Hey Friends! I’m here with another post of daily eats! I mentioned that I’ve been getting more into raw foods again (happens every spring/summer) which is why you’ll see some more raw foods than normal added into the day.

5.14.12 

Morning: For some reason this morning I didn’t feel like coffee so I had some green tea.

Breakfast 1: I got out the juicer (hadn’t used it since we moved to California) and made a lovely green juice. This one contained: cucumber, celery, pear, lemon and spinach. Juicing pros: what leafy greens produce the most juice? I didn’t seem to get much from the spinach…

Breakfast 2: 1/2 pear leftover from juice + almond butter

Workout: I took a 75 minute yoga class and it was perfect – really tough, but in a good way. Some of the people in my yoga classes are amazing and I kind of stare with my mouth open at the ways they can move their body. Someday?

Lunch: Was supposed to be an amazing salad, but my avocado decided it wasn’t quite ripe yet, so I was only able to use a small piece of it. This salad, though not perfect, was still delicious. A bed of herb green mix was topped with tomatoes, goat cheese and seasoned with balsamic + olive oil + salt & pepper.

On the side I had some carrots and celery + hummus and olive tapenade.

Snack 1: bowl of hail merry grawnola + coconut milk

Snack 2: scoop of impromptu ice cream while we were at the bike shop.

Dinner: teriyaki quinoa from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan + shrimp + bok choy. I’m clearly still on a quinoa kick, and this was a fun and flavorful way to have it for dinner.

 With a few bites of cookie and some good old crime drama on TV, I called it a day. My Mom is arriving today and I couldn’t be more excited to see her!

I go through a love-hate relationship with quinoa. I’ll go through phases where I make a batch every week and eat it up for quick lunches or dinners but then I’ll go months without making it.

After a pretty long quinoa dry spell, I needed something enticing to bring it back into my life. And I decided that something would be quinoa spring salad.

I combined cooked quinoa with a bright vinaigrette and then topped it with sauteed leeks and asparagus with some salty feta cheese and shrimp for extra protein and flavor. It was delicious! Since most of it can be made ahead of time, it is perfect for rushed weeknight dinners or packed lunches.

So I kind of got fired from one of my side jobs last week.  Oddly enough, I was actually more proud than upset. I’ve never been one to really stand up for myself and tell people exactly how I feel, but I was pushing back on most of the procedures this company wanted me to follow. Not because I simply didn’t want to do it, but because I have many years experience in the natural food industry and I guess I wanted to share my expertise with them. I’ve never been fired in my life, but I feel like you have to get fired at least once, right?

Anyway, onto the food from yesterday! Who can NOT believe it is March?! I turn 29 this month…

Coffee: coffee + 1/2 & 1/2. I haven’t gotten to Whole Foods yet to pick up my coconut creamer, but I must say, the 1/2 & 1/2 tastes great. Mornings have been really easy this week, after waking up naturally at 8am in Mexico (6am LA time) my body is used to waking earlier which makes it possible to fit in a few hours of work before breakfast! I’m hoping this will stay with me forever!

Workout: I haven’t gone to yoga in a few weeks and I’ve really been missing the effects. Now that yoga isn’t a matter of walking across the street, I need to make a much better effort to ensure I’m getting it in. I really do need it. I took a hot-power fusion class, sweat a ton and could tell that it had been a while, it was really hard! Post-yoga I rehydrated with some coconut water on the way home.

I put some steel cut oats on the stove for breakfast and then got distracted with a work phone call. Sure enough, 20 minutes later, and my oats were black. I decided toast and eggs would be a much quicker breakfast and considering that it was 11am, I needed food ASAP!

Breakfast: 2 eggs + 2 slices french meadow sprouted bread with earth balance.

Lunch: romaine lettuce + 2 slices turkey + mustard + mayo with a few carrots + celery. This was a meal of pure convenience and something I could eat during the 5 minutes at home between a friend date and some work errands. It did the trick. The Taster saw the picture and said, “that looks awful and why are you eating my turkey?”

After my errands I took my work to a coffee shop for a change of pace. A little more coffee + 1/2 & 1/2. I’m hoping this helps me stay up past 9pm tonight…

Snack: miso soup x 2 while I was getting things ready for dinner. I’m loving miso soup. I heat up water, add a scoop of miso, a few dashes of ume plum vinegar, wakame and some green onions if I have them.

Dinner: wild cod + tartar sauce +asparagus + sweet potato rounds. The vegetable components of this meal were great and very tasty – the fish? Not so much. The texture was terrible, not sure if it is the quality at Trader Joe’s or the fact that it had been frozen/thawed a few times.

I think I’ll finish off the day with some chocolate…

Spill – have you ever been fired from a job? I want to hear some good stories!! 

(source)

What:

• Wild or Farm-Raised Salmon: wild is better because the fish eat a natural diet, instead of grains that farm-raised fish are fed. This makes the ratio of omega-3′s to omega-6′s better in wild fish. (Ideally, the ratio of omega fatty acids in our diets would be 3:1 (omega-6 to omega-3) but is typically closer to 30:1 in Western diets)
• Alaska Salmon is considered the best
• There are many varieties – try them out to find the one you enjoy the most

Why:

• Great source of protein
• Full of omega-3 fatty acids (this is a good fat that helps decrease inflammation)
• Good source  of Vitamin D
• Omega-3 Fatty Acids in fish can help protect against heart disease and to protect against autoimmune diseases
• It is delicious!

How:

• Grilled, Baked or Broiled
• Use canned salmon in place of tuna for salads
• Try smoked or cured salmon in sandwiches or on crackers
• In sushi or out at restaurants
• Recipes to Try: Salmon Cakes, Apricot & Dijon Glazed Salmon, Salmon Burgers

Are you a fan of salmon? How do you add it into your diet? 

Salmon Cakes are an easy yet very delicious meal, and one that I made on a regular basis when I was just starting to get into food and cooking.

They don’t require any fancy ingredients, they come together quickly and, the end result is so amazing that I made them frequently when I was trying to impress the Taster with my cooking. I think they worked!

The salmon cakes are crispy on the outside, moist and flavorful on the inside and most of the process can be done ahead of time, making dinner come together in minutes. Thanks to my friend Mercedes‘ Mom for the recipe – she made it for us when we were in college and I’ve been hooked ever since!  I lost the worn recipe card a few years ago, but I think this comes very close.

We have done a very poor job of utilizing the LA Farmers’ Markets since moving here.

So last Thursday I decided that I wasn’t going to plan every single meal of next week like I normally do. I would go to the Hollywood Farmers’ Market (considered one of the best in LA) Sunday morning and make dinner out of our findings! Sadly, this is kind of my idea of living on the edge…

The farmers’ market was amazing, and I now vow to visit more often. It was the perfect way to spend Sunday morning and I was able to buy all of the vegetables and fruit I needed for the week!

Soon after we started browsing (and people dodging/celebrity spying) I spotted some pak choi (bok choy) and had just seen a recipe on Fake Food Free that I wanted to try out (Ginger Soy Pak Choi) so our meal immediately took an Asian twist.

Then we were at the Oyster Boys stand and I over-heard one of the Oyster Boys describing Thai Mussels…um, done. Actually, we decided it over a few oysters. Um, yum.

So following his instructions, we combined coconut milk and veggies in a large pot and let the mussels cook away. Can we just take a second to discuss how amazing fresh lemongrass smells?! I almost didn’t want to throw it in the pot.

The thai mussels were incredible – the flavors so complex and spicy, creamy and fresh – all at the same time. And so easy! Mussels always strike me as complicated or a lot of work, but they really aren’t!

There is something about rye bread and salmon that just works. Don’t you think?

I suppose smoked salmon and cream cheese is the same way. Any way it is combined is usually a way that I’ll like.

This is a recipe that I worked on for French Meadow, but it was so good I just had to share with you!

In the way that my favorite recipes do, this is one that comes together in minutes and can also be made ahead of time. The salmon mixture needs a spin in the food processor and the bread simply needs to be toasted until crisp. I love the extra touch that the chive garnish adds, especially if you’ll be serving it for others.

Last weekend I was working on some shrimp recipes for a project and when I mentioned the thought of shrimp pizza to the Taster he got a little excited. Before I knew it there were multiple topping ideas being tossed out, but in the end, we went with pesto (as the sauce), red onion, roasted red pepper, goat cheese and shrimp a top none other than my favorite sprouted tortilla.

It had been weeks since I had had my beloved tortilla pizzas and as soon as I realized they were no longer a thing of the past, I was the excited one.

This pizza concept would work on any crust, I also made it on some Middle Eastern Flatbreads for my cousin who I wasn’t sure how he would feel about the sprouted tortilla. For the record, he said he liked them both the same. Score for kids eating whole grains!

I love these pizzas vegetarian, but I must say that I’ve been slacking on protein lately, and I can definitely tell. So an added opportunity for some additional protein from the shrimp is a score for a healthy adult!

P.S. Happy Halloween! I’ve got to find some sort of costume to wear tonight for trick-or-treaters…help!

I’m officially in the midst of wedding-week madness. But besides a minor breakdown on Friday (it was just a very emotional day) I think I’ve been handling everything pretty well. Others may disagree.

Yesterday was filled with last minute errands and I declared it a day for myself!

The day started with some coffee and a gorgeous sunrise. I’m definitely going to miss this view.

Then it was time to drop off the Taster at work (we are a one car family) and start my other errands:

• body work appointment
• drop off dress to be pressed

Breakfast: In between the commute and errands I had a Two Moms in the Raw Bar – Gojiberry Granola – much better than I had expected although the first ingredient was agave and I’m not really a fan of that.

10:30 Yoga Sculpt – I was at a different studio than normal and it was a great class – I felt wonderful and the class flew by. Love those.

Monday started like most – with a yoga class. But then the similarities ended.

It was a long day of traveling. I had my last work trip and so I’m currently down south in the land of shrimp and grits. For the record, I’m only allowing myself one meal of grits – do you know what they put in that stuff?! It is soooo good, but not exactly easy on the waistline. Georgia was the place that introduced me to grits, before then I had no idea of their glory. Needless to say, I’m a little obsessed. Hopefully tonight I’ll get some grits!

6:30 am Yoga Class. I needed to go to yoga before I left because I wouldn’t be able to take a class for the next few days – the horror! 

The airport was really quiet so I had plenty of time before my plane took off. I stopped into the French Meadow Cafe for coffee, water and breakfast.

 I was going to get oatmeal for breakfast but decided that eggs, bacon and toast was more what I was after. I should have just skipped the hash browns all together – I didn’t eat any of them.

On the first leg of the flight I was busy preparing for the week and doing some writing and meal planning.

When I landed in Charlotte I was ready for a meal. I always try to walk around the airports so that I’m not sitting the entire day. This way I can also scope out all of the food options at well.

 It may seem rather unlikely that I ate at Sbarro’s but it was actually pretty easy to build a healthy meal full of vegetables! I had a salad (should have gotten the small, the large was huge), side of vegetables and a meatball. It was great.

On the second leg of the flight I snacked on part of a thinkThin bar, read some Elle magazine and took a miniature cat nap (shh!!).

When I landed in my third state of the day, Florida, I jumped into a car to finish my trip to Georgia!

I managed to track down the one natural food store on the island and then it was time for dinner! Being in shrimp country, I was really on the hunt for shrimp. This grilled shrimp and scallops with succotash (SO good) and green beans was just what I was looking for.

Now I’m catching up on things online and heading to bed! Hope you had a great start to your week.

PS. I have two more weeks of work, three more weeks until the wedding and four more weeks until we move!!!