{WIAW#5} Too Good To Be True? + New Year’s Resolutions

Last Updated on March 27, 2015 by Karen

In case you’ve just tuned in, every Wednesday I share some of the foods I eat in a day. Thanks to Jenn at Peas and Crayon for hosting What I Ate Wednesday!

Howdy folks, how is it Wednesday already?!  This week has been moving at lightning speed, which always feels that way whenever I am trying to get back in the groove.

This morning I dug into a bowl of diced mango and pineapple with a dollop of Greek yogurt on top for breakfast.  Some people say that Greek Gods yogurt uses pectin to thicken the yogurt, but I don’t mind it at all. I happen to love the texture — it tastes like whipped cream!  Yesterday I ate it with fresh strawberries and I seriously thought I was eating strawberry shortcake filling.

For lunch, I headed to the Whole Foods near my office to pick up some healthy bites.  I always see people lining up for the 4 for $4 Healthy Starts platter (too good to be true?) so I decided to give it a try today.

I chose California Quinoa Salad, Sweet Potato Cranberry Quinoa Cake, and Mediterranean Crunch Salad (they let me get two portions of this).  I am not the biggest fan of quinoa, but I liked how the quinoa salad is loaded with fresh vegetables and mango chunks, and how the quinoa cake is studded with wild rice to provide it with a chewy texture.  The crunch salad was my least favorite — the flavor was okay but nothing stops my enjoyment of a meal more than grinding into some grit.  Overall, it’s a pretty good lunch deal and a wonderful way to add variety to my lunch.

It’s been a while since I last had one of these Kit’s Organic Fruit + Seed bars but I was craving for a snack, so Lemon Vanilla and Chia Seeds bar it was.  Bright, zesty flavors, with a crunchy texture from the pumpkin seeds and chia seeds!

Plus, an ingredient list with recognizable ingredients (and none of that weird stuff) makes it even better!

For dinner, I’ve got the perfect dish lined up for this blustery, cold day.  Seared rosemary-brined pork chops was served with duck fat roasted potatoes and steamed green beans on the side, inspired by season two of Masterchef Junior I had been (binge)watching.  I don’t cook pork chops enough (maybe once a month?) so I was determined to step outside my comfort zone and improve upon my pork chop cooking skills.

For the pork chops, I made a quick brine by adding water, salt, sugar, pepper, a clove of garlic, and a sprig of fresh rosemary to a saucepan and let it come to a boil.  Next, I added some ice cubes to cool it down before adding the pork chops to the brine.

Brining adds a ton of flavors and moisture to meats, but I was only able to get about an hour of brining time.  Next time I would let it sit in the brine for at least a couple of hours in the fridge.

In other news, have you come up with any New Year’s resolutions?  Instead of having a long list of resolutions, I came up with three specific things I want to improve upon, and here they are:

Unplug from electronic devices more often.  My family seems to agree that it’s a big challenge for me ;) I keep keeping my eyes peeled on both my personal phone and work Blackberry all the time and am always tempted to check for updates.  I know it’s a bad habit so I would like to change that.  I’ll report back in 66 days!

Improve arm strength.  Give me a pair of sneakers and I will run for miles and miles, but give me a dumbbell and I guarantee I will bail in five minutes.  There are so many benefits associated with lifting weights; it improves bone density, boosts endurance, and strengthens core muscles among other things, and right now I am definitely not benefitting.

Bring on the barbells, arm bands, and bicep curls!  This year, I shall be proud to bare my arms when the weather warms up…and carry more groceries home ;)

Finally, I am resolved to expand my culinary horizons by cooking different foods and learning new techniques that take me outside of my comfort zone.  For example, I would like to grow more comfortable working with yeast dough (which intimidates me all the time), cook more fish and pork dishes, and perhaps try my hand at making croissants from scratch.

That’s all I’ve got for now!  What goals have you set for yourself for 2015?