Heats and Eats

There was most definitely a heatwave throughout good ole SoCal this weekend. Just when we think fall is upon us, we get tricked again! A good way to avoid the heat is to be really busy working on your thesis and presentation and spend a lot of time indoors...

wahwahwah.

Air-conditioned coffee shops > un-air-conditioned sweat-box apartment

I actually did get out a bit because my dad and sister where in town! My sister had a volleyball tournament at a nearby JC, so my dad and I went to cheer her on. Did I mention my sister is a BOSS?! Cause she is...

When a parent visits, it means one thing: free food! And quality time :) My dad and I then went to lunch at a nearby Thai place (Thai Time III) and each had one of there lunch specials. The food was decent, but the portions were pretty small, but I guess that's why it's so cheap. My dad went to check into his hotel while I did a bit more work and then we met up for dinner. We went to Rock Bottom which I had heard good things about. My dad and I both though their food was pretty decent, but pretty typical restaurant brewery food. I had the shrimp and lobster enchiladas which were good, but I've had better. The black beans were pretty great though and I did really like my beer, the Mary Jane IPA, so that makes the meal a win. My dad got one of the burgers, I forgot which one, but his favorite part of his meal was the side of mac and cheese which was super tasty. Next time I'm getting their blackened shrimp mac and cheese entree because if they do the regular mac and cheese this good, the shrimp has to be even better. After dinner we parted ways, with plans to meet up in the morning. My step mom, Liz, was took the train in late Saturday night and would be joining us for our Sunday Funday.

Woke up Sunday and my dad, Liz, and I headed out for some tourist-y sites along the coast. From La Jolla -> Del Mar -> Solana Beach. Luckily the heat subsided a little and being outside was actually nice and enjoyable.

One of the best parts of Sunday was our delicious brunch at Jake's Del Mar. I'll have to save that review for another post, because it was so good it deserves its own. Eating with a view of the ocean is always a plus.

The rest of my Sunday involved football, more school work, and an actual work out! Life got in the way and I had an unintentional 4-day "rest". Today I got back with the program: Chest and Triceps + Biceps and Back + 4 mile run (39:00, 9:45 pace). A workout was exactly was I need to end my weekend on a happy note. Well, winning this week in fantasy by 1.1 pt also helped...

How did you beat the heat this weekend?

What's your favorite part of having your parents visit?

Happy National Doughnut Day!

National Doughnut Day!

That's right, according to the most reliable wiki the first Friday of June each year is National Doughnut Day.  The day originated back in 1938 by the Salvation Army in honor of the women who served doughnuts to soldiers during WWI.  Shops like Kripsy Kreme and Dunkin' Donuts participated in this grand holiday by giving away free doughnuts!...  Just shooting some knowledge your way. You're welcome.

I'm already a fan of random holidays, so giving me a holiday that involves food and you know I'm celebrating.  I got my free chocolate with sprinkles doughnut from Kripsy Kreme but then I saw they had a new Key Lime doughnut and I had to try it!  Just doing my part.  Doughnuts aren't usually one of my daily eats, nor are they diet friendly, but hey, it's Friday and I can't turn down a holiday.

Hope you celebrated today, I know I did.

Do you prefer the spelling 'doughnut' or 'donut'?  As seen by this post I prefer the spelling 'doughnut'...even if it takes more effort.

What I'm Eating

I don't often share too much about what I eat.  Usually, I just talk about fun things I've cooked or baked, but here's a little more of the day-to-day eats.  I'm really trying to be more healthy and eat less processed food. 

My motto: Listen to your body and don't deprive yourself.

Here's a compilation of my recent eats, drinks, and treats:

From Left-->Right

1.  Salad: baby spinach, cottage cheese, grapes, clementines, and sliced almonds

2.  Green Plant Juice:  My recent find at Trader Joes. So good! High in sugar though, but lots of fruits and veggies.

3.  Egg cooked into an avocado.

4.  Breakfast Protein Smoothie: Aria protein powder, milk, half banana, peanut butter, and spinach.

5.  Whole wheat pasta with sauce and side of asparagus

6.  Aria protein powder: a new-to-me "women's" protein powder.  80 cals, 3 g. carb

7.  Peanut butter-banana-honey toast (with a side of coffee)

8.  Oatmeal with peanut butter, bananas, and cinnamon

9.  Roasted Brussels Sprouts and heirloom tomatoes. New Obsessions.

10.  Zico Coconut Water.  I enjoy the "Natural" flavor, but the Chocolate coconut water is amazing after a good workout

11.  Salad: baby spinach, chopped veggies, and avocado

12.  Salad:  Broccoli slaw, ramen, sesame seeds, almonds, vinagerette

13. Green tea (in my fav. mug)

14.  Breakfast for dinner: eggs (doused in hot sauce), potatoes, toast

What are some of your go-to foods/snacks/drinks?  As you can tell, bananas and peanut butter are my breakfast staples.

[Vegetarian] Buffalo Wings

First and foremost, I wish I would have posted this yesterday because then I'd have a better title like, Buffalo Wing Wednesday, which has a little more pizazz! Now it's Thursday, so you're stuck with this boring title.  My apologies.

I promising it's more appetizing than it may look

I made these buffalo wings for the Superbowl this past Sunday because nothing says you're a tough football watcher like eating a meat substitute covered in hot sauce.  I actually don't miss chicken or other meats, but whenever Shaun gets buffalo wings my mouth waters over the smell of the delicious, mouth-burning sauce.  Wings and football go together like sriracha and most all food.

Source

Moving on.   My lovely [vegan] cousin made these last year for the Superbowl and I've adapted her recipe from The Compassionate Kitchen.  Her recipe is vegan and she even made her own blue cheese dip!  I adapted the recipe to include butter in the sauce and I bought my own blue cheese dressing because I'm not as fancy as her.

Vegetarian Buffalo Wings

8-10oz Seitan or 2 packages (The one I bought was pre-cut into chunks/strips)
1 cup flour
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp paprika
vegetable oil (for frying)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup Frank's Hot Sauce

Directions:

• Mix together flour, garlic powder, chili powder, and paprika in a large bowl
• Dip the strips of seitan into the flour mixture, coating the seitan (I used the biggest and best pieces I had before using some of the smaller pieces)
  * Once all the pieces are coated you should put them into the fridge for an hour, but I didn't have that long and almost immediately went to frying...they turned out great still!
• Heat oil in a frying pan and cook seitan for 15-20 minutes, turning to makes sure all sides are cooked well
• In a separate pan, melt together butter and hot sauce
• Once both seitan and hot sauce are done, place seitan in a bowl, pour sauce over wings, and shake!
  * Breath deep only if you need your sinuses cleared because this stuff is potent!
• Serve with blue cheese dressing/dip
  
  
  Success! Buffalo wings, vegetarian style!

My carnivorous boyfriend and friends enjoyed them as well.  I'm telling you, the sauce is what makes the wings, not the "meat", and this sauce is spot-on!  The wings overall have a great crunchy texture and chewy insides, perfect combo.

The Superbowl watching party was a success.  Thanks to Bob for hosting and being grill-master, Katie for making amazing jalapeno poppers, and Shaun for making (his first) homemade salsa.  

And for dessert I made dark chocolate dipped chips.  Yes, it's as easy as it sounds.  Step 1: melt chocolate. Step 2: dip chip in chocolate.  Step 3:  Let cool in fridge if you can. Step 4: Shove in mouth. Step 5: Repeat.

Beer + food + football + friends = the perfect day

(especially after a 9 mile run in the morning, then I didn't feel so guilty!)

My Key to the Long Run: Kitchen Union and Tap

Sunday I ran my longest run to date for my half marathon training: 8 miles!!!  Woo hoo!  And guess what? I actually maintained a 10:06 min/mile pace.  Not too shabby considering the training plan I'm using says my long runs can be anywhere from 10:10-11:10 min/mile.

The key to my success?:  Having plans to go to BRUNCH afterwards!

I kid you not, for the first two or three miles (and then again on the last mile) I could not stop thinking about what delicious food would be consumed in the next few hours.  Eggs, waffles, potatoes, fruit...I thought about it all.  I also rejoiced in the fact that a few beers would be drank as well because Sundays, football, and beer are a winning combination.

The Brunch Locale: Kitchen Union and Tap

1108 South Coast Highway 101  

Encinitas, CA 92024

http://www.localunion101.com/

A few months ago Shaun, two of our friends, and I went to Kitchen Union and Tap for dinner during San Diego's Beer Week for a Tap the Cask event.  Dinner was great and their menu was full of fresh, unique, and creative entrees.  They also have an extensive, rotating craft beer menu, yum!  I just love the overall mood of the restaurant which is like a modern tavern.  The restaurant fixtures are a mix a wood and metal, and it has a really inviting atmosphere.  The food can best be described as New American.

Less than a week following the aforementioned dinner, my inbox notified me of a Livingsocial deal for brunch at, you guessed it, Kitchen Union and Tap.  The deal:  $12 for $25 worth of brunch food and drinks.  Weekend brunch is served from 9am-3pm.

We arrived around 12:30pm and the place was full of late brunchers, lunchers, drinkers, and football watchers.  We were told it would be a 40 minute wait to be seated, but if a table opened up in the 'open seating'/bar area we were able to take it.  

I ordered a mimosa ($5) while we stood around the bar area watching some football.  After about 25 minutes a table opened up, so we took it.  I oogled over the menu, but ultimately settled on Waffles served with fresh seasonal berries, whipped butter, maple syrup ($9), a side of breakfast potatoes ($4), and a cranberry mimosa ($5).  After much debate, Shaun chose the breakfast flatbread with housemade bacon and sausage, eggs, and cheese ($12).  These were some tough decisions, because there whole menu looked sounded pretty damn good.  We both agreed that our meals were delicious and I would without a doubt stop by again.

 

The rest of the day was beer + football at home.  Overall, a great Sunday.  I'm already thinking of where to brunch next Sunday...gotta have something to think about on those long runs!

A Day in the Life

Woke up this morning and had breakfast.  I had a little more time than usual, so instead of the typical oatmeal with peanut butter and some sort of fruit mixed in, I decided to make something a little nicer yet still simple.  Eggs (+ tapatio), toast with cream cheese, and some blueberries.  Also had a some green tea to kickstart my morning.

 

Went to work.  Basically picture me in an awesome lab coat, wearing gloves, and playing with cells.  Yup, that covers it.

Enjoyed some leftovers for lunch.  Brown rice, baked tofu marinated in soy sauce, and sauteed green bell-peps and mushrooms.  Also snacked on a mini Lara bar and an apple.

 

After work, I headed to the gym to get in my workout.  On the schedule was 3 mi + strength.

 

For strength, I worked on arms and just used some of the machines.  Did a little bit of abs too and called it a day.  Strength is something I really need to start working on; definitely think it will help with running.

Got my post-workout sweat on

And tonight:  came home, did laundry and made some dinner (tuna melt + soup), and got my PACK ON!

Why am I packing?  Well, tomorrow I'm leaving for a weekend cruise to Ensenada with some of my favorite college roommates!  My weekend starts NOW!

Top, L to R: Shannon, Tori
Bottom: Katie, Jessie, Me

Thanksgiving Review, About Two Weeks Late...

Was Thanksgiving really a week and a half ago?  Where have I been?  Well, I've been working a lot and have been busy, busy, busy, but that's just an excuse besides the point.

I was able to go home for Thanksgiving and brought Shaun along with me.   I love the holidays and being home is the perfect chance to reunite with friends and spend time with the family. 

On the cooking side of Thanksgiving, I contributed two dishes, brussels spouts and pumpkin cheese cake.  Apparently I have a thing for brussels sprouts because I made them last year too!  This year I made Cider-Cinnamon Brussel Sprouts using a recipe I found in Self magazine.  These were amazing; the apple, the pear, the cinnamon, the cider, all go perfectly with the brussels sprouts themselves and are the perfect side to any fall dinner.  I also made Paula Deen's pumpkin cheesecake.  I love pumpkin and I love cheesecake, so there was little not to like about this dish.  I'm pretty sure everyone agreed, because we demolished that dessert.

Cider-Cinnamon Brussels Sprouts

Pumpkin Cheesecake...devoured.

Thankgiving also happened to be my dad and Liz's last night in their house.  They were moving out the next day!  That made it quite a unique dinner itself, but it was nice to have everybody back in the house for one last night.

Family

Shaun and I

 

 

 

I mostly stayed away from major Black Friday shopping.  I bought a few cheap movies and the She & Him Christmas CD to get me in the spirit.  I've already been crafting and decorating away for Christmas, 'tis the season!