Gotta Love It

It's going to be a good day when you wake up and the hives and stomach ache from last night are gone! I'm not sure what happened but I had the worst allergic reaction (the kind I have when I come in contact with seafood, not gluten) which was baffling and no fun.

Alas, the sun was shining, we had more gorgeous weather in DC, and the medicine I took last night worked wonders :)  I actually went into work late because I knew I'd be knocked out and taking that quarter-day was well worth it.

To gear up for the holiday weekend, I had red, white, and blue hot cereal. This would be the standard BRM mix with 1/4c frozen blueberries and a couple of strawberries chopped up. Topped with crushed almond slices and 1/2T PB.

The morning went smoothly and then it was time for lunch. I actually had a small nibble and then got called into a couple of meetings and didn't eat until almost 2! Good thing breakfast was early.

I had a big salad with spinach and romaine, cucumber, carrot, bell pepper, a serving of TJ's Cuban black beans, dill, 21 Seasoning Salute, and black pepper. Plus a corn tortilla with red pepper spread, a piece of turkey, and spinach.

The afternoon was busy and I had an apple with AB plus some brown rice.

Then it was off to the gym. I warmed up with 10 minutes on the bike (increased my resistance!) then did a combination of the Summer Shape Up Week 1 arms workout and Intro to Iron Pumping Day 1 workout.  I did another 12 minutes on the bike before my foot started feeling it and called it quits after some stretching.

Earlier this week I told you I would be recreating a dish I had in Chicago and tonight was the night. I even dreamed up my prep process on the way home from the gym!  I present to you my take on Hub 51's Brussel Sprouts Salad with Honey Mustard Tofu.

Ingredients (for 2 servings):

• 2 heaving cups brussel sprouts, lightly steamed
• 3 dates, pitted and chopped
• 1/4c roasted almond slivers, divided
• 4oz baked tofu
• 1T sliced Parmesan and Asiago cheese
• Annie's honey mustard dressing

First, drain and press a block of extra firm tofu.

Slice and cube. Preheat your oven to 400F.

Arrange tofu on a non-stick sprayed baking sheet. Coat tofu with a light splash of honey mustard dressing. Bake for ~30 minutes.

While tofu cooks, lightly steam a bag of brussel sprouts (about 2 - 3 minutes).

Cut bottoms off brussel sprouts. Then chop into thin slices. Toss with a few light sprays of olive oil.

Add in half of the chopped dates, half of the almond slivers and cheese.

When tofu's done, add to the salad. Pour on more dressing, salt, and pepper.

Enjoy!

This was a very close replication of the dish I had on Sunday! I'm so excited because it was definitely one of the best things I ate in Chicago!

There was also a snack of the last of my kimchi...in a jar :)

The rest of my night has included SYTYCD and Bethenny Getting Married plus a pear with some strawberries and AB.

All in all, a pretty great day. What makes it even better? Tomorrow in Friday! Gotta love it!