Hey Hey! Guess what I did at work today? I will give you some hints. First, it’s a science class for 2-4 graders. Second, it’s edible. Third, it involved salt and ice.  Fourth, the answer is mentioned else where in this post. I have nothing to offer the person who guesses correctly, but you will earn my love and acceptance.

Anyway, after work I did a good deed by taking Mark’s car to the Honda Dealership for servicing. I didn’t think to take pictures, but they had a sweet set up – water, soda, muffins, bagels. You know those bagels were calling my name, but I already had lunch, so I sipped some cheater’s green juice instead. 

It was a relatively painless and quick trip. After this I went to the gym for some ellipticizing. I know, boring, right? Then I remembered that my Monday Mini Goal was to do three strength workouts, so I did a Level 2/3 hybrid of Jillian’s 30 Day Shred. I haven’t done this in a couple weeks and it was hard! I hate strength things. It’s boring and hard. I would rather run 8 miles than lift weights.

When I finished Mark wasn’t home yet (I wanted to clarify that ambus.tv is a job Mark does at night and on weekends. He has a much more standard, corporate job during the day), but I was already hungry, so I had dinner at a time my dad would approve of: 5:30. I just threw together lots of things to make a meatless party in a bowl. Here’s what I created.

Warm Lentil Salad

• 1 Cup Cooked Lentils (I previously and froze these)
• 1 can of Organic Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 Medium Zucchini
• 1 Medium Summer Squash
• About 2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Garlic Powder
• Romano Cheese
• 5 pieces of Fresh Dill chopped
• Red Onion (1/4 Cup chopped)
• 1 Capful of Balsamic Vinegar

1. Slice the zucchini and squash into 1/2 thick circles.
2. Put zucchini and squash on a cookie sheet and drizzle with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, garlic powder and Romano cheese.
3. Roast in oven at 425 for about 20 minutes. I broiled for a few minutes at the end as well.
4. This is very simple because I am a simple cook. Put every thing but the zucchini and squash in a big bowl.
5. Pour the olive oil that remains in the cookie sheet into the bowl.
6. Add in the squash and zucchini.
7. Sprinkle with more Romano Cheese.

I was really pleased with this simple dish. It was quite tasty, especially the burnt zucchini bits and fresh dill from my herb plant. If I had a grill I definitely would have grilled the veggies. And although I ate it while the zucchini and squash was still warm, I am sure it would be just as good cold. If there is any left over after Mark eats it, I will let you know tomorrow.

After dinner I had my dessert. I chose plain Oikos with a drizzle of Agave. Looks like ice cream, doesn’t it?

One of my favorite things about living in Manhattan was the wide availability of “Build Your Own” salad bars. I guess they are pretty common, but it was my first introduction to them. I loved that I could pretty much go anywhere and know I would be able to get a giant salad filled with all sorts of goodies. Well, I don’t live there anymore, but that doesn’t mean the salad fun is over. I developed a much cheaper alternative.

At my awesome and cheap salad bar was:

• Romaine Lettuce
• Broccoli
• Sprouts
• Blueberries
• Chicken with Zaatar from Rhodey Girl
• Red Peppers
• Tomatoes
• Celery
• Egg Whites
• Red Onion
• Smoked Almonds from snacktrition

I piled on everything except the chicken, which was for Marky.  He liked the Zaaatar and said it made the chicken taste “Greek.”

While elevating and icing the ankle.

I enjoyed every bit of my salad, but my favorite bites were egg whites and blueberries!

Extending the blueberry theme, I just made myself some Blueberry Rooibos Tea. I love drinking Rooibos and this kind specifically is wonderful hot and cold. Did you know Rooibos is not a “real tea,” but actually an herb?

From the South African Rooibos Council, “The brew made from the dried Rooibos leaves is therefore a herbal infusion (known as a tisane) rather than a tea, but is widely known as Rooibos tea.”

I love how it has whole dried blueberries in it.

Mark bought me that red mug as part of  a set of four mugs and matching spoons for Valentine’s Day four years ago at the William Sonoma in the King of Prussia Mall.

Red, Pink and Orange

There was a purple set, but sadly, they broke. I love them, use them all year around (I am a Valentine’s Day and heart fanatic) and mix and match the colors for fun!

And that’s it for me. I am off to ice and compress the ankle.