Local or Organic?

I've mentioned in a few other posts that I am taking a class this semester called Contemporary Food Movements. As a vegetarian and self proclaimed foodie I love the topics that we study in this course, however much of the reading does cause a certain amount of indignation.

Today I read an article about corporation organic food. Many organic companies that began as grass roots and local have been bought by large corporations that continue the homegrown story in order to sell products. For instance, Kashi is actually owned by Kellogs, Cascadian Farms by Gerneral Mills, Horizon Organic by Dean's and Odwalla by none other that Coca Cola.

Personally, I don't think this information will change the way I shop though it may cause a bit of guilt knowing that the family farm story on my box of cereal is a straight lie.

For lunch I wanted to try a little something new with my salad

Spinach, raw tofu, cucus,mushrooms,apple, raisins and walnuts with white wine vin and garlic salt. Delicious! I also had a chewy kashi bar... ironically.

And got some great mail today!! 26 oz of almond butter (I was NOT about to go a whole month without it, sorry) and the new and my first Clean Eating magazine... I love today.

Due to my mail, snack was a given

And for dinner I made a ROCKING sandwich. Whole wheat pita with hummus, string cheese, tomato sauce, green olives and italian seasoning.

Like a Mediterranean pita pizza pocket, so good! Plus some steamed broc on the side.

Currently enjoying some PB toast and raisins and maybe a handful of cereal for dessert, see you tomorrow beautiful people!

Peace!

Caitlin

What's more important to you, local or organic?

Food Rut and Few Words Friday

Will somebody make my love of veggies return please? I have just not been wanting them lately! =(

Lunch

Plus this

Insert paper writing and nap time

woke up starving

Failed popped amaranth attempt

To hungry to try and cook something else

Found this at the corner store!... lucky and dangerous

Plus a PB&J and dark chocolate chips

May have something else.. sorry for the lack of words I am tired and not feeling the best.

Peace!

Caitlin

What food ruts have you been in lately?

What are you doing tonight?

Fear and BPS

Have you seen Matt's post today? It's a great article, check it out!

In addition to my cold, this afternoon I got hit HARD with a case of BPS

Bottomless Pit Syndrome

I think a combo of biking and hustling around campus causing my normal raging appetite plus my body fighting this stupid cold made me feel that enough food didn't exist in the world...

For lunch I packed a hummus,avocado, nooch sandwich with spinach, dijon and tomato. Plus some grapes and dill pickle cashews

Snacks included

this amazing combo of pumpkin, the rest of the PB2, stevia, pumpkin pie spice and a scoop of cottage cheese... holy yumtastic!

Followed by 2 mini lara bars, a handful of trail mix, a slice of sesame bread with cashew butter, a handful of dates and a few spoons of nut butter.... slight satisfaction.

Eventually I just decided to have dinner<-- yes DINNER not breakfast for dinner!

One of my absolute favorite foods growing up was mac and cheese. In times of restriction this became a major fear food for me. Probably because when I was younger I would kill the whole box as an after school "snack"... yea.

A lot of mac and cheese does not have the greatest nutritional stats but a while ago I grabbed a box of Annie's natural organic, the ingredient list is really legit so I felt good about it!

I jazzed it up inspired by Gabriela with spinach, broccoli and mushrooms. I also added a scoop of yogurt recommended per the box and it was super creamy!

Plus a great amount of black pepper and hot sauce, how I've always done it and clearly always will! It was perfect, comforting and absolutely delicious. I am already excited to have leftovers for lunch! Mac and Cheese, I will never abandon you again.

Plus another piece of toast with sunflower butter and fruit spread.

*Also, I really want to do a Q&A vlog but I don't have any Q's! Please feel free to ask anything about running, weights or myself and I'll answer what I can!*

Peace!

Caitlin

Do you or have you ever had fear foods?

How to you jazz up pre-made meals?

Official Foodie

What do foodies get excited about?

Nut butter (exotic and overpriced is best)

Different varieties of greens that we promptly turn into chips .

Who knows why... we just love it.

Any kind of grain that isn't wheat (although some of us do still like wheat!)

Nooch, because who doesn't love making your veggies taste like cheese while getting all the B12 you need for life?

And....

Seeds! Chia being the variety of the day! They came in the mail yesterday from amazon. I decided to try them with lunch today!

I also wanted everything else in my room.... yea. Sesame toast one with avocado, tomato and hot sauce (don't judge) and one with laughing cow and ch-ch-ch-chia! Baby carrots and strawberries as well.

And the verdict? Awesome... duh. Fun, tiny, crunchy texture added with amazing nutrients packed in!

Peace!

Caitlin

Have you tried chia seeds? How should I use them?

Add more foods to my foodie loves list! I've already also thought of sweet potatoes, yogurt, honey and cinnamon

Mail Time

Hump, Sun, Sandwich, Cookies, Boys

It took mw a hot minute to get over the hump today! Running back and forth between the library and my room to get my report to print, hustling to class and work meeting all after breakfast and before lunch! Lunch was half of this bag

Beefed up with eggs, honey roasted peanuts and a bunch of veggies drowned in Bragg's liquid aminos. It was an awesome combo, like fried rice! Plus an orange. See what's under my lunch?

Grass! I ate outside in the sun today!! My friend Patrick found me alone doing homework over lunch as usual so he and his roast beef/frito sandwich actually joined me!

One snack plate of a few. I also had the same snack as yesterday because it was so good and some sweet potato chips.

Dinner was a veggie chik'n pattie (the grilled kind instead of breaded like a normally get, I really liked it!). On sesame toast with cheese, hummus, tomato, dijon and ketchup. Best sandwich I have made in a good while!

Also a spinach, red pepper, mushroom salad with superfruit berry dressing and a pickle.

mmmm.... cheese

Main dessert, more nuts and chocolate were had as well. I've gotten SO much work done this week that around 7:45 I really felt it un-necessary to keep going to I took more advantage of my new toaster!

Cookies!! Basically this recipe but slightly adapted because I don't have everything. I used some stevia and a mix of agave and honey with more than it calls for in place of both sugars. I also changed the mix-ins to dark chocolate chips, raisins and cinnamon. I had 1/2 of one and they are good! I actually could have used more PB but still delish!

I only had 1/2 of one because I'm hoping to save the majority in case someone is interested in them. One of the benefits of Project New Nutrition is a re-newed interest I have all of a sudden been having in boys ( I was way not into for a while). My lunch friend today is one example but a better one is my bio buddy, super cute and on the track team (runner!!!!). I have bio again Friday so some of the cookies have to last until then, I hope he's not allergic to PB.... which would be a deal breaker anyway!

Watching the new Glee and about to eat probably a few mugs of cereal, hopefully will be on a more regular blogging schedule soon! Love you all!!

Peace!

Caitlin

What's your favorite cookie to eat and bake? I love to bake peanut butter cookies and sugar cookies that are fun shapes. I have recently been craving shortbread so that is clouding my favorite eats answer.

How did you like this weeks Glee?

Not just coconut?

Some foods I love

Eggs

Coconut

Cheese

Foods many people love

The ones above plus...

Bacon

Burgers

Dark meat

Pork Chops

What do all of these have in common? The are full of the "bad", artery clogging, heart attack inducing, LDL cholesterol raising saturated fat (given coconut is a different kind, which as food bloggers we all know is good for you!). However due to the fact that my favorite part of the egg is the yolk (which has the fat) I was thrilled when a came across an article in this magazine

New Views on Saturated Fat

"A meta-analysis of 21 studies... published in the March 2010 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found no significant link between saturated fat and increased risk of heart disease."

WHAT??

Apparently this was the theory for so long because people who have diets high in saturated fat have a tendency to also have diets high in sugar, refined carbs and trans fat, which ARE tied to heart disease.

So the bottom line is, eat you eggs with whole grain toast =). Which is exactly what I did!

2 eggs (with yolk) scrambled with spinach and yellow pepper, whole wheat toast with the last of hummus (we need to use food) and jelly, sugar snap peas.

Something will be had for dessert and a snack (and a few more) will come soon enough!)

Peace!

Caitlin

What is your favorite food with saturated fat? Somebody say something other than coconut =P.

Dreary=Shopping

Morning! Last night I snacked on a good handful of licorice coins (they are black licorice Maryann!) and 1/2 and almond butter and jelly sandwich.

We woke up this morning to rain, rain, rain! However I'm actually alright with that for now... remember last night I mentioned I can get a little sun sensitive?

I was not kidding. Don't lie, it's attractive.

I woke up and did 45 minutes of intense vinyasa yoga from yogadowload.com (power #4) and 15 minutes of squats, jumping jacks, squat jumps, planks, pushups and abs. Not too shabby and I'll probably take a walk late this afternoon!

As for this morning I made a big pot of whipped banana oats for PerMa and I as she has never had them!

In the mix I put

1/2 cup oats

1/2 cup cooked wheatberries (we still have leftovers!)

A good splash of milk

a bunch of water

1 very large banana

Delicious base and I topped mine with

Some great Florida strawberries, almond butter and a little jelly (AB&J is legit ALL I have been really wanting lately! Comfort food craving much?)

Since we can't eat outside we just ate close to outside! Too clever PerMa!

And since we can't sit outside we are going shopping! TJMaxx here we come!

Peace!

Caitlin

What are some spring essentials that I should look for?

Go to comfort food for you? Mine is TOTALLY a loaded up PB&J, especially on toast!

Travel Day Recap

Hi All!! I've missed you today! I currently write to you from Florida enjoying a very beach-y treat that is reveled at the end of this post!

My standard travel days from my school go taxi to bus stop, bus ride to Chicago, fly out of Chicago to wherever I'm going. I set my alarm for 7 this morning but woke at 5:45 with no chance of falling asleep... I was way too excited! So I decided to do some yoga.

I knew that this was going to mean I wasn't going to have time to sit for breakfast probably until I was on the bus so I had 1/2 and apple before I started and then munched on the rest as I got ready through the morning. I also had a mug of green tea to get started!

By 7 I was done with an intense flow, 7:45 in the cab, 8:25 on the bus on my way! Good thing I made breakfast travel friendly and it was the perfect delicious start to my break!

I'm super sad this is gone but I'm not gonna lie, once it got towards the end I have been so excited for these overnight oats!

Last night: oats, greek yogurt, milk, dash of vanilla, stevia packet, the last of the PB

This morning: Kashi honey sunshine, yogi cinnamon raisin granola, a few frozen strawberries that mostly thawed by the time I ate

so amazingly amazing (the girl next to me was trying HARD not to judge, I appreciated it =)).

Grabbed some travel essentials. I'm really excited to read that on the beach, any reviews? Plus if you like gum that kind tastes like watermelon jolly rancher!

Almost got this, I thinks he's cute =)

Interesting school reading and waiting at the airport came with a skim latte (always get one when I travel)

Love Southwest gates =)

I packed lunch

whole wheat pita with laughing cow, fruit spread and the very last of my spinach, the last of my baby carrots (finally!) and chili lime roasted chickpeas. I had the sandwich first on the plane, munched on the carrots throughout the flight and the chickpeas as I waited for my mom's flight to land, worked great!

I also had my favorite warm weather drink to celebrate right when I landed =D.

Venti iced green tea... hi summer time!

I was super late when we finally left the airport so we stopped for asian food along the way

Egg rolls shared for an appetizer because we were starving

Pineapple, tofu, tomatoes, zucchini and snap peas in ginger sauce so good! I finished it because it was actually light being mostly veggies, I only had a bite of the rice.

And to celebrate, also went for a beach staple

Ice Cream! I haven't had ice cream or a big dessert in forever so I went all out and I do not regret my choice =D

Coconut and butter pecan ice cream (amazing amazing amazing) with waffle cone, rainbow sprinkles and whipped cream

Actual ice cream and sprinkles hiding

Me=Too Happy

It's been a good day! Hoping to get a beach run in the the morning, see you then!

Peace!

Caitlin

What are "vacation" foods for you? Ice cream, iced tea, cold cereal, fresh fruit

How was the start to your weekend?