Meatless Mid-Week...

Weird Fact:  So I've decided that I enjoy my Green Monster smoothies much more as a breakfast then as a lunch.  I'll plan on having one of these for a lunch, but those plans usually quickly go by the wayside because I'm just usually NOT in the mood for them when 12 o'clock rolls around.  Breakfast, however??  I wake up CRAVINGGGGG them.  Like, 'lion out of the cage' craving.  Strange, right??  It's the only time in life, I'm sure, that I'll crave spinach before 9amJ 

This fulfills your 'random fact' quota for the day.

You're welcomeJ

On another note:  How cute is this San Francisco glass??

I love having my spinach served up with a side of fun memories of all my favorite places in the cityJ

(Scott got me these glasses for Christmas from Cat Studios.  They have tons of States & your favorite cities from all around the world...all done in adorable art work!  Here's a glimpse at NJ & Vermont!)

And since I flip flopped my breakfast & lunch plan, I decided I was going to have more Chai oatmeal for lunch.  Buttttt...hunger hit me out of NOWHERE today and even the 15-20 minutes to make oatmeal pudding just seemed tooooo long!  To the rescue??  Trader Joe's Black Bean & Corn Enchiladas...

6 minutes in the microwave and I was quickly devouring these babies.  I love how fresh the corn tortilla and black bean filling tastes....especially for a frozen entree!  Definitely pick these up if you're looking for a quick & filling lunch.

Dinner...mwahaha...was a little creation of my own.

Truth be told:  I wanted pizza.  (thick, doughy Sicilian pizza to be exactJ)  But thankfully, I was anxious enough to try out my 'experiment' that I was able to keep the pizza delivery guy at bay.

This dinner took about an hour...but was one of those great ones where you were actually only COOKING for about 30 minutesJ

First up, I tossed 2 sweet potatoes in a 400 degree oven for about an hour.

When the potatoes had about a half hour left, I chopped up my kale, drizzled it with olive oil, salt & pepper and threw it in the bottom rack of the oven to cook along with the potatoes.  (keep your nose on alert!  If they smell like they're burning:  They're done!)

While the potatoes and kale were doing their thing, I quickly sauteed half a red onion and a few minced cloves of garlic in a saute pan...

...before adding a can of drained & rinsed black beans.

I let those sautee and crisp together, stirring occasionally, while I got to work on the last part of the meal.

Scott & I had made this recipe for West African-Style Peanut Sauce YEARSSSSSS ago...and I think Scott's been wanting to have it again since, but it always slipped my mind.  But last night, I knew it would be the quintessential STAR of our sweet potato meal!

(my spices are really getting a workout this week, huh???)

West African-Style Peanut Sauce (adapted from Cooking Light)

• 1/2 diced red onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teasp. cumin
• 1 1/2 teasp. coriander
• 3/4 cups water
• 3/4 cup tomato sauce (we had none on hand, so I used a trusty can of tomato soupJ)
• 1/4 cup peanut butter

1. Saute the onion & garlic in a little drizzle of olive oil on medium heat for a 3 minutes.
2. Add in the ground ginger, cumin & coriander and cook for about a minute.
3. Next, add the water, tomato sauce, peanut butter, salt & pepper.  Stir until smooth and simmer on low for about 2 minutes, or until slightly thickened.

See??  Sounds scary and "fancy," but it's actually super easy and ready in under 10 minutes!

When the sweet potatoes were cooked, we split them oven and 'fluffed' the potatoes with a fork before adding a few spoonfuls of the peanut sauce and mixing the 2 together...

Finally, I topped the 'peanut potatoes' with the sauteed black beans...and wallah:  Peanut potatoes with black beansJ

This dinner was super filling & satisfying while being completely vegan.  If you're looking for ways to cut your budget a bit (not to mention your intake of saturated fats) going meatless at least once a week is a good start.  This entire dinner probably cost us under $10 for both of our meals.  Canned beans are super cheap, as well as a great source of filling protein.  Not to mention the peanut sauce gave this even more bang for your 'filling' buckJ

And we had gotten this HUGE head of kale for about $1.25 at the Farmer's Market and I was able to stretch it into 2 dinners worth of 'kale chip side dishes' PLUS the few huge handfuls that went into the minestrone soup.  Tell me that's not making your dollar stretch for you!J

Try a dinner like this every once & awhile and see how much better you AND your wallet feelsJ hehehehhee...

And to satisfy a chocolate craving that I managed to hold off until dessert....we just HAD to try the CHOCOLATE DIPPED WHOOPIE PIES last night!!

First of all, we couldn't stop SMELLING them even before we dived in!  They smelled JUSTTTT like Nestle Quik powder (a sentimental, while not often purchased, favorite in our houseJ) and they tasted equally as delicious.  Chocolate craving: satisfied!

And another thing I wanted to share with you guys was that I finally was able to pick up Bethenny's new Skinnygirl workout on sale from Amazon!  I couldn't wait to try it out yesterday...

The DVD is broken down into 3 segments, so that if you can get a complete yoga workout in wheter you have 15 minutes or 50.  You can follow either of the 2 fifteen minute segments or the 1 twenty minute segment for quick workouts...orrr do all 3 if you have the time and want a full out workout.

I decided to tackle all three (plus the bonus 12 minute stretching segment) to see what it was all about.  First of all, and I can't fault the DVD for this as it's certainly NOT a prenatal specified DVD, but a LOT of this workout was ab/stomach centered and involved a lot of twisting.  Neither are exactly my 'focus zones' at the moment...so I ended up having to spend 92% of the workout doing modifications.  Again, not the DVD's fault...but may have hindered my judgement in making a fair assesment of the workout.  I'll tackle it again...but not until after the baby is born.  Should be perfect by then to whip my midsection back into shape. 

The other thing that I wasn't crazy over was that the male trainer in this one, Mike McArdie, had about 1/4th of the personality of the ADORABLE Kristen McGee in the first one! (Her own DVD's are already on my 'gift list' for ScottJ) hahahahhaha...but it certainly was a TOUGHER workout then "Body by Bethenny."  Sooo...you can take your pick.  Fun & cheerful yoga?  Go for "Body."  Tougher, full body, even some CARDIO involved, yoga?  Go with "Skinnygirl."  It's all about what you're looking for on that particular day.

Yeesh...alright, it's already late and I've now talked your ear off!!  Alright...go enjoy the rest of your night!J

Best of 2011: Travel Edition

Hey everyone!  Long time, no chat...again.  Sorry about that.  After surveying our 11 day break together this week, Scott & I quickly realized it would probably be our last 'stretch of days' with just the 2 of us for...awhileJ  So we spent them doing all the things we know we won't be doing in the near future:  leisurely days, long 'mini road trip' lunches, NAPSJ hahahhahhahahahhaa  We have one more day together, but I wanted to get this post up for you today before it was mid-January...hahahahhahahahahaJ  The lover of lists in me has 2 days worth of "Tops" for you (like last year) and up first is the one that helps me conjure up some of my favorite memories of the year: Top 10's: Traveling/Eating Out EditionJ

TOP 10 DISHES OF 2011:

#10- Cheesesteak Grilled Cheese: Pop Shop, Collingswood

#9-  Scott's first "In & Out" burgerJ:  In & Out, west coast locations
(you MUST get the Double Double with fried onions!)

#8- Spaghetti & Tuna Fish:  Buenos Aires, Sant' Agata, Italy

#7- Stuffed Peppers:  Lo Stuzzichino, Sant' Agata, Italy

#6- Sundried tomatoes & buffalo mozzarella: Inn Bufalito, Sorrento, Italy

#5-  "Jim Rome":  Ike's, San Francisco

#4-  Roasted Garlic Guacamole: El Vez, Philadelphia

#3-  Seafood Risotto:  Ristorante Delfino, Sorrento, Italy

#2-  Dungeness Crab Roll:  Fish, Saulsolito, California

#1 Dish of 2011:  Pasta e Patate con Provolone: Lo Stuzzichino, Sant' Agata, Italy

Here's the 'don't mess around' category! 

Top 10 Desserts

#10-  Nutella Calzone: Dar Poeta, Rome

#9- Coconut Cream Donut: Donut Plant, NYC

#8-  Ricotta Pear Cake: Ristorante Delfino, Sorrento, Italy

#7- Orange Ricotta Cheesecake: Der Pallaro, Rome

#6- Red Velvet Cupcake: Sweet Eats Bakery, Voorhees, NJ

#5-  Gelato...ANY of it in Italy!!!: particularly San Crispino, Rome

#4:  Chocolate cream & hazelnut milkshake: Max Brenner's, NYC & Philadelphia

#3- Nutella Gelato: Giolitti, Rome

#2- Morning Buns: Tartine Bakery, San Francisco

#1- Triple Coconut Cream Pie: Ritz Seafood, Voorhees, NJ

And I have two more categories I had to sneak in!

Top 5 "Best Atmosphere"
My favorite unique dining experiences while out & aboutJ

#5:  The lovely lounge deck: Treno, Westmont, NJ


#4:  Cookies in an alley??:  Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory, Chinatown, San Francisco


#3:  One of the most gorgeous bars I ever set foot in:  Cafe Lacatedral, Madrid, Spain


#2:  "Cart" Dim Sum: Yank Sing, San Francisco


#1:  "No menus, you'll have what we give you":  Der Pallaro, Rome


And here's just 3 things that needed their own category:

The best 'they just don't make it the same over here' of Italy:  The Olive Oil!


Best Coffee EVER:  Blue Bottle Coffee Company, San Francisco


And finally:
"I've been to Italy & back and can STILL say THIS IS THE BEST"
My beloved Delorenzo's Tomato Pies
(which is sadly closing on January 15th...sigh)

Hope you guys have a VERY Happy & Safe New Years!!! I'll be back tomorrow with my Top dinner & dessert recipes.  Hope you like lists as much as I do!J 

"The Best Thing I Ever Ate: In an alley"...

Thursday began much like Wednesday:  By grabbing our car and heading off to yet ANOTHER of our most anticipated 'food stops' :

{Commence drooling now}

Dynamo Donuts claim to fame is their Bacon Apple Maple donut, so we couldn't tear into that one quick enough to give it a try! :)

Loveeeed the salt from the bacon along with the sweet maple frosting!  You just can't go wrong with bacon.  On anything...even donuts;)

Our next sample was the caramel drenched fleur de sel with a light coating of salt on the bottom..mmmmm, sweet & salty heaven:)

And I KNOW, prepare to be disappointed:  But our joint VERY favorite of the bunch was the vanilla bean:)  This thing just ooozzed pure vanilla beans and fabulousness....

 

As for the 'leftovers,' we used EXCELLENT foresight and saved them for the next mornings breakfast:)  More Dynamo Donut deliciousness coming tomorrow;)

After THAT, we headed off to one of my most anticipated "non food" sites;)  Scott said he was surprised I was even able to SLEEP the night before because I had been SO excited FOR MONTHS about going to:

Muir Woods is over the Golden Gate bridge and at the end of an EXTREMELY winding & twisting (heart stopping) road.  Getting there is CERTAINLY half of the adventure.  And if the road doesn't blow you away, THESE certainly will:

Now I wouldn't peg myself as a 'nature girl' by any means, but things like this will have me singing Mother Nature's praises in an instant;)  You can't even IMAGINE how HUGEEEEEEEEE these Redwood trees are.  It's hard to explain or comprehend, but I'll let these pictures do the talking...

Oh, did you miss me in that picture??  I'm in there!  That will give you an idea of how you really measure up in the world;)

Absolutely breathtaking!

Now here's my Major tip #2 of this trip:  If you plan to make a trip to Muir Woods, rent a car and go EARLY!!!  We got there around 8:30am and maybe saw about 8 people walking almost the entire trail.  About 3/4 of the way back, however, the circus came to town:

It changed the ENTIRE vibe of the place...it went from total peace & silence to the center of the ring in an instant.  Take my advice: GET THERE EARLY!  It's soooooo worth it!  I was ready to get out of there once the buses showed up.  I didn't want the chaos they brought to disrupt my "peaceful/nature loving" state. hahahhaahhaah:)

After yet ANOTHER heart stopping trip back up that winding road (always fun to ride on the passenger side...nearest to the CLIFFS!), we headed into downtown Saulsolito to a pretty little restaurant right on the water, appropriately named "Fish"...

"Fish" was cafeteria style with picnic benches and no frills, but their menu was ANYTHING BUT 'picnic' food.  They use nothing but local ingredients, sustainable seafood & organic produce, which = Love! :)

Despite the name, my land lover again found the one NON-Fish item on the menu:  The cheeseburger, which he said was really, REALLY good and happily scarfed down:)

But it was nothing compared to my pick.  Well, actually Tyler Florence's pick for the Reinvented Classics "Best Thing He Ever Ate":  The DUNGENESS CRAB ROLL:

Now this whole trip, I tried my hardest to "practiced what I preached" and to eat only until I was full, usually about half of my meals and have just a few satisfying bites of the thousands of treats.  This crab sandwich though, didn't stand a CHANCE:

In the most bizarre turn of events: It actually reminded me of a cheesesteak;)  Weird, right??  I guess it was the flakiness of the (super sweet) crab mixed with all of that luscious butter from the roll...it was OFF THE CHARTS (and "Fish" had THE BEST french fries too...although I DID try to leave a few of those on my plate;) hahahahahaha

After lunch, we trolled around Saulsolito for a bit more...but unfortunately, Thursday afternoon was when the rain clouds rolled in (THANKFULLY, the ONLY time though!)  So instead of hiking through the Saulsolito hills, we headed back to San Fran to drop off our car and happily took the cable car from Fisherman's Wharf to Union Square:

And from Union Square, we headed to one of San Fran's 'not to be missed' attractions:  Chinatown!  The largest one outside of Asia!

And after trolling the souvenir shops and street markets, we found our best little gem of the day off of the beaten track and down an alley way.  No, FOR REAL:

Seriously, blink and you'll miss it...but your nose will lead you right to:

The Golden Gate Cookie Factory was the TINIEST little store with three women tirelessly making fortune cookies as the hot iron pans rolled around. 

Cable car to Chinatown: $5... 

Photo of woman rolling cookies:  50 cents...

Free samples of warm, fresh fortune cookies hot of the presses: 

Priceless:) 

We loved, loved, loved this place!  A must see if you're ever in Chinatown;)  Just keep your eyes up for 'Ross's Alley' and your nose tuned into COOKIES!

I'm chalking this up as one of my OWN "Best Things I Ever Ate....In an Alleyway" :)

And yes...there was still one more stop to be had:)  This time to Mee Heong Bakery on Powell Street.  They were suppose to have the best coconut cream buns in the city...and I guess it was true since they were already sold OUT by the time we got there!!!  Travesty;)  So we split a pineapple bun instead...

And yet ANOTHER great bargain:  35 CENTS! :)  Make that the "Best thing I ever Ate: Under 50 cents" :) hahahahahha

After our eats and a brief wander around the "Little Italy" section in North Beach, the rain began to come down in BUCKETS so we thought it was a sign to head back to the room to relax for a bit.  HOWEVER, not before traversing about 3 HUGE hills just like this one....

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!  I passed out in the room for a couple of hours before I even realized I was tired;) hahahahahaha...(guess those 4 AND 3AM mornings had finally caught up to me;)

After we woke up, we realized we were still pretty full from our lunch.  So we figured: Why not combine dinner & dessert into one and try out a couple of the ice creams shops we had on our list!  Our first stop:  Humphry Slocombe...

Slocombe's was ALSO featured on the 'Totally Unexpected' edition of "Best Thing I Ever Ate" for it's proscuitto ice cream.  And even though they weren't selling it that day (bummer), we still managed to get a pretty slammin batch of flavors to choose from (Mint & Black Pepper, anyone??):



I had the cinnamon brittle and Scott & I both got the fluffernutter with peanut butter (yum!)...but Scott definitly got the hands down winner of the night:  Blue Bottle Vietnamese Coffee.  It was just like the coffee itself:  the ice cream was soooo smoooooooooth!  Best coffee and best coffee ice cream ever:)  (and I'll add that the small sample of BROWN BUTTER ice cream I had tried was OUTSTANDING...should have got a scoop of that too:)

I wish this place was around the corner from my house because I would love to sample EACH of their incredible flavors!  (why, oh why, weren't they serving Malted Dulce De Leche that night??:)

Next we headed to the 'line stretched up the block' Bi-Rite Creamery:

Bi-Rite had another CRAZYYYYY list of flavors:

...which is why NEITHER of us could narrow it down to less than 3 flavors each  (and no-for the record, I went back to my "good habits" and didn't even come CLOSE to finishing ANY of these...I just wanted to try them;)  I had the:

• Brown Sugar ice cream with ginger & caramel swirl
• Toasted Coconut
• And my favorite of the three:  The Ricanela's- Cinnamon ice cream with snickerdoodle...yum!

And Scott's trio of choice:

• Coffee Toffee
• Salted Caramel
• Malted Vanilla with Peanut Brittle and Chocolate

The Bi-Rite flavors were super intense, but Slocombe's SUPER creamy subtleness just won us over.  Both were great, but if we're pickin a winner:  It's Humphry Slocombes straight across the board:)

  

And after a 5 scoop "ice cream dinner", we walked the nearly 5 mile hike back from the Mission district all the way to our hotel in the Marina, while enjoying the Victorian homes all lit up.... 

And another set of a zillion hills;)  hahahahhahaaha...

And that's a wrap on LAST Thursday;)   Hope you guys have great plans for THIS Thursday!  We're "themeing" it out tonight with some GREEN pesto spaghetti for dinner and an Irish Creme Cupcake for dessert:) 

Have a Happy St. Patty's Day everyone!