Food for Thought

"Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you truly love."

—Rumi

Thoughts Meander

Quiet Down, Up There!
I am blogging at 11:00 when I should be sleeping. I have been working until 7 or 8 pm every night this week and I am one sleepy girl. Too bad the people in the apartment above me sound like a herd of elephants performing a tap dance!

Ahh, Clarity..
I love writing. It clears my mind and winds me down. After neglecting my journal for the past two months, I finally purged a few thoughts on paper.

Hangry
My friend taught me a new word today. Hangry: Hungry + Angry.
Not a good combo.

Loving these Lyrics Today:
I want so badly to believe that there is truth and love is real.
And I want life and every word, to the extent that its absurd.
--The Postal Service, Clark Gable

Shout Out
Grant started law school!! Yay, I am so proud of him!

My Body Hates Me
I couldn't tell you the last time I went to the gym, or went one day without dessert. Sure, I do yoga twice a week at least, but that is more for my mind and my soul. I have been a bit on the lazy side lately.

I Concur...
"The best smell in the world is the man that you love."
--Jennifer Aniston

Thank Goodness for DVR!
All my shows are starting this week and next: Gossip Girl, Entourage, the new 90210 (I'm giving it a shot), the Hills (although I think its a terrible show, I watch because my friend Alex is on it this season), America's Next Top Model (also, over-done, yet I keep up because my work friends and I watch during lunchtime and make fun of it), and others! I'm pretty sure I won't be able to keep up with them.

Character
I find people who are genuine and considerate to be extremely refreshing.

Suggestions?
My mom is going to paint my room (at home in Indiana) for me because the teal green on the walls now makes me want to vom. I know some of you have a lovely decorating sense (Megan).. so please throw some ideas my way!

Stepping Out of the (Recipe) Box:
My lunch tomorrow is something I have never tried. Brown rice cooked with coconut mylk and seasoned with cinnamon. It is comforting and hearty, with the thickness and creaminess of risotto and it's sweet to the taste buds. We'll see if it is worthy of repeating.

Love & Miss
Today my Inbox was full of emails from my best friends from home. I literally was laughing out loud at work reading some of them. It really made me miss those girls.

Soothe Me
I downloaded some yoga/meditation music. Maybe this will help my laziness-induced insomnia?
Time for bed!!

The Find

Indecisive with friends on a Saturday night? Having a hard time choosing a spot to take your visiting parents for brunch? This little tool is pretty rad...

http://thefind.urbandaddy.com/

Squash Season!

As the leaves turn and the Indian summer fades to fall, our wardrobes shift and so do our appetites! One of my favorite things about fall is butternut squash and pumpkin-everything!
It is not quite here yet.. but the squash season is creeping up and I love it!

My lunch today was my very own random recipe consisting of:

quinoa, my new favorite grain

butternut squash, oven-roasted in coconut oil

dried cranberries

chopped walnuts

cinnamon & pumpkin spice seasoning

sea salt & cracked black pepper

I can't wait for squash soup, pumpkin pie, pumpkin lattes, candied sweet potatoes and all the other goodies mother nature will bring this season!

Fancy Feastin'

Labor Day weekend calls for a nice little gathering with friends.. and a plethora of food! Tasha, Megan and I had a grand time putting an Italian feast together at my apartment.

The preparation... a valiant joint effort, I must say.

Bruchetta appetizer with red and yellow tomatoes, fresh basil, olives, minced raw and roasted garlic and cracked black pepper to warm up the pipes!

The setting of the table... my mouth was watering.


The Spread: Risotto with butternut squash and mushrooms prepared in a crisp white wine, and a side of baked asparagus with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Its all about presentation! Megan insisted we purchase some flowers for our candle-lit dinner.

We love the little tree that grows out of the wall of my patio. It has gotten so much bigger than it was the first summer I moved here!

What is a fancy feast without dessert?? We had to go out to Teany to get some Vegan carrot cake and Pumpkin Teany Chinos!

Ahhh what a lovely little evening.

Creepy Critters

EEEK! Why are there so many squirrels in Madison Square Park!? As I strolled through by myself the other day, I felt their eyes on me as they scurried from tree to fence and bolted across my path! I felt like I was on my way to class in Bloomington, IN again!

Very Scary.

Makes for a lovely Sunday

I could gush all day long about how much I love Brown/Orange, the tiny little cafe one block away. My friend Megan and I have been soaking up all the goodness the past few Sundays as we've shared two entrees that compliment each other just swimmingly.

Baked eggs with smoked salmon, ricotta cheese, and salad with a home-made vinaigrette.

The Brown Breakfast Platter with raisin-nut bread, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt & granola with a drizzle of honey and fresh strawberry preserves.

The iced coffee is the best with a teaspoon of raw sugar, what a way to wake up!

How cute is this? Random, I love it.