Ok, here’s something that totally made my day!

I was talking about “appreciating the simple things” the other day and trying to show more gratitude for the little things in life.

So check this out!

It’s a Blueberry Plant! You can grow your very own (for only $6.99, pretty cheap, huh)

I thought it was so cute so wanted to share. YUM!

You can see more of why I love Blueberries here

So, thats my “Thanks for the Simple Things” of today!

xoxo

Last night, Jared and I went for a date night at Straw, a carnival-themed restaurant that opened in SF a few months ago.

Jared actually took his co-workers there on Wednesday too for a surprise lunch. They had a blast! He brought them party favors like slinkys and whoopie cushions to keep the theme going. I have a feeling that whoopie cushion is going to get a lot of use in their office!

But, we happened to be in the area the next night, so thought we should go in for Cotton Candy Cocktails and Funnel Cake. Who doesn’t like carnival food and atmosphere, right? The place is great!

We sat in the tilt-a-whirl seats (loved that ride as a kid!)

Their menu is full of things like corn dogs, tater tots, mac & cheese, cotton candy, etc. But it has a gourmet spin to it….and there’s also quite a few salads and “healthy” things on the menu too.

Not everything’s healthy….on Wed, Jared got the “Ringmaster Burger,” which was a burger in between two donuts. He said it was delicious.

Since we’re not eating meals out this month, we opted to just get drinks and dessert (yes, dessert before dinner…..and yes, those two things are allowed in the loophole of our “eating-in” plan).

My blueberry cotton candy. Pure sugar. Yum

I got the Blueberry Cotton Candy (of course!) and Jared got the Funnel Cake (with 3 dipping sauces).

The wait staff was really friendly and it wasn’t crowded yet, so we had a good time.

Fedding me cotton candy

Dum Dums, all for me, please

Then, we went to see the Headless Lady.

Just kidding, I wish! That was just a photo in their bathroom.

Do you like carnivals? Favorite rides?
Any fun themed restaurants near you?
How often do you do date-night?

Good morning! Want a muffin?

How about one with big, juicy blueberries just waiting to be bitten into?

Sorry, too late. I already ate them all.

Just kidding….I was good, I shared.

My best friend had a baby last week (an adorable little boy!) so I wanted to bake for them. I brought over Oatmeal Blueberry Muffins.

Yes, I saved 2 for me (I had to taste test). But these were so easy and muffins are some a nice part of breakfast (or a snack) that I will def be making them again. My first batch was a bit dry, so I adjusted the recipe accordingly.

BLUBERRY OATMEAL MUFFINS
Makes about 12 muffins (or 24 mini muffins)

Ingredients:
* 1-1/2 cups flour
* 3/4 cup oats
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 beaten egg
* 3/4 cup milk
* 1/2 cup packed brown sugar plus 1 tablespoon
* 1/3 cup plain yogurt
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
* 3/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (I used frozen)

Instructions– really simple.

1. Grease a muffin pan (I just sprayed it with cooking spray) and preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. In your larger bowl, stir flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the egg, milk, brown sugar, yogurt, and vanilla.

4. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and stir until just moistened, but still lumpy.

5. Fold blueberries into the batter.

6. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling each three-quarters full.

4. Bake in a 400 degree F oven for 15-17 minutes

And Ta-Da!

Healthy-filled muffins!
Blueberries give you your antioxidents
Oats are full of fiber (magnesium and selenium too!)

These muffins are not too sweet, so add jam (blueberry would be my pick) or honey if you’d like.

I enjoyed mine with a little icelandic butter and lemon curd- for a treat.
When was the last time you BAKED or ATE a muffin? And what kind was it?

Good morning!

It’s ”What I ate Wednesday” and today, I felt like I had some things to confess, so here ya go:

WIAW, Confessions Edition

BREAKFAST: 7am.  A big, delicious bowl filled with bright red strawberries, blueberries, and banana slices.  And one two cups of coffee.

Confession #1:  I’ve been putting half & half in my coffee instead of almond milk this week.  And guess what– I don’t like it!  They were out of almond milk (seriously, how could they?) and I thought I’d change it up and see what all the half & half fuss was about.  Not a fan.  Good to know, I guess?

Next, time for LUNCH.  Rainbow Chard with sliced steak (leftover from dinner last night), carrots, red bell pepper, and avocado.   Flipped through old magazines while eating.

Confession # 2:  I ate this at 11am.  I was too hungry to wait until Noon!  When I taught kindergarten, I loved how our lunchtime was at 11:15.  I still get hungry early!
Confession # 3:  I subscribe to 6 magazines……I get sucked in when they have their “$5.99 for a year!” type deals…..but because I get so many, I am ALWAYS months behind!  The ones I read today were from Dec and Jan!

SNACK at 1:30.  I got hungry again a few hours later, but wasn’t sure what I wanted so I took a work break and strolled through the grocery store for a few minutes until I figured it out.  Museli/Granola thing from the bulk bin (oats, raisins, a couple almonds, and who knows what else) and a Bragg’s Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink.

Confession #4: The museli was really messy to eat.   I used my fingers instead of a spoon.  It spilled all over.
Confession #5:  I was pretty unsure about the Bragg’s drink before I got it.  I knew I would either love it or really hate it.  Verdict?  Loved it!  If it wasn’t $2.29 a bottle, I would get it more often.  Zero calories and just made from water, apple cider viengar, ginger, and stevia.

Stopped at Trader Joes on the way home to get a free cup of coffee pick up a few things.  I also had some of their free coffee.
Confession # 6:  Their free coffee is one of the big reasons I shop there!  Not sure I would shop there as often if they didn’t have it.

DINNER:  6:45pm.   Chicken grilled with red peppers and onion, spaghetti squash sprinkled with sea salt, and steamed kale.  I wanted to make a 7:30 gym class, so this was super quick.  But it was delish!

Confesson #7:  I cooked and ate this in 25 minutes.  Rush!
Confession #8:  I ate twice as much spagetthi squash!  The other half was while I was cooking, way too hungry last night!

Home from the gym!  Pear for DESSERT.

Eaten still in my sneakers and gym clothes

And then I pretty much layed on the couch for an hour or so and then passed out asleep.

Questions:

What’s your normal lunchtime?   Anyone sometimes eat so early like me? 
If you have a 7pm gym class, do you eat dinner before or after?
How many magazines do you subscribe to?

This morning, I had a smoothie.

It was the usual– frozen spinach, frozen blackberries, frozen banana, 1 tsp vanilla, water, and an Amazing Grass packet.

When I was at Whole Foods earlier in the week, I picked up this “flavor” of Amazing Grass.

“15,000 ORAC units per serving”

What the heck is ORAC? 

Whatever it is, it made my smoothie taste good.

While I was sipping my smoothie, I figured I’d google it.  At first, I mis-typed and googled “Orca” and a bunch of photos of whales popped up.  I was pretty sure that wasn’t what was in my vegan smoothie powder.

The real answer is:

ORAC (the oxygen radical absorbance capacity) measures antioxidant levels (also known as the free radical destroying potential) of a particular food.

The higher the ORAC number – the stronger the antioxidant properties of the substance.

If you want foods with greater antioxidant properties, you look for foods with high ORAC levels. The USDA recommends we consume 3,000 to 5,000 ORAC units daily.  But based on the “5-a-day” fruit and vegetable serving recommendations, that will only give you an ORAC score of about 1,750 units.  source

Hmmm, the Amazing Grass packet had 15,000 units, so I think I am good for the day!

Based on a 3 ounce portion (100 grams), here’s the ORAC ranking of the top fruits and veggies:  Source

FRUITS
Goji berries 25,300
Black raspberries 7,700
Prunes 5,770
Acai berry 5,500
Bilberries 4,460
Pomegranates 3,307
Raisins 2,830
Blueberries 2,400
Red raspberries 2,400
Blackberries 2,026
Strawberries 1,540

VEGETABLES
Garlic 1,939
Spinach 1,770
Yellow squash 1,150
Brussels sprouts 980
Alfalfa sprouts 930
Steamed spinach 909
Broccoli 880
Beets 840
Avocado 782
Red bell pepper 710

OTHER
Dark chocolate 13,120
Milk chocolate 6,740

Yay, Chocolate has a high ORAC value!

We tend to focus a lot on the power of antioxidants– we eat blueberries and raspberries, knowing how high they are.  But we don’t tend to count our ORAC (unless you happen to be a scientist).  Should we?

According to a Doc, “While these values are useful, they are not complete. Here’s the larger picture. The ORAC scores actually measure only one type of antioxidant activity — the reactive oxygen species or ROS that functions in the water-based compartments of the body. Along with many other water-soluble antioxidants, there are fat-soluble antioxidants as well.  source”

So, moral of the story?

Eat your blueberries (and goji berries, and spinach, and of course, chocolate!).  I don’t think it’s necessary to count your ORAC score everyday, but keeping it above 5,000 can only have positive results.