Breakfast

Here’s to not undoing whatever I accomplished on this mornings run

eggs w/ tomato basil salsa  and yogurt w/ kiwis

pardon the crappy phone pics

#goodeats

I think I just drank Algae!

Good morning world!

Woke up this morning (thank you captain obvious), but an hour late, causing all sorts of semi-unfortunate circumstances to arise, but that is completely beside the point. The point is that I just drank a bottle of algae…

Inspiration:

So, when I Finally made my way to school, I decide I would bail on my usual Timmie’s breakfast sandwich, and instead try to reboot my immune system. (Which was undoubtedly shot to hell again due to my running around like a headless chicken trying to get here in the first place). To replace by beloved egg and cheese on a home-style biscuit?  What Odwalla calls  “Lifefood”

Now, I seem to have developed a strange love for Odwalla’s “Mango Tango” juice (Am I allowed to say that? too late) , unfortunately the universe is screwing with me and for some God forsaken reason I can’t seem to find it anywhere for the past week. Stupidly, I walked into the cafeteria this morning (knowing full-well they were out) hoping that perhaps the universe had had its fun with me for the day and it might actually be there. I was wrong. I did however, discover a bottle of, well,  green-stuff. Yes I realize that most people don’t see a bottle of spinach colored liquid and instinctively think “drink it”, but frankly I found its slightly off-putting color intriguing, so I skimmed the ingredients and decided that in the whole scheme of things I really had nothing to lose. Odwalla seems to have a nach for sticking banana puree in their drinks and somehow making it tolerable (so we’re clear, I dislike bananas immensly) so by the time is got over that little tid-bit my attention was drawn to the slightly more unusual ingredients –wheat grass, barley grass, wheat sprouts, Jerusalem artichoke and the incredible spirulina, being among the misfits– Anyway, I drank it, not dead yet. But I did decide that  I would do some research on whatever the hell it is that I just consumed. It turns out that Spirulina is a type of algae, it gets its name from the coiled shape it takes and is incredibly hight in beta-carotene, protein, iron and vitamin A. The beta carotene bit alone won me over, and despite its off-putting visual, it really wasn’t half bad…  I think I have a new favorite?

#bananabits

“The irrationality of a thing is not an argument against its existence, rather, a condition of it”. ~Friedrich Nietzsche

A Rant About Coffee

“…And how would you like your coffee today?” – If I ever reply  “Black”, know that I’m either having some sort of out-of-body experience, or you’ve just encountered my alter ego, who obviously has drastically contrasting palatal preferences.

There are those people who like coffee, and there are those who, well, do not.  Dark, medium, or light roast, instant, half-caf, decaf, pressed, or perked, it makes no difference to me, it just better have something in it! My hat goes off to those of you, who’s taste for the café noir is clearly more refined than my own, but if I’m going to drink coffee, I’m certainly not going to consume it in its original vomitus, brewed, state. Don’t get me wrong, I love the effects of coffee as much as the next guy, but the taste, not so much. In fact, my love for Starbucks (and no, I’m not a Starbucks snob, anywhere will do) began when I realized that they could make coffee, not taste like coffee, and they do damn good job of it. Nothing like a white chocolate mocha, on a Monday morning, with 3 hours sleep, it’s like a Grande wake-up call with whip. I’ll give coffee one thing; It’s a great to wake up to. Granted, I’ll still walk past it and reach for the tea, but never the less, smells good. As for the ideal cup-a-Joe, a little of whatever kind of fancy ass mocha-cinno-frappe-latte stuff you’ve got, and we’re golden.

#ventecaramelmacciatoplease

A Return to Sidewalk Eating!

It’s that time of year again, Spring has just begun to bloom and you can feel summer on its heels. Your shorts are tempting you and you can hear the beach calling in the distance. Well let me just say that before you start thinking Summer-y thoughts, you may want to step OUTSIDE, the sun is shining, but it’s cold as “shat “. I’m a little bitter, can you tell? but I digress, it’s still beautiful outside and on a good day, if mother nature decides to throw you a bone, it might actually be as warm as it looks.

Took a quick trip to Seattle this weekend. Stayed smack in the middle of downtown, which has character to say the least, and a very interesting one at that. I walked down to the market at Pike Place and was surprised that even that close to the water it was still warm. We took the stairs back up (1st and Seneca) and as I passed the landing, I couldn’t help but notice the gorgeous black-iron chairs and tables, against a strangely serene backdrop of stairs and trees covered in cherry blossoms… could have kicked myself for not having my camera– but that feeling quickly subsided, as it usually does, and then I couldn’t help but notice the lack of people sitting at them. I was never one for eating in public areas or even those little sidewalk patios at restaurants near the beach, but how could anyone resist that view? However I must admit there was a time when I could not for the life of understand just how people could sit and be alright with having other people walk by and watch them eat. It was honestly lost on me, that is until I did it. My friends have never been much for taking my opinion seriously, so lunch at the beach means sidewalk seating. I’m not going to lie to you, there is something about the fresh air, sun, and the snips of conversation as people pass by with their ice-cream cones and cars blasting Bob Marley. It’s kind of like someone took a Polaroid picture of Summer. So this is where I start my countdown to Summer; packed beach parking lots, flip-flops, spots in the shade,  good friends, good food, good times in general, and a return to sidewalk eating.

#threelittlebirds

Turkey, Havarti, Cranberry, Alfalfa!

My sister pulled out the sandwich maker the other day, the one from the back of the cupboard that melts your cheese, and turns your bread into strange little pieces of flattened dough. Hadn’t seen that badboy in while, but it got me thinking. So I was pacing around today, trying to decide what to eat, when it suddenly dawned on me that’s what I wanted. A sandwich, you know, the kind you get for lunch as a kid. Maybe minus the slimy packaged meat and wilted lettuce, but you catch my drift. That underestimated, over embellished, lunch box classic… Unfortunately for me, deli meat is not exactly a staple at my house, so I had to settle for grilled cheese. Which was delicious, and none-the-less did the trick, but not exactly what I was hankering for. Don’t get me wrong, im not talking about slathering bread with mayo and mustard and throwing some meat on it. I’m talking about a sandwich you want to eat, the kind you look forward to instead of cringing at when you remember what you made for lunch. A more refined version of your typical deli deal. It’s not complicated, but probably a little better than you remember.

#hamandcheese

mmm, cornbread

Cornbread just went in the oven, the perfect Sunday night snack. Cant wait!

A Day Set in Blue and Gold

“Clouds come floating into my life, no longer carry rain or usher storm, but add color to my sunset sky” ~ Rabindranath Tagore

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Lentil Stew!

Alright, so you’re in for it today (as if you’re not in for it every other day)

For my first rant, the weather. This is Vancouver! lets face it, one thing you can count on it to do two-thirds out of the year is rain. Although I am not a particular fan of color grey and, the weather tends to have an adverse effect on my over-all demeanor, some days, I cant help but find a strange calm in the sound of cars driving by on a wet road, or notice how much better my tea tastes under an umbrella.  It’s March, and yesterday I woke up to flurries, so I’m all for a little meteorological spontaneity.  This is however completely unrelated to the rant I’m supposed to be on.

So I was on my way home today, trying to come up with an idea for family dinner, a challenge that is, well, exactly that, a challenge. So having turned up short, and  becoming annoyed,  I decided to postpone that slightly ambitious project and focus my attention on the more pressing and immediate future. Lunch. After wracking my brain about that as well, I decided that lentil stew would be the perfect complement to my day.

Inspiration:  Hunger, rain, and whole lot mouths to feed. I’m used to myself and my darling sidekick, but there were a few extra people in my kitchen today, since my mom, brother, and best friend decided to show themselves. A few extra mouths and a few extra hands. Since when is five not company?

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Left Over Linguine