Tag Archives: breakfast

Today, We Visit Bouchon Bakery and the Europa Cafe

Don’t forget, you have until this Friday at 11:59PM EST to enter my Anytime Fitness giveaway for the CEO’s new book, “Working Out Sucks! (And Why It Doesn’t Have To)”. Check out my review on the giveaway page as well! Thanks to all who joined in our awesome #WorkingOutSucks Twitter chat last night – there will be another one on 1/30!

Now let me continue to recap things that I am ridiculously behind on. I haven’t even gotten to Christmas Day yet! Let’s go back to Christmas Eve…

Our traditional NYC trip always includes a visit to the Today Show on Christmas Eve morning. Unfortunately, this year that morning coincided with a Saturday, so the show was being done to a much-lower scale than usual. A lot of the segments being run were repeats from during the week. However, no crowd = easy for us to get on TV!

I made sure to get my daily cup of joe from a place I can’t normally visit, as I often try to do on trips/vacations. I took to Twitter to ask my always-dependable blends/friends for recommendations near Rockefeller Center!

Sounded good to me, and due to the weekend/holiday making the Today Show low-key, there actually was no insanity that Britt warned me about!

I loved the look of Bouchon Bakery from the start! I was in awe of the pastry case inside. We always eat breakfast after the show, so I didn’t order any food, but of course took plenty of photos.

Color settings a bit off to start…

Look at those macaroons!

I adore chalkboard menus.

I ordered my usual nonfat cafe au lait, and was so enamored by the bakery’s interior that I forgot to sprinkle my usual cinnamon on top!

My sister, dad, and I staked out our spot and got ready for the cameras to come outside so we could have our latest brush with fame.

Why no, I did not brush my hair, thanks for asking.

It was pretty cold out (though our coldest trip, in 2009, has yet to be matched), but we stuck it out. Eventually we caught a glimpse of good old Lester Holt and Amy Robach. She looked absolutely adorable in the cutest coat and shoes. I was hoping to meet Lester (love his hip glasses), but the two of them just waved to the crowd, did their segment, and ran right back inside!

Coat and shoe envy!!

Then a weatherman came out – and we got our moment of fame!

Weather guy chatting with some Giants fans in the crowd.

Can you catch us?! I apologize for the crappy video, but I was filming my TV (we DVR-ed the show) with my iPhone. The voices you may hear in the background are my dad and brother watching the video with me. Footage copyright NBC Today Show.

My Nana Connie also took this picture of her TV with her BlackBerry:

I can’t believe I didn’t think to make a CaitPlusAte.com poster – d’oh!

After our “appearance”, it was breakfast time for Dad and I (Hannah had a Starbucks breakfast at the hotel). We strolled around a bit, heading back in the general direction of the Marriott, and spotted a Europa Cafe. We decided to duck in there and grab a bite. Not exactly a unique NYC foodie spot, but I still can’t get it at home, so good enough for me.

I immediately drifted toward the omelet bar. It had been awhile since I’d had an omelet and those veggies looked so good! For you oatmeal lovers out there, Europa Cafe also had a pretty well-stocked oatmeal bar. Unlike every other blogger out there, I rarely ever eat oatmeal!

I gave the chefs my order – an egg white omelet with veggies and dry wheat toast – and watched them work.

My dad got an omelet too, but he also got homefries. His omelet used whole eggs and had cheese, bacon, and veggies. My daddio loves a good, hearty omelet!

Thanks for displaying, Dad!

My breakfast came out perfect. Again, not the most special or unique of places, but it did the job.

I added some ketchup to my eggs and ate the omelet in pieces atop my toast.

Does anyone else eat their eggs and toast like this?

Have you ever gotten coffee and/or breakfast from anywhere particularly remarkable in NYC?

Have you ever gone to watch a taping of any show, live or not?

Definition of Random

Happy to say that I was in a better mood yesterday – thank you for your de-stressing tips! This post is pretty random, but I have a lot of thoughts floating around in my head today.

I had a good day at work yesterday and an interesting class (Law, Business, and Society – we learned about torts and product liability) at night. Something I learned involved the famous lawsuit in which a woman was initially awarded $2.7 million in damages from McDonald’s for the third degree burns she suffered from as a result of spilling their 190-degree coffee on herself. I always thought the reward was ridiculous, but after hearing the full story from my professor, I’m actually changing my tune a bit. Turns out McDonald’s knew about their coffee being hot enough to cause 3rd degree burns within several seconds, but opted not to decrease the temperature after deciding that the money they would continue to pay out in settlements to people with burns was worth spending, compared to the money they’d lose in profit if they made their coffee the same temperature as everyone else’s. And that is why the punitive damages amounted to $2.7 million – because that is the amount of profit McDonald’s was making on its coffee in a single day. The punitive damages had a meaning and sent a message, which is indeed a function of punitive damages. So maybe the award wasn’t so ridiculous after all – what do you think? You learn something new everyday!

In other news, Faith Hill had her big comeback into country music at the CMA’s on Wednesday night. I was a bit annoyed when I was watching my DVR recording last night, and she started singing OneRepublic’s “Come Home” for her performance. I LOVE OneRepublic and their first album is one of my favorite albums of all time (and it has that song). I’m going to make an assumption (so that may make an ass out of me, but I digress) that many people watching the CMA’s didn’t know that she is not the original singer of this song because they may not know OneRepublic’s first album very well. If you’re gonna make a comeback, make it with a new song! Now many people probably don’t realize she’s covering it!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxW0cPo7F_o]

I have so many posts that I have been planning for you guys! I have all these backed up food photos that I want to post today, but hopefully soon you guys will be seeing posts on:

For now, just check out some pictures of food I’ve been eating.

Fiber One whole wheat english muffin, topped with banana and Cinnamon Raisin PB

Saturday’s breakfast – this is my favorite plate ever from my childhood 🙂 and my favorite breakfast that I hadn’t had in FOREVER! Also, I finished that jar of Cinnamon Raisin Swirl yesterday morning. Sad – but I did open a jar of Mighty Maple today!

Packed salad and fruit/cottage cheese while I waited to get my car check-up.

Had egg whites and Moe’s black beans as my protein in the above salad beast.

BBQ chicken and veggie pizza slices.

I came home for dinner Monday night and was surprised to find Giovanni’s pizza waiting for me – PSYCHED. I love their pizza. So thin and crispy!

Moe's black beans + pico de gallo

Needed a little somethin’ on the side.

Roasted brussell sprouts and whole wheat pasta

Tuesday my mom surprised me with those brussells and like the nerd I am, I was psyched. On the spaghetti we put the bruschetta-flavored oil dip mix that I got at the AppleFest. It was just as good as the sample I had there!

Meatloaf, pico, roasted brussells, and broccoli

Tonight I had an awesome dinner – the above (baby) plate, eaten with my (baby) fork, plus more meatloaf and some kalamata olive bread I got at the farmer’s market recently.

Yoplait plain greek yogurt and Uncle Sam strawberry cereal

Just finished off the above snack – dumped the yogurt out of the container into the cup and mixed with the cereal.
I’m headed to Group Step after work today – can’t wait!

What’d you have for dinner last night?

Quickie

First of all, I’d appreciate it if you would take a chance to check out my About page, which I updated yesterday. I added a little more about my relationship with food/working out there, and hope you like reading an updated version of my story!

Yesterday was the first rest day I’ve had in awhile where I didn’t feel antsy and cranky. Instead I felt, well, rested. I consider this an accomplishment! I enjoyed my day off and am ready to get back into it today. I plan to sweat it out later with some Zumba or Spin – we’ll see which!

I honestly don’t have much time for posting today, which is a bummer because I wanted to recap a fun and delicious night out I had on Monday. It will have to wait though, hence this post’s title (get your mind out of the gutter). For now, please enjoy (?) a couple of photos I’ve accumulated over the last few days. This is turning into my MO!

Sunday's dinner

Sunday nights seem to be protein parties in my house. My dad inevitably ends up grilling three different kinds of meat, and we also happened to have leftover black beans from Saturday night. I had a turkey burger patty, half of a turkey sausage, and a piece of grilled chicken, all dipped in spicy yellow mustard. This was VERY filling! I relieved my dad of his potato skin and filled it with Mariah’s Chow Chow Relish.

Potato skins = my taco shell substitutes. Unless I’m eating real tacos, that is. Then no substitute will do.

Monday’s breakfast obviously, judging by its size, left me eating lunch at 10:30am. Oh well! I can move meals around and eat at my desk at work, so it’s all good.

Banana and Dark Chocolate Dreams PB

Eh, that definitely looks kind of gross.

Finally, I wanted to give a shout-out to the Elvis Duran Show (any fans out there?) and suggest that you head on over to their web store and pick up a HELLO LADY shirt. ALL profits will be donated to Susan G. Komen, and there’s still enough time in October to promote breast cancer awareness (of course, this can be done anytime). If you listen to the show you know and probably love HELLO LADY, and if not, I recommend you get on IHeartRadio and listen to Elvis Duran’s show because it is HILARIOUS and accompanies me to work every single morning.

That’s all I’ve got for today, folks.

Do you listen to the Elvis Duran Show?

Do you ever eat a breakfast that’s too small and end up eating a ridiculously early lunch?

Workday Food Routines

Each night, I prep my lunch for the next day to bring to work. Even if it’s the day before a non-work-day, I still think about my plans for the following day and if any food prep is needed, I do it the night before. I find this is the best way to a) save money, b) save time in the morning, and c) keep healthy eats that I enjoy on hand.

I tend to eat almost the same thing each morning for breakfast, but the other day I was craving some of my Beltane Farm farmer’s market chive chevre, so I spread it on a crunchy toasted english muffin.

Like the Sesame Street plate? Childhood fave, will never get rid of it.

I added more chevre after I took this photo. Simply not enough.

Snack examples: TJ's veggie chips + chive cottage cheese, cucumbers + black bean dip.

When packing my lunch, I tend to pack a veggie-heavy salad for my main course, with some sort of protein incorporated. I also like to pack a couple fruit servings as snacks, as well as some starches. I tend to like to get my starches in during snacks and dinner, it’s just kinda my routine (I’m in favor of the evening carb-coma), so that’s why I like to keep my lunch in the form of a salad. A ginormous salad with about 10 ingredients – on a minimum-ingredient day.

A workday salad and side of fruit. Don't be fooled, there's meat in there.

It’s important for me to have plenty of snacks because I tend to eat many times throughout the day, a little bit at a time. Again, this is just what works for me and keeps my energy up constantly. I also work out after work on Monday/Wednesday/Friday, so eating snacks in the afternoon serves as pre-gym fuel.

A day of workday "loot".

Do you tend to pack your lunch, buy, or a mix of both? Do you have “standards”  you always pack? Any new snack or salad ingredient ideas for me?

Mealin’ and Movin’

I’m taking a cue from the lovely Janeetha today and blogging about some mealin’ and movin’ I’ve been doing over the last couple of days. My photos have tended to accumulate in my camera since I haven’t gotten on a good daily upload schedule, but I am getting better!

Let’s start with Monday’s dinner:

Baked potato skin with Mariah's Sweet n' Spicy Chow Chow Relish, swordfish with mango salsa, steamed broc.

Last Friday, my Whole Foods tweeted that swordfish steaks would be on sale all weekend for $9.99/lb. I texted my mom ASAP and she jumped on that deal, so that was dinner Friday night. Well she bought so much that we had tons of leftovers, so despite the fact that I felt like I was eating a gourmet meal Monday night, it was actually mostly leftovers! The swordfish was beyond perfect. I know you’re not supposed to eat more than a certain amount of it per week since it contains higher levels of mercury, but I rarely get to eat it so having swordfish every day Friday-Tuesday can’t do me too much harm – right?

And of course the Mariah’s Sweet n’ Spicy relish from the farmer’s market was awesome and has continued to be awesome.

I made the mistake of not eating breakfast before I left the house yesterday, and was starving by the time I got to work, starving, but not so starving that I was too impatient to snap a quick pic of Wednesday’s breakfast:

PB&Co Dark Chocolate Dreams and the most inappropriate looking banana I'd ever laid eyes on, seriously.

Lastly, moving on to Wednesday’s workout:

I left work a few minutes early so that I could get to one of my favorite classes, Interval Training. You can read more about it here. I felt challenged and energetic, thanks to the Thomas english muffin and Chipotle Laughing Cow wedge I had right before class,  and left with a strong, accomplished, albeit sweaty, feeling.

I know I'm lookin' pretty gross…

 

…but I was feelin' pretty damn good!

I have to brag for a second and show you my awesome sneakers. They seriously give me such a boost each time I lace them up.

Purchased from the Adidas Outlet. Wish I could've bought the lavender ones too!

And while I’m sharing workout gear, I have to say my gym bag gives me a bounce in my step too.

Vera Bradley small duffel.

Came home and rewarded myself with a feast: turkey burger, turkey sausage, sauteed onions, grilled asparagus, green beans, and 50,000 Ore Ida fries with spicy mustard. Mmmm the gym does good things to my appetite.

I woke up before my alarm this morning, which was awesome because I had time to get in a 30 minute Exercise TV Yoga Sculpt video on our cable’s free on-demand. It was my favorite kind of yoga: quick, but super challenging, so that I was out of breath and sweating by the end. Workout done, and I wasn’t even planning on having time to work out today, so that was a nice surprise!

Are you a swordfish fan? Do you have any cute gym gear that makes it more fun for you to work out?

Same Old Breakfast, Brand New Lasagna

Hola! I hope everyone had an awesome weekend. I know I did – if you follow me on Twitter, you already know I spent lots of time studying at Daybreak Coffee Roasters, did a free wine tasting at a liquor store, got some sweet samples at Whole Foods, had two delicious Groupon meals, and just got back from seeing “Moneyball“. The movie, as well as the rest of the nice weekend at home, was excellent. What’d you do?

I’m still getting used to the whole not-taking-phone pictures thing, but I did manage to snap a shot of my favorite breakfast and wanted to share. One may call it the same old breakfast, because I eat it about 75% of mornings (the other 25% are mornings I don’t have time to make it), but my love for it never ceases. This breakfast would be a toasted whole wheat english muffin with banana slices and peanut butter (whatever PB jar I have open at the time, currently PB&Co Cinnamon-Raisin Swirl), and the remaining banana on the side, with MORE peanut butter (of course).

Forgive the paper plate, I don't like to deal with dishes.

Another highlight of this past week was a brand new take on lasagna – the recipe given to me by the talented Stephanie aka the Cookin’ Fanatic. My mom was actually the one who made it, and she threw in some soy crumbles for added protein, but other than that she followed Stephanie’s recipe. And funny enough, my mom’s name is Stephanie!

Printed off and ready to go.

My mom and I both really LOVED the way the recipe turned out! This take on lasagna was so interesting. I’ve never considered using chickpeas as a source of protein in a lasagna, and they were excellent! The leftovers are in the fridge waiting for us to devour them later on.

The lasagna, totally ready to eat and in fact, already broken into.

I topped mine with some leftover roasted brussell sprouts (my favorite roasted veggie of all time) for some added bulk. And obviously went back for seconds of the lasagna after. The chickpeas mixed with the feta were my favorite part!

My bowl ready for devouring.

I’ve gotta run, my dad just finished grilling dinner and I am so ready to dive in. Turkey burgers, turkey sausage, black beans, and baked potatoes with salsa! I love my home dinners 🙂

Tried any good recipes lately?

Meet Caitlin

I’m a 28 year old full-time working girl living in Boston (previously lived in Connecticut). I’m passionate about food/drink, restaurants, self-love, fitness, and the ever-present search for balance. I write about that journey on this blog – I hope you enjoy!

Social

Design Credit

My header was originally designed by Mai Le and later tweaked by Chris Roggi to match this theme, which he helped me customize. He also moved me over to self-hosting! Both can be contacted through their sites for design & development work!

Disclaimer

I am not an RD and do not have any official training, certifications, or degrees in nutrition or fitness. This blog is a way to write about my life. Any views I express are mine alone, based on what works for me, and should never be taken as medical advice. Always talk to your doctor or a trained professional before starting a new diet or fitness plan. In addition, this blog and its content are in no way affiliated with Kate Gosselin, “Kate Plus 8”, TLC, or any related affiliates.

Privacy Policy

I allow third party companies to serve ads and/or collect certain anonymous information when you visit this blog. These companies may use non-personally identifiable information (e.g. click stream information, browser type, time and date, subject of advertisements clicked or scrolled over) during your visits to this and other Web sites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services likely to be of greater interest to you. These companies typically use a cookie or third party web beacon to collect this information. To learn more about this behavioral advertising practice visit the NAI at http://www.networkadvertising.org. To opt-out of this type of advertising, you can visit http://www.aboutads.info/choices.