Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Please excuse me as I breeze through dinner. I hope you don’t mind, but believe me, dessert is what ya wanna read about tonight!

For dinner I made eggplant medallions, prepared the same way I made them last week, but without chicken and with Brie instead of shredded cheddar cheese.

Eggplant Medallions

Dinner

On the side I enjoyed roasted cauliflower, which came out of the oven first and was devoured before the eggplant medallions were done cooking.

Roasted Cauliflower

Sometimes ya just can’t wait!

I also enjoyed three large Monterey Pasta Company lemon shrimp ravioli, which I received from the company to sample.

Lemon Shrimp Ravioli

I was a little apprehensive about this particular flavor because a lemon flavor in ravioli didn’t really call to me.

I was pleasantly surprised though and really enjoyed the big chunks of real shrimp meat in the ravioli.

Tres Ravioli

Peek-a-Boo

Though dinner was yummy, dessert was yummier.

Dessert

Tonight’s dessert was comprised of only three ingredients. Three *delicious* ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 c. peanut butter

1 Cup PB

Ingredients

Combine those three bad boys and bake at 350 for 10 minutes and what do ya get?

Flourless peanut butter cookies!

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Moist 'n' Delicious

For as much as I love peanut butter,  I have a hard time finding really good peanut butter cookies.

I often think peanut butter cookies are too dry or floury. I want moist peanut butter goodness and – trust me – these cookies deliver.

Sadie was loving the leftover peanut butter.

Peanut Butter Lover

I had three bite-size cookies for dessert.

Dessert

The cookies don’t really expand in the oven, so the dough is perfect for shaping into whatever shape you want.

Since Ryan is out at a soccer game right now, I made him three special cookies to enjoy when he arrives home:

I Love You

I hope he likes his sweet treat! (I assure you the cookies will be devoured by the cookie monster *me* if he doesn’t 😉 ).

Stinky Girl

When I first started my current job I made one heck of a big mistake during my first week.

I brought an egg salad sandwich for lunch.

Sliced Hard Boiled Egg

Biiig mistake.

When I broke out my sandwich at my desk, the stink-egg aroma filled the air. Within four days at my new job I had already become the Stinky Girl.

I felt terrible for making the entire office smell like sewage. I now know to always open every lunch in the break room, because that first whiff of smell out of a Tupperware container can stink up a small office for hours.

Lunch

Today I was reminded of my first week on the job when I popped open my egg salad and was greeted with a pungent odor.

Egg Salad

Sure, it’s stinky, but it’s also delicious.

My egg salad contained:

• 2 hard boiled eggs + one hard boiled egg white
• Light Miracle Whip
• Dijon mustard
• Sweet corn
• Sweet relish

I added a big serving of egg salad on top of a bed of freshly chopped romaine lettuce for some extra volume.

Romaine

Lunch Time!

I brought steamed broccoli to enjoy on the side, but ended up throwing that into the salad as well.

Steamed Broc

Have no fear, this entire meal was assembled in the break room where I could stink up the joint without worry. (The pictures were taken prior to leaving for work this morning.)

Of Possible Interest

• A look into the eating habits of a vegan ultra-marathoner (NYTimes.com)
• Two restaurant chains aim to keep all meals under 500 calories (The article *mentioned below* from Entrepreneur.com)
• 20 meat-free recipes to make on the grill (SouthernLiving.com)

500 Calories or Less at Two Restaurant Chains

You may already know how much I loooove Season’s 52, a restaurant dedicated to serving fresh, seasonal meals for less than 475 calories (I went there for my birthday dinner).

Season's 52

(Fun fact: I applied for a public relations job at Season’s 52 that required 10+ years of experience when I first graduated college. I never got a call. 😉 A girl can dream, right?)

I read an article today noting the success of the Season’s 52 franchise that also highlighted another 500-calorie-or-less restaurant, Energy Kitchen (locations currently in New York and New Jersey).

I hope more and more press is dedicated to covering restaurants such as these. I hope more Americans learn about healthier dining options and can visit these locations and show other restaurants that the public does care about nutrition and would like to have the option to dine out without being faced with 1,500 calorie-plus meals and portions big enough to feed multiple people.

What stuck out to me in the article was the mention of large chain restaurants, such as Applebee’s, that offer a small selection of lower-calorie fare. Though I absolutely love that these places offer healthier options, I honestly hate ordering off the “diet” menu because I feel like I’m missing out on the “real deal.” I think that’s why I love when a restaurant is all-around healthy. It helps keep me in the healthy-eating mindset without feeling like I’m missing out on more indulgent options if I choose healthier fare.

Would you visit a restaurant that offered 500-calorie (or less) entrees, or does dining out mean going all out to you?

A Not-So-Intense Workout

This morning I woke up in the mood to stay in bed and read the first Percy Jackson book.

Percy Jackson

I knew I’d be kicking myself later if I didn’t get at least a semi-decent workout in, so I picked up my book and headed to the gym.

I told myself I could just take it easy on the stationary bike and read my book the whole time if I wanted to.

Of course, once I made it to the gym, I wanted to make my workout worthwhile, so I hopped from machine to machine and completed this cardio routine:

• 15 min. incline walking
• 20 min. elliptical
• 5 min. adaptive motion trainer
• 10 min. stationary bike

Magically I was able to read my book almost the entire time and nearly made it through 100 pages! (This should tell you something about the intensity of my workout though… 😉 )

Sometimes you need an easy-peasy workout!

Breakfast

When I was done with my workout, I came home and took Sadie on a short walk before fixin’ breakfast.

I really enjoyed the taste of Brie in my lunch yesterday and incorporated the yummy cheese into my morning meal to start the day off on a yummy note.

Melted Brie

I made a Brie and apple sandwich on a lightly toasted Nature’s Own whole wheat sandwich round using a perfectly ripe apple that I bought at The Fresh Market on Tuesday.

Brie + Apple

Ooey Gooey

Fruit and cheese are a match made in heaven.

Question of the Day

How do you get yourself to the gym on days when you’re just not feelin’ it?