Groceries of a skater

Hey guys! I was inspired by Gabriela the other day to do a Groceries post. So...her goes! My weekly pick-ups include...

Produce
Fruits and veggies are always first on my list. Gotta have the essentials!
-apples (whichever kind is on sale)
-grapefruits
-bananas
-clementines/oranges/tangelos

Grains
-oatmeal
-brown rice
-Ezekiel bread
-whole wheat sandwich thins
-Nature's Path or Kashi cereals 
-Ezekiel 4:9 cereal
 
Canned Items
-Amy's canned low-sodium soups
-canned garbanzo beans/chickpeas
-canned beans (all varieties) 

Frozen Foods
-Amy's microwave meals (I keep a few on hand at all times for those late night skating practices, which upon returning home the last thing I want to do is cook! Ever had a night like that? These are tasty, super healthy and super quick for when you're in a time crunch!)
-Veggie Burgers (whichever kind is the cheapest that day with the cleanest ingredient list!)
-frozen berries/other frozen fruits
-ALL frozen veggies

Dairy
-Stoneyfield Farms Organic Plain Nonfat Yogurt (or the cheap kind!)
-a couple containers of greek yogurt (Oikos or Dannon Greek)
-skim milk
-fat free cottage cheese
-eggs
Extras
-all fruit preserves
-the oh-so-essential nutbutter! (Organic Peanut, Almond, and Cashew. Along with a few Justin's packets for on-the-go)
-LARABARS. TONS. :)

Can't think of anything else right at the moment...but these are pretty much the bare essentials.
What are your shopping essentials? How many grocer trips do you make per week? 

Have a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious week everyone! :D

 

Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.
Robert Collier

New Ideas

Hey guys! Hope everyone had a TERRIFIC week :)
So...this past Saturday was me race (it was a four-miler) and it went SO well! NO knee pain AT ALL and crossed the finish in 35:00. Signing up for my next one (a 5K) this week (it is at the beginning of April!) :D
Also, I have my first competition since my knee injury one week from this coming Saturday!! SO excited and nervous! I'm against only two other girls, but nerve-racking none the less...:/
So in my fridge/pantry/cabinet right now I have miscellaneous things I purchased on impulse (come on...you know you do it too--haha) that I legit have NO IDEA WHAT TO USE THEM FOR!!! The reason I am telling you all his is so you can help me figure out what to use them for! :D So...here goes ;)

Dried apricots

I think I know what I am going to do with these babies...recipe coming soon :)

Shredded unsweetened coconut.

Now...I've mostly just been trying to use this up by putting it in my morning bowl of oats...but...I'm looking for some change...any ideas? Dishes? Please share!! :D

Coconut milk.

Now, I have a specific recipe that I am using this for, but I will have a whole can left over after! Ideas?!

One of my favorite things about Whole Foods is the bulk bins. When I go down the bulk aisle, I am like a kid in a candy store ;) I have gotten in the habit of buying about 20-50 cents of bulk items that I've never tried before so I won't waste lots of money if I don't like it. So far, it's worked pretty well :) This week's WF trip recruited the following:

Hazelnuts.

Oatmeal topper, obvi...but...any other neat ideas?

Nutritional Yeast.

I have seen this ALL over the blog world, but have never tried it, because I honestly have NO IDEA what to use it for...suggestions? :D

Last but not least (and I DEFF know what I'm using these for!!)...CHIA SEEDS!

Though only my second time purchasing them, I am already in love...;)


In closing, I wanted to share with you all an experience I had earlier tonight. I got the opportunity to cook/serve food for a group that provides dinner for the homeless in that community every Wednesday. Though I have to admit, this kind of thing isn't really my "cup of tea" you could say, I am SO glad I did it. It was a wonderful experience and really made me realize how privileged I am. It was volunteer, so there's no money, but in some ways that makes it even more special to do it out of sheer knowledge that it is the right thing to do.
Hope everyone has a blessed week ahead.
Stay happy. Stay healthy.
:D
"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent". -Eleanore Roosevelt.

National Nutrition Month

Happy National Nutrition Month, fellow foodies! :D
In honor of the second holiday in March (after St. Patty's Day) I am going to do a post inspired by Gina and   TRY to name one of my fave fresh produce items for each color of the rainbow...Here goes!

Red: Tomatoes (or apples, strawberries, raspberries...maybe this will be harder than I though!). Most of you prob already know this well known "veggie" is actually a fruit! This savory produce has been proven to help prevent cancer, heart disease, and cataracts--just to name a few! And hey...who doesn't like tomatoes?! Oh wait...that would be my sister...:P

Orange: This one's easy...it's between two three though...hey! I love my fresh produce :)

The top 3 winners are: sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and oranges/clementines. YUM! Oh...and carrots ;)
All of the orange foods pack most if not all of you DV for beta-carotene. While tasting absolutely amazing. Oh. Yes.

Okay...next is yellow. Hmm...DEFINITELY bananas. Easy.

Can you say POTASSIUM?! Bananas are one of the best foods to eat for potassium in it's most natural state (don't get me wrong, I take my vitamins, but I'm all for getting most of your nutrition from fresh, wholesome produce!!) :D :D And (this is TOTALLY making me hungry) what is better than a bowl of banana, pb and cinnamon OATMEAL?! I know! NOTHING. Ha. :D

Green. Oh boy. This one's tough. Broccoli, most definitely, spinach, brussel sprouts, celery, kiwis (talk about superfood!)...the list goes on and on, but...you get the gist :)

Most all of your dark greens provide a WONDERFUL source of calcium (think spinach, kale, collards, etc.) to strengthen your bones!

Blue...? Yeah...nothing's ringing a bell...hehe :)

Purple. Eggplant I like in moderation. But I can get eggplanted-out in a hurry. Grapes = awesomeness. Plums = my best friend. Holy yummers.

I've heard TONS about frozen grapes. I have yet to try them though! :/

I guess that pretty much concludes my produce rainbow. But for this week I highly encourage all of you to take in to consideration the food pyramid and the recommended food groups. Mypyramid.gov is a great site to go on if your just beginning to learn about nutrition or if you are a RD! LOVE that site--great info AND recipes!

My race is this Saturday! It's a four-miler...with LOTS of hills. SO excited! I had a GREAT time on my run with the sis today--I had a PR of 3 miles in 24:00! So happy :)
Until next time...
Stay happy. Stay healthy
:D
And...a quote, of course.
“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery. And today? Today is a gift. That’s why we call it the present.” – B. Olatunji
One of my favorite quotes ever.
Peace out. And once again...Happy nutrition month :)