It's like heaven on Earth!

Or, at least in the blogosphere!

I stumbled upon (what a great name for a website) Annie's Eats blog yesterday. I feel like I've been to that site before. I can't remember when, how and why, but yesterday was the day that I scrolled down the blog and gasped every...oh...half a second?

These are some things that Annie has featured recently that I l-o-v-e (in chronological posting order):

1. mango sorbet
2. taco and mac in the same sentence
3. hydrangeas!
4. champagne cocktails!
5. artichokes...I mean, are you kidding me? Is she reading my mind?
6. fresh fruit
7. lovely handwriting (and a "liquor store" section in a grocery list!)
8. Earth Day + cupcakes x an awesomely simple cupcake design = awesome
   
9. hummus
10. pita bread
11. baked good featuring oranges

The list could probably go on. I did click on "Next Page," but I figured that if I wanted to get any sleep last night, I should hold off on that.

And now that I've skimmed through the photos, I can take some time to read some text and get more than the gist of posts. Although, food + photography can kinda make one crazy...

The year of the coconut.

What is going on? Purely Decadent has gone Purely Crazy! It seems that grocery stores are replacing the regular Purely Decadent flavors with the coconut milk versions. It's hard to miss--I guess if you are sensitive to these perhaps premium products--all of Turtle Mountain's coconut craziness: the milk, the ice cream, the yogurt.

Ok, let's be honest. It's the "milk," the "ice cream" and the "yogurt." In any case, I am not amused.

My love affair with Purely Decadent came about in, oh, Summer 2006 or so when I discovered it's Cookie Avalanche flavor. It thought, jackpot! Over the years, new flavors rolled out and I tried a few until I stumbled upon a new flavor that knocked Cookie Avalanche out of the water.

That would be...aaaahhhh...Cookie Dough.

Now, after ditching most dairy a long time ago, not having milk or ice cream for at least ten years now, I really didn't miss it. My first taste of so-called ice cream was a delightful Tofutti Cutie and I loved it. When I noticed pints of the stuff from different brands, I was more open to the idea that I could eat ice cream again. Not just sorbet, but something I could make a sundae with!

Not that I actually make sundaes.

When the Food Lion near me started straight-up replacing the regular Purely Decadent Cookie Dough and other flavors with the coconut versions, I was taken aback. I was pretty sure that I was the person buying out the stock of the regular version but it always seemed to be restocked so I could continue to pay the extra 30 cents or so that the price rose about three times (grrr).

I mean, I did try the coconut version but it was too...coconut-y. I must say though, despite the somewhat overwhelming coconut flavor, the texture of the ice cream is amazing. I kept saying that it tasted like eating a cold, creamy pillow. That's the best I could think of.

I'm no poet.

Look, if it were just a coconut-flavor of the ice cream, I guess I wouldn't care. But I now assume that every other flavor of the coconut version is just the assigned flavor in a dense coconut-y fog.

Which is ok, if you don't mind that.

I live so far out from other grocery stores that it's basically not worth it to me to buy the regular Purely Decadent and drive home. That biz would melt.

Well, I could just save my money and stop dropping 4 bucks on something that I eat in a night or two. I would get an insulated bag but for some reason I have the perception that that is not an eco-friendly purchase. The world is complex.

The year of the coconut isn't all negative. I discovered coconut milk this year and it has made my cupcake baking pretty fun and interesting. I've got bags of shredded coconut and that's been a cute and tasty addition to things.

You think I can get locally farmed coconut in Greensboro?


Yea, sure.

I "Facebook" like you. How's about that?

I was looking up Panda Express since they are a new merchant on our discount card at work and I had to share: Panda Express' playing off of the new "Like" button on Facebook just cracked me up! Great way to get into the "Like" button!

"Do you 'like' me...?"

http://www.facebook.com/PandaExpress

'Twas quite good, yes.

Another issue I have in restaurants is the concern the server has about my uneaten portion of the meal. I assume that on the server's part, he/she is doing some kind of damage control, just asking if my meal was alright. I usually say "yes," then ask for a to-go box. Yes, it looks like I didn't eat even half of my meal, but it's all good! And, by the way, relative to the portion size...I mean, dang, what am I supposed to do?!

Well, what I am apparently supposed to do is clean my plate. You know that whole "clean your plate" thing? Taught to young children without the added warning that heartburn may be a side effect of the good practice of eating everything that is served to you.

Often noted as a factor in our national obesity, the ever growing portion control sizes of restaurant meals may have led to people feeling as stuffed as they do at Thanksgiving every time they went to Applebee's.

And you know what? I don't want to do that anymore.

It wasn't just about the servers. I mean, damn, it almost doesn't even matter if the server asks how my meal was because even if it wasn't the best, I would say it was fine (unless I suspected bacon, of course). For me, for a while, it was also about the company I was with. For a while, I was eating out a lot with my boyfriend's parents who would always pay the bill. I made the effort to choose something on the menu that I figured wouldn't be overwhelming, that I figured I could comfortably finish. I didn't want his parent's to plop down 10 or more bucks for me to just be picking at my plate.

I am totally not blaming portion sizes (aka, the restaurants themselves). You can do whatever you want with the food you (intend to) pay for. Even of the portion sizes were smaller, I have found that as an individual, I just can't eat a lot.

I sure don't look it, but I have a small appetite.

I had to realize this. After problems with heartburn, breathing, and knowing that I wasn't chewing effectively (which was even harder when I got braces), I decided that I needed to take a chill pill and start paying attention to my body. And responding to it.

I don't have to clear my plate. I don't have to eat until I feel 100% full. I am sure I have a pretty smart brain and my systems can signal me that enough is enough.

Again, I am totally not blaming portion sizes because I, myself, am often to blame. I do this thing where I indulge. I get a bit more than I think I want. I take a bit of this, walk on, then step back to take a bit more. I am terrible with this at buffets. First of all, I take a bit of everything which I know just ends up as a plate of vastly different flavors melding with each other; what's the point of that? Second, I don't trust my first instinct to stop adding to my plate. My survival mode is kicking in at the wrong time...

It's almost sad, but figuring out how much I want/need to eat at a given meal has made me focus more on breathing, too. Breathing. It seems like something we're all good at...or maybe not. Maybe it's something we just don't think about since we kinda don't have to. But as I try to pay more attention to all parts of my meal--looking at what I eat, chewing effectively, eating slower and stopping at the first feeling of satiation--I am more receptive of one of the basic rhythms of my body: breathing.

Yes, the meal was great. Excuse me while I step out for a breather.

CNN.com | Why portion control matters
Google "portion control"

Does the word "teenager" have a bad connotation?

The older I get, the older I sound when I talk about "kids these days"!

Teenspeak, genderspeak

Well, I'm a 20-something, and I know there are people who have their thoughts on that. Probably just about when I'm going to get married and have kids already. Ha!

Is the vegetarian option "just safer"?

Happy Earth Day!
(I love the Earth and I do what I can, but this is hilarious.)

Yesterday I was asked (for the third time this month) whether I was a vegetarian. Why? It seems that if you always seem to order a (or sometimes just the) vegetarian option, people make an assumption that you are not liking the bacon.

And I say: No, I'm a fake vegetarian.

Ok, probably not the best thing to say. I usually follow-up with some info to explain my selections though right now I'm thinking, why do I have to explain anything?

I usually follow up with:
"Well, I eat chicken, turkey and seafood sometimes, but not really."

I like to give the not-so holier-than-thou line that hopefully makes a stand:
"Oh, no, I order this because it tastes awesome."

Then I've said something awkward like:
"It's just safer."

You know, there are great dishes at restaurants (and made in homes) that are meatless or vegan.

I always choose the veggie option for work lunches or other catered events if possible and you know what? Especially at nice plated dinners, these veggie options are amazing in and of themselves and in comparison to the--what do they call it?--rubber chicken dinners. So much flavor that is often complex with...omg...vegetables and grains and nutrients and all that other cardboard-y stuff, right?

It doesn't always have to just be the vegetarian or vegan (if you're lucky) option. And often enough, that "option" doesn't have much thought put into it by the restaurant. Sad face.

I know allergies are a serious issue, but sometimes I get frustrated when I am embarrassed to ask about ingredients or feel awkward about removing feta cheese from my sandwich or making a meal out of sides because I don't want the restaurant staff to go out of their way to appease my preferences. Anyways, I assume that not meeting my preferences aren't that much of a liability to them.

Aside from sickness just because I don't usually eat meat and dairy (does dairy include eggs?), I won't get as ill as a person with allergies if I eat something that I say I "shouldn't" eat. Hopefully...

I guess I feel like it's a hassle for the restaurant because it's not just that I don't want to eat a certain food sometimes, it's a certain ingredient that I don't want. At fancier restaurants, I feel like I don't want to offend whoever created the complex dishes.

Sometimes I feel like the dishes (wraps, for example) are already mixed or prepared and so the staff will just pull out the bacon and so there would still be meat grease in there! Gross. Something like that.

A psychological allergy? Is that what I have? That doesn't count...

Out of context?

I find that a problem with the adverb "religiously" is that people don't even seem practice religion religiously anymore.

Or something like that.