Backwards

Sometimes you just have to give in to a craving.  Even all of us crazy, healthy eating, athletic types splurge on a little sugar from time to time.  Today as I was driving home from a haircut (thank you plastic surgery rotation for providing me with the afternoon to pamper myself), I started thinking about how great some frozen yogurt would taste while sitting in the beautiful 70 degree weather.  So, without any hesitation, I dropped in the nearest TCBY and ate this amazing bowl of deliciousness.

Yes, it was 3:45 in the afternoon.  Yes, it probably spoiled my dinner.  And yes, the orange and almonds on my kitchen counter would have been the healthier snack.  However, sometimes you've got to get a little crazy and break out of the rules we create for ourselves.  Today, that meant having a big bowl of frozen yogurt BEFORE dinner just because I could.  As I sat there devouring savoring each bite, it reminded me of when my brother and I were kids and would convince our parents to let us have "backwards dinner".

Gingerbread and Eggnog frozen yogurt, vanilla wafers, health bar, candy corn, and hot caramel 

When was the last time you took a walk on the wild side?

Wheatberry Salad - Take 2

Since coming home with a surplus of tomatoes and eggplant from the farmers market this weekend, I had been dreaming up a warm wheatberry salad with the roasted vegetables.  In my head it tasted fantastic!  I had even typed up the recipe and was prepared to feature it on the blog last night.  Unfortunately, my hour plus of prep work resulted in a dish that I was just simply not excited about, and certainly nothing I was going to share with you.

Something about the roasted tomatoes just didn't agree with my palate.  I put the leftovers in the refrigerator, hoping that maybe it was just my "sore throat-headache-body aches-misery-wish I could spend all day on the couch-disease" that was altering my palate.


Tonight when I took the salad out, I decided to try a different approach.  I placed a hearty serving of the COLD wheatberry salad over a bed of spinach and topped it with sliced avocado.  Boy was I glad I hadn't tossed the leftovers in the garbage.  It was super tasty and full of great flavors!  So, without further ado, I will now share the modified recipe with you.

WHEATBERRY SALAD

¾ cups wheatberries

3 cups water

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp Bohemian seasoning

2 tbsp EVOO

½ cup feta cheese

4 cloves garlic

4 tomatoes, diced into 8 chunks

8 miniature eggplants, halved

3 cups fresh spinach

Avocado

Sea salt 

1. Boil wheatberries in water uncovered for 45 minutes

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place the eggplant on a oiled foil lined baking sheet and sprinkle generously with salt.  Wrap 4 cloves of garlic rubbed in EVOO in foil and place on the same tray. Place the baking sheet in the oven and roast for 30 minutes.  After the eggplant has been roasting for 10 minutes, add the tomato pieces to the same tray.

3. In a bowl, combine the balsamic vinegar, seasoning mix, EVOO, and feta cheese.  Mix well and reserve.

4. Remove the vegetables from the oven.  Allow the eggplant to cool slightly and then use a spoon and scoop out the flesh of the eggplant and place in the bowl with the balsamic dressing.  Discard the skins.  Add the roasted garlic to the eggplant-dressing mix.  Mix well until the eggplant and garlic is smooth.

5. Remove the wheatberries from the heat and drain in a colander.

                      6. Combine the wheatberries, dressing/eggplant mix, and tomatoes.  Mix thoroughly.  

7. Refrigerate overnight.

8. Serve over a bed of spinach with sliced avocado.

**I used feta cheese as a protein source since I had it on hand, but this would also be really tasty and vegan by using chickpeas instead of cheese**

Note that this picture was taken with the warm salad with spinach mixed in.  The above directions are for the cold salad, but I devoured it too fast for capturing on film.

Odds and Ends

I love weekends -and here's a few reasons why.

I LOVE SHOPPING

Yes, I really did need more workout clothes!

The first of my Christmas decorations.
Now I just need to figure out how to make that darn fireplace work!

The smell of freshly baked gingerbread fills the house.

I LOVE THE FARMER'S MARKET
Where else can you buy 2 lbs of apples, 10 tomatoes, a bag of eggplants, and a pound of red potatoes for just $4?

Just $1 for a whole bag of tomatoes

Miniature Eggplants, also just $1

I LOVE TO SWIM, BIKE, AND RUN
Friday - 1500m quick swim, 30 minutes cross-training, 75 min power yoga
Saturday - 1 hour strength, 90 min bike trainer
Sunday - 9.25 mi run, MASSAGE

Still slower than I'd like, but at least it wasn't miserable.

Got to love a massage!
Not quite the awesomeness of Sports Massage and Intergrated Therapies (BEST in Atlanta!), but better than nothing.

I LOVE TO EAT
2nd Annual Dilworth/Southend Chili Cookoff
Classic beef chili, lamb chili, white bean chicken chili, venison chili, and vegetarian chili.  You name it, they had it.  Yum!

Too Early?

I may or may not have spent the afternoon listening to this.

I really hadn't even begun to think about Christmas until I heard an ad on TV this other day that featured Jingle Bell Rock.  Since then, I just simply couldn't get the idea of listening to Christmas music out of my head.  So, this afternoon I gave in.  It was glorious!

I'm on plastic surgery this month, which along with neurosurgery, are our "easiest" rotations of intern year.  I was done at the hospital by noon today.  I started the afternoon with a little R&R in an attempt to rid my body of the virus that has taken up residence.

After a little nap, I was feeling recharged and ready to tackle a workout.  70 minutes later I was a sweaty mess and for the first time in 2 days, finally able to breathe thru my nose.  I'm a firm believer that some heart pounding action when you're sick can make all the difference.

Dinner tonight has been in the plan for weeks.  Ever since I saw Mama Pea's recipe for Sloppy Josephines, it's been on my "must make" list.  I fondly remember Mamwich dinners as a kid.  Mom would simmer ground beef and the savory-sweet sauce together and it would fill the house with a great smell.  Then she'd serve it on top of hamburger buns and topped with a slice of Kraft American cheese.  Yumm!  Simple, tasty, and family approved.  Now that I'm a little more health conscious, I was ready to take a childhood favorite and recreate it with a healthy twist.

Sloppy Josephines served over Great Harvest Flax Oat Bran and topped with pickles and nutritional yeast.  I can't help but thing a slice of ooey-gooey Kraft would taste pretty darn good, but the ingredient list is scary and anything but natural.  I followed Mama Pea's recipe for the most part, but left out oregano and substituted red cooking wine for the red wine vinegar.

The substitution of lentils for ground beef is perfect and certainly didn't leave me missing the meat.  Lentils are chock full of iron, protein, fiber, folate, and B vitamins.  Be sure to add this into your upcoming week's meal plan.  I promise you won't regret it!

Sloppy Josephines, Roasted Sweet Potatoes, and Broccoli

Finally, a little food for thought - literally.  I walked into a patient's room this morning just after they had been delivered their breakfast trays.  I've never been impressed on the meals served to patients, but this meal hit an all-time low.

Biscuit, Cheesy Potato Sausage Casserole, Buttered Grits, Candied Peaches, and OJ 

Does anyone else find this meal disturbing?  Seriously, how does this fat-laden carbohydrate mess contribute to the healing and recovery of our patients?  Amazing.  And sad too, because I'm pretty sure there's a well-payed nutritionist who approves all of the hospital's dietary plans.

Germs

Thanks to this cute little germ-filled kiddo (reference #4), I now have a case of the "sore throat-headache-body aches-misery-wish I could spend all day on the couch-disease."  Sounds exciting, right?  Not so much.  It takes a lot to keep me from conquering a planned workout, but today my body won the fight and I found myself curled up on the couch as soon as I got home from work.  After, of course, I took a shower to wash off all of those scummy hospital germs!

So, while I lay cuddled under a blanket wishing my head would stop throbbing, I'll leave you with some pictures of last week's eats.

Dinner at Cantina  1511 with the Ortho Girls. Great fun and lots of laughs!  
And dinner of fish tacos + mexican slaw + black beans was pretty awesome too!

Snack plate - veggies, hummus, seed crackers, and dried mango

All the perfect ingredients for Vegan Pumpkin Mac & Cheese

SO GOOD!!! You'd never know there isn't any cheese.

My latest and greatest Charlotte discovery.  Must return soon!!

Salted Caramel Brownie, French Macaroons (Pistachio and Cinnamon Chocolate)

Where have french macaroons been all of my life??  So amazingly delicious!

This was beyond words.  Giant amounts of sugar and butter  = very happy belly

Making up for my sugar indulgence - veggie hummus toast, orange, and greek yogurt

Flax Waffles topped with pumpkin, applesauce, caramelized bananas, raisins,  cinnamon, and chia seeds.
Not exactly the most appealing dish, but I promise it makes up for that in taste.

Breakfast Wrap 

It appears I was successful in getting a little more creative in the kitchen and finding my way out of the food blah funk.

7:14pm and I think it's time for bed.  The big question:  sleep on the couch or climb the long flight upstairs to my bed.  Hmmm . . . .