9 posts tagged “trader joe's”

Here's the link where you can find out. [PDF]

Just have a bunch of links I want to share today. Hope you like 'em:

They ask that pithy question right here.

Today I didn't feel much like cooking, but I also didn't feel much like going hungry. So I made one of my standbys: Spaghetti and Meatballs. I like to combine prepared foods with just enough fresh to make me feel healthy, so try not to be too impressed with the recipe ;)

I've been cranky since Tuesday about food, exercise, my body etc. I am tired of being living proof that being a vegan is NOT a synonym for anorexia. Seriously, I should be made an ambassador to every person who utters that "vegans look so sickly" meme. Because I, on the other hand, am, shall we say, over-"healthy."

I know I haven't exercised in the last couple of months. I know I could eat more veggies. I know that when I make good home-cooked meals I tend to eat too large a portion, going fork-to-fork with my much larger S.O. But in general I don't consider myself to eat in a lavish, gluttonous way...mostly I'm pretty simple.

So, I'm trying to figure out how to turn this aggravation into action when I'm still in start-up, work at least 12 hours per day mode.

-On Tuesday I stopped at Whole Foods and picked up a salad bar (with three protein sources) for lunch...more salads, fewer burritos should be my mantra. Even when those burritos are vegan burritos and packed with protein themselves.

-On Tuesday I also stopped at Whole Foods again on my way home and did a major shopping, focusing on fresh fruits and veggies I can eat without a lot of prep work. Stone fruit are in season, which is wonderful...if occasionally messy :)

-Yesterday I tried a new recipe...this time one I saw in my local newspaper and clipped out. Can't remember the last time I did that! It was Piquant Tomatillo and Jicama Salad

The only change I made to the recipe is that I'm not a big cilantro fan, so I actually took out some of those frozen parsley cubes you can get at Trader Joes and chopped them up instead. Could have used basil too. It worked just fine and was quite Piquant, just as the recipe name promises.

I also bought the ingredients to try a couple more recipes over the next week. Perhaps my problem has been exactly that I've stuck to a simple food routine...which can begin to equal boring...which can begin to encourage mindless eating.

Big thing still to figure out: What is a form of exercise that a) I will enjoy and b) I will find time for? Going walking once a week with one of my friends is nice, but not exactly sufficient.

I'm a little tired of being a burrito-eating, workaholic couch potato, but not quite sure what I want to be instead yet!

And it's only so-so. I used to love the Gnocchi you could get at Trader Joe's...particularly the one with Marinara sauce and cheese because it wasn't quite such a heart attack waiting to happen as the Gnocchi Gorgonzola (which was a bit tastier, can't deny it, but so very unhealthy.)

I would mix that Gnocchi up with other spare veggie I had, frozen and not frozen, add extra garlic, and go to town.

But yeah, the cheese made that a not-possible option, and they didn't really have anything to replace it.

but on my last trip to TJ's I noticed they had a Penne Arrabiatta that was vegan, so I gave it a try. Again I tossed in some Roasted Corn and extra Garlic, and even a little vegan Parmesan.

I would not say it blew my mind. It would definitely be the dinner you throw together when throwing something in the microwave is really all you have energy for...when even slicing up one potato or sauteeing one box of seitan is just too much.

And can anyone tell me why Trader Joe's can't keep their microwaveable rice pouches in stock? They're always out...order more, people!

Breakfast:
Organic Peach
Organic Banana

Lunch:
Diet Coke
Leftover Fingerling Potatoes and Brown Rice with Organic Avocado
Leftover Wasabi Noodles

Snack:
Cashews

Dinner:
Penne Arrabiatta with Roasted Corn and Vegan Parmesan

Finally made it to the grocery store, and I think I promptly ate some of every item I bought for dinner :)

Breakfast:
Organic "Fruit Loops"
Rice Milk
Coffee with Soy Silk

Lunch:
Amy's Vegan Burrito
Organic Avocado

Dinner:
2 slices of this yummy jalapeno bread from TJs
Eggless Egg Salad from TJs
Mixed with Nayonnaise, Lettuce and Edamame
Fat-free Caramel Corn from TJs (Certainly not sugar-free, though...made my teeth ache after a while!!)

On Day 162 I went to meet the tax man. My personal taxes? No biggie, he's done 'em before; I had all the info he needed, even if not in exactly the format he asked for. BlogHer's taxes? I wasn't prepared enough; I didn't have it together quite enough. I could have left all the info with him, and he could have made it work, but as pointed out: we'd be paying him a lot more per hour than we probably wanted to do stuff that I could probably do.

The whole time vs. money thing. When on earth am I going to have time to do the work, even if I understand what needs to be done?

Anyway, needless to say: I exited the office depressed. I thought I had pulled it all together, just under the wire, but discovered I had more to do.

The bright spot was that his office was literally across the street from a Trader Joe's. As you know, this is one of my favorite stores, so I decided to take an end-of-day sopping excursion as my compensation for the misery of working on taxes! Unfortunately when I emerged from Trader Joe's, with familiar favorites and new items to try, i didn't feel completely comforted. I decided I needed even more comfort. So, I decided to take the long way home, stop by my favorite vegan restaurant (that I don't go to that often anymore) Garden Fresh, and pick up some dinner. Ah, yes! That did the trick for a while :)

Um, yeah, I realize the whole food=comfort thing is not good in general, however, given that when we don't have food on hand it leads to scavenging through the cupboards, making meals out of condiments practically, I consider shopping and stocking up to be comforting in a positive way: like, I'm taking care of myself by making sure we have healthy food on hand.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

Breakfast:
Organic Pomegranate Juice
Organic Corn Flakes and Organic Rice Milk

Lunch:
Leftover Pasta (Verdure and Capellini) from Pasta Pomodoro
Soy Ice Cream/Cookie Sandwich

Dinner (Garden Fresh):
Scallion Pancakes
Sweet and Sour "Pork"
Braised "Duck"
Orange Vegetarian "Beef"

That's me.

So, you're going to get a short and sweet recap of yesterday. And you'll see that everything I ate was short and sweet too.

Breakfast:
Organic Pineapple Juice/Odwalla Grapefruit Juice
Puffins Cereal (with a little Organic "Fruit Loops" thrown in)
Organic Rice Milk

Lunch:
Diet Coke
Packaged Lentil dish from Trader Joe's (2 minutes in the microwave, spicy and tasty...yum)
Mini-Pita

Dinner:
Brown Rice (Turns out TJ's also has microwavable pouches of this stuff! Best idea EVER!)
Corn Kernels
Guacamole (Mix up some rice, corn and guac, and you have a burrito without the tortilla. Anyone who's ever gone out to Mexican food with me knows I tend to split open the burrito and eat the insides only anyway, so why even bother?)
Coconut Sorbet (At last I found something to satisfy my sweet tooth...that isn't that incredibly rich vegan Chocolate Cake from Whole Foods)