Exploring A Different Side to Eating.....

Lately, I've been into cooking up vegetarian dishes. There's something about how my body and mind feels after eating a vegetarian meal and I love it. 


I'm not saying gone are the days of me enjoying a big juicy steak.  I do love me a big hunk of meat.

 But these days, I'm just trying to adjust my lifestyle to where I incorporate more vegetables and fish into my lifestyle. I'm trying so hard that I even committed myself to a Vegetarian Cookbook.

So far,  from the book, I've made Saag Peaneer. 

and Roasted Chickepea Tacos.

Source

Oh, and I can't seem to break away from these yummy roasted green bean fries. They are so addicting! 
  
So far,  I'm enjoying the vegetarian recipes. They are super easy to put together and not to mention, so fast! Personally, I think my favorite out of the twoso far is the chickpea taco's. 


Mr. Dubyah isn't missing the meat....yet. He says he feels pleasantly full but I do think he compensates the healthy vegetarian meal by indulging in a bowl of ice cream. 

NKOTB + BSB Concert.

On Monday July 4th, I slept for nearly 20 hours. It was that much of an epic weekend. Loved every single moment of it.

First up, on Saturday night, I headed down to San Jose with some of my girlfriends to attend the most wanted concert of the year:  New Kids on the Block and BackStreet Boys, aka NKOTBSB. Who's with me on this? 

  

A few of my friends are big time NKOTB fans groupies. They always splurge on the VIP packages that usually cost around the $500 mark and go on the NKOTB cruises. Lucky girls! At this concert, they spared no expense. 

One of them shared what was in their VIP swag bags. I was perplexed. 

NKOTB panties. It even came with a eye mask. Really??? 

My swag were these $30 tshirts!

While our friends settled into their seats on the floor, we settled in ours which were pretty good.  We were on the lower level and dead in the center. 

The stage was shaped like a penis (I'm not even joking.)One of the Backstreet Boys, AJ, mentioned it in the program calling it the penis stage, so I guess it really is shaped like a penis shaped. 

We were seated at the tip of the penis. 

 The concert was awesome! I totally relived my highschool days.

 

Dinner Fail.

Yesterday I attended my first turbo kickboxing class and had a blast! I was a little nervous as I was afraid I wouldn't catch on to the routine and look like a fool, but, thanks to my experience with Billy Blanks back in the mid 90's, I was able to look like a semi-fool. 

I loved the energy and the music.  My friend warned me that I was going to feel very achy in the morning. Sure am! It's a good achy though and I can't wait to return! 

For dinner, I made some stuffed squash and zucchini's after seeing a recipe and picture on Pininterest. (Love that website, by the way!!!). 

I wish I could tell yah how these turned out but I got the sudden craving of having a slice of pizza and a salad instead. Yeah, I know! I'm bad. Will find out how these taste today though!!! 

Have you guys ever done that before? Cooked dinner and then eat something else? It's probably just me, huh?

4th of July Colored Inspired Lunch

This is my third smoothie that I've made so far within the week and I'm loving it! I just can't seem to break away from them. This morning, I made it with:

1 packet of Vanilla Protein Powder
1 Frozen Banana
A Handful of Spinach
About 1 tsp of Xantham Gum
1/2 Cup of Strawberry Kefir

It was really good and creamy! I think the added Strawberry Kefir helped with the creaminess this time, which by the way was my first time ever to try Kefir.

My coworker has been raving about this stuff since he's been on a diet. I think I'm going to be another raver, too about this stuff! It's yummy!


For lunch, I made a tuna melt on sprout bread. I tossed the tuna with some lemon juice, olive oil, and a bit of salt and pepper.

 Perfect for a hot summer lunch as it was refreshing! 


Ok, off to watch Pretty Little Liars for the day. I'm addicted to the books. Just received disc 1 in the mail today via Netflix! 

Better than a Fish Filet!

I bought a box of grilled mahi mahi burgers from Trader Joe's awhile back and when I initially had them, I thought they were good, but then I just suddenly stopped eating them and forgot about them in my freezer. 

Today, I got to finish the last one in the box (I love cleaning out my pantry, freezer, fridge, etc--makes me feel as though I'm doing my part in not wasting food.) and thought to myself, what the heck was I thinking risking these to get frost bitten? 

I put it on a toasted bagel thin, fresh spinach leaves for some crunch and nutrients, and spread a good layer amount of tartar sauce with dill and jalopeno's that I recently picked up at TJ's too.

 I definitely think the tartar sauce made the sandwich--no doubt! If you are like me, I love anything mayo based. This tartar sauce hit the spot with the sandwich. Had just the right amount of kick from the jalopeno's.  I definitely think the tartar sauce made the sandwich--no doubt! If you are like me, I love anything mayo based. This tartar sauce hit the spot with the sandwich. Had just the right amount of kick from the jalopeno's.  

 It was a fantastic lunch served along side with some juicy plump grapes! 

First Time Shakes

I finally got around to trying my hand at making my very own protein shake. After reading about them, here, here, and here, I gathered up my ingredients at the store such as protein powder (vanilla flavor), bananas, and some xantham gum (that stuff is so expensive!). 

 I can see (and taste) what all the hype is about. This stuff tasted good and I was full instantly. I didn't think I would be able to drink all if it, but I forced myself to in hopes that I will stay full for a few hours, which I did. 

Next smoothie experiment, chocolate banana but with spinach!!! Oooooh!!! 

p.s. I'll be hitting the pavement very shortly again! I'm excited!

A Hot Day with a Refreshing Snack!

Today's weather high was 90 degrees!!! It's only 4 days into May and we are already at 90 degrees--crazy! I'm wondering if these are signs of us going to have a sweltering heated summer. 

Today, I spent the early afternoon with the BFF. She was craving sushi and I couldn't say no! Plus, I wanted to try out some DavePops at our local farmer's market. 

They are nothing like the icy popsicles that you buy at the grocery store. The texture is smoothie like--thick and creamy, which I later found out is how they are actually made--just like a smoothie! Oh, and they are not bad in the nutrition department. About 100 calories per pop and they are made of whole fruits, juices, and some are made with soy or nut milks. I saw that some are made with soda drinks and energy drinks, but I didn't try those out at all. A Red bull pop doesn't sound appealing.