Thursday, March 31, 2011

Broken Bread Poverty Meal

Lately I have been feeling quite uninspired in the dinner category.  Well, pretty much in every meal category.  You were a first-hand witness to the Chocolate Pudding Oats that was served as breakfast for nearly a week straight!  While it was tasty, it didn't add variety and zest to my life! 

We have been so busy lately I actually can't remember the last time I made dinner.  You know, like an actual recipe, actual cooking, actual dinner!  There have been many nights of PB&B and cereal.  Or a dinner like the one above.  Honestly.  I love the occasional cereal dinner, but it is getting out of hand.  All that is about to change. 

Today's goal is meal planning, recipe creating and grocery shopping.  I fully plan to bust out of my rut, dust off the good ole Veganomicon and Skinny Bitch (which I don't think I have used at all yet!) and get to work in the kitchen. 

I already have too many eat-out meals planned over the next week, so I vow to cook a classy meal for every other night of the next week.  That means you will be getting 5 great dinner recipes over the next week!  Get excited!

To jump start my out-of-the-rut eating, I decided to do something crazy with breakfast.  Entirely out of the box, outside of my comfort zone and completely weird.  It was green, but not in the yummy Green Monster way...but in a savory "You really ate that for breakfast" way.
Ok, maybe loads of people eat breakfasts like this...but not me.  Yet it was satisfying and filling.  I could get used to this savory AM meal.

Grits n' Greens

1/4 cup grits
1/2 cup Almond Milk
1/2 cup water
2 stalks kale

In small saucepan bring water and milk to a boil.  Slowly stir in grits and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer.  Remove kale from stalks, rinse and chop.  Place kale on top of grits in the saucepan and cover for 5 minutes. 

Once kale is wilted, stir together and serve.  I sprinkled a few golden raisins on top to add a little sweetness to the dish, but I also considered stirring in vegan cheese.  Then I remembered it was morning and added the raisins instead. 

This dish would be great as a side with lunch or dinner as well.  Double the recipe for 4 small sides.

Broken Bread Poverty Meal

In other news (since the food news hasn't been so stellar around here lately), I received my passport in the mail yesterday!  I am getting excited for Africa and that is just one more piece to the puzzle.  Each day I check the mail in anticipation of what might be in there: passport, support letters, and even packages of Corn/Soy blend. 

I ordered the Corn/Soy blend from World Vision for a Broken Bread Poverty Meal.  We are hosting this meal at my church on Sunday, April 10 at noon.  Anyone can attend and you are asked to fast breakfast that morning.  Then we will eat a typical meal that is served to those in need around the world.  The Corn/Soy blend is mixed with water to create a porridge.  We are hosting this poverty meal to raise awareness of poverty and starvation as well as our Mwandi Mission Trip. 

If you would like to participate, it is recommended that you donate the money you would have spent on breakfast and lunch that day to the mission.  Of course you could donate more!  All the money that is raised will be brought with us to Africa and given as a love offering to one or more organizations in Mwandi.  Usually the group decides who and where to give the money once they are in Mwandi and have fully witnessed the needs in that community. 

If you are local, I would love for you to join us for the Poverty Meal!

Lake Norman Fellowship
246 Blume Road
Mooresville, NC 28117

Sunday, April 10, 2011
12:00 noon

Following the poverty meal there will be a short presentation about the Mwandi Mission Trip!

And on that note: Mr. Kummerow and I have already received such overwhelming support and encouragement for our mission trip.  We were scared to go because it required total faith in God and his provisions.  We knew we could not make this happen on our own.  Each day God is blessing us in a radical way and we are so thankful for everyone who has prayerfully or financially committed to this mission with us!  We haven't reached our fundraising goal yet, but I had to shout out a little praise to our Lord and Savior.  He is Good!

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

FDA to Evaluate if Food Dyes Cause Hyperactivity

Last week I posted about my morning routine...I may have left out an important piece.  Each morning I spend quality time with Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira.  I love the Today Show, and one day when I finally make it to New York City, I fully plan to be one of those folks hanging around outside with signs trying to get my pretty little face on tv. 

This morning after my daily dose of Libya and Japan news, I became interested in the report about food dyes and its connection to ADHD.  If it isn't already obvious on this blog, I am a firm believer in "you are what you eat."  I am directly responsible for my own health and I can control it.  Hippocrates said it best, "Let your food be medicine and your medicine be food."

Eating is the one thing that we do most often during the day.  Three times a day we eat a meal (some people eat 5-6), and the contents of that meal enables us to function throughout each day.  It is our source of energy and of life.  We all know how different foods can make us feel differently. 

Last night my dinner consisted of this:
Five Guys French Fries.  You can imagine my evening wasn't all that productive! 

The night before I devoured a salad like this:
When I eat lots of fruits and veggies I feel better, I perform better, I have more energy.

In the Today Show report this morning, they suggested filling up on natural colors.  AKA: fruits and veggies.  Foods that are naturally full of color.  Rather than these artificial flavors and dyes:
Since the 1970's there has been a debate whether these dyes are safe for human consumption when Dr. Ben Feingold claimed the colors were linked to hyperactive behavior and proposed a diet eliminating them.  Since, many studies have been performed but a conclusive report has never been made.  Meanwhile, these foods are placed in stores, brought into our homes and unsuspecting parents assume they are safe. 

The FDA has been petitioned to ban food dyes in food.  This process could take years.  There are claims on either side of the argument regarding the safety of food dyes.  While I do not have all the answers and along with the FDA cannot tell you if it is 100% safe, I will tell you I always err on the side of caution. 

Consider your food.  Take a good look at it.  Does it look like food?  Eat food closest to it's original, natural form.  Eat strawberries instead of strawberry snacks or fruit juice with artificial dyes and ingredients.  I know I've heard it a million times and I'm sure you have as well, but shop the perimeter of your grocery store. 
source

Are you skeptic?  If you are seeking an answer or a cure for ADHD consider this, what could it hurt?  Using food as medicine does not result in side-effects (unless you consider the good kind, like improved health).  You won't get "small print" on an apple, and it never results in death. 

You may fight your child to remove food from their diet and input new foods so here are some tips that may help you:

source

1. Be the vegetable and fruit eater you wish to see in the world. By far the most influential factor in your children’s diet is watching you. Set the example by making healthy choices, not just for your body, for your children’s as well.

2. Buy ONLY what you want them to eat. Kids only eat chicken nuggets, frozen pizza, mac and cheese, potato chips, and cookies if you buy them. When these options are absent new choices are made.

3. Let them shop with you, with rules. Include them in the grocery shopping process with one rule, that they can only pick foods that are whole foods. Play the One Ingredient Game by asking them how many foods they can select for themselves and the family to enjoy that are made up of only one thing.

4. Teach them to check ingredients. If your kids can’t read, read food labels to them. If they don’t know what one of the ingredients is, chances are they shouldn’t eat it.



5. Keep healthy options on hand. Let’s face it, no kid comes running up asking for high fructose corn syrup. They might ask for juice, cookies or chips, but even these have healthier alternatives with simple ingredients lists.

6. Cook with them. Make time to cook with your kids. When they make food, they become invested in their creations being eaten it and proud to serve it to their loved ones.

7. Play a game or start a challenge. Competition motivates some kids, and its stress-free if they are competing against themselves to reach a goal. Check out Raw Food 365 for games or take the challenge with your kids.

8. Disguise the vegetables and fruits. Add mild vegetables to dishes they love; shredded zucchini in mac and cheese, or spinach in pasta sauce. Raw food recipes are amazing for incorporating veggies.

9. Serve Finger Foods. Carrot and celery sticks are a great start, but try mixing it up with foods like nachos, kabobs, and chips made of thin sliced fresh carrot or jicama.

10. Give it a whirl… One of the easiest ways to get your kids to eat more greens is to include them in their juices and smoothies. Starting their day with alkalizing greens will help them make better choices throughout the day.

You will inevitably face challenges but STICK WITH IT!  Think of all the other things you do for your children...isn't their health worth it?

I have been reading an amazing blog for quite sometime and I am amazed at what this woman has accomplished in just a short time.  If you are thinking "no way can I do this," Lisa was very similar to you.  She took a challenge and changed her family's diet.  And they have reaped so many benefits because of this change.  Don't take my word for it...read about her journey at 100 Days of Real Food.  She shows that it can be done...and it can be done on a budget!

For ideas, another amazing blog to read is Peas and Thank You.  Mama Pea serves up wholesome, kid-friendly food to her family every day.  These two women are inspirational!  I encourage you to check them out!

Weigh-in: do you think artificial dyes are hazardous to your health?

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Dinner, Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Breakfast and Lunch...

This was the scene Sunday night upon returning from our Mountain Roadtrip:

Mr. Kummerow: I'm kinda hungry.

Me: Ok, what should we do for dinner.

MrK: I don't know, what do you think?

Me: I don't know.  Take out?

MrK and Me: (guilty conscience) Nah, we ate out the last two nights and have no money.

Me: I just want a lot of veggies.

MrK: All we have is kale.  Should we go to the store?

Me: Ok

MrK and Me drive to the grocery store.  Once inside, stand in the produce section staring blankly ahead.  

MrK: Anything look good to you?

Me: Nah.  You?

MrK: Nah?  You want to try another store.

Me: Sure

MrK and Me drive to another grocery store.  Enter, stand in the produce section for no less than 15 minutes staring blankly ahead.

Perhaps we should have given up, gone home and went straight to bed instead of eating.  We were obviously way to incisive to find something to please our palates.  I couldn't even imagine if we attempted to eat out?  We might have sat for an hour looking over menus!

Finally we left the store with a package of portabella mushrooms. You can't really go wrong with those.  Plus they cook up quickly and do not require much work.  Later we read that produce in our area is lacking because of recent frosts, maybe that is why nothing looked appetizing.

Once home, Mr. Kummerow set to work preparing the mushrooms.  He peeled them and marinated them in an Italian dressing.  I sliced a sweet potato into fries and baked them in the oven. 

When the potatoes were almost done (about 30 minutes) we grilled the portabellas on the George Foreman while Mr. Kummerow sauteed the Kale.  After just 5 more minutes dinner was ready.
I brought leftover rolls home from the retreat and we each grabbed one to accompany our meal.  And then I got creative:
I sliced up my mushroom and made a slider!  Topped with the kale and bbq sauce.  Had I known how awesome dinner turned out, I would have marched straight to the mushrooms in the store in the first place!  This is going on my "must make again" list.  I am thinking this will be a fine meal to serve guests.  Who wants to come over and have sliders with us?!

Staring at food in the grocery store and taking absolutely no interest in meal planning scared me a little.  I wondered if this little foodie thing was all a phase.  What if I no longer enjoy food? What will happen to my blog?  Typically I think about food all day long.  What was wrong with me?

Luckily, I was returned to normal on Monday.  Food was on my brain once again.  Unfortunately, I was so busy I didn't have much time to prepare any photo-worth meals.  For breakfast, I could not stomach another bowl of chocolate pudding oats (5 days in a row!) so I ate a bowl of PB Puffins and one of Emily's Strawberry Jelly Surprise Muffins.  Lunch was leftovers from Coyote Kitchen and dinner was a giant salad at around 4:30pm.  I had CPR class last night and didn't get home until almost 9pm! 

Today, the camera was once again used:
This breakfast doesn't look like much but it was amazing.  Since the George Foreman was still out from Sunday, I decided to make a morning panini: PB&J on Sandwich Thins.

Lunch included many of my favorite foods:
Baked sweet potato- topped with raisins and pecans, whole wheat toast with mashed avocado and apple slices.  Yummy!

And that brings us up to speed.  No recipes: just wholesome good food.

Monday, March 28, 2011

I took back what he stole from me!

How is it possible that we believe that we are being self-less by not loving ourselves?  What a fallacy!  Self-hate is one of the most selfish ways to live.  How can you serve the Lord while you are consumed with negative self-talk?  Without confidence and strength in the Lord it is impossible to succeed, impossible to carry out God's will. 

Those were my thoughts this morning as I read my daily devotion.  Mr. Kummerow and I picked up the book Daily Readings from Become A Better You by Joel Osteen.  It includes 90 devotions for improving your life every day.  This book piggy backs on what we learned during the Outlive Your Life study we just completed.  It continues to teach us ways to use our life to serve God.  This morning's devotions was all about self-love.  What a coincidence! How great is God?

The lesson in this morning's study was very different than the self-love lesson I learned over the weekend, and it was profound.

Genesis 3:9-11
Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” And He said, “Who told you that you were naked?

Joel Osteen explains it like this: "God is saying to you today, Who told you that you were naked? Who told you that you don't have what it takes to succeed?  Who told you that you are not attractive enough to succeed in your personal relationships or talented enough to flourish in your career? Who told you that your marriage is never going to last?  Who told you that something was wrong with you?"

Adam and Eve were aware of their nakedness because of the Enemy.  These lies we tell ourselves are also from the Enemy.  We must reject the Enemy's lies and discover what God says about us.

So when negative self-talk rears its ugly head, you can jump back at it with "Who told me that?" Was it God?  No.  Because we know, "We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us." (Phillipians 4:13)  Loving your self is all about appreciating the gifts and talents God has created you with and using them.  Self-hatred only stands in the way of your calling.

I need to lose weight.  Who told me that?
I talk too much.  Who told me that?
Someone else could do this job better than me.  Who told me that?
I am not fast enough.  Who told me that? 
I shouldn't eat as much.  Who told me that?

Make your own list.  And then pray that God will show you the truth that you will no longer listen to the lies of the Enemy.



"I went to the Enemy's camp and I took back what he stole from me.  Took back what he stole from me.  I took back what he stole from me.  He's under my feet, he's under my feet, he's under my feet, he's under my feet.  Satan is under my feet!"

Coyote Kitchen

It was the much anticipated visit to Coyote Kitchen on Saturday night.  So many people have recommended this restaurant to me and I finally had the opportunity to check it out for myself.

After the retreat this weekend, I met Mr. Kummerow in Hickory and we drove together to Boone to meet my boss-friend and the kiddos for dinner.  I was hoping Bob and Toby would find something that they would enjoy.  They love tacos so it wasn't too difficult.  Dr. Russ started us off with a few appetizers including (my favorite) Fried Plantains.  Yummy!

Mr. Kummerow and I each ordered soup to start.  It was a dreary day and this cup hit the spot!
They had two vegan options!  My cup was Jalapeno Yam and Mr. Kummerow's was a Tomato Soup.  Both were amazing!  I could eat them everyday.  Mine was sweet.  You couldn't really taste the heat of the jalapeno, but you felt it.  Not too hot, just right.  The tomato soup was garlicky and creamy!  Yummy!  Each served with a crispy slice of toast.

For our entrees, we decided to get two and split them between us.
I had the Gabriella: coconut rice, blackened tofu, sweet potatoes, black beans and a vegan dressing.  It was AHmazing!  Also so filling.  Mr. Kummerow and I split the dish but only ate half of it total.  (I just finished the other half for lunch!)  It was the best burrito I have ever eaten.
Our other dish was one of the open face sandwiches.  Mr. Kummerow ordered the Guacamole Tempeh without cheese...but as you can see in this photo...there is something lacking.  It came without the Guac!  We didn't realize it until we left but the whole time we kept saying we thought something was missing!  I am so disappointed by this dish.  The tempeh was very flavorful but without the cheese and guac it was very dry and did not sate my palate.

When I visit Coyote Kitchen again, I will definitely order one of the boats.  Both Dr. Russ and Susan each had a boat and they look AWESOME!  I was super jealous!

We finished up our meals and our waitress came around inviting us to try dessert.  I shook my head no immediately but then I heard the magic words escape from her lips: Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge Cake.  Before the rest of the table could respond I practically shouted YES, PLEASE!
The others also ordered a slice and Mr. Kummerow and I tackled this one in no time.  They broiled it to warm it up and the peanut butter and fudge was melty and gooey!  Beautiful!  I took my time and savored every bite.  It has been too long chocolate cake...too long!
Seconds anyone? Ok, so I didn't go that far!  I was bursting at the seams.  Uncomfortably Happy.

We spent Saturday evening with the kiddos and their family at the Mountain House.  We watched a movie and made signs for Ashley and Erin.  Saturday flew by and before we knew it it was nearing midnight and Mr. Kummerow and I had an early wake up call.  I mixed together a batch of Chocolate Pudding Overnight Oats and hit the hay.
After driving over an hour to Virginia Sunday morning, we parked and enjoyed this giant bowl of oats topped with Peanut Butter Puffins and strawberries.  After a short while it was time to get out of the car (and into the cold Mountain air) and cheer for the girls.
This was Ashley's first marathon and Erin's 7th (or is it 8...even she has lost tracked!)  We met them at mile 9, 13.5, 18, 25 and the finish!  We had 3 signs and each time held up a different one!  Here we are at mile 13.5:
And here they come!
At just over 2 hours they were rocking this marathon to pieces!

And here we are back in the car, eating more puddin'!
Our morning consisted of drive, eat, cheer.  Drive, eat, cheer.
Drive, eat, cheer!
Go Erin, Go!
Go Ashley, Go!

Of course we found some time to have a little fun of our own!




On any adventure with the Kummerow's a photo shoot always ensues:
Apparently it was a Tanya Photo Shoot Day because barely any photos emerged of Mr. Kummerow!
At least we remembered to snap photos of the girls...the whole reason we were there!
At mile 25 they were struggling to smile but they were still rocking!  Just 1.2 to go ladies!  Dig deep!

Finally they crossed the finish line and donned their royal robes.
And dropped to their knees to say a prayer of thanksgiving!
Ok, maybe she was just petting Tito! 

Ashley and Erin wasted no time and were off to shower in just a few short minutes.  The weather was cool and damp and not conducive to a fun finish line celebration.  We agreed to meet them for lunch just a while later at a local cafe up the road.
This place was so cute!  I was so excited to check it out!  Unfortunately the vegan options were lacking, but we weren't complaining.  The ambiance in the Wildflour Bakery was worth it! 
I sucked down decaf coffee to warm my body as we waited on Ashley and Erin and the rest of their cheering squad.

Mr. Kummerow and I shared a salad.
Wildflour Bakery has a large selection of homemade breads and baked goods.  We opted for two slices of their flax bread toasted with a side of hummus to accompany our salad.  When our food arrived the toast had been buttered and their (delicious looking) hummus was fitted with feta cheese.  Our server was great and took the hummus off our bill and brought us two more slices of dry toast to go.  I was initially bummed...but then we remembered the stash of food in the car and quickly formulated a plan.
Eggless salad on the flax toast.  Mmm, mmm!  I honestly have no idea what town we were in and where you could locate the Wildflour Bakery, but if you are near wherever it is, you must check it out.  Seriously their hummus looked amazing and this bread was so good! 

On the way home we enjoyed a few snacks and beautiful views.
This was my first time to Virginia and I definitely want to come back and play for a longer time!  We were only 3 hours from home.  A weekend getaway would definitely be possible!

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Being Loved

Did you catch my PJ party on Twitter?

P.J.= Praise Jesus!

All the ladies donned their cutest pajamas as they arrived to the cabin on Friday night and we had a Praise and Worship Party!

Before we arrived we enjoyed a delicious meal at the Black Mountain Bistro:
This place was To.Die.For.  Housemade Veggie Patty atop a bed of spinach and veggies.  And Sweet Potato Fries on the side:
They had an amazing selection of animal-free dishes as well as an array of choices to please any omni.  Great place to dine with friends who have a variety of tastes.  It was a cute and local establishment and you could tell everyone knew everyone.
They were super busy (a good sign of an excellent restaurant) and the staff were super friendly and welcoming.

After dinner, we set off for the cabin on the Montreat campus.  This is a beautiful campus: stone buildings, right in the mountains, a precious little lake in the center with a beautiful white swan swimming about.  Something out of a movie.  The perfect serene location for a weekend with the W.O.W. (Women of Worship).  W.O.W. is a group of women from several area churches who come together to celebrate our bond in Christ.  This is the first group of inter-racial, inter-denominational women that I have worshipped with.  When I attended the beach retreat in the fall it opened my eyes to a new understanding of Christ's love and family.  Since then, I have considered all these women my sister's in Christ and share a deep bond and love with each one of them.

Speaking of love, love was the topic of this retreat.  Our retreats are a combination of large group worship and small group study.  We meditated on two verses and studied them in our small groups:

Deuteronomy 6:5
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

We discussed what each of these verses meant, but in 1 Corinthians we focused on how this verse applies to our self love.  Consider this:

Is my love for myself patient?  Is it kind?  Is my love for myself envious, or boastful, or proud?  Do I dishonor myself and am I rude to myself?  Do I find myself angry and pressured by guilt?  Am I true to myself?  Does my love for me protect, do I trust myself?  Am I hopeful and does my love for me persevere?

Is it possible to love others as 1 Corinthians suggests, if we do not love ourselves this way?  I was convicted.  We love, because God first loved us (1 John 4:19).  And do I see myself as God sees me?  Do I show myself grace and love and mercy?  Or am I just beating myself up?  The bible does suggest that we should not think too highly of ourselves (Romans 12:3) and many Christians (particularly Christian women) find that to mean that we shouldn't love ourselves because it could be misconstrued as pride.  However, showing love to yourself does not make you a bad person and without self-love it is difficult if not impossible to love others.

Matthew 22:39
"Love your neighbor as yourself."

If you do not have self-love, how do you know how to love your neighbor?

This study hit home for me.  I feel the guilt of my actions daily.  And not a Godly guilt, an earthly, ashamed guilt.  When we sin, we are guilty, but God grants us hope through our conviction.  One of the women in my small group pointed out that if it comes from God it is always accompanied by hope...hope in the future and in change.  When the enemy lays guilt on us we feel despair.  And that type of guilt does not service God.  We cannot be sanctified by guilt, only through conviction. 

The retreat was quick, we were done at 4pm on Saturday and it was already time to say goodbye to our sisters.  Our church worshipped with many of those women at Clark's Chapel today, but Mr. Kummerow and I spent the rest of the weekend in the mountains and we did not make it to church with them.  I was sad to say goodbye.  I made several new friends but Whitney and I formed a wonderful bond despite the short amount of time we spent together.
We got pretty silly with some games at the end! The last activity was to "decorate" one of our small-group members in God's love and then we shared with the group what we learned through our study. 

On that high-note we parted ways.  Mr. Kummerow came to pick me up and we set off on the rest of our weekend adventure...

...but that's another story!

Saturday, March 26, 2011

What in the World...

...went on this week?

Faith:

I met some pretty amazing people this week!  What a God Moment!  I truly felt the Holy Spirit working in this random meeting!

An Unexpected Meeting

Fitness:

Sunday: Rest
Monday: elliptical 45 minutes
Tuesday: lift, run 3 miles
Wednesday: swim 1500m
Thursday: Pilates
Friday: lift
Saturday: run 5 miles (lots and lots of hills!)


Food:

I didn't give you a lot to work with this week.  There was lots of food on the blog, but very few recipes.  In fact, only one.  It doesn't matter because it would have been my favorite anyway!

Breakfast Pudding- Chocolate Edition
























Foto:
The Foto of the Week belongs to Patrick Kosal!  Love the flair!  St. Patty's Day is always so much fun when the Kosal's are hosting!

Friday, March 25, 2011

Breakfast Pudding- Chocolate Edition take 2

I owe you big for the less-than-stellar photos I shared yesterday of this more-than-stellar breakfast!  I did my breakfast pudding an injustice by posting it yesterday, exposing it's "bad side."  Grainy iPhone photos combined with a not-so-pretty bowl creates an unappetizing looking meal!  I should know better.  This morning I have redeemed myself.  Tell me you are drooling...
This is so good, I made a batch for both me and Mr. Kummerow for breakfast this morning.  I told him how I ate chocolate pudding for breakfast yesterday and he was jealous.  Overnight oats aren't typically his favorite, but we was anxious to check this out.

The sliced strawberries were his idea, and rather than top with peanut butter, which didn't work in my opinion (I don't think I've ever said that before!), I added some twigs and puffs for a little crunch. 
Seriously, this is so good and so easy.  I'm sure you have the ingredients on hand.  My kitchen is seriously lacking groceries at the moment and I was able to whip up this meal.  It is all pantry staples: oats, cocoa powder, chia seeds and almond milk and bananas.  You will always be able to find those 5 ingredients in my kitchen!

Last night I had to double check the ingredients of cocoa powder to make sure this really was a healthy breakfast because it feels so much like an indulgence.  I hopped over to My Daily Plate on Livestrong to check out the stats:
Check out that protein and fiber!  Sure, there are plenty of carbs and sugar, but it is all from natural sources and whole foods.  Plus, carbs aren't bad, they provide energy to get your day going!  This is a breakfast I can stand behind.  Not to mention it kept me full all day!  If you would like to reduce the carbohydrates, just omit the cereal topping.

So I am a bad runner and just canceled my long run today.  While it is sunny, it is still only 40*.  I know that tomorrow morning will be an early, semi-long, chilly run in the mountains so I just wasn't feeling it today.  Plus, I need to lift one more time this week (according to Ashley's Army guidelines) and I won't have time to get to a gym all week.  So I am skipping on the cardio today and opting for an intense weight session with Ashley instead.  (Sorry Kristen)

I am off to get some packing and food prep done for the weekend.  My ride comes at 1pm and I have plans at the gym at 10:30 and lunch plans with Mr. Kummerow at 11:30 so I gotta get busy! 

In case I don't find internet connection in the mountains this weekend, enjoy yours and I will see you back here on Monday!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Weekend Plans!

Let's just jump right into the good stuff.  Not the prettiest looking food in the blogosphere...but I would put money on it being one of the tastiest.  Let's just call this one Breakfast Pudding!

Breakfast Pudding- Chocolate Edition

1 ripe banana
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 cup oats
1 cup Almond Milk

In bowl, mash banana, stir in cocoa powder, chia seeds and oats.  Whisk in milk.  It is pretty thick right away so you could eat it immediately, or place in fridge for several hours or overnight for best results. 

Mine went in last night and came out at 10:30 this morning when I finally sat down for breakfast.  I must have snacked too much last night because I was just not hungry at all this morning.

This pushed lunch waaay back...and it actually never quite happened.  Instead, this snack was consumed around 2:30pm.
(not the bread in the container...just the amazing muffin on top!)

Yesterday, after reading Emily's post for these Strawberry Jelly Surprise Muffins. I immediately ran to the kitchen to whip up a batch.  Rarely do the stars align in such a perfect way.  It is Emily's first recipe in weeks...and it just so happened I had all the ingredients on hand!  Brilliant!
Fresh out of the oven.  Emily's made 12...I must have over filled my muffin cups...but I liked them all big and bulging.  However, our muffin to jelly ratio wasn't perfect.  If you add more dough, you gotta add more jelly.
I followed the recipe to a "T" with the exception of the type of flour.  We mixed Whole Wheat Pastry flour with two gluten-free varieties.  Gluten free flour tends to have a distinct flavor so our muffins probably aren't as excellent as Emily's, but they are still 100% delicious and wholesome!
I also ate a small Almond Dream ice cream sandwich that the Fake It Lady let me sample.  We stopped into the store after delivering t-shirts so I could buy the kiddos a treat.  I have posted the ice cream sandwiches on the blog before.  They are a nice little indulgence every once in a while. 

Dinner was quite early since lunch was non-existent. 
Mr. Kummerow roasted sweet potatoes with apples and broccoli last night for dinner and there were lots of leftovers.  I took a tupperware of the leftovers to the kiddos house, along with a slice of the Nature's Pride Hearty Wheat Bread.  I opened a can of vegetarian baked beans and steamed the green beans in the micro.  It was the perfect plate of comfort foods.  So delicious.  Kind of a hodge-podge meal but it worked really well together.  Mr. Kummerow had a similar dinner with a vegan hot dog as well.

So today is sort of my Friday.  At least it feels like it.  I have big plans this weekend that I am very excited over.  Tomorrow begins with a 6-7 mile run with Kristen.  This will be my longest distance since the marathon!  Then I must pack and prepare for the weekend.  I am leaving around 1pm to stay overnight in the mountains with the Women of Worship for a Spring Retreat.  (Remember the beach retreat back in October?)  It is just an overnight retreat, but I am so looking forward to it! 

Mr. Kummerow is picking me up on Saturday and we are staying at my boss's cabin (the same one we stayed at for our anniversary trip in November), so we can wake up early on Sunday and cheer Ashley on at her marathon at the Virginia Creeper Trail! 

Over the years, running has taught me many things.  But if there is one most important lesson it is to be supportive of others' accomplishments.  After achieving my own running goals, I've really learned to appreciate the people in my life that supported me through those trying times.  Now, I enjoy being there for others.  I watch as a very proud wife as I see Mr. Kummerow achieve his training goals from week to week, in hopeful anticipation of his upcoming half-marathon.  And watching and supporting Ashley, a fierce competitor, train for her marathon has also been very fun.  I am so excited to be there for her when she runs on Sunday! 

This weekend promises to be excellent!  I can't wait to wake up tomorrow morning and take it all on! 


What are your weekend plans?