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- How you doing, G? (loving whispers)
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Every other morning, I try to go to yoga.
So I like to make myself a smoothie.
The blender I find is also a great way to wake up my kids.
(giggles) I put one banana,
a cup of frozen fruit, usually I do a berry blend.
And then I also add some non-dairy yogurt.
I really love this creamy cashew yogurt and strawberry
from Trader Joe's.
The other thing I like to add in are just some chia seeds.
And these are just, you know
the Trader Joe's chia seeds that you can get.
So in they go, I do about a tea spoon.
Okay, this is looking good.
And then I top it off with a little bit of this.
Just this Almond Breeze,
unsweetened almond milk coconut blend.
About a cup, a cup and a half.
(blender whirs)
I like to pour it in these little Yeti thermoses.
Do you guys know these products?
They're amazing, these Yeti products.
I bought this because my daughters
were starting to take smoothies to school
and it has like a little sippy cup.
You know, that you can shut closed or open
and it keeps them really cold.
So I borrow theirs when they're not having smoothies.
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This is what I do before yoga.
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Then when I come back from yoga, I usually am pretty hungry.
I need a little bit of a snack
since I only have that smoothie.
So I go into the bread drawer
and pick some kind of grainy bread.
Right now, I'm really into this one.
It's a raisin, flourless bread.
That's really great because it's packed with nutrients.
And then I put a little bit of almond butter on top.
I like the crunchy almond butter.
I like to toast the bread first.
I do this in my oven.
I know it's a bad habit. (giggles)
I can't tell you how many times I've burnt the toast.
But see if you look, my counters are filled
with all kinds of stuff.
Like I love my air fryer, so I have to have that,
my blender, this.
It says bread but we really just put
like nuts and things in there.
Then my little basket,
all of my stuff that I need for mixing and whisking.
My kettle, paper towels.
And then over here, I've got my flour, my sugar
and my new Amazon Echo, which I'm kind of obsessed with.
That's a whole other conversation.
And my knives.
So I really don't know where I'd put the toaster.
Sorry, kids.
So I spread the almond butter on top of the raisin bread.
I do about one to two tablespoons
just for a hearty little snack.
Then I put some unsweetened coconut on top of that.
Then I'll slice half of an apple to go with it.
And then I'll usually munch on this
while I pop over to my desk,
working on something before I hop in the shower.
Right now, I'm just editing all these photos for a blog post
that I'm late putting up.
It's that Chimichurri sauce
I did a short on a few weeks back.
My office right now is actually in the living room.
And this is thanks to the pandemic.
I actually gave my office to one of my daughters
because they were sharing a room
and they really needed their own room.
It's a cozy little space,
George and I hang out here most of the day together
so it's nice to have the company.
I have my little bat up because it's fall.
This is a craft that my daughter made for me
when she was in preschool
and every fall, right when they go back to school
I bring him out because he's so cute.
And over the years he lost an eye.
And so we gave him a little patch
and now he's like a little pirate bat.
But the bat is out.
I kind of like the little ears, they're so sweet.
Anyway, he's here.
And I picked up some fresh flowers at the market today
because these were reminding me of our little flowers
that we just planted in France.
We'll see if they last as long.
And this piece I just found, my dad actually painted this.
Isn't this amazing?
It is a wooden screen that he painted in Connecticut
when we were younger.
It was in so many different rooms.
It was in like a hallway, I remember,
it was in a bedroom, I think.
My little daughter had it in her room
and then when we painted the rooms,
she sort of went with a different scheme
but I just could not have the heart
to put it back in the garage because I just love it so much.
I love the birds, I love the colors.
The dog woods remind me of Connecticut where I grew up.
And my dad came over the other day
and was actually pointing out that it was inscribed.
And I didn't even realize that.
And so it says "To Meg, Beth, and Joe,"
which are my siblings
and with the passing of my brother last March,
this just means a lot more to me.
I just love having that.
And then up at the top, it says "always a love for nature."
So I love that.
I definitely have taken that to heart over the years.
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Then at the start of the week
I'll prep some things for lunch.
I find it just makes eating better, so much easier
when things are prepped and ready to go.
So I'll make a big batch of quinoa.
I'll take four cups of water to two cups of quinoa,
simmer it for about 10 minutes until it's nice and fluffy.
And then I'll cool it down and pop it in a container.
So I finally broke down and bought these containers
because they're different colors.
And that way I wasn't losing the top.
So a lot of times you lose the top
and then you don't know which one fits which.
This, I know exactly which fits which
because they're the same color.
Sort of reminds me of preschool, but it works.
And then the other thing I like to prep
are some roasted sweet potatoes.
So I keep the skins on
just because not only is it easier to prep
but there's a ton of nutrients in those skins.
So just make sure you wash them well.
I cut them into small chunks and I make sure
that I make enough to last throughout the week.
So I usually do between five or six small sweet potatoes.
And then I put them in a big bowl,
drizzle them with some olive oil
and add some curry powder which is a wonderful warming spice
that pairs beautifully
against the sweetness of the sweet potato
and just makes them a little bit more interesting.
Normally I would also add some salt
but I have run out of salt.
Can you believe it?
I have even tried to rob it
out of all the little salt shakers, no dice.
So anyway, if you're doing this yourself
add a little bit of salt.
Then I pop them in the air fryer.
I find the air fryer is great for roasting vegetables.
And I actually have a video on my channel
all about roasting vegetables in the air fryer
and I will link to that below.
You're gonna set it for 400 degrees Fahrenheit
for about 10 minutes.
And if you don't have an air fryer
you also can do this in the oven.
Then I prep a head of cauliflower, cut into florets.
I drizzle with olive oil, add a little bit of oregano.
And then I put this in the air fryer
once the sweet potatoes are done.
Then once the sweet potatoes are done,
I transfer them to their little container
and then I put in the cauliflower.
I keep it at 400 degrees
and let it go for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Then I also whip up a quick and easy vinaigrette
to last throughout the week.
So I'll do about a tablespoon of Dijon mustard.
Oh, it's so nice to have Dijon mustard again
after the shortage in France this summer.
Then to that, I'll add about a tablespoon
of balsamic vinegar, about a half a teaspoon of honey,
And then I whisk that all up just to combine everything
and then slowly add in about six to seven tablespoons
of grape seed oil.
And then I cover it and pop it in the fridge.
And now I have all of my pre-made components
ready to go for the week.
Now I'm gonna show you what I do with all of this stuff.
When it is lunchtime, here's what I do.
I put in first a bit of green.
So I like to just get these pre-washed greens.
I get them from Trader Joe's.
I do some things like this that are in bags
that are pre-washed, ready to go,
that I can just dump in here.
And then with all of my handmade things
that I took the time to prep.
So that way it's like 50-50.
Then the other thing that comes out of a bag
is some of this stuff.
This is this broccoli slaw.
It's basically just shaved broccoli and carrot.
I like this stuff because it's all chopped and ready to go.
And it gives you just one more texture.
And then on top of that,
I'll add two big scoops of the quinoa
since this is the major protein in the salad.
Two scoops of those beautiful sweet potatoes.
And I think if something looks pretty and colorful,
I don't know, we're just like
a little bit more excited to eat it.
And so far, this has all been assembly.
I haven't had to slice or chop anything
except for the cucumber which I like to slice
right before I serve it.
That way, it doesn't release a lot of water
if it sits in your fridge for the week.
So I am going to take that half of an apple
that I had this morning.
And I'm just gonna cut just like a few little chunks.
Normally I would also have grapes,
but I don't have any grapes today.
And I also think with the balsamic vinaigrette
it pairs really well to have some kind of a fruit.
And then another thing I like to add,
this might sound strange,
but it's a little bit of this Trek mix.
Especially with some of these fall flavors,
I think a little handful of nuts is a good way to go.
I get them raw, I don't have anything salted or anything.
And then the only thing left to do
is add this delicious, honey balsamic vinaigrette on top.
It's so yummy. (giggles)
So if you don't like salads, trust me on this one.
I promise it is no boring salad.
It's like a cornucopia of flavors, textures, and vitamins.
Then after lunch,
I do like to have a little something sweet.
So I do a little, tiny mandarin.
And then my husband and I are obsessed
with these at the moment.
These little chocolate-covered almonds
and some dark chocolate-covered cherries.
And it's a really good combination with the orange.
So I usually do about two of these, three of these.
And that and this it's like
the perfect little after lunch snack.
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Then at four o'clock, I start to prep dinner.
And this time of year when my kids start school,
they come home so hungry off that bus.
So while I might eat something light for lunch,
I typically try to do something
a little bit more consistent for dinner.
I also think there's something really great
about coming home and just having that aroma
of a roasted chicken in the oven
with potatoes when you've had a long day
and you've sat on a bus for an hour.
They have an hour bus ride, can you believe it?
They will appreciate it.
Sometimes, I think the fun of being a mom
is sometimes choosing what types of memories
you choose to create.
I hope one day they grow up and remember
that comforting aroma of mom's roast chicken
when they walk through the door.
Then I always try to sneak in one more vegetable
and add some cut carrots to the mix, as well.
Okay, now I am just going to melt down this butter
because I am going to put the melted butter
under the skin of our chicken
which is going to help it become really flavorful
and really moist and delicious.
But you do wanna get this butter melted and then cooled
because you don't want to put hot butter
under your raw chicken
or it'll start to cook it in a weird way.
All right, now our vegetables are all ready,
they're just hanging out here.
I'm gonna add a little bit of salt to this butter.
Sometimes I use fresh herbs
but because we're running around today
I am gonna be using just a little bit of herbs de Provence,
just to put under the skin, there we go.
Cracked pepper.
And while I'm at it, I'm also gonna just add
a little bit more oil on top here
and some salt on the veggies.
There we go.
And I am going to put this delicious, seasoned butter
under the skin, there we go.
And just kind of massage it in there.
Don't be squeamish, it's not gonna hurt you.
And if anything, it's going to make it taste so delicious.
There we go, it's rubbing it in.
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And then I also just like to take the rest of the butter
put it on top of the chicken, give it a good rub down.
Like so.
One other thing I like to do before I put it in the oven
is just add a little bit of oil on top
'cause that will help the skin get nice and crispy.
All right, this baby is ready for the oven, let's do it.
All right, here's a little tip for you
if you have a convection oven.
Put it on convect roast.
I think that is the best setting for a chicken.
If you don't have convection, not a problem.
You can just take it to 375.
But for convection, I'm gonna do 350
'cause it runs just a little bit hotter.
Okay, so I'm gonna roast this
for about an hour 15, hour and a half.
And as that chicken roasts, all of the delicious juices
are gonna go down into the veggies to flavor the vegetables
and it's going to be delicious.
I'll show you what it looks like when it's done.
Okay, It looks like dinner is ready.
Look at that.
Chicken is beautifully roasted.
The potatoes are sizzling and the carrots and the fennel
has all cooked down.
I think it needs maybe another five or 10 minutes
but then dinner will be served, yum.
There you have it.
That's what I basically eat in a day
around this time of year.
I hope you enjoyed it,
I hope you got some new ideas for your own
and I'll see you back here next time.
Until then, bye.