Tag Archives: New Jersey

Not Okay

Posted on May 13, 2013 | Leave a comment

This made me cringe yesterday when I went to get a coffee from Dunkin Donuts.

mom's heartUm, yeah, if by “Happy Mothers’ Day” you mean “die a slow, painful death from complications related to diabetes…”

My uncle pointed out that it’s the same donut they were featuring over Valentine’s Day but with a different name. The blatant marketing of junk food really tweaked me. I know, I know—what do I expect from Dunkin Donuts? But still! Cream-filled, frosting-covered donuts do not equal love! At least not when you consider that some of the ingredients (hello, trans and saturated fats) have been linked to various heart ailments.  It’s like saying, “Here Mom, I wanted to help shorten your lifespan a little.” Besides, naming it “Mom’s Heart” is just too freaking creepy!

I know I may be overreacting, but I am so not okay with stuff like that. Whatever happened to flowers?

What do you think about this Mom’s Heart donut business? 

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Happy Mothers’ Day

Posted on May 12, 2013 | 1 Comment

Happy Mothers’ Day to the woman who has always generously encouraged my mad scientist tendencies and yet somehow never laughed at me whenever I managed to singlehandedly take down the lab by plugging in a space heater/cracking crucibles/breaking glass and/or taking the fall for an exploding thermometer & subsequent building evacuation.

Thanks for always laughing with me! Love you!

me & my beautiful madre

me & my beautiful madre

Off to a BBQ with the fam. Have an awesome day : )

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Birthday BBQ in the Suburbs

Posted on May 4, 2013 | 1 Comment

Good morning and happy Saturday! Last night I went to my parents’ house for a BBQ to celebrate my aunt’s birthday. It was a pleasant way to spend a pretty spring evening, and of course, the food was excellent.

IMG_2250We enjoyed some classics like burgers and ribs, along with a few different types of salad and plenty of roasted veggies. Seriously, salad & ribs is one of my favorite meals ever. So simple but so satisfying!

Of course there was birthday cake. Unfortunately, the birthday girl had to go home early to rest because she was feeling under the weather (gotta love spring colds), so we texted her a picture of the cake and sang over phone.

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Naturally, “The First Cut is the Deepest” had to be sung then as well.

Anyway, I just got back a little while ago from a morning yoga class, so I’m going to work on some school stuff before heading to my sister’s for a little Cinco de Mayo gathering.

Have an awesome day!

What are your favorite BBQ foods? Best birthday cake ever?

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What I Ate Wednesday #104: 2 Year Anniversary

Posted on April 3, 2013 | 4 Comments

This post marks my 2-year WIAW Anniversary! Um, wow. Time…Crazy thing. It’s nuts to me that it’s been 104 weeks since I joined this weekly link party, and man, has the time flown.As always, thanks to Jenn for hosting. To see more WIAW from other bloggers, visit Peas & Crayons.

Let’s play one of my favorite games!

Man, 2010′s photos make me really glad I finally got into the habit of, like, doing my hair. Anyway. For this big-deal edition, I thought I’d share with you what I ate on Easter Sunday.

totally went back for more caviar

Breakfast: Plain Greek yogurt with chia seeds and fruit salad

Snack: Hummus with sliced pepper & baby carrots, a piece of dark chocolate-covered ginger

Appetizers: Blinis with caviar, smoked salmon, a slice of keilbasa, raw veggies; lambrusco to drink

Dinner: Baby kale salad, asparagus, ham, lamb, a slice of babka, a potato & cheese pierogi, and stuffed cabbage. I didn’t finish everything here, but I enjoyed every bite

Dessert: A chocolate-chocolate chip cookie with peppermint glaze—just as delicious at Easter as at Christmas

Snack (unpictured) A sliced banana with nonfat ricotta between studying and folding laundry when I got home later

What are some of your favorite holiday foods? 

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Polish/French Toast

Posted on April 2, 2013 | 4 Comments

As I mentioned yesterday, my mom’s family makes a lot of Polish foods for Easter. I didn’t  take much home in the way of leftovers since I had a crowded “holiday weekend” bus trip ahead. I did ask for a few slices of babka, though.

According to Wikipedia, the “Christian version” of babka is a sweet yeast bread similar to brioche that is traditionally baked for Easter and other major holidays in counties such as Poland, Albania, Bulgaria,and Macedonia. I’ve seen it in round and rectangular loaves (usually what we get) as well as in bundt cake shapes.

There are a few varieties, but my favorite is definitely the cheese version. It’s not, like, “OMG, this bread is stuffed with all this cheese!” It’s more that it’s ever so slightly denser than the plain variety and has a nice tart sweetness to it. You can also find cheese babka with chocolate, and I’m sure that would instantly become my new favorite if I tried it because, well, come on.

IMG_2091Babka is great on its own, but in my humble opinion, it’s really best as French toast. After getting home from hot yoga and taking a much-needed shower yesterday, I set about making it happen. I kept it really simple and used two thin slices and two egg whites. I didn’t add any milk or spices because I wanted to let the flavor of the bread come through as much as possible. You can totally use a whole egg, but the day after enjoying a lot of rich once-in-a-while foods, I was also in the mood for something a bit lighter.

Ingredients:

  • 2 small slices babka (or 1 large slice, whatever you want)
  • 2 egg whites, lightly beaten (or 1 whole egg)

Directions:

  1. Soak babka in egg white ~2 or 3 minutes (you can flip if needed)
  2. Spray a nonstick skillet with canola oil spray. Cook babka ~1 or 2 minutes on each side or until egg white is thoroughly cooked.
  3. Optional: Scramble extra egg white on the side. Stuff between slices and enjoy as is or topped with maple syrup, fruit, or whatever else sounds good to you.

I ate this for lunch with a big side salad and put the last few slices in the freezer so I can enjoy more another time.

What’s your favorite bread to use for French toast? 

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Easter and April Fool’s

Posted on April 1, 2013 | 4 Comments

Good morning and happy Monday! Whether you wish the Monday-ness was an April Fool’s joke or not, it’s here. How was your weekend?

Dunkin Donuts run with my sister : )

Dunkin Donuts run with my sister : )

Unfortunately, I had a mostly sleepless night in New Jersey on Saturday and required a lot of coffee and endorphins to get me out the door to my aunt’s yesterday for Easter dinner. It was great to see everyone and I was fine once I was there, but I was still in need of a musical pick-me-up. PMS and religious holidays should not be allowed to coincide.

Cue the Somewhat Blasphemous Easter Survival Playlist:

  • “The Ballad of John & Yoko”—the Beatles
  • “Miracle Man”—Elvis Costello
  • “Shame”—Avett Brothers
  • “Roll Away Your Stone”—Mumford & Sons
  • “Get Me Away from here, I’m Dying”—Belle & Sebastian
  • “Friend of the Devil”—the Grateful Dead
  • “Beginning to See the Light”—the Velvet Underground
  • Sweet Virginia”—the Rolling Stones
  • “Sister Jack”—Spoon
  • “Shelter from the Storm”—Bob Dylan
  • “Acid Tongue”—Jenny Lewis
  • “Sound Like Hallelujah”—the Head and the Heart
  • “A Shot in the Arm”—Wilco
  • “Jesus the Mexican Boy”—Iron & Wine

Overall, though, it was a nice holiday, complete with good company, and the food was great. My mom wrote a great post about my grandmother’s lamb recipe.

A sampling of the Easter dinner offerings

A sampling of the Easter dinner offerings

I don’t know about you, but I’m happy it’s a new month. I have a few hopes and plans. I’m looking forward to hopefully hanging up my winter coat for the rest of the year.

Anything in particular you’re hoping to accomplish or anything you’re looking forward to this month? 

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Happy Easter

Posted on March 31, 2013 | 3 Comments

Scary but probably delicious. Prediabetes, anyone?

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Chocolate Easter bunnies—yay or nay? 

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Saturday things

Posted on March 30, 2013 | 2 Comments
Oh, the cuteness! And oh, New York...

Oh, the cuteness! And oh, New York…

Good morning and happy weekend! For those of you celebrating Easter and Passover, hope you’re able to enjoy some time with the people who matter to you. I’m sure a lot of you brave folks who gave up chocolate for Lent are really looking forward to biting into a chocolate bunny ear tomorrow!

I’m headed to visit my family later today to mark that time Jesus rose from the dead just because He could. Or however the story goes. I don’t mean to make light—I’m just having fun. As a kid, I remember being confused when Sister Bea told our CCD class that Easter was the most important Catholic holiday because I’d always thought Christmas was the big one (presents, decorations, etc.), but she explained that, well, a dude can’t just walk on water to show he’s the real deal, you know? Okay, that’s not exactly what she said, but that’s how I like to remember it.

If nothing else, I can at least get on board for celebrating the so-called resurrection that springtime brings. This is the first year in a while I’ve felt so in touch with the change in season and the regenerative energy in the air—or at least the hints of it on the breeze, which continues to grow milder. As I spoke about recently, it’s a great time to reexamine our New Years resolutions and evaluate our progress, where we want to go from here and how.  Continue reading →

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New Jersey Weekend Things

Posted on March 3, 2013 | 2 Comments

I don’t know about you, but I feel like it was just last Sunday. No complaints about winter going so quickly except that, well—wait? Where the hell did February go? What did I do with myself? Okay, a lot, but still…

As I mentioned yesterday, I spent a good part of this weekend with family. I hadn’t been to New Jersey since Christmas, which is kind of nuts. I’d like to say my reasons for being there were all good (and not too many funerals and quality-of-life discussions lately), but it was nice to catch up and even see a few cousins I hadn’t seen in at least 6 or 7 years! There was also a cute dog.

This is Francie—aka the Franz. She's 15!

This is Francie—aka the Franz. She’s 15!

I also always eat well when I go visit. A few highlights were dinner  at a local Italian restaurant, weird savory breakfast, and mother-daughter lunch.

grilled branzino
Oats with egg whites, chia seeds, roasted veggies, and hummus
Grilled shrimp over a salad of greens, portabella, hericot verts, red onion, and goat cheese

I’ve also been doing a lot of studying and practice-testing. I don’t know why this matters to become an RD, but at least now I know why that cake my sister and I made in 2002 fell down in the middle: excess sugar and fat. Noted.

It being a new month with a new season coming and all, I’m really looking forward to good stuff. Warmer weather, hopefully fewer sad-bastard moments, and fewer expensive kombucha cravings. And hopefully I’ll stop listening to this song on repeat. I may not be sick of Jenny Lewis yet, but my neighbors probably are.

What are you looking forward to this month? 

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In with the new

Posted on January 1, 2013 | 6 Comments

Happy New Year! Hope you had a wonderful New Years Eve, however you spent it.

My drink of the night was gin & club soda--alternating with water!

My drink of the night was gin & club soda–alternating with water!

To change things up, I ventured out to New Jersey for a friend’s James Bond-themed house party. It was fun to put on a dress and heels and catch up with a few old favorites. This was definitely my favorite New Years so far-lots of fun and no drama!

Me & one of my lady friends making silly pouty faces at midnight

Me & one of my lady friends making silly pouty faces at midnight

I kind of like this picture better though : )

I kind of like this picture better though, since we’re not really pouty-face people : )

I also learned that meditating regularly can help you be good at roulette, at least if there’s no money involved. So that’s one habit I’m resolving to keep up this year! With two upcoming graduations and a job hunt ahead, setting aside time to tune out the noise and tune in to my intuition will be especially important!

I also want to integrate more mindfulness-based practices into my life. Qi Gong is at the top of the list of Things to Try. 2012 was all about breaking free and starting new things, casting out lines, and this year, I want to work on becoming more open and continuing to make room for those good, right things. I also want to get outside more. I did a good job of that this summer, but since it got cold out, I’ve been missing the fresh air!

I started my day with another weird savory breakfast: oatmeal with chia seeds, egg whites, chopped leek, lots of garlic, red pepper flakes and ginger. I also added spinach and roasted cauliflower and topped it off with a bit of tahini. My mom was weirded out but intrigued enough to ask for a taste, and she really liked it!

lots of green for good fortune in the new year

lots of green for good fortune in the new year

Then we went for a walk, which was so nice, despite the chill!

So far so good, 2013. Let’s see what else you’ve got in store.

What are your New Years resolutions? 

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