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Red & Green

Posted on February 27, 2011 by kissmybroccoli

So, did everyone have a fantabulous Sunday? I hope so! Hopefully you had some nice weather to enjoy as well!

When I first woke up this morning it was gloomy and raining…which later turned into gloomier and pouring, but after a few hours the sun peaked out and I was able to enjoy another run outside! I ran 2.5 miles in about 22 minutes and then did 20 minutes of ab work since I am waaaaaay too sore after my ~~beating~~ workout with Jackie yesterday to even think about picking up a dumbbell! Ahhh, my shoulders hurt so good! 😉

For breakfast this morning, I whipped up a batch of what else…pancakes! It seemed that the rain sucked all of my creative juices out this morning, so I turned to the ever talented Katie for some pancake inspiration. I knew when I first saw her Red Velvet Pancakes a few weeks ago that I would have to try them for myself. What better way to perk up a gloomy rainy day than a plate of pillowy chocolate?

I followed Katie’s recipe exactly only adding in 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder and using one tablespoon of cocoa powder instead of two. I whipped up a quick cream cheese spread as my filling/topping and topped the whole thing with some grated semi-sweet chocolate.

Quick Cream Cheese Spread:

3 tablespoons reduced-fat cream cheese
4 drops vanilla cream stevia drops
a splash of vanilla extract
enough milk to achieve desired consistency (I used unsweetened almond milk)

Combine all ingredients and mix until smooth and creamy.

I added about 8 drops of vanilla cream stevia drops to the batter and it provided just the right amount of sweetness to the pancakes! I’ve yet to have a recipe of Katie’s disappoint so I wasn’t surprised by the deliciousness of these babies!

After my run, I decided to further the testing of my collard greens to see if they deserve to replace my lovely spinach in the future. Let me introduce to you, the newest green smoothie on the block!

Collard Greens Monster: (serves 1)

2 handfuls chopped collard greens
1/2 banana
1/2 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tablespoon peanut butter (I used PB&Co White Chocolate Wonderful)

Blend, blend, blend!

Wha? Do I have something on my face?

Verdict? Good, but definitely not my spinach! It was one of those smoothies that grows on you. At first, all I tasted was the bite of the collards, but after a few sips, it was smoother and sweeter.

For dinner tonight, I chose a different way to get some green. Before the “spinach incident” at Sam’s yesterday, I managed to snag a 3lb bag of broccoli! Hmm, wonder what THEY would taste like in a smoothie??

Baked sweet potato topped with Trader Joe’s organic baked beans served alongside steamed broccoli with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and Garlic Gold Nuggets.

I’ve seen Lauren and Chelsea use baked beans as a sweet P topper and was curious to see how it tasted. YUM! The flavors pair perfectly together without being overly sweet! And hellllllllloooo fiber!

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go partake in the crunching of some fantastic homemade cereal. It’s ok, Mama told me to!

Oh yes…I did! It’s ok if you’re jealous!

What’s your favorite cereal?
Mine is definitely Quaker Oatmeal Squares, but I don’t buy them often since 1 box only lasts a few days around me! Oops!

Posted in Breakfast, Entree, Pancake Sunday, Vegetarian | Tagged broccoli, chocolate, green monster, greens, pancakes | 36 Comments

Sam’s Club: A Place for Shopping, Sampling, and Security Escorts

Posted on February 26, 2011 by kissmybroccoli

Hey everybody! So glad you enjoyed my rendition of the alphabet yesterday! It was also fun to get to see what letters you guys picked too!

Well, today has surely gotten away from me! I stayed up mucho late last night determined to clear out my Google Reader, but at 1:00am I waved the white flag and very quickly passed out afterwards!

I woke up this morning at…guess what time! 7:30! Gahh! I shuffled my way into the kitch, started up the ~~life force~~ coffee and set to work on my brekkie which of course had to feature some of my treasures from yesterday’s shopping adventure!

Egg white omelet pancake thingy cooked with chopped scallions, folded up and topped with a slice of sharp cheddar on Ezekiel cinnamon raisin bread. Served with a warmed pink lady topped with cinnamon and chopped almonds.

After breakfast, I lounged around, picked up around the house, and fiddled around on the internet. Finally around 11am I decided it was a good time to head to Sam’s for ~~lunch~~ some bulk-buy necessities.

They definitely had the sample stations going today…I tried about 6 different things. I think they were trying to distract me from something. I’m sure by now you guys understand my love, bordering addiction to spinach. Well, I always buy it from Sam’s because they offer a 3lb. package of organic spinach for $4! Can’t beat that, right? So howabout I go over to the produce section and see that they are now selling ONE POUND packages of spinach for $4!! What?! I nearly had a breakdown!

After rubbing my eyes and seeing that this was in fact my reality, I promptly knocked over the nearest old lady operated sample station, stole all her angel food cake cups and ran out of the store screaming something about food being holy. I don’t quite remember. Things get a bit blurry when you go into shock. It’s true…you can Google it!

After regaining some composure, I finished up my errand running and went home to take out my spinach woes in the form of a killer 30 minute workout that only Jackie Warner can deliver!

[source]
Oh, how I hate to love this woman!

After 30 minutes of ~~torture~~ cardio and strength training, I decided to take advantage of the sudden change in weather and go for a run!

Helllllllllo blue sky and sunshine!

It felt so nice to run outside! I’ve been missing out on all the warm weather days lately thanks to being sick two weekends ago and hungover the next. I actually ran in shorts!! I did a little over 2 miles in 20 minutes. I probably could’ve gone another 1/2 mile or so, but my Sam’s Club samples were burning thin and I knew it was time to get some real food!

So, since I am now banned from Sam’s indefinitely, I am forced to find other frugal alternatives to my dear, precious spinach . Let me introduce to you the first one up: collard greens!

I got all of this for $2.88!!

What do you do with a huge freaking pile of collard greens? You make wraps inspired by my favorite greens lover of course!

Tofu Salad from left to right: with TJ’s White Bean Hummus, Sabra Spinach Artichoke Hummus, and Matt’s Rosemary White Bean Hummus

No plated pics…I gobbled these up as soon as I set the camera down! Sooooo good!

When I mentioned on Wednesday’s post that Trader Joe’s white bean was my favorite hummus, Matt gave me a friendly little challenge to try his recipe before I professed my undying love to TJ’s.

Trader Joe in one corner…

Matt in the other.

DING!

And the winner by K-O in the first round issssss…

I never saw it coming…the day when another white bean hummus would come into my life and sweep me off my feet!

I followed Matt’s recipe exactly but since I was digging the rosemary flavor so much, I decided to throw in 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning as well. Oh my tahini! If you haven’t tried white bean hummus before, let this on be your first! You won’t regret it!

Dinner also involved some collard action:

TJ’s whole wheat wrap, steamed collards with nooch, bell pepper, and TJ’s turkey chili topped with “sour cream” (plain yogurt).

I’m liking the collards (guess that’s a good thing since I have like 10 pounds of it)! They have a bit of a bite to them when eaten raw, but the crunch of the leaves is awesome! And it even keeps a bit of crunch even when steamed!

What’s your favorite green leafy veg?
SPINACH!…Popeye and I are tight, yo!

Tell me how your weekend is going! Doing anything fun and exciting?
If you need something to do, go make up a batch of Matt’s hummus! 😉

Posted in Entree, Raw, Shopping, Snacks, Vegetarian | Tagged apples, eggs, hummus, spinach | 35 Comments

A-B-C-T-J-and W-F!

Posted on February 25, 2011 by kissmybroccoli

Now I know my ABC’s, next time won’t you sing with meeeeeeeeee!

Happy Friday everybody! And no, I didn’t totally forget my alphabet. I’ve been seeing this “ABC’s of Me” around blogworld the past few days and well, I’m a total sucker for survey type thingies so I thought I’d join in!

Also, since I had the day off, I HAD to hit up my two favorite foodie establishments: Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods! More on that in a minute, but first let me see if I do still remember the alphabet!

A. Age: 26 years old

B. Bed size: King, though once my ex and I split all the furniture, I will have a queen which is what I prefer. I only use 1/3 of the bed I have now!

C. Chore you hate: Cleaning the bathtub/shower! I usually just go ahead and start cleaning in my skimpies…I’ll end up getting a shower before it’s all over with anyways, might as just well go with it!

D. Dogs: LOVE them, but I just don’t have the time it takes to have one of my own right now. Besides, Tiger would be SUPER jealous!!

E. Essential start to your day: BREAKFAST!! Sweet, savory, gimme gimme!

F. Favorite color: Green…like mo-nay!

G. Gold or Silver: Silver

H. Height: 5″7′ I’m the shortie in the family. My dad is 6″1′, mom and sis are both 5″8′!

I. Instruments you play: I was in the band in middle school and used to play the flute…can’t remember a single note now, but I can play a mean “Twinkle Twinkle” on the piano!

J. Job title: Computed Tomography Technologist…sounds so much smarter than CAT scan tech!

K. Kids: None and there probably won’t ever be any. I just don’t really think I want to have children and it’s taken some time but my mom has finally accepted that fact and claims Tiger as her “grand-kitty”!

L. Live: Hickville, Tennessee

M. Mom’s name: Janine

N. Nickname: It’s kind of sad that I really don’t have a nickname other than the occasional Heather ______ (insert word that rhymes with Heather…people are so original!)

O. Overnight hospital stays: Once when I was about 4 or 5. I tripped and fell at an amusement park and ended up with quite the “goose egg” on my forehead. They kept me overnight to be sure I didn’t have a concussion.

P. Pet peeve: When people hold their eating utensils like a shovel, aka “caveman style”

Q. Quote from a movie: “Am I that transparent? I want you…I need you…oh baby, oh baby!” from “Ten Things I Hate About You” which will ALWAYS be my favorite movie! I can practically recite every line!

R. Righty or Lefty: Righty

S. Siblings: One younger sister, Tori, whom most of you have “met”

T. Time you wake up: Depends on what shift I’m working that week, but normally between 5 and 6am on the weekdays and usually 7:30 on the weekends (because I’m an old lady that doesn’t know how to sleep late!)

U. Underwear: Cute, preferably Victoria’s Secret

V. Vegetables you don’t like: There aren’t very many, but I don’t care for radishes or frisee lettuce

W. What makes you run late: My computer…note to self: stop checking email/reading blogs in the morning

X-rays you’ve had: Lots of CXR’s (chest x-rays) as an infant (premie baby=sickly baby), knee, shoulder, ankle, hip, pelvis, toe, finger. I told you guys that I’m accident prone!

Yummy food you make: Everything I make is yummy, but some of my favorites are Everything-But-the Sugar Oatmeal Cookies, Stuffed Peppers/Portobellas, and Irresistible Carrot Pan-CAKES!

Z. Favorite zoo animal: Cheetahs!

Ok, that was fun! Now, onto the grocery treasures! Forgive the bad lighting. Heavy traffic coming home=diminishing daylight for foodie pics upon arrival at la casa!

Forgive me Joe, for I have sinned. It has been one whole month since I have set foot on your lovely foundation. I swear I did 15 “hail Mary’s” on the way through the door! 😉

Trader Joe’s:

Refried pinto beans
Crunchy Valencia PB (because I can’t leave the store without a jar!)
Tuscan white bean hummus to use in a side-to-side comparison when I make Matt’s recipe tomorrow!
Reduced Guilt Pizza Primavera–On sale for $1.99!!!
Veggie Burgs
Vegetable Masala Burgs
Cinnamon raisin Ezekiel bread (it has been TOO long!)
Fully cooked brown rice
Dried apple rings
Whole wheat flour tortillas

Ahh, we meet again Whole Paycheck! This time the joke’s on you…with a little help from the coupon department, you did NOT give my wallet a beating! Ha!