Goodbye, September!

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Achieve with Athena

Today is the last day of September. Can you believe how fast this month flew by?!

For any posts you may have missed over the past month, here’s my:

I worked from home today and made pumpkin oatmeal for breakfast. I used one of the Quaker Oatmeal instant oatmeal packets (maple brown sugar) I bought on Monday and added bananas, blueberries, dried cranberries, cinnamon, and a big scoop (okay, maybe two) of pumpkin. Love, love, love.

Lunch was a nice big salad with the last of my leftover salmon, tomatoes, mushrooms, red onion, and chickpeas over spinach leaves.

For a snack? A peach chobani.

Dinner tonight is still to be determined. Hoping to whip up something delicious with Tim and enjoy a quiet night in.

I’m excited for October! For one, I don’t have very many definite plans, which is very unlike me. Having all these free days on my calendar is thrilling. Other things I’m looking forward to, in no particular order:

Pumpkin flavored EVERYTHING!
Columbus Day Weekend getaway
Apple picking
Baking / cooking with said apples
Pumpkin Carving
Hosting a fall get together for my home friends
Halloween
All the different fall fairs and festivals happening in Boston

That’s all for this afternoon!

Question of the Day: What are you looking forward to in October?

Mimosas & Mad Libs

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Achieve with Athena

Hi everyone!

It’s a beautiful Friday morning out there. Enjoy it.

I’ve been getting some requests for a more detailed post on the food I ate / the bars and restaurants I went to while in DC last weekend.

You asked, so here you go!

First, a big thank you to Meghan for providing such a delicious breakfast spread for Friday and Saturday brunch!

Aren’t her placemats and flowers pretty? Now onto the restaurants.

DC Chophouse & Brewery (Friday Lunch)

I ordered my first fall beer of the season (the seasonal brew was Oktoberfest), had some amazing cornbread, and enjoyed a Chophouse Chicken Salad. Grilled chicken, avocado, bleu cheese, fire roasted corn and tomatoes tossed with mixed greens and citrus vinaigrette. I left off the bacon.

Martin’s Tavern (Friday Dinner)

This is a great place to grab food in Georgetown. Martin’s Tavern boasts:

“In this unique atmosphere, patrons naturally engage with each other in the spirit of the city; familiar neighborhood faces mix with the most powerful names in Washington and popular culture ensuring a genuine dialogue and friendship amongst all. It is this classic characteristic of Martin’s Tavern’s staff and patrons that brought monumental figures such as Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and even Richard Nixon to hold court in Martin’s booths. Our tradition of hospitality to has brought every sitting president from Harry Truman to George W. Bush to the tables of our tavern.”

Another fun fact: JFK proposed to Jackie here! In booth #3, dubbed “The Proposal Booth.” Unfortunately we didn’t get to sit there, but we saw it. I refrained from taking a picture of the random strangers that were lucky enough to get that table. That probably would have been weird.

I went with filet kabobs for dinner – skewered teriyaki-marinated tenderloin tips, yellow squash, zucchini, onions, peppers, mushrooms & tomatoes served over rice. It was a HUGE portion!

Old Glory BBQ (Saturday Lunch)

This place was really cool! Definitely a fun venue for grabbing drinks and just hanging out. We got to sit on their outdoor patio, which was nice since the weather was warm. I ordered my second Oktoberfest of the weekend and then turned my usual salad ordering into a BBQ feast. Check out this “Smokeshack Salad” – smoked pork, chicken & brisket, mixed greens, cucumbers, tomato, onions, cheddar cheese, corn chow chow & BBQ vinaigrette. How fantastic does this look?

Cheryl’s Cookies (Weekend Treat)

Meg’s mom sent her an assortment of Cheryl’s cookies recently, and well, Erin and I just happened to be there to reap the benefits. I’m telling you, these may look pretty ordinary but this Buttercream Frosted Cinnamon Pumpkin Cookie was to die for. I had one on Thursday night when we got there, and another one on Friday. So good.

PS7’s (Saturday Night Drinks)

Very cool lounge for cocktails! Meg, Erin, and I sat on these little couch like seats and enjoyed some very different drinks. Their lounge menu was so cool – everything at first looked so weird, almost like the ingredients in each beverage didn’t go together – but the drinks were good! I got two Gnome’s Waters: Hendrick‟s Gin + cucumber water + lemon lavender syrup = surprisingly cool and refreshing.

Ming’s Restaurant (Saturday Night Drinks / Late Dinner)

I can’t find a website for this place! Sorry, no hyperlink. After PS7’s, we wandered over to Chinatown for late night Chinese. I can’t even remember the last time I ordered Chinese food! We got teriyaki chicken sticks, chicken lo mein, and sesame beef to share. And fortune cookies. Also, a flaming volcano! You can’t even see the fire in this picture:

Busboys & Poets (Sunday Brunch)

Hence this post title, Sunday’s brunch was filled with:

Mimosas

Mad Libs

And yummy food, of course!

I got the egg wrap, which included tortilla wrapped scrambled eggs, peppers, onions and cheese with home fries or grits. Instead of the home fries or grits, I substituted a side fruit salad.

The overall vibe of this place was neat, kind of earthy crunchy. It had a cute little gift shop attached, prides itself on its natural options (think buckwheat pancakes instead of your typical buttermilk), and hosts several events every week that are free to the public – book signings, open mic nights, and more. Busboys & Poets’ mission statement: “Busboys and Poets is a community where racial and cultural connections are consciously uplifted…a place to take a deliberate pause and feed your mind, body and soul…a space for art, culture and politics to intentionally collide…we believe that by creating such a space we can inspire social change and begin to transform our community and the world.” Pretty neat if you ask me.

And of course:

Georgetown Cupake

But you guys already read all about those. 🙂

I added all these to my Bars & Restaurants page, which you all should check out if you haven’t already!

Question(s) of the Day: Have any of you also been to any of these places? If not, if you could try just one (cupcakes aside), which would it be?!

National Coffee Day

Posted on September 29, 2011 by Achieve with Athena

Did you guys know that today, Thursday 9/29, is National Coffee Day? There are some great coffee deals and coupons all over the place today! Make sure to check with your preferred java joint to see if they are offering anything special that you can take advantage of!

I do love coffee, but I’m not a huge coffee drinker. Meaning, I like to have one cup of coffee in the morning (sometimes tea, depending on my mood), but I am capable of getting through the day if I skip my morning brew. I also like to limit myself to one cup. I know there’s a lot of research out there nowadays about coffee having a lot of antioxidants, protecting against certain diseases (Parkinson’s, type 2 diabetes, liver cancer), and increasing metabolism, but I simply do not want to become a coffee addict and rely on it. No offense if that sounds like you! The one cup o’ joe a day just works well for me and fits in with my whole “everything in moderation” shpeel.

If you do happen to be a heavy caffeine drinker, you may want to think about whether this is causing problems such as restlessness, irritability, anxiety, or sleeplessness! Also, where a cup of coffee itself isn’t so bad for you, what about all the extra “stuff” that people like to add in there? Like cream and sugar. These can definitely add extra fat and calories to your diet!

My usual go to? Skim milk and 1 splenda packet. Usually iced french vanilla in the spring/summer and hot french vanilla in the fall/winter. I also love pumpkin flavored coffees in the fall (without the splenda, it’s sweet enough as is). And sometimes work has cool flavors like apple cider or cinnamon sticky bun. I actually usually just get my coffee free at work because spending a couple bucks on coffee each day really adds up. Think about it this way: If you buy one cappuccino at Starbucks at $2.55 for 5 days a week, for 52 weeks that comes to $663. There’s a lot you can do with an extra $663!

Anyways, Happy National Coffee Day. Go get that good coffee feeling!

Disclaimer: I’m feeling the need to state this specifically on this post, but just a reminder that I am not an expert, medical professional, registered dietitian, or anything of the like. I write about what works for me and what things I’ve read about that I find interesting. My coffee “facts” in this post were gathered from articles read in Women’s Health and from the MayoClinic website. If you ever have any questions about how something fits in with your own personal medical needs, please consult with your doctor first. Thanks!

Spill the [coffee] beans!