‘Twas a tasty Tuesday that seemed to zip by

Cravings were aplenty, and I was eager to comply

But my eats were a bit uncharacteristic. (We’ll soon have a gander.)

And I couldn’t help feeling like Derek Zoolander

When I found myself questioning, “Who am I?”

Worry not. I’m not having an identity crisis. But, go figure, the day after I dedicate an entire post to how my foodie personality is predictably the same as it’s always been, I experience a day full of “this is so not me” eating.

My first inkling that some other foodie spirit had repossessed my body came with my mañana cup of coffee.

My kitchen’s currently boasting a pretty extensive selection of coffee. But I’m pretty faithful to my tried-and-true favorites, those usually being some jazzed-up version of a vanilla or hazelnut base. Ayer, I wanted none of that. I awoke in a chocolate state of mind.

Now I know what you’re thinking. That’s not really grounds for a “who am I?” moment, as I’ve recently realized and confirmed my fondness for cocoa. However, while I’m certainly acquiring a taste for chocolate, I’ve yet to seriously crave it or favor it over my veteran front-runners. Until yesterday.

No deliberation necessary. I wanted chocolate coffee.

Specifically New England Coffee’s Chocolate Cappuccino. I tried this last week, and I’m pretty sure it’s been on the brain ever since. But because I’m a save-the-best-for-last OCD freak, I’ve been rationing it until I can locate and hoard several more bags.

But there was no fighting that chocolate feeling yesterday. I gave into my moment of chocolate cappuccino weakness. And it was glorious.

This coffee is so bueno that I drank it straight up.

Moving along… I was ready to shake the whole “who am I?” hindrance with breakfast. I already knew what I was making, and it was very me.

Or so I’d intended.

I’ve been wanting to make Tina’s “Baked” Pumpkin Oatmeal” since I first laid eyes on it. I doubled the recipe porque I know mi estómago, and one packet of instant oatmeal would keep me full for approximately 20 minutes.

Looks a little diferente from Tina’s, right? On a whim, I decided to add cocoa powder. Seriously. WHO AM I? I had a perfectly delicious, pumpkin-y concoction sitting before me, and I chose (read: needed) to chocolate-ify it?

I’ll stop whining, though. My case of the “who am I?”s worked brilliantly here. This. was. AMAZING.

Los ingredientes: 2 packets maple brown sugar instant oatmeal, 1/2 cup canned pumpkin, 1/2 cup egg whites, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp. agave and 2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder. Mixed and microwaved for 3 minutes. (Or 2:59 if you’re weird like me.)

Chocolately pumpkiny perfection. Make. This. Ahora.

Sometime after that bowl of deliciousness, I G-chatted with hermana and learned that she, too, was eating out-of-character.

Melissa: you’ll be happy to know the brownie rampage has continued at school

snowstorms mean 8238928329329 brownies

me: jealous

i made CHOCOLATE OATS for bfast

like, i was CRAVING chocolate

WHO AM I!?

Melissa: um i made waffles and eggs with spinach and laughing cow for bfast

like what? i made myself a real breakfast… WHO AM I!?

At least we’re in this together, hermana.

Lunch parte uno was a pretty standard Sarah sandwich.

On a toasted sandwich thin: laughing cow, Sabra hummus, roasted eggplant and roasted red peppers.

It was during lunch parte dos that I had to step back and ask myself, “who am I?”

Apparently I thought I was a 5’10 blonde with a snacky disposition.

On my undeniably plagiarized snack plate:

The leaning tower of red bell pepper.

Filled con salsa.

Manzana con cinnamon.

Which christened this fresh tub of Greek Olive Sabra.

This is currently my favorite Sabsession. But I’ve yet to try the caramelized onion flavor, which I suspect may change my life.

Post-lunch came errands, a writing project and some at-home pilates. If you follow me on Twitter, you know I slept through my Tuesday clase. So, I attempted to do some mat stretching, scissors (because they’re naughty) and rollovers (because they’re fun) en mi cuarto.

‘Lates ended up looking like this:

Yea, somewhere between stretching and scissors, I got lost in blog-reading, which somehow led me to get lost in Cherry Garcia. My newfound sweet tooth is really confusing me.

For dinner, I decided it was acceptable to have dos. Who am I?

Ok, fine. That food decision is entirely characteristic of me. But both of my cena components were large and in charge, and I’m sort of surprised I was able to eat it all. Sort of.

First up: una ensalada enorme.

I realize that doesn’t look so enorme because it’s on a plate. But I assure you it was massive. In fact, I have proof it was massive. But we’ll get to that later.

In the mix: baby spinach, red bell pepper, cucumber, celery, apple, brie, grilled shrooms, green cheetahs, asparagus, grilled onion and fried egg whites. Predictably dressed in a honey-balsamic blend.

The increible trifecta of fried egg whites, green cheetahs and grilled cebolla in the center.

And the no-fail combo of manzanas y brie dispersed throughout.

One more cebolla shot because grilled onion doused in sweetened balsamic is both aesthetically and gastronomically mind-blowing.

So much so that it was the star of dinner numero dos: savory Asian oats.

1/2 cup oats cooked in 1 cup water and 2 tbsp. soy sauce. Topped with grilled onion and asparagus.

I’d sort of forgotten how much I love savory oats. One bite into that creamy, soy saucy creation, and I fully remembered.

Messified deliciousness.

Onto that evidencia that my ensalada was one of great size.

I couldn’t eat it off the plate. Seriously, it was imposible.

So, into my hugh jass mixing bowl it went.

Oh, and if you’d like evidencia of my aforementioned save-the-best-for-last approach to eating… this is how I eat my salads.

Yes, I consume the 3 pounds of baby spinach first and save all of the well-marinated goodies for the end.

And now, for my final and most profound “who am I?” moment of el día: I wasn’t in the mood for popcorn for dessert.

My fridge is currently harboring a massive tub of vanilla pudding, and I was inexplicably drawn to it post-cena.

Con grahams, of course.

This was SO GOOD. Just to forewarn you, I feel a pudding kick coming on. Though, if my popcorn addiction doesn’t return by tonight, I may have a full-blown “WHO AM I!?” meltdown.

Do your food cravings ever throw you off? Up until very recently, my sweet tooth was non-existent. And its frequent presence is really freaking me out. Clearly, though, I’m embracing it .

Amor,

Sarah

I try not to talk politics on here, but this issue must be addressed. There is currently an entire nation of foodies being inhumanely deprived of a concise, incomparably descriptive, fun-to-say word for those who love food. Think of the liberation and pride that would sweep España if food-loving Spaniards could stand up and proclaim: Yo soy un foodie. Think of how many sentences could be shortened if there existed a single word for una persona que le encanta comida (one who loves food).

That said, I hereby request that the Spanish Ministry of Diccionarios instate an español version of the word “foodie.”

End scene. Let’s get to Monday’s eats.

I received the following right-to-the-point e-mail from my lovely cousin Christina last week:

You should try chocolate chips, and marshmallows in your oats, and put gram crackers on top.

Not one to disregard delicious-sounding breakfast suggestions, I heeded Christina’s advice. Except, in an attempt to infuse this decadent bowl of oats with a little protein, I subbed her chocolate chips with chocolate nut butter.

Specifically, Nature’s Promise chocolate soynut butter.

I dipped into this last week and really did not enjoy it—but I figured I’d give it another shot.

Realizing that my chocolate substitute had the power make or break my breakfast, I had a spoonful straight-up to test its oat worthiness.

It failed. No me gusta. This nut butter wasn’t bad in the “this really isn’t what I was expecting” way, as was the case with cashew butter. It was bad in the “I need to spit this out right now” way. It tasted like a chalky, oily, unsweetened Nutella knock-off.

Definitely not oat-worthy.

And so I turned to the tried-and-true chocolate Better N’ PB.

S’mores Oats (a.k.a. S’moats)

In the oat bowl: 1/2 cup oats cooked in 1 cup water and 1/2 thinly sliced banana. Topped with crushed graham crackers, marshmallows and spoonful of chocolate BNPB.

This was fantastic. It was difficult to delegate marshmallow distribution throughout the bowl—but this just made for some incredible marshmallow madness bites.

While this was certainly a decadent way to start the day, it definitely wasn’t as filling as my standard oat bowls. I think I usually bulk up my oats with more nut butter and fruit.

When I realized I needed s’more comida, I turned to an old favorite for breakfast part dos.

Greek yourt + raspberry preserves.

So sweet and simple and satisfying.

Lunch delivered something else I’ve desperately needed s’more of.

Vegetables! Ever since Thanksgiving (and discovering my taste for chocolate), I have been lagging with my fruit and veggie consumption. So, I got in my greens with some split pea sopa.

I tried Dr. McDougall’s split pea soup for the first time last week, and I wasn’t crazy about it. However, I had another box, and, as was the case with the chocolate soynut butter, I was willing to give it another chance.

I’m going to have to stop doing that.

Like the nut butter, this was no better the second time around. Unlike the nut butter, it was edible.

Especially with the edition of these.

Love soggy croutons in soup!

I’m probably being a little harsh with the sopa trash-talking, but split pea is my favorite soup. And the thing I love most about it is its thick texture. Dr. McDougall’s version was sort of watery—with an occasion clump of pea/lentil thickness.

I did think the flavor was great, and I managed to clean the bowl. But, if you’re looking for canned split pea soup, Amy’s is so much better.

On the side, I had a toasted sandwich thin, garlic bread-ified with a smear of butter and minced garlic.

(The creepy yellow hue on the distant half comes from margarine. Gross, but I finished my butter stick on the first half, and was up against the dreadful nasty-butter-substitute-or-no-butter-at-all wall.)

Snack time featured un plato of mixed nuts, dark chocolate chips and a hermit. That lone hermit is a little misleading. Several más were had because I don’t think it’s humanly possible to just eat one. If you’ve done this, you deserve a prize.

Enjoyed atop mi laptop as I weekend recapped.

I got s’more veggies in during dinner.

Toaster green cheetahs.

Again, I cannot wait for the return of oven green cheetahs.

I found myself in a muy Mediterranean mood, so I ran with it.

Ensalada Mediterránea

In the mix: baby spinach, feta, olives, cucumbers, celery, cherry tomatoes, balls and hummus; dressed in celery salt and the usual honey-balsamic blend.

Meatless meatballs aren’t so Meditteranean, but they were amazing, as always. And I pretended they were falafel balls.

Needless to say, that dollop of Sabra only left me wanting más.

So más was had.

Con warmed whole wheat pita and queso americano.

This pita was so good! I get my pita from the local produce store because they bake it in-house, and when you get a fresh batch, you get a fresh batch. So soft and doughy.

Still, as with the meatless balls, I used my imagination and pretended it was the best pita bread ever.

I guess breakfast left me wanting s’more (I promise, I’m done after that one) because dessert was desayuno-inspired.

Baked S’mores!

You don’t see any chocolate—because there wasn’t any.

I eat my s’mores chocolate-less.

And, though I’ve realized my developing fondness for the dark stuff, there are certain chocolate-less creations I’ve no desire to change.

Amor,

Sarah

Perhaps you know what that word means.

Perhaps you’ll find your way over to SpanishDict.com to find out. (FYI: SpanishDict.com is mi favorito online Spanish-English diccionario—and not just because it’s fun to say aloud.)

Either or, I’m giving away some highly-coveted galletas at the end of this post.

First, vamos a hablar about some h-day happenings.

‘Twas another “this is not November in NYC” day of warm and sunny weather.

Except this beautiful día kicked off with ‘lates…

instead of lattes.

(I cannot resist bad puns…)

It’s not very me to take on physical activity pre-cup o’ joe—but yesterday morning, I rolled out of bed and headed straight to pilates.

I’m so glad I did because it was quite possibly the best, most entertaining pilates class I’ve ever taken.

Best? Yes. This class was amazing. It was so well-structured and challenging. And it flew by. Always a plus. Also, I currently only go to pilates twice a week because I’ve only found two classes that I really enjoy. They’re both during the weekend—which means that sometimes they just don’t happen—so I’ve been looking for a good weekday class.

Entertaining? What could possibly make planks, hundreds and scissors divertido? Only the most hilarious instructor. No, unfortunately it wasn’t the Brooklyn Bikram yogi—though that would’ve been hysterical. But this pilates chica was just as cómica.

She was a tiny blonde with a thick Russian accent, and she began class with a story.

She’d taught her first class at a new studio in Manhattan this past weekend. After complaining that it was too small “because everyone was packed into the classroom like sardines”—she told us how she was unusually hard on one male student. “He couldn’t breathe,” she told us. “He couldn’t stretch. He looked like he was about to have a heart attack, but he was young. So I kicked him. And I yelled at him. He got a little better, but he was still pathetic.”

(She wasn’t one for sugar-coating, apparently.)

Anyhow, after class was over, she discovered that this man and the woman he attended class with were Mr. and Mrs. Ivanka Trump. Yes, she was kicking Ivanka Trump’s new husband.

Her response? “How would I know that? I’m just a silly immigrant girl… Do you think I read People? Oh well, he was still pathetic. But I don’t know if I’ll have that job next weekend.”

I wish I’d written down all of the hysterical things she said. Like: “Call me the Hundreds Hitler today. Because next week is Thanksgiving. And it’s against national law in this country to not gain 5 lbs. on Thanksgiving, right?”

I really liked her. I’ll be attending regularly on Wednesdays. And perhaps bringing a pen and pad.

On my walk home, I made another nice weather-necessitated iced coffee purchase.

I stepped outside my cafe box with this venti iced con soy milk, sugar and cinnamon.

I’ve pretty much got my coffee preferences down to a science. Hot coffee: milk/creamer + sweetener. Iced coffee: negro con sweetener. The sweetener is negotiable; the milk addition/absence (usually) is not.

For some reason, I decided to order my iced coffee with soy milk yesterday. No me gusta. I immediately remembered why I drink my iced coffee black. I find that iced coffee con leche tastes watered down, especially as the ice melts. No bueno.

Ah, well. We vivir. And we aprendar.

Breakfast was big bowl of greek yogurt.

Plain Oikos sweetened with honey and cinnamon; topped with lots ‘o layers of bananas and strawberries… and grahams.

The superstar center.

Messy is not bonita, but it is deliciosa.

I feel like I haven’t had fresh fruit—aside from apples—in a while, so I loved this breakfast bowl.

Snackage also came in the form of fresh fruit that I’ve not had in quite some time.

Grande grapes.

In an overflowing mug.

There may have been an encore in the form of handfuls out of the bag. But I’m not apologizing for extra grapeage.

Come lunch, I knew what I wanted.’

But it wasn’t really a complete lunch—so I threw together a standard ensalada.

Baby spinach, diced chicken, onion, yellow pepper, broccoli, roasted red peppers, cucumbers and tortilla chips. Dressed in celery salt and italiano dressing.

Italiano dressing=blech in my book. But I’ve been out of balsamica. Muy devastating.

What I really wanted was this.

In celebration of Waffle Wednesday, I busted out the Kashi Honey oat waffles and slathered on my dearly beloved cream cheese and raspberry preserves.

I’ve never done this before, but you can bet I’m going to do it again. BUENISIMA.

Almuerzo only held me over for dos horas, so more snackage went down.

I embraced this since it was National SnackFace Day.

Clearly the cream cheese & jelly waffle left me wanting más.

I tried to switch it up un poco.

Whole wheat english muffin: 1/2 with Laughing Cow & preserves. 1/2 with Laughing Cow and Sriracha.

You know how one side of an english muffin is inevitably bigger than the other? Well—and I think this habit comes from the same part of the brain as my OCD save the best for last tendency—when making a half-and-half english muffin, I always deliberate which 1/2 I’m going to like better and make sure those toppings go on the bigger half.

This 1/2 and 1/2 english muffin’s ganador: LC & raspberry preserves.

Except not! I got it incorrecto.

I ended up liking the LC & sriracha combo mejor.

Look at how little that half is. Que triste!

Another display of my OCD foodisms (and my unstoppable appetite):

Remember when I ate all the chocolate bunnies out of my box of new amigos?

When I tapped into the box yesterday, I noticed some brown bunnies at the bottom!

This problemo had to be fixed.

La solución:

A bowl of bunnie cereal.

So fantastically soggy that the chocolate action didn’t even matter.

Cena was Greek.

Ensalada was necesario because I finally got balsamic!

Normal-sized (as in, not my usual salad monster) greek-ish salad.

Baby spinach, onion, feta, roasted red pepper and olives. Topped with a dollop of salsa and tzatziki dip. Oh yea, and balsamic!

For the main event, I put this Sabra duo to work.

Greek pizza

In the toaster oven: Brushed with EVOO, baked at 375 degrees for 5-6 minutes on each side. Topped with a layer of Greek Olive Sabra and a layer of Sabra tzatziki dip—and micowaved onion, broccoli, spinach, roasted red peppers and feta. Then broiled for 3-5 minutes.

Which did nothing to melt the feta.

But everything to meld the incredible hummus and tzatziki Sabra flavors.

Aaaaamazing. I can’t wait to make more creations featuring this duo.

Dessert is what you’d expect.

Except minus the sriracha.

The only popcorn I don’t add anything to is Jolly Time Kettle Corn.

Because it is the BEST popcorn ever—and needs nada but what’s in the bag.

I’m pretty sure all the deliciousness comes from this sketchy sauce/seasoning on the side of the bag.

Actually, I know it. Because I rub individual popcorn pieces on that wondrous mystery ‘til it’s no more.

Ok, onto la galleta giveaway.

If you’ve not figured it out, galleta means cookie.

Remember when I reviewed and loved Nutridel cookies?

Well, the generous Marisela over at Nutridel has offered to send one lucky reader the “sampler pack” option they’ve just began offering.

If you recall, when I reviewed the cookies, only a 28 package box (2 cookies per package) was available for $42. Obviously, that’s a hefty dinero and galleta commitment to make if you’ve never tried Nutridel cookies. The new sampler pack offers a box of 8 (2 cookies per package)—two of each of the almond, flaxseed, oatmeal and pecan flavors—for $16.

Or, if you win this giveaway, FOR FREE.

There are five ways to enter this giveaway. Each counts as one entry, and be sure to leave a separate comment for each way you enter.

• Leave a comment telling me which Nutridel cookie flavor you most want to try.
• Tweet about this giveaway: “Quieres 60 calorie cookies? Check out @FoodieDiaries Nutridel giveaway! http://bit.ly/2IrJCM/
• Follow me on Twitter.
• Add me to your blogroll and/or Google Reader.
• Link back to this giveaway on your blog.

The giveaway is open until Wednesday, November 25 at 12 p.m. EST, and I will use random.org to choose the winner. Only open to residents of U.S. and Canada.

So… ¿Quien quieres Nutridel galletas?

-Sarah

A wonderful weekend came and went;

As always, I ate to my heart’s content

These edible discoveries I now shall vent

During this perfectly tempered NYC weekend, I discovered…

-When you whine about NYC weather, it refutes your bad mouthing with a beautiful 70 degree weekend—necessitating you to, once more, revert back to iced coffee.

No complaints.

-When an Egg McMuffin craving cannot be kicked because (a) it is past 11 a.m. or (b) you don’t want your tombstone to read “Death By Golden Arches,” a homemade version works nicely.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way. WW english muffin toasted; 2 egg whites microwaved (never did this before! they were good!); ketchup & an American deli slice. 99.9% less likely to be your cause of death than McD’s version.

-Another homemade sandwich of sorts: Graham cracker ice cream sandwiches > those incredible little stick-to-your-fingers chocolate ones from your childhood.

This is saying a lot because those were great.

-Roasted figs with roquefort and maple syrup: !!!!!!!!

I followed this recipe but substituted maple syrup for the honey. This flavor combo was muy bueno and gave me a new appreciation for figs.

-Another figgie foray: Frozen figs.

I discovered this unique approach to fig consumption from Lynn. Me gusta. Frozen figs are the new frozen grapes.

-Zucchini cheetahs + sun-dried tomato tapenade=happy together. 

-SAVORY OATS!

I know I’m really behind on this one, but I’d never made savory oats until this weekend. However, I can say with fair certainty that I’m addicted.

I followed Bittman’s approach to savory oats for my premiere bowl. I used 1/2 cup Irish oats cooked in 1 cup water, seasoned with 2 tbsp. soy sauce & salt. On top went spinach sauteed in garlic & soy sauce, grilled mushrooms and roasted red peppers.

I kid you not, I have never enjoyed a bowl of oats so much. I don’t know why it took me so long to test the savory oats waters because I’m a steadfast salty over sweet girl. I do fear that I will now—with dual loves for sweet oat breakfasts and savory oat dinners—OD on oats. Sort of looking forward to it.

-My first homemade veggie burgers!

Again, a little behind the pack on this one. But I’ve always had such love for Dr. P that I’ve foregone making my own.

I followed this recipe—only because it called for instant oatmeal. (I’m trying to work my way through a never-ending stash that I haven’t touched since discovering oat bran and irish oats.)

I used black beans instead of garbanzos, and brown rice instead of barley.

This was the mix before adding the veggies. I won’t lie; I had several uncooked bites, and they were delicious.

I baked half, and pan-fried half.

The baked took the cake.

SO GOOD. I LOVED the soy sauce & brown rice combo. I’m proud of these because they were my firsts—but I definitely think I’ll outdo them once I experiment a bit. I really want to try this recipe using Soy Vay instead of soy sauce. Mmmm.

-Starbucks was incorrecto. I could definitely taste the difference between VIA and regular.

I intensely dislike Starbucks brewed coffee, so I thought they both tasted nasty. But, if you are a Starbucks lover, VIA’s taste isn’t that different from the brewed garbage goods.

The rest of the weekend’s discoveries were made at yesterday’s Third Avenue Festival—a street fair in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

I was accompanied by Miss Gigi and spent the day discovering that…

-She really does look like Dora.

-Five-year-olds come up with hysterical reasons why you can’t do/eat things that aren’t of interest to them.

For example…

When I showed interest in giving these lonely masseurs something to do…

Gigi said, “I don’t think that’s a good idea. They might break you.”

When I was looking at some ceramic, I was suddenly less delicate…

Gigi warned me, “We should go now. You might break something. And then you’ll go to jail.”

And lastly, when I suggested that we get some roasted sweet corn,

Gigi—whose attention was more grabbed by the funnel cake & ice cream stands—explained that “since our parents let us have corn at home, we should eat other stuff while they’re not here.” (She doesn’t understand that I’m an adult; she frequently refers to me as a teenager. I don’t ever correct her.)

Oh, she also kindly advised me, “If you get corn stuck in your teeth, you’ll never find a husbamd.” Punk.

-I also learned that when you promise a kid a cupcake, you have to deliver.

So, if you forget about said promise and accidently get ice cream…

…and are dealing with a sneaky 5-year-old who will down that ice cream

…and THEN remind you of your cupcake promise, you have to get clever.

And find the world’s tiniest cupcake.

As payback for her sneakiness (and that husband comment), I now present to you a highly entertaining Gigi Eats Cupcake montage:

Proud to call her family.

Hope that helped move your Monday along—or at least made you laugh.

As Dora would say,  Buenos dias!

-Sarah

I kicked off Tuesday morning—a.k.a. the first day of fall!—with my favorite autumn drank—chai tea, with a little creamer & honey.

I developed an innocent addiction to Starbucks’ vanilla chai lattes during college, so I do my best to re-create it sans the creepy powder they use. Not saying I don’t enjoy Starbucks’ version in all its artificial glory, on occasion

I intended for the chai to be my coffee replacement, but I ended up succumbing to my caffeine cravings and having a cup. I’m still bitter about the whole burnt tongue thing, so I’m not giving coffee art any spotlight until I’ve gotten over its seductive trickery.

For breakfast, I was on a mission to get creative with my oat bran for Ms. PB’s Best Of Oats week. And, I must say, my visionary breakfast brilliance came out in full force. If you are hungry, on a diet or currently dissatisfied with your lunch, I suggest you stop reading now. If not, I present to you…

Boston Creme Oat Bran

I can’t remember the last time I had a doughnut. Oh, wait… But, in all seriousness, I rarely eat doughnuts. Partially because I don’t want to die of a heart-attack at my ripe young age, and partially because they simply aren’t my favorite dessert. I do, however, have a resilient love for Boston creme doughnuts. I can pass up the fried dough, but I’m a sucker for creme fillings. (Do I even have to say it? Okay, TWSS.)

So there lies my inspiration for this decadent DPAAB (dessert parading around as breakfast, if you missed inception of that acronym). She’s beautiful, isn’t she?

I brewed my oat bran on the stove with: 1/3 cup oat bran, 1 cup water, salt, 1/2 banana sliced thinly, vanilla extract and truvia. Then, I topped it with several dollops of cheesecake pudding and drizzled a packet of Dark Chocolate Dreams.

The cheesecake pudding was pre-made and organic (thereby healthier, right? ), and I had a sample packet of PB&Co’s Dark Chocolate Dreams. I’d never tried either product prior to this breakfast, but their presence in this particular creation was clutch, for lack of a better word.

I’m quite sure cereal for breakfast is never going to cut it after experiencing this.

I fall-ified Monday’s dinner by making a roasted veggie salad for lunch.

In the mix: spring greens, sun-dried tomatoes, oil-cured olives, grilled shrooms, roasted cherry tomatoes, grilled onions, celery, corn and grilled chicken. Dressed, as usual, in balsamic + honey and celery salt.

My ode to summer salad was good, but I really prefer cooked veggies in salads. Halfway through, I remembered that I have an ungodly amount of hummus to get through.

Those added dollops were the perfect complement to the roasted veggies & balsamic dressing. I always forget how amazing the hummus + salad combo is.

Since there was SO much hummus to be had, I busted out my favorite pretzels, Snyder’s Organic Oat Bran.

I was never a “pretzel person” ‘til I tried these. I usually eat them straight up, but my go-to dips, as of late, are cream cheese and hummus. Neither ever disappoints.

For dinner, I made a mediterranean salad that Tina featured last week. I halved the original recipe since it serves 10—but I used the full amount of artichokes and onions since I had a lot on hand.  I also used red potatoes instead of gold yukons. 

Last night’s perfect bite: sauteed pepper, onion, roasted red potato, artichoke and kalamata olive. I can’t pretend I didn’t strategically get all those goods onto the fork, but ‘twas a magical bite, indeed.

As usual, I made a notable effort to eat fruit for dessert.

I do love dinosaur plums. But, one of the perks drawbacks of decadent breakfasts: their taste lingers. A.k.a., I had puddin’ on the brain.

Since it was cheesecake pudding, I had to top it with grahams for an as-close-to-the-real-thing experience.

I may have just discovered my second favorite dessert to cheesecake. As in, I sort of want to crumble an entire box of graham crackers into that pudding container and have my way with it. I won’t, scout’s honor.

Before I go, I wanted to let you all know how my one-week foray into yoga went. If my limerick and expressed enthusiasm didn’t give it away, I LOVED YOGA!

I only ended up going five out of the planned seven days because of unfortunate fullness and quite fortunate Rosh Hashanah celebrations. But I actually think that was a good thing because the soreness was getting pretty intense. During my last class on Sunday, I got the Brooklyn Yogi again—who was equally as hilarious and obnoxiously Brooklyn-y. But the class was the most intense and rewarding of all the ones I went to it.

Having not done yoga for two days now, I’m craving it. I think one of the reasons I like yoga so much is because it’s so different from any other form of exercise I’ve ever tried out. I think that I, like most people, view exercise from a results-based perspective. We exercise to improve or maintain our health, appearance, fitness level, etc. The results-oriented aspect of yoga was so different than running or any other cardio exercise I’ve tried. I was drawn to yoga for the way it made me feel as I was going through the motions, not for the results that were to come. I’ve never felt so present or engaged during exercise before, and I loved that. What are the benefits you reap from your exercise method of choice?

From a physical standpoint, even after one week, I feel stronger and more stretched-out than I’ve ever felt before. As a prior yoga-skeptic, I’m thoroughly impressed.

I haven’t yet figured out where I’ll go with yoga from here. A monthly pass to the studio is really expensive—more than double what it costs for a membership at a premium NYC gym. So I’ve been toying with the idea of getting a membership to a gym that has yoga classes. I’m not sure if I’d enjoy standard yoga as much as Bikram because I really liked the heat component. Any thoughts on getting a gym membership versus sticking strictly to yoga?

Happy hump day

-Sarah

There once was a man named Bikram

Whose practice I tried out on a whim

Though I’m feeling quite sore

I understand its allure

For yoga’s sore beats the bore of the gym

And that was my roundabout, limericky way of telling you that Wednesday morning delivered just as much soreness as Tuesday’s. And that I liked it? Perhaps it’s because exercise hasn’t made me this sore in a while, but I’m sort of taking pleasure in the discomfort. Now that I officially sound like a masochist, let’s redirect our attention to yesterday’s eats.

Hump day kicked off with some coffee art.

I want to assure you that the above montage is one cup of coffee, not four. Given my current state of soreness and, uh, the whole 90 minutes a day in a 105 degree room thing, I’m not trying to further dehydrate my body with my typical “I lose count of how many cups I’ve had” coffee habit.

After my java-fix, I went on to break-ify one of my favorite childhood snacks:  Fig Newtons. While other kids indulged in Mallomars and Moon Pies, I had a serious thing for the Newtons. I’ve still not gotten over them entirely, but these days—when the reminiscent craving hits—I go for the hydrogenated oil-free Newman’s Own version. That said, I present to you…

Newman’s Sarah’s Own Fig Newton Yogurt

1 cup of plain greek yogurt, sweetened with honey and cinnamon + fresh figs

+ 1.5 graham crackers, which—if you’re lucky like me—will be the last of your bag and make for easy, mess-free crushing

=

Sarah’s Own Fig Newton Yogurt! That bodacious breakfast bowl took me right back to my childhood love affair…

I can’t lie and say that once you mix it all together it tastes just like a Fig Newton. Because—let’s face it—Fig Newtons do not contain grahams, yogurt or fresh figs. But it was an absolutely delicious blend of figgy flavor.

And I “mmmmmmmm”-ed at every single bite.

I ate my lunch in two parts in an attempt to not be too full for my 6 p.m. yoga class.

Warning: Lunch Part I looks a whole lot like breakfast—but I assure you, it’s a different fig-imbued bowl.

It is, however, nearly identical to last week’s “fruit cereal.”

In the mix: ginormous Ginger Gold apple, 2 fresh figs, raisins, dried cherries, slivered almonds, ground flax, cinnamon and almond milk.

All the usual suspects with one “fruit cereal”-changing ingredient: dried cherries.

These added so much flavor to a bowl I’d previously deemed perfection. I stand corrected. “Fruit cereal” featuring dried cherries = perfection. If you’ve not yet jumped on this bandwagon, I urge you to board promptly.

Warning #2: Lunch Part II is not nearly as attractive as Lunch Part I.

Warmed Granny Smith +

Warm cream cheese-packed WW pita =

Something not nearly as delicious as I’d imagined. Foodie foul.

If you recall, this past weekend, I discovered that sliced apples, LC and warmed WW pita are a delectable combo. So, cream cheese lover and baked apple feind that I am, I envisioned a warmed-up, cream-cheesy remix that would put my prior concoction to shame.

Erroneous on all accounts. While the cream cheese + apple flavor combo was on point, the “baked apple” got too mushy for a warm pita to handle, and things got pretty messy. Still, it was an edible mess—i.e. I cleaned the plate… but only because I needed pre-yoga fuel .

***

Foodie’s Foray into Yoga – Day 3

Yesterday’s class was the most challenging yet. It may be due to my soreness, but the stretches felt so much deeper than they did during my first two classes. I also got a lot of personal attention during last night’s class because there were only six of us. The accent-less (phew!) Brooklyn instructor gave me a lot of guidance on the proper form of each pose—which was really helpful because I could definitely feel my body working harder once I was doing the pose correctly.

It was also more challenging because I got nauseated (thanks, grammar lesson from Prof. SnackFace) throughout last night’s class. I have a feeling this had to do with lunch Part II being consumed a little less than three hours before class. When doing Bikram, you aren’t supposed to eat for 3-4 hours before class. I’ve been struggling to eat the right amount—and at the right time—so I don’t get hungry before class nor do I go to class too full. I probably should’ve skipped my failure of a lunch part dos because yesterday I definitely got to class too full. No bueno, people.

Still, if my limerick didn’t give it away, I am still loving yoga. I’ll do a full re-cap at the end of my one week challenge, but for now:

Day 3 verdict: Though my body feels like it endured the Battle of Saratoga, this foodie’s falling head over heels for yoga .

(While I warned you that I have a tendency to speak in poem, I never claimed to be good at it…)

***

Dinner last night was the monster salad I’d planned on eating Tuesday night before my chicken-craving hit.

In the mix: chopped romaine, grilled chicken, grilled & marinated mushrooms, grilled onions, grilled peppers, roasted cherry tomatoes, oil-cured black olives and feta.

You’ll notice a whole lot of grilled in there because, as I’ve said before, I love salads with grilled veggies.

One unusual suspect in last night’s salad was:

I almost never put feta in salads. I don’t know why, but I’m really not wooed by the cheese in salad thing. However, I realized that I currently have an abundance of feta cheese…

So I went with it. And, I wont lie, it was a wonderful little addition.

Another component worth pointing out is…

Though these resemble something that might be force-fed to Survivor contestants, they’re actually oil-cured olives. My favorite. Seriously, you can add them to anything or eat them straight-up. They do not disappoint. Ever. (I always weird myself out when I get that dramatic about food—but I’m being entirely serious.)

Oh, and that brown drizzle you see, that’d be my super simple honey balsamic dressing. 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar mixed with 1/2 tablespoon honey. It’s pretty amazing—and seriously simple.

The best part about eating salad for dinner is (usually) having room for dessert—which came in the form of my previous PB discovery…

Really, I only ate this since I didn’t give you guys a picture last time, and I figured you might need some visual incentive to take the PB&Popcorn leap. Although, probably not…

Happy Office-watching!

-Sarah

I’m Sarah, the aforementioned foodie, and this would be the very first “diary.” I’m a 22-year-old recent grad, living in NYC, loving food (duh) and trying to come up with a master plan to turn that love for food into a career!

If you so desire, you can read all about me here, and a little more here.

I’ve been having a secret love affair with food blogs for a few months now. And I figured there’s no time like the present to quit lurking and start flogging (new term for food blogging?). I’m not exactly sure what will come of this blog. But I hope to:

• Share my eats—the delicious, the horrific and the straight-up shameful (hopefully mostly delicious?)
• Discuss food, health, fitness and all that jazz
• Experiment with new recipes, and dish out some of my tried-and-true oldies
• Review products and restaurants
• Occasionally impart some more in-depth pieces of writing on food, wellness and life in general
• Oh yea, and possibly figure out what I want to do with my life. Asking too much? I didn’t think so.

But, alas, I am only half the equation of The Foodie Diaries. The other half… well, that’d be you. I’m really looking to my readers—currently an imaginary community, haha—to engage in a foodie forum. And, in an effort to feed my insatiable curiosity of all things food and health-related, I’m really hoping to learn from you all. From new foods to new nutrition findings to something I’m eating that you’re pretty sure is going to kill me—please don’t hold back (especially on that last one), I want in on all of it!

But, I guess I should quit blabbering and get into what you guys really want—ze goods, a.k.a. my foods! I can’t really expect you to endure these rants of mine without backing up all my talk, can I?

My premiere Foodie Diaries b-fast…

Fage greek yogurt with cinnamon, honey and–this is where the magic happens–whole wheat graham crackers.

Oooooooohmygod. Graham crackers in greek yogurt!? Why have I not done this before?? The mix was pretty ingenious… Los tastebuds were definitely feeling it. I know everyone is on board the flavored Chobani bandwagon right now–but I’m a big fan of plain ole greek yogurt because I love making creations like these!

I also enjoyed some watermelon and undocumented iced coffee, in an attempt to pretend the summer isn’t coming to an end…

On to lunch…

Corn tortillas with queso mexicano, tuna salad (a little mayo, mustard, celery and onion in le mix) and avocado slices.

And what’s a girl to do with the leftover avocado and tuna? They seemed like the perfect excuse to bust out the to-die-for Food Should Taste Good multigrain chips. Good call, Sar. Sunflower seeds, saltiness and other succulent seasoning–those chips never cease to amaze me.

Ok, I’m off to do a cupcake run because it’s a very special five-year-old’s birthday today. And nothing says feliz cumpleanos like a cupcake, especially when you’re five! (Or 22… whatevs…)

Hasta dinner!

-Sarah