Nori Maki

A random fact about me – When I wake up, I try and write down the first word or phrase that comes to mind. It’s often ‘ten more minutes’ or ‘I don’t want to…’. Today? It was Nori Maki. Weird!

Last night’s ice cream – hooh boy.

The Ice cream base was a Sumatra Coconut, with Toasted Sesame Brittle in it. I added salted peanuts (I’m a sucker for salty & sweet) and a drizzle of runny almond butter, then stuck it back into the freezer to let the AB harden.

When I took it out, the ice cream was incredibly fluffy. The almond butter was chewy, and the peanuts were deliciously salty.

To say it was heaven in a bowl would be an understatement. The harmony of all the flavours themselves couldn’t even be described as simply amazing.

And the ice cream spoon I bought in Bern. It’s really small, so I savour every last bite.

 

On this morning – Coffee in the London mug. It’s my biggest mug …

Right behind ‘im is my new candle – Honey and Coffee. Oh, it’s great.

And I’d like to show you the scrumptiousness known as my Krisproll tradition – Which I have every morning, rain or shine -

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Krisproll becomes soggy, and the flavour of the sweet, nutty coffee just enrobes each little crumb. A tradition I wouldn’t trade for anything.

For the record, I had a tiny corner of the pizza from last night – There’s really nothing like cold pizza. Especially left over Rosemary Whole Wheat Veggie Pizza.

All I felt like digging into this morning was a huge bowl of oats. So oats I ate. Last night’s peanuts on ice cream made me want nutty oats – So I sprinkled a bit of almond extract into the oats, along with banana and vanilla. On top were toasted walnuts, peanuts, and a spoonful of AB.

Then I went to Kath’s website, and it looks like we had the same idea! I was freaked out.

With the last 30 pages of my book – Stephen King On Writing. If you’re a fan of King like me, then it’s a great book. It’s even a great book if you’ve no idea who the bloke is.   

One by Land, Two by Sea

 

One if by land – (Coffee)

Two if by sea (green tea) -

Yep, I made 3 mugs of warm goodness this morning. And yes, that’s a cactus in the background. (And, while we’re being honest, yes, the horse on my Zurich mug inspired my title). I needed some warm fuzzy love inside, and didn’t want to stuff myself with warm chocolate cake … Which actually sounds quite nice …

The plug-in to Paul Revere (My hero!) just came naturally. Can you blame me?

Anyway, sorry about dinner last night. I had some fantastic whole grain rye baguette with squash soup – on crack again (see previous post). I was so hungry I didn’t care about taking photos of it – and that’s a first! So, I knew you understanding readers would understand. (IF I HAVE any readers, are you out there? )

Breakfast. My favourite meal of the day. 1 scrambled egg + 1 egg white, S&P, Frank’s a splash of milk, and a piece of Smart Balanced Whole Wheat toast –

Paired with Vanilla Bean Yogurt + Blue & Black Berries -

= A very satisfying and balanced breakfast. I then ventured off to the grocery, my fridge was REDICULOUS it was so empty. It’s nice and full now

I was pretty hungry by the time I was done unloading and such so I had a bowl of blueberries (quickly becoming my favourite fruit) and 15g of DINKELPOPS!

  

Oh boy, these puffs are so delicious. They’re simply puffed spelt, and because they’re light you get SO many for even half a serving.

 

Looking back at this morning’s eats, I may turn blue, after all the berries!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can see them soaking up delicious rice milk. Mmmm.

‘Round 5:15 I started to get hungry again, so I had another 15g of puffed spelt (!!!) and a sweet white peach.

 

I felt like two things for dinner. Rosemary and pizza. It made quite an easy and scrumptious meal! I made a whole wheat pizza dough, and added about 2 Tablespoons of chopped, fresh Rosemary.

Pizza all prepared, before hittin’ the heat -

 

While it cooked I enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the lake, and snapped a shot.

 

On the lovely dough I piled, I repeat, PILED sliced zucchini, yellow and red bell peppers, spinach, cottage cheese, tomatoes/tomato sauce, Valess cubes (Think Quorn, only milkier and cheesier) and an ounce of Mozzarella and Swiss.

It made 9 square pieces for about 350 calories total. I had 4 pieces and one small corner (not pictured!)

 

 

It was BRILLIANT. The rosemary really stood up to the other flavors, and the crust was super crispy/rosemary-y. I think I’m going to try and use this recipe, only roll it out thinner and make crackers…

 

And of course supplemented by a spinach salad -

With blueberries (I guess I DIDN’T have enough!), raspberries, bell pepper/zuc from the pizza, and black beans. Dressing was a grainy honey mustard. Very filling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I found Toasted Sesame & Sumatra Coconut ice cream (!!!!!) and you can definitely count on a serving (or two) in a bit!

The Wall.

No, not a Pink Floyd plug in, a physical wall. I woke up this morning feeling like I ran straight into a brick wall, going hundreds of miles per hour. I read 50ish pages in my book, then went to bed again, hoping the wall would dissipate.

When I woke up at 2:09 (!!!!!!!!!!!!) I felt much better. Though the wall had indeed dissipated, he took my appetite, again! So, I sat around and read some more, and around 4:15 it returned.

Upon first grumble, I wanted to scream IT’S ABOUT BLOODY TIME!

It’s cold and rainy again today ( ) so I really only felt like a bowl of comforting, gooey, mushy, warm, oozy oats. And, following the foodie bandwagon, I made Kath’s Classic Banana Oats.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. I had a mug of dark, nutty coffee while they were cooking away.

Giving his friend the P. Krisproll a hug -

I can’t for the life of me find quick cooking oats here, but I’ve found some really high-quality rolled oats. They take about 30 minutes to cook stovetop, but the fruits of my labour never go un-appreciated, and certainly never without savouring every last spoonful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With toasted walnuts, slivered almonds, and some warm, runny almond butter. I had a sliced Gala apple with cinnamon and a drizzle of AB too -

I found a new brand, and I swear it’s the best almond butter I’ve had. It’s a Max Havelaar brand (think free trade) and the nutty flavour is really insurmountable.  It’s nearly 5! And I’ve only just eating breakfast! Slash lunch. Slash afternoon snack.

Oh well. Dinner has a high chance of involving last night’s medley of veggies, because I’m sure it’s just thickened with age in the fridge

Update – 7:00pm

I’m getting hungry again – Hoorah! For a while I thought my grumbles would be gone for the rest of the day after such a fibrous breakfast/lunch. I can’t believe it’s 7 though. Dinner should be around 7:30, 8ish, but before I can start cooking I’ve got to call my German tutor and arrange more lessons…. Hoi!

Rain, Rain, You Can Stay

Rain, rain, go away, come again another day I don’t mind, stick around and we can play. (I know, I’ll never make it in the song-parody industry)

I’m not quite sure what’s up today, it could be the weather (which I’ll get on to later) and it could be the late (9:15pm) dinner I had last night, but I just don’t have an appetite. And for me, that’s a sad thing! I enjoy cooking, baking and eating TOO much to not do the latter.

So this morning I had a coffee with a Pagan Krisproll, comme normale.

I also had a small tear of bread dipped in some soup in the fridge, for the record.

Onto the weather. (A common topic for my blog, isn’t it? I’m a weather kind of person. [I even though about becoming a meteorologist at one point] ) It’s cold – about 55ish degrees, very windy, and chilly rain. I’m loving every moment of it Reading, hot tea, cozy chair and comfy blanket = an equation of pure bliss for me.

I think I’ll be making some kind of soup tonight… so until then, I’ll wait for an appetite!

Update 5:42pm

Where has the day gone?! It’s nearly 6! There’s a slight break in the clouds, so I’m going to go for a quick 25 minute jog, maybe that will get things going for me, including an appetite. I just hope the sky doesn’t decide to open up on me while I’m out!

Update 7:15pm

15 minutes into my run, the rain thought it would be HILARIOUS if it soaked me. So it did, accomplished it’s goal of soaking me, but it actually felt nice – Sweaty Runner + Cool Rain = a good balance. So I came indoors for 10-15 minutes on the elliptical, followed by some weights and abs.

A little something decided to come visit me on my run too .. MY HUNGER. I showered and dressed as quickly as I could so I could chow. Post-workout I had a bit of cottage cheese + Yogurt, Blueberries + Blackberries. Oh, a few almond slivers, and a drizzle of Greek honey. It was delicious. Sweet, tangy, creamy, crunchy – or maybe I was just so hungry it was really so-so…

 

All mixed up, purple goodness released –

 

Boy, was I having technical difficulties earlier. When I opened WLW, there were HUGE red x’s everywhere! Then I couldn’t access my photos, through ANY means on my laptop, and I had a very quiet freakout. But I restarted the computer, and it worked as a charm. Much more relaxed now.

 

 

 

 

After all this rain, chilly wind, and brilliant autumn weather pre-seasonal cool-down, I made comfort in a bowl – Tomato soup on crack.

Okay, no, it wasn’t on crack, I’ll admit. But I did revv ‘er up. I added broccoli, white beans, cucumbers (On a whim I added them, but it didn’t turn out bad), carrots, fresh tomatoes and red onion.

On top I dolloped yogurt, sprinkled grated cheese, and guzzled Frank’s.  On the side I had some toasted hunks of whole wheat baguette, and a Quorn filet with more Frank’s.

Too bad my fake cheese ruined the picture. Hmpff. 

I wish I had bought some tasty ice cream, because I could sure go for some now, and I’ve got the calories to use

And BEFORE I FORGET – I’ll unveil the contents of the mystery drawer Wednesday, so keep the guesses coming!

Iron Chef Dunbar.

Alright. I’ve a confession to make. Last night, around 10 hour 30, a craving hit me. And it hit me hard. And no, not like a normal girl did I crave chocolate or ice cream, or something readily available at that, I craved cinnamon rolls. Fresh, warm, gooey, sweet, sticky icing, chewy heaven and all.

Call me crazy, but at 10:30 last night, giving into my intense craving, I made them. And I was done in under an hour.

If Switzerland ever has an Iron Chef; Cinnamon Roll challenge, yours truly will surely be the winner.

Iron Chef Dunbar, nice to meet you.

Okay, enough gloating, behold, I give you the goods.

And of course, you can only imagine what I had this morning, seconds, I repeat, seconds after waking up –

This cute little thang is about 2 inches wide, actually, it’s quite close the the actual size now, give or take a millimeter! I enjoyed it with coffee, of course.

It looks like my Krisproll is coming around the corner for a wave, ‘Hi there Iron Chef Dunbar, are you going to eat me?’

No. I don’t play with my food. Why would you think that?

I think I’ll be needing something substantial in my sometime soon. Though he was good (the recipe didn’t call for oil or butter, only heavy cream, but I used milk ), he wasn’t very satiating. Perhaps something to do with a carrots, I was dreaming of carrot cake all night…

Update – 4:51pm

Well, hunger hit me hard, about 2 hours after my little cinnamon roll. Sugar will do that to me. But, to complicate things, I was in a picky mood. I thought I wanted carrot cake oats –

But after a few bites, I wanted something savory. The raisins in it were very tasty – they plumped up while cooking, so I picked those out. Too bad I only put 10ish in.

So I baked a Quorn filet with some Frank’s, and made a wrap.

A Quorn corn  tortilla (about 5″ in diameter) with a spoonful of rice, a bit of Quorn corn, carrot, basil, pickle, white cheddar, Franks, and the baked corn Quorn.

But, after a few bites, it still really wasn’t satisfying me! The lemon on my plate was exciting me more! So, I put the other half in the fridge, and found my ravishing hunger was gone. I guess half a wrap and a few bites of oatmeal can do that.

I squeezed some fresh lemon into water, and it was, meh, okay.

Life realization #1 – Starting your day with EXACTLY what you crave will turn the rest of your meal desires upside down.

I’m going to a bar-b-que (does anyone else still hypenate that?) and A] I’m bound to be hungry B] There’s bound to be good food, and C] I’m bound to eat a lot of it. (I’m completely sick of the word bound now).

A tout a l’heure, petite poulettes!

Update – 8:56pm

The bar-b-que was a bust, food wise. Typical carnivorian (new word, alert the press!) scene – sausages, pork, chicken, steak, moo moo oink oink. Knowing this was bound (DOH! I said it again) to happen, I had a few bites of these –

Plain low-fat yogurt, 1/2 bananer, few blueberries, sprinkle cinnaMON. If I don’t say so myself, it was a pretty good idea.

I nibbled on some bread at the shin-dig, but it doesn’t really deserve a picture.

I came home and threw together a salad because I was really hungry and lazy.

White beans, cottage cheese, shredded carrots, cherry tomatoes, yellow bell pepper, blueberries ( ) and a slice of whole grain bread with some Smart Balance.

Then I did something I’ve never done before. It’s never crossed my mind. Until tonight.

I took an orange. An orange, I took an orange, and I sliced it. I sliced an orange and I drizzled on orange juice onto my salad. It became an orange juice salad. It became a delicious, refreshing, sweet and tangy orange juice salad.

Lucky Number 7….3? 73?

I spent the day in, oddly, my favourite degree … (Yes, I was hesitant to admit I have a favourite degree, and it’s 73 if you’re wondering) Bern was a beautiful city, pretty different than Zurich in that the old town (Think 13th century) is largely the city’s main part, which is refreshing, in a weird way.

Before I left I made a quick breakfast, I was running a bit late! (Surprised?)

 

3 scrambled egg whites with a few drips of Frank’s and Granna Padano -

3/4 Cup blueberries, a few blackberries, 10g of whole grain flakes, and a splash of milk -

With coffee (nearly gone at the time of photo, and Krisproll already devoured) with a bit of light reading. (No sure how I did that, even though I was running late?)

Bern had a great open air market today, I bought a funky hand-made bracelet from a Native American stand – Still am trying to understand why they were in Bern – With a sail boat on it.

Also, there was an Italian Gelato stand, and it’s been just over a week since I’ve had some great gelato, so I went for it, before lunch and all! 3 flavours – Nocciola (Hazelnut, and the best) Schoki (Chocolate, meh, it was so-so) and Schlumpf. I still have no idea what it means, but it was bright blue and the kid in me had to get it. It tasted like cotton candy and blueberries, a bit disappointing.

  

I had about 2 small bites of each, shared, and into the trash it went.

 

Lunch was at a Thai/Japanese hybrid restaurant named Punkt. Dined outside, (In the 73 degree weather, yes).

I usually dislike going out to eat because everything I order tends to wind up infront of me drenched in oil/butter/cream.

 

I asked for mixed steamed veggies and tofu, and I got this –

 

 

 

 

I was pleasantly surprised! They actually steamed it! The sauce was greasy, no surprise, but I did my best. I added about 1/3 cup of white rice – no brown available! -

I ate just over half of the tofu and half of the rice. It was okay, a bit bland, but when they brought out spicy chili pepper sauce, you can believe my plate was covered in it.

After a few hours of shopping (I got three great items from designers in Copenhagen for half the price! Score!) I found myself in Starbucks, and THEY WERE OUT OF BERN MUGS! It was going to be a nice little gift for the blogworld, but, well, what happened happened. So I bought an iced coffee with a splash of skim for condolence.

 

So, here I am, home again, snacking on a bit of last night’s left over salad – and realizing how informal my photos are today! I think partly because I was in a rush this morning I didn’t search for the best shot … Oh well. There’s still dinner!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was browsing through recipes on sparkrecipes.com, and saw an article ‘overloaded with zucchini?’, and like I was on a sitcom, wanted to scream YES! So I found a cool idea – Zucchini fries. I gave it a shot, but our oven here doesn’t have a very hot setting, nor a broiler, so I did the best I could.

 

They came out a tad soggy, and stuck like a nightmare to the baking pan, despite my best efforts to douse the darn thing in PAM. (Actually, a Swiss imitation of PAM, but who’s keeping track?)

I also whipped up a batch of marinara sauce, using (gasp!) canned tomatoes.

I ended up pouring the sauce right down the middle of those puppies and picked up my fork. Worked much better.

 

 

 

I also made the rest of my baked tofu, on whole wheat bread with a bit of cottage cheese, (Notice the clump directly above the word ‘rest’) mustard, and skim cheese. This stuff stuck to the roof of my mouth like it was it’s job! Annoying. Also a dill pickle.

 

With water, and an unpictured slice of baguette I wolfed while cooking. As well as a square of dark chocolate after.

Bad Blogger, Bad!

I don’t know what happened yesterday, I won’t give you the many excuses that came up, so I’m sorry! I’m still getting the blogging swaannngg down. But I’m sure once I have it, I’ll HAVE it, dang it.

This morning I felt like something a little… fancier. Which means, fresh Müsli and an Irish Cream latte.

I found some Da Vinci Irish Cream flavoured syrup in the cupboard, that somehow survived the move! Way to go little guy!

As my Müsli soaked up all it’s milky, apple-juicy goodness, I caught up on some comments and fellow bloggers. What I learned – 1) Oatmeal for breakfast is VERY popular. 2) Everyone looks to be eating so healthfully! Way to go blog world.

 

I sat down for a nice breakfast, under a very chilly sun! Autumn. You can’t beat it. (Yeah, yeah, save your breath I know it’s only August …)

In just a few weeks the leaves will start turning … and pumpkins/squashes will be available for all! Hooh-hah.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Müsli heaven! Traditional Swiss Birchermüsli has berries in it – So after the oats were soaked in milk and apple juice, I mashed a few blackberries and raspberries, chopped an apple, and stirred it all up with a few big dollops of plain yogurt. Atop I sprinkled a bit of coconut and honey, because, well, need I explain myself? -

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And I refilled my hot beverage slot with fresh Constant Comment tea, brought by a friend straight from the
States -

 

 

 

 

This time enjoyed with a whole grain cinnamon-honey plank -

 

 

 

 

 

 

And while I was eating, I subscribed to 4 magazines! I’ve really missed them since we moved, so the surplus 10 dollars for S&H was cool with me. Shape, Self, Allure and Bon Appetit should arrive in my mailbox in a short 4 weeks, until then, I wait.

This afternoon I concocted a spicy, autumn-y (last reference, I promise! Well, maybe not promise…) snack – 100g cottage cheese, 50g nonfat plain yogurt, a couple teaspoons of cinnamon, and sectioned then cubed orange pieces. Sprinkled with a bit of slivered almonds, I enjoyed this as I was browsing Baking with Julia Child. I think you can expect a Cranberry-Walnut Pumpkin loaf coming up!

 

 

 

Unfortunately, I just went to the grocery to make said recipe, and strike one – they didn’t have pumpkin. Strike 2 – They didn’t have my alternative, butternut squash. (Thinking about it now, it was a bit stupid on my part to think they’d have either at this time of year, no matter HOW many times I tell myself it feels like Autumn!) Strike 3 – No cranberries!

So I think I’m going to make a fruit foccacia instead.

 

I started feeling very pickish around 5, and before I could eat the whole kitchen I made a quick 100 calorie snack – 5 whole wheat crackers with a slice of cheese, nuked for 12 seconds to get melty and delicious, and a few slices of tomato. Hit the spot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m off for an upper body and ab workout – be back with dinner! Unfortunately I don’t know if I’m going to get to the Fruit Foccacia today, maybe tonight if I’m rambunctious enough, but tomorrow in the least.

Abs and arms workout was great, you’ve got to enjoy that weak-muscle, accomplished feeling.

NOW, onto dinner! I found a container of silken tofu in the back of my freezer… (!!!!) I had completely forgot about ‘er, poor gal. So I drained, drained, dried, drained, dried some more. I guess freezing it generated much more water.

So, I baked it with a grainy-musard honey marinade, for about 20 minutes on each side. Again, I think it was because I froze it.

With a base of spinach and a dressing of dijon vinagrette,

• Cucumber half moons
• Raisins
• Yellow Pepper Cubes
• Blueberries
• Blackberries
• Shredded Carrot

 

 

Enjoyed with a toasted piece of whole wheat bread, and some Smart Balance -

 

And I had to go back for a refill! This time with olive baguette and no tofu I’m saving it for lunch Sunday, because I’m spending the day in Bern tomorrow! I’m pretty excited, I only wish I was staying overnight so I could take a nice lake-side Run… Or on second thought, I could just take the train home sweaty…

 

 

 

 

 

 

We’ll see what happens! Expect a late update tomorrow, but a great one indeed!

Goodnight folks, take care.

Mystery Drawer + Dinner

 

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you The Vegetarian Disciplinarian’s Mystery Drawer!

 

 

This is my very special drawer, which contains life’s simplest pleasures. If you can guess what’s it in, you win.

You’ll win … my respect! My approval! My gratitude! My many many thanks! And an imaginary check for a few grand.

I’ll unveil the contents of this scrumptious block of wood in a few days.

 

 

 

 

Now, on to dinner. I felt like 1) eggs, 2) a salad, 3) veggie wraps 4) cottage cheese. What’s a girl to do! I combined them all, that’s what I did.

We had a nice and round head of lettuce, so I ripped off a few leaves, and filled them with sliced zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, hot sauce, S&P, and slice or two of Gruyere.

Rolled up, and sliced right down the belly -

With a really odd mixture of boiled egg whites, hot sauce, cottage cheese, and the left over veggies -

 

The wraps were terribly messy, but they tasted wonderful. Actually, now that I think about it, I think the only cooking I did was boil the eggs… This dinner was EXTREMEMLY filling, and it took a good half an hour just to eat! I’m stuffed to the brim.

A European Kid’s Dream

I woke up this morning with a hankering for oatmeal. No blueberries, no banana, no nectarine. My favourite variations of the breakfast grain were shot. Then I heard a choir of angels sing as a stroke of genius hit me – NUTELLA OATMEAL!

Now, before you roll your eyes and gag at the decadence for so early in the morning, hear me out. It was very light – only a 1/4 cup dry serving, and needless to say, it was heavenly. I’m sure any kid in Europe, (Or the States, I hear it’s growing in popularity) would jump for joy to have a breakfast like this.

In a saucepan I brought to a boil just under half a cup of water, with a splash of milk for creaminess, salt, and a teaspoon of Nutella. Then I added the oats, and cooked them per usual.

When they were done – I sprinkled on a tablespoon of coarsely chopped hazelnuts, and a Nutella spoon.

I felt like a little European kid in heaven, skipping about with a bowl of oats in one hand, and a spoonful of Nutella in the other.

 

Earlier this morning I started things out with fresh coffee and a Krisproll.

 

Since it was a pretty small breakfast, I’m not sure how well it will hold me – I ate pretty late, around noon, so something to tide me over until dinner is bound to be made.

The Cross-Bite Saves the Day

First things first – let me fill you in on last night’s food encounters.

I made a fresh salad for dinner – but I was deleting old pictures from my camera, and off went the pictures of it! Luckily I stopped before I deleted the cross-bite shot, so, the only evidence of my dinner is the cross=bite.

In it I had arugula, mixed seeds, corn, shredded carrot, tomato and a light creamy dressing. Very refreshing.

 

I also enjoyed it with a cup of yogurt, with a few giant blackberries and puffed spelt. It was so good – I mashed up the berries a bit, and a beautiful dark purple juice mixed with the yogurt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  I ate pretty early last night, so around 10-ish I was grumbling away. I cut up some honeydew and cantaloupe, then dolloped a scoop or so of vanilla ice cream. I also had a few chocolate sprinkles left over from who knows what, slivered almonds and a little piece of dark chocolate on top. Better than a cherry, in my opinion.

Definitely hit the spot, and gave me lovely dreams as well