Noms of the Week #5

This NOTW is a little short. I have been in the process of moving out of my grandparent's house so I haven't had the time to really take many pictures of what I shove into my mouth lately.

1. Quaker* Old Fashioned Oats with Ola* Vanilla Almond Granola,TJ* Shredded Sweetened Coconut, Organic Goji Berries, 1 TBSP Ground Flaxseed, 2 1/4 TBSP Peanut Butter & Co* White Chocolate Wonderful Peanut Butter.
2. Annie Chun’s* Sprouted Brown Sticky Rice with cooked Yellow Bell Pepper,  Asparagus, Onion, Mushrooms, 3 Gardein* Seven Grain Tenders, 3 TBSP Organicville* Sesame Teriyaki.
3. Medium Potato with 1/2 Daiya* Jalapeno Garlic Wedge, 1/3 El Pinto* All Natural Medium Salsa;  Organic 50/50 Blend with Asparagus, Mushrooms, Organic Sun-dried Tomatoes in Olive Oil, Olives, Gardein* Chik’n Strips, 1/2 TSP Vegan Grated Parmesan Flavoring, 1 TBSP Cindy’s Kitchen* Fat free Balsamic Vinaigrette.
4. Smart & Delicious* Large Whole Wheat Tortilla with  Organic Romaine, Cherry Tomato, Organic Kidney Beans, Serving Gardein* Chik’n Strips, 1 1/4 Daiya* Jalapeno Garlic Havarti Style Wedge, 2/3 El Pinto* Medium Salsa, 1/2 TSP Vegan Parmesan Flavoring.

1. Kashi* Mayan Harvest Bake Frozen Meal. I’m not one to usually buy frozen meals but I’ve heard good things about this one. The turn out was actually pretty nice for a frozen meal. 8g of fiber, 9g of protein.. only 380mg of sodium which is actually decent for a frozen meal. I’d buy one again in case of a lazy day such as today.
2. No Cheese Vegetable Pizza from Pizza Hut. Thin crust of course.
3. Was over at the new place all day, trying put everything together and got so busy that totally forgot to eat! Ryan was hungry as well, and since I had nothing in the fridge yet we just drove over to Harvey Hinklemeyers and I got a big salad from the salad bar. (The pasta salad was for him)
4. Sometimes you just need an oreo.. or two.

Foodie Penpals: Hoosier Edition.

This month of Foodie Pen pals was quite interesting. I was paired up to send to and receive from two ladies who are both from Indianapolis! It's definitely a small world as I live just 2 hours away from Indy!

Fellow Hoosier, and blog reader Emily sent me a nice package of goods.

First off we have Sea Salted Popcorn. I had just bought some salted popcorn from the store just the other day before I received my package. (I could have kicked myself) Though, I took that over to Ryan’s and have yet to see it again. So I’m happy I got this generous bag of delicious popcorn all to myself. I haven't yet tired since I haven't been home very much at all in the last couple weeks. As I'm moving out of my grandparent's place into a new one. So once I try it out I'll put in my two cents about it. Though, I'm pretty positive that it's going to be delicious. Next.. Dry Roasted Edamame. I’ve seen this in stores but I've always just walked past it since I'm usually rushing around the grocery store trying to make sure I have enough money for my "essential" items. So I was excited to have received some in my package so I could finally try it out. This was an amazing, protein-packed snack on it’s own. Also made a wonderful salad topper. Individual servings of El Pinto Medium Salsa. Ay Carumba! I’m a big salsa lover, but for some odd reason I’m always forgetting to pick up some from the grocery. So thank you Emily, you saved the day with this. I've used it only one time so far but I definitely like it. For only being "medium" it gives a very spicy hot flavor. This chick likes spicy! NuGo Organic Double Dark Chocolate Bar. When the sweet tooth hit me over at a friend’s house this came to my rescue and kept me satisfied until dinnertime.

Lastly, fruit leather strips. A strawberry, grape, and raspberry flavored one. Which, again, I haven't gotten around to try since I've been so busy in the moving process.

Thank you Emily for the goodies!

 I sent a package over to Kelsee. Click on her name to see what I sent her!

Interested in becoming a Foodie Penpal yourself? Here’s the details:

• On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
• You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
• The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
• You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
• Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
• Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for May, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. You must submit your information by May 4th as pairings will be emailed on March 5th!

Noms of the Week #4

I know, I know. I promised Key West eats that I enjoyed while down there on vocation. Unfortunately my camera died and I had mistakenly forgot to pack my charger. So I had to post-pone NOTW since I didn’t have enough pictures to make a nice food collage for you guys. So I’ll just mix and match what I enjoyed there plus some food I enjoyed at home.

1. Conch Republic Restaurant* Island Salad(Mixed Greens with Avocado Slices, Mango, Oranges, Tomato, Cucumber, Plantain Chips with Citrus Dressing.
2. Chinese takeout with Ryan. (Vegetable Lo Mein, Marinated Lettuce, Cucumber, Pepper; Rice Noodles) Wasn't impressed with the options that I had to choice from. I can feel myself slowly not liking Chinese food as much.
3. Dinner @ a friend’s: Italian Spiced Chick’n Strips, 2/3 Avocado, Mashed Potatoes, Homemade A to Z Pasta Salad that I had made.
4. Tofu Scramble; 3 1/4 oz Extra Firm Organic Tofu with 1/8 cup Onion, 3 Cherry Tomatoes, 3 Organic Mushrooms; Ezekiel 4:9* Sprouted English Muffin with Avocado; 1 cup Seedless Grapes.

1. Quaker* Old Fashioned Oats with TJ* Shredded Sweetened Coconut, Ola* Vanilla Almond Granola, TJ* Cookie Butter.
2. Organic 50/50 Blend Salad with 3 Gardein* Seven Grain Crispy Tenders, Daiya* Jalapeno Garlic Havarti Style Wedge, Organic Mushrooms,  Red Bell Pepper,  Dried Cranberries, 2 TBSP Silvered Almonds with Pomegranate, Cindy’s Kitchen* Balsamic; Side of Mashed Potatoes for Ryan.
3. Lunch @ Chiptole with my grandparents. The usual vegan burrito with a side of tortilla chips and guacamole.

Snackage:

1. In Key West they rave about the coconut. I noticed while walking around that they had numerous amounts of coconut water stands to help keep you hydrated while walking around in the humid, Key West heat. I didn't get to actually grab an actual coconut and drink the water from its head but I did want to try coconut water so I just bought the next best thing. Bottled Coconut Water. Believe it or not. This was the first time trying coconut water. I really don’t know what I thought about it. It’s.. very different tasting. Drinkable but I don’t see myself willingly to drink the stuff on a daily basis.
2. Key West has an amazing, cute, little, all natural organic store called Help Yourself. I grabbed up a few items(some I didn’t have time to munch on so I just packed them up and flew them back to Indiana) like this raw granola that I ate as snack. Let me just tell you.. raw granola is 10x better than non-raw granola.
3. Orange Cranberry Flavor & Fiber Bar.
4. My Pineapple Orange Collagen Drinks.

Noms of the Week #3

This week I had the opportunity to eat out.. a lot. A lot more than usual because I'm going down to Key West with a friend Monday-Friday and Ryan wanted to treat me, food wise.

Meals:

• Chiptole* Vegan Burrito. (Brown Rice, Black Beans, Fiesta Vegetables, Medium Green Salsa, Guacamole, Lettuce.) For the record.. you can blame the boyfriend for my Chiptole addiction. Well, not much of an addiction. It’s more so a “thing” that whenever Ry and I go to Kokomo we get Chiptole. Since we’ve been going back and forth from Wabash to there to just have something to do.. one of our stops and first thoughts is Chiptole! Plus, its easy and convenient for me and Ry since he knows I’m a vegan and he knows they have delicious options for me.
• Spinach Salad with Organic Gala Apple, Green Grapes, Reduced Sugar Dried Cranberries, Silvered Almonds with Pomegranate, Pomegranate Vinaigrette; Taste of Italy Vegan Pocket.
• Azetecs* Vegetable Fajitas. (Cooked: Green Bell Pepper, Onion, Mushroom, Tomato. Topped with Lettuce, Pico De Gallo, Guacamole, Mexican Rice)
• Baked Sweet Potato with Avocado and Almonds on top. Green Grapes on side.

• Quaker* Old Fashioned Oats with Sweetened Coconut, Vanilla Almond Granola, and Cookie butter.
• Huge Side Salad with the boyfriend at Pizza King in Downtown Wabash. Salad had: Lettuce, Olives, Banana Peppers, Mushrooms, Tomato, Onion, Italian Dressing) As you can see.. Ry was stealing some of my olives.
• Chinese* Vegetable Lo Mein with Steamed Mixed Vegetables, White Rice with Diet Sauce. (The only sucky thing about Wabash Chinese is that they don’t have a brown rice option..)
• Black Bean/Rice Burrito with leftover Mixed Vegetables.

Snackage:

•  Orange Pineapple Collagen Drink. (I didn’t really talk to much about these on my last NOTW. Basically, these are drinks that help reduce fine lines and wrinkles, strengthen and thicken hair, improve skin elasticity, and strengthens nails. I’ve been drinking one every other day and so far I feel they work wonders. Definitely will have to re-stock up once I come back from my trip.
• As far as food snackage is considered. Pumpkin Spice Almonds were my go-to choice this week.

While I'm down in Key West, I plan to take pictures of the different landmarks, as well as some eats. So hopefully around this time next week I'll have some exciting things to share with you guys. 

Foodie Penpals: 40 Fit in the Mitt

I decided to participate in the foodie pen pal program that Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean hosts, afterall, and I’m so happy that I did. I received my package from Dena @ 40 Fit in the Mitt and wow. Just wow. This package rocked.

Actually due to personal decisions on staying in Indiana with my sick grandfather(we just found out Thursday that he has cancer) and indecisiveness on my part about what I actually want to do with my life-carrier wise. I'm going to just lay low and try and figure out everything before going back to California. So I'll probably be a participate for this swap for a few more months before having to quit due to college.

Anyway, back to what this post is all about. Food.

Dena sent me some amazing goodies, as well as some Trader Joe’s love!

Sweetened Coconut, Cookie Butter, Organic Banana Chips, and Steel Cut Oats. All from Trader Joe’s! I actually requested to Dena that she should get me some cookie butter, and she willingly did so. She made me a very happy lady. Back off Nutella. Cookie Butter is the official new crack of the spreads AND it’s vegan friendly. If you’ve seen my NOTW you’d know I’ve used the coconut in my oatmeal recently. As for the Banana Chips and Steel cut Oats I haven’t gotten around to trying just yet. I’m trying to eat up my Quaker Oats before I open up a new container(don’t worry Dena I haven’t forgotten about telling you if they are any good) and I’m waiting to get all the ingredients I need to make a new trek mix with the banana chips.

Before I go on..I gotta tell you.

Dena listened so well to my likes. Almost everything I told her I liked she got me which I appreciate so much. Anyone would be lucky to have her as their penpal. The granola rocked my taste buds. It had the perfect amount of sweetness.The trail mix clusters I ate as a snack the day after I got my package since I was on the move all that day. So it was good to have on hand when my hunger hit.

Dena, thank you so much for this awesome box of goodies!

Interested in becoming a Foodie Penpal yourself? Here’s the details:

• On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
• You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
• The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
• You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
• Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
• Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for April, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions. You must submit your information by April 4th as pairings will be emailed on March 5th!

Noms of the Week #2

I have great news. I’m officially graduated! Now I just need to work on my next task: Get my drivers license.

More good news? I have a newfound love in my life. Introducing.. Ryan!





 I know I failed and didn’t provide a NOTW last week. Again, life happened, I have been extremely busy with others. Which I don’t consider a bad thing at all. I’m finally getting my social life under control. So with that being said, I’m going to show off my meals from the last two weeks again. Also just like the last time these aren’t all of my meals. Just meals I enjoyed in the comfort of my home when I could actually snap a picture.

Meals:

• Leftovers from Irish Dinner. (Boiled Cabbage, Roasted Red Potatoes.)
• Whole Grain Spaghetti with Kroger* Traditional Sauce, 2 TSP Vegan Grated Parmesan Flavoring; 1 1/2 cup Organic Spinach, Avocado, 1 TBSP Toasted Slivered Almonds with Pomegranate.
• Organic Spinach, Organic Red Bell Pepper, Mushrooms, Avocado, 2 Gardein* Chik’n Filets, Reduced Sugar Dried Cranberries, 1 TBSP Toasted Slivered Almonds with Pomegranate, 1 TBSP Cindy’s Kitchen* Fat free Balsamic
• Tofu Scramble(Organic Firm Tofu with Organic Red Bell Pepper, Onion, Mushrooms, 1 1/2 Daiya* Jalapeno Garlic Havarti Style Wedge, Ezekiel 4:9* Sprouted English Muffin.)

• Kashi* Toasted Berry Crumble Cereal with Silk* Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk.
• I stayed with my boyfriend and his mom made me an amazing breakfast. Unfortunately I’m not used to eating as soon as I get up so it was challenging to even touch but I got through some of it. I ate 3/4 of the Fruit Bowl, and 1/2 of the All Natural Oatmeal with Brown Sugar. I didn’t touch the bread and butter.
•  Ezekiel 4:9* Sprouted English Muffin with 3/4 Avocado.
• Quaker* Old Fashioned Oats with TJ* Sweetened Coconut, Ola* Vanilla Almond Granola, TJ* Cookie Butter.

 

• BBQ Tofu on an Ezekiel 4:9* Sprouted English Muffin with Spinach, Onion, Pickle.
• Smart & Delicious* Large Whole Wheat Tortilla with Organic Spinach, Reduced Sugar Dried Cranberries, 1/8 Roma Tomato, Gardein* Chik’n Filets, Daiya* Jalapeno Garlic Havarti Style Wedge, 1 TBSP Sabra* Pine Nut Hummus
• Chiptole* Vegan Burrito(Brown Rice, Black Beans, Fiesta Vegetables, Pico De Gallo, Green Medium Salsa, Guacamole)
• Smart & Delicious* Large Whole Wheat Tortilla with Avocado, Organic Spinach, leftover Organic BBQ Tofu.

Snackage:

• Chai Spice Latte(Chai Spice Tea Bag, 2/3 cup Silk* Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, Stevia, TJ* Sugar, Chocolate, Coffee Bean Grinder.)
• A couple Peanut Honey Pretzel Luna Bars.
• Vanilla Almond Luna Bar.
• Orange Pineapple Collagen Drink.(Helps with skin/hair/nails. I love it!)

• All Natural Popcorn that I shared with the boyfriend.
• Watermelon, that I also shared with the boyfriend.
• Two Degree* Apple Pecan Bar that I got in this month's conscious box.
• Earnest Eats* Dark Choco Espresso Bar that I also got in this month's conscious box.

Noms of the Week#1

For awhile now I have been reading posts on two blogs I visit on a daily basis, The Lean Green Bean and Peas & Crayons. TLGB does a “Weekly Eats” post, whereas P&C does a What I Ate Wednesday post. Last month, I was going to start posting what I ate on a daily basis every week to give people more incite on what a typical vegan diet looks like. Sadly, life hit me hard, and I didn’t feel I was “ready” to start showing off what I ate since my diet was all over the place for the last couple months. Not enough, too much, nothing at all, binge/purge.. you get the idea.

This month though I’m going to start posting my meals that I’ve ate that week, every Sunday. I think it may actually help me with my struggling and encourage me to keep fighting through my eating issues. So I’m doing this for me, but also for you.

Before I get into what I ate this week I just want you to take in a couple things.

1). I’m not a certified dietitian, doctor, trainer, nutritionist, etc. I’m an 18 year old who so happens to be vegan and is interested in living life as healthy as I can. I don’t want to influence people to “skip breakfast” or just eat what I eat. Everyone has different dietary needs. Do your research or talk to your doctor about what yours are if you do not know. I don’t eat in the morning because my body doesn’t crave food when I first wake up. It’s not as a means of “starving” myself. I just give my body what it wants when it wants it.

2). I won’t accept criticism. This isn’t something I’m doing to give people an excuse to judge or bully me. My diet isn’t perfect by any means but I do try to do the golden rule of eating which is “eating when hungry, stopping when full.” I get those carby, sweet tooth cravings just like everyone else. I’m an imperfect human, but that’s how I feel it should be. Moderation is key in living a healthy lifestyle.

3). Like I stated previously I’m doing this for me, as I feel it will help me stay focused on recovery, and also for you. I hope to give you a better understanding of what vegans eat, if you are completely clueless on the lifestyle, plus maybe influence you to branch out and try new things.

4). I’m on a vegan diet but I wouldn’t call it your “typical diet.” It’s more as a lifestyle change that I’ve transitioned into because I truly believe that the vegan diet is the healthiest “diet” out there. Though, that’s my personal opinion. If you don’t agree, that is completely fine. We can agree to disagree. Be respectful of my diet and I’ll gladly return the favor. This is a preach free zone!

With all that being said.. let's get on with my first ever NOTW!

Breakfast:

Coffee is something I drink on a regular basis. I personally just drink it black with stevia. I don't typically "eat" a breakfast because my body is never hungry when I first get up in the mornings. I find just having my coffee gets me through until lunchtime. (Say.. 11-12pm)

Meals:

• Quaker* Old Fashioned Oats with Unsweetened Shredded Coconut, White Chocolate Wonderful Peanut Butter and a Chocolate Dipped Luna Bar. (If you've never added a Luna bar to your oatmeal before, your missing out.)
• Organic Flax Bread with Avocado. (I enjoyed this multiple times these two weeks. Quick, easy, healthy.)
• Tofu Scramble(Organic Firm Tofu, Organic Red Bell Pepper, Organic Broccoli, Onion, Mushrooms, Avocado.) Organic Flax Bread on side.
• Organic Spinach Salad with Organic Snap peas, Organic Broccoli, Organic Red Bell Pepper, Gardein* Seven Grain Meatless Tenders, Fat free Balsamic, Sprinkle of Vegan Parmesan Flavoring.

 

• Organic Spinach Salad with Organic Snap peas, Organic Broccoli, Organic Red Bell Pepper, Mushrooms, Avocado, Reduced Sugar Dried Cranberries, Sweet Roasted Slivered Almonds with Pomegranate, Fat free Balsamic.
• Smart & Delicious* Large Whole Wheat Tortilla with Organic Falafel, Organic Spinach, Organic Red Bell Pepper, Avocado, Oasis* Jalapeno Hommus.
• Smart & Delicious* Large Whole Wheat Tortilla with Organic Spinach, Grape Tomatoes, Avocado, and Oasis* Jalapeno Hommus.
• Organic Spinach Salad with Organic Red Bell Pepper, Organic Snap Peas, Mushrooms, Reduced Sugar Dried Cranberries, Fat free Balsamic. Organic Asparagus on the side.

• Organic Spinach Salad with Organic Red Bell Pepper, Olives, Avocado, Fat free Balsamic. Quinoa Polenta with Organic Garlic Mushroom Marinara Sauce, Sprinkle of Vegan Parmesan Flavoring.
• Chipotle* Vegan Burrito. (Brown rice, black beans, roasted peppers, pico de gallo, guacamole, lettuce.) I had a lunch date with a special new somebody. I ate 1/2 the burrito with him, then the other half for dinner. Have you have had Chipotle burritos? They are huge!
• Quaker* Old Fashioned Oats with Vanilla Almond Granola, Organic Unsweetened Shredded Coconut, Cookie Butter. (Thanks Dena!)
• Irish(ish) Dinner of Boiled Cabbage, Small Red Potatoes, Tofurky* Meatless Italian Sausage. (Since I have Irish in my blood, my grandmother made a special Sunday dinner.)

 Snackage:

• Kroger* 100% White Corn Tortilla Chips with Sabra* Supremely Spicy Hummus.
• Chai Spice Latte(Chai Spice tea bag, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, stevia, TJ* Sugar, Chocolate, Coffee Bean Grinder.) This cold weather has really reopened my love for hot tea.
• Blueberry Pomegrante Trail Mix Crunch. (Thanks again, Dena!)
• Chocolate Dipped Coconut Luna Bar.

Treat:

My grandmother made vegan friendly apple pie. So I enjoyed a couple slices this week with some So Delicious* No Sugar Added Coconut Milk Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.

So there you have it. My first NOTW!

Also be aware that this food is from the past two weeks. I have been extremely busy, so I've been eating at other people's houses, restaurants, etc. So in all honestly I've been eating more than what is pictured this time around.