The Best Start to Fall

Can you believe it's the first day of fall? Celebrating Labor Day feels like just yesterday and now we're on the tail end of September! I guess if it has to be fall already, it might as well arrive in my favorite kind of way - with temperatures in the 90s! Way to go DC :-D

This morning my body wasn't quite sure what season it truly was. I craved a bowl of hot cereal but topped it with blueberries, 1/4 of peach diced, and almond butter drizzle. Mmmm.

Work flew by as I spent most of it in meetings that left my head spinning and tummy rumbling by the time we wrapped up. Insert a thrown together lunch of sorts - taco salad! On top of a bed of romaine and spinach I added roasted carrot, broccoli, and okra (what was in my fridge) and Mexican-inspired baked beans plus a toasted corn tortilla and some Cabot lite cheddar shredded.

The beans were super easy to make: I put 1 serving kidney beans and 1/2 serving of black beans in a bowl onto which I sprinkled cumin and chili powder, ketchup, BBQ sauce, mustard and garlic powder, and a tiny pinch of brown sugar. Stir. Microwave for 1.5 minutes, stir, and pour on top of your salad. Quick and easy (TWSS).

The afternoon flew by equally as quickly and a late afternoon meeting squashed my hopes of a triumphant return to pilates class. Drat. I snacked on the remaining 3/4 of a peach plus 1/3c of cereal for a snack before my meeting to prevent any hangriness.

Instead I stopped by Whole Foods for 3 items and left with only those 3 items in mind, plus a few nibbles O:-)

I decided to put to good use a huge batch of black beans I whipped up in the crock pot earlier this week and mark the start of fall with my first batch of soup of the season: Black Bean Soup! I've been craving it and finally had the time to cook.

Ingredients:

• 2c black beans
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1/2c onion, chopped
• 1/2c frozen bell pepper strips, roughly chopped
• 2.5 - 3c vegetable broth
• 1/3 teaspoon cumin
• garlic and chili powder to taste
• 1T soy sauce
• splash of balsamic vinegar
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/3 teaspoon oregano

First chop your carrot and onion. Heat a pan sprayed with non-stick spray and add your veggies. Add garlic powder and saute until soft. It may be helpful to add a couple tablespoons of water to ensure that you don't burn your veggies.

Once the onions are translucent add your beans, peppers, broth, and spices and bring to a simmer. Partially cover the pot with a lid and allow to simmer for 20 - 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When veggies are tender remove pot from heat and remove the bay leaf. Once the mix has cooled down a bit pour into your blender and roughly blend until mix is somewhat pureed. I wanted my soup to have a thicker feel so I did not puree until completely smooth. I also left a ladle-ful of soup in the pot unblended. Once you've blended your bean and veg mix, add it back to the pot, stir with remaining bean mix, and enjoy.

This made 4 ~1cup servings that clock in at 150 calories, .5g fat, 9g fiber, and 8g protein.


For dinner I had 1.5 servings on top of spinach and mixed veg alongside a slicee of Udi's toast with some cheddar. Plus a few random nibbles here and there - I couldn't get full!

The rest of the night was spent doing dishes, watching the return of Modern Family, and catching up on Glee which I skipped last night in favor of Biggest Loser. However, I wish I had caught Glee live as Biggest Loser was extremely slow - they spent 1hr 55minutes picking contestants and 2 teasing you with what's coming for the season. Those 2 minutes were the best part. Disappointing. Here's to hoping the season picks up - Biggest Loser is one of my favorite shows!


Alright, bed time for me. I've been sleeping horribly and am hoping to break the streak!


What are your favorite TV shows? Have season premieres impressed or disappointed so far this week? Glee and Modern Family were amazing, BL10 disappointing, and I cannot wait for Grey's Anatomy tomorrow!!