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Gosh, I eat some ugly things.

Therefore, I think it’s only fitting to announce…

THE UGLY FOOD AWARDS!

 

Starring…

My Ugly Food!

So, without further ado, let’s jump right in and announce the winners, shall we?

Drumroll please…

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(source)

In 3rd place, with a bad hair do and an awkward orange hue…

Not-so-Hunky Chunky Pumpkin Overnight Oats! (with canned pumpkin, cottage cheese and a dollop of mango greek yogurt)

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In 2nd Place, a slimy character with a ‘what the funk’ odour…

Last Leg Yellow Squash and Green Peppers sauteed in balsamic vinegar and last leg goat cheese!

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And finally, last AND (visually) least, we have the winner of the UGLY FOOD AWARDS.

My #1 Ugliest Food is…

Green with UN-envy Chicken Enchilada!

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I swear it’s edible…

 

Honourable Mentions go out to:

Where’s my middle Fudgy Mess Platter

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Pond Scum Smoothie with a side bite of dryer lint oats

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Leftover-splattered greens topped with under the stove dirt (couscous) and a side appearance of our #1 winner – un-envy enchiladas! [at least this meal has a touch of colour…]

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Thanks to everyone who came out. I hope you still have your appetites :)

Testing…Testing… Is this thing on?

Ehem…

Hello!

It’s Friday. It’s a Long Weekend. It’s the end of the month. It’s Been TEN Days since I was here last.

So let’s keep it sweet and simple with a Random Friday Fiver.

 

1. The Dress

Thanks knowledgeable Fashionistas for the wedding guest dress ideas and examples. I ended up finding a fairly simple yet fancy enough dress  (Thanks Winners) that I’m likely going to doll up in. It’s not quite as summery, flowy or colourful as might be ideal for a summer wedding but I like it.

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2. Quiznos Honey Bourbon Chicken on Whole Wheat

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Is delicious. Even moreso when you get it basically free because you had a WagJag coupon hanging out in your wallet. You bought it forever ago and it was expiring this week. Lunchtime! And even moreso when you haven’t had Quiznos in what is likely years now. I missed this sandwich.

 

3. The Diamond’s Demise

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Sayonara Sucker. Apologies to Blue Diamond lovers but I did not like this almond butter. Obviously I tolerated it since I made it through the jar (a large chunk of that went into mediocre baking attempts that ended up getting the ol’ heave ho, though) but I won’t be buying it again. I need some good old fashioned peanut butter back in my life.

The end bits tasted pretty good in overnight oats mixed with Liberte Mango Orange Greek yogurt and strawberries though.

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4. Job

And the fact that I finally got one!
Well, another one since I DO spend a wee bit of my time every week pretending I’m a badass biker chick while actually just sitting in an office entering information très important at zee motorcycle shop.

But I needed something else to supplement and fill my time until I figure out what this “real life” thing is all about and how to do it.
[Can I just say I kind of miss school already? All of the school supplies are popping up in stores already. It’s sad to think I’ll never really have to buy those (for myself at least) again. At least not for their intended (pencil case) purpose. But you can never have enough pens, highlighters and notebooks on hand. I love school writing creativity(!) supplies.]

Anyway, tangent over. Back to the job – This one is pretty neat. I’m sure some of you would agree. Cryptic Hint:

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(weheartit)

I haven’t officially started yet (tomorrow morning) but I’ve gone through most of the beginning training over the past several days. More on this later!

 

5. Crafty Cravings

I used to be obsessed with crafting when I was younger. I’d spend hours pouring over craft sites, t-shirt reconstruction journals, CRAFTSTER (<3!). Yet though I was obsessed with crafts in theory, I never carried through with many of them. Any I did try to do were always a little less than perfect… I guess I hadn’t quite taken into account the whole “practice makes perfect” concept.

[I was always a big fan of collages, though. You should SEE the stack of magazine pages I have hoarded in boxes under my bed. Madness, I tell you. I make quite a few reconstructed/homemade cards too. Any birthdays coming up? ;)]

Lately the crafting bug has been biting again. Pinterest has been helping that along a bit. I’m not quite sure where to start or what I want to make but I just want to MAKE. DO. Create. Rerrange. Paint. Decorate. Get crafty.

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Cute AND thrifty (source)

 

 

Any Creative Craftsters in the house?

I’m indecisive.

Horribly indecisive.

It goes hand in hand with being The Overthinker.

As such, it takes me about 12 days to make a choice about nearly anything.

 

What do you want to wear today?
Please grant me an additional 20 minutes to pull 10 different shirts from my closets and drawers before I get frustrated and end up settling on whatever I happened to throw on during the first round of outfit do-si-do.

Only in my dreams is my closet this organized and lovely.

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(weheartit)

 

What do you want to eat for dinner?
Are you kidding me? Might as well pull everything out of the fridge and shove it all on a plate. Anything that wouldn’t work well on the plate can be consumed during the process of arranging the plate so as to ensure it’s not missed out on.

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Veggies = spinach, slaw, orange pepper, yellow squash, steamed yellow beans
Additions = chicken, pasta noodles, hummus, artichoke dip, greek dressing
Sides that didn’t work on the plate = bread chunks, pasta salad…who knows.

 

What should you make with that large package of phyllo dough that’s been chilling in the freezer for 6 months?
Fortunately phyllo recipes aren’t AS abundant as some others, but narrowing it down to a savoury or sweet recipe? It just can’t be done.

Both it is.

Spinach Phyllo Pie aka easy experimental spanakopita:
1. Lay a few phyllo sheets into a pan (I used a cake pan) 
2. Meanwhile, cook 1 package frozen spinach with 1 cup steamed mashed cauliflower, 1/2 cup light feta, garlic, and a generous sprinkling of parmesan.
3. Once heated through, spoon the spinach mixture onto the phyllo sheets and add more phyllo on top.
4. Bake at 350 for ~30 minutes.

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And for dessert – Choco Banana Phyllo Delight
1. Lay out 3 phyllo sheets
2. Mix together 1 container (~1/2 cup) flavoured yogurt with ~1T cocoa powder. Spread it onto the phyllo sheets
3. Slice up 1/2 a banana and lay the slices on top of the yogurt mixture
4. Wrap the phyllo sheets up into a roll and bake at 350 for ~20 minutes.

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You need nut butter. Which one to buy?
I could have been simple and gone with the cheap, grocery brand peanut butter that’s nothing but peanuts and nothing but delicious. But I wanted to be different. I wanted to switch it up. In summary, I apparently wanted to torture myself with more decisions.

I stood in front of at least 3 peanut butter displays in at least 3 different stores over the course of at least a few days before I finally restocked with this new-to-me… not-so gem. Blue Diamond Crunchy Almond Butter? So far I do not love.

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You need a wedding dress. Which one to buy?
No no, not MY wedding. I’d need a fiancé for that. But I do have to be at my uncle’s wedding in slightly less than a month and thus far I have nothing to wear. To spare the guests my nude bottom, I tried to dress shop yesterday.

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(weheartit)

With my pro decision skills, I’m sure you can guess how well that went.

After a couple hours and a stack of dresses, I did leave with one…but it’s not for the wedding. I just could NOT decide. I had two I was ready to buy. Two I was ready to work with. And then I got so stressed about making the decision that I scrapped all plans and decided to start back at square one of the dress search on a new day with fresh eyes.

What I really need is advice: What do you wear as a wedding guest?! I know it’s hardly the most complicated wardrobe addition but I want it to be a good one.

A little much.

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A lot much…

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Way too much?

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(All found by searching ‘prom dresses’ on weheartit. Enlightening.)

 

One thing I was able to decide on fairly quickly?
This bowl of pumpkin overnight oats with yogurt, wheat bran and strawberry rhubarb jam for breakfast yesterday. But only because it was already prepared the night before, leaving me almost obligated to eat it. And even with this obligation, I still hummed and hawed for a few minutes, deciding if I truly did feel like eating this bran-y bowl or wanted to perhaps go with my tried and true summer staple smoothie instead.

I went with the oat bowl.
And went back to the smoothie today.

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Calling all Fashionistas…or just females who have recently attended weddings:
What have you worn as a wedding guest?
I’m thinking slightly more sophistiqué than a summer dress but definitely more casual than a prom dress… All styling tips, accessory ideas etc. welcome!

It’s amazing how our eating habits change over time, isn’t it? Most of them for the better! Though I do miss that carefree child consumption, guided by nothing more than taste buds and enjoyment. Calories, carbs, nutrients…what were those? All we wanted to do was eat food that tasted good. These days there is so much more thought, so many more stipulations that come along with eating a meal. Better for the body, (arguably) yes, but better for the mind? Not on some (or many) days.

Sometimes I just want to order the darn chicken fingers (with plum sauce!) without a second thought. Or a side salad.

Oh, the food ‘tude…

 

Case in point:

My smoothies have been a little lackluster lately. And not just because of their lovely hue.

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So what do I do? Drink them down anyway. They’re good for me, right? All those greens…

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Except then I’m scrounging for more (better tasting) food for the rest of the day.

Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy smoothies and they’re typically what I’ve been craving in the mornings lately. I guess I’m just not into my typical method anymore.

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Barley grass powder, loads of spinach, a mostly chilled tea base… meh.

The last of my Green Magma ran out yesterday. Along with the last of my spinach…good riddance?

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So today, my smoothie got a makeover. How much more luster-filled is this one?

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Taste-wise…okay so it was still pretty meh. Too much tea, not enough almond milk, just watery and flavourless in general. I’m thinking bananas need to be re-introduced to smoothie time.

Handfuls of Kashi Honey Sunshine made things a little brighter though. Who doesn’t like crunchy bite-size tastes of french toast with their breakfast?

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Some people like their smoothies with an all milk/almond milk base. I’ve done that in the past and found those too rich in the morning. Then again, it may have been a protein powder I was using in the past that was overkill. Either way, I’ve been going the mostly chilled tea route. I think more almond milk needs to make its way into my beverages.

Since I just discovered that Costco now carries a 6-pack of unsweetened Almond Breeze, this shouldn’t be an issue.

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My other meals have been lackluster too.

I’ve been eating a bum ton of vegetables because – it’s hot. And it’s skin-revealing season. Whaddup.

Except that all those less-than-exciting vegetable meals leave me cramming in bread and cereal hour by the hour.

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Hey Spinach, you better spice things up or we’re done.

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I still LIKE my veggies. Just like I still LIKE my smoothies. But they might need to stop being the main focus of all my meals for a little bit. I rarely leave a meal feeling mentally satisfied lately.

Probably because I’m not doing much of anything to these veggies either. Chop, dress, chomp. Easy but boring. Where’s the creativity in that?

 

Now here’s a good way to eat your veggies.

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Via TABBOULI.

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Or rolled up in SUSHI (the most satisfying dinner I’ve had in days. Sushi never goes out of style).

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Or maybe just hide a few in a salsa-stuffed and hummus-slathered omelette alongside some mac & cheese (boxed style!) and zucchini slices.

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Or, you know, just forget about the veggies all together and eat your weight in:

Grapes.

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Fish balls (found these gems at a local Asian supermarket. So good!)

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Peanut Butter Frozen Hot Chocolate.

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Chocolate-y overnight oats.

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Chocolate-y cookies (even if they’re slightly burnt).

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OR just go do something extra luster-filled to compensate for the lackluster meals.

Like swimming (or cliff-jumping if you’re lucky enough to have one nearby)

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(weheartit)

Buying summer dresses.

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(weheartit)

Washing some (very dirty) cars.

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Luster-filled and fabulous.

 

Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s almost time to get my sweat on and hopefully enjoy some extra delicious lunch later on.

 

What are your favourite summery meals and eats?
The hot days leave me craving quick, simple and light meals filled with fruits and veggies, but I’m getting bored with my basics. I need to figure out how to spruce them up a bit!

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