Red Velvet Ice Cream

You know when you get to the bottom of a cereal box and there are a bunch of crumbs instead of whole pieces?

Don’t you love those?!

I don’t know why, I just have a very strong affinity for those little crumbs. I love putting them on top of the whole cereal — delicious!

And it’s just not the same when you try to make cereal crumbs yourself. You gotta be patient and wait until you hit the bottom. And then it’s a glorious day!

Like today! And you know why today is a glorious day? Because you’re about to go make some red velvet ice cream! Hot diggity dang!!!

I’ve wanted to make this ice cream for a very long time- it’s been in my “to make” folder. I finally got around to doing it and BOY am I glad I did.

I basically love red velvet anything, so it’s no surprise that I am deeply infatuated with this ice cream.

A rich, cheesecake-like ice cream base swirls with pieces of red velvet cake and cream cheese frosting. Holy Moly. GO EAT NOW!

I’m not too found of the ice cream all by itself. I ate some right out of the machine and was very upset because it was too tangy for me. But after putting in the really sweet red velvet cake and its cream cheese frosting companion, the ice cream was awesome! I’m looking forward to trying it again with blueberry pie filling and graham cracker pie crust, and then chocolate cake! Hooray for homemade ice cream!

Red Velvet Ice Cream

recipe from Brown Eyed Baker

Serves 6 (1/2 cup servings)

Ingredients

• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• ½ cup half-and-half
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 2 cups of red velvet cake crumbs
• 1/2 can cream cheese frosting

Directions

Cut cream cheese into small pieces and place in a food processor or blender. Add the sour cream, half-and-half, sugar, and salt; purée until smooth. Chill mixture for at least 8 hours in the refrigerator.

When you’re ready to make the ice cream, churn it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

While the ice cream is churning, mix the frosting and cake crumbs in a large bowl until moistened to desired consistency.

Once the ice cream is finished churning, add it to the cake crumbs and quickly fold the red velvet cake crumbs into the ice cream.

Place in a container and put in the freezer for at least a few hours to allow the ice cream to harden.

*Notes*

• I used a store-bought mix and store-bought frosting. I normally make everything from scratch, but I really didn’t want to make THAT much of a mess, so I swallowed my pride and bought a boxed mix. They worked pretty well.
• Frosting is optional. If you’re not into it, you totally don’t have to use it. Just add the cake crumbs by themselves — it’ll still work out!
• I only chilled my cream cheese/half-and-half mixture for 4ish hours in the fridge. It turned out fabulous!

How to Eat Healthy at Panera

Who doesn’t love Panera?

I mean, a restaurant devoted solely to creating carb-loaded bread goodies, pastries and bagels? Sign me up.

It’s so enticing. All Panera Bread restaurants are very aesthetically pleasing. The layout is chic and modern, with a classic twist. Immediately upon walking in the door, the smell of freshly-made bread and broccoli cheese soup hits your nose. It’s irresistible.

And incredibly dangerous.

Although Panera boasts about offering healthy options to replace fast food, most of the items on the menu are just as bad, if not worse, than a Big Mac. Hidden sugar, fat, and carbs lurk in the shadows, ready to attack. Let me give you a few tips on how to eat healthy at this secretly-unhealthy restaurant!

Beware the salads!

The Strawberry Poppy seed Salad is actually one of the healthiest on the menu.

Many people think that anything with the word “salad” in the title is healthy. Sorry to burst your bubble, but this is certainly not true.

All of the tastiest Panera salads have high-fat dressings and high-cal add-ons to drive their nutrition score down to an F. The Chopped Steak and Blue Cheese salad, for example, has 790 calories and 54 grams of fat. WOAH! In fact, most Panera salads have at least 20 grams of fat (and many of more). That’s a lot in my book.

So, what do you do? Order a half salad, and ask for the dressing on the side. The salads at Panera tend to be pretty large portions, and I find that a half is just the perfect size. Besides, if I get a half salad, I can get a baguette with it! (Hey, I’m allowed to have empty carbs every now and then.)

Best (healthy) salad: Half fuji apple chicken salad (280 cal, 17g fat, 3.5g sat fat, 40 mg cholesterol, 420 mg sodium, 18g carb, 3g fiber, 11g sugar, 16g protein)

The Sandwiches Have Secrets!

Panera sandwiches all look and sound mouth-watering. I mean, turkey-artichoke panini? Delish! And, it sounds healthy, too, right? I mean, turkey is low-fat and artichokes are vegetables! Where can you go wrong?

Many places, it seems. This particular hot sandwich has 780 calories and 33 grams of fat. And, believe it or not, that’s not the worst one. The frontega chicken panini has 850 calories and 38 grams of fat. Did I get your attention, now?

Unfortunately, all of the paninis at Panera fall under the “un-healthy list”. :( But, what can you expect since most of them have 3 or 4 slices of cheese a piece! If you’re really feeling a sandwich, try a cold one.

Best (healthy) sandwich: Smoked Turkey Breast on Country (420 cal, 3g fat, .5 g sat fat, 30 mg cholesterol, 1350 mg sodium, 66g carbs, 3g fiber, 3g sugar, 33 g protein)

Best (healthy) half sandwich (if you want something more flavorful, but not a whole bunch of calories): Mediterranean Veggie on Tomato Basil (300 cal, 6g fat, 1.5g sat fat, 5mg cholesterol, 700 mg sodium, 48g carbs,  5g fiber,  5g sugar 11g protein)

Sinful Soups

Mmmmmm, soup. There’s nothing like walking into Panera on a cool winter day and getting a nice big bowl of baked potato soup to warm yourself up, right?

No. Not right. Panera’s delicious-looking baked potato soup has 350 calories and 21 grams of fat. And it won’t even fill you up. Have it in a bread bowl…and you’ve gone to the dark side.

If you’re looking for a nice big bowl of soup, try something with a little less fat, sodium, and a little more fiber.

Best (healthy) soup: Vegetarian Black Bean soup (240 cal, 2.5g fat, 0g sat fat, 0mg cholesterol, 1270mg sodium, 50g carbs, 9g fiber, 3g sugar, 12g protein)

Breakfast?

I’ve actually only been to Panera for breakfast once. And I’ll admit, I was very tempted to order a bagel, a souffle AND a hot chocolate. I mean, it all looks so delicious! But, let me tell you: the bagels range from 290 to 430 calories and are all filled with a lot of sugar, a lot of carbs and little to no fiber. Not to mention you’ll be hungry an hour later! And the spinach & bacon souffle has 570 calories and 37 grams of fat. Yikes! The breakfast sandwiches are all pretty bad (health-wise) as well, and I think are a little too small for the price and the calories. It’s a sad reality, but there aren’t really any healthy breakfast choices…but here’s the best.

Best (healthy) breakfast item: Steel Cut Oatmeal (320 cal, 14g fat, 1.5g sat fat, 0mg cholesterol, 160mg sodium, 45g carbs, 9g fiber, 16g sugar, 6g protein)

Oooooh, the pastries I see.

I don’t want to say this, but I have to.

There is no healthy pastry at Panera Bread.

GASP!

Yes, I’m sorry to burst your “I’m-not-living-in-reality-don’t-tell-me-the-truth” bubble, but not a single pastry at Panera will be deemed “healthy” in my book…or any nutritionist’s, for that matter. For instance, that chocolate  chipper cookie has 440 calories and 23 grams of fat. And that cinnamon-chip scone? 610 calories and 30 grams of fat.

The best choice to make when it comes to the sweets is not to make a choice. But, if you really really need to, go very light on your meal and order one of the “better” options.

Best “healthy” sweet: Mini chocolate chipper cookie (110 cal,  6g fat, 3.5g sat fat, 15mg cholesterol, 60mg sodium, 15g cabs, 1g fiber, 8g sugar, 1g protein)

Final Tips:

1. Order a half soup or half salad. The portions for both are pretty large (in my opinion) and you can save yourself some calories.

2. Watch your side choices! The apple is always the best choice, but a whole-grain baguette is okay. Please do not choose chips. Just please.

3. Ask for things taken off. Eliminating pecans and gorgonzola from the fuji-apple chicken, for example, can eradicate 170 calories and 16 grams of fat. Ask for dressing on the side and it’s even healthier.

4. Change your bread. If you order a cold sandwich, ask to have it with whole-grain bread. For instance, swapping the focaccia on the SIERRA TURKEY ON ASIAGO CHEESE FOCACCIA will save you 380 calories and 15 grams of fat. Unfortunately, the paninis are pre-made, so changing breads or taking off unhealthy items is not an option for these sandwiches.

5. Stay away from the sweets. As tempting as it may it, you must really try to stay away from all the pastries and goodies. They’re delicious, yes, but they’re packed with empty, unhealthy calories. If you must have one, try the mini-version.

If you wanna be super careful, visit the website before you go and use their nutrition calculator to be safe!

I got my nutrition info about Panera from here.

Mashed Potato Patties

You know what sucks?

Wind.

I’m sorry for all you nature-loving guys and gals out there, but I gotta be completely honest. Wind kinda sucks.

This morning, I went out to do some errands (which I REALLY did not want to do, by the way), and I couldn’t even make it to my car without the wind blowing my hair around. I almost tripped over a rock because I couldn’t see anything.

And then when I got to the store, the wind blew open my car door and almost pulled me out with it.

Come on, wind. Get it together!

But, aside from the nasty wind, I’ve had a pretty productive day. My refrigerator is bursting with leftovers from Easter, and I needed to do something with all of it. I contemplated throwing all the chicken, asparagus, mashed potatoes and gravy into a dish and calling it Easter casserole, but then my non-lazy side took over.

Thus, here are some mashed potato patties (or “mashed potato burgers” if you will). They are super easy to make and take almost not time at all. Plus, they’re incredibly delicious and a great way to get rid of leftovers!

 

Mashed Potato Patties

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 heaping cup prepared mashed potatoes
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• salt and pepper
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. Add salt and pepper based on how much you like — this will vary. If your mashed potatoes already have salt and pepper in them, it’s not necessary to add more (unless you want it, of course). Divide mix into fours and flatten/round into patties.

Heat olive oil in saute pan. Add patties and cook 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crispy on on the outside.

Serve on bun, over salad, plain with a nice sauce, as a side dish….the possibilities are endless!

 

You will soon learn of my obsession with strawberries.

I had mine over a bed of romaine with some leftover grilled chicken and some corn salsa (which I’m addicted to, no biggie). And some strawberries, of course!

How to Eat Healthy at a Hotel Breakfast Buffet

Hello all!

Happy Easter! It’s such a lovely day, yes? The weather in my area has been incredibly bipolar lately. One week it’ll be 80 degrees, and then it’ll slide down to the 40s the next week. It’s terrible — I never know what to wear!

Luckily the weather was beautiful today. I just came back from a walk, actually. I could’ve stayed outside all day! Glorious.

I’ve been on vacation these past couple of days, and haven’t eaten my healthiest. I try to stick to my program even when I travel, but sometimes you just need to treat yourself. I’ve learned the hard way that cutting out or eliminating certain foods entirely does not do good things for a diet. It’s okay to eat those “bad” foods every once in a while!

But, as I was scoping out the complimentary breakfast at a hotel one morning, I thought I should write a post on this! With all the seemingly “healthy” foods offered at hotel breakfast buffets, it can sometimes be hard to tell what’s good and what’s bad. Fear not! I have many tips :)

1. Stake Out the Protein

If you’re on vacation, chances are you’re not going to eat that well. Thus, it’s important to get the nutrients and protein you need in the morning so that you’re not lagging the rest of the day! Most hotel buffets will have scrambled eggs or small ham steaks. A small scoop of eggs or a small ham steak is great; try to avoid sausage and bacon.

Additionally, you could grab some peanut butter (most hotels have small packets) or some skim milk.

2. Stay Away from Scary Carbs

Breakfast buffets usually have a nice shiny glass case full of muffins, croissants, bagels and other tasty treats. As tempting as they may be, avoid them at all costs! (Yes, that means the giant belgian waffles too). The empty calories will provide nothing but sugar and won’t fill you up at all!

Sometimes hotels will have whole wheat bread or whole wheat english muffins. If you see those, it’s okay to have one with some peanut butter or a small smearing of jam. Just stay away from the white bread.

3. Find the Fruit

Look for fresh fruit to get in your healthy sugar and vitamins for the day. Melon is a popular item at hotels, but it’s one of the highest sugar fruits with not a whole lot of fiber, so look for apples or grapes. Bananas are okay, too.

4. To Cereal or Not

I typically try too stay away from cereal — most of it is just processed sugar and carbohydrates dried to crunchy pellets. And most of the cereals in hotels are fruit loops, apple jacks and other sugar-loaded brands. If you must, pick a low-sugar, high-fiber variety, like frosted mini wheats or grape nuts. Add some skim milk and fruit.

Even better than whole grain cereal is oatmeal, which his usually available. This is less sugar-loaded and more fiber-filled.

5. Drinks

Juices are generally not the best choices for a diet (or any kind of healthy lifestyle). Though some are great for cleansing and providing nutrients, juice is just sugar from fruit, without all the fiber and food-filling effect. So, stay away from orange juice and apple juice (varieties at hotels oftentimes have added sugars anyway!). Grab a glass of skim milk or water. Coffee and tea are also okay.

I hope this helps for the next time you’re out of town! Once again, Happy Easter!

My meals today!

Don’t have time for a legitimate blogpost at the moment — I need to finish packing! I’m going on a quick three-day vacation.

So, here are a few of the meals I ate today:

Breakfast included grilled polenta (I made a big batch a couple days ago), 2 egg whites, corn salsa and white cheddar cheese. Mmm!

Lunch was leftover pasta (with some cheese added to the top), broccoli, snap peas, whole grain pita chips and Sabra garden herb hummus. I love that stuff!

Dinner was grilled chicken with roasted squash and zucchini and some toasted jalapeno-cheddar bread. And afterwards, I headed over to Zinga to grab some frozen yogurt. It was my first time going — it’s pretty tasty!

As for exercise, I went on an hour-long bike ride this morning and feel pretty good!

I’ll see you guys in a couple of days :)

A greeting & some quick facts

Hello, everyone! (or the 1 person reading this…and that person is my cat).

Welcome to walkruneat — a blog devoted to healthy living, healthy eating, and all things related to life!

I’ll post recipes (breakfasts, lunches, dinners, cookies, cakes, etc. YOU GET THE POINT), workout routines, tips and tricks, and anything else that crosses my mind!

Here are a couple quick facts about myself:

• I’m a senior in high school and plan to study neuroscience and molecular biology at university next year.
• I love acting, singing, playing the piano and writing music
• I bake at least once a day (no lie. seriously. every day.)
• My favorite type of exercise is cycling!
• I have four kitties and a puppy (she’s actually 11 — but she’s still my puppy!)

And, a couple disclaimers about the site:

• Recipes are my own unless stated otherwise
• This is NOT a “this is what I eat” blog. Recipes/meals I post on here are not the only things I eat.
• I will possibly move to a site with an actual domain name in the future

Look for my very first food post, coming up soon!