Finding Groceries And Motivation.
I love it when title just right themselves. It saves me from trying to be witty and failing. This one totally applies to my past 16 hours. Right after blogging last night, we made a midnight(err, 7:30pm) Whole Foods trip. It was simpler to do this with our schedules these days and we needed meals for the next few nights. We went to the Framingham Whole Foods and now I have to wonder: How long has it been since I’ve been there? Because there was a lot of new finds. First we stopped at Stop And Shop to get more pumpkin, and 2 things caught my eye.
TRUwhip At Stop And Shop
Soap Opera Digest
Stop And Shop now sells TRUwhip and for cheap! Unfortunately, the holidays are over but if you have any excuse to buy some, do! It’s so good and keeps in your freezer. And apparently I’m in for a “shocking death” sometime this week. If I write a really nasty and angry blog post around 2:05 tomorrow, assume I wasn’t happy with who died 😦 Then we went to Whole Foods where I basically ran around like a chicken without a head. They always ay go grocery shopping Wednesday nights and it’s so true! There was no one there(except me, of course). And I just wanted to get things and get out so I could go to bed. But look at all the new products I found!
Caramel And Chocolate Oikos
Luna Protein Bars
Clif Fruit And Nut Strips
The new Oikoi(Oikos in plural in Greek) are out! Like I said, I don’t know why these are so exciting to me since I could theoretically put chocolate and caramel over a plain Oikos, but for some reason they are(I didn’t end up buying one though). And the new Clif bars are here, too! Even though they weren’t on sale, I couldn’t resist picking one out “just to try”. I went with the cookie dough Luna because I love me some cookie dough. We saved so much on coupons and sales, it was ridiculous! The cashier actually commented and wanted to know how we were doing it 😉 All you need to do is cut from the Whole Deal flier and wait for the sales to match. There was one thing I payed for myself not on sale or with a coupon.
Burnt Sugar Chocolate Fudge
I’ve been having a major fudge craving. I was thinking about making my own vegan version, but after realizing all the powdered sugar I’d need, it seemed so much simpler to pay someone else to make it for me. This should be delicious. If I did make a vegan version, I would use this:
Soy Free Earth Balance
The kind people at Earth Balance sent me some coupons to try their version of an all-natural vegan butter spread, and with my first coupon I picked out this one which I’ve seen on Heather’s blog a lot. A solid fat has a lot of advantages in cooking and baking that liquid doesn’t so this should be fun to play with. And it has no cholesterol because it’s vegan–score.
Steaz Soda And Organic Whole Wheat Pasta
I think my dad was more giddy about the savings we got than I was. The pasta is normall $3 a pound, but they were on sale for $2 and Whole Foods had a $1 coupon off two, so we got BOTH for $3. And the Steaz is normally around $4.49 for a 4-pack, but are on sale for $2.66 this week, and there’s a buy 1 get 1 in the Whole Deal. So instead of $9 for both, we got both for $2.66. That is some savings! We also got regular stuff like chicken and beef for dinners(both on sale). After everything was put away, I had a new chocolate to sample and review.
Vivani Organic Dark Chocolate With Lemon
Vivani sent me some of their products to try and review and lemon was just what I was craving. They’re a European country that makes their chocolate with only 3 or 4 ingredients and no soy lecithin. If you’ve never looked, that’s a common emulsifier in American chocolate, so this is more friendly to people who are allergic to or intolerant of soy. This flavor was really good; the lemon wasn’t super loud like I was hoping, but then again no one would want to bite into chocolate and feel like they’re sucking on a lemon. I loved the flavor of the 70% dark chocolate which makes me excited to try that one soon.
Pumpkin Oatmeal With Mighty Maple
A little later I needed something nutty and melty so I made this with a new can of pumpkin. Yum! It hit the spot. After watching Hugh Jackman on Jay Leno I tried to get to bed, but no dice. Ever have it when you’re just so ready to start the next day you can shut off your mind to end this one? That’s how I felt like last night. And the fact that I almost napped during Gettysburg didn’t help. After 40 minutes of turning I decided hot food would help.
Tempeh With Quick BBQ Sauce
Who craves tempeh at 11:40? Apparently, I do. It was so good with a little BBQ sauce(ketchup, liquid smoke, and mustard). I turned on Conan and fell asleep to that, and amazingly wasn’t to tired when I woke up at 7:30. Now for the motivation part: Yesterday, I was completely lazy all day and did nothing. There’s nothing wrong with that, and in fact I think it made me more excited to get things done today and how! I wrote a to-do list before I went to bed detailing as much as I could. First up was my workout; I decided to do my core followed by 200 flights. After the muscle-building power moves of the core, I reached for a snack to eat for the cardio of the stairs.
Cookie Dough Luna Protein
Ho-Ly-Crap. This bar was amazing! It was so good, I had to give it a 10/10. The flavor for once was a perfect rendition of cookie dough. And the nutrition was just what I like during a workout: some sugars, a good deal of whole proteins, minerals to be absorbed, and sodium for replenishing. Really, I couldn’t stop thinking about this for the hour I was climbing(that and pumping along to embarrassing songs like Cowboy Casanova and Hey, Soul Sister). What I also loved was it was the perfect size to let me cool down and shower before making breakfast without feeling in a rush. That way, when I had breakfast, it was just how I wanted it to be.
Cinnamon Banana Oatmeal With Maple Walnut Butter
Chobani With Raspberry Jam
Sometimes there’s nothing better than simple yogurt topped with simple jam–fruity and delicious. I meant to make banana goodness bread oats which would have involved vanilla powder and vanilla stevia but I forgot(whoops) and instead it was simple banana and cinnamon. That was good, but not as flavorful. On top I mixed together Artisana raw walnut butter with maple butter from New Hampshire for some nutty sweetness.
1/7/10 List
See? There really is a list, for today anyway. I love how my day is broken up: Workout, Shower, Breakfast, Lunch, Baking, Dinner, Dessert. That pretty much sums me up 🙂 And I’m doing so good! Right now I’ve done everything I was supposed to, except having banana oatmeal instead of pumpkin. Well, we can’t all be perfect, right 😉
Food Makes Fun Fuel 
Okay….I am so excited to try the new Luna bars. I hope they come to a store near me SOON!!
Kelly
January 7, 2010
OMGGGG!! I have heard of those Luna Protein bars, but havent seen them yet…and they get a 10/10!?!? I am going to look for them today! I didn’t know oikos was putting out choco and caramel flavors…woooot!
Emily
January 7, 2010
I haven’t seen those Lunas anywhere yet. Oh you also gotta let us know how the yogurt tastes. Chocolate and Caramel -YUMM!
JW
January 7, 2010
OMG chocolate and caramel Oikos??? Have I been living under a rock or something??? I need to find those ASAP!
I totally agree, by the way, those Luna protein bars are amazing:)
Ada
January 7, 2010
Never seen those Lunas!!! I’d LOVE to try!
Jessica @ How Sweet
January 7, 2010
I want those oikos, lunas and clifs realllll bad!
Errign
January 7, 2010
I’m really curious about the stats on the flavored Oikos. I’m sure it would be more of a dessert item than a breakfast staple. I was all excited for a review but then you didn’t get them?!? Oh well, just means I need to go shopping then. 🙂
Graze With Me
January 7, 2010
I think they had around 17g of sugar each? Definitely something for dessert, but still fun. But I didn’t end up getting them because, like I thought, I could always put chocolate or caramel on plain
Evan Thomas
January 7, 2010
Please please consider buying me a few of those luna’s and sending them to me! I’ll swap you for some fun German health food??? Are you interested in health teas?
specialkphd
January 7, 2010
i can’t wait to try that luna!! for me, any venture outside the house after 6 pm constitutes a “midnight” run. you know how to work the system, mr coupon clipper! i’ve never tried earth balance and didn’t realize that butter/margarine is even an ingredient in fudge. i guess i haven’t had it in years!
Stef @ moretolifethanlettuce
January 7, 2010
i get grocery shopping wednesday night too and while no one was there, there weren’t any employees either! so i didn’t feel like my shopping / checkout time was any shorter haha!
and great itinerary today! *thumbsup* 🙂
marathonmaiden
January 7, 2010
OMG Luna Cookie Dough Bars? Lately I havent liked Lunas.. sometimes they taste fake to me but these sound awesome!! Are they dairy free??
Sounds like you got some good deals shopping.. ya!
Happy Thursday Evan 🙂
Abby
January 7, 2010
Unfortunately, they have whey protein. I was surprised because usually all of clifs stuff is vegan
Evan Thomas
January 7, 2010
Man! YOu got some great stuff! I haven’t even SEEN half of this stuff in our grocery store! I’m such a grocery store whore…I love them so.
Anna
January 7, 2010
Awesome deals! I want to try that Luna!
MelissaNibbles
January 7, 2010
dark chococalte with lemon sounds very interesting! love the new finds, i need to try some of that tru whip, but I could eat a whole tub of cool whip so I dont know how well that would turn out in my house LOL
I saw those chocolate oikos in WF the other day, they were will the kids yogurts too! looks good!!!
Naomi (onefitfoodie)
January 7, 2010
Okay I found this recipe on Fatfree Vegan Kitchen (http://blog.fatfreevegan.com) and I thought you might like it…
Peanut Butter Banana Cookies
1/2 cup natural peanut butter, chunky or smooth
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup mashed banana
1 cup unbleached flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 pinch salt
1/4 cup non-dairy chocolate chips (optional)
Preheat oven to 375. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat.
Cream together the peanut butter and sugars. Add the mashed banana and mix until creamy.
In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the peanut butter a little at a time until totally absorbed. Add the chocolate chips, if desired, and mix until well-blended, but do not over-mix.
Drop by rounded tablespoons onto prepared pans, about 2 inches apart. Flatten with a fork dipped in water. (These cookies will not spread as they cook, so the shape they’re in when they come out of the oven will be about the same as when they went in.) Bake for about 10 minutes, until bottoms are golden brown. Remove and let cool before serving.
Makes 20 cookies. Each without chocolate chips contains: 102 Calories (kcal); 3g Total Fat; (27% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 63mg Sodium; 1g Fiber. Weight Watchers 2 Points.
With chocolate chips: 116 Calories (kcal); 4g Total Fat; (30% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 19g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 64mg Sodium; 1g Fiber. Weight Watchers 2 Points.
Kelly
January 7, 2010
I need to keep my eyes peeled for that Oikos! So glad that Luna gets the seal of approval – I can’t wait to try it myself! LOVE cookie dough!
ksgoodeats
January 7, 2010
but then again no one would want to bite into chocolate and feel like they’re sucking on a lemon= LOL
That bar. The luna cookie dough. Hello, that has my name written all over it and i am gonna hunt that beast down 🙂
Averie (LoveVeggiesAndYoga)
January 7, 2010
Loveeee me som chobani with granola :)!
blueberrymuffins
January 7, 2010
I’ll be keeping an eye out for the new oikos! I hardly ever buy them because of the price, but I think new flavors warrant enough reason to purchase a couple. 😉
Sarah (Running to Slow Things Down)
January 7, 2010
Woah, so I’m eating dinner and blog reading (the pleasures of living alone!) and OMG how did I never know that ketchup+mustard+liquid smoke= bbq?? I literally jumped up mid bite and added a whole plate of crackers and bbq sauce to my dinner. Thanks!
It seems I really need to go shopping with you, great job on scoring those deals! All the new finds sound really good. I’ll have to look for them. I got some oikos on sale for $1 each yesterday but they only had vanilla and blueberry.
I’m considering taking up stair running just to try that cookie dough bar too.
Keep up all the great tips, I’m loving them!
Gaby
January 7, 2010
Ooh, thanks for the heads-up on the new Oikos and Luna bars!
Spiceaholic
January 7, 2010
Ahh! New oikos and luna protein bars. I wasn’t planning on a post-work Whole Foods trip, but now I MUST stop by 🙂
Megan (The Runner's Kitchen)
January 8, 2010