Where's the Beach?

Lately I've been cooking with quinoa quite a bit. What I like about it, other than the fact that it's a complete protein source, is that it cooks up fast. It's also super versatile and can be used in many different ways, such as a base for a veggie burger. I try to keep veggie burgers in the freezer for a quick meal. I'll admit that I used to buy them out of convenience. But they can be quite pricey. Plus, if you make your own, you can control the ingredients and choose whatever flavor combos you fancy most. Did I mention it's a lot cheaper too? Since I make veggie burgers often, I try to get creative with ingredients and flavor profiles. I had an eggplant on hand that needed to be used quickly, so for this veggie burger recipe, I decided to go with more of a Mediterranean flair. While I used chickpeas, you could use another bean of your choice, but I like the texture of chickpeas for veggie burgers. Other beans can often be too soft I find. But, it's abso...

As I promised yesterday , I have a new recipe to share. The inspiration for this recipe came from a recent lunch at a place called Ya Ya's Euro Bistro . Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately because I'd be there way too often otherwise), the restaurant is clear across town. It wouldn't be quite as bad to get there if there wasn't major construction going on that direction. In other words, traffic stinks and it takes a good 20-25 minutes to get there. But once you do go, it's worth it. I've eaten their twice. Jason has never actually eaten there, but he's been wanting to for quite some time. We had some dear friends in town with their newborn. They were able to meet us on Christmas Eve day. Not many places were open around town though. However, Ya Ya's is in a shopping complex, so I knew they'd be open. Our friend "B" is someone who really appreciates good food. He used to have us over for dinner when he lived here. Long story short (too...

Morning Run This morning started out painfully early. I woke up around 4:30 to potty. And my alarm was set for just after 5 so we could run. In other words, no point in falling back asleep obviously. But man that makes for a long long day. By 10 am, it felt more like 3 pm. We set out for the run just before 5:30. At least there was a slight breeze today. That definitely helped with the heat/humidity. I will say that our pace was just all over the place though. Zero consistency going on this morning. Our first mile was a slow one (though I thought we were going a bit faster) at 9:58, but then mile 2 was 8:31. Really? How'd that happen? I'll blame it on not being awake. And oddly, that might have been the best feeling mile for me. My legs started to get pretty heavy and I had to concentrate on my breathing. So I felt like my form was getting a little sloppy, which can make you less efficient of course. So, after a slow mile then a fast mile, so continued the varied pace: 9...

Dinner & a Movie As I mentioned   yesterday , I disconnected last night so that we could enjoy a date-night-in, dinner & a movies style. I also mentioned that I was making a special dinner using our homegrown Japanese eggplant. I love Japanese eggplants because they tend to be milder and more tender.  I had planned on doing some sort of eggplant/tofu stack. I wasn't sure if I was going to go with pasta or toast up bread to layer in between. But, Tuesday night, I actually prepped some of the dish so that I wouldn't be stuck in the kitchen all Wednesday. I made a red sauce using sun dried tomatoes (something I hadn't done before) and I also baked off some tofu. I ended up going with the pasta option vs the the bread for a Pasta with Eggplant & Tofu Stacks . To make the dish, we grilled Japanese eggplant and the tofu - I had added some Italian seasonings to olive oil and lightly brushed it on the eggplant and tofu. I cooked up some whole-wheat past...

On the Mends Well today I actually made it out of the house and to work. Still feeling a little shaky, but at least I managed real clothes, makeup, and got outside. I think that being sick is giving me a new perspective on things. I definitely appreciate food a little more right about now. I also realize that I take it for granted that I am almost always healthy and strong enough to exercise. With that being said, after work, I decided to do Shock Cardio Step Moves . I probably should not have done anything, but after 2 days of being a blob, I really had to do something to get moving again. This is a fun workout. I've only done it once before. It's fairly low impact. While it's listed as "advanced" I'd suggest that's mostly because some of the choreography can be a little tricky. I really felt better after I did the workout. I also took some time to stretch as well.  Easy Dinner = Pre-Made Eggplant Cannellini Burgers I really wasn't up for making...

Shocked into Tuesday Well, I figured out how to get myself up in the morning for a workout! Just scare the pants off of yourself. Yep, that'll do it. I tentatively set the alarm for 5:15 am. When I looked at the clock at 2:45, I figured I'd be changing the alarm time in an hour or so. I apparently feel asleep, and fell hard. At some point, Jason must have turned up the volume on the alarm (which is set to the radio), because when it came on it was blaring! I nearly fell out of the bed I was so startled. Needless to say, my heart was racing and I was WIDE awake. Let me just say that this was not my ideal way to wake up! So, this morning I did Cathe's Kick, Punch, and Crunch kickboxing workout (it also includes an ab-kicking stability ball workout). My legs were super sore and heavy feeling from  yesterday's workout. The kickboxing was good for getting my legs loosened up. I did wear 1 lb. weighted gloves to up the intensity and really felt it in my back and shoulders. I...

Thursday = Third Morning Workout So I managed to get myself up for a third morning in a row to get my workout done. It was a cardio only day. I opted for Cardio Fusion . The last time I did this workout, it felt like a disaster. I struggled to keep my heart rate up. It was just painful. This time, however, I tried to focus on the moment. I stopped myself from thinking ahead to the rest of the day. I don't know if my focus was the cause, but it was a great workout. My hear rate was back up where it typically is for that workout. Time flew by too. No clock watching, not heart rate monitor checking, not thinking about how I needed to get done so I could start getting ready for work, etc. I had planned on abs as well, but was starting to run short on time (the only downfall of morning workouts is that I do have some place to be). Saturday I have plans of going to the track. It's an hour away, and I'll be meeting up with my mom for lunch before hand. So, I may end up having to ...