Today is a Special Day

First off, I would like to thank all of the servicemen and woman who serve and have served our country. I would like to thank you all from the bottom of my heart, you are all amazing people.

Today is even more special to me because it is my mama’s birthday!!

Now, you already know how amazing she is in taking Petrie in until Mike and my lease is up.

But words cannot even express how incredible she is as a mom, sister, friend, career woman, and the list goes on and on. Most importantly though, she has raised my brother and I to be the strong and successful individuals that we are today. She would do anything for us in the world, but she also taught us tough love.

As any family has, we’ve had our bumps in the road, but my mom has kept the three of us a tight-knit family through thick and thin. She is my best friend in the whole wide world and she deserves a long life of happiness for years to come. Happy birthday mama, I love you!

Moving on to today…

I got 8.5 hours of sleep last night and practically sprung out of bed this morning.  It think a good nights sleep was exactly what I needed to not feel sickly and run down.  Since I am obviously feeling better and have loads of energy, back to the gym routine it was for me.   7.2 miles in 67 minutes.  Whoohoo!

For breakfast this morning, I dug into the freezer for inspiration last night.  Guys, I love the freezer, and the freezer loves me.

Whenever we have leftovers that I won’t eat before they go bad, bread products, fruit, meats, etc., they all go in the freezer for future eating. 

Now I obviously didn’t find my Barney Butter in the freezer, but is the star of my breakfast.  How could Barney Butter not be the star of any meal that it is included in? 

But what I did dig up out of the freezer is a pumpkin bagel!

I love buying ‘last nights bagels’ from the local bagel shops such as Brueggers and Panera. However, they don’t have the added preservatives, so they go bad much, much quicker than store-bought bagels. So into the freezer of love they head for purposes like today.

So yes, I am having a bagel + Barney Butter for breakfast. And a banana to have with breakfast or as a mid-morning snack.

Lunch today will be bought. Reasoning? Because my company has today off, but I am working. So if I am working, you best bet I will be treating myself to something good! (No worries, I get an extra vacation day for working today).

While I am out for lunch, I will also be sending Petrie, as well as one of my favorite bloggers and best bloggie friend, packages today.

Does your work/school have today off? If so, what are you doing to enjoy your day off?

Rusted Engine

I’m totally not feeling all that with it today, a little bit like a rusty engine that isn’t wanting to turn on.

I woke up in the middle of the night sweating and feeling a little cruddy. I am crossing my fingers whatever it is just works its way through my system. I am feeling slightly better already having gotten up and moving around. Positive thoughts!

Needless to say, my appetite is present, just not 100%. So I packed the components for a yogurt mess to make at work.

First up, the star of the show. Pomegrante Yumberry yogurt. It looked intriguing at the store. Has anybody ever tried/seen this flavor before?

The cereal component is one of my long lost loves. Go Lean Crunch. I always forget about this gem. It has the best crunch and fabulous staying power for me.

And an overripe banana. Nasty to many, delicious to me. And makes the perfect, easy mix in.

Soothes the soul, those yogurt messes.

For lunch I packed a hearty, comfort food meal. Leftover Shepard’s Pie and mini salad with spinach, snap peas and TJ’s three layer hummus.

I love hummus as a ‘dressing’. Especially this TJ’s flavor with the zesty cilantro layer.

Here’s to another work day, my friends.

My company gets tomorrow off, but I am working and catching up. I then in turn will get another vacation day. I am estatic because here is my vacation lineup:

• Next Friday off, my brother will be in town
• Thanksgiving day and the day after
• The whole week before Christmas
• New Years Eve

And that still leaves me with three days to burn.  Whoohoo!

Do you like overripe bananas?  Or do you like yours more green?  I have found people are VERY particular about their bananas.  Mine need to be overripe.

Don’t forget to enter your recipes into this weeks Blogger Secret Ingredient Contest!  The ingredient is ricotta cheese.

Refreshed

Good morning!

I have to say, I am feeling refreshed and rejuvenated after getting 9 hours of sleep last night. My body has been telling me it is tired lately. What better way to cure that then sleep and skipping the gym!

Other than that, not much to report on my front. Same old, same old for me today. But I did manage to pack both breakfast and lunch. Lately, as you know, this has been a struggle! And better yet, I actually want to eat them.

So, as I was searching through our mess of cupboards last night, I found this.

Okay, so totally not the healthiest thing around, but hey, it was an impulse by a few months back, and I’m not going to throw it away.

However, to make these gems a bit healthier, instead of adding for the 1/3 cup of oil it called for, I used canned pumpkin. Who needs oil when you have pumpkin??

Mmm mm mmmm, look at the strusel topping. I am packing two of these for breakfast this morning, they are on the small side.

Along with an overripe, juicy pear. Just how I like them.

Lunch is, of course, leftovers from last night. Who else loves leftovers? Seriously, all you have to do is put food in a container, and bam, you have your lunch. Usually I think food always tastes way better the next day anyway!

We’ve got leftover butternut squash with the tofu in the middle. Surrounding the squash is a can, yep, a whole can, of green beans. Soooo good.

There of course will be some miscellaneous snacks throughout the day. I am a total grazer.

I’m off to work, have a wonderful Thursday!

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What is your eating schedule like?  Do you stick to three meals a day?  Or do you have smaller meals with snacks in between?  Please share! I stick to three smaller meals a day with two snacks and a dessert.  Slow and steady meals throughout the day wins the race for me.

Food funk

Good morning!

I am so sad, WordPress totally ate my post I had started last night.

So, unfortunetly, you won’t get to see the beautiful pictures I took of my breakfast this morning. Telling you about it will have to do!

But first, my workout. I took it easy at the gym yesterday morning by doing an easy 30 minutes on the stationary bike. So this morning, I was more than ready to hit the treadmill for a sweaty run. And that I did. 7 miles in 67 minutes.

Now, going back to my post on Monday, I told y’all I was going to start cutting back a bit on my workouts and their intensity. The only reason I ran 7 miles this morning is because I will be sleeping in tomorrow and giving my body a rest. Worth the long run this morning in my book.

To refuel, I put together a bagel sammie. My sammie included a pumpkin bagel, pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin butter and banana. All heated up in the microwave. It was love at first bite, I felt like doing a little dance, but I restrained myself .

It was definitely spiced up from earlier this week when I just had a pumpkin bagel and pumpkin cream cheese. No hating on that combo either though, it still rocks.

This photo actually gives you a good idea of what my sammie looked like!

And on to my food rut…

Has anybody gone through a time where NOTHING sounds good? Where you have ample groceries and your cupboard and frige are stocked, but you can’t find one thing you want to pack for breakfast/lunch? Yep, this is what I am going through right now. Ugh.

I have been feeling this way for the past few days. I know, I know, life could be much worse, but it is just annoying. And I’m not sure what to do? Maybe try some new foods to spice up my eats? Suggestions?

Needless to say, I didn’t pack anything for lunch, because nothing sounded appetizing. I of course will eat, it will just be me going to get something at lunch.

Here’s where you come in. You can help me decide what to have for lunch. I may or may not have what the majority of you say, depending on how I feel in a few hours, but it is fun anyway, right? Lol.

Have a great hump day!

Cake Wrecks

Has anybody ever heard of, or been to the Cake Wrecks website?

I was reading People magazine at the gym this morning and stumbled across a blurb about this site. I couldn’t wait to visit the site!

The founder of the blog, who now has a cook out, Jen Yates, collects photos of cakes that may not have turned out how they were intended.

For instance…

How hilarious is that? Head over to the website I linked above. It will give you some great laughs.

So, it has been awhile since I’ve had oats, no? I have to admit, I kind of forgot about them. Gasp!

This morning, I made a big bowl of oats at work. Not just any bowl, pumpkin chocolate chip oats. An ode to my favorite muffin.

The bowl started with two packets instant oatmeal. (Hey, I do what I can with the microwave at work )

About 1/3 cup of canned pumpkin. I thought a photo of the can would be better. Pumpkin in a container is not very pleasant to look at.

About one heaping tablespoon of chocolate chips.

And of course, some agave for sweetness.

Holy yum. Talk about a party in my mouth! What would realllly be good is a little bit of crumbled pumpkin chocolate chip muffin in this bowl!

When we went to TJ’s last week, I picked up what looked to be the most interesting hummus available.

Look at the beautiful layers!

I of course had to try this last night with some pita chips. The zesty cilantro (green layer) is a-mazing. It has a serious kick to it.

This now staple in my household was the base of a wrap I put together for lunch.

So what is in the wrap?

• Jalepeno cheddar wrap
• Thick layer of hummus
• Feta cheese
• Refried beans
• Snap peas
• Spinach
• Mushrooms

On the side, I’ll venture out and get some chips of some sort most likely.

I have an enormous honeycrisp apple for snack later. And my bosses boss left a gigantic bag of mixed Halloween candy on my desk. Is she trying to put some lbs on me??

Don’t forget, you have until 8 pm tonight to enter my giveaway!

What is your favorite oatmeal combo?

Got to jet

Hey guys.  I need to make this quick.  The Vikings and Packers are on in about 1 minute!

So last night when I got dressed I really wasn’t pulling a very good Julia Child.  So, I changed my costume to be called ‘a modern grandma/chef’.  Yea, I was definitely not completely digging my costume.  At least I dressed up!

Mike was a Twinkie with an identity crisis.  He’s had his Twinkie costume for a few years now and wanted to spice it up.  What a hottie . Haha.  Yes, he does have lipstick all over his face too.

Oh my god.  We look ridiculous.   My boyfriend is such a freespirit.  I love it.

Last night was a total blast.  It’s always a fun night when we hang out with Jodi and Luke.

This morning I woke up feeling great actually.  I was pacing myself nicely last night, which paid off this morning.  I had a very strong urge to run.  I was going to take the day off, but hey, if you have the urge and you feel up to it, why not?  I ran 10 miles in 1 hour and 35 minutes.

It was one of those runs where it wasn’t hard to keep going, but that the time just seemed like it was going by at a snail’s pace.  I made it though!

Pre-run I had a peanut butter banana Arnold’s Thin.

Never let’s me down.  Post run, a pumpkin bagel with rosemary ham, cheddar cheese, spinach, mayo and mustard. Sounds like an odd combo, but it was so good! I am still talking about how good it is with Mike.  I think he is getting sick of hearing about it.

I have been eating Halloween candy all day too.  The mini-packs are way too addicting.

I am starving already, so I’m off to make a snack and watch the game.

But first… surprise one from yesterday.

A Barney Butter t-shirt!!!!

I am totally wearing it around the house right now.  I am such a dork.  I will spare you my lovely Sunday look though.

Surprise #2, which you should all be interested in…

Is hidden in a box.  You’ll have to come back tonight for details.  Muahaha.

Later gators!

Agave roasted pumpkin seeds

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!

Halloween will forever hold a special place in my heart. Two years ago on Halloween is when Mike and I officially met.

While we didn’t officially start dating for about another month, this date still has significant meaning.  I’m happy to be going two years strong with my babe.

In celebration of this fabulous day, we have been having a ‘fall themed’ date day, which started with a crisp walk around town and some pumpkin bagels and pumpkin cream cheese from Brueggers Bagels.  Oh, and pumpkin spice coffee as well.

We then went, unsuccessfully, to find a costume at Party City.  I now can understand what Caitlin was talking about a few days ago.  ALL the costumes are super skimpy with barely any coverage.  That is all fine and dandy, but when you live in MINNESOTA and the temperatures are going to be in the 30′s tonight, I prefer a warmer costume.

Instead of spending $80 on a costume I would never wear again,  I ‘borrowed’ Jenna’s idea of being Julia Child.

All I need is:

• An apron (got a cute one for $12.99 from Target)
• Pearls (I have already)
• Baking utensils to carry around (a small pan and rolling-pin, $1 and $2.50 at the Target dollar spot)
• A grey wig ($16 at Party City)

And, even better, I can put everything to use on a regular basis.  Well, maybe not the grey wig.

By the time we were done shopping we were both famished.  We stopped by a local bakery/cafe, Urban Harvest, to get some lunch to-go.

We were so indecisive we decided to both get half of a sandwich (they were HUGE) and split them.  I got a curried turkey on sourdough.

This sammie had currant in which I couldn’t really taste.  I think I would rather have had it have raisins.  Num!  But overall, this sandwich had a fabulous curry taste.  It was a nice change of pace from the regular turkey or veggie that I typically get.

The other sandwich was chicken salad with grapes, one of my favorite.  This was served on an eight grain.

On the side, some baked Cheetos…

And half of an apple.

Then it was time for carving pumpkins!

His…

And hers…

We of course saved the seeds and had a pumpkin seed cooking contest.  He chose savory, I chose sweet.  This is where my Agave and Cinnamon Roast Pumpkin Seed recipe comes in!

I was pulling things out of the cupboard and came up with this…

Once the pumpkin seeds are dry, coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.  Form the seeds in single layer on the baking sheet and sprinkle with a pinch of salt.

Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg on top of the salt layer.  Then follow-up with a few squirts of agave.  (Eyeball all of these measurements).  Stir and re-spread.

Baked for 5 minutes at 350 degrees.  Pull out of the oven and do another round of seasoning.  Then continue baking for 15 more minutes.

End result?

Okay, the photo really doesn’t do the taste justice.  If you are looking for a sweet spin on pumpkin seeds, try this recipe.  We couldn’t stop eating them!

Mike’s savory recipes includes the same method as my sweet version, except with garlic salt, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce.  His was very good too!

We also have been snacking on Halloween candy all day…

The festivities will continue tonight as we drink pumpkin beer (at least to start), dress up in our costumes (Mike is going to be a decked out Twinkie) and head to the bars with Luke and Jodi.

Two things came in the mail today!!!!! One in which you all should make sure you check back in to my blog tomorrow for…  have a safe and fun evening!  However, you will find out what both were tomorrow.

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Two questions for you this afternoon.

1. This morning I had planned on going for a run.  But I think secretly my body was screaming for rest.  Do you ever take a ‘vacation’ from working out? Please share! As hard as it is for me, I am taking a vacation from the gym this weekend!  Instead I went for a nice long walk this morning with Mike.  I think at times I push myself too hard and I just need to take a step back and relax.

2. What are you doing tonight for Halloween?

This n’ that

Good morning!  This post has a little bit of this and little bit of that.  Half food, half fun.

This morning Jillian and I had a one-on-one workout on level two of the shred.  She kicks my booty every single time.  Nothing too exciting/different on that front, so moving on.

I’m going to give everybody one last day to send any questions they have for Niki!  Remember, you can pretty much ask anything food, cooking/baking/methods, ingredient related, culinary school, professional/career wise, etc.   You name it, send it over!

By now, I don’t think I even have to tell you what breakfast is.  You all know by now that it is scone Friday!  Or, for new readers, you will soon come to find that every Friday I treat myself to a scone.  A local restaurant in the skyway named Allie’s has the best scones I have ever tried.

Last weeks was a cinnamon chip.  My camera ate my photo from last week, but luckily I’ve had that flavor before and can use a replacement.

For lunch today I will be going to Potbelly’s with a friend.  We both agreed we wanted something quick and cheap.  I have been spending money lately like I am some high roller.  I seriously need to tone it down a bit.  :(

I can almost guarantee that I will be getting a turkey sammie on wheat and a diet coke.

They conveniently have a photo of a turkey sandwich on their website.  However, I won’t be getting the cookie shown. I have some candy stashes a few cubes away that I will raid instead.

After reading Caitlin’s blog yesterday and finding out that October is Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, I thought I would give an ode to my little Petrie, following Caitlin’s fun facts on James and Maggie.  Now, I haven’t had Petrie very long.  And due to the heartbreak that we went through we haven’t seen her for a while.  But I still know the fun things about her!

• Petrie is a mix between a pug and a terrier.  Her breed is called a Puggat.  However, she is way more pug that terrier.   Petrie is currently 8.5 pounds and the vet thinks she will only get to be about 12 pounds.  YES!  She is going to stay little.
• Petrie was given up from a family who was moving.  What makes me angry is the fact that they could have only had her about 4-6 weeks before they moved (due to her age when we got her).   Wouldn’t you think you would have known you were moving?  I am thinking they just couldn’t handle the puppy.
• If we would have shown up 5 minutes later to the shelter we wouldn’t have gotten Petrie.  There were two other families that came in right after us wanting to adopt her.
• She thinks she is a human and stands like one as well.  Hence…

• She is fearless.  She plays with the biggest dogs and will hang on them like she is the queen of the world.  My mom has said that Petrie already thinks she owns my mom’s house and her neighborhood.  What a spoiled dog!
• Petrie is a lover.  She always wants to be in your lap.  When she falls asleep in your lap she snores- otherwise she won’t snore when she sleep.
• When Petrie walks around, she sounds like a video game character.  It’s hard to describe, but she makes this little gremlin noise.  Very hilarious.
• In 9 months we will be REUNITED!!!!! According to the chart at the vet, Petrie will be in her ‘teenage’ years.  Great, she is going to think she is all that even more.  ;)

Have you ever adopted from a shelter?  If so, share a fun fact or two about your fabulous animal.  If not, would you ever consider it?

Rainy Thursday

The weather here in Minneapolis today is going to be rainy, grey and cold. Doesn’t that sound like somewhere you want to be?

I got my booty out of bed this morning and headed to the gym. Since I have ran the past two mornings I decided to switch it up and catch up on some gossip magazines do intervals on the elliptical.

I used to love the elliptical. But this was before I hated running. Now I love running and am not really a fan of the elliptical. Funny how that works.

Do I have any readers out there who love spin classes? I have wanted to try one but am super scared to go. I don’t want to walk in there and get my @$$ kicked, and look like an idiot at all at the same time.

On to eats.

Since I am eating the breakfast today that I packed for yesterday, I thought I would find a pretty breakfast photo for us all to drool over.

I present to you, Banana Stuffed French Toast. OMG.  How amazing does this look?  And look at that food presentation.  That is what I think is the best part of this dish.  Yep, I need to learn how to do that.

For lunch today I am having a can of Amy’s Black Bean Vegetable soup.  I’ve never had it.  Have any of you?  I’m excited to try!  I’ll let you know my thoughts.

On the side, heaven.  Aka, Trader Joe’s Cheddar Cheese Pita Chips.

Next time you go to Trader Joe’s, but sure to pick up a bag. They are filled with a wonderful burnt cheese flavor. Is it weird that I like burnt cheese?

Annnd, one of our creative agencies just brought in my favorite bagels EVER. Enstein’s. So, so good. They even brough PUMPKIN CREAM CHEESE!

I’m going to steal a bagel and cream cheese to have later…

I am in desperate need of a Halloween costume. Help! Any ideas?

Musical food chairs

What a day.

I forgot that I had a meeting over lunch in which they provided food for us. No waffle sammie for me!

Instead, I enjoyed a chicken sandwich (they have really, really good bread) and a side salad from D’amico and Sons.

They have my favorite pasta salad of all times:

TURKEY WITH DRIED CHERRIES
Pasta, Almonds, Celery, Onion, Poppyseed Dressing.

This photo doesn’t look the most appetizing but it gives you an idea of what the dish looks like.

Sounds so simple but nobody makes it quite like they do.  I of course try to make my own version from time to time at home, but to get the real deal, you have to visit D’amicos.

For dinner tonight I was home alone to fend for myself.  Mike is of course at the Timberwolves season opener with some buddies.

I felt that I needed to get some veggies in my life- I have been severely lacking the past few weeks.  What better way then a salad?

In the salad went:

• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Snap peas
• Garbanzo beans
• Feta cheese
• Parmesan cheese
• Chipotle hummus
• Refried beans

With some deli style turkey and leftover bread from D’amico’s.  What?  It was good!  I’m not going to let food go to waste, especially bread. (Everybody did it, lol).

Oh, and a gigantic carrot.

I totally forgot to tell y’all that I made carrot cake cupcakes last night.  Oh yes, I did.

It was one of my friend’s as work’s birthday today.  Jonathan mischievously found out yesterday that her favorite dessert was either carrot cake or cheesecake.  Here is one of the leftover cupcakes that I kept home for Mike and I.  Shhhh…. don’t tell!

Since I already had one of these cupcakes as my afternoon snack I won’t be having another tonight.  Okay, maybe a bite. Instead, I may have some pumpkin ice cream and graham crackers, which by the way, is a killer combo.

Night and sweet dreams!  By the way, my menu for today will shift to tomorrow- I’m just playing some musical chairs with my food!

Do you have a favorite restaurant dish in which you can’t exactly replicate at home to your standards? If so, what is it and where is it from?