F.R.I.E.D.

Hot pepper cheese balls: $2.30
Sweet potato fries: $2
Mini corndogs: $2.30
Mac & cheese wedges: $3.10
Onion rings (as big as your head): $3.10
-----------------------
A fried dinner al fresco with the co-workers: priceless

I Am Not Dead

I promise I’m still around though my blogging time has taken a hit.

I’m just buried under my thesis on myotonic dystrophy.

Shout out to MasterChef for being a partner in the background.

Oh, and embryology reading isn’t helping the situation any.

Though my dinner of a summer squash, tomato, garlic, onion, krab, and Old Bay sauté worked wonders on my mood.

So, I’m sorry.  I’m a student.

I really do want to blog.  Trust me.  I promise to try a WIAW post tomorrow and then maybe some this weekend because we have a wedding and I know you all love pretty pictures of wedding cake the couple.

Question: What’s the first thing to go when you have a time crunch?

Sucker For Scallops

Every wondered how to end a good week?  With an even better dinner accompanied by a stellar lady friend.  That’s right: Mary and I had a date tonight and it was LONG over due.  Seriously, I can’t live without this woman.  She is all sorts of awesome.  Basically she matched our dinner.  =D  We met at a local seafood place, McCormicks & Schmicks, right off the center of downtown.  It was around 8pm so we were seated right away.  When we sat down I meant to take a picture but I spaced.  We were placed in a booth that had thick green velvet curtains we could have drawn across to sequester our table from the rest of the dining room.  How neat/weird!

Anyways, first up was bread.  No regular basket for this restaurant.  They brought out a hunk of bread and some pretty whipped butter.  We attacked it so quick I didn’t snap a shot.  Oh well, how many times have you seen bread before??  Yea, that’s what I thought.  You haven’t seen these entrees before though so let’s bring it on.  I was pretty hungry since the last time I ate was a Peanutty bar at 5p.  Honestly, I made it all of halfway down the list of food and saw this –>

Yes ma’am.  I take seven one please!  As fast as you can get it out of the kitchen because I am a sucker for scallops peeps.  A total softie, seriously.  They are something I haven’t ever bought to make at home so when I go out and see a great lookin’ dish like this, it’s hard to pass it up.  Also, did you see that crab potato hash?  Oh yea, that didn’t hurt either!

So, let me take you through this piece by piece: 1) The scallops were phenomenal.  They were cooked perfectly and caramelized like whoa.  I cut them with my fork like it was nothing.  Yum. 2) The sundried tomato pesto was in short supply so maybe that could have been amped up a little.  Plus, it didn’t seem much like a pesto but rather a paste.  Still a nice accent taste. 3) The lemon butter was actually much subtler than I anticipated but it went well with the buttery smoothness of the scallops. 4) Crab potato hash!  Heck yes.  More please, now, thanks.  It had some great pan-fried crunchy bits. 5) Finally, the sautéed spinach wasn’t really sautéed as much as it was steamed kind of.  That’s okay, I didn’t need the extra oil anyways!

On the other side of the table was Mary and her lump crab tower.  This baby was layered with avocado, mango, and huge chunks of lump crab.  It was supposed to come dressed with an orange vinaigrette but Mary asked for it on the side.  Not only did the dressing come in a bowl but the balsamic reduction and some olive oil came on the side too.  I used a hunk of bread to try out the orange vinaigrette and it was beyond yummy.  I tried a bite of the whole dish too and I give it a great!  Light and refreshing for sure.  After we paid for dinner, it was already close to 9:15.  In the search for something sweet, we walked to a chocolate shop and snagged some goodies before going and walking around, seeing the sights, and shopping some shops.  Mary got two pieces of candy, something with peanut butter and chocolate that I forgot the name of, and I got some dark chocolate covered cherries with a few peanut butter malt balls.

Perfect way to end the evening I must say.  I was sad to see Mary go but we already have potential plans for church together on Sunday and we were talking about hitting up another restaurant soon.  We’re foodies, we’re friends, we just get each other and sometimes there is no one else you’d rather try out a new restaurant with.  =P

Friday French –>

NEW ONES
Phrase: chocolat noir recouvert cerises
Translation: dark chocolate covered cherries
Story: See above.  ‘Nuff said.

Questions: What food are you a sucker for?
What’s your favorite chocolate treat?

After Burn

I’m in the midst of doing some homework and letter writing so this won’t be a long post but I wanted to share my eats with you all because it’s another What I Ate Wednesday hosted by Peas and Crayons.

First up was breakfast: ripped up flax bread topped with a peanut butter maple glaze.  I had it in the shuttle on the way to school and it wasn’t super light out so I apologize for the darkness we have going on here.  It was delicious though, I must say.

Next up was some string cheese at 10ish when I got hungry in-between doing batches of DNA backups at work.

Lunch came in the form of a salad from the hospital cafeteria.  I was supposed to go out for lunch but things happened and plans fell through so I had to manage otherwise since I hadn’t brought food with me.  The salad was sad and small but got some points for having beets and cauliflower on there.  The picture I’m going to show you though is the much happier, peppier, larger, better salad from last night.

My late afternoon pick-me-up was an apple eaten while reading in the shuttle on the way home. 

Didn’t do much for me though.  I barely made it another hour before major, major hunger set in.  I tried to fend it off by reading some Embryology but just ended up making myself so hangry that I bailed on my previous dinner idea (stuffed mushrooms anyone?) in favor of a much faster combo of leftover broccoli cheese rice with sour cream, TVP, and halved grape tomatoes.  Some Old Bay seasoning in there too.

Also snacked on some rice cracker mix while I was waiting all of forty seconds for my bowl to heat.  Yup, I was that hungry and that impatient.  Note to self, don’t do that again.

On another interesting note, I did an experiment this morning with my workout.  I ran thirty minutes (well actually 27 minutes with a three minute walking warm up), did a five minute inclined walking cool down, and then a five minute period where I kept my heart rate monitor [HRM] on to see what my “after burn” would be.

Turns out the treadmill overestimates by over a hundred calories after the first 30-minute run and by just under a hundred after the cool down.  That’s pretty significant if you ask me.  I did enjoy seeing the 35 calorie after burn though.  Pretty neat I must say to know that you’re still burning calories after getting out of the gym.  (Not that you aren’t always burning calories thanks to your basal metabolism.)

Question: Do you trust gym machines with your calorie burn?

Beer Brunch

Last night was one heck of a bachelorette party.  My friend Kris is getting married in a couple of weeks so the bridesmaids and I went for a night out in our old college town.

We all had beads and bracelets denoting us as “team bride” for all those who were wondering if we indeed were hanging out with the girl in the tiara and light up sash.  Our time consisted of a few places out and about with drinks here and there.  I ended up as the DD, which was fine especially for my wallet and my figure, and drove everyone home at three in the morning.  I ended up staying at another one of the bridesmaid’s houses for all of six hours.  I woke up at 9ish and decided to just get on the road.  No sense in lagging about.  On my way out of town I stopped by the best bakery in town and snagged a maple bacon donut and a chocolate cinnamon roll with peanut butter and chocolate icing.

I downed the first one and enjoyed the sumptuous bacon flavor with the maple goodness.  I loved it!  I then got about three bites into the chocolate cinnamon roll and realized it was a probably a bad idea to eat both so I stopped and brought it home to Jack so he could taste the wonderful flavors too.

When I got home Jack and I hung out for just a bit before he headed home and I went to a four course, five beer brunch at a local restaurant.  I am a member of the Yelp Elite Squad of my city and they put on this meal for free for selected members of the group.  I was only too happy to have made the RSVP list!  When I got dropped off, I found everyone hanging out in the outdoor pagoda area, basking in the sunshine and sipping on the first beer: Batch 19.

I liked this beer.  It complimented the sunshine and playful atmosphere of the initial reception as people mingled and got to know one another.  After 40ish minutes we were ushered inside for sit at long communal, family-style tables for the actual brunch portion.  We were scheduled to have four full courses each of which were paired with a unique beer.  (I’m no stranger to paired courses but this was my first with beer instead of wine!)

First up was a piece of quiche with sausage, fennel, corn, and herbs.  Had a side of greens on the plate too with some sweet and spicy sauce and cheddar crumbles which tasted a lot of like cheese but they had the texture of the crumbs on top on coffee cake.

The beer we had was served in a cute little wine-looking glass.  It was a bit sharper than any beer I’d had before but it went well with the quiche.  The rich eggy-ness was balanced by the bright, clean nature of the beer.

Our second course was rarebit, aka cheese on toast.  However, this wasn’t just any cheesy toast.  This was a hunk of freshly baked homemade bread smothered in an aged, smoked cheddar cheese with lots of cayenne and dry mustard.

This doesn’t look like it would be spicy but it actually was.  By the time I finished it off my mouth was pretty hot.  Thankfully the second beer (a Belgian ale) was good at cooling me off.  It was way more bitter to me than the first and it was tolerable if I sipped it after a bite of toast.

There was a bit of time between the second and third courses but the latter was worth the wait.  On the next plate was a slice of lamb dressed in a veggie masala sauce on a bed of mung bean stew and some roasted eggplant chunks.

Oh, yum.  The stew was thick and hearty, the lamb gamey, and the eggplant sultry.  The sauce managed to pull it all together.  When I got a bit of everything on the fork, I was very pleased.  Even when I didn’t get all the bits together in a single bite I was a happy camper.  The beer paired with this course was an IPA.

The carbonation helped to scrub your tongue in-between bites making each bite taste just as new and fresh as the last.  The greatest thing about this beer though was the incredible aroma.  I stuck my nose in the glass and was met with a beautiful fruity aroma.  The soft citrusy notes of the beer went super well with the spice in the masala sauce.  Finally, the last course was dessert in the form of a raisin waffle with a lemon cream cheese ice cream.

Holy. Smokes.  This was beyond incredible.  I wanted to live in that cream cheese ice cream.  I couldn’t get enough of it.  Honestly, some people left some on their plates (those people were lactose intolerant) and the guests by me and I all were wondering if we could politely steal the leftovers.  It was that good.  I wish you could try it, seriously, you’d die of awesomeness.  Obviously, my portion didn’t last long…

The beer paired with dessert was a dark ale with all sort of smooth and nutty notes.  I was just amazed.  It smelled so rich and full and went down really easy.

Probably the best thing we were told to do was to take a scoop of ice cream and dunk it into the glass of beer.  Oh my goodness, I was blown away.  If I ever was going to do a beer float, it would be this beer and this ice cream.  Too bad it isn’t sold by the pint.  Or maybe that’s a good thing, says my waist…  Now full and happy, I’m about to head off to school to work on patient reports that I’m behind on.  I’m also in the middle of laundry meaning I’m going to be very fashionable on my way over there.

Oh yea, you’re jealous.  I can tell.  Haha.  I’ll try not to stop any traffic with my brightness.  I make no guarantees, my friends.  Catch you on the flipside.

Questions: Do you play catch-up on Sundays or just let things be for the week?
What beer and ice cream would you pair for a float?

Understanding Is Everything

This morning saw me sitting in a doctor’s office for a good hour just chatting about my recent medical stuff.  While an hour may seem like a long time, trust me if flew by and I am all the better for it.  I feel so much more informed and empowered.  I think things will go up from here.  Maybe fixing things is out of the question for now but at least a level of understanding has been reached.  From here everything is easier to manage.

Before my doctor’s appointment this morning, I woke up and got my booty moving.  I figured I would stay in today instead of going to the fitness center.  To get my heart rate up I did some tabatas and boy was I sweaty afterwards!

I always feel weary of tabatas, like they’re not going to give me a good workout, but I am always wrong.  Seriously, 260 calories of interval training is no joke and I was thoroughly worn by the end.  I showered quickly and made myself a carrot cake protein smoothie to go as I drove to the doc’s office.

Traffic was kind of insane and I’m fairly sure I hit most, if not all, red lights but I entertained myself…obviously.

After the appointment I headed back to campus for patient prep and presentation but before that I had an ice cream social to get to.  We may be a wild bunch at my lab but this has got to be a new record for us.

We had everything from sugar wafers to cookie dough and every sauce under the sun along with three kinds of ice cream (birthday cake, fudge swirl, and Neapolitan).  I quickly made myself a bowl with a brownie on the bottom, the first two kinds of ice cream, some hot fudge, cookie down, peanut butter magic shell, various candies, and whipped cream.  Plus, it isn’t a sundae without a cherry on top!

Sugar coma anyone?  Oh yes, we all were having some satisfied tummies and droopy eyes but seriously it was all worth it.  So good!  I was powered all the way through the afternoon and evening on this bowl of deliciousness.  That included a two hour class on teratogens and fetal alcohol syndrome disorders.  No sleeping for me.  I was wired.  On the way home I was caught in the rain but that was the least of my worries.

I spent the remainder of the day on the internet researching all sorts of things including infertility patient satisfaction with genetic counseling and outcome measures for genetic counselors.  Interesting huh?  If you asked me about an hour ago I might have said yes but at this point I’ve read so many articles they are all blending together.  Ahhhh!  It is pretty cool though to read about how beneficial patients find genetic counseling.  Makes me feel great about going into this awesome field!

Questions: Do you think tabatas give you a good workout?
What your favorite ice cream topping?

Goodbyes and Goodies

Today was the mother of long days.  Seriously, I was gone from 7:30 this morning to 6:30 this evening.  I am not a fan of 11 hour days, FYI.  Though, after seeing four patients toady, and legitimately counseling two of them, I felt pretty good.  This morning though was not so peppy.  I was tired rolling out of bed.  By the time I got my booty up and to the gym my legs felt like lead but I plodded through a 20 minute elliptical workout before coming back to the apartment to do some ab work.  Eventually I finished, thank Heavens, and I showered and changed for clinic.  Breakfast was consumed in the elevator on the way to the shuttle because I was too hungry to wait until I sat down in the van.  I had a cinnamon raisin English muffin stuffed with peanut butter cottage cheese.

Weird maybe, colorful certainly not, awesome definitely.  I enjoyed every bite and was a bit sad when it was over.  Thankfully though it kept me full for a good three hours and I was more than hungry and ready for lunch. Since one of the techs in my lab has accepted a new position outside the lab for the state police force as a CSI, we had a catered going away lunch.  Moe’s was on the menu.

Most people made burritos but I made myself a salad with all the fixings, three kinds of salsa, sour cream, cheese, and some guacamole that I added after the picture.  It was great.  The beans were nicely seasoned and added protein and after the whole plate was gone I felt pretty satisfied.  I was happy with my decision even though the easy route would have been to have two or three tacos with all those carbs!  After lunch, I was in clinic all afternoon.  Three patients and three hours later, I was writing reports like my life depended on it, milking my last couple hours with Mitch before he wrapped up his time visiting with my program.  Around six we trekked out to the car and he drove me home.

I was sad to see him go.  I will miss him as goodbyes are never fun.  It was nice to have a guy around, kind of our token male in the program.  Males account for something like less than 5% of all genetic counselors so, you know, you take ‘em where you can get ‘em.  =D  On a happier note, guess what was there to greet me when I got home!?!? My new GPS had arrived.  I was pretty pumped.

And apparently pretty dumb.  Who knew you needed to be told that a satellite receiver needs a clear view of the sky?

Well, now you know.  Can’t wait to use this baby!  It’s a different brand than my last one so it’ll be interesting to see the differences.  Also arriving today was my embryo book.  This sucker is going to get a workout every Thursday afternoon.

I’m a bit nervous about the whole subject but I’m hoping the Developmental Biology class from my first Masters degree will help take the edge off.  Anyone ever taken an embryology class before?  When I had finished ripping open the goodies, I realized I was pretty hungry.  I don’t blame my tummy though, seeing as it had been a long time since I’d eaten with clinic hogging my afternoon.  So instead of going a healthier route I went for the fastest stuff I could get my hands on.  While my main dish was heating I scarfed down two slices of toast with apple butter and cinnamon.

When my bowl finished heating I savored some cheese and broccoli rice with red pepper chicken sausage bites, sour cream, and Old Bay seasoning.  It was perfect, spicy, and gooey.

Just what I wanted.  Next up was making my dessert for the pitch in BBQ I’m going to on Friday.  The new first years are coming to meet us second years so we can all get to know each other before school starts.  It’s going to be awesome.  But anyways, I made a modified version of these marshmallow bars.  I used large marshmallows chopped in half, one single bag of chocolate chips, a single stick of butter, and only a half cup of peanut butter.

I also decided to dust the whole top with crumbled graham crackers for a s’more feel.  Figured it would go great with the cookout/bonfire theme we have going.  Lastly, this evening I had to go out and get some fun candy toppings for our ice cream social we’re having tomorrow at work (also to celebrate the co-worker’s new job).  I chose Reese’s peanut M&Ms, and dark chocolate M&Ms.  When I got home from the store I served myself up a small bowl of blood orange sorbet with some mini chocolate chips.

Mostly because if I didn’t have this controlled serving, I would have broken into these toppings and that would have ended poorly.

Yea, dangerous, huh?  Right, I thought so.  Anyways, now I’m off to a party.  Yes, it starts at 10p.  Kind of crazy on a week night but since I see the doctor tomorrow morning I get to sleep in a bit since I’m not going in to work at 7:30am.  I’m hoping it’s not an awful idea to go to bed at 11 (man I sound old!) but I think the social moment will be worth it.  G’night!

Questions: What is your fav flavor of sorbet?
What’s the most exotic sorbet you’ve ever tried?