Check out my progress on A Health Nut's Dream Come True
This past weekend, my parents and I traveled to Boston. While my parents got to visit some family in the area and get in some museum time, I had the privilege of fulfilling a health nut’s dream–I attended the Healthy Living Summit. I enjoyed every bit of this weekend; not only did I have the opportunity to learn some new blogging tips and gain information about leading a green lifestyle, but I also met so many like-minded healthy, intelligent ladies. I was a bit of a slacker on the photography front, but I am sure you have plenty of other blogs to check out to fill in the gaps of my healthy living adventure.
Thursday
I had to fuel up well before my busy travel day.
peach-mango smoothie with vanilla spice hemp, soymilk, & Vanilla Almond granola
Friday
I’m boring, I know, but dry snack mix and whole fruit is quite an airplane-friendly combination.
GoLean, MultiGrain Cheerios, TJ's High Fiber Medley, almonds, & currants; banana
On the our (Delta) flight, we discovered that passengers can now buy healthful snacks as an alternative to the lame pretzels and peanuts they provide for free. My dad was kind enough to indulge me in buying this $5 assortment. My parents gobbled up most of it throughout the weekend, but I snagged a few of the dried apricots and pita chips.
supplemental snacks...
pita chips with Wild Garden Hummus; Toblerone; mini Clif (in my fave chocolate chip!); dried apricots; almonds
for non-edible entertainment
Once we arrived at our hotel, I was ready to gnaw my arm like a corn on the cob. So we found a nearby Italian cafe called Viga, where I ordered the Vegetariano Sandwich. I don’t have white bread very often, but I must admit that a French baguette is a lovely indulgence when it’s fresh.
Vegetariano Sandwich (no mayo)
spinach, sprouts, grilled eggplant, & roasted red peppers
cranberry lime seltzer
slightly bruised but tasty apple
After a quick run on the treadmill, I dolled myself up for the cocktail party. Then I admired the view of Boston on the patio…
Off to the cocktail party I went, where I was greeted by a packed room full of chatting ladies. I met some familiar faces as well as several lovely ladies whose blogs I had yet to discover. The spread was both eye-catching and delicious. I snagged some ratatouille, washed down with my beloved Riesling.
cocktail party spread
Afterward, I headed to dinner with my parents to a place called Via Matta. This fabulous find specializes in small plates, and I was thoroughly impressed by each one that I sampled (especially the shockingly flavorful vegetable soup!). At the beginning of the meal, I let our waiter know of my dietary preferences, and he was nothing but accommodating for the entire evening. A special thanks to Bill for providing a truly memorable and satisfying dining experience. (I apologize for committing the food blogger sin of using a flash–we ate outside, so the artificial light was quite necessary midway into the meal).
Veggie Bean Soup...yes, I ate around the peas;)
asparagus with roasted beets
broccoli rabe prepared with hot chili flakes
cantaloupe sorbet
Dad's Panna Cotta with berries & pistachios
Saturday
As promised, there was a vast display of MixMyGranola and Stonyfield yogurt waiting for the Summit attendees. There were several varieties of granola to choose from, but I finally settled on the Goji-infused mix. It paired superbly with Key Lime yogurt–my fave Stonyfield flavor!
Key Lime yogurt with Goji granola; fruit; lemon tea
does anyone else notice the different hats that the Stonyfield cows wear?
Then it was off to the conference room…(I sat next to everyone’s favorite Rose).
waiting with anticipation for the Summit to begin!
Just like freshman orientation...Icebreaker Bingo
this space had my name all over it (I brought a Tropical Fruit Larabar, just in case)
bake sale line-up
Agave Brownies that looked especially tasty
shot inside the SWAG bag--Broccoli Hut approved
then Zesty showed up and imparted his bloggie wisdom
Lunch-time rolled around, and I was delighted to find more bread:) There were also some crazy delicious pickle spears involved.
grilled veggie sandwich (on fab bread); salad with pine nuts; water melon
The afternoon agenda included a talk from an organic dairy farmer as well as a presentation about green beauty products. We were all provided with POM as a snack, although I saved mine for later. I prefer to use POM as an ingredient (as I did here and here).
snack-time POM, accompanied by a recipe card for a delicious sounding salad
Although I had hoped to meet up with my Boston relatives yesterday evening, the timing just didn’t work out…so I headed to Au Bon Pain. Remember how much I raved about the Corner Bakery last weekend in Chicago? Well, I feel pretty much the same way about Au Bon Pain. Did I mention that I like bread? Anyway, I so do not recommend this flavor of Sobe Life Water. I wanted a flavored beverage, but not juice or soda…this was not a good alternative. Very artificial and overall just narsty.
salad with chickpeas & black beans, cuke, & tomato; more fab bread; Sobe Life Water; apple & Barney Butter
quite convenient for travel, no?
highlight of my meal
Sunday
Our flight back to Birmingham was early this morning, so I was unable to participate in the fun run with the rest of the Summit attendees. However, I did manage to squeeze in another Au Bon Pain fix:)
oatmeal with dried cranberries & almonds; banana; chamomile tea
Once home, I prepared an old fave–Mexican Dip with tofu sour cream. Nom, nom.
Mexican Layer Dip; baked Tostito Scoops; melon
from bottom to top: black beans, tomatoes, tofu sour cream, & mashed avocado
By the end of the day, I was getting pooped, so dinner was inspired by the freezer. Sunshine falafel rocks my socks.
Sunshine falafel in a pita with homemade tzatziki; salad; yogurt with grapes
Whew! Yet another monster re-cap post. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, and I just want to say that I love being a part of this food-lovin’ community. Thanks for reading:)
Filed under: Meals
Caroline Yoder, dietitian-to-be and all-around foodie.
I’m SO glad that you had a blast at the summit!!
Hehe love the “non-edible entertainment”
And that photo of you in the purple top is stunning!!
Can’t wait to properly catch up.
Looks like you had an absolute blast at the summit! How cool that you got the best of both worlds, going out to eat with your parents as well?! Aces.
All the foods look delish but it has to be said that your homemade wrap is a winner!
What a fun time! I want a swag bag! lol
That veggie sandwich sounds delicious! I need to put eggplant in my sandwiches more often!
So glad you had a blast!!!
oh i am so jealous of you! looks like you had a great time. that panna cotta is beautiful. thanks for the fun recap!
SO jealous you got to go to the HLS! It looks like you had a blast! Your veggie sandwich looks really good too
the healthy summit look absolutely incredible and from what i have read, it was an all around amazing experience! I couldnt be more thrilled that you were able to enjoy it
Yet another reason why I wish I lived in the US: I’d get to meet wonderful, beautiful bloggers such as yourself…and I’d be able to eat Larabars forever ; ) So happy you had an amazing experience and were able to find such healthy and tasty meals. You’re incredibly photogenic and look simply stunning in that purple top.
I hope this doesn’t come across as cheeky, but I’d love to hear more on the blog about your running/exercise (fellow runner here!) as I thought your recaps of the 5K races were brilliant (as were your times) and I’d be so interested to hear about your training/routine. Only a request though, and it’s completely understandable if you didn’t want to talk about it.
Hope you have another great day after winding down from all the excitement of the summit.
xoxoxo
Great overview of the Summit!
I’m pretty impressed with Delta’s healthy snack pack. Airline food is usually ridiculously expensive, but it looks like $5 bought you a decent amount of food!
I didn’t get a chance to say hi in person this weekend… I feel like I didn’t do a good enough job of circulating around to meet everyone. Next year?!
Great recap! So glad that you enjoyed the Summit and your time in Boston!
I loved the recap and your perspective, as many of the other blogs have all the same pictures (for obvious reasons, but still…) It looks like you had a great time and were able to balance the summit and family perfectly–what a fun weekend!
And of course, your food always looks amazing (power to the bread, sister, power to the bread).
You look gorgeous, m’dear.
My beau loves French baguette, so he’d highly approve of your fine tastes! Au Bon Pain has oatmeal??? I need to remember that next time I’m at the airport.
I’m glad you had a fun trip & are safe ‘n sound in good ol’ Birmingham.
It was great to meet you this weekend. I hope you had a great time
I’ve never heard of Viga, but that sandwich looks delish. I’ll have to scope that place out! I’m glad you had an awesome time in Boston and at the HLS. I wish I would have made it to one of the free events. I’ll have to make sure I get a ticket next year. Glad you had a safe trip back!!
It was so, so awesome to meet you! Have a great week
Wow, Delta! I’m impressed! Stacy’s crack chips, Clif bar, cards? Looks worth the $5!
That picture of you on the patio is really pretty!! You look great! The Au Bon Pain bread looks to die for! YUM!!
Glad you had a great time – it sounds like fun!!
wow!! great foods!1 i love this blog!! so yummy foods and exciting posts
The Healthy Living Summit sounds like it was so much fun. Love the bag of goodies
I adore bread too, and would have been delighted to see some as well! All your meals look like it was scrumptious!
I’m impressed that you were able to make such creative meals after a trip, although I guess I shouldn’t be since your meals are always creative!
fabulous recap – loved all the food and the healthy summit stuff! i only wish i could have been there!
yay for airplanes finally gettin with the healthy times!
http://thehealthyeverythingtarian.wordpress.com
Great recap! I hate we didn’t meet, especially since you go to school in NC. We should schedule a meet up after school starts perhaps! Could be fun!
Thanks for sitting by me at the Summit
Again, I apologize for being so texty/tweety.
So fun and I am totally jealous that you got to the summit! Looks like such a blast and so much free swag!
You look awesome in that purple shirt up top!
I love the healthy options in air!
such a great weekend. You were lucky to be in that healthy summit, if I were in US, I´d go too.
so much fun!!! i wish i could have gone…oh well, hopefully next year? anyways, i love that you and your parents made a family vacay out of it
i want those barney samples NOW!!
glad you had such a nice time in my city
wish i could have gone but i didnt get a ticket in time 
!!!!!!!
xoxoxoxox
ps you look gorgeous in the pic love the color of the top!
Hey Caroline!
We should definitely go to the Farmer’s Market sometime. I wish they had Au Bon Pain at school. That sun-dried tomato bread was off-the-charts. I had an awesome time chatting with you. Glad it won’t be the last time–rather the start of many conversations
Allie
That must have been so much fun!! I’m so jealous!
I never, ever noiced the hats on the stoneyfield cows! haha…I’ll have to be more observant next time.
Lovin’ all the good eats, as always! Especially the grilled eggplant sandwich…yum!!
It looks like you had an absolute blast in Boston! I love your cocktail party outfit
And your trip to Au Bon Pain is simply drool worthy. That bread?! Oh heaven, that bread!!
Love that 7-layer dip. It looks a million times better than the store-bought stuff that is filled with who knows what!
I’m so glad that you got to attend but I’m so jealous too
Au Bon Pain sounds so good…we have some places here that carry their products but not an actual restaurant! All that food sounds so good.
I had the same airport oatmeal
I was so nice to finally meet you!
Glad you enjoyed your trip! It’s very cool that you got to attend the summit, looks like fun. And I can’t believe that the healthy snack from Delta is actually…healthy! That seems like a great assortment for five bucks.
[...] pictures, frozen lens, etc. After hearing Caitlin and Meghann rave about their new cameras at the Healthy Living Summit, I ordered the same model…that night, in the hotel room. What can I say? For some things, I [...]
Looks like you had a great weekend in Boston