Five Things I’m Loving Lately
(1) Bircher Muesli
No surprise there. I’ve enjoyed this breakfast for several weeks now with various combinations of fruits, nuts and seeds. I even made a huge batch for customers at Strawberry Fields to sample while they asked me nutrition questions. I topped the samples with an in-store trail mix.
I didn’t expect people to like Bircher Muesli as much as other samples I’ve prepared — I mean, it looks like something you might find in the old paint section at Home Depot — but it was a hit! I made two large batches just in case and ended up serving almost all of it. Customers loved the idea of stirring up yogurt and oats the night before a busy day and grabbing a ready-made breakfast on the way out the door.
(2) No more cold!
The weather’s pretty awesome, too.
(3) Our seedlings.
Our first year with a garden will be a success! At least, that’s the mantra I repeat while I gaze at the un-sprouted sections of the seedling tray (yes, I feel quite normal. Why do you ask?). Forget bolstering your plant’s growing success with sweet talk; I’m going to sing show tunes to the spindly seedlings in the lower left corner. This year, we’re growing tomatoes, bell peppers, hot peppers, kale and several other greens I’ve already forgotten, thyme, two types of basil, melons, and flowers. Stay tuned for updates.
(4) The Help and Spanish for the Nutrition Professional
My reading material has varied quite a bit lately. For one of my new consulting gigs, I’ll occasionally be meeting with Spanish-speaking families, so I ordered this book to help learn some basics. Notice I didn’t say “brush up” as that implies initial knowledge and I currently speak 0.00% of the Spanish language. Looks like I have a bit of studying ahead of me.
As for fun reading: after starting several disappointing books that had nearly identical formulaic-exploding-beginnings-that-were-nevertheless-boring-as-Bircher-Muesli-paint, I decided to read outside my usual genres for the first time in a while. Picking up The Help was a welcome breath of honey-scented air. This book just has plain good writing, the likes of which I haven’t seen in recent years.
Any suggestions for what my next read should be?
(5) Tiny bananas
I incorporate a banana into nearly every breakfast. Usually we only find bananas that are too large to eat all at once, so I’ll use half and keep half in the refrigerator for another breakfast. There’s something wonderful about tossing a whole banana in a smoothie, so whenever we find tiny bananas (around 4 to 5 inches), it’s a win for the week.
Before you get the wrong idea, I’d like to point out that bananas are not inherently evil. They’ve gotten a bit of a bad rap lately. I can’t tell you how many times clients and customers have asked me if bananas are fattening, or if they should avoid them. The simple answer? No! Bananas are chock full of vitamins, potassium, magnesium and fiber. They are no more “fattening” than other fruits. As with any food, difficulties arise when too much is eaten. Yes, it is possible to eat too much fruit (see this fantastic post by the Candid RD on this topic), but when incorporated into a well-rounded diet, fruit is a excellent choice.
As I add other fruits to my breakfast (e.g. berries, peaches, pineapple), I choose to include a smaller amount of banana. Not because bananas are “fattening”, but because I choose smaller amounts of different foods so I can enjoy them all.
Have a great week, dear reader!
Q: What are some of your favorite things lately? Any suggestions for my next read?
P.S. Madeline pic of the week. She’s contemplating the merits of lying in bed all day versus attacking the toy behind her and strewing the toy guts all over the carpet. Especially in un-vacuumable places.
Ooo I’ll have to look out for that bircher muesli! sounds tasty. 🙂
I eat a HUGE banana every day…but that’s my main fruit consumption. Sometimes I mix it up with mangoes but I prefer to overdo it on veggies rather than fruit!
The Help was a great book! Have you read Eat, Pray, Love?
I love the way bananas taste, but I just can’t get past the texture of them! Too bad because they are so portable…
I read it a few years ago – very enjoyable! 🙂
The Help was great! I heard the movie was well-done and worthy of the book, too 🙂 Have you read The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay? It’s wonderful, and I would highly recommend it. The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns are also beautiful stories 🙂
I haven’t, but I’ll check it out now. Thanks for the suggestions, Min! It looks like I have some reading to do 🙂
Hi Jessie! I’m back from Japan and ready to catch up on your posts 😉 Your seedlings look lovely! I’m sure they’ll grow just fine (even better if you sing to them 😉 ). So many flowers are blooming now, I’m in love with spring! Something else I’m loving lately…my mother has been baking delicious bread and it’s so magical and delicious! I really want to learn this marvelous breadmaking skill 😉 Have a delicious day!
Yay, I missed you! I hope you had a fantastic time in Japan! I can’t wait to hear about your trip 🙂
I’m going to second the Khaled Hosseini books mentioned above although they’re emotionally heavy reads (but so lovely) 🙂
Thanks for the suggestion, Azmina! I’ll definitely check them out!
Haha Madeline looks so… thoughtful! hehe she’s super cute!
I can’t believe I was in Swutzerland and missed bircher muesli. Will try it the first chance I get!
I lurve bananas, which is why I also love your banana muffins so much! My bf will always have a banana in his breakfast, and I find that it can keep you going as a snack far better than other fruit. And the taste is so good! Win win win…
Favourite things recently:
1. the SUN, which is finally here.
2. lemon cheesecake (yeah, not healthy, but there you have it, at least I’m honest)
3. Cream crackers, which I have always loved, but for some reason had forgotten about it, especially whole wheat cream crackers
4. The Hunger Games! Just finished the trilogy, def recommended, but it’s a page turner, once I started I couldn’t let go!
Well, I have another banana recipe coming up this week that I think you’ll like! 😉 Now I’m craving lemon cheesecake … thanks, Christa! 😛
What am I loving lately? That it’s almost April vacation!
If you want any Spanish help, I know someone who loves the language and is pretty good at explaining it to people.
Mike read The Name of the Wind and loved it. He’s recommended it to a few people who’ve also loved it; it’s the start of a trilogy. Personally, I’m reading Eva Luna with an independent study student and The Hobbit, although I paused that after I was sure that I’d read enough to see the first film.
Glad you are all better!
I love tiny bananas, too. I have recently incorporated a larger variety of fruit into my diet, and so a huge banana is too much.
Good luck with the garden!