What I Ate Wednesday #91: Berrylicious

I love this time of year. The kitchen is almost always stocked with fresh fruits and veggies but right now everything is at its peak. We’ve been seriously stocking the fridge with lots of fruit; it’s hard not to when everything is so good!

It’s usually not until I sit down and look at my meals for the day as a whole that I see some sort of theme going on. Yesterday’s theme was berries. I wouldn’t mind having that theme happen more often either.

Breakfast

Quite possibly the ugliest oatmeal ever, right? Blueberries really have a way.. I just swapped my usual 1/2 banana in my oatmeal for 1/2 cup blueberries. It was pretty wonderful if you can get past they bowl of gray.

Lunch

I have a thing for hot lunches these days and zucchini noodles are such a fast fix. I also have a serious cheese craving going on so I got Laughing Cow White Cheddar wedges the other day. I threw one of those into the mix with chipotle cherry sauce, ground turkey, shredded carrots, and zucchini noodles. I topped it off with avocado and BAM! Delicious lunch.

Snack

It’s been a while since I’ve had a Balance bar, but honestly, I was running out the door hungry and it was the first one I saw. The caramel nut blast is pretty darn tasty!

And since I felt the need for something sweet and berrylicious when I got home, I grabbed some almonds I just got from Blue Diamond—toasted coconut and blueberry—and threw them in a bowl with some raspberries and dark chocolate pretzels. I swear, Nathan was trying to hide those pretzels from me! Also, the blueberry almonds are not something I would typically buy myself, but they were much better than I expected!

Dinner

You guys. This chicken. I’m in love with the marinade! I ended up making extra to go on the side because it’s so good. I used this feta chicken kabob recipe and toasted pecan and blueberry couscous salad on the side. I ended up cutting the amount of couscous in half and adding some leftover quinoa that I had. The whole dinner was so good and I’m glad I made a bunch for leftovers!

Snack

An apple and a little more homemade sourdough. We’re still riding the struggle bus when it comes to making bread but we’re getting closer. Maybe one day soon we’ll be successful.. here’s to hoping!

Food for Thought

What’s the best recipe you’ve tried lately?
What’s your favorite berry?

What I Ate Wednesday #6 – Heavy Seas Ale House

I love nothing more than trying new things.. especially when it comes to food! I’ve been mixing up my meals a bit this week and trying new easy recipes. I also got to try a new restaurant in Baltimore; Heavy Seas Ale House. The food was delicious and the drinks were even better! So let’s get to it, shall we?!

Breakfast

Perfect morning quinoa with blueberries & almonds and a Bombshell Spell. All directly from the lovely Tone It Up Nutrition Plan!

Sensible Snack #1

1/2 grapefruit sprinkled with stevia. Alright, so not everything is getting mixed up this week, but what can I say? I’m a fan of the grapefruit!

Lunch

Summer shrimp salad.. another one from the Tone It Up Nutrition Plan. This is such a great meal for warm days! It’s so light and delicious and frankly, I’m a fan of topping anything with avocado!

Sensible Snack #2

GT’s Guava Goddess Kombucha is one of my absolute favorite drinks lately! If you have never heard of or tried Kombucha, get on it! And I would highly recommend the Guava Goddess, Gingerade, and Gingerberry flavors.

I was also so excited to try The Good Bean Chocolate Berry bar. These bars are full of fruit and no nuts! Typically I love almonds and cashews and other nuts in my bars, but this one replaces that crunchy texture with chick peas. So delicious and you really don’t miss the nut! (And how can you top dark chocolate and berries?!)

Dinner

We celebrated my parents’ 35th wedding anniversary at Heavy Seas Ale House. Nathan and I had only been there once before for drinks, but had been wanting to return and try the food; we’d heard so many good reviews!

Heavy Seas has become known for their beer cocktails. The first time we went there, I got the Gold Ale Cucumber Margarita. Holy yum!

“Heavy Seas Gold Ale”, resposado tequila, fresh lime juice, cucumber and house made golden ale syrup with a salted rim.

This time I had to try something new.. here we haveAny Port in the Storm. Again, holy yum!

Gosling’s Black Seal Rum, house made ginger syrup, lime juice, and “Heavy Seas Gold Ale”

We started out with 1/2 dozen raw Washington oysters. I’m not a big oyster fan, but I always try one when we get them. My parents loved them! I much preferred the Spicy Beer Nuts. I would definitely recommend them, but watch out.. they’re addicting and the spice builds!

Pecans tossed with sweet spices and “Marzen”

My mom and I both got the Crispy Rockfish Special over mussels and cockles, topped with zucchini, roasted corn, & bacon in a tomato broth. Delicious! I was happy to learn that crispy didn’t mean fried. It was cooked in a pan, skin on, so the skin was nice and crispy, but the fish was not at all oily.

We finished off with a lovely Flourless Chocolate Cake with bay leaf chantilly creme on a beautifully (and deliciously!) decorated plate. And to our surprise, every table gets to end their meal with these wonderful homemade mini chocolate chip cookies with a touch of spice! I have to say, I think I preferred the cookie to the cake!

I will definitely be returning to Heavy Seas to try some more delicious food! I hear the burgers and oyster po boy sandwiches are out of this world, so I think next time we’ll be trying out their lunch dishes. Can’t wait to report in on that!

Speak Up!

What’s the best dish you’ve had a restaurant recently?