Remember that good news I mentioned the other day? Or maybe you wondered why I suddenly moved into Manhattan this weekend? I started my new job today. I’m a kind of marketing analyst for a small startup. So far – awesome.

This morning I woke up jittery so I went out for a jog. I did about 1.75 miles (?). When I got back I picked up my breakfast from Metro Cafe – a 12 ounce oatmeal made with skim milk + cinnamon, banana, and blueberries.

I finished it, but it wasn’t very good. I’m not getting it again. What the what Metro Cafe? I’ll stick with your bagels. Tomorrow’s breakfast is going to be instant grits from a hotel we stayed at on the road trip. Hehehe.

After a long day at work I opted for the hot foods bar at a random deli on my way home (I walked; about 1.5 miles or so). I met up with Bobby in the middle. (He got pizza.) I dumped honey mustard dressing on this.

This meal was kind of oily but really good. I had grilled chicken, random prepared salads (something with broccoli, one with mushrooms, a sealeg salad, tomatoes, etc…), a sweet potato (I think), and some other things that I can’t remember right now.

Dessert was rice with honey mustard dressing (a little random) and these carob chips that my sister gave me. Um… more than pictured. I might still be eating them now.

I’m off to snuggle and get some rest before work tomorrow. I apologize for the lack of commenting as of late; I’m sorry to say it’s going to continue. I’m still reading of course.

What was your favorite job?

Coco is here! And I have a big wrap-up of recipes and food to show.

First up: here are two breakfasts. Cheesy grits topped with leftover chicken (1/4 cup grits, cooked in water; cheese added at the end). There was a little bit of avocado on there too (avocado came with the chicken salad that this is leftover from).

Oat bran cooked with protein powder, cinnamon, vanilla, and a dash of salt. Topped with sesame seeds and maple syrup.

Have you tried Averie’s raw vegan cookie dough balls yet? Okay, mine are not balls (the first batch was), nor do they have chocolate chips. They are so simple to make.

Averie-inspired Raw Vegan Cookie Dough Yum

Ingredients (1 serving)

• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• a little bit of water

Directions

Mix syrup and flour together. Add a few drops of water at a time until you get your desired consistency. I like mine a little bit too wet for balls (TWSS?).

Variations

• part wheat germ, part flour (my favorite)
• part wheat bran, part flour
• ground nuts for flour (Averie’s original recipe)
• part oatmeal or oat bran, part flour
• grind oatmeal/oat bran in the blender and sub for flour

I also made bread the other day. I just took my Easy Peasy Pizza Dough recipe and subbed in a few things for the flour. Instead of 3.5 cups of flour, I used the dregs of a cornbread mix (maybe 1/4 cup – Jiffy brand), some Heart Smart Bisquick, and whole wheat flour. It came out well. It was a little dense, but yummy with soft butter.

I have 3 more pictures of healthy yums, but I’ll save them for when I’m on the road and lacking in delicious food.

I can’t wait to pick up Sophia tonight and go to the Foodbuzz Festival.

What are you doing this weekend? You know what I’m doing.

Yesterday Bobby and I went to Whole Foods to pick up a few things for our road trip and a few things to eat until we leave. We’re out of grits and oat bran, which is a little tragic. We decided to try a new cereal that both of us would like. We settled on Bob’s Red Mill Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal. This makes a delicious breakfast.

The nutritional info (in 1/4 cup serving): 150 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 31 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber, 4 grams protein. The cereal is wheat-free, gluten-free, and dairy-free. Ingredients: whole grain brown rice, corn, white sorghum, buckwheat.

Neither of us have food allergies, but we love trying specialty foods. We’re both a little lactose intolerant, but we kind of ignore it. I love trying all kinds of foods though, and gluten free products are usually mighty tasty. This cereal is made of brown rice, corn, sorghum (?), and buckwheat.

It was great mighty tasty. I made 2 bowls of it this morning. I soaked each serving in water before cooking. I didn’t drain them; I just added the soaking cereal to boiling water. Bobby’s bowl was savory:

• 1/4 cup cereal soaked in 1/2 cup water + another boiling 1/2 cup water
• dash of salt
• 1/2 shredded string cheese
• 11 sauteed shrimp (olive oil, garlic powder, chili powder, sesame seeds)

My bowl was sweet:

• 1/4 cup cereal soaked in 1/2 cup water + another boiling 1 cup water
• dash of salt
• 1/2 of a wallaby organic raspberry yogurt
• a few handfuls of nature’s path smart bran
• sesame seeds
• maple syrup (unpictured; added later)

You boil water and add the cereal. Then turn the heat to low and cook it (covered) for 5-10 minutes or until it’s the right consistency for you. You have to stir it occasionally. The more water you use, the bigger the cereal will be. Bobby doesn’t like volume foods for breakfast so I didn’t use as much water for his. I used lots of water for mine.

Mm, mm… mighty tasty. I feel like there might be this whole new world out there of amazing hot cereals that I didn’t even know existed. My staples have always been oat bran, oatmeal, and grits. What should I try next?

Have you ever tried lotus root?

It’s a veggie that I like to get in Asian markets. It comes precut, in a bag, with water. I just drain off the water, rinse them, and chop them for salads like this one.

This was one of my favorite salads (red leaf & iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cabbage, raw corn, mushrooms, seaweed, salsa liquid gold elixir, and this one – PARMESAN) topped off with slices of lotus root. Along with this salad I had more steamed broccoli stems with more parm.

Lotus root is a water plant, like the water lily. It has beautiful flowers above the water; underneath grows the delicious root. It’s kind of crunchy and tastes like a hybrid of a water chestnut and a potato. It’s low in calories, has lots of fiber, and provides Vitamin C, Potassium, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Phosphorus, Copper, and Manganese.

Since Bobby has been home the last 2 days, I’ve been making him a yummy breakfast: cheesy grits!

I cook 1/3 cup grits in 1 cup of water with a dash of salt, then towards the end I add maybe 1/3 cup of shredded cheddar. After it’s in the bowl I top it with a little more cheddar and some sesame seeds. He enjoys it with orange juice (Tropicana).

This morning I did another 75-minute Dave Farmar power yoga class – 06/05/09. It was pretty challenging; I would definitely recommend it. I was thinking about rebounding for a few minutes now but Bobby passed out on my trampoline – he woke up early and he’s very tired. I think I’m going to help him get to the bed.

I just finished sipping on this green juice (celery, granny smith apple, lemon, ginger, mint, cucumber, romaine)…

What’s your favorite vegetable? I’m pretty sure mine is broccoli. I can’t decide though – recently I’ve been snacking on raw snap peas and they’re pretty delicious. And then there’s raw corn… it’s too hard to choose!

P.S. Did you know that Shakespeare gave the English language almost 2,000 new words??