Killer tofu

Remember the time two weeks ago I promised you a super exciting recipe? Well here it is...a recipe I came up with three weeks ago. I promise it was delicious. And I promise only half of it involved the steamer aka my favorite new cooking apparatus.

Chili Lime Tofu

• 1 block firm tofu
• 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• Juice of one large lime
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tablespoon chili paste (or more depending on desired spice level
• A small handful of cilantro
• 3-4 teaspoons coconut oil

Cut the block of tofu into desired shape (I cut mine into triangles). Set aside.

In a bowl, combine the remaining ingredients minus the coconut oil.

Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat, and drizzle the coconut oil over the pan. Place as many tofu triangles over the pan as can fit. Allow the tofu to cook for a minute until slightly browned, and add the chili lime sauce.

Flip the tofu and keep on the pan until both sides are fully browned.

I served this along with some steamed eggplant and collards (seasoned with soy sauce and hoisin sauce) and quinoa.

I have to tell you about the crazy workout I decided to do today during my lunch break. If you feel like getting a short burst of cardio in, I would definitely recommend this. But I'm warning you...it is painful. In a good way of course.

And it made it so much better that I was in an almost empty gym. I was so close to quitting, but pushed through and boy did I feel sweaty after that. Too bad I had to go back to work after that...

Jelly arms

Monday Tuesday, we meet again.

Thankfully I got a decent amount of rest this weekend to make up for the severe lack of sleep that I endured last week. Not only that, but I had a weekend full of food, fun, and productivity, too!

Let's rewind back to last week's workouts. It wasn't as organized as the previous week had been, but even the spontaneity did not hinder me in completing my one exercise per day goal.

Sunday - rest day
Monday - HIIT
Tuesday - weights
Wednesday - 1 mile run/crazy tabata workout
Thursday - Zumba
Friday - weights "ladder" routine (see below)
Saturday - yoga

So the Friday evening weights routine that my friend Deepa and I did was pretty intense...especially for a Friday evening. But I would recommend it - it is short and sweet and will leave your arms feeling like jelly. And your body craving Thai food (or was that just us?).

There are 5 exercises:

1. Bent over row
2. Dead lift
3. Shoulder press
4. Squat
5. Bicep curl 

Do 7 reps of each exercise, and after the last one, take a 30 second break. Then do 6 reps of each, 5, 4, 3, and then go back up to 4, 5, 6, and lastly 7. During the 30 second rest, we sometimes did high knees to make it even more interesting :). Make sure to get some heavy weights for these exercises to make it count!

Let's move on and talk about how I am still loving my steamer. I've been mostly using it to cook vegetables but am thinking I should branch out into eggs and grains soon.

The best part about it is that you can just chop the vegetables and let them do their thing in the steamer while you prepare the rest of the meal, so it does save quite a bit of time. Last week, I steamed tomatoes and spinach, and added them to some cooked brown rice with herbed feta cheese and TJs cooked lentils.

It kept me full after lunch every day! The herbed feta made the dish, I think. This week I used my steamer to make some eggplant...and I must say it exceeded my expectations - recipe to come!

The most important meal of the day.

Today's topic is breakfast.

It may not seem like an exciting topic, but it is. Because I have an announcement. After approximately two years of eating the exact same breakfast every day, I have decided to make a change. Who would have thought I would outgrow overnight oats?!

It just happened one day two weeks ago, when all I wanted for breakfast was some toast and sunflower seed butter. With a little drizzle of honey.

This week I have stepped it up and am adding bananas instead of the honey. Also quite delicious.

So during this strange time of breakfast transition, I was thinking about other quick breakfast ideas that could work for busy weekdays.

Eggs? Probably too much effort to cook in the morning, but that did not stop me from eating them for dinner a few nights last week!

Cereal is always an option, but a little too high maintenance for an on-the-go meal. I have decided to do a bit more research on breakfast ideas...clearly I am a rookie at this!

In other news, last week, I wrote down my workout schedule, not only for organization purposes, but also to keep me on track.

And guess what? It worked like a charm. In fact, I only strayed from it slightly. No yoga on Wednesday, Friday was Zumba, and Saturday was yoga. Rest day came on Sunday instead. I strongly believe in making lists, it really helps me feel more accountable.

So, opinions please, friends! What is your breakfast item of choice? Especially for those who are on-the-go breakfasters like myself?