Plans for the Week of March 10th

Hi! How was your weekend? I hope it was fabulous!

I had a lovely weekend. We went out with friends to a karaoke bar on Friday, which was so much fun, and the rest of the weekend was spent doing just the "usual stuff"  (groceries, house cleaning, watching Season 3 of Sons of Anarchy {LOVE!!!} etc). Yesterday, I spent some time in the kitchen doing food prep for the week. Last week I was really successful in sticking to my clean eats goals and I am determined to be just as good this week.

Yesterday I made:

 * Baked Blueberry Banana Oatmeal
 * Hard-boiled Eggs
 * Homemade Tater Soup - for Derek & his dad
 * Quinoa (to add to salads, roasted veggies, etc)

Now here is where I should be inserting a pic or two of my food prep, but someone <cough, me, cough> has misplaced her cord and cannot download any photos right now :-/

I'm planning for the following dinners this week:

 * BBQ Tofu with Roasted Balsamic Broccoli
 * Lentil Veggie Mac 'N Cheese
 * Toasted TLT (tempeh, lettuce & tomato)
 * Spaghetti Squash with Veggies
 * Veggie Omlets with Sweet Potato Homefries

I also bought a ton of fresh veggies that I'm planning to wash and chop tonight because the one thing I'd like to improve on this week is adding more salads to my daily eats - I'll be having salads for lunch or adding them as a side to our dinners. Now that the weather is starting to warm up, I crave fresh greens so much more!

In addition to my eats, here's what the workout plans are looking like this week:

*Sunday - Rest
*Monday - Bootcamp (new love that kicks my butt!!)
*Tuesday - Spin
*Wednesday - Rest
*Thursday - Zumba
*Friday - Active Rest or a new lunchtime Bootcamp
*Saturday - Yoga

So here's to another successful week my friends!

What do you have planned for the upcoming week? 

Have a great day!!

Andrea
xoxo

Today's Motivation:

Source

What I Ate Wednesday ~ Clean Eats

Good morning! Happy Wednesday.

Whew, it's been a looonnnggg time since I've come around these parts to share a day in the life of my eats. I'm sure many of you shared amazing holiday treats and sweets over the past few weeks, but I was so busy stuffing my face with said treats that I didn't read a single WIAW post or snap a single pic!

I enjoyed all of my eating indulgences over the holiday season, but I have to admit that I'm pretty happy to get back into a healthier eating routine (um.....my oh so snug pants are pretty happy too!). 

As you know, I'm really excited to be using The Eat Clean Diet and Vega's Thrive Forward program as my inspiration as I start the journey to clean eating. I've been using The Eat Clean Diet Vegetarian Cookbook ALOT since Christmas (thanks to my fab hubs who bought it for me!).

Here's a peek at a day in the life of my eats:

Breakfast

I made an AWESOME Baked Cinnamon Pear Steel Cut Oats casserole on Sunday and I've been enjoying leftovers every morning since. I love it topped with plain non-fat Greek yogourt and a drizzle of pure maple syrup.

*recipe for this coming VERY soon*

Lunch

Brown baggin' it is absolutely the way to go. I've been going to the gym right after work, so I bring lunch and lots of snacks to work with me. This was Monday's lunch: leftover Festive Sweet Potato Salad, clementines, two plain brown rice cakes with 1/3 of an avocado to smash ;-) on them later, 2 light Babybel cheese rounds (leftovers from Christmas) and a sample of chai guarana  tea that came with an order of  David's tea.

Dinner

These open-faced english muffin pizzas came straight out of The Eat Clean Diet Vegetarian Cookbook. It's fast and delish! As a side, I made some parsnip fries with dijon for dippin'.

Not too shabby, right?!

What have you been munching on now that the holidays are behind us?

If you're looking for more healthy meal inspiration as we jump feet first into 2013, make sure you head on over to Peas & Crayons to see what other bloggers have been feasting on.

Have a GREAT day!

Andrea

xoxo

What I Ate (Since My Last Post) Wednesday

I have been an absent little blogger this past week. That pesky cold that I'd been battling came roaring back with a vengeance and I couldn't breathe or taste for days upon days! Then my mom & dad came for a quick weekend visit and I was just too darn busy having fun to get online. Our laptop didn't see the light of day from Thursday of last week until last night ---- that's never happened before! Dare I say it's feeling a wee bit neglected?!

When my parents come to town, they're in high demand and other than a quick coffee at home, we didn't eat in once. We were out with family and friends for every meal, which was great, but I admit that it also feels great to get back into a normal, healthy eating routine.



Here's a peek at yesterday's eats...

Breakfast
Peach-passionfruit Greek yogourt with granola.

Dunkin' Donuts Pumpkin coffee with milk. L<3VE (thank you DAD)!!!!

Lunch
Leftover roasted veggie thin crust pizza, a Honeycrisp apple and a Sparkling Ice ~ Pink Grapefruit.

Snack
Homemade crockpot applesauce. In this batch, I used Honeycrisp and Cortland apples.

Dinner
I was craving comfort food yesterday. I haven't felt like cooking since I came down with this cold, so most of my meals have been quick and random. Finally, last night I felt like putting together a real meal. We had cheese tortellini with veggies in a rose sauce and Caesar salad. It was so good!

What meal do you crave most once you get your appetite back?
What's your fave pasta sauce?

If you're looking for more meal ideas or some spook-tastic Hallowe'en treat inspiration, check out all the link love over at Peas & Crayons. 

Have a fabulous day!

Andrea

xoxo

Menu Prepping for the Week

Hey there!

Derek & I are a really busy family of 2. It can be hard to find time to hang out together and when we are lucky enough to spend some time together, the last thing either of us wants to be doing is spending the entire night prepping a meal, washing dishes, prepping lunches for the next day, etc...and let's be honest, when I say "us" and "we", I mean ME :)

I've been making the effort to get more organized on the weekend, so that our weeknight meal and lunch prep can be quick and easy. Not only does it take the pressure off during the week, but it also helps us to stay on course and eat heathy nutritious meals instead of picking up pizza and fast food.

I've said it before and I'll say it again....

PLANNING = SUCCESS

Menu planning really isn't that hard to do....in fact, I've talked about it on the blog in the past and most weeks I do take time to make some sort of a plan with respect to our eats.

My meal planning process goes something like this:

1. Browse Flyers and Check the Pantry - We get our flyers on Thursday night. Sometime between Thursday evening and Saturday morning, I take a quick peek to see what's on special. I also take a peek in the fridge, freezer and pantry to see what we have on hand.

2.  Make a Menu - I then take half an hour Friday after work to jot down a menu. I aim to have enough on hand for 5 days' worth of meals, plus a few grab n go snacks.

3. Make a Grocery List - SO IMPORTANT!!! Make a list before you head out to the grocery store and stick to it. As you know, I have a really difficult time sticking to a grocery budget. I'm an impulsive buyer and my fridge and cupboards are packed full of food. Someday I may share a pic....but it's really embarassing --- especially when we often have the nerve to complain that there's nothing to eat!!

4. Buy your Groceries - Saturday mornings are typically when I run errands and do our grocery shopping. I take my list and go to the grocery store, farmers' market and about once a month I try to stop at the Bulk Barn.

5. Prep your Food  - Do you ever buy a ton of fruits and veggies only to have them sit in your crisper until they rot and need to be tossed? This used to happen to us all the time. Now, I make an effort to spend about an hour a week prepping my food, so that we can just grab and go. I chop veggies, cook up rice or quinoa, do up some hard-boiled eggs for Derek, marinate tofu for myself and do any other preparation that's needed for the week. I then store everything in bags or Tupperware containers in the fridge for ease of access all week long.

Planning saves time, money and waste.

This week, I went a little crazy on Sunday and did a whole bunch of prep work. It took me closer to 2 hours to do, but then it literally took me 5 minutes to pack both of our lunches this morning and that makes me one happy girl.

Prep your veggies for soups, salads, stews or just to eat raw throughout the week.

Prep a large quantity of rice or quinoa to add to salads, soups, wraps, stirfries, etc.

Marinated salads are great to make ahead and enjoy all week long.

I store everything in Tupperware and in mason jars in the refrigerator. 

On Sunday, I prepared:

- BBQ crockpot chicken for Derek (for Sunday dinner & another meal of leftovers)

- Brittany's Garlicky Kale Salad

- Angela's Speedy Three Bean Salad

- a Quinoa/Bulger Mix

- Chopped a Watermelon

- Hard Boiled Eggs

- Shredded Zucchini for Oatmeals, Scrambles & Muffins

Here's a peek at what my menu plan looks like this week:

Breakfast

- Cereal & Milk

- Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats

- Egg/Veggie Scrambles

Lunches

- Salad Plates (could include: garlicky kale, bean salad, lettuce salad, cottage cheese, pickled beets)

- Hard Boiled Eggs (for Derek)

- Greek Yogourt

- Shredded BBQ Chicken or Tuna Sandwiches (for Derek)

- Chickpea Salad Sandwiches (for me)

Snacks

- Brown Mini Rice Cakes

- Chopped Watermelon

- Greek Yogourt

- Zucchini Muffins

Dinner

- BBQ Crockpot Chicken & Veggies (for Derek)

- Sweet Potato Rounds with a Kale/Quinoa/Lentil Mix

- Toasted Tomato Sandwiches with Butternut Squash Fries

- Leftovers (once)

- Homemade Pot Pies (beef for Derek and veggie for me) with Roasted Brussel Sprouts
- Homemade Veggie Noodle Soup and Cheesy Italian Bread

See how many healthy, hearty meals you can whip together in just a matter of a few minutes!

What is your favourite mid-week dinner?

Have a great Tuesday and I'll see you tomorrow with my latest & greatest What I Ate Wednesday post,

Andrea

xoxo

What I Ate Wednesday

Happy Wednesday! I am personally so happy to see this humpity hump day arrive. I don't know why, but I have been so stinkin' sleepy this week and the coming weekend is a long one for us Canadians (Happy Canada Day!), so I am hoping to spend some late mornings tucked away in my comfy cozy bed. Ah....sleeping in. That is one luxury that Derek & I rarely get and absolutely cherish when we do!

Of course, I also love Wednesdays because I just love sharing my weekly eats with you. I haven't been the best at taking pics of my snacks this week, but I have had some pretty great meals that should tantalize your taste buds.

Breakfast

Coffee with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, an apple

and a multigrain bagel thin with all-natural peanut butter.

Mid-Morning Snack
More. Caffeine.

Island Coconut coffee. Delish and smells absolutely divine.

Lunch
Oh boy, do I have a new recipe for you....tomorrow.

Mini taco wonton bites.
YUMMMMEEEEE.

Dinner
Grilled portabello mushroom caps, half a steamed sweet potato and grilled corn & cheddar quinoa.

Too.Die.For.

Tastebuds tickled?!

For even more mouth-watering meal ideas, head on over to Peas & Crayons
to check out Jenn's What I Ate Wednesday page.

Do you like flavoured coffee? What's your fave flave?

What do you do to keep energized on days when you can barely hold your eyes open?

 

I hope you have a WONDERFUL day,

Andrea
xoxo

WIAW: Salads & Snackage

Howdy and welcome to yet another What I Ate Wednesday post!

As you can see from my title, this isn't going to be an ordinary WIAW post. This month my focus is on eating at least one salad per day and the lovely Miss Jenn, host with the most of this weekly party, has challenged us to also focus on sensible snacking. Well I'm definitely an expert when it comes to snackage, so I'm thinking this month's eats are going to be super wickedly delish!

Instead of seeing 'a day in the life' of my eats, I've decided to flip back into my Instagram and Twitter pics and show you some of my most awesome salads and snacks of late. Hopefully I'll motivate you to get all crazy and *gasp* jump on the healthy train with me.

Are ya game?!

Here goes nothin'....

 

First off, check out some of my most excellent snacks...

LUNA Bars rock my world!

Chopped apple with natural peanut butter gives a boost of energy to get through the workday.

SMOOTHIES!!! Love, love, love anytime of day!

My usual mix includes vanilla protein powder, vanilla almond milk, 1 frozen banana and some other frozen fruit. Sometimes I add spinach too!

....and my most excellent salads....

Grilled Veggie Salad with Black Beans & Quinoa on a bed of mixed greens - super filling!

I love this type of salad when I need something to keep me fueled for an after work sweat session.

Asian Crunch Salad

(mixed greens, peppers, slivered almonds, crunchy sticks, shredded cabbage and a sesame dressing)

 

Mixed Greens with goat cheese, chickpeas & sundried tomatoes...and dijon of course!

Add a slice of pizza and you pretty much have perfection :-D

Broccoli & Chickpea Salad with a veggie quesadilla --- yummers!

Like whatcha see? Follow me on Twitter (@Vegvacious) if you want to see my eats on a daily basis - I try to take pics of at least one or 2 meals each day....for more foodie inspiration, head on over to visit Peas & Crayons to see what other bloggers have been noshing on this week.

What's your favourite "sensible" snack?

 What's your favourite type of bar? I love LUNA Bars, Pure Bars & Clif Bars.

Have a great day,

Andrea

xoxo

What I Ate Wednesday ~ Clean Eats

Happy Wednesday! How's your weather? Ours has been absolutely dreamy. Today is the only day in the foreseeable future that is calling for rain .... I know our farmers need it, so I'll take it, but just for today mmmkay?

I've been attempting to keep my eats really clean and by amping up the veggies and reducing the amount of processed food, I've been having a lot of success.

Check out my recent eats:

Breakfast

If you'd asked me last week what my feeling were on eggs, I would have told you that I absolutely despise egg whites. In fact, I love my eggs scrambled, but do not like the whites or the yokes separated. When I was trying to figure out a quick and easy breakfast that stayed in line with my clean eats goal, I kept seeing recipes for egg white scrambles. So, I bought myself a container of egg whites on the weekend and decided to give it a go and see if I could choke 'em down. Surprisingly, when you add lots of veggies, some sundried tomatoes and a shake of Spicy Mrs. Dash, you'd hardly even notice that it was only egg whites! I've been enjoying this breakie for the past few days now and think it's safe to say that I am now a converted egg whites 'liker.'

Lunch

I've been having the biggest, most awesome salads ever! Most of them include baby spinach, goat cheese or grilled tofu, sundried tomatoes, tons of veggies and an apple cider vinegar/dijon combo as the topper. DEEELISH!

Snackage

I got a new vegan vanilla protein powder on the weekend and I've been loving it in all sorts of fruit smoothies. Sadly, I take my smoothies to work for my mid-morning snack and I haven't managed one single pic! My other snack of choice has been the Fitnessista's Chocolate Chip Protein Ballz. Um, why have I never tried these before?? A protein-packed little ball of amazingness for sure! It's the perfect treat for late afternoon when I'm planning to go to the gym before dinner...the best part is that they taste sinfully good, which tricks the junk food lover in me into thinking I'm 'cheating' - ha!

Dinner

This is definitely the most difficult time for me to stick to a clean meal because as soon as I get home from work or the gym, my immediate reaction is to reach for something to munch on. I also crave carbs and do not crave veggies at this time of day. So far, I've been doing pretty well....my fave meal was from Monday when I stirfried a ginormous plate of fresh veggies --- can you see all that asparagus?! I spiced 'er up with some cumin, cayenne and spicy Mrs. Dash and then topped it with some chopped cashews. It seems that chopped nuts or a scoop of quinoa amp up the meal to make it satisfying enough for my last meal of the day.

For dessert, I had a few bites of stewed strawberry rhubarb. Um...remember that big pot of stewed strawberry rhubarb from Monday??? Yep, it's gone :)

So there you have it. I'm pretty happy with how well I've been eating. I am feeling light, yet full, and very satisfied!!! 

Thank you to Jenn for continuing to host our Wednesday eats party! Check out her What I Ate Wednesday page to get even more meal inspiration. 

What do you snack on when you're heading to the gym before dinner? 

 What is your fave smoothie combo? My current fave is strawberry, banana & kiwi!!!

Have a great Wednesday!

Andrea

xoxo