I'm Bad With Change

Was it ever the case that comments could be seen from the main page, without having to click on the individual post or the comment link on a post?  Because I would like that better.

Hi blog.  Do you miss us?  :(

Fall 2012 Foodie Goals!

Now that I'm going to be living in Tampa, I hope to have friends again.  Also, now that I am free from New Orleans, my hair won't hate the water anymore and I can switch back to a natural shampoo.  Perhaps even no pooing.  We'll see about that.  I really got away from my natural habits in New Orleans because it was hard to find natural products and I didn't have much success with them.

I would really like to join a CSA in Tampa, but it's so expensive up front (like $500) - and I'm broke after this move, new apartment, etc.  It's no secret that I'm thrilled to have Publix back in my life, but I hope to shop for produce at this cute little farm stand near my house.

Chia is definitely something I need to add back into my life.  Fiber in general actually (sorry Carolyn, I know your issues with fiber).

Drinking more water is a serious goal too.  I was really bad at that this summer at Trinita - and just haven't gotten back on track.  It's rough being homeless, yo.  My schedule is all out of whack.  My stuff is all over the place.  It's like constant chaos.  But it all ends tomorrow.

I can't think of anything else for this right now - but I'm sure there are more goals.  Comment or edit to add yours!

Several New Things

So, "recently," I've tried several new things.  The picture on the left was stage one - a preliminary but momentous event.  Stage one included making Choffy and keeping a good supply in the refrigerator so that I didn't have to clean that french press everytime I wanted a cup!  (This idea, as well as the knowledge that you can unscrew the bottom of the press part to clean it is owed entirely to Eileen.)  Also, I finished off a bag of quinoa, cooking it just in plain water and crushed red pepper.  It was pretty good.  I also ended up adding to it some of the Trader Joe's low sodium chicken stock goo that I got when I went there with Sharon.  It was fantastic, and I still have several packets left and they don't expire until next year!

Finally, the most momentous part of all of stage 1 - discovering and cleaning the BLENDER!  We have had a blender this whole time!  Oh my gosh!!  Of course, I didn't have any berries yet nor did I quite know how to use the thing, but it was a good find.

Picture 2, Stage 2: Mastering the Blender.  It turns out that if you are trying to blend frozen berries and ice cream instead of yogurt, they both have to be warmed up a little first.  This was my fourth go at it, I was an expert at this point.  The bags of frozen mixed berries say they contain 4.5 servings, so I open a bag and split it as evenly as I can estimate into two freezer ziploc bags.  So hopefully over two servings of fruit in each bag.  Then I leave one bag in the fridge overnight before I make the stuff.  The next day I put a big bowl of ice cream in the fridge for 30-45 minutes.  Then I blend them together and split that mixture in two, eating one immediately and putting one in a cup in the fridge for the next day.  The "pint" shown is the whole shebang, two days and two servings worth.  The first time I made it I had reservations about the taste - I thought I might have to use chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla.  But now I really like it!  In fact, when I ate this batch I thought, "I can really taste the vanilla in this - I could use even less ice cream."  Also, I've been adding a teaspoon of chia seeds to the mixture when I eat it.  A good way to up the intake without making that gel too thick to drink.  I think it also helps the smoothie stick with you longer.  That is all I have for now, enjoy!

afternoon snack

I've been looking for things to munch on today and decided to try a ginger syrup I found at the health food store.  A healthy way to do this can be tricky since 1/4 cup of the syrup is 60g of sugar.  I came up with this:

1 cup of greek yogurt
a handful of blueberries
about 1/4 mango chopped
1 tablespoon of ginger syrup drizzled over the top

It was yummy goodness.  I should have taken a picture before hand.  Perhaps I'll try it again tomorrow.

edit: I was at the market today and had an epiphany.  Dried fruit!  It travels well and goes well with yogurt.

Chia gel

I was making dinner and realized I forgot my morning chia seed dose. I added the gel to my dinner, and it worked out very well. The seeds were moderately visible and there was very little difference in texture...much better than if I had taken a tablespoon of pure seeds and added it to the entree.

Updating...

Okay, this is going to be a weak update.  I have no pictures prepared.  However, I can say that I'm still using the chia seed.  It was featured again on Dr. Oz somewhat recently.  I was SO EXCITED.  I'll have to look for the clip on his website and put it up here.  He was basically talking about how it was good for keeping you feeling full and kind of off-handedly mentioned that it was good for your heart as well.  But I can say that I had to have a full physical in August, and my doctor was really impressed.  I don't have numbers on my cholesterol and blood pressure etc. from previous physicals to compare, but I know that before this August she always commented that she can tell I work out and I'm healthy.  This time, she actually said "wow" twice, and she said it like she meant it.  Apparently, my triglycerides were fantastic.  So take that anecdote for whatever you think it's worth.

I regret to report that I actually have not been working out much since the semester started.  I feel very stressed and crunched for time.  I haven't made my hearty breakfast soup much either, so I'm pretty much counting on improving the quality of what I'm eating and how I'm exercising in December.  This is not a good trend.  Although, I finally got to the point where I said I have to stop all homework no matter what at 10pm, so I am getting a decent amount of sleep.

Choffy.  More on that later.  :)


Carolyn