Someday I swear I will actually get a WIAW post up on time. I’m thinking it will probably be in July since I will have a break from grad school until September! Woohoo! (PS – I’m not even going to think about how I’m going to do grad school and have two newborns at home. It’ll work. It’ll work. It’ll work. Power of positive thinking!)
Summer break has officially started in my mind. Even though I’ve been off for nearly two weeks, the first two weeks of summer were heavily filled with obligations in dealing with my dad’s passing. Now that most everything is in order, I finally feel like I can breathe and enjoy summer – even though the weather has not been cooperative. It’s funny to me how quickly I move into my summer mode. Sleeping in until 8? Lazy breakfast in front of the TV? Lunch dates almost every day? Daily afternoon naps? I can do that!
Whoops, I don’t think I did much sensible snacking yesterday. It was too full of sugar! (Which reminds me, I have to call and make an appointment for my glucose test – uggggh)
Breakfast – 8:00 AM
Even though I told you yesterday I haven’t been enjoying breakfast foods lately, yesterday I was ALL about the blueberry pancakes. I had been craving them because I saw an instagram picture of pancakes. That always does me in! This breakfast was a modified version of my Almond Flour Pancakes – instead of using 1/2 cup of almond flour, I used 1/4 cup of almond flour and 1/4 cup of Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Flour. I put some blueberries into the mix and topped it with my Banana Cream Sauce and a touch of maple syrup. Yum! (But total sugar overload!)
Snack – 10:45 AM
I snacked on some pineapple before I left my house to run some errands with my mom. I knew we wouldn’t be able to eat lunch until around 1 or later, so I needed a little something! (side note: The Husband is the BEST pineapple buyer around. He always picks the ripest, juiciest ones. My contribution is always cutting the pineapple up. 
)
Lunch – 1:00 PM
Lunch was at one of our favorite, faster spots – Buona Beef. I don’t know if Buona is a just a Chicago chain, but it is delicious. My brother thinks their beef is better than Portillo’s, and if you know anything about Chicagoans and their Portillo’s beef, you know that’s saying a lot. They have an awesome gluten free selection, and my mom and I both ordered their Portobello Panini on the gluten free flatbread. On the side, we both had a side house salad – and I would be lying if I told you I didn’t also have a side order of fries. Thankfully this meal keeps me full for a long time because I had class until 8:30 last night.
Snack – 2:30 PM
After I dropped my mom off at her house (and forgot a big pile of things at her house – AGAIN!), I went home to relax before I had to leave for class around 4:00. I ate a gluten free chocolate chip cookie (Betty Crocker’s mix – they are chewy, delicious, and addicting!) or two and settled into my bed. I managed to shut my eyes for about a half an hour which was nice.
Snack – 5:45 PM
While in class, I snacked on a green apple. Green apples aren’t my favorite by far, but none of the other apples at the store have been looking good. I guess that’s what you get for buying apples out of season – but I can’t imagine only having apples in the fall!
Dinner – 9:15 PM
By the time I got home, I wasn’t really too hungry, but I knew I should probably eat something – and quick! I didn’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so I popped an Amy’s frozen meal into the microwave and snacked on a few chips while it was cooking. Definitely not the best of dinner choices, but it worked and I didn’t wake up hungry throughout the night. 
I didn’t take a picture of my Amy’s bowl, but it was pretty good! I am always impressed by their meals when I’m in a pinch. I just wished it was about 2 times larger than it actually was.
I may or may not have finished up my day with anther cookie or two before hitting the sheets.
Today’s goal is to actually eat more vegetables and perhaps less sugar. We’re going to a White Sox game tonight, so we’ll see how that one goes!
Question: What are your favorite meals when you are short on time?
{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
Your totally on time today with your post!!! Don’t be fretting!
Pancakes sound amazing….almond flour makes amazing pancakes and you can’t go wrong with blueberries! Happy Wednesday!
That panini looks absolutely awesome! I will have to keep that restaurant in mind for the next time that I am in Chicago.
And if it makes you feel any better, my WIAW post won’t be up until tonight!
Please have your husband clue me in on how to buy an amazing pineapple?! I always have the worst of luck in that department.
Oooo Portillo’s - yes, Chicagoans (and my husband - the wannabe Chicagoan) are crazy about that place! This other place you’re speaking of MUST be a winner!
Trail mix, cereal, yogurt, and eggs are my go-to snacks/meals when I’m short on time!
I haven’t had an Amy’s meal in ages! I might have to pick some up so I have some quick options to take to work for lunch. Annnd I miss Chicago. I went last fall and it’s an amazing city!
Quick meals are usually sandwiches, eggs, and yogurt bowls!
Good luck with the glucose test!
I’ve never had a meal from Amy’s because there always seems to be SOME ingredient that I can’t eat. Otherwise, I really appreciate their effort to accommodate so many dietary needs.
My go to is either a rotisserie chicken salad or just some good old egg whites and veggies
lol I have the same issue with Amy’s, it’s just so small!
Does your husband’s fruit picking skill extend to watermelons as well? Because if it does, I seriously might have to borrow him the next time I go shopping. I’ve been getting nothing but less-than-stellar melons lately
haha - we haven’t worked on other fruits yet. However, he’s usually pretty good with apples too!
That’s great that your husband can pick a good pineapple! My husband usually does the grocery shopping, but he’s not the best at picking out good produce. Oh well…guess I shouldn’t complain because at least he does the shopping. Oh yes…that lunch looks sooooo good!
is buona beef a western suburb thing?! i’ve never even heard of it (do they have any downtown??) but i need to find one stat! there are not enough GF places that actually have GF carbs! that panini looks amazing.
I’m not sure! I know there’s a lot of locations near where I work (Oakbrook area), and we just got one pretty close to my house in the Orland Park area (southwest suburbs). It’s goooooood!
must find one ASAP!!
Cookies sound so so good now!
Have fun at the baseball game tonight! That just screams summer to me.
Amy’s burrito’s are my go to in a pinch! They are fast and you are right, usually pretty good/healthy. Chips are also a close second
I’m with you on the apples! I grew up on an apple orchard & my family cannot stand that I buy apples at the grocery store, but I HAVE to have them all year round! And if I must eat green apples, I dip them in peanut butter.
Yummy day! I’m curious how to cut your pineapples. I tried to cut one the other day, and it literally took me an hour. I cut off the top and bottom and sliced the skin off, but then I had to dig out all the little divets (is that a word? am I making things up?!) that were in the fruit… Not only did it take a long time, but I ended up with a pretty mangled pineapple! It was still so delicious though.
Your pineapple looks very un-mangled, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Iris @ Anatomy & Intuition
I cut the top, cut the bottom, and then slide off the sides on a curve - sometimes some pieces have a little divet, but we’re okay with it over here.
My favorite meals when I am short on time are greek yogurt with fruit or toast nut butter and fruit. I think cutting pineapples is so hard! I’m not very skilled with the kitchen knives and always thankful when Tyler is in town to cut up my melons for me. How long do you have left in grad school? One of the girls in my program had a baby near the end of the semester last year and the prof let her ‘go’ to class via skype on one of the other students computers. I think it helped her to not have to be out of the home for the 3 hour class plus drive time two nights a week.
Amy’s foods really are the best. I love their burritos!
Mmm pancakes for breakfast on a weekday. So awesome. And I made a batch of GF chocolate chip cookies over the weekend. They were gone by Monday. Pretty much all me. So good!
Chelsea - update your “About” page! I just saw you’re in grad school(!) and had no idea (I’ve been reading about the past month-ish so I’m newish). I went to your about page to find out more about your school and it says nothing about it OR your twin pregnancy! Get on it, girl! ; )
I have twin girls - about to be 1 year! - and I JUST graduated from grad school in May. It CAN be done! YOU can do it!!!
Can’t wait to follow your journey!!
haha! I do need to get on it- I’ll do it JUST for you tomorrow.
It won’t be too bad, I’m sure. It’s only one night a week!
I love Amy’s stuff. I could eat burritos, tofu scramble AND her pizza all in the same day - of course I wouldn’t…yet! haha
I craved pancakes and waffles like crazy when I was pregnant! Especially if topped withe peanut butter and syrup. Those cookies sound amazing!
pineapple is jonny’s favorite fruit!! my favorite easy meals are leftovers haha. i’m a big fan of making a big ole dish of something and eating it for days!! and cereal. cereal’s always a good choice. or eggs. i can eat eggs any time of day!
I’ve never had an Amy’s meal before. I’m generally not a fan of frozen meals but I’ve heard some good things about Amy’s, so maybe I’ll give them a shot! They’d definitely be handy for when I need something fast. Usually if I’m in a rush I’ll just make a sandwich!
My favourite quick meals are pancakes (yes, even for dinner), and chickpea omelettes loaded with veggies!
With a three month old, it seems ALL my meals are ones that can be labeled “short on time.” We do a lot of casseroles that I make over the weekends and freeze for later, scrambled eggs and toast, spaghetti and TJ’s veggie meatballs and when all else fails, Papa Murphy’s take and bake pizzas. I’m not even ashamed to admit that we call them up at least once a week.
P.S. I totally worked myself up over having to get my glucose test but honestly, it’s really not that bad. Sure, the drink sucks and it’s a pain in the butt having to get your blood drawn again. But it’s really not a big deal so don’t even give it a second thought. Just make sure you eat a little something in the morning before you go. It helps with dealing with the sugar rush from the glucose drink.
I disagree with your brother about the buona beef vs. portillo’s, I think portillo’s is better but buona does have other really good sandwiches : )
Those pancakes look incredible.