WIAW~ October 21, 2015

It’s that Happy time of week when we get together over at Peas & Crayons and talk about what we’ve been eating all week.  It’s What I Ate Wednesday!  When you’re finished here, be sure to stop over there to see what everyone’s been munching on all week long!

I’m always up for a breakfast at the diner.  My best friend Gail and I took our other best friend Alice and Gail’s brother, Ray to the airport for a flight to Florida.  No problem except that we had to leave at 4:30 am!!  Again, no problem, but we wanted to go to breakfast and contrary to what we thought, all of the local diners are Not open at 5 am! We went to one that had recently reopened after renovations.  It looked nice but this was 5 am.  There were only 2 other people in the diner and we had to wait almost 25 minutes for our food.  It wasn’t that great when we finally got it.

But it was better than some early diner breakfasts I’ve had.  We headed to the gym afterwards to work it off.

I got a better breakfast at home on another day.  I like trying unique things with omelettes.

Not the prettiest photo but very tasty.  Egg beaters and egg whites seasoned with Mrs. Dash and chipotle powder.  Inside chopped broccoli, 2% cheese and a quarter cup of black beans.  Topped with Cholula hot sauce, my new favorite.  The small addition of the quarter cup of black beans makes this extremely filling.  I add them in whenever I have the home-made beans in the fridge.

Sometimes I’ll take a little shortcut.  Ralph brought home a salad from a local convenience store labeled “super food” salad.  It was made with kale, slivered almonds and chopped apples.

I added some chopped spinach, cucumbers, tomatoes, black beans, 2 % cheese and light balsamic vinaigrette.  It was delicious!  It’s nice to take a little help when you can.  I love doing that with store-bought salads.  I can always find a way to make them more substantial or add some protein.

One more salad.  Ralph and I went to one of our favorite restaurants on Monday afternoon.  In line with my continued efforts to get back on and stay on track with my food choices, I had already decided what I would have before we got there.  When the server brought the menu, I left it on the table and didn’t even look.  I didn’t want to be tempted to stray from my plan.

This restaurant has the best Greek Salad I’ve ever tried.  It looked better but I started to poke around at it.  I forgot that I’m blogging again and needed a nice photo!  Regardless, I think it’s beautiful and I know it was delicious.  I also asked for only one roll with it, that way I wouldn’t be tempted by an entire basket.  I keep trying!

That’s What I Ate Wednesday for me this week.  I need to get back to doing more cooking and coming up with some unique things.  We’ll see how I do.  Whatever I come up with, you can be sure I’ll be back here next Wednesday.  Be sure to stop over at Peas & Crayons to check out the other linkers!

Happy What I Ate Wednesday!

 

WIAW-The Green Chile Edition

It has been Oh So Very Long since I’ve participated in a What I Ate Wednesday party hostessed by the lovely Jenn at Peas & Crayons. I’m so excited to be back and to see what everyone is sharing today. Let’s see if I remember How!

So much has happened in the months since I’ve been away but most recently Ralph and I spent 3 weeks in New Mexico.  Was I happy to be there?  You better believe it!  I love being there in general, but the food is one of my favorite parts of our visits. Also another reason that I can’t wait to be there permanently.  Here Goes…

One of the best things about New Mexico especially in the fall is the presence of green chiles.  Everywhere you go they’re offered.  Trust me, I’m not complaining.  Here are some of my happy meetings with the ever-present green chile.

One of the wonderful things about New Mexico is that if you ask nicely they’ll turn a veggie burger into a green chile cheese burger.  This was a new restaurant we hadn’t tried before.  We Will go there again.

This was a green chile cheese quesadilla.  I asked to have grilled mushrooms added…Very Good Idea.

This is called a Build Your Own Omelette.  I added spinach, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms and green chile.  So good!  You can’t see much of it in the photo, but this could possibly be the best biscuit I’ve ever eaten.  I’ve been to this restaurant for breakfast before but never thought to ask for a biscuit.  Believe me, I won’t make that mistake again.

Another breakfast was huevos rancheros.  These are so unique to New Mexico.  I always try to have them when I’m there.  You get the choice of either red or green chile, but of course I always pick the green!

This was a black bean and cheese quesadilla.  As I think about it, I probably should have requested green chile be added.  Missed opportunity but it was still delicious.  Also tasty was what they called guacamole salad. It was a fresh, crisp salad topped with guacamole.  Very good.

I realize that this sounds like a Lot of green chile.  I suppose some people might think it sounds boring to have the same thing so often.  There is a real variety of great food choices in Silver City.  I just never get the green chile anywhere else.  When we move there, maybe I’ll get tired of them, but for now I take my opportunities whenever I can.

Be sure to check out all of the other bloggers sharing their mouth-watering selections over at Peas & Crayons.  Get some ideas, leave some comments.  Join the party!

Happy What I Ate Wednesday!

 

Strange But Good~That’s A Weird Breakfast!

It’s been a few weeks since I joined in on Strange But Good hostessed by Laura at Sprint 2 The Table so I thought I’d join the party!  There are always so many crazy good food ideas there.  Be sure to check it out.

I started out the week making a crock pot full of one of my favorite things…Lentils.  Everything was going smoothly.  After that I started on a pot of my Weight Watchers Veggie Soup.  In the midst of making the soup, I suddenly realized that I’d made a mistake with the lentils.  Usually, I put in a cup of dried lentils into my small crock pot with onion, garlic and seasoning.  As I was throwing scraps into the trash can I noticed the bag from the lentils…I had put in the Entire Bag!!

I ended up having to move the lentils from one crock pot to another, which in the end was almost too small.  I also ended up with a huge amount of cooked lentils.  I use a cup of them each time I eat the soup which is not usually a problem but I was left with double my usual stash.  I had to think of other ways to use them

Often on BCDC I talk about foods that are not attractive but tasty.  This dish certainly fits into that description.

 

To my usual mixture of egg substitute and egg whites, I added a quarter cup of my cooked lentils.  I also added in some Mrs. Dash and crushed red pepper flakes.   Not pretty in the measuring cup.

 

Not pretty when mixed in with the egg substitute.

 

Not really all that pretty as a finished omelette.  I added some shredded 2% cheese inside and on top.   Not photogenic, true.  But really, really good!  Almost more importantly, it was also extremely filling.  When I have a regular omelette, I start to feel hungry in a couple of hours.  This kept me satisfied almost until lunch time.  I eat pretty early so this was an accomplishment.  It also gave me a nice protein boost of 4.5 extra grams over the regular omelette.  I’m pretty excited that I tried this and I’ve tried it again since I first figured it out.  Sounds weird I know, but give it a try!

Be sure to check out all of the wonderful strangeness over at Sprint 2 The Table today.

Happy Friday!

Strange But Good~Extra Protein

It has been a VERY long time since I joined in on Strange But Good.  That’s the link up hostessed by Laura at Sprint 2 The Table.  This is where we share our strange obsessions with food and our unique ways of combining and preparing it.  I’m glad to be back.  I love being Strange with these crazy people!

As a vegetarian, I’m constantly on the look out for ways to get extra protein into my meals.  I try things.  Sometimes they work, sometimes. they don’t.  Breakfast has recently been my guinea pig…strange for a vegetarian to use that analogy, but it works!

Yesterday, I had cooked up a batch of white beans in the crock pot.  I use them for a lot of things but never thought of using them for breakfast.

 

I use a mix of egg substitute and egg whites plus lots of Mrs. Dash.  Since I had the beans there and ready, I decided this morning I would add a quarter cup of the beans into the mixture.  No Idea how it would turn out.

 

Looks pretty much like a standard omelette.  I sprinkled a little dried basil on top to give it a little color and a little shredded 2% cheese inside.  The beans have a very mild flavor and the next time I might use a bit more spice.  I got 4 extra grams of protein so that was good.

The amazing thing is, it was Extremely Filling.  When I’m finished eating an omelette, I usually feel satisfied.  After this I felt Full.  Such a minor change and it made such a difference.  For me on Weight Watchers it only added one Point so I was pretty happy about this all around.

Be sure to stop by at Sprint 2 The Table to see what other strange things you’ll find.

Happy Friday!

Day After Birthday

Having survived my birthday, it was time for some continuing birthday celebrations, although they were low-key.

I had coupons, so guess where Ralph and I went for breakfast?

Why, Dunkin’ Donuts of course!  I had my first of their pumpkin spiced coffee (yum!) plus a veggie omelette flatbread (also yum!) These are so tasty and they are very filling.  Only cost me 7 Points on Weight Watchers.  Good Deal!

After breakfast, I had plans to go to Barnes & Noble with Ele, Jim and little Michael…so what else is new?!  Ralph had some things to work on and a football game at 1pm so he stayed home.  Since I got more gift cards for my birthday, I did some more Nook-looking because I think I have enough now to buy one.  Still have to decide.

Michael reading a book that Grummy Ele was buying him (hidden in his lap) and eating a cookie bigger than his head.  I swear that cookie stayed the same size in spite of the fact that he was eating it!

I was good, only had a cool lime refresher.  I was afraid they would only have them for the summer, but it looks like they’re on the permanent menu now.  I bought The Giver by Lois Lowry.  I only recently heard about this book.  I actually just found the second and third books in the series at the library on their “for sale” shelf for 50 cents each!  I decided I could give myself a birthday gift of the first in the series.  Only $6.99, pretty good.

I used one of my gift cards for the book and for this…

My new planner for 2013.  The good thing is it’s an 18 month planner so I can start it now! It has the weekly calendar on the left and a page for notes/lists on the right.  I need to get myself more organized and this is part of my effort.  I’m excited that I get to start now.  It was 20% off plus my 10% member discount, so a pretty good deal.  Now to get organized!! 😉

So I had a very good Day After.  We have a birthday celebration on Wednesday for Me and Ralph’s sister Maddie so I’ve got to be very mindful for the next two days so I’ll feel in control for that day. I’m feeling really good about all of this.

I’m off to make good choices and celebrate my Birthday Month!

Happy Monday!

Oh, My…From The Road

I don’t know why I’ve given this post that title, but there you are!  I’m tired and barely holding my eyes open at this moment. 

We left New Jersey on Tuesday at about 3:15pm and drove until 2:00am.  We found ourselves in Boiling Springs, S.C.  We also found ourselves in a Denny’s.

This was a particularly tasty veggie and cheese omelette.  The veggies were especially good…I could taste each veggie.  We hadn’t eaten for a long time and we were both happy with our choices.

After checking in to a very nice Comfort Inn we had a good (though too short)night’s sleep.  We were on the road again at about 10:45am and drove about an hour before stopping for breakfast at a Cracker Barrel.  It seemed that every exit had one!

I had an unusual breakfast.

Very colorless, but pretty tasty.  Scrambled eggs, grits (Grits?  I’m eating Grits?!) The breakfast came with Sawmill (pepper)gravy and biscuits.  Well you probably know by now how I feel about biscuits…I LIVE for biscuits!  I had asked for some apple butter which hadn’t come yet when I took the photo.  I ate the scrambled eggs, then combined the gravy with the grits.  Pretty tasty.  Saved the biscuits for last, smothered them with apple butter and I was in Cracker Barrel Heaven!  There are few things that can’t be made even better with apple butter!

We got to Atlanta at exactly 3pm…check-in time!  We did that and then spent (wasted) some time trying to find something that was lost, then got all of our luggage to the room and unpacked.  By then it was dinner.

We decided on dinner in the hotel.  Their restaurant is called Palio.  I wasn’t sure what would be available.  I have to admit that I may order this every night that we’re here.

This was one of the most unique dishes I’ve ever had.  Soba noodles, brocolini, Portobello mushrooms that were grilled and edamame in a delicious chunky tomato sauce topped with shredded parmesan cheese.  It was just delicious and I’m serious when I say I will order it again while I’m here.

Now I’m starting to drag and I need to get to bed so that I can get up tomorrow and have more fun here at the reunion.  My next post will hopefully be a bit more focused after some more sleep!

Happy Thursday!

Breakfast With The Boys!

Ralph and I hadn’t gotten the chance to see his son Bill and grandsons Alex and Patrick since we’ve been back from New Mexico.  Breakfast sounded like a good idea.  We scheduled it for 10am.  That allowed us plenty of time to enjoy ourselves and would get everyone home in time to see the Eagles game.  Yes, I have a lot of Eagles fans in my life.  I’m not a big football fan, but I’ve gotten more used to it over the years I’ve spent with Ralph.  Enough of that…Back to Breakfast!

We planned to meet at the Gateway diner.  Close for us, easy in and out for Bill and the Boys. Question to My Self: Alex is 19 and Patrick 17.  When will I stop referring to them as “The Boys?”  Probably never…they’re my Grandsons!

As is always, the diner was very busy on Sunday morning.  We got there a little early and I told the hostess there would be five of us, but they weren’t all here yet.  Gave her my name and she said just let her know when everyone was here.  I went outside to wait with Ralph and in not more than about 5 minutes they showed up.  We walked into the diner and she seated us right away.  That worked out much better than I had thought.  I was happy for that!

Strange lighting!  The blinds were down and just a bit of sun was coming in…my tomatoes look possessed! I had a spinach and cheese omelette with sliced tomatoes.  Very tasty!!

But I was really there for the company!  I love spending time with Bill and his Sons…See…I didn’t say “The Boys” that time!

After breakfast we took a short walk to a creek that runs just beside the diner.  We do that almost every time we go there because it can be so pretty.

Ralph, Patrick, Bill and Alex  A great group!

Should I title this “The End?”  I think I will.  We had a great time…The End!

Happy Monday!

Plan Ahead And See What Happens…

I am doing my best to get back on track and stay there.  I feel as if I’m moving forward in a really positive way.  I had hoped to walk in the morning, but by the time the sky cleared I walked outside and thought I would fall over from the heat and humidity.  I’m not going to belabor the topic but…It wouldn’t feel like this in New Mexico!!  Just sayin’…

Started with a good breakfast…overnight oats which I actually remembered to prepare last night!

Have I ever missed these!!  Topped with last summers frozen blueberries which sadly will be gone soon.  I’ll have to buy frozen from the grocery store then. 😦

Lunch was a quick egg salad sandwich on a toasted Aldi sandwich thin…

Why quick?  Because the egg salad was already made!  Love it when I do things in advance…why don’t I do it more often?!  Pickled jalapeno…Yum…

Made a run to the produce market to pick up some salad-y things.  I made a quick stop at Family Dollar.  I didn’t know they sold black beans!  I was so excited…

I’ve been thinking about crock pot beans which I missed while we were away.  So excited to Not have to make another stop to get them.  They are soaking away and will be crocked in the morning!  Can’t wait!

One bad thing (or maybe it’s a good thing) about stopping at Family Dollar…They have their Fall decorative things out.  I had actually seen these when we were in New Mexico…

Fall mugs, napkin holder and a new set of dish towels~  I was so excited when I saw these mugs in NM!  Hard to tell from the photo but they are Big!  I think they’re probably about 12 ounces.  I have a set of these from last year in a smaller mug size but when I saw the big ones, I just fell in love.  Love a nice big mug of tea or coffee.  Only bought two of these, one for me and one for Ralph.  Can you guess which is for who?  Of course the purple is for me!  Only $2.oo each for the mugs and napkin holder, the dish towels were $3.50 for 2.  Now I’m ready for Fall to officially start!

My major project was going through mail that came in while we were away and shredding and shredding.  I do feel more orderly after accomplishing that.  I’ve got to plan out what I’m going to do tomorrow.  I want to do something that relates to sorting and packing Every Day!  Think I’ll do it?  I sure hope so!

Happy Thursday!!  Complete A Project!

Take a Seat to Start The Day

Sunday morning our plan was to try something new!  Earlier this year, a new diner opened in Woodbury, it’s called the County Seat Diner.  It’s not a free-standing diner like we’re used to and because of parking limitations in Woodbury, we just never got around to going.  My sister Ele has been there on a number of occasions and highly recommended it.  We decided Sunday was the day to try it.

We were up and out early and were able to park in the public parking area that’s about three blocks away which was not a big imposition.  No traffic made crossing streets easy.

We could tell that it was a different type of atmosphere as soon as we walked in.  It was bright and everything looked new and welcoming.  The staff was welcoming as well.  The young lady who greeted us and seated us turned out to be our server as well.  Her name was Nicki and I swear she treated us as though she had a stake in the business.  She was so friendly and ready to offer anything we needed as well as any information we wanted regarding menu questions.

The County Seat’s menu is not as extensive as some other diner menus I’ve seen, but I’m sure it will be a work in progress as with most diners.  Still, lots of choices and Nicki kindly gave me a take out menu to take with me which is their full menu.

The County Seat occupies a location with a very long tradition as a restaurant in this area.  I’m not sure if it was the original business, but for years it housed the Homestead Restaurant.  That’s what it was when I was growing up and it was a sad day when the Homestead closed.  Other restaurants have occupied the space since the closing of the Homestead, but none have stayed for very long.  I have the feeling that the County Seat has a good chance of carrying on the Homestead’s long tradition.

I had been warned by Ele and Jim that the portions were enormous.  Truth in advertising…

Yikes!! This is the Mediterranean Omelette.  The County Seat gives you four eggs in an omelette rather than the three eggs we’re used to seeing.  This included spinach, tomato, mushrooms, onions and feta cheese.  I asked for the sliced tomatoes instead of hash browns, because I saw that they had biscuits and I wanted to try one.  I’m not sure if they were just being nice, but they gave me two! 

The omelette was delicious!  I only finished about half because it could be reheated and the biscuits would not be as good if they were reheated.  The biscuits were some of the best I’ve ever had.  We don’t often see biscuits offered around here so this was a treat for me.  Fresh and hot and so good with jelly.  Oh, yes…the Coffee was really good too!

Everyone was so friendly.  I tried to take a photo of Jim and Ralph and we got photo-bombed by another waiter named Chuck!

Ok…Take 2 with our waitress, Nicki!

The prices were quite reasonable especially when you consider the size of their servings.  There are a few vegetarian friendly menu items other than breakfast and they do offer a veggie burger.  I think I’ll try to encourage them to offer more veggie friendly dishes.  Because I do think we’ll be going back.  Everyone made us feel very much at home and the food and people were Great!  Try the County Seat Diner…I think you’ll like it!

Now I get to go eat the second half of my omelette! 

Happy Monday!  Happy Labor Day!!

Smarter Than I Think

Another 2-ish AM wake up again.  Tried for about an hour to go back to sleep.  Tried something different.  Ralph was sound asleep and facing away from me so I hoped my light wouldn’t disturb him.  Turned the light on and read for about 20 minutes.  I got really sleepy, outened the light and went back to sleep!! Woke up at my preferred time of 6AM.  Ok by me!  I need to try that from now on.  I even have a little light that hangs around my neck.  I could use that with less chance of waking Ralph.  I may have found a way around this!

Didn’t get to share a trip to Subway that Ralph and I took on Wednesday.

They now have pepper cheese which I like and I have them toast the bun and the cheese.  To that I add spinach, tomato, onion, sweet pepper, green pepper, jalapeno, black olives and southwest sauce.  I’m still trying to replicate that sauce.  It’s a mission.  As much as love Subway, I’m becoming a little disappointed in them.  They’re very reluctant to put much on the subs.  I always have to ask them to put extra. 

Yesterday’s breakfast was one of my favorites…Greek yogurt and Fiber one.  The yogurt was pineapple this time, the Aldi variety.  Yum…  Cheaper and tasty!

Love my little thrift store bowl.  Fifty cents if I remember correctly! 😉

Ralph decided we need to go out for a late lunch, funny thing though…we both had breakfast!

I had the Greek omelette…feta cheese, spinach, tomato and onion.  Slice tomatoes on the side in place of home fries.  So very tasty.  The best part was that because we were there between 3pm and 5pm we were eligible for the Early Bird special and…we saved $5.00 off our bill!  Excellent!

I’ve got lots to do today and I’m so glad I was able to get back to sleep.  I feel good and I think there will be at least one crock pot in my future today and I’m sure another over the weekend! Gotta cook those beans!

Happy Friday!!  🙂