Dining Out

Nothing inspires more fear than dining out these days. If I don't know the nutrition facts of what I'm eating, it's just a nail biting moment. Lack of available nutrition facts is one reason that I have not been out to a restaurant in a very long time. In some cases, available nutrition facts have made me steer clear of particular restaurants.

There have been perks to cooking at home. Most food tastes much fresher and the flavors more intricate than fast food. I made a pizza using a Boboli whole wheat crust, a fresh tomato, fresh mozzarella and, yes, fresh basil. I sprinkled about a tablespoon of olive oil and some parmesan over that and I almost reached nirvana. The pizza was so simple and so good.

I'm still holding onto a Hollyberry cookie that someone shared with me during the holidays because I can't find the stats on it. So, it was with reservations (no pun intended) that I went out to eat with friends. I think we made a good choice of restaurants by going to Yemanja Brasil.

http://www.brazildining.com/home.htm

I didn't touch the bread basket even though I love that orange, oily spread with herbs that accompanies it. I also declined the delectable yucca fries.

I went back and forth about whether or not to get the vegetarian risotto (with brown rice) or the risotto with shredded chicken. In the end, I went for the vegetarian risotto which came with a salad or soup. I decided on the carrot soup which I figured wouldn't be too lethal. It was my first time trying carrot soup and it was delicious. I was never impressed with soups before but my tastes buds have changed and since I've been cooking at home, I love nothing more than to make a good soup on Sunday; not only is it a good meal but it's a time-saver too. With the regimen that I've been keeping up, I don't want to worry about scrounging around for a meal after a workout.

Of course, I later looked up a recipe for carrot soup and the only thing that I was wary about was the butter in the recipe but since I had swam about 18 laps earlier in the day, I figured that the butter would not do too much damage.

Guess what I'm now craving? Mmmm, carrot soup.

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/curried-carrot-soup?autonomy_kw=carrot+soup

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/eating-well/curried-carrot-soup-recipe/index.html