"It's Not Unusual"...or Is It?

I had a rather "unusual" event happen today while at the gym. I was groovin' away on the treadmill listening to my iPod and simultaneously watching the Rachael Ray Show (one of my fave programs). Today was a big show in that Rachael had invited a special guest, whom she was beyond excited to host on the program: she had invited her teenage heart-throb, Tom Jones. Just as he appeared on stage, what song begins to play on my iPod? (I'll give you a hint: it's in the title of this post). What are the odds of that?!

Have you had any strange coincidences lately?

Anyway, I am getting ever closer to the end. I turned in my two papers today, and I have my final in approximately 36 hours. Based on my calculations, I can get a 78 on the exam and still pull out an A in the course. Sweet.

I've got some super-cool grub to share today:

Monday
The smoothie of the evening featured peaches, mangoes, soymilk, and Nutribody protein. Excellent.
Tuesday
Remember my past infatuation with Weetabix? It's back, but this time I've tried it in a new way: HOT! I poured some scalding rice milk over a few broken up biscuits, then added some nutmeg and agave nectar on top. So warm, so soggy, so sweet--just the way I like it. On the side I had an apple with almond butter.
For lunch, I attempted to revamp leftover lentil soup by converting it into a shepherd's pie. I cooked the lentil soup with some sliced mushrooms until it reduced down to a stew-like consistency. Then I added some garlicky mashed potatoes with dill on top. If I were more ambitious I would have actually baked it in the oven, but I was too hungry for such nonsense. On the side, I had a spinach salad with pom seeds and pecans.
Dinner was inspired by the Broccoli Cashew Teriyaki Tofu Stir-Fry from ED&BV. I used peanuts instead of cashews and changed up the vegetables according to what I had on hand. It was delicious, of course; Dreena never lets me down. I served it alongside some whole grain couscous and an orange.
The shake of the evening was one of my favorite combinations: frozen banana, strawberries, soymilk, chocolate brown rice protein, and special dark cocoa.
Wednesday
I woke up famished today! To fill the void, I decided a protein-y breakfast was best. Scrambled tofu to the rescue! This version featured tahini, soy sauce, ginger, mushrooms, and red onion. I had some toast on the side to soak up the scrambled goodness as well as a sliced apple.
After some intense stat calculation, I broke for a simple lunch. I had a baked potato along with some of Imagine's broccoli soup. I also had some carrots with salsa (a la K) and peaches with pecans and cinnamon. I ended up spooning some of the soup on top of the potato, which ended up being quite a delicious idea.
Hummus pizza was on the menu tonight. I split a pita and smeared each half with a good dose of hummus, then topped them with mushrooms, tomato, basil, oregano, and a few tablespoons of pine nuts. Everything got nice and toasty in the oven. On the side, I had a spinach salad with pom seeds and my homemade lemony sweet dill dressing.
Before I go, I have a quick question for you all: What's your favorite time of day to exercise? My roommate and I discuss this topic a lot, weighing the pros and cons of morning versus evening. I am a morning gal myself, but I was just curious as to what your preferences were and why.

Next time I post, I will be HOME!

Toodles.

Just Call Me Aunt Bethany

"I should say hello?"
"Hello everybody!"

Can you guess from which Christmas movie I selected that quote?

Just as Aunt Bethany would, I am dropping in to say hello to everybody...I have been diligently working on my paper that is due on Wednesday. Classes have ended for the semester, so the only things that separate me from Winter Break is this paper and a stats exam on Friday. Woohoo! I wish all you students out there the best of luck during finals week!

Anyway, I better get to it, if I want to be able to take a study break to watch the basketball game later today. Here's a glance at my grub:

Wednesday
Just before the Rockefeller Christmas special came on, I decided to whip up a quick dinner to enjoy while watching all the performances. I was craving cashew-ginger tofu from ED&BV (my favorite comfort food) but realized I had already eaten tofu for lunch, plus I didn't have any cashew butter. So, I improvised and made peanut ginger veggies. I had some couscous and pineapple with wheat germ on the side. Hit the spot!
The smoothie of the evening was fabulous--peach and banana with Nutribody protein and soymilk.
Thursday
I woke up for my last day of classes (on time!) and made an Apple Pie Parfait. I alternated layers of plain yogurt, applesauce, and spelt flakes, then topped it off with wheat germ and almond butter.
For lunch I made a quick mock tuna salad wrap with chickpeas, vegan mayo, a dash of mustard, kelp granules, and some lemon zest. In case you can't tell, I am really into zesting things lately. Check out my spiffy microplane. It's great for finely grating cheese/soy cheese as well. I also had a salad with peanuts and more pineapple.
After lunch, I baked a loaf of pumpkin bread for a sorority study break. Here's what it looked like, fresh out of the oven. The smell of baking pumpkin bread always makes me think of my mom--she used to bake triple batches of the stuff so that my sisters and I could give loaves to our teachers. Do you have any special food memories to share?
For dinner, I went out with the dining committee to an Italian restaurant in Raleigh called Vic's. It was family-style dining, so I chose a little of this and a little of that: Kalamata olives, caprese salad, fresh rolls, an eggplant roll up with ricotta cheese, and some sauteed vegetables. I also had quite a few glasses of wine...perhaps too many. It was a great way to spend the evening! Sorry, no pictures.

Friday
I had a little bit of silken tofu in the fridge just begging to be made into vegan French toast...so you can guess what I had for breakfast...Tofu-Banana French Toast. This time I topped it with banana slices and a few dollops of PB, kind of like a more complex banana-PB sandwich.
After my last trip of the semester to Whole Foods (the Durham location, that is!), I came home and made some coconut black beans. I was so excited to use the coconut milk that I picked up at the store, I couldn't wait to use it. I combined black beans, mango, cumin, garlic, red onion, and coconut milk and served the mixture alongside a pita and a salad with Woodstock dressing.
I was a lame-o last night and worked on my paper. After a little Frosty the Snowman action on ABC family, I decided to make a simple supper: hummus-salsa sammie, zucchini, spinach salad, and an apple with almond butter.
Well, I should get back to work. Ciao for now...be back soon!

Merry Half Christmas!

Yep, we're exactly 6 months away from my absolute favorite holiday of the year. Aside from my yuletide obsession, my birthday also happens to be December 24, so I am officially 20.5 years old. Eeek! FYI, my annual Christmas/birthday countdown doesn't start until September.

I am posting earlier in the day today due to that persistent nuisance otherwise known as anatomy class. I have a 160-question midterm tomorrow at 1:00, so I will be spending much of my evening after class studying rather than blogging. Trust me, I'd rather be blogging. Anyway, here are a few pics of my eats over the past few days.

Monday
For my evening snack, I opted for a big bowl of organic popcorn with a few dark chocolate chunks thrown in. For those of you who don't know I am taking a temporary hiatus from my nighttime smoothies and shakes. I'm just trying to switch things up a little. By the way, I love this popcorn! The only ingredients on the label were organic popcorn, organic vegetable oil, and salt. Short and and sweet, er, salty.
Tuesday
Squeezing in a run before a 10 AM class necessitate speedy breakfasts on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I was feeling tropical yesterday-- I threw some oats in a bowl with pinenapple chunks and cashews.
Lunch consisted of a Tofurky-avocado-spinach wrap in a whole wheat tortilla. I used salsa as a dressing on that spinach salad, and I balanced it all out with an apple. No shortage of fiber in this lunch!
Snacktime! This is another typical snack for me: lemon soy yogurt and red bell pepper strips with hummus. It really bugs me how some soy yogurts aren't fortified with vitamin B12...So Delicious is the only company I've encountered who does this service for vegans/vegetarians. Oh, and let me know if you'd rather I not post snacks. I'm looking for some feedback because I know they're a tad boring.
Red beans and rice for dinner last night. Well sort of. I stole some brown rice from my parents' dinner and mixed it with no salt added canned tomatoes, garlic, cumin, chili powder, and leftover pinto beans. Not traditional by any means, but it was tasty nonetheless. I was still a little hungry afterward, so I whizzed some almond milk with cocoa powder and enjoyed it with some fresh blueberries. Amazing.
Owing to the surplus of bananas around here, I made some vegan banana pudding last night. I got the recipe from VegWeb. Can't wait to try it:)
For snack last night I ended up making another bowl of hot cereal. This time I used that Quaker multigrain cereal I've been enjoying so much lately. I mixed in some pumpkin flax granola and topped it off with a Medjool date.
Wednesday
This morning I tried a few new products. I made a smoothie using Fruitein this morning (as opposed to Spirutein). One of these packets provides 600 mg calcium; I think these are vegan, if you're interested. I blended it with frozen blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries and slurped it out of my nifty new smoothie receptacle (for lack of a better word). Along with it, I tried a new Kashi cereal, Honey Sunshine. This was pretty good, but I think I like Puffins and Corn Bran better, mostly because the "pillows" of those cereals are much bigger. The squares in these were about the size of corn kernels. Now I'm off to review muscles + bones for the thousandth time. Soon I'll be dreaming (or having nightmares) about condyles, processes, and the rectus femoris. Ugh.