SUPERB SEAFOOD & Some Enchiladas

OH MY GOODNESS.
I HAD THE TRAVELING DAY FROM HELL.  I started writing this post whilst sitting in the airport (all dandy) then my flight kept getting delayed... and 6 hours later, we finally took off.

My apologies for venting/writing about "old news!" BUT I have some good food to discuss :)

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Sadly, yesterday was my last full day in sunny San Diego.

I'm currently blogging from the airport... waiting to head back to school for my Spring semester.  I honestly don't think I remember what it's like to write a paper or study for an exam.  Yeah, things should be interesting.  can't wait.

In honor of my last day, I ate.  Tons of great food.  And ran.  What else would I do?

Breakfast:
Before heading out for my run, I fueled up with some Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes!  MY FAVORITE!  They stick with me and keep me fuel for hours.  They're also my go-to breakfast on exam days... screw lucky socks, I have lucky carbs. 

Workout:
My new best friend/running coach has been on my case about fueling properly for runs - which means hydration and about 100-200 calls every 5 miles - SO, for probably the second time in my life, I decided to take someone's advice and fuel up.

I got a spiffy new fuel belt.  Mine's black and red (for aesthetic, looking-intense purposes).  But it's a 3 bottle belt with a pouch for small food.  The plastic makes it SO easy to slip the bottles in and out while running.  I was worried it would be too hard.

I did a glorious 10 miles and, for the first time, I drank water and ATE (almond joys pieces) while I ran.  Oh my goodness, it makes such a difference.  WOW. My legs felt great and my body was strong the entire run... I'm never going back to "running on empty" again.

Lunch:
I casually mentioned this great seafood restaurant to my grandma over breakfast... and I snagged a great lunch date :)  I have to give a shout-out to my cousin for the BEST Christmas/birthday gifts.  Essentially she dressed me, head to toe, in J.Crew and Madewell.

Let's talk about this amazing seafood..
We went to El Pescadoro's Fish Market in La Jolla. 


It was super fresh, like just been caught... and let me just say, the guys that worked there were all heavenly to look at.  Is that a new rule that I missed?  Must be hot to work with raw fish?

Anyways, instead of going with a seafood salad, Gram and I split the Fish Tacos - grilled, fresh white fish on corn tortillas with all the fixings.

and a Combination Sandwich - dungeness crab and shrimp sandwich on sourdough. 

We divided and conquered.
We both loved that the seafood was 1. fresh and 2. NOT deep-fried.  We were expecting the tacos to be beer battered and the sandwich to be lathered in mayo.  What a pleasant surprise!

I've now fully accepted that I'm a seafood fanatic and I hope to incorporate more into my meals.

Dinner:
After relaxing, watching hours of mindless tv, and munching on some Quinoa Cookies that my gram whipped up - btw amazing - I decided to experiment in the kitchen.

The result?  Vegetarian Enchiladas! 

Ingredients:
- Tortillas of your choice (I used whole wheat 50 calorie tortillas)
- Frozen mixed veggie assortment
- 1 can of black beans
- 1 cup of "meat" (optional)
- Cheese of your choice (I used fat-free mozzarella)
- Sauce:
      - 1 can of stewed tomatoes (or tomato sauce, if you want to make it easier)
      - 1/2 a chopped onion
      - 2 tbsp of cumin
      - 1 tbsp of minced garlic
      - 1 tbsp of cayenne pepper
      - 1 small can of green chiles
      - 2/3 cup of veggie broth
      - salt and pepper

To make: 
- preheat oven to 400
- In a pan, pour in your ingredients for the sauce.  Let simmer for about 5-8 minutes, then divide the mixture in half, placing one part aside for the top of the enchiladas.
- With the remaining mixture still in the pan, add in your frozen veggies and your beans (and any "meat" if you're using it).  Put the lid on it until veggies are tender (about 5 minutes)
- After they're finished, spray a pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Assemble your enchiladas by layering spinach and the filling (plus cheese if you'd like!)
- Place each wrapped enchilada face-down in the pan and then pour the remaining sauce that you set aside on top of the tortillas.  Top with cheese, cover with foil, and bake for about 20 minutes! Uncover and bake for the last 5, if you wish!

Be ready to enjoy a delicious and cheesy mexican feast!
Top with spring onions if you wish!

My plate:
On top of leftover salad. I went back for seconds... duh.

Alright.... Well, I'm finally back in the Bay.
I got to catch up with my friends and I'm slowly starting to adjust to college life again... what do you mean people stay out past 10 pm?

hello, reality.
HAPPY MONDAY!

Beach & Pizza

I had a delicious Friday!
I already shared some of my eats with you.... hello, that trifle?  Guess how much is left now.

Workout:
My day started off with an easy - I mean, super easy - run on the beach.  I wasn't worried about speed, distance, or time... I just ran and enjoyed the waves and the sun.  6 miles later, I headed back to the car and headed straight for the grocery store :)

You know that rule, never shop while you're hungry?  It's a rule for a reason.

Lunch:
I picked up all the ingredients for a make-your-own-pizza night... completely random, as I've never done this before.  I picked up both english muffins and bagels... I was craving carbs.  And I bought two jars of pickles?  I have no explanation for this.

I couldn't decide on what toppings I wanted on my bagel, so I ended up cutting it into 4 and making each piece its own special creation.

I went with fat free cream cheese as my base.  Then, from left to right, we have a raspberry jam bagel, a bruscetta bagel, an avocado/salt/pepper bagel, and a mustard and hot sauce bagel.... each combination was amazing. Seriously. Even that hot sauce one.

The bagels?  I stumbled upon Perfect 10 bagels from The Western Bagel (well-known for their Alternative Bagel brand).  140 calories, 10 grains... delicious and FULL SIZED.  Not like those little minis.

I also had a nanner with pb and almond milk. These bagels were so good, I had one for my snack.

I would have probably made another two for dinner, if it wasn't for the make-your-own-pizza ingredients that I just had to have.

Dinner:
After "taste testing" the banana trifle about 6 times... I'm surprised I still wanted dinner.
HA kidding I always want dinner.  Especially if it's pizza.

I had my gram as my sous chef, so she chopped up some yellow squash, zucchini, red and yellow peppers, onions, tomatoes, and mushrooms for our veggie pizza!

I used a whole-wheat Bobolli, thin crust and topped it with pizza sauce, fat-free mozzarella, and enough vegetables to feed an army of rabbits... VEGGIE DELIGHT! 


before

The leftover pizza toppers were thrown onto a bed of romaine and spinach, topped with and italian balsamic and some ripe avocados.

10 minutes later.  This glorious thing popped out.

I made sure to sautee the squash before baking the pizza, in case they didn't cook all the way through. I had raw pizza toppers.... another lie, I would eat anything if it was on top of a pizza crust.

My plate:

A little red pepper flakes for some kick, and I was in heaven.

I love how my plate looks like a pile of vegetables... little do they know that cheesy carbs lurk underneath.  I'm telling you, if you're trying to incorporate more veggies into you or your family's diet, pizza is the way to go.  It was cheap, made in under 15 minutes, and SO tasty.

Pizza night will be a regular thing from now on.
I'll need to start getting creative with toppings... Any suggestions?

Hello, San Diego

Check out what I came home to...

80 degree weather and clear skies? I guess that works for me.
I hopped on a plane around noon East coast time and arrived at 2:45 - perfection.

Workout:
I got in an easy 7.5 miles before showering and heading to the airport.  I just HAD to test out my new babies and, good news, they're amazing.  This is the first pair of shoes that I haven't had to "get used to" or "break in."  I wanted to keep running but I had a plane to catch...

I tried out my coach's "hip to nip and don't unzip" technique for my arms... ugh.  I know it'll make me a better running, but after years of running the same way, it'll definitely be a challenge to switch over.  It did help me with hills and accelerations - he might be on to something!

Lunch & Snacking!

I got upgraded. so I didn't pack anything for the plane... but then I remembered how insane/crazy/bitchy I get when I'm hungry.... thanks for the reminder, Dad.... so I decided to pick up some snacks, just in case.

Um, this trail mix medley was sooooo addicting.
SO ADDICTING.

Dark chocolate, dried fruit, and nuts should never be eaten separately. New law to live by.

We were served Creamy Asparagus Soup and a Chinese Chicken Salad.

Not too bad for plane food, huh?
It beats the typical "beef or pasta" choices that you get on some flights...

Okay, screw the soup and salad.... ALMOND JOY PIECES ARE MY REAL PASSION.  Seriously.  There are actually almond and coconut pieces inside of each little m&m-sized chocolate.  And a serving size in 46?!

Well, I lied.  That's the recommended serving size.  Mine was like half the bag.


Buy these immediately.  It's the perfect solution when you're craving those candy bars but you don't want to eat an entire king sized - let's be honest, nobody buys fun size bars... right?

Anyways, my brother picked me up and I headed home to relax a bit.
I was feeling super headachy and out of it, thanks to a time change and the fact that I had to stop drinking water about an hour in to the flight because I already peed 4 times and the guy next to me was getting annoyed.  Hydration and airplanes just don't mix.

Dinner:
I ended up eating around 4:30!  I was hungry and dizzy...
But I managed to whip up some Spaghetti Squash with Vegetarian Bolognese and Mozarella.

My sauce was a mixture of stir-fried veggies, meatless crumbles, tomato sauce, garlic, onions, mushrooms, salt and pepper.  Amazing. I added some red pepper flakes for some fire.

And then I got off my ass, drove to the gas station, filled up my car and drove 15 minutes to get froyo.... just because I'm ridiculous and I love frozen yogurt.

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I'll leave you with some views from my morning run today 

Yepp.... now I know why I love coming home!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HELLO 2012.... welcome :)
 

I've been to Los Angeles, Disneyland, and back in a whirlwind of a weekend. Which explains why this New Years post is longggg and delayed.

Friday morning we were up and out of the door by 10 am to make it to Santa Monica for lunch!
I got to choose, so I went with a recent favorite: Tender Greens

We all went with really big salads -- I got the Grilled prawn salad with Spanish chrorizo and a lemon vinaigrette! yum.  Oh, and a cup of Tomato Basil soup.

 For dessert we had to have a cute individual pumpkin pie and a cowboy cookie!

We walked along Venice Beach -- which is wayyyy different than the SoCal I'm familiar with... and somehow, we found a hidden gem: Scwayzie's Bread Pudding - as seen on the Food Network!

We got a scoop of their Warm Chocolate Chunk bread pudding and we all took a bite and tossed it, so we wouldn't be overly stuffed.  We hopped back in the car after enjoying the boardwalk and decided to delay checking into our hotel in order to see the sights of Los Angeles a little bit!

We saw the Hollywood Sign, Rodeo Drive, Sunset Blvd, Mann's Chinese Theatre.... from the car (because we were too lazy to park and walk around) but hey, it works!

THEN we checked into our Hilton Disneyland Hotel!
Where I got to see LISA for dinnnner!  She drove up from Orange County to come hang out with me/meet my ridiculous family!

We IHopped for dinner -- there were many pancakes, eggs, and pieces of turkey bacon consumed.   My favorite, however, was the Funny Face Chocolate Chip Pancake we all split for dessert.

We spent the night giggling, eating cheesecake and carrot cake that Mom brough back from Morton's steak house, and catching up!!

Midnight... new record for Casey.

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Saturday, December 31st - NEW YEARS AT DISNEYLAND! 

We were up at 6:00, breakfast at Starbucks (hello, perfect oatmeal, I love you... oh and that triple shot of espresso helps too), at the park by 8!

It was a perfect day at the park! Honestly the best Disneyland AND overall amusement park experience I've ever had!  We got to go on every single ride we wanted to, and we only waited in line for maximum 20 minutes!  It was crowded but manageable!

Space mountain

We stopped for lunch in New Orleans somewhere...
Sister and I split the Jumbalaya with veggies and cornbread.
 

and fresh Beignets shaped with Mickey Mouse!
 

Dessert on Main Street!

Some teacups -- that we twirled like nobody's business.

We all took on ghetto alter egos! My name is La Funyun... Sister is F'Breeze... Mom is Peequitia.... and Arnie (mom's boy) is Lattttay

It's a Small World!

Then on to CALIFORNIA ADVENTURES

Dinner at CALIFORNIA ADVENTURES!
Mom hooked us up with a set menu dinner at Wine Country Trattoria


Seafood Pasta

Fig and Pecan salad with Goat Cheese

Bread and olive oil!

Tiramisu, French Macarons, Panna Cotta, and Salted Caramel Chocolate Torte. 

Rode a roller coaster right after dinner.
Brilliant idea on our parts...

CALIFORNIA SCREAMIN'

Then we watched the World of Color water show!!

And rode some swings.

HAPPY FREAKIN' NEW YEARS!
 

From my family to yours :)