You know how sometimes you have random food cravings? Recently, I have been craving ranch dressing. So weird, right?
I picked up a bottle of natural (MSG/HFCS free!) ranch at the grocery last night and then made a big salad. It was everything I wanted it to be and more…arugula mix, green leaf lettuce, feta, olives, mushrooms, leftover roasted sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts, croutons, golden raisins and toasted walnuts. I generally prefer to make my own dressings so tackling homemade ranch is on the “to do” list.
I can’t even tell you how excited I was about this bowl of oatmeal. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy 7 days of green smoothies but I seriously missed oatmeal and overnight oats. I got a little crazy with this mornings oatmeal and added about 1/4 cup of cottage cheese at the end. I’ve seen other bloggers do this and it never really looked appetizing but I’ve been on a bit of a cottage cheese kick lately so I decided to try it. The verdict is that it was a nice addition for some extra protein but not something I’ll do all the time.
Speaking of the 7-Day Green Smoothie Challenge I would LOVE to do a final round up post. Please let me know if you have an especially delicious/creative recipe that you discovered and would like to share. Pictures are encouraged! Post recipes in the comments section or email me at peanutbutterrunner (at) gmail (dot) com.
Lunch brought the return of open-faced sandwiches. I think I went a whole week without eating them! Continuing with the ranch craving…I mashed together ranch and avocado and then topped it with spinach, tempeh, tomatoes and cheddar cheese. It was a great combination. And then I ate two chocolate chip cookies. Oops. I have since given away a huge plate of the cookies and am left with only a few to tempt me! 😉
I took a break from work this afternoon and wandered across the street to Reid’s to grab a tea. Reid’s is a cute specialty market that has a lot of local foods, wine, fresh meat, cheese, seafood, prepared salads, etc. While I was there I ended up picking up one of their house-marinated chicken breasts.
I had the evening off from teaching my normal Monday hot yoga class (ahh…it felt like vacation!) so I took Sullie for a leisurely walk before throwing the chicken and some zucchini on the grill for dinner.
The chicken was so good and a great value. I will definitely be trying Reid’s other pre-marinated chicken options out soon. I had Trader Joe’s Harvest Blend and some french bread on the side and enjoyed my meal on the patio. This is such a perfect time of the year for outdoor dining – perfect temps, no humidity and no skeeters.
Off to relax and say “Go Big Blue!” and cheer for Kentucky to win the NCAA tournament. I always have to root for the SEC and it used to be a life dream of mine to be a Kentucky cheerleader when I was in high school. Yes, I’m a nerd.
I know what you mean about the weird cravings! I normally don’t like really salty things but recently all I want to eat is green olives! I found an amazing green olive hummus and I cant get enough!!
Ranch is actually one of the foods that I can’t stand (along with mayo and mustard). Yeah, I’m weird.
I completely agree with you – I cannot stand Ranch, mayo or mustard! Not sure why but I have never liked any of the three.
y’all are crazy! 😛
born and raised in KY, GO CATS…..and yes it was a big deal to be a UK Cheerleader, some girls dream of being princesses in KY, it was KY cheerleaders. 🙂
My favorite combo for my green monster was pineapple, banana & vanilla protein powder. I like peanut butter & banana at night!
I’ve been craving a giant salad lately. My fave homemade ranch dressing uses cashews and it’s actually dairy-free…it’s so creamy though!
that sounds interesting and delicious!
I hear you on strange cravings! The only time I have ever enjoyed ranch though was when I dipped pizza into it in college. Although mixed with avacado it sounds delicious.
I used to be repulsed by cottage cheese but lately all I want is grapes and cottage cheese!
i definitely go through phases with cottage cheese. i remember how much i love it for a while and then i just totally forget about it for months.
Oh man I get the strangest cravings ever, my family always looks at me like I’m nutty with some of the combos I can up with 😉
I know ranch is something that a majority of people enjoy but I just don’t like the taste. Your open faced sandwiches always look fantastic!! YUM 🙂
you are not a nerd at all! i wanted to cheer for louisville or some other southern school that always got 1st place at nationals! when i applied to colleges i would only apply to division I schools since they had the best cheerleading teams – i was obsessed!!!!
i loved when they had the reality TV show about kentucky cheerleading a few years ago. did you watch that? i think one of the reasons i like yoga so much is because it reminds me of cheerleading. putting together sequences and making it kind of a routine. and i LOVE the back bending and tick tocks! 🙂
That pic of you and Sullie is adorable! And I’m with you- I don’t think I could do cottage cheese in oats all the time.
Hi Jen! I got way too excited that you mentioned Kentucky in your post. I’m a student at UK, and am just about the happiest girl in the world today, as I’m sure you can imagine! The town is going CRAZY. On another note, I ran my first half marathon on Saturday, thanks to you being so inspiring. The race went through the beautiful horse farms in Lexington. My roommate and I finished in exactly 2:00, and our goals was 2:30. we were so proud of ourselves 🙂 thanks again for being a constant reminder that you can do anything you set your mind too. Enjoy your week, and GO CATS!!
You just earned MAJOR bonus points with me for the Kentucky shoutout!
GO CATS! YOU CAN’T DENY OUR GR8NESS!
green smoothies are awesome, but oats will always have my heart! do you grill yourself or does your husband do it? I need to learn how to do it myself!
So glad to hear you were cheering for us last night! Those cheerleaders are amazing!
I love a nice big salad with a creamy dressing! Ranch is by-far the best. Your pic makes it look delicious.