Double Date

November 7th, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (9 Comments)

This afternoon the girls went off with Zak’s mom while Zak and I went on a little double date with my mom and step dad!

We hit the Rochester Museum and Science Center to visit the new Titanic exhibit that arrived last month.

Rochester Museum and Science Center

Real artifacts uncovered from the Titanic are currently on display at the museum. As soon as we heard about this exhibit I knew we had to go.

Titanic Exhibit

As we waited to enter the exhibit hall we were given boarding passes with the name of a real passenger who was on board.

Boarding Pass Front Bording Pass Back

At the end of the exhibit you were able to check the list to see if your passenger survived or not. Oh the suspense!

Boarding Pass Back

I was Mr. Edward Beane. Age 32. A newly wed! But a man and a second class passenger? Yeah, I’m pretty sure I was doomed.

The exhibit was great – it was so eerie to see things that had been uncovered from 12,500 feet below the surface of the North Atlantic. We couldn’t take photographs in the exhibit – but it really was fantastic. There was so much to read and see, relevant facts about the ship and passengers that were so ironic in relation to the sinking. I loved the movie and having watched it more times than I care to admit, this was a great way to spend a child-free afternoon.

We spent about an hour walking through the exhibit and and then toured the museum for another half hour or so before declaring ourselves officially hungry.

It was a beautiful fall evening and was made even better knowing it was time to go eat!

Beautiful Evening

My mom picked the restaurant ahead of time – Sinbad’s, this a great little Mediterranean place on Park Ave. near the Rochester Museum and Science Center.

Sinbad's Restaurant, Rochester NY

Sinbad's Restaurant, Rochester NY

I had calorie counting in mind tonight, but also decided I was still going to enjoy myself and not worry about it too much.

Let’s get this party started! A glass of Heron Hill Riesling, a local New York State wine pour moi.

Riesling

And a couple of appetizers for everyone to share. Falafel and something called Maza which was baked pita crisps stuffed with feta, scallions, olive oil and spices.

There was plenty to go around but my goal tonight was to not leave the restaurant feeling absolutely stuffed but also not feeling like I deprived myself either. I had one of each and loved every bite.

Appetizers

My entree was the Ali Baba Pitza – with a name like Ali I don’t think there was any other choice for me really.

A pizza on thin, crispy pita bread with garlic sauce as a base, topped with feta, eggplant, tomatoes, olives and parsley.

Ali Baba Pitza

It was huge! And SO, SO good. I had two pieces (about half), gave one piece to Zak and we brought the last piece home.

I also enjoyed a bite of Zak’s artichoke salad.

Artichoke Salad

Everyone loved their food and totally enjoyed the atmosphere at Sinbad’s! It makes me even more excited to move into the city and be closer to all of the fun, funky restaurants like this.

From a calorie counting perspective, I’m totally pleased with how dinner went tonight – I didn’t need to be rolled out the restaurant but enjoyed myself without too much concern over how many calories I was consuming. Sinbad’s isn’t a chain and their menu items aren’t in The Daily Plate database, but I did the best I could picking similar sounding items and think I got some pretty good estimates to get a ball park idea of where I ended up today.

A fun day with fabulous company and fabulous food!

When we picked up the girls we discovered they’d been quite busy today with Hanna! All sorts of baking and cooking and digging in garden and chasing chickens. Child bliss.

I played hide and seek with child-made peanut butter cookie. Psst! It’s hiding in my belly! No one has been able to find it yet!

Peanut Butter Cookie

Counting calories and knowing that I probably still had a calorie deficit today (thanks to my long run – shew!) is totally saving me from diving into that little zip lock bag of cookies that’s now in my kitchen cupboard. It’s the strangest thing. I think if I didn’t know approximately where I stood with calories today I would be feeling very “oh well – I blew it, might as well have two more!” But I’m not. This is a very good thing.

And oh yes, my passenger and his new wife both survived. Crisis averted. Sort of.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


A Fast 7

November 7th, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Fitness - (9 Comments)

Yesterday during a grocery store excursion I was very excited to see young coconuts in produce! I haven’t seen them in ages and when I spotted three of them all in a row, I very happily played Eeny Meeny Miny Moe Get in the Cart and Let’s Go.

My-Mother-Says-You-Are-The-Very-Best-One.

Sweet Young Coconut

With my sweet little young coconut in hand, I got to thinking that coconut water is really good after a hard work out. What a great reason to get out there and bust my ass first thing this morning, wouldn’t you agree?

Last night I decided I would run 7 miles this morning but then this morning decided to kick it up a notch and run a FAST 7.

I enjoyed my coconut oil laced turd on a plate MamaBar and got my sneakers on.

Turd on a Plate

Knowing I planned to pick up the pace, I decided to give the old episodes of Jillian a rest and listen to some music instead. I contemplated leaving the iPod behind all together, like I do for short fast runs, but decided today for 7 miles I wanted some music for the long haul.

I hit the mile 1 at 7:40 and felt comfortable at that pace knowing I had 6 more miles to go.

At mile 2 (I wear an old fashioned digital watch but happen to know some of the mile marker land marks because I do this route so often) at 15:26 – making my pace for Mile 2 about 7:46. My goal was to keep my average pace under 8 minutes – so far so good.

I cruised along and at mile 5 my watch said 39:11, which I knew was still under 8 min/miles. Thanks to my favorite pace calculator I can see now that made my average pace about 7:50 per mile at that point.

I was really starting to feel tired at 5 miles. I took my gloves off and turned up the music a little bit, knowing that a little bit of volume can bump your adrenaline and reduce your perception of pain.

At mile 6 I think my watch said 46:something. My goal for this run was to come in under 56 minutes, and I knew I would now.

As I rounded the corner into our neighborhood I cranked the music and picked up the pace hard for the last 3/10 of a mile, to hit the driveway at 54:41 – 7 miles at an average pace of 7:48.

PHEW! Now where the hell is that rubber mallet?

Post Run Young Coconut

This young coconut contained approximately 20 oz of coconut water, which according to my new favorite toy clocked in at about 115 calories. I drank every last ounce.

After Zak took my picture he took a sip of the coconut water and then proceeded to make a sound similar to that of cat trying to expel a wet, matted ball of a fur from its throat.

What? I think it tastes good!

And that totally reminded me of something! In Thrive (you knew this was coming, right?) Brendan says that during or after a workout, the your tastes are different than when you are inactive. Something that tastes a little bitter or slightly sour is more palatable after a work out because our taste buds are temporarily altered during or after physical exertion, and “a slight tartness is perceived as refreshing”.

Brendan is so smart.

So, remember this for Christmas when it’s time to eat a big bite of grandma’s fruit cake. Tell her you’ll have some after you get back from your run.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


A Juicy Lesson

November 6th, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (14 Comments)

I had a run on the agenda first thing this morning, but I was feeling a little peckish so I ate half a MamaBar before I hit the pavement. Coconut oil is my friend.

Half a Mamabar

A balmy 34 degrees this morning. Cold Neck Lessons learned on Monday, I dug out my turtle neck this morning as well as my favorite pink knit cotton hat!

Pink Hat

I knit that hat myself I’ll have you know! It’s one of the few things I’ve ever knit, so I get a little too excited when I the opportunity arises for me to point that fact out. I told everyone I passed this morning that I knit the hat on my head. Just wait til my new city neighbors get a load of me. They have no idea what they’re in for.

Toasty warm for my 5.3 mile jaunt through my neighborhood, home 44 minutes later to get home and whip up the wonder juice of yesteryear thanks to a restock of our carrot supply.

Seeing Double?

Carrot Apple Ginger juice – today with lemon too! One to keep and one to share.

One to Keep and One to Share

I just may have cursed and rolled my eyes back into my head while drinking this, in utter disbelief at how amazing this combo is. Have you added a juicer to your Christmas/Hanukkah/Yule/Kwanza list yet? I know this lady has! Get on it!

Your Juicy Lesson for today!

I’ve been asked before if you can make juice in the blender, and the answer is no, not technically. You could certainly make a carrot apple ginger smoothie in the blender, but you’ll still get all the “pulp” that the juicer would extract. The juicer removes the juice from the fruit and vegetable pulp, allowing you to get a lot more bang for your buck, packing in a ton of live enzymes and antioxidants in a small amount of space. You lose out on fiber when you juice fruits and vegetables, but if like me, you eat a giant salad almost every day along side plenty of other fiber rich foods like beans, lentils and enough vegetables to consider starting your own farmer’s market right out of your fridge – fiber is not an issue.

Off to go spread the news about my hat – I knit it myself ya know!


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


Homeschooling Ice Skating started today.

If you decide to go, get your act in gear.
If you decide to stay home, stay in your pajamas.

OK! Let’s get our act in gear! Time to go ice skating!

If you decide to abandon your oldest and send her out by herself with blades strapped to her feet, be sure to take a picture of it.

*Click*

Wallflower

If you decide to stay behind with Strawberry No Shorts, Smirksalot and a lone yellow crock, find a dear soul to go fetch the stranded big one.

Sir Smirksalot

Hooray! The dear soul happens to teach ice skating lessons to wee ones! At a mere $1 a minute she will teach your child to march on the ice. Sold! 10 minutes please.

We Found an Ice Skating Instructor

If you choose to go with the rest of the homeschoolers and take off your skates, leave the rink.
If you choose to beg and plead to stay and watch the Zamboni, stay and watch the Zamboni.

Best Part of Skating

If you have an eggplant in your refrigerator, make eggplant parm for dinner tonight.
If you don’t have an eggplant in your refrigerator, choose something else.

Salted Eggplant

If you made eggplant parm, bake it at 375 for about 30 minutes.

Eggplant Parm

4 servings, 182 calories per serving.

Eggplant Parm Sandwich

If you have Ezekiel buns in your freezer, make an eggplant parm sandwich.
If you prefer pasta, make pasta.

If you like beets, steam them.
If you have a husband who doesn’t like beets, make him corn.

If you have 3 minutes until The Office comes on, click Publish.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


Here and Now

November 5th, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (16 Comments)

Up dark and early this morning for some one on one time with my yoga mat and my pal Dawnelle from Yogadownload.com.

Yesterday morning after my run I found myself thinking “I need to do yoga” and this morning as I was rolling out my mat I thought “I should be running”. This is one of those moments where I reminded myself to live in the moment and be truly present and focused on what I’m doing now, instead of what else I could be doing. How very yogi of me.

More Yoga for Runners this morning with some Sun Salutations too – a grand total of about 45 minutes.

Out of greens for juicing, today’s juice du jour was Carrot Apple Ginger.

Carrot Apple Ginger

I’m now officially out of carrots too.

From the Top

I used three carrots, a medium crispin apple, a chunk of ginger and a little cucumber too. These flavors work so well together! The ginger made it so spicy, and I enjoyed the change of green juice pace this morning.

I’ve already plugged my numbers into The Daily Plate too!

The Daily Plate

(167 calories for carrot apple ginger juice.)

So easy and fun! A big thanks to all of you who recommended it! I’m loving it, I can’t wait to play with it some more. If I look at this like a science experiment, it’s just fun and motivating instead of tedious and all-consuming.

Now if I could just stop thinking “I could just be using a notebook” when I’m entering data in The Daily Plate I’ll be all set.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


A Day of Calorie Counting

November 4th, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Motivation - (23 Comments)

Today’s day of calorie counting began with a freezing bike ride to the gym. Well, actually it was 33 degrees so I guess it wasn’t exactly freezing. I’m such an exaggerator sometimes.

30 minutes on the treadmill with some speed work intervals (4 two minute sets at 9.3) thrown in to keep things interesting – a total of about 4 miles. I noted today what the calorie total said and it was about 450.

Treadmill dues paid, followed by a Very Cold (but this time welcome!) ride home for my first calories of the day.

Green juice for two! My serving: 131 calories (based on my numbers from yesterday)

Morning Green Juice

About an hour and a half later I was ready for My Real Breakfast.

Fruit Cereal:

1 1/2 bananas (158 cals), 2 Tbsp ground flax (60), 2 Tbsp sliced almonds (85), 1/2 unsweetened vanilla hemp milk (30) = 333

Fruit Cereal

We had to leave early this morning (“early” as in 9:30!) to meet up with some homeschooling friends for a nature walk.

Nature Walk

We were on a leaf hunt! Maxine was cold and cranky and refused to walk. Carrying an extra 30 lbs for a 30 minute walk. As if I didn’t already run for 30 minutes this morning, kid? Thanks for doing your part Maxine to help these final 10 lbs come off that much faster.

Cold Cranky Max Along For the Ride

Moments after this picture was taken the 3 older girls shrieked in utter delight when they spotted “poison cherries” on a tree about 50 yards to the left.

We're Going on a Leaf Hunt

Before we left we hit up the nature center and did a little research for my new Taxidermy blog. I just need some help coming up with a new name. Any ideas?

The Flying Squirrel?

Flying Squirrel?

Hug a Nut?

Hug a Nut

Play Dead?

Play Dead

I’ve Got Beaver Fever? (I wonder how many calories are in the leaf?)

I've Got Beaver Fever

Meh. I’m still working on ideas.

We had some errands to run after our leaf picking poison cherry stuffed carcass adventures. I packed some snacks to hold us over until we could get home for a proper lunch.

Carrots and jicama sticks anyone? Yours for a mere 70 calories! Yes please!

Sticks

And how about half a MamaBar at a whopping 111 calories? Sold to the lady with that crazy look in her eye!

Half a MamaBar

My Proper Lunch would be a salad as big as my head (150 cals – for the salad, not my head) and homemade balsamic dressing.

1 Tbsp EVOO 130 cals
2 Tbsp balsamic 30 cals
1/2 Tbsp agave nectar 30
+ s&p

Lunch! 340 calories!

Giant Salad

The Snack: Round 2

2 Tbsp chia seeds 138
1 tsp agave nectar 20
1/2 c hemp milk 30
Dash of cinnamon

Soaked in all it’s 188 calorie glory for about 4 hours to be called chia pudding.

Chia Pudding

Orange you glad I did the dishes after my snack? 70 calories of citrus goodness.

Orange You Glad

For dinner tonight I made a tomato bean soup.

28 oz can of tomatoes: 175 calories
1 Tbsp EVOO: 130
1 can of garbonzo beans, rinsed and drained: 350
2 carrots, peeled and sliced:70
1 onion, diced: 30
2 cloves of garlic: 10
A couple shakes of parsley, salt and pepper: .002568999 calories

Recipe total? 695 calories

Five Cups

It made about 5 cups.

695 / 5 = 139 calories per cup

I sauteed diced onion and garlic in olive oil until soft. Added all vegetables, salt and pepper + parsley and simmered on medium heat until carrots were soft, probably about 40 minutes. Stir occassionally and subtract 1 calorie for every spoon revolution in the pan.

1 1/2 cups = 215 calories

Bean Soup

+ a grilled (in Misto’d olive oil) hummus (75) and tomato (10) sandwich on 2 slices of sesame Ezekiel bread (160) for a dinner tally of 460.

Grilled Hummus Sandwich

Today’s day of calorie counting? 1783.

I’ve had a couple of revelations today. I know what you’re thinking… already? Yes! Already!

1. I’ve been a little too friendly with the nuts in my life. No, I’m not talking about my husband and children, but the kind that good old Hug a Nut is hugging up there. Me and almond butter have become more than just good friends, we are lovers. Nuts are good for you, but I’ve been a little too eager to be a nutty overachiever. A handful of raw cashews for a pre-dinner snack? And after breakfast? And before lunch? Hello lady I just figured out your problem. Well, at least your nut problem. Now let’s get to work on your sense of humor.

2. Intuitive Eating, Thrive and the Raw Food Detox Diet have made things a lot easier for me. First, as I’ve said many times before, if I don’t eat stimulating foods, I don’t crave them, so eating like I did today and most every day is pretty effortless. I don’t feel like I’m deprived of anything. But most importantly, if I’m hungry, I’m going to eat! When calorie counting in the past I would often make myself wait just a little bit longer before finally getting something to eat. None of that now. If I reach for fruits and vegetables instead of dates with almond butter or a handful of raisins and cashews every time I feel the need for a little something, I think I’ll easily obtain a calorie deficit. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still going to eat nuts – I’m not crazy! I’m just going to stop slathering nut butter on dates or anything and everything without a pulse like it’s going out of style.

3. Thanks for all the recommendations for The Daily Plate! It’s easy, I like it! I entered in all of my data for today and I especially like being able to see the fat, carb and protein totals, fiber too.

Thanks to everyone for your supportive comments. Like a number of you said, I’m using calorie counting as a tool to reach a goal, not an excuse to obsess over food and go nutty with. I’ve already had quite a few clues as to where I’ve been going wrong and this is exactly what I needed. A wake up call! And thankfully not one that involves a horse head in my bed.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


Confessions

November 3rd, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (23 Comments)

It’s Tuesday. That means it’s a magic basket full of snacks for me and one or more of the offspring. Today’s basket of packed goodness was for me and Ava. I was unexpectedly assisting in her homeschooling class today. Maxine stayed behind with Aunt Ellen while Ava and I forged ahead.

Tuesday Picnic Basket

I was of course excited to dig into my MamaBar and give it a real trial run. (i.e., not sampling it over the food processor bowl.) I chowed this puppy moments before getting out of the car to tackle a room full of 5 and 6 year olds for three hours. I needed every last ounce of coconut oil.

MamaBar

Dinner tonight was inspired by Justine from the Confessions of a SAHM. Curried Squash and Apple Soup.

It all started with a lone buttercup squash I snagged the other day. The produce manager told me buttercup is a very sweet squash, so I knew the perfect recipe to use it in when I saw Justine’s post yesterday.

Buttercup Squash

Halved, de-seeded and roasted with a sweet potato at 350 for about 50 minutes. When I could easily stick a fork through the skin, it was done.

Roasted Orange Veggies

What jumped out at me with this recipe was the addition of an apple! A large peeled crispin apple, sauteed with onion in extra virgin olive oil until soft.

Sauteed Apples and Onions

Squash and potato removed from it’s flesh, into the pot with the apple and onion and a couple cups of vegetable broth. A tablespoon or so of cinnamon and curry powder, and then cooked for a few minutes before moving the entire contents into the food processor. I usually leave some veggies in the pot to make the soup chunky, but decided today to go wild and puree the whole pot.

This combination of flavors was awesome, the sweet with savory was so good!

Sweet and Savory Squash Soup

Served by candle light with some garlic hummus on toasted Ezekiel bread with salsa.

Tuesday Dinner

So since tonight’s dinner was inspired by Justine, the queen of confessions – here’s mine.

My little calorie math project last night has me totally contemplating calorie counting again – or at the very least food journaling – for the month of November. For the past year now I’ve wanted to lose the last 10 “vanity pounds”, as Jillian Michaels puts it. I was reminded last night of how well calorie counting works.

Food journaling was what worked for me like nothing else ever had before. It allowed me to break through my plateau and go on to lose an additional 23 lbs in two and a half months. Writing it down and seeing the numbers is like balancing your check book. There’s no denying the numbers when they are there in front of you. It worked great for me and I’m suddenly feeling motivated to do it again.

I was in upper 120’s in the summer of 2008 and have been hanging out in the low 130’s for almost a year now. My clothes still fit but they fit better when I was in the 120’s – and I would love to get back there again. It’s what I’ve wanted for a year now! After trying everything Raw Food Detox Diet and Thrive, the bottom line is that I need to pay closer attention to how many calories I eat.

At the end of a day, it’s all about the math. Calories in have to be less than calories out and the weight will come off. If I want to see results I’ve got to keep track.

I hesitate to post this. It’s embarrassing. But it’s real so here it is. There’s no denying that it works – so I’m going to do it. I’m going to food journal for a month and see where I end up 4 weeks from now.

Confession over. Time to hit publish.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


A Free Glass with Every Jar

November 3rd, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (21 Comments)

Insomnia struck early this morning from about 2 until 4am. I slept in and got up when the girls did sometime before 8. I did yoga at home this morning with only a few interruptions for granola bars and one bonked head. A big shout out to Caillou today for baby sitting for about 40 minutes while mama got her downward dog on.

Caillou is not so great at preventing five year old’s from smashing their heads into things. Oh well, what can I say. He’s four – and he didn’t charge me.

Thanks to some suggestions from Yogi Averie, I stepped up the intensity today and kicked it up a notch from my usual Gentle Hatha classes to Yoga for Runners and Morning Flow.

Yoga for Runners is serious stuff – I’m still wondering if Dawnelle might be a yogi masochist.

After a myriad of deep twists and forward bends, visions of detoxing danced in my head. Might as well come full circle and finish it up with some green juice.

Ava asked to make fresh apple juice FIRST, so she wouldn’t get any green in her juice. We hit up the apple orchard yesterday, one more time before they close for the season! I think we picked every last apple off the trees yesterday. Or at least you might think we did given the 17 lbs of apples we brought home. At $.40 a lb just try and tell me you wouldn’t do the same thing!

More Apples

The girls won’t drink green juice or green smoothies, but I figure fresh apple juice is a step in the right direction. They are eager to help and be a part of the juicer action and that gives me hope for green juice in their future.

Ava Juices

Cinderella gets jazzed up and puts her arms in the air from fresh squeezed juice! Heeeyyyy…. hooooooeeee….

Cinderella Approves

Ummm Cinderella? I think you’ve got something on your blouse there… in a very interesting location.

Now it’s my turn. My favorite combo!

Juice for Mom

Nice and green! Arms in the air! Whoops don’t spill!

Green Juice for Mama

And yes, we do drink out of mason jars. I got tired of broken glasses – mason jars are sturdy! Plus I get a new glass free with every jar of almond butter I buy! Beats a toy in the bottom of cereal box any day.

Still in a calorie math frame of my from last night, I decided to figure out how many calories were in my green juice from today. I’ve always been curious, and I know some of you have asked me before too and I didn’t know the answer.

Based on the weight from my food scale and info from calorie count:

Small head of romaine: 50
Whole cucumber: 45
Apple: 110
Spinach, about 2 cups: 20
Lemon: 17
Ginger: 20

Grand total? 262

These are the numbers on the fruit and vegetables themselves, I wonder if it actually might be a little less without the fiber? If so, probably minimally.

This made a lot of juice. Two 12 oz servings – so that would be 131 calories per 12 oz glass. About 87 calories for an 8oz glass. Now we know. Don’t hold me to these numbers in a court of calorie law please. I’m tired! I was up in the middle of the night! Leave a little room for error. Leave a lot of room for green juice rawesomeness.


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


Make Your Own MamaBars

November 2nd, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Short or Sweet - (19 Comments)

When I made Averie’s RAWking chocolate donut holes last week, I got to thinking that these were basically homemade Larabars. They were really good – and they were chocolate! I don’t know about you, but the chocolate Larabars leave much to be desired. I think I can do a little better. Wait, I DID do a little better! (Thank you Averie.)

Are you smelling what I’m smelling?

I’m gonna make me some MamaBars.

The only thing is, I’m kind of curious to know how many calories might be in a MamaBar versus a Larabar. I was in the mood for a little project tonight so I got to work.

I dug out my trusty food scale, a calculator, measuring cups and spoons and got to down to work on everyone’s favorite math problem: calorie math.

On the MamaBar ingredient list?

Raw cashews, dates, agave nectar, ground flax seed, coconut oil and cocoa powder.

Dates, dissected.

Dissected Dates

Into the food processor, a little peer down the food chute!

Down the Chute

MamaBar dough ball ready, it’s time to zero out the scale. Put your empty bowl on the scale and press that little “0” button. Oh 5th grade science class, you’re finally coming in handy.

Zero the Scale

I now know how much my entire mass of MamaBar dough weighs.

17 ounces

1 lb 1 oz = 17 ounces. Check. So how many calories in that MamaBar mass?

A special thanks to the food labels and Calorie Count for everything without a label (hello dates from produce and cashews from bulk), I got the numbers I needed to complete this part of my equation.

Ingredient Calories
1 Tbsp coconut oil 120
1/4 c ground flax seed 120
6 oz raw cashews (about 1 cup) 978
5 oz medjool dates (8 pitted dates) 400
1/4 c agave nectar 240
2 Tbsp cocoa powder 30
Total: 1888

17 oz of MamaBar dough = 1888 calories.

Now to divide these puppies up into individual servings. I tore off a hunk that looked Larabar sized and weighed it. 2 oz looks about right, wouldn’t you say? Yeah, I think so too.

2 oz Ball

Shaped into 2 oz bars. (Turns out a Larabar is 1.8 oz. Go me!)

MamaBars

OK, so they aren’t the most attractive looking bars on the block.  Now I know why the Larabar wrappers aren’t transparent.

First layer, five bars. Second layer, three and a half bars.

Math check! 8.5 bars x 2 oz = 17 oz. Move to the head of the class!

Second Layer

And here they go, into the fridge.

In the Fridge

So… 1888 calories, 8.5 servings. 1888 / 8.5 = 222 calories per serving. Pretty dang close to your average Larabar! But even better than that, these Chocolate MamaBars are way better than a chocolate Larabar in my (far from) humble opinion.

Dear Larabar, I still love you.  There will always be a place for you in my cupboard.

I like that these have coconut oil in them. Brendan Brazier sings the praises of coconut oil in Thrive, which is the first place I read about coconut oil and why it’s so good for us.

Coconut oil is rich in medium chain triglycerides. According to B-squared, (totally stole that from No Meat Athlete) the digestion of MCT’s is quick and easy. So instead of being stored in the cells like fat that doesn’t contain MCT’s, it’s converted by the liver into energy almost immediately. This is why coconut oil is an ideal energy source for athletes and is perfect to eat before or during a work out.

Or in my case, as a snack tomorrow when I need every ounce of energy to put Maxine’s shoes on over and over again.

Shew – my brain hurts. Calorie math takes a lot out of you. Class dismissed! And just in time dude, this lady was getting a little rambly…


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.


Manly Time Change

November 2nd, 2009 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (13 Comments)

I woke up this morning at 5:45 4:45. Early (yikes) but I loved that I was able to go for my run in the LIGHT at 6:30!

For fall/winter running, I’ll agree to run outside if 2 out of 3 criteria are met:

1.) Warm
2.) Dry
3.) Light

Scenario A: If it’s raining (lightly) but warm? OK.

Scenario B: If it’s light out and cold? Sure.

Scenario C: Dark and cold but dry? Not my favorite but I’ll do it.

Scenario D: If it’s dark and wet and cold? Deal breaker.

Scenario B played out today. Sunny and 31 F? Let’s go! 5ish miles with two layers on top, gloves, and a cold neck that served as a great reminder to dig out the turtle necks for my lowest layer for next time.

Oh yeah, I did wear pants too – I’d like to believe that was implied, but I guess you never can be too sure with me.

On tap for breakfast today, Green Monsters!

Green Smoothies

Green Smoothies built for two:

2 bananas
A couple three handfuls of spinach
A generous pour of unsweetened vanilla hemp milk

+ one peeled and cored apple as an after thought

Zak liked it and even said “This is good!” Funny how that barely 6 months ago and he was drinking these and saying they tasted “healthy”. Thrice weekly green juice and a little time changes everything.

But wait? If the glasses are filled, what’s still in the blender?

What's in the Blender

Rinse water!

Rinse Cycle

One of the big complaints I often hear for making smoothies, green or otherwise, is cleaning the blender. My favorite trick is to fill the blender with water once I’m done with it and run through a rinse cycle before anything has a chance to get cemented on.

All clean!

All Clean - Almost

And ready to be put back in the cupboard! to be disassembled and thrown in the dishwasher.

Breakfast rocks when 2 out of 3 criteria are met:

1.) Healthy
2.) Easy clean up
3.) He likes it! He really likes it!

3 out 3 today! Score!

Be sure to check out Erica from Itzy’s Kitchen at Health Blog Helper today!


Please know that links to Amazon are affiliate links. It doesn’t change the price you pay, but if you buy something from Amazon after following one of the links in my posts, I earn a percentage based commission from Amazon as a part of their affiliate program. This is one of the ways I generate revenue from the posts that I write here. I promise that I only link to items that I truly endorse. You don’t ever have to buy anything, but if you do, thank you for supporting the site and the work I do here.