Tuesday''s Eats: Day of Snacks

The amount of days this past week that I have tried to take pictures of a full day of eating is unreal. I keep starting, but always forget after dinner to take a picture of whatever I eat. Along with that, I am not really eating anything exciting as I am trying to use up all of the food I have before I go home for the summer. This means lots of oats, yogurt, and guacamole packets. Here is what I ate: 

Breakfast: Quinoa Flakes w/ Strawberries, Raspberries and Pumpkin Seeds 

I have recently been trying new kinds of warm cereals for breakfast instead of oatmeal. I ran out of oats a while ago so I picked up quinoa flakes and cream of buckwheat to try. I really like both of them, but the quinoa flakes have to be my favorite. The nutty flavor adds a lot to fruity toppings. In an effort to get more protein into my breakfasts, I recently have been making my quinoa flakes with milk, or having some sausage on the side. This day, I added the milk, but whatever I chose typically depends on my mood.  

 Snack: Roasted Chickpeas and Clementine

I always pack a snacks on days that I know I will eat a later lunch. My go-to snacks recently have been pumpkin seeds bars by Health Warrior or these chickpea snacks  with fruit. Recently I have been a lot more hungry than normal, so I make sure to pack extra snacks throughout the day so I don't get too hungry. There is nothing worse than being hungry during class or while doing homework and not being able to study because of it.

Lunch: Avocado Toast and Sausage "Hash" w/ Cauliflower, Brussel Sprouts, Tomato

This breakfast hash inspired meal was initially what I really wanted to have for breakfast, but I didn't know if the sausage was gluten free so I waited until I could double check at lunch. It was a good and filling meal with all of the veggies, protein from sausage and healthy fats from the quac on my toast. I ate this around 1:30 so it was able to hold me over through my workout at the gym.

Dinner: Spaghetti and Meatballs w/ Cauliflower and Side Salad

Somehow I timed it so that when I got back from working out, it was almost time for dinner. This dinner was really good. I loved added the roasted cauliflower as a mix to my pasta. It went really well with the marinara sauce, almost better than the plain pasta did. I know this summer I want to try to do this again because it was so much more flavorful than just pasta and sauce.

Snack: Perfect Bar and Popcorn

Since dinner is at 5:30, I always find I need a bigger snack by the end of the night. Recently my favorite combination has been a perfect bar and popcorn. If I am not too hungry, it is half a perfect bar, but normally its the full bar. I love this snack because it gives me both sweet and savory because I can never decide what I want. It also has fat and protein from the Perfect Bar, and carbs from the popcorn which makes for a really satisfying snack. I have been trying some new Perfect Bar flavors recently so keep checking back for my rankings of all the Perfect Bars I've tried. 

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

This week was the start of the new semester. At this point I have gotten to all of my classes at least once and read the syllabuses enough to know I'll be busy. It was really nice coming back to see everyone again, even though I am going to miss home's food. Overall this week was pretty relaxed, which has made a great intro to the school year. Here is what I've been up to:

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 Yesterday there was a big snow storm yesterday which made walking around to class terrible, but everything was so pretty. I love winter when there is actually snow, but the lack of shoveling was annoying. I was hoping  we might get a school day; every other school around here had one, but of course since we walk around all day nothing was cancelled. 

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Classes started, oh joy. Syllabus week isn't really a thing at UW-Madison, its more just jumping right into the semester. Some of my classes seem interesting, but more the most part this has potential to be a really boring semester. (like chemistry and stats) This will be a really busy semester between school work, my sorority position and still trying to have a life, but at the same time there is potential for this to be the best one yet. 

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I was lifting a lot over break as I can't run or do any cardio workouts. I joined a gym at school and I've really been liking it. It is a nice change of pace to workout with more than just dumbbells. I make up what my workout will be just when I get there. I want to come up with a better workout plan, so if anyone has recommendations let me know.

Until next week,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

This week wasn't really the most exciting week as it was pretty much the same as last week. I am not really complaining about that though. This meant having fun with friends, continuing to get back into lifting weights and making tons and tons of food. There is some of what I've been up to. 

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The most exciting part of this week has been trying Banza Chickpea Pasta.... I know, thrilling. I actually was super excited about how good it tasted, especially with hearty tomato sauces. It was so much better than the typical rice pasta that I've been eating. There is also a lot of protein in the pasta which is never a bad thing for someone who struggles to eat enough. 

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I was able to work a couple of days this week. It allowed a nice change of pace for my days, and a little extra money never hurts. My family, especially my siblings, appreciate when I work because it means that I'm not home for dinner so they can eat all of their favorite gluten-filled foods. As for me, I like the chance to make my favorite pasta dinners (with Banza) such as pesto pasta filled with veggies. 

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My dad and I had a nice little lunch date together this week. One of the supper clubs (it's a Wisconsin thing) that we have always liked to eat at actually has a separate gluten free area so we went there.  I was able to get fried perch which has always been a favorite. This was actually one of the best fired perches I've ever had. It wasn't too heavily breaded and was perfectly cooked. Both spending time with my dad and the yummy gluten free perch was a nice treat.

Until next week,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

This week was my ideal week for winter break. I got to go out for coffee a couple times with friends, bake/cook a lot and relax in general. Next week I know I will start to need to prepare for going back to school, so I am just enjoying my time now. Here is what I have been up to.

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One of my favorite parts of winter break is being able to catch up on all the reading I have lined up. It is especially nice to be able to curl up next to the fire with a good book as a way to end each day. I have been reading a wide variety of books, but my favorite so far this break has been the Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.  I had heard so many good things about this book recently, and it did not disappoint. 

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I have gotten back into bullet journaling again to help organize my life. I primarily use it for my monthly budget, a habit tracker, reading lists and cooking journals. During the school year, I just didn't have the time to do anything more than a basic page for my budget and everything fell aside, but now that I have more time, I am loving getting back into being creative. 

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The thing I am not loving about this break is the reminders of all I need to do to organize this summer. The To-Do list seems to never end. I have been working a lot this week on writing cover letters, organizing my resume and sending applications for internships and jobs. I really want a new experience this summer that will help me advance my interest in either dietetics or political science so we'll see how this goes. 

Until next week

xoxo, 

Maddie 

Thursday Three

Two days are now in the books for 2019, but I can safely say I enjoyed the ending of 2018. This week was pretty much focused on friends and family. I loved spending time with my family while they were on Christmas break, and it was so nice to see friends that I haven't seen in a long time. This week was pleasantly busy ie I had thing to do, but I was never too busy or really bored. Here is what I was up to:

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I have been having a lot of fun over break experimenting with different types of foods. I have made soups, fun tacos, new pancakes and even green juice. Now, I love my greens, but separating and eaten as a food not a juice. I have always avoided juices because I know eating all the parts individually would be more entertaining. That being said, this juice was really good. It had a grapefruit, half an avocado, spinach and cucumber. My favorite part about this juice was that it was made in a blender not a juicer, so while it was still liquidy, all of the fiber was retained making it more filling with a better texture.








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It has been disheartening not being able to run at all for over a month now. I really love to run and it stinks knowing that I ran a marathon and won't be able to run a mile. That being said, I have starting lifting weights and am finding that more fun than I remembered. I like to find different circuits online, and combine them to make an interesting workout. I hope I can gain muscle through this which I know will help me when I can finally run again too. 

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No New Year's is complete without a trip to Door County. It has become our family tradition to spend the weekend there while the only goal being to relax and spend time as a family. Most of the days were spent curled up near the fire while reading books or watching football. I also enjoyed walks along the golf course my grandparents live near. One night there was a big snow storm which made the entire area so pretty. For me, there is nothing quite like fresh fallen snow on pine trees to make the perfect winter picture.

Now on to 2019, 

xoxo,

Maddie

Thursday Three

And we are back with the Thursday Threes! I always try to be good about writing a post at least every once in a while, but really that never happens. A lot of times, if I have to have a couple spare minutes, I am so tired of looking at computer screens that writing isn't appealing. That being said I am at a weird break in classes where I don't have tons of work so I'm going to try to make the most of it. 

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Ask me what my favorite season of the year is and my answer is always the Christmas season. Everyone who has known me for a while knows this, and more than anyone else, my mom knew it would be hard this year not being able to eat my favorite cookies. For St. Nick's Day she surprised me by making gluten free sugar cookies which involved her even making her own flour blend. They taste so good and this is definitely the highlight of my week. 

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Cottage cheese is officially my newest favorite snack. I remembered liking it when I was a kid, and after reading about it a lot on Bon Appetite recently, I knew I wanted to try it again. I found some for sale at a market on campus and gave it a try. Needless to say I love it. It is a great way to add protein to any meal. I typically just add pepper on top and enjoy.

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This semester has really just consisted a lot of studying and homework. Taking science classes for the first time in years is definitely different then all of my poli sci classes. A lot more math, a lot less reading.  For the most part its been going well, other than the day I had to dissect a rat and then everything with chemistry in general. I have no idea how people choose to be chem majors. With finals starting next week I know I'll just keep studying a lot, but the end is in sight. 

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

School has been getting crazy. I have barely had time to do anything other than homework, which explains why I haven't been able to get anything posted here. My classes are really time consuming this year, especially since I am taking both chemistry and biology for the first time in year. I wouldn't say anything I have to do right now is super hard, but it has been so much information for all of my classes that there is no time for anything in my life. With that being said, here is what I have been able to fit into my schedule: 

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My marathon training has been kicking into high gear and I've been running farther than I have before. This past weekend I had a 16 mile run which is now my all-time high. I am pleasantly surprised with how well my training has been going, and that I am still able to be motivated enough to do all of my early morning runs. Views like this sunrise always make it worth it. 

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This year I finally got season tickets for football and I have been loving going to the games. This past weekend it was crazy hot so I wasn't there too long though. Going to the games are really the only break I have in my week from studying so that makes me like them even more. 

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There was a first two weekends ago... I actually missed a farmers market. Granted it was for a run, but still, I haven't miss going to a farmers market in a long time. I normally try to go every week to stock up on some produce and find a sweet treat. The market is still one of my favorite parts of Madison, so you know I am going to make sure that I don't miss anymore. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

My first full week in Madison has officially been completed and I can already tell that this year will be so much better. I mainly spent time with my sorority, but I did manage to fit a couple other things into my days. Here is what happened: 

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Of course I had to go to the farmers market. I actually got there twice, once on Saturday and once on Wednesday. We all know how much I love the market, and I like the Madison one even more these days since there are a lot of gluten free baked goods! I miss going with my family, but it was so much fun to randomly bump into a bunch of my friends there.

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I have been running in a lot of new places due to my marathon training. This has had some good and bad results. The bad being running around flooded areas and up crazy hills. The good has been seeing a bunch of cool looking houses. I got super lost one day and came across this house. I love that you can see how beautiful it must have been in its prime.

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We don't have food fed to us until classes start in the sorority house so this has lead to trying a lot of new places to eat. One night I was really craving kale and avocado, so I ended up making this salad at Salad's Up and it hit the spot. It might be a little ugly, but this was everything I need that night-- kale, grains, tomato, avocado, olives and more.

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie

Thursday Three

I went back to school this week! I am really excited for this year. After having such an... interesting... year last year, I know it can only get better. I'll definitely miss hanging out with my family and all of the good cooking I get from my mom, but this should be a really good year. Here is what happened this week: 

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I love how my room turned out. My roommate and I didn't coordinate anything, but surprisingly our stuff looks great together. The one thing I really don't like about the room is the yellow walls. The color is cute, but even the closet doors are yellow so it becomes overwhelming when the doors are closed. Other than that I can't wait to spend the rest of the year here. 

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I am going to be going out to eat a lot for the first couple of days since my sorority doesn't serve food until classes start, but that means I finally have an excuse to try all of the restaurants on my list. The first meal, lunch with my parents, set a high standard for the week with a fantastic sandwich from Graze with great gluten free bread. I'll like any place that will make their own GF bread. 

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 Running again in Madison is so different than at home. There is so much more wind, but the views are so pretty from a path near the lake. I love seeing all of the sailboats bobbing up and down as the sunrises. I am excited to see what I can discover on my long runs. Fingers crossed that I find some pretty houses. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

This past week was crazy busy. I am starting to get ready to leave for school so I have been starting to  pack for school, see everyone I want to before I go to school and figure out what else I need to buy. My to-do lists have been really long where it feels like everyday I am barely getting everything done. Here is what I did do this week: 

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I found my new favorite combination of yogurt and granola for parfaits. I got really sick this weekend when trying oatmeal (non-gluten free) so I new I needed to find a new, gluten free granola for my parfaits. I tried Purely Elizabeth and love it. I also recently started to eat Icelandic Provisions instead of Siggi's. It is so creamy and much more flavorful than Siggi's.

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I voted for the first time this week. Wisconsin had primary elections and since I had finally registered to vote, I made sure to participate. Even though voting isn't an exciting activity, I still think it is really important and I am glad that I finally was able to take part in the process.

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It was so nice to go out for coffee with my mom on Wednesday. I have been so busy this summer that we have't been able to go out for afternoon coffee for one reason or another. We went to a cute little coffee shop we don't normally frequent since it is a little farther away, but we made sure to plan out this trip so we could have enough time. It's the little days like this that make me realize how much I'll miss my family. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie

Thursday Three

This was a pretty good week full of exploring new things, making money at work and even going shopping. I really hate going to the mall near my house. It is busy, noisy and has subpar stores where I can never find anything that I might want to buy. When I was younger it seemed like there were so many options, but now there are maybe three stores I will even walk into. This week though, I went with a friend to the mall to find clothes for parties in college and it might have been the first time I actually enjoyed a trip to the mall. One of a couple firsts this week. Here was the rest of the week:

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Everyone knows how much I like the farmers market, and this week I got to go to two new ones. One was a really little one in Door County, and the other was another big market about a half an hour away from our house. It is amazing the different types of food (like apricots!) you can find by just going a little bit away. With it being National Farmers Market Week, I figure there is no better time to support the local farmers. 

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Yesterday I was able to go on a day trip to Door County with my mom. This was really nice since the weather was great so we went to the beach, ate outside and wandered around. Other than the drive, we were able to spend almost the entire day outside. To me, summer should be careless days in my faovorite place with one of my favorite people, eating fish tacos outside on a beautiful day. 

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The final first of the week was find a new egg dish that I like- Migas. It has only been recently that I have started to like eating eggs. I am lucky enough that my parents buy local farm fresh eggs in the summer, and I have found these taste so much better than anything from the grocery. I loved Migas because it was flavorful, I could add veggies, it was naturally gluten free and it kept me full for quite some time. I used this recipe from Gimme Some Oven, its so easy, so why not try it?

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

Other than a fun trip to Door County, this was a pretty average week full of work, running, baking and coffee with friends. For me, these kinds of weeks are the classic summer weeks and could repeat over and over without me being bored. Here is what happened this week: 

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By far the best part of the week was being able to go to Door County with my family for part of the weekend. I managed to get to some of my favorite places, such as the White Gull Inn and Dippy's Ice Cream. It was also really nice to just relax there and read a book. I miss Door County in the school year, so it is always nice to make it there in the summer. 

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One random, but remarkable thing about this week is the amount of avocado that I have been eating. Until about a year ago, I hated almost everything to do with avocados and then all of the sudden I started liking them more and more. This week I think I have had at least 1/2 an avocado everyday. I eat it in everything from kale salads, toasts, sandwiches and sometimes by itself. I can't believe how long I went with hating them. 

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My marathon training is starting to get into full swing and I am loving it. I have spent wayyy too much time reading everything there is to be read about marathons. My favorite things to read about are nutrition, not shocking since I am now a dietetics major, and general tips for doing your best. I am only on the fourth week of eighteen so I still have a long way to go. Read more about my marathon training plan here! 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

It was a good summer week. I was able to make a bunch of food in the kitchen, spend time outside and hangout with friends some more. Nothing really changing too much in my weeks, but I have been able to find the little things to make each day special. I was able to go out to dinner with my grandparents one night, and another day I had smoothie bowls with my best friend. Here is what else happened this week:

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The colors at the Farmer's Market never cease to amaze me. I love this time of year for all of the fresh  fruits and veggies. It seems like every meal I have contains more produce than anything else; something I am loving as compared to the winter months. I wouldn't say no to being able to eat fresh fruits and vegetables all year round. 

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This week I walked my dog a lot more than I normally do. It has been a nice way to clear my head while still enjoying the fresh air. All I want to do is be outside when the weather is nice, and walking the dog is an easy way to do this. Sadly, I don't know how long I can keep this up between marathon training and standing all day when I work, but at least I will enjoy it as much as I can.

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HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK: I made my own gluten free bread and it was amazing! My mom has always made the best homemade bread, so eating store bought bread has not been enjoyable. It was so nice to make this on my own, and then be able to enjoy a hearty flax bread for my toasts. I am considering making a bunch of bread this summer and freezing it so that my mom can mail it to me in the winter at school... its really that good. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

This was a particularly exciting week, but I was able to hang out with a bunch of friends, work a lot and bake. All of which I enjoy doing during the summer. I have also officially started to train for a marathon in the fall. I am so excited and it seems like I have spent so much of my time reading about running nutrition and tips for the long distance. Wish me luck! 

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 Food trucks are nothing new, but where I live, there are more and more all the time. I was finally able to get to a gelato food truck that I had been wanting to find since last summer. There was no disappointment. I had a raspberry pistachio gelato, and it was amazing. Pistachios are something that I only recently started to like, so I find myself always picking the pistachio flavor these days. 

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What's also not new to anyone... avocado toast. But what did I try out this week? Avocado toast with corn. It was never something I thought to put together until I read this blogpost by How Sweet Eats. Originally I was going to make it just like recipe, but the garden finally had ripe tomatoes so I knew I had to take advantage of that. I took fresh grilled corn from the farmers market, added paprika, then put the corn on top of the avocado. I also added tomato, sea salt, pepper and cilantro. 

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I have been making a point of going on mini adventures this summer around where I live seeing as I have no idea about how long I am going to stay here (as opposed to living in Madison during the summer). This week I went to De Pere for a little trip to check out a grocery store (Fresh Thyme Market), try a cool looking coffee shop and walking around looking at pretty houses. It's days like these where sometimes I wonder if I secretly of 50 year old, not 19. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

Every week of summer seems to be flying by. There really isn't an excuse for saying that this time, but the combination of work, seeing friends and a mini vacation to Chicago gave me enough to look forward to that it was a breeze. The other bigger part of my week is that I decided I am going to change my major when I get back to school. I have been mulling this over for a while and I finally have decided to take the leap. (wish me luck) Here is what else happened this week: 

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Yes, I know that zoodles are something everyone knows about but oh well. I have found that they are the perfect convince food for me since all I need to do is pull out the KitchenAid, attach the spiralizer and just make a quick sauce. I have been loving this as a different substitute to gluten free pasta for eating my favorite pasta sauces.  

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 The best part of going to Chicago for an overnight this week was the food. I had a great lunch at Summer House Santa Monica. The gluten free menu was huge! My mom and I started with chips and quac, and then I had a salmon burger with a pineapple mocktail.... so good! The next morning I went to my favorite breakfast place near my grandparents because... wait for it.. they make gluten free pancakes! If you have read any of my pancake project posts, you know how much I love pancakes and waffles.

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Normally my mom and I spent time around Michigan Ave. when we are in Chicago but this time we decided to go to Lincoln Park. I absolutely love looking at houses, so I had so much fun checking out the beautiful townhouses. If I were to live in a city, it would definitely be in someplace like this. A girl can dream, right?

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

Hi again! I can report on another fun week! I had the ending of my family reunion, which was tons of fun, even if the little cousins could get crazy. I was able to spend the Fourth of July with my family and friends, and we all went boating together. The weather has been really hot, so being outside isn't always nice, but at least I have been able to still spend some time outdoors. Here was my week!

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I have been baking up a storm this week. My bakes include morning glory muffins (shown), hummingbird muffins, brownies, lemon pound cake, peach coffee cake and waffles. All are gluten free, and most of them turned out really well. I love the process of baking, but when things don't turn out well over and over again, it can get disheartening. Thankfully this week was mainly good, which made for a nice week. 

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I was able to go with my best friend to Door County for a day trip. As we all know, I love Door County.  We went to a couple little towns, sampled a bunch of food and had the cutest little picnic. We ended our trip by spending a couple hours at the beach. It was a great way to see my friend and start my week. 

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Its peach season in my house now! We get peaches from a truck that drives up from Georgia and they are always amazing. We buy a big box, and make peach everything. For lunch one day we had a peach caprese salad. In it was peaches, fresh mozzarella cheese and prosciutto with a balsamic vinaigrette. This is what summer lunches should be. 

Until next week,

xoxo,

Maddie 

Thursday Three

The last two weeks have been really busy, but great at the same time. I have been to Florida, spent time at my family reunion, and also had some crazy days at work. All of that made time fly by. I can't believe that I am already a third of the way through summer! As much as I am excited for school, I wish time would slow down a little bit. Here is some of what I was up to this week.

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 Most of the time in Florida was spent at the beach. I went there almost every morning with my sister and mom. We all love to take beach walks, read in the sun and play in the waves. This is always my favorite part of Florida. It is so relaxing which is exactly what I needed. 

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Thankfully it wasn't too hard to find food that I could eat. One of my favorite things was a gluten free lobster roll from The Olde Salty Dog. I couldn't get my favorite thing which is a po' boy, but this was still a great substitute. I also had a couple really good dinners out, which made this vacation extra special. 

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The farmers market where I live finally started! This is my absolute favorite thing about summer and I was so upset to miss the first one since I was in Florida. I love going to the farmers market after a yoga class with my mom. I can't think of a better way to start a weekend. This week we got some amazing tasting strawberries and zucchini so I can make some muffins.

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie Platten