DC Food & Fun

So sorry it's taken me so long to post! I'm the worst. Let's recap.

This past weekend, I ran the inaugural Nike Women's Half Marathon in Washington, DC with my family! We had such a good time with plenty of face-stuffing fun and a little sightseeing. Let's recap!

 We found this incredible tapas place with an even more incredible lunch deal: unlimited tapas for $25/person. 

I think they actually lost money on us because, like me, my family can eat.

And we were adding calories to prepare for our race anyway, so this was a win-win sitch for us.

We ate a lot. 

I can't recap it all, but there was some good eats in there. 

We went back for seconds.

 We visited the White House where we could actually see the Secret Service agents on the roof.

So cool and terrifying at the same time.

 I think the Lincoln Memorial might have been my favorite. 

He just seems like my kinda guy.

They had his speeches inscribed on the walls and it was truly incredible to read and imagine what a ground-breaking moment that must have been.

The weather was perfect, so we walked outside a lot and enjoyed it.

I was amazed to see what a green city DC is.

Although I love NYC, DC's greenery is really vast and spread out and it was just nice to relish in all the space.

Sound cray? If you live in NYC, you know what I mean.

For the race, my mom and I planned to run at a comfortable pace since my IT band was killing me (before we even started running) and it was her first race in a while. I finished a little slower than my last half, but I was happy with my results: 2:20. Last race, I finished in 2:16, but I'll try harder next time...

My mom and I stuck together the whole time. Two peas. She was a great coach -- I definitely had trouble running the last two miles and I couldn't have done it without her!

Upon my return, I got right back into my breakfast routine with a batch of oatmeal with a chopped plum mixed in...

...and, of course, a dollop of peanut butter atop.

I also made this banana/peanut butter recipe again and munched on a few for breakfast this morning.

If you haven't tried this incredibly easy and scrumptious recipe yet, you should get on it.

Other recent eats:

 Leftover mash.

Rice & beans + balsamic spinach quinoa salad + roasted chicken + salsa

Looks gross, tastes great.

Like almost anything that's good for you.

 We also attended a Yankees game where a few in our party decided to indulge in this monstrosity.

That would be a bucket of fries topped with sliders. 

 A bucket of fries calls for a shit ton of ketchup.

 Although I know how bad these are, I couldn't help but scarf half the bucket. 

Moderation at its finest.

Coming up next, I have a fabulous baked oatmeal recipe to share, so be on the lookout!

A preview...

It's sad that I have to write a whole separate post for these because of all the pictures I've taken. But, you'll thank me. These little nuggets are amazing and customizable! You'll love me after this -- if you don't already...

Why I'm a bad, bad girl

I just updated my blog font since a reader told me it was hard to read. The only problem is, now all my previous posts look a lil crazy. But, I'm a lazy lady and will not be going back to edit every post. So, sorry for not being sorry.

A few people have asked me why the title of my blog is "Bad Girl Eats." There are so many reasons, I decided to list them.

  

1. I know what I should eat to be optimally healthy, but I don't always do that.

2. I have to make a conscious effort to not insert sweets or dessert into every meal of the day. Some days I'm successful, some days I'm not.

  

3. I am like a bottomless pit when it comes to pancakes. It's a real problem. It's like I just never get full. I wish I was like that with spinach.

4. I really like baked goods. Like, really. I like making real food too, but I could eat brownies, cookies, bars, muffins, and breads all day.

I just.

Can't.

 Stop.

5. My mood and overall countenance peaks when I'm consuming either ice cream (usually dairy-free, but not always...)

...or chocolate.

On the rare occasion that I get both + peanut butter, I am in a STATE OF BLISS.

 6. I will 100% compromise my gluten-, dairy-, and sugar-free ways for the right dessert.

Bread, pasta, and mac 'n cheese have no effect on me.

But chocolate pecan pie? 

Gimme a spoon.

7. I'm fairly certain I couldn't go a day without a hefty serving of peanut or almond butter.

8. I'm trying to rid myself of the notion that small goodies that fit in the palm of my hand are calorie free.

While I know this to be totally untrue, if there are M&M's...

...or ginger chews in the vicinity, they're getting eaten in massive quantities.

My point in telling you this is to demonstrate that "bad" foods can be a part of a "good" diet.

Everyone has bad habits they want to work on, but that doesn't qualify them as part of the unhealthy persons club. Unless that habit is hurting you or others, your guilty pleasures can still be a part of a health-conscious, happy, sustainable lifestyle.

The point of this blog is to show all of you out in the blogosphere that there's no universal, nutritional line between what's "good" and what's "bad."

What is truly bad is being unhappy with your life or your self. 

So, here I am, admitting to the world that this healthy, no sugar, no gluten or dairy, anti-processed food blogger and foodie is, in fact, a "bad" girl with "bad" habits.

And it feels DAMN GOOD.

Bacon Bits & Macaroons

Happy Wednesday! I can't believe it's almost May. This NYC winter just does not want to move on. Thank heavens it's feeling like spring again today. Next week looks springy too, though, so maybe the schizophrenic weather patterns are behind us.

My eats so far this week have been significantly more boring than my eats from last weekend. But, that's life. I had to reign it in a little after filling my body with grease, cheese, and sugar.

Monday's dinner was a quick and tasty one. I can't remember where I got the recipe for this side (maybe Fitness? Blogger fail), but it's become one of our go-to sides.

Baked Lemony Garlic Chicken

2 chicken breasts

1 tbsp olive oil

2-3 tbsp lemon juice

zest of a lemon

chopped garlic (about 9 pieces or 2 tbsp)

1 tsp thyme

1.5 tsp oregano

s&p to taste

Mix ingredients in a bowl & pour over chickens in a baking dish. Bake them (uncovered) at 350 for about 30 minutes, check to make sure it's cooked through, and serve!

Sauteed Kale & Spinach w/ White Beans & Bacon

2-3 cups kale, washed & cut

1 cup spinach
1 can white beans, rinsed & drained
4 slices bacon

1. Cook bacon over medium heat and remove, leaving bacon fat in the pan
2. Cook kale in same pan for 3-5 minutes, then add spinach
3. Once spinach begins to wilt, add beans. Chop bacon and add it.
4. Stir until everything is thoroughly heated
5. Eat!

I'm actually having the leftovers for lunch today. The bacon & kale love affair never gets old.














 Breakfast yesterday was Smurfmeal 2.0. All I did was add a scoop of (no sugar added) jelly. It was much sweeter, which you'll never hear me complain about. It looked more tie-dyed than blue this time, though. So maybe Smurfmeal is no longer an appropriate name...

  I  got nibbly (per usual) around 11am, so I finished the rest of my Salted Caramel Macaroon from Danny Macaroons.

I actually contacted Danny while I was eating this because I realized I hadn't even asked if it was gluten free!

Sometimes I just assume and that can get me in trouble.

Good news, though! Most of Danny's macs are gluten free. Some of the special flavors (mainly the alcoholic bev ones) have gluten, but the ones I got are safe!

Lucky me.

I plan on eating another one of these bad boys shortly.

But the Salted Caramel was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.




 Lunch was leftover sushi. Which looks nasty. I'll spare you the photos.

Rest assured, though, it tasted just fine and I haven't gotten sick. So...we're good!

 Don't you love that ginger dressing that comes with sushi salads?! So glad my man didn't touch his salad from the other night.

More for me.

I bought the PaleOMG cookbook yesterday and figured a random Tuesday in April was the perfect day for bacon-wrapped filet mignon.

My man was beyond thrilled.

Make sure to check out Juli's cookbook! She's got some really great, easy recipes.

 

We couldn't find organic, grass-fed filets at our local grocery, so we just went with another cut of meat that the butcher at Dickson's suggested.

Also, we didn't wrap the bacon. I just cooked it separately in the pan then cooked the meat in the fat (OMGDELISH).

Once I took the grapes out of the oven, I threw in the chopped bacon and it added an incredible flavor.

Definitely doing this again. Thanks, Juli!


I just ate the chocolate almond macaroon. Swoon. Consumed too fast for a snapshot. You'll just have to order your own batch to see for yourself.

SMORGASBURG.

If you live in the tri-state area or are visiting at all this summer, make sure you experience Smorgasburg. Your taste buds will thank me. Your scale will not, however. Don't weigh yourself for a few days after. It could get ugly.

I'm not the only one who's jumping on the Smorgasburg train, obviously.

Our plan of attack was to do one loop and then, on our second pass, pick what we were going to eat. 

That didn't happen.

We made it almost halfway around the loop before we made our choices. I didn't get pictures of EVERYTHING because, honestly, we ate a lot of it too quickly.

 The boys started off with sliders.

 My boy topped his with some onion. I didn't partake in this, but it looked delightful.

 And messy.

 We followed this up with french fries. 

I. Love. French Fries.

Especially mega crispy ones like this. 

We got halfway through them before someone reminded me that I hadn't taken a picture yet.

 I followed those up with an "arepa." I put that in quotes because my understanding of an arepa is very different from what I got.

Arepas are typically grilled corn pockets stuffed with meat and/or cheese and they are AMAZING.

But, this was good too. It was a fried corn cake with chicken, arugula, cheese, salsa, and salsa verde on top.

I obviously had no qualms about stuffing it in my face.

While the boys got milkshakes, I got vegan ice cream from Alchemy Creamery.

I chose Dark Chocolate Chili with freshly toasted marshmallows atop.

Yeah, that guy's toasting my marshmallows.

Sexy.

The finished product.

This was spicy as shit, so I didn't finish the whole thing.

But I definitely made a commendable effort.

The mallows were bananas.

We waited in a very long line for a pulled pork slider.

It was worth it.

Our lovely friends shared a homemade s'more to round out the whole gluttonous experience.

The folks at S'more Bakery have an extensive menu (extensive considering we're talking about s'mores) of homemade s'mores.

The chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers are all homemade and DELISH.

 I didn't get one picture of the thing not being eaten because our friends just couldn't help themselves.

Dig in, friends. I would.

But, we didn't leave empty-handed! We took goodies home!

 You've never had kale chips like these. 

I took home the Raisin Coconut because I always choose the sweet, dessert option, but The Kale Factory has tons of options and they're all lovely.

 

 

 Right before we left, I made sure to make two important stops.

The 3 Nuts make some yummy nut butters that I was eager to try. They add a few too many ingredients for my liking, but I figured it would be nice for a treat.

My last stop of the day was at Danny Macaroons.

They have the coolest flavors so, I picked up a few to go (Stout, Guava, & Salted Caramel). No pics of those yet. I will definitely be sharing when I recover enough to eat them!

Smorgasburg reminds me of that huge room in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory where everything is edible. You really want to eat everything, but there's only so much stomach real estate. You know what I mean? I plan on Smorgasburging regularly this summer. You should pencil it in.