Crazy busy at work this week (I'm testing 160 samples of something in the lab!) so I didn't check Vine too often, but that serum from The Whoo is more than enough for me to be thrilled. 🥰 I used the previous version of this Bichup serum last year. I like a lot of the serums and essences from The Whoo. It was waiting in my RFY when I woke up that day.
And I'm also excited about cough drops, lol.
Aldi opened across the street from me a few months ago and I've been slowly trying new things. I often get their microwave brown rice or Spanish rice, but this one is new to me and I like it! Long grain rice and wild rice, has sort of an "herb flavor Stove Top Stuffing" vibe.
I also like the Aldi microwavable stuffed chicken. It's not beautiful but it's decent comfort food, and I can literally have warm dinner in 5 minutes with these (and leftovers for lunch). I ate the whole packet of wild rice blend, and it was very satisfying. 😄 Brown rice with the rest of the chicken for tomorrow.
That wild rice blend would probably be really nice with roasted or sauteed veggies mixed in, like mushrooms or green cabbage. Will definitely buy it again.
Here's what last week looked like for me. My RFY tends to go in waves; sometimes I go 1-2 weeks with no orders. I had two great days, and then mostly nonsense since then.
Found a few fun little things though: Squeegee. Silly chemistry sign for my desk. But also SNACKS! I never get snacks. I think 1 other time about two years ago, I scored a box of fancy crackers.
Today in my RFY there is a case of moving boxes for bottles of wine. Yesterday, a roll of PVC tree trunk sleeves to prevent iguanas from climbing your trees. 😄 It's funny, but falling iguanas are actually a thing here in Florida during winter b/c they freeze and can fall on your head (they're fine once they thaw). 🦎
I usually keep a few of these snack packs from Aldi in the fridge for when I don't have any other lunch planned to take to work. The pistachios and crackers were already in my desk drawer, so all I did was toss the snack pack in my lunch bag with an apple and a packet of mustard.
The taralli crackers are my favorite. Ingredients: whole wheat flour, white wine, olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, and salt. I get them at Publix.
It's not beautiful but it will do for tonight. White corn tortilla chips, Trader Joe's fat free refried beans (canned), mexi-blend cheese, and fresh salsa. Five minutes.
I'm not a fan of canned refried beans usually, but the TJ's version has a light, fluffy texture and it's nothing but beans, water, and salt. Great base to season the way you like them. I added a bit more salt and few grinds of black pepper, a shake of onion and garlic powders, and stirred in a drizzle of olive oil and taco sauce. Heated the beans for a couple minutes, then added some to the chips and topped with cheese. Back in the microwave for another minute and served with salsa. Extra beans into the fridge for later.
Man, y'all weren't kidding about this Horchata Ice Cream...brb imma go buy forty more cartons. RIDICULOUSLY good.
I've purchased the 3 basic dairy items before, plus the refried beans, and croissants (which are destined to become breakfast sandwiches this weekend with Canadian bacon, smoked gouda, and an over easy egg), but everything else here is new to me.
The crackers are very similar to Almond Thins, but less salty. They're okay but not a repurchase.
Greek lentil soup is my lowest spoons recipe that is still an actual recipe. It's cheap to make and freezes great so I'll have a bunch frozen for lunches.
Ingredients: 1 lb brown lentils, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, bay leaves, s&p, tomato paste, EVOO. And a drizzle of red wine vinegar to serve.
I usually use a tub of mirepoix (diced onion/celery/carrots, Sprouts or Trader Joes, $3-4) plus another whole chopped onion, but I had 2 tubs of mirepoix in the freezer so I did ZERO chopping and put both straight into the pot (still frozen). Peeled ZERO garlic cloves because I had chopped garlic in a bag (it's more like fresh, not "jarlic").
Saute the veggies in a few tablespoons of EVOO while getting out the other ingredients. Add everything else and a little more EVOO, plus a few liters of water that I boiled in my electric kettle so I didn't have to wait for the water to heat in the pot. Took maybe 7-8 minutes for everything.
Simmer 45 minutes. S&P to taste. Drizzle EVOO and RWV to serve.
Fast freezer dinner (5-10 minutes): TJ's veggie fried rice ($2.99) and a few frozen raw Argentinian red shrimp. Fried rice just goes into a skillet for 5 minutes with a bit of oil. I added a few splashes of tamari, dab of oyster sauce and sesame oil, a couple shakes of ground ginger, ground garlic, and white pepper.
This is my first time buying the fried rice, and I'd buy it again! It would be good on its own, but you could also add tofu, leftover chicken, cashews, an egg, extra veggies, or whatever. I had planned to add eggs -- forgot to buy them (lol) so I pushed the rice to the side and sauteed some shrimp (quick-thawed in water, pat dry, saute 3 minutes) with a drizzle of sesame oil and a splash of tamari.
My new SK-II essence has arrived! The plan is to try it in place of Sunday Riley Pink Drink (my HG) for a few weeks straight. I just want another essence option in my routine that my skin loves like Pink Drink. I've tried many, but nothing else keeps my skin so balanced and hydrated all day.
🌞 AM Routine
I'm not planning to use it for PM because I use tret with nothing but a dab of barrier cream on most nights. I do have one "rest" night though that's just for pampering and I switch it up. I have an SK-II sheet mask from u/tashinator0503 , and the essence came in a kit with a 0.5oz of the Skinpower Re-New Cream, so I may do an SK-II night and use all three together.
Any other thoughts about trying out the SK-II essence? Other places in your routine that you like to use it?
It's giving "strawberries and cream" but not crazy sweet like the TJ's Strawberry Mini Sheet Cake. 🍓 The light sweetness and strawberry flavor of the muffin comes through and the mascarpone makes it decadent.
I love fresh fruit, especially fresh cherries. 🍒 My cherry and olive pitter (OXO Good Grips) is one of my favorite kitchen gadgets! I pitted these cherries in about 60 seconds. Scoop of cottage cheese. Peeled and sliced a banana, rinsed a handful of blueberries and chucked them in, cut some pre-sliced mango (Aldi) into bite sized pieces. All while the coffee was brewing, so about 4-5 minutes total to make breakfast this morning.
I got my cherry pitter from Amazon but you can get them from Kohl's, Williams Sonoma, etc. If you scroll right there's a stock image so you can see how it works. SO FAST. Works great for olives too.
10 minute recipe that made breakfast for me all week. 4 ingredients plus seasonings. Pretty simple (mostly scooping and stirring). I was searching for high protein breakfast ideas for my bestie and saw "egg muffins" made with cottage cheese, and I already had the ingredients. I was concerned that raw spinach would make them watery or runny, but they turned out perfectly. I think they'd be good with any combination of add-ins. Broccoli and white cheddar is on my list to try next time.
Cottage Cheese Egg Muffins
Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease muffin tin (I used silicone muffin trays, a food service glove, and dab of butter). Mash cottage cheese in a bowl with a fork. Add all of the seasonings and mix. Use the fork to beat the eggs in a separate bowl, then combine with the cottage cheese. Add the feta and spinach.
Fill muffin cups about ¾ full. This recipe is perfect for 12 standard size egg muffins. Bake 18-20 minutes, until muffins look set and center just springs back. Do not overbake! Cool a few minutes, then serve or store in the fridge in a sealed container. Microwave 45 seconds to 1 minute to reheat. I also put a few in the freezer to see how they do after thawing -- no verdict on that yet.
Y'all got me with your talk of banana pudding ice cream and delicious eggplant. Just a quick little haul today:
The crackers, ice creams, and all three canned items are new to me. TJ's unsweetened dried mango is a long time favorite. Organic Guava Fruit Spread is a brand new favorite (and there are already 4 jars in my pantry).
I do a lot of traditional Greek cooking but don't always have time, so I have high hopes for the eggplant and gigantes beans!
The new Aldi across the street from my house continues to impress me with its products and prices! Bruch was a bit monochromatic, but still delicious.
First time buying the Potato Circles...they are like mini-hash browns (not flat tater tots) so they worked well as a breakfast food. First time with the Sweet Cream coffee creamer too. It's pretty good, though I preferred the Caramel Macchiato creamer so I'll go back to that next time.
Over easy eggs, air fried Season's Choice Crispy Potato Circles ($3.49), stir fried cabbage (such an underrated veggie) with Applewood Uncured Canadian Bacon ($2.79), air fried sourdough toast, Little Salad Bar Mango Slices ($5.29), and Italian dark roast coffee with Barissimo Delightfully Pure Sweet Cream Creamer ($3.99).
Eggs were fried in extra virgin olive oil with s&p. Cabbage sautéed with olive oil, s&p, garlic and onion powders, and chopped Canadian bacon. Potato circles into the air fryer (no additional oil) on 400° for 11 minutes (very crispy!).
I'm slowly exploring the offerings at the new Aldi that opened across the street from my house. This is my favorite find of the week: Simply Nature Organic Pinto Beans ($0.99) and Earthly Grains Spanish Style Ready to Serve Rice ($1.19).
Tear open the corner of the rice and zap the whole bag for 90 seconds. Meanwhile I opened the can, rinsed the pinto beans, added those to the rice and another 30 seconds in the microwave. Topped it with Mexi blend cheese, taco sauce, and a spoonful of plain Greek style yogurt from the fridge. The other half is going with me for lunch tomorrow. If you have wraps/tortillas, this would make several good burritos. Or if you have an extra spoon, serve with tortilla chips, lettuce, black olives, green onions, and chopped tomatoes in a taco salad. I will definitely buy these items again!
I've also gotten two boxes of sliced fresh mango at Aldi this week. Delicious!
Almost all of the fruits and veggies at brunch today were from Aldi (other than the broccolini), as well as the Applewood Farms Uncured Canadian Bacon and the Barissimo Caramel Macchiato Coffee Creamer. First time buying this Canadian bacon, which is thick cut and cheaper than I've seen at other places ($2.79). First time with this creamer too -- it's a nice switch from my usual half and half/maple syrup (and $2.75 for a 32oz bottle). A big, leisurely brunch that kept me going all day!
🍳🍞☕🥔🥦🥩🥭🍊🍅
Everything pictured: Over easy eggs, sourdough toast, Italian dark roast coffee, red potato (s&p, EVOO, 10 min in the air fryer), Canadian bacon (4-5 minutes in the air fryer), roasted broccolini (misted with EVOO, 10 minutes in the oven at 400°), Little Salad Bar Mango Slices (loved these!), fresh mandarin oranges, and fresh tomatoes.
Ridiculously indulgent: TJ's Whole Grain Waffles, Organic Guava Fruit Spread, dab of butter, cream cheese, cinnamon, raw pecans, and a drizzle of real maple syrup.
Frozen waffles into the air fryer for 6 minutes to toast. It's like dessert, but whole grains so I think that means I can count it as health food. 🙃 Just discovered the Guava spread last week so I'm still exploring ways to use it.
Is it beautiful? Definitely not. But it's giving MAJOR comfort food vibes! Tastes exactly like cheesy chicken broccoli rice casserole from childhood. 🧀🍗🥦🍚 The chicken is fully cooked so you cut open the pouch, slice it, and microwave it for a couple minutes. Rice is also fully cooked -- tear at the corner and zap it 90 seconds. I mixed them at that point and back into the microwave for another minute or so. I should have added some additional frozen broccoli from the freezer, but I'll remember for next time.
It's a large portion of chicken: this makes 2 dinners or 3 lunches for me. Chicken is under $7 and the rice was under $2.
There's a brand new Aldi across the street from me so I've been "learning" how to shop there this week. I found these packages of pre-skewered marinated chicken today. There are several different flavors of seasoning; this is the "sweet chili lime" flavor. Each skewer is sealed by itself so you can cut them apart and freeze individually. Chicken got 7 minutes in the air fryer at 400°. Broccolini got a spritz of EVOO and went on an 8" round baking sheet with a square of foil, 7 minutes at 400° in the oven while the chicken was cooking. Brown rice pouch also from Aldi: tear corner and into the microwave for 2 minutes (this is about half of the rice).
I did nothing here but open packages and push buttons, and still ended up with this beautiful balanced meal of whole grains, lean protein, and a green cruciferous veggie. 🍗🥦🍚