Trying Tabouli

Kevin made it to the office around 9:45 this morning. So happy. The nice thing about having 4 walls and a door in my office is that I'm no in a cubicle where I'd have to whisper to talk to my husband and not disturb my coworkers. We were able to talk at a normal volume. It was great. Kevin stayed for about 15 minutes, and told me that he was going to go back home and rest (*whispering* I think that is code for napping).

As I had already had the magically delicious oatbar from Starbucks, I wasn't too hungry. I held off snacking until about 11:00, which is pretty late in my opinion.

Glassware 1

• 175g plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup blueberries

Glassware 2

• 1/2 apple
• 1/2 banana

Tupperware

• 1/3 cup Post Grape Nuts

Hmmmm... they fill out this container a little too well. This was going to involve some problem solving skills to be able to mix it all up. Enter empty glassware #2. And Shake! Wow! That workout better than I expected and with relatively no mess!

I am eating lunch now as I blog. Held off until 1:30, that was one satiating snack. For lunch I'm trying something new. Something, that up until a couple of days ago, I had never heard of. Tabouli.

What is Tabouli. According to various links that google provided me with, it's a Lebanese/Mediterranean salad. This particular Tabouli that I am having was inspired by the Tabouli I saw on Emily's Blog here. I of course did my own spin on this recipe, just to make it my own.

Miranda's Quinoa Tabouli (individual serving sized)

Ingredients

• 10 decent sized grape tomatoes
• 1/2 English cucumber
• 6 black olives
• 4 artichoke hearts
• 1/4 cup cooked quinoa
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 4-6 drops of lemon juice
• 3-5 drops of lime juice
• 1 pinch of oregano and thyme

Directions

1. Cook your quinoa according to the directions on the box. I personally cook 1/4cup of dried quinoa with 1/2 cup of water (it's always a 2:1 ratio), and serve myself 1/4 cup of cooked quinoa. Quinoa is a great gluten free alternative to rice.
2. Chop your tomatoes into small cubes. Yes this will be difficult as they are so small but the idea here is to chop them up small.
3. Take your cucumber, and length wise, into quarters. Then chop those quarters into small pieces.
4. Chop your black (or purple) olives and artichoke hearts.
5. Mix together your olive oil, lemon and lime juice together with herbs. If you are not serving this right away, do not mix in your dressing, as it will cause everything to get too soggy.
6. I made this several days in advance, and kept it stored in the fridge. When I was ready to eat my Tabouli, I warmed it in the microwave not to heat it, but rather so it wasn't right out of the fridge cold.
7. Top and mix in the dressing.

Serve & Enjoy!
This is a very low calorie meal. Because of that, I am also eating a grapefruit (yes strange combination, but I love grapefruit) at lunch time.

Happy Hump Day!