Hi FitFeat friends!

Ahhh, another Monday behind us.  Hope yours was better than mine. 

I had the kind of Monday that warranted pouring my Kombucha Tea (aka The Bubbly) into a wine glass… because it would at least SEEM like I was drinking wine!  Am I the only cuckoo bird that likes to put everyday non-alcoholic drinks into glasses traditionally reserved for the hard stuff?   Somehow it makes them feel more “fancy” to me.

I enjoyed a splendid rest day on Sunday (from exercise, that is).  I’d planned to do a little yoga, but errands, laundry, housecleaning, blogging, football and book-reading won out.  And Whole Foods shopping, can’t forget that!  I do have a few more fun treasures to share from my weekly visit to Whole Foods though! (Yesterday I shared my joy in finding prewashed and precut KALE!)

Join me in a little SHOW and TELL, won’t you?

First, is this not one of the prettiest heirloom tomatoes you’ve seen?  I haven’t yet been able to bring myself to cut into it.

Next I stumbled upon some Meyer Lemons!

I was looking for Meyer Lemons around New Years Eve when I made that Sweet Cashew Cheese to take to the dinner party.  It was called for in the recipe, but  I wasn’t able to find them at the time.  I ran across them on this particular visit and brought home a small bag.  Upon reading the back of the package I learned something new:  Did you know that Meyer Lemons are a cross between a LEMON and a MANDARIN ORANGE?  I had no idea!

They do have a slightly sweeter taste.  It’s interesting because you first taste the mandarin and think “oh wow, it kind of tastes like a tart orange” and then all of a sudden the ZIP of lemon hits your taste buds and you think, “Oh that is DEFINITELY a lemon!” That’s a tricky little citrus right there!

And of course I had to make more of the Sweet Cashew Cheese so that I could compare between last time (with regular lemons) and this time with the Meyer version.

So I soaked my cashews for a few hours:

And when the batch was done in the food processor, it was time to schmear a cracker:

Looks like ricotta, doesn’t it?  (And actually I like the cashew cheese just fine with either type of lemon, as it turns out.)

Even the crackers were a new find at WF.  Nita’s Spelt.  I have a new favorite cracker.  Mary, I hate to say it but Nita is giving you a run for you money in the Best Cracker Race (and I don’t feel like I’m going to chip a tooth when biting into one!)

They’re even made here in Colorado!  BONUS!  Check me out, buying locally!  (OK, you got me – I’d probably still buy these awesome crackers if they were shipped in from Timbuktu.)

Today’s Question:  What is your favorite healthy cracker?  And what’s your favorite topping to put on that cracker?

***

Monday exercise was the full Physique 57 DVD.  I still cannot get completely through the “Thigh Dancing” section without crying out a string of cuss words and having to stop for a second here and there.  Oh. My. BURN is an understatement.  I thought it might be about time to write the review for it because I’ve had the DVD for about a month now.  But then I added up the number of times per week I’ve actually DONE the DVD and realized I need to give it some more time to do its thing.    In 25 days I’ve P57′d 7 times.  Gosh it feels like I’ve been doing it every other day!  Guess not!  Good thing I had my super simple no-slacker tracker to set me straight!

OK kids, off I go to get ready for some client training!  Make Tuesday TERRIFIC!  See you next time!

–Shari B. =)

Tags: cashew cheese, exercise tracking, heirloom tomato, Kombucha tea, Mary's Gone Crackers, meyer lemon, Nita Crisp Spelt Crackers, Physique 57, Whole Foods