hira: back to basics

current location: torino, italia. chugging water. really.

your week in the city looks fabulous--candles 79 sounds so familiar. proud (but not surprised in the least) that you went to a vegan restaurant and didn't feel like you were missing out. you look lovely.

i'm trying to recall the last week--what i have been doing, with whom i have been, places i've seen. it frightens me that it all seems like one long night at Murphy's. i guess i've been frequenting the usual places along vittorio emanuele a little too often this past week or so--while i've met some amazing people from italy, norway, ireland---i can't help but feel a bit sloppy.

what a horrid word.

steps i will take to revive the very reasons for coming to torino:

1. long walks. the weather is not that bad. the leaves are colorful. and air is crisp.

2. rediscover the joy in cooking for myself. slowly.

3. practice my italian with my friends, even if they want to practice their english. go to the states.

4. shop. shoes. (this is important, not so much for the product, but for the act that involves wandering. i like to wander).

current obsessions: mushrooms, sauteed with balsamic, garlic and onion. plated with a rustic guacamole--simple, filling lunches. shawls in place of jackets during fall transition.

grateful that i have friends who share a love of traveling and learning--thinking of you often, and living your adventures as well as mine. egypt, guatemala, austria, italia.

for the weekend: hiking. parks. gardens. lots of yoga.

hira: apertivo culture and fine piemonte dining

current location: pane amore, via madama cristina. with sarah. (friendly owners, the best chocolate muffins, and wireless. soothingly familiar feelings.)

there is a beautiful thing about food in italia--it is everywhere. but unlike the states, it's hard to find food that is produced in mass quantities, yet retains quality and taste. affordable yet classy. traditional yet diverse. enter: the apertivo. brilliant, really, and quite a social endeavor: in addition to eating and drinking for a mere fraction of the normal cost, you also mingle with italians, americans, and other europeans. perhaps a more hira-esque alternative then multiple, consecutive nights at the same pub (ahem, murphy's.)

this week, we decided to try a new apertivo at la drogheria, in piazza vittorio venetto--the piazza that is booming in the evenings, twinkling with white lights, and provides breathtaking views over the bridge and river. a simple 5 or 6 euros will buy you a drink of choice, and unlimited access to the apertivos set out--la drogheria had grilled zucchini and eggplant, tomatos, polenta with a selection of sauces, pastas, foccacie, frittate, mele con canella (apples with cinnamon), couscous, and baskets of bread with various oils and balsamics.

cafes and small ristorante hold apertivos nightly, drawing in a number of people who love food and love to mingle. ergo, it's difficult to whip out the camera and snap photos while simultaneously balancing a glass and plate and smiling at the stranger talking to you. also, the lighting is less than stellar. i do what i can.

a beautiful night-view of piazza vittorio veneto

the road down to the bridge and river

drinks, couscous, apples and frittata

when we are not apertivo-hopping, my usual ragazze (amiche) and i are taking restaurant recommendations from the amazing daniele (i say this in hopes that he will read this...) and venturing out to try new foods. this time, we decided to celebrate at a piemonte ristorante called scannabue--located under a beautiful church at the corner of via baretti and via saluzzo. dining outside with torches of fire to provide warmth, we were first served the ultimate bread basket. i like options. this basket gave us 4 choices. next, aqua naturale and .5 litres each vino bianco and vino rosso. the owner came to greet us, and explain some items on the menu--upon his recommendation, i chose the 'guancia'--deer cheek. tipico piemonte. very soft and succulent.

getting warm--sitting outside because it was too crowded indoors!

clearly not skimping on the chocolate here...

celebrating. (hahahah)

and when i'm not eating or hiking, i am teaching this little one her english verbs. don't tell her nonna that we really spend the majority of our time simultaneously playing hangman and listening to shakira on my ipod (elisabette is a big fan).

this week: i was doing well by cooking at home and buying fresh fruits and vegetables--well, in the past week, i have eaten out too much. so this week, i am instituting clean week, italy. this includes 5 visits to the new gym i just joined (mostly because it is closed on the weekend) and cooking at home every day this week for dinner. i'm craving a detox.

obsessions: truffles. chocolate muffins at pane amore, dark-toned paisley scarves, latinos, bicerin, the return of the headband, carelessness.

currently thinking about: settlements. new ones. the ongoing struggle for justice.

i think of you often, dear. remembering the long summer days. love that you are reflecting back on the mountain and bringing it along with you. reminding me to reassess.

our story is not over.

elyssa: pumpkin mania

location: starbucks, hamilton (the boy's place of employment)

week in review:

clean week went out with a bang. i.e. me baking scones at 2 AM. oatmeal scones to be precise. i took jenna's recipe - subbed in earth balance, for butter, and almond milk, for dairy. it's surprising how often this works without a hitch. all in all, 15 minute scones are pretty life-changing.

do i feel cleaner? a bit. mostly thanks to all the yoga shared with friends. yoga is one of those activities that's always better when shared - and i rarely say that about anything. something about doing your own thing as an individual - yet the same thing as everyone around you - makes it awesome.

all week i was dreaming of the food i would soon be making and eating. i've been scouring the blog world late into the night looking for new recipes. basically, i've turned into a huge blog copycat.

the weekend started off with pumpkin chili bowls from emily. definitely a crowd pleaser. too bad the only crowd was the boy and the cat. at least they were impressed..

after chili came angela's spiced gingerbread. i've never made anything with molasses before. i think it's love. it made for my absolute favorite fall dessert. i'd show you pictures but we ate it too fast for photographic proof. fail.

saturday brought a trip to the farmer's market. we bought plums and peppers. tomatillos and tiny ornamental pumpkins.

actually, the pumpkins were free. the vendor lady was so impressed by my fascination with the tiny pumpkins that she insisted i take them as a gift and put them to good use. in fact, she promised she would bring me an entire set of tiny pumpkins on a vine next week so i can save them for american thanksgiving!

the afternoon ended with an impromptu bouquet of sunflowers from the boy - my favorite flower. he's never bought me flowers before...

new goals:

the past week i ran myself absolutely ragged with school and exercise. friends and obligations. too too much. campus was beautiful - and yet the amount of times i criss-crossed from one end to the other left my poor legs quivering at the end of each day.

the law school

upper campus

mid campus

a beautiful place to learn.

the next two days will be ones of complete relaxation. family thanksgiving dinner. long slow drives to enjoy the changing colors of the season. maybe an impromptu yoga session or two. my legs (and my brain) need a vacation. columbus day/canadian thanksgiving is as good of an excuse as any methinks.

i will:

- sleep more

- drink more tea

- reevaluate my current exercise goals

- take as many pictures and do as much as possible to enjoy my last canadian fall

current obsessions:

chai tea. tiny pumpkins. countdown to christmas. making pumpkin butter. figuring out what to do with the massive sack of spelt flour the boy dropped off at my doorstep.

elyssa: clean week, version 2.0

location: toronto

wondering where you are. the things you've seen. the places you've been. the food you're eating. italy seems both exotic and familiar. maybe that's because i'm writing this sitting in my favorite italian cafe.

fancy coffee day with the law school girls - a weekly tradition

at l'espresso bar mercurio.

remember when we went there together?

don't worry, in your absence, i'll keep our baby blog alive.

the boy and i had a momentous weekend. on sunday, we hunkered down for 'planning day'. we sifted through our hopes, dreams, and fears for the next 12 months. it was terrifying, but ultimately - rewarding. the day began with muffins - recipe from nutrition nut on the run:

the warmth of pumpkin filled the entire apartment.

and ended with pizza. the boy really enjoyed the 'build your own' aspect :)

girl's pizza: whole foods spelt crust. garlic and thyme infused olive oil. goat gouda. spinach. figs.

boy's pizza: portabello. bell pepper. mozzarella. homemade marinara.

turns out i'm a vegan that eats eggs, goat dairy, and sushi (on a regular basis) - and cream, meat, and poultry (on rare occasion). so, not a vegan - but yea, that's how i choose to self-identify because most of the time i eat like this:

pea and spinach soup from fall soup frenzy I

chia wheat-free bread with nutritional yeast

grilled tofu. homemade marinara. wilted spinach. goat gouda.

planning day was definitely food-heavy - but calories don't seem to factor in on those very special days when the air outside is cold and damp, and inside the mood is warm and happy - cocooned by love.

homemade pumpkin latte.

almond milk. vanilla. dollop of pumpkin - gently heated.

mixed with espresso. more almond milk. foam. cinnamon.

days like that make me feel like this:

thomas kinkade: a cheesy favorite.

new challenge:

thanksgiving (canadian) is around the corner, and seeing that it's the beginning of a new month - i declare this clean week. this clean week is different from the previous incarnation. this week i'm focusing on mindful eating and minimal splurges - without extracting the little pleasures that bring me so much joy in my day to day eating. if i want to drown my breakfast souffle in agave in the morning, so be it. i'm just trying to make sure it all evens out at the end of the day.

i'm happy to report that we're 1 month into school and i'm still maintaining a strong exercise regime. i took a moment to compare my exercise schedule from last september (2009) - and i definitely wasn't hitting up the gym nearly as much as i am now. for my overall health and mental alertness, i do best when i exercise 6 days a week. some days include a rigorous kickboxing session, other just a long drawn out yoga practice - but i need to get my blood flowing each of those 6 days. on the 7th, i rest. completely rest.

september success.

the elliptical as of late has looked unappealing and just all around boring - so i've been incorporating more high intensity interval training (HIIT). i can do this on the treadmill at home, or at the gym. with music, or without. with tv, or without. it just comes naturally, and offers tremendous stress relief. 30 mins total. lately i've preferred 1 minute intervals - 1 of rest. the following as fast as my legs will take me. you look like a maniac that can't sustain a normal running pace for the life of them - but the time passes quickly, and the workout is effective.

current obsessions:

making a huge slow, slow cooked batch of homemade marinara. kidney bean corn soup. yoga with friends. coffee from the french press.

elyssa: getting back on track

location: toronto

week in review:

toronto is bustling with limos and escalades. paparazzi and celebutantes. the whole city comes alive for two weeks every september to host the second most important film festival in the world (second only to cannes). as rail thin women in designer gowns traipse up and down my street, it would be easy to entertain thoughts of inadequacy, but i am forever comforted by my newfound (if struggling) focus on health, not weight.

i'm rethinking the notion of the 1 week challenge. clean week was a disaster on many levels. while my intentions were good - i did end up feeling deprived - and that as we know - can only lead to bad places. i threw clean week to the wind on friday and indulged in a day on the town with the boy and his sister. we had thai, and chocolates, and sushi. oh my. everything tasted so good.

there were some delightful clean meals at home (the problem wasn't what i ate - but the quantities and mood with which i approached my food)..

turmeric eggplant and spinach

butternut squash with apples, topped with earth balance

the best thing about clean week? i'm now on 10 consecutive days of yoga. some days at the gym. some days at home. some 2 hrs. some only 20 mins. i am happy that my practices are showing increased skill, but most importantly - i am happy that i practice everyday not because i feel compelled or forced, but because i genuinely crave a bit of yoga in my day. it is because i love yoga so much that it always naturally finds a slot in my routine - and for this, my dear, i thank you. you gave me yoga.

new challenges:

the food part of clean week went a bit iffy, but my body is feeling rested and renewed. today i got back on track with my exercise and felt better than ever. as i return full time to school, the goal is to exercise vigorously without going overboard. the latter part being the key. i have to remember that when i push myself too far, i will inevitably be too tired the next day to exercise properly, resulting in disaster. moderation: it's an art.

- take more precautions to avoid overtraining (like no weights on consecutive days)

- keep up the yoga

- incorporate HITT (high intensity interval training) into days when i don't want to slug away at the elliptical for 40 mins

- push myself to moderate naturally (avoid obsessive calorie counting)

lastly, this week i've learned the importance of respecting what my body craves. i want to take the time to identify what it is that my body really wants - i.e. i'm thinking of cake, i must need carbs, seek healthy carbs, instead of devouring a random slice of cake. today i craved pb and banana - and i gave myself just that, with a bit o' pumpkin and cinnamon, on a sandwich thin. it kept me happy for a long time..

current obsessions:

celeb spotting. watching old episodes of the OC. baking the perfect vegan orange cake. planning an anniversary dinner to share with le boy.