Summer Fruits, Meals, and a Burpee Workout

Happy Friday! Hope everyone had a great week and has fun plans for the weekend! I'm very excited for my Saturday/Sunday (but more on that in my next post). For now, it's been pretty much the same old stuff, but I have pictures and info to share none the less!

Food first!! 

http://purposefuleating.wordpress.com/2010/10/07/fear-of-fruit/

One of the best parts of summer is all of the fruits and veggies are in season. I've been taking full advantage of that, and even downed a whole cantaloup in a 24 hour period. 

Cantaloup is honestly one of the best fruits out there. This one was so ripe and sweet that it tasted like cotton candy...only better!

Here's a pretty comprehensive list of fruits that are in-season during the summer: 

 June  -   July  -  August

Apricots

Asian Pear

Barbados Cherries

Black Currants

Blackberries

Blueberries

Boysenberries

Breadfruit

Cantaloupe

Casaba Melon

Champagne Grapes

Cherries

Cherries, Sour

Crenshaw Melon

Durian

Elderberries

Figs

Grapefruit

Grapes

Honeydew Melons

Jackfruit

Key Limes

Limes

Loganberries

Longan

Loquat

Lychee

Mulberries

Nectarines

Olallieberries

Passion Fruit

Peaches

Persian Melon

Plums

Raspberries

Sapodillas

Sapote

Strawberries

Sugar Apple

Watermelon

http://www.nourishinteractive.com/healthy-living/free-nutrition-articles/104-fruits-by-season

I've actually never even heard of some of those fruits before...what even is a Sapote? a Loquat? Longan? Someone fill me in before I have to start googling it.

In other news, my mom came to visit again at the beginning of this week to help out with some more apartment things. After an afternoon of errands, we grabbed an fancy lunch (unintentionally...we didn't know the place was so nice until we were already inside and seated) at Alchemy. 

We started with fresh made hummus with warm pita points (unpictured). Both my mom and I agreed that it was the probably in the top 3 of best hummus we've ever had.

I got the beat salad with grilled salmon. It was pretty epic.

My mom got a fresh greens salad with bruléd avocado...sounds weird, but I had a bite and really loved the crispy sweetness that the avocados had.  

Back in the real world of my own homemade meal concoctions, I made this really good salad last night. It included kale, chickpeas (rinsed from a can), 1/2 a cut up apple, goat cheese, and pomegranite dressing. The rest of the apple with MaraNatha almond butter and a little homemade popcorn completed the meal. 

I may go home and make this for lunch today...

For Wednesday night's dinner I cooked some quinoa and then in the last ten minutes of cooking I put in some kale leaves and brussel sprouts I had baked in the oven (brussel sprouts + olive oil + sea salt--> into the oven for 15-20 minutes at 350). This was a great way to add a little flavor/greens to the sometimes flavor-deficient quinoa. Warm tomato soup on the side. 

Breakfast of champions. Siggi's pomegranate+passion fruit yogurt and a Van's whole grain waffle. 

In workout news, things have been the same as always although I'm still working on incorporating sprint intervals into my runs as well as upping my strength training. I plan on trying this workout tomorrow morning: 

As far as workouts go, there's probably nothing I dislike more than burpees. But there really good to do because they get your heart rate going really fast. So I'm making myself complete this as a personal goal. Who knows, maybe I'll like burpees more after completing it...not likely..

Other than that, I've just been studying away at Orgo (aka-the hardest class I think I've ever had to suffer through) 

And also there was a casual severe thunderstorm yesterday that warranted tornado warnings in the Baltimore area....this keeps happening lately and I really don't like it. 

Ominous sky at 8:30 am ... not normal...

Well someone's tired...I think I'll take a little power nap before heading to the library for the night :/ Friday night study session..WOOHOO..trying to contain my enthusiasm. 

Ps- Check out this website called Food Babe. It's really informative and the author is doing some really cool stuff in the food industry right now, like fighting KRAFT on their use of artificial food dyes and GMOs in their Mac and Cheese. She's also just super healthy and has a lot of great advice! 

http://foodbabe.com/

Fluffy Egg Whites and Moving....of course they go together?

I promised you guys a how to on making fluffy egg-whites, and there's actually nothing to it at all, but here goes nothing! 

This is actually egg whites mixed with 2 eggs to amp up the protein a bit. I combined the two eggs and egg whites in a bowl and whisked it all together, then poured it into a pan that had been heating on medium-high heat for a few minutes. When you put the egg-white mixture into the pan, you want to hear a slight sizzle.  

Use a spatula to continue moving the eggs around in the pan while the cook. They don't cook flat and more thoroughly on one side.

Within a few minutes they'll cook throughout and as long as you keep stirring them with the spatula and sort of keeping them in a bunch to one side of the pan, they'll cook nice and fluffy!

Sprinkle with a little sea salt and pepper, and there ya go! Told you there's nothing to it!

Now for regular updates. As always, we'll begin with the food! 

Delicious grilled salmon salad from Gertrude's with my parents and Joey. 

Lunch on the floor of my new apartment...this was obviously a pre-furniture meal. After a full day of moving boxes and furniture in and out of cars, and up and down stairs, we were starved. I grabbed us a goat cheese salad, hummus with whole wheat pita, and cups of gazpacho to share (from Donna's Cafe). They also threw a cookie in there for us. This totally hit the spot!

Breakfast at One World Cafe on Sunday morning. I had a big bowl of their homemade granola with strawberries, bananas, and vanilla yogurt. 

Another fueling lunch with Mama on Tuesday after my first orgo exam (yikes!). Carma's Cafe had their favorite special of mine--the Sundance Sandwich--hummus, sundried tomato spread, cucumbers, and mixed greens on toasted health bread! Along with a large iced green tea, this was just what my Mom and I needed to get ready for a full afternoon of errands! 

Lunch Wednesday--kale salad with strawberries, dried cranberries, and goat cheese. Apple and corn cakes on the side! 

Last night I had some Phi Mu friends over for a little girls night. Obviously that had to include a cheese plate complete with Brie, New Zealand Cheddar, Drunken Goat (my personal fave) and a crumbly strong cheese I can't remember the name of. And of course, no cheese plate would be perfect without some grapes and crackers to go with it! 

Now just for fun, and because I am so proud of it, here are pics of the apartment and the move in general! This was basically all of my mother's doing...she is AMAZING at this and I have no idea what I would have done without her! <3

Giant fork!! 

Roomie!! 

Table assembly...Lara and I were obviously a huge help to our mom's with it...

Moey is staying with me for the summer while Joey is away in Maine. I swear the cat loves me...

Before I leave you, here is a funny picture of my orgo professor doing part of his lecture standing on top of a table....he is the coolest.