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Waffle Wednesday – An Ode to Waffles
Happy Waffle Wednesday!! As I was sitting at my desk today, trying not to doze off as I do everyday at 3pm, a thought struck me. Waffles are the best thing about Wednesday! No longer a “hump day,” but one I look forward to every week. On top of that, I’ve eaten and taken pictures of a lot waffles. So I present you with a special Waffle Wednesday post – An Ode to Waffles.
My obsession with waffles began on February 17, 2009. My roommate and I were were having one of our frequent discussions about food. She let it slip that she actually had a small waffle maker in the apartment. The next morning, I dug it out, made a ginormous batch, and fell in love.
I used my usual protein pancake recipe for the waffles, and always have since:
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese
- 1/2 cup egg whites
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- cinnamon
- sweetener of choice (optional)
- tbsp ground flax (optional)
Making six small waffles in my roommie’s press was time consuming though. So I started to venture out and buy frozen waffles. Namely – Nature’s Path maple cinnamon waffles.
I found that while freezer waffles are flimsy on their own, they could be quite filling when paired with fat and protein. So nut butter, syrup and egg whites often accompanied them.
Of course, they made for a pretty good snack too ;)
With the summer months, came an abundance of fresh berries. For a time my favourite toppings were almond butter + yogurt + strawberries.
Okay, so I went a little nuts with the berries…
Sometimes the combo changed a little. Mixing the berries with the yogurt…
Drizzling the nut butter on top with syrup…
Or even putting the egg whites on top with syrup.
I did sometimes expand outside the realm of berries to other summer produce. Peach season made for some tasty breakfasts!
The end of summer came with a new apartment – and new kitchen appliances. The roommie’s dinky waffle maker was replaced by a beastly belgian waffle iron.
This bad boy brought my waffles to a whole new level. Of course, my first venture with it included my coveted berries.
And yogurt (in the shape of Mickey Mouse).
Sometime the blueberries went in the waffles.
And sometimes I had them plain, dipped in a nut butter syrup.
But sometimes a girl still lusts after a good freezer waffle. As the price of berries went up, and the taste quality went down, I had to find new ways to fancy up my waffles. There was an obsession with all things PB&J for a while…
The discovery that blending cashew butter + ricotta + maple syrup + cinnamon made a delicious topping that got in both my fat and protein.
Same goes with almond butter + blended cottage cheese.
Sometimes I ventured away from the sweet combinations and tried things like turkey, eggs and cheese.
But my best creation yet has been french toast waffles.
Made by dredging thawed freezer waffles in egg whites.
And lets not forget, plenty of flat waffles were had ;)
So what was today’s waffle? Protein belgian waffle with almond butter and jam!
I didn’t need a big breakfast today, and it had to be quick. So I cut the usual protein waffle recipe down to 1/3 cup for everything. I had to eat it on the run but it was SO good!!!
I also had another awesome living room workout this morning thanks to my bike trainer and Levels 1 & 3 of Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred. I’d love to stick around and chat – but I’ve got a bowling date with the gals from work!! Hope you had a great Waffle Wednesday too!
Question of the Day: What’s your favourite way to eat waffles?
Manufactured Beauty
Thank you soooooo much for all the kind, supportive comments on my news from yesterday. Break-ups are always sensitive topics and I had no idea how to approach it. I am 100% okay. In fact, I’m in a really good spot right now :)
So last night after blogging, I decided to try out April’s Protein Cake. I started off by mixing 30g chocolate whey protein powder, 2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 tsp Splenda, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1 tbsp strained bananas, 3 tbsp egg whites.
Oh, and a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips for good luck ;)
And by “strained bananas” I mean “baby food.”
This stuff is just organic banana puree, organic lemon juice, ascorbic acid. It’s actually a little on the tart side because of the lemon juice. Wonder if it’s like your banana jam Ellie? Anyways, regardless, baby food is awesome.
I stuck my bowl/cup in the microwave for one minute and returned to a giant puffed-up monstrosity.
It exploded over the rim of the bowl, hence the “muffin top.” I should have put this next top Deb’s cellphone for a size comparison cause this bad boy was HUGE.
I broke it apart and put a light swipe of PB on it.
I did the calculations, and it was 180 calories, twice that of April’s. I commented on it, and then April e-mailed saying she actually meant 15g protein powder!! Oops. To be honest, I wasn’t quite sold on the spongey texture of this, but I guess I can’t really judge if I made it wrong :P Gives me an excuse to try it again!
Moving on… I’m sleeping awful lately. I keep waking up 1-2 hours before my alarm goes off. I think it’s because I’m still paranoid about being late for work. That will hopefully go away once the newness wears off! :P
Anyways, I was seriously out of it when I popped in Jillian this morning.
Brie recommended No More Trouble Zones when I asked her which Jillian Michaels DVD to get. I can see why she thought I’d like it. It’s comprised of six strength circuits, each circuit going through ~4 exercises two times. They’re legit moves, combining a lot of upper and lower body stuff to save time and keep your heart rate up.
I’m still not a fan of doing low weights/high reps, but this was a great at-home strength video. I burned 300 calories in 50 minutes (including warm-up + cool-down) which is more than a Body Pump class for me. What can I say, Jillian is good ;)
Oh! And I totally did today’s workout in my peejays ;) Breakfast after was a belated Waffle Wednesday celebration. I’m a Thursday Slacker.
Two Nature’s Path maple cinnamon waffles topped with 1/2 cup ricotta cheese, 2 tsp almond butter, 1 tsp maple syrup, cinnamon. I didn’t blend it today, just mixed it up with a fork. Stayed thicker and turned out better!
No food photos from work. I’m always rushed in the mornings, so if I pack my food in the a.m. I honestly can’t spare 2 minutes to snap a photo. Sad. I was so rushed today I had didn’t have 4 minutes to brew a french press and had to make instant coffee. Double sad :(
On the bright side, I made dinner plans with some girls from work! They’ve graciously adopted me into their little “clique” and I’ve been eating lunch with them in the university’s cafeteria everyday. We decided that we need to go out once a week so tonight was the inaugural outing. Just dinner at a local “gastro pub.” I was hungry, but didn’t want to spoil dinner, so I had a snack to tie me over.
Banana + Naturally More almond butter. I’m saying it again – I love the crispiness the flax seeds add to that almond butter!!
Diner was fabbity fab. We gabbed and giggled for a solid four hours. I ate an okay chicken salad with a draft beer. It’s been a long time since I had a group girls to hang out with. The majority of my friends in university were guys!
Now yesterday I mentioned that I was riled up over an upcoming story in which Heidi Montag says she’s”beyond obsessed” with plastic surgery. Most recently undergoing 10 surgeries in one day. Remember Heidi? The cute bubby girl in the first season of MTV’s The Hills?
Of all the “young celebrity” stories out there, I think hers is one of the saddest. I remember thinking she was drop-dead gorgeous when I first started watching the show. I can understand the insecurities and drive to consider making a few changes, but I think this is an extreme example.
Her most recent surgeries include a mini brow lift, Botox in the forehead, nose job revision, fat injections in cheeks and lips, chin reduction, neck liposuction, ears pinned back, breast augmentation revision, liposuction on her waist and thighs and a buttocks augmentation.
Dude, she’s my age. Why on earth does a girl my age need Botox?? Actually, my real beef here is that no on needs Botox.
There are a lot of things that make a woman beautiful and attractive. Manufactured is not it. A striking woman is not one that gets to pick and choose her own looks, but works what she’s got to the fullest.
Plastic surgery is obviously expensive and dangerous. But I think it’s just another one of our culture’s “easy fixes.” Why take the time to eat well, exercise, sleep and treat our bodies well, when we can just fix the damage in an afternoon?
Plastic surgery has always irked me. More than that, it rattles me to the core. I’ve admittedly looked in the mirror and thought “I wish my body wasn’t this way.” But never would I undergo the knife as a healthy person to fix it. Even the “prettiest” girls out there still look in the mirror and see imperfections. I think that’s the problem with plastic surgery – especially at such a young age. Because no number of tweaks and injections can cure a woman’s insecurities. That’s something that has to come from the inside. And that is when she truly is beautiful :)
Okee doke folks. I’m beat! T’was a late night with the gals and I’ve got a date with my bike trainer in the a.m. Night night!!
Question of the Day: What are your thoughts on plastic surgery?
P.S. Hair appointment is set for Friday. Will be back with pics!
Random.Blog.Com
Heyo!!
Ch-ch-check out the sweet headband I got from Matt at No Meat Athlete. Thanks Matt! You’ve just helped me plump up my future personal trainer wardrobe ;)
Okay, honestly, I had no idea how to start this post, but at least I now have your attention :)
Totally loved hearing all the personal items y’all need with you at work. Hand cream and chapstick were definitely the most popular, with pictures and post-its slightly behind. Although Emily has rubber bands in the shape of zoo animals and Janetha suggested a day-by-day calendar. I was actually quite entertained by the responses!!
In other news, I was up at 5:30 am for spin class today. It was stellar as per usual. I’m actually starting to get to know some of the faces in the class. Not to mention, I feel hardcore in the bike jersey Chris got me for Christmas.
Came back home after to shower and celebrate Waffle Wednesday.
Two Nature’s Path maple cinnamon waffles topped with a blended ricotta-cashew butter-cinnamon-maple syrup mixture. I was pressed for time, but still managed to get in a fantastic waffle feast :)
Work eats look disgusting, but I promise they were fantastic.
Morning snack was yogurt mixed with vanilla protein powder and strawberries. For lunch I had leftovers a la Leah! I have a fridge next to my office, and I’ve been eating in a cafeteria with a microwave. It feels like such a luxury to have a hot lunch! (how sad is that?). Anyways, it was Indian Cauliflower Stew with added shrimp. Afternoon snack attack was two carrot cake protein squares and a cheese string.
Nothing exciting to report from work. I ran into an old colleague at the drug store after, and he was asking me all about switching from journalism to communications. Or as reporters call it – “going to the dark side.” PR work is a whole different ball game. Totally different than journalism work. I feel like I have so much to re-learn (and forget!).
I bought a can of baked beans a while back after seeing them on Caitlin’s blog so frequently. I suddenly had a hankering for them and eggs for dinner. Breakfast supper of champions.
With an egg scramble. Various veggies from the fridge with cottage cheese and laughing cow cheese. What really made it was the green olives I added. Green olives and eggs are such a fantastic flavour duo!
Dessert…
My three addictions wrapped into one. Date + PB + M&Ms. Times two.
So a while back, I was a recipient of a Beautiful Blogger Award by Averie – a beautiful blogger herself ;) It’s about time I display it proudly!!
With the award, I must divulge seven random facts about myself. I’ve done this a few times, but I suppose I can always dig up a few more things to share…
- I don’t like wine. I’ve tried, numerous times. But I just never developed the palette for it.
- Babies scare me. They’re cute to look at, but please don’t ask me to hold or interact with one.
- I refuse to have the colour pink anywhere on my road bike.
- A childhood friend died downhill skiing when I was 10 years old. I’ve since developed a fear of ski hills and have only ever done cross-country.
- I only own two exercise bras. Instead of doing laundry every day, I often hand wash them in my sink between washes.
- The Beatles are my favourite band of all time. You will be “shushed” if one of their songs comes on the radio.
- I’m still wearing that headband. It’s keeping my forehead warm!
I must pass this on to seven other bloggers. In order to keep this fair, I randomly picked seven people who commented on my last post. Kinda like a giveaway, except it’s a jpeg and not something you can eat ;)
Lizzy (random.org actually picked you three times!!)
Lisa
Paula
Katie
Jessie
Diane
Angela
Wow, random.org is pretty smart. All totally deserving and beautiful bloggers in my opinion!!
Speaking of smart websites, I urge you to go check out www.cleverbot.com. Ask it something, although the responses aren’t always that clever..
Okee, bedtime! See ya tomorrow!
