The week is off to a cold start here in Charlotte. I admit that I am a total baby when it comes to cold weather and I do everything I can to stay warm. I bundle up in jackets and hoodies even when I’m indoors, constantly have a scarf around my neck, camp out in the hot yoga studio and drink as many warm liquids as possible (two coffees and a tea so far today!).
I also turn to what I consider to be “cold weather” foods to comfort and warm me…things like chili, soup, chicken and dumplings, etc. Brandon is of the mindset that chili is perfectly acceptable to eat year round but it just doesn’t appeal to me unless there is a definite chill in the air (and football on TV!).
Given that the low was in the 30s last night, I promised Brandon a chili night and we settled in with a fire and a movie.
These days, whenever I make chili I make a pot of traditional ground beef and beans for Brandon and then some spin on vegetarian chili for me. I use the same base of onions, peppers, jalepeno, garlic, spices, beans and tomatoes so it makes it easy. Last night I went with butternut squash as my big add in. My chili was a mixture of red kidney beans, black beans and butternut squash. It was so delicious! I topped it with shredded cheddar, avocado and sour cream.
I was feeling kind of over cornbread since I’ve baked it so much lately so I decided to make a batch of Cheesy Beer Quick Bread. This stuff is so easy and really delicious.
And of course I had to get my green in for the day so I started with a salad while I waited for the beer bread to finish baking.
I would like to publicly announce that I watched a movie with NO technology distractions last night. (Remember, I cannot sit through movies…). Brandon and I rented Water for Elephants from Red Box. I loved the book and thought the movie was good too!
Mid-movie dessert break was a scoop of vanilla ice cream and half of a leftover birthday cupcake. Yummy.
I slept horribly last night (this is another post for another time but I have suffered from severe night sweats since high school and they kept me up all night :() so BodyPump at 6 a.m. today was a bit of a struggle. My body felt pretty sluggish and kind of run down. After downing two cups of coffee and a protein bar, I was back in action and ready for my personal training clients.
I came home for lunch and was really craving chili leftovers but we’re saving them for dinner tonight since I am teaching until after 8. Plan B was a grilled cheese with provolone, spinach, thinly sliced apple and honey mustard. More apple slices, TJs wheat thins and cottage cheese on the side (I like to dip the crackers in the cottage cheese).
Post afternoon PT client snack was a cup of Trader Joe’s vanilla black tea and a slice of whole wheat raisin walnut bread with peanut butter and honey.
Next up…making playlists and writing class plans for two classes tonight. I’m teaching my normal Monday evening hot class + a complimentary class for Lululemon’s 24 Days of Complimentary Classes!
What are your favorite “cold weather” foods?
