Cheesy soup...do I have your attention? :)

I have a feeling this is gonna be a quick blog or I wouldn't be able to get it out to you till 9 o'clock at night.  I can already tell it's gonna be one of THOSE daysJ

8:00am:  Hot lemon water

9:30am:  Breakfast-Strawberry smoothie

Could not figure out WHAT I wanted for breakfast yesterday morning, and even though it went against EVERY "15  degree forecast," the strawberry smoothie ingredients seemed like the best and quickest breakfast fix .

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (accidentally bought original rather than vanilla, so I just added a drop of vanilla extract to the smoothie)
• 100 calorie strawberry Greek yogurt
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• about 1 cup of frozen strawberries 

It was Katie approved AND kept me filled up for:

10:30-11:45am:  Power Yoga class

Lunch was sorta random today.  I was heading out to run some errands with my Mom, but wasn't really hungry at the time, so I just packed up some trail mix & a pear to eat on the go...

Lunch:  1pm-Trail Mix  

             3:30pm-Pear

I really liked this mix of almonds & cashews (my favorites...along with pistachios!)...and lots not forget the little nuggets of chocolateJ  It was filling & hit all those sweet and savory cravings for the afternoon.

I had gotten home thinking I was going to be famished, but realized I probably was going to manage to hold off any more snacks until dinner.  I think it's because I didn't really have a lot of water yesterday.  Consistently drinking water all day seems to keep my metabolism running & I'll feel hungrier throughout the day.  (which you MIGHT think is a bad thing, but there's not much good that can come out of a sluggish metabolism!  TRUST!!!)

5:30pm:  Dinner-  Cheesy Taco Soup

Soup made with taco/chili ingredients & cooked in a cheese "broth"??  Ummmm...OK!  And it was kept fairly lean being made with ground turkey, 1% milk, light cheese and lots of beans & tomatoes for a health boost.  Not too bad, right??

And it was as good as it soundsJ  And VERYYYYYYYY simple.  The hardest thing to do was make the 'cheese sauce'...which took about 3 minutes, so there ya go!  

Served up with a sprinkle of cheese and a handful of sweet potato tortilla chips and this was a hearty, cheesy, stick-to-your-ribs dinner that was super satisfying!

Katie, however, stuck to puffs last nightJ  She's feeling under the weather this week and wasn't sure CHEESY soup was really a good idea....even if that chili powder probably would have helped those little sinusesJ

And speaking of PUFFS, we had our fair share for dessert last nightJ  The last of our Dream Puffz:  1/2 of cookies & cream and 1/2 a AWESOME Caramel Macchiato.  The caramel creme was SOOOO good...it almost reminded me of the butter salted caramel ice cream from Paris.  Oui oui! 

Well, that's all I've got for today.  I better get back to my bouncing baby who is jumping up and down in her pack-n-play as I type thisJ  The whole thing is going to collapse in on itself in a second...hahahahahahhaha

Have a great, Thursday!

Melted cookies...

TUESDAY RECAP

6:50-7:30am:  Dance/jogging/2 sets arms/"booty blast"/1 minute plank mix

8:00am:  Hot lemon water

9:15am: Breakfast-Multigrain waffle with butter

I had all intentions of going back for a 2nd waffle and some clementines if I was hungry, but after I had a chance to sit and have my coffee at 10:30, it managed to hold me over until lunchtime.

And by lunchtime, I mean 12pm SHARP! J

12:00pm:  Lunch- Toasted Coconut yogurt with flax seed & sliced almonds  

2:00pm:  Snack #1- Pear 

3:30pm:  Snack #2- Small salad with raspberry vinaigrette and 1 oz. of cranberry goat cheese 

5:30pm:  Moroccan Carrot Soup with Chickpeas

So the FRIGID temperatures last night basically FORCED us to have soup last night, and this cumin, coriander & cinnamon spiced sweet carrot soup fit the bill perfectly.

I pretty much doubled the recipe using 8 carrots, 2 onions and just deluged the broth with the spices...cause that's how I roll.

I added a can of chickpeas for extra bulk and Moroccan-nessJ  I drizzle of honey & a small dollop of nonfat yogurt, and dinner was complete!

Well, sorta.  I was just FEELIN some toast last night...so, toast with butter was hadJ

So warm & cozy...(even if I think this soup would be great for spring too when carrots are fresh & fabulous.) 

And Katie had her own little bowl of carrot soup & yogurt (sans honey...did anyone else not know that honey was a "DONOTFEEDITTOANUNDERONEYEAROLD" food?  Yeah, I didn't either.)

She had a few bites...and then decided to fist pump her way through the rest of dinner.  True story. 

8:00pm:  Dessert-  Soooooo, I knew I was going to have to break out this guy sooner than later...

Ya know what the 'crunch' is from??  COOKIE CRUMBS.  C-O-O-K-I-E  C-R-U-M-B-S!!  Saint Peter must have something to do with thisJ

So in true winter fashion, what did I do??

No...not the smart thing and made it into a hot chocolate or something equally as warm.

I microwaved it for 30 seconds and then drizzled it over a scoop of light vanilla ice cream.

It was like eating ice cream with MELTED cookies on top.  I mean...seriously.  It was so good.  So so good.  Now to tackle a day of NOT eating cookie butters for 3 square meals todayJ  BETTER GET OUT MY LEMON WATER! hahahahahhahaa

Enjoy your Wednesday, everyone!  (seesh...even with the "extra day," I'm still on 'day ahead syndrome' and was about to type 'Thursday'...bleh)

Worth the wait?

Monday Recap:

8:30am:  Hot Lemon Water

10:30am:  Breakfast- 2 "Corn belt" pancakes from PJ's Pancake House in Princeton, NJ  (and 2 slices of bacon)

Light, fluffy & studded with corn kernels, these were delicious as always.  However, I'm not exactly sure they were good enough to warrant the line 8 couples deep that were waiting outside at 11am for their pancakes on this VERYCOLDDAY!  Princeton folks LOVE themselves some PJ's!  That's some dedication. 

11:30am:  Tall Vanilla Spice Latte from Starbucks...(nonfat clocks in around 150 calories.)  

I had about 3/4's of this.  It was good, but I probably wouldn't order it again.  Not enough warm SPICES for this galJ

3:00pm:  Lunch/Snack- 5 Dark Chocolate covered almonds

Since I knew I'd get a lot of fruits & veggies from my dinner...well, that AND I was wishing for a little chocolate, I thought these almonds were a good choice.  Filled me up AND gave me my 'chocolate fix.'  Andddd speaking of dinner...

5:30pm:  Dinner-  Salmon salad with lemon/oil vinaigrette

Yes, Monday night/Salad night has been making a consistent return in our house these days.  As is this salmon salad, since I had it two weeks in a rowJ

In the mix:

• Salmon, seared with olive oil & salt 
• Spinach/Herb salad blend
• 1/2 diced apple
• Handful of craisins
• Sprinkle of feta cheese
• 1 handful toasted, chopped walnuts
• Drizzle of olive oil & lemon

Fresh & healthy chock full of sweet, savory & crunch...try this out and you'll know why it was a "2 week in a row" kinda saladJ

Katie's Corner...

She had her own little 'salad night' & sampled some diced apples, craisins and salmon...

Oddly enough, she looked at me as if I fed her straight-up lemons when she tried the salmon.  She made a face as if it was so bitter.  Odd things, those little baby taste budsJ

6:30-7:45pm:  Beginners Power Yoga class

And I was SO excited when I walked out of the gym and found that the flurries I had found walking IN had turned into a downright snowfall on my way out!  Come on, NJ!  Give us some more!  We need a good snowfall...Miss Katie needs her first snowmanJ hehehehe

Alright, that's all I got for today.  Enjoy your Tuesday!

That sign said Whhhatttt???

Hey everyone...hope you're lucky enough to be enjoying one more day of your weekend!  I feel like my days have been PACKED TO THE GILLS lately, so we took a nice lesuirly Sunday afternoon to enjoy a little 'foodie trip' to South Jersey and visit one of our favorite restaurants, Treno, in Westmont, NJ.

I fell in love with Treno for their perfectly stupendous food & their 'pretend you're on vacation' outdoor patio for those warm, summer nights.  But on this chilly day in January, the inside is all dark wood & cozy loveliness.  In short, Treno is great all year roundJ

We started with one of my favorite salad combos:  Arugula tossed in a tangy lemon vinaigrette topped with diced beets, pistachios & a crumbled goat cheese.  Sweet, savory, tart & CRUNCH all in one.  My favoriteJ 

And if I had had a "BEST OF 2012" list last year, my lunch choice for today would CERTAINLY have been in the running.  My Mom & I had went to Treno right before Christmas last month and indulged in....

...wait for it...

...SHORT RIB PIZZA with Fontina & caramelized onions.  I mean...

Fork-tender short ribs, sweet caramelized onions, savory & gooey fontina on a perfectly charred crust, I can't even begin to tell you how PHENOMENAL this was!  It was so damn good that the 2 leftover slices I had from lunch last December, turned into breakfast promtly the next morning because I just COULD NOT STOP THINKING ABOUT IT.  All stragglers slices were gone by 8am SHARP!  And despite about 12 things jumping out at me on the menu yesterday, there was no way I could pass up having this again!

If you're in the area, do yourself a favor and go try this N-O-W!

I luckily got to sample another item I would have picked though, thanks to Scott's lunch:)  (sharing is caring, after allJ)  He tried the crispy porchetta sandwich topped with caramelized onions & arugula.  

It was really good, but in all honesty, I was so into my pizza that everything else just quietly fell into the background.

Yes.  It was THAT goodJ

Meanwhile, in Miss Katie's Corner...

Besides snacking on the beets & arugula from my salad, she also sampled the meatballs...

...and crispy Parmesan potatoes...

AND she was kind enough to share with her Daddy & me...who happily polished off the sage-accented meatball and the 'crispy on the outside/pillowy soft on the inside' Parmesan dusted potatoes.  I'd say Katie had a pretty good lunch tooJ

We all left Treno, happy and full!

OK, that's a bold face lie as we had one more stop on the way homeJ

Dessert turned out to be one of those great finds we just happened to stumbled upon on our drive down.  You see, I'm a SUCKER for "old school valentines" decorations and my eyes were completely drawn to the cute & festive cut-out hearts posted in a storefront window we were passing by.  But they didn't hold my attention long enough to not notice the sign on the building...

Ummmmm....DREAM PUFFZ???

AS IN 'A STORE FOR CREAM PUFFS'?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!?!?!!?!?!?!!?!?!?!

(Actual conversationJ)

Obviously, I could NOT be more excited!  Cream puffs, much like French Macarons, are one of those things I have ZERO interest in tackling.  All that dough-making & filling creating...I'm just exhausted thinking about it.  I'd MUCH rather leave it to the experts!

And once I got inside, Dream Puffz just got THAT much more exciting.

Ummm...Caramel Macchiato?  Maple Bacon??  CANNOLI????  

Oh hellllllllll yes!

And best yet:  After you place your order, each cream puff is HAND FILLED right in front of you!  No soggy 'puffs just hanging out in the case.  Nuh uh!  I thought these were gonna be a HOT MESS of melted goo by the time we got home, but they held their shapes & flavors perfectly.

Not that ALL of them made it home, anyways.  We barely made it to the car before cracking open the box and diving in for a cannoli puff... 

Delicate & airy shell, smooth chocolate topping & a perfectly flavored cannoli creme, these were just DELIGHTFUL.

And maybe, just maybe, I happened to indulge in a VERY SWEET Maple Bacon & an absolutely PERFECT "classic" vanilla eclair complete with vanilla bean cream. (what's the shelf life of cream puffs anyway??)  

Both nearly EXPLODED with filling & flavor.  I truly think the classic vanilla was my favorite.  It was just smooooth & vanilla-y, just the way you'd hope.

Well, besides hot lemon water in the AM, this was all my eats for today...and my only exercise came in the 2 hours it took to hook up my Mom's TV in the afternoonJ  Hope you enjoyed my peek at Treno & Dream Puffz, both DEFINITELY worth a visit.

Have a great (hopefully workless!) Monday!