

I thought the split-pea soup was fantastic. The ham hock I used gave it a ton of flavor and the sweet potato gave the soup some added color, and an extra boost of vitamins A and C. Even peas themselves offer great nutritional value, because they are packed with protein.

Pea soup2

I’ve loved split-pea soup since I was a kid but only started making it homemade as an adult. To make the soup, here’s what you’ll need…

RWC Split-Pea and Ham Soup 

  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 large carrots, chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1-2 tbsp olive oil
  • 14 oz dried green split-peas
  • 64 oz chicken broth/stock
  • 1 sweet potato, skin removed and cut into small cubes
  • 1 medium ham hock (about the size of a full chicken breast
  • 4 tsp dried parsley
  • 1/2 tsp dried marjorum
  • 1/4 tsp oregano
  • a sprinkle of rosemary

Heat oil in a large sauce pan. Add onion, celery, and carrots and saute on medium until just softened. Add the split peas, chicken broth, sweet potato, ham hock, and the spices to the sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 60 minutes. Remove ham hock, and slice meat off the bone, cut into small pieces, and set aside. Discard ham hock. Puree up to half of the soup mixture in a blender, then return blended soup to the sauce pan. Add ham pieces, and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with croutons or French bread rounds.

Serves 8 people.

This recipe makes way more soup than needed for just 2 people. But we usually freeze one or two quarts to make as a quick mid-week dinner.

We were especially full from dinner because, in addition to soup, we had baked feta cheese with fresh multi-grain bread.

baked feta2

I’ve had baked feta a couple times before and LOVED it both times. Tonight was the first time I made it at home. Here’s what I did:

Spicy Baked Feta

  • 4-8 oz block of feta
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (or more if you like it hot!)
  • fresh ground pepper

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Cut the feta into large chunks (or leave as one big chunk if you like) and place in a shallow oven-safe bowl.. Mix oil, garlic, red pepper, and ground pepper in a separate bowl and pour over feta. Bake for 10-15 minutes until cheese is slightly brown. Spread warm cheese on fresh bread or French rounds.

Baked feta is so much better when it’s served warm, mainly because you can easily spread it on your bread. Although my baked feta tasted good, I let it cook for nearly 25 minutes because I was preoccupied. This was way too long and the cheese was a little rubbery and hard to spread on the bread.

I have sooo much to get done tomorrow, it’s not even funny. So, I’m outta here. Hope you enjoy the recipes. Chat with you later.

Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: ,

Energizing Apple-Nut Oatmeal

August 1, 2009 by

Hello everyone! My day started with a 60-minute session of yoga at my local studio. It was fantastic! I’m so glad that our regular yogini is back. She really makes us work but also takes her time with us. 

After class, I made a little breakfast…some apple-nut oatmeal!

Oatmeal-pb2

Here’s what it included:

Energizing Apple-Nut Oatmeal

  • 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats (not the quick cook kind)
  • 1/2 cup skim milk
  • 1/4 shredded red delicious apple
  • 2 tbsp walnuts
  • 1 heaping tbsp all-natural creamy peanut butter

Cook the oats as directed on the package or combine the oats and milk and microwave on high for 2-3 minutes. Add shredded apple and walnuts and top with peanut butter. Stir until peanut butter is melted and blended into the oatmeal. Enjoy!

Oatmeal-pb1

My Energizing Apple-Nut Oatmeal was fantastic and so filling for just 1/4 cup oats! It really is amazing all of the things you can add to plain oatmeal and have the flavor change dramatically. It’s also great for a post-run or post-yoga workout because it gives me a ton of energy with the nuts and peanut butter added it. I may try it as a pre-run snack to see if it makes me run faster or longer – ha!

With my oatmeal, I also sipped on some Tazo Refresh herbal tea…

Tazo-Refresh

It’s really just a fancy blend of peppermint tea, but it is good nonetheless.

After breakfast, hubby and I ran out to do some errands – one of which was going to Costco. What a zoo it was there! You would have thought they were giving something away – aside from the samples. Thankfully, we were able to get in and out in record time. It seems that everyone wanted to browse and not actually stand in line.

We headed home to make some lunch. Sandwiches are usually a weekend lunch staple in the RWC household, but today we made burgers. I had a t-burger and hubby had a regular beef burger.

T-burger1

I only had about 2/3 of a turkey burger, topped with lettuce and white cheddar cheese, on a 100-calorie Thomas’ multi-grain English muffin. I also threw in a few grape tomatoes as a side.

T-burger2

Now, after a filling lunch, I’m off to Barnes and Noble again to finish a few work-related projects.

Can’t wait for tonight – we’re making homemade split-pea soup!

Catch ya later all!

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Organic Food Provides No Health Benefits

July 31, 2009 by

Before I get into a recap of my afternoon/evening (and an awesome freebie I had), I wanted to share with you the latest scoop on organic food.

Organic Food Is Not As Healthy As It Seems!

If you are one of the nearly 75 percent of Americans who pays extra for organic food thinking it is healthier, you may want to save your money. New evidence suggests that organic foods hold no added health or nutritional benefit compared with nonorganic foods.

Organic Marinara

In a study published this week in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers from the London School of Medicine found no differences in most nutrients in organically or conventionally grown crops, including vitamin C, calcium, and iron. The same was found for meat, dairy, and eggs.

Some consumers also believe that organic foods provide a significant benefit over ordinary foods because they are grown without the use of synthetic pesticides and artificial fertilizers, among other things. However, some experts believe there is insufficient research on the long-term effects of pesticides on humans.

RWC Note…. Although I strive to eat all-natural foods, I don’t necessarily choose organic over nonorganic because it’s better. When I do go organic, it’s because: 1) organic food may be the cheaper option (but this is rare) or, 2) among some all-natural food brands, organic may be your only option (so was the case in my Newman’s marinara seen above.)

So, the next time you’re deciding between organic and non, you may want to base your purchase on cost value rather than health-related value.

Back to may day….

I ran more errands this afternoon but did manage to get out to a local park to stretch my legs a little more. I also made an awesome sausage-pasta dish for dinner:

Sausage-pasta2

I call this dish my Italian Sausage-Pasta with Leeks. It is absolutely yummy and has become a standard in the RWC household. Here’s what you need to make it:

RWC Italian Sausage-Pasta With Leeks Recipe

  • 3 links Italian sausage, casings removed
  • 1/2 small carton of button mushrooms
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2-3 large leeks (white parts only, sliced length wise, then crosswise into 1-inch half-circle pieces – rinsed)
  • 2 bell peppers (any color you like, cut in long thin strips)
  • 8 oz of short pasta, cooked and drained (rotini, shells, or campenelle)
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 1 cup chicken stock/broth

Add the oil to a large saute pan. Add chopped Italian sausage and mushrooms to the pan and saute until sausage is thoroughly browned and mushrooms are cooked through, stirring constantly so meat does not burn. Add leeks and bell peppers and saute until veggies are tender (but not mushy) about 8 minutes. Add butter, shallot, and broth, and cook on medium-high for 5-8 minutes or until some of the juice has evaporated a little. Add cooked pasta (that has been drained) to the sausage mixture and mix thoroughly. Serve sprinkled with parmesan cheese.

Serves 4 people.

If you like Italian sausage, I can almost guarantee you will make this dish more than once! I have used turkey Italian sausage before and it tastes just as good (although my husband would argue this point). I also like to change up the color of my peppers to give the dish a little variety. You can really add more than 2 peppers if you like, because they give the dish so much flavor!

Sausage-pasta1

My husband and I were pretty full, so we decided to head up to the local outdoor mall to walk off some of our dinner. We also decided to get a little treat for ourselves – ice cream!

Cold Stone

We went to Cold Stone Creamery – which we love but don’t go there very often because it’s so expensive. I had a kid’s size French Vanilla with chocolate cake – fantastic! And, to make things even better, our ice creams were free because they made a mistake on our bill (overcharged us by more than $4.00 – how does that happen?) The manager said it’s store policy to comp the order if they make a mistake on your bill. I was very impressed by this great customer service and especially appreciate that I didn’t have to shell out $10 for ice cream.

Now, I’m off to bed. Yoga starts at 8 AM tomorrow!

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Fitness Magazines Motivate You To Live Healthy

July 31, 2009 by

I recently had someone ask me what health magazines I read. Oh my – there are so many! I am a magazine fanatic, but I especially love health and fitness magazines. I just love getting a bunch of little tidbits of health information all wrapped up in a nice, portable, easy to read package.

Magazines

As for subscriptions, I subscribe to several magazines, mostly health-related, including:

  • Shape
  • Self
  • Fitness 
  • Real Simple
  • Marie Claire

And, there are many more that I don’t subscribe to that I frequently read, whether I get them from the library or read them while relaxing at Barnes and Noble. Here are just a few that I read (although do not subscribe to) on a regular basis:

  • Body and Soul
  • Yoga Journal
  • Natural Health
  • Fine Cooking
  • Cooking Light
  • Bon Appetit
  • Runner’s World

Health and fitness magazines are not the end-all, be-all in wellness information, but they provide a nice overview of what’s new and different in the wellness world, as well as new twists to old favorites. They also provide great ideas for recipes, new fitness or food products, and continued motivation to stay healthy. Although every magazine reguritates information, or at least topics, at some point, I can honestly say that I learn something new each time I read a new issue of my favorite magazines.

Now, on to my day….

What a difference a day makes! Although I still don’t feel completely rested, I woke up with way more energy than I did yesterday – maybe it’s because today is my day off! By the way, I did not do my Yoga Download last night. I became too engrossed in writing and watching Harry Potter at the same time. I’ve seen the first HP movie a dozen times but it never gets old.

I started my day with a 4 mile run, then walked for a short time. The weather was just perfect too, low humidity and 70 degrees. 

I had an appointment early this morning so I had to make a quick breakfast and get out the door.

Cereal-walnuts

I had a little cheerios with about 2 tbsp walnuts and, what else? Blueberries! I’m still trying to use up the monster-size blueberry container I purchased from Costco. It’s been almost 2 weeks and they are still in the fridge and still fairly fresh. 

I headed to may appointment then onto the grocery store where I picked up a ton of fresh fruit – bananas, pears, apples, etc. Can’t wait to dig in..

I was super hungry by the time I returned from the store – I’m really surprised I didn’t buy more groceries considering I was so hungry.

Time for lunch…

7.31 sandwich

I had a 1/2 sandwich made with peppered turkey breast and low-fat hard salami, a little white cheddar cheese, and some dijon mustard, all on a piece of 12-grain bread. I also had a few carrot sticks, grape tomatoes, and some Kettle’s Salt and Pepper chips on the side. Perfect for a hot summer lunch.

Carrot stick

After lunch, I took a quick dip in our pool. Once I was used to the cool water, it was quite refreshing on a hot day. 

Now, I’m off to write more articles. Chat with you later.

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Nuts and Bowls

July 30, 2009 by

Hello All. Hope you had a wonderful day. My day was crazy busy with meetings. I also sat in our office library for about 4 hours reviewing more video footage for a tribute video I’m working on.

Even though I was heads down for most of the day, I did take a break for lunch. I had planned on going out to eat but I honestly was not very hungry. I decided not to waste my money and calories on restaurant food when I knew I really wouldn’t enjoy it. Instead, I had another yogurt-fruit bowl.

Lunch Bowl2

My yogurt bowl was made with a base of Trader Joe’s Organic Greek Yogurt in vanilla flavor. I just want to clarify that I do not eat organic food because it’s better tasting or better for you (more on this topic in another post). I try to choose foods that are all-natural (organic food falls into this category) and sometimes organic is the only choice at the time.

To my yogurt, I added a ton of chopped walnuts (great source of omega 3’s!), a few flakes of coconut, dried pineapple and bananas, and a handful of fresh blueberries (love those antioxidants). It was awesome and looked very cool in the new bowl I scored from the concert a few days ago. The bowl even came with a matching spoon.

Lunch Bowl4

And that my friends was the only thing I ate for the rest of the time I was at work. That’s how filling it was! 

When I finally arrived home from work around 6:30 PM, I still wasn’t that hungry. I made a simple and small taco salad bowl. I threw in a a bunch of lettuce, some turkey taco meat from Monday’s dinner, cheddar cheese, and grape tomatoes.

taco salad2

It was just ho-hum, but satisfying. But, now that my stomach has settled a little, I’m off to do some yoga.

Night everyone!

Filed Under: Dinner Tagged With: , , ,

Desperately Seeking Yoga

July 30, 2009 by

Boy, for getting a decent night’s sleep (7 hours) I still feel like I’m dragging this morning. Although I still did a 4 1/2 mile run, I felt like it would never end. Even after chugging a bunch of water and eating a protein-packed breakfast, I still feel in a fog. I’m chalking this yucky feeling up to the extremely high humidity we are having here today. It’s nearly giving me a headache.

pbbanana1

For breakfast, I had a piece of 12-grain bread with all-natural creamy peanut butter, with a few banana slices. It was good, but I didn’t finish it all – just wasn’t that hungry.

pbbanana4

What I really need is some Tazo Awake tea (and I have none) and a little yoga. Yoga always seems to clear my head in the morning, but it’s a little difficult to excuse myself at work, go into a conference room, and get into savasana. People might think I’ve passed out! However, we are trying to get a yoga instructor to come into our office once a week, which would be awesome! I would really like to increase my yoga practice to more than one day a week and this would be the perfect way to do it.

If you’re thinking about trying yoga, I would definitely recommend taking a few classes to learn the basics. Then, once you’re familiar with the concept and the poses, then you can practice at home. 

But, if you just want a quick illustration of a yoga class or to see what yoga is all about, a good place to learn is at yogadownload.com. You can download free 20-minute yoga lessons and print out free step-by-step illustrations of poses. You do need to create an account first, but it’s very easy and free. You can also go to Yoga Journal to learn about yoga basics, as well as additional information about healthy eating and living.

I’m planning on doing a short Yoga Download session tonight. Just thinking about it is already making me feel a little better. Ah… the power of yoga!

Filed Under: Breakfast Tagged With: , ,

Lunch in the Garden Can Boost Your Mood

July 29, 2009 by

Hello everyone. I had an awesome afternoon today. My team went out to lunch at a local botanical garden. I just love my job!

I was so extremely tired before lunch, but then when we arrived at the gardens, I seemed to perk up – and wake up – a little. It’s funny how your environment can affect your mood like that. I mean, how can you not be happy and inspired by all of this color…

flower

Definitely no grey gardens here!

Before venturing into the garden for a quick stroll, we ate at the little garden cafe. Although the cafe has a very limited menu, what they serve is all natural and the produce is all organic. Even the plates and utensils are environmentally friendly – they’re all biodegradable. 

For lunch, I had a very tasty grilled veggie panini made with portobello mushrooms, roasted peppers, tomato, and goat cheese on focaccia bread. The presentation of the food was quite lackluster – it was served in a cardboard holder – but the panini made up for it.

lunch1

The sandwich came with a few crinkle chips, but I only ate a few. I wanted to save more room for the yummy sammy!

lunch2

After lunch, we headed into the gardens and they were amazing! They reminded me of gardens I had seen in Europe. We only spent about 20 minutes there, but I was still able to get some great shots.triangle garden

flower2

It was a beautiful day to take in all of the sites at the garden. And, I just love sneaking in exercise on my extended lunch hour. It makes the day go by so much faster and I burn a few calories too!

Although I was pretty full from my panini, I wanted a little somethin’ somethin’ in the afternoon. So, for a quick treat, I ate the lemon pound cake that I saved from my trip to the gardens.

Lemon pound cake

It was so lemony and sweet! It tasted a lot like Ina Garten’s yogurt lemon cake recipe, which I absolutely love.

I was still a little full by the time I arrived home from work at 6 PM, so I had a lighter dinner than I planned.

Dinner1

It was a simple dinner of roasted veggies, with about 1 cup pasta with marinara sauce. I also added 3/4 of an Italian sausage for protein and spicy flavor.

I have a few more things to get finished tonight, so gotta run! Have a great night all.

Filed Under: Lunch Tagged With: , , ,

Morning Wake-up Call in a Bowl

July 29, 2009 by

Morning all! I am really glad this is my off day from running because I am sooo tired from staying out late last night. I was up until 12:30 AM, which is so NOT a good idea on a Tuesday when you have to work the next day. 

I tried to give myself a wake-up call this morning with a little energizing breakfast…

Gereal-granola2

I started with a base of about a cup of Cheerios, then added the rest of my RWC Tropical Granola, and a handful of fresh blueberries. There’s nothing like a bit of c-r-u-n-c-h in the morning to get you going.

Cereal-granola3

OK, enough chatter. I’m off to make some tea before I fall asleep!

Have a great morning!

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