A Hamburger Makeover Story

Hi friends, I hope you all had a great weekend.

Tonight, I took my first Entrepreneurship exam and it went really well. Overall, I'm very excited about my classes this semester. It seems as though more of my teachers are giving tips and tricks of the trade, instead of just presenting material straight from a textbook. As a student, this new teaching method is considerably more engaging.

Now onto the eats:

Dannon Activia Light Blueberry Yogurt
I personally like Activia a lot better than Dannon's Light & Fit Yogurt. What makes Activia different? Activia contains Bifidus Regularis, a special probiotic that helps food pass easier through your intestines.

The Dannon website states that: "Eating, as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle, Activia every day for two weeks delivers enough Bifidus Regularis to help regulate your digestive system by helping with slow intestinal transit."

Interesting!

Parmesan Crusted Chicken with honey mustard and side salad. This time, I added basil to the Parmesan cheese mixture and it tasted ten times better. Isn't it crazy flavor-wise what herbs can add to a meal?

Diet Pepsi

A Hamburger Makeover Story Ingredients:
- 1 Boca Burger (70 Calories)
- Lettuce, tomato, onions
- Arnold Select Sandwich Thins (100 Calories)

Two simple steps: Build your burger and then enjoy! Compared to McDonald's 540 Calorie Big Mac, this burger is definitely a healthier bet.

Arnold Select Sandwich Thins Review: After eating way too many wraps this past week, I decided to mix things up and try Arnold Select Sandwich Thins. I'm so used to using basic, fluffy hamburger buns, that I have to admit, I was somewhat hesitant to try these. To my pleasant surprise, Arnold Select Sandwich Thins definitely delivered on the "yum factor." The Multi-Grain roll was hearty, healthy, and topped with little seeds that made it even more appealing.

Enjoy your week! <3 HBB

**2009 Foodbuzz Blog Awards Nominations are currently in effect. Nominate your favorite bloggers!

Follow me on Twitter for more Healthy Beach Bum adventures.

Optimism Can Take You Anywhere

Hi friends. I hope you've all had a terrific Thursday. School has been busier than ever this past week. Group presentations, online quizzes, meetings, and problem sets have completely consumed my weekdays. My calendar looks like a bad attempt at an artistic project, there are so many highlighted items on it. This quote has really helped get me through the week:

"Optimism can take you anywhere."
Three cheers for optimism!
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A few readers asked me about how I make my Protein Powder Pancakes, so here is the quick & easy recipe:

Vanilla Protein Powder Pancake with Smucker's Sugar Free Syrup and fresh fruit

Ingredients
1 scoop of Protein Powder Mix
2 Egg Whites
1 Tablespoon of Milk
Cinnamon
Dash of Baking Soda

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl. Whip the batter until the protein powder is dissolved. Pour the mixture into a frying pan and cook over medium heat for 3-5 minutes on both sides. Drizzle on your favorite syrup, add fresh fruit, and enjoy!

Ben & Jerry's White Chocolate Iced Latte

This White Chocolate Macadamia Nut CLIFBAR is the perfect energy booster and study snack. It packs in an amazing 9g of Protein and is made with all natural and organic ingredients. Besides the Carrot Cake Clifbar, WCMN is by far one of my favorite flavors.

A simple & delicious Fall dessert:
Stonyfield Farm Organic Greek Yogurt mixed with pureed pumpkin, cinnamon, and a dash of sugar.

Parmesan Crusted Chicken Salad with Kraft Vidalia Onion Vinaigrette, tomatoes, pickles

Have a great weekend. <3 HBB

**Thank you so much to Heather for the Giveaway treats! I'll be having my first GIVEAWAY on my 50th post. Get excited!

I Love College Football

Happy Labor Day friends! I hope you've all had a very eventful weekend. Last night, I was lucky enough to watch the Florida Gators dominate the Charleston Southern Buccaneers in The Swamp. The final score was 62-3.

Absolutely nothing beats the excitement you feel in the stadium with the other Gator fans. Here's a 45 second video I took of me and the pre-game show:


I love being a Florida Gator!

Now here are a few of the delicious meals I've enjoyed recently:

Breakfast omelette stuffed with fried ham slices. I also had a delicious granny smith and a side of sliced tomatoes sprinkled with basil and Parmesan cheese.

Ok I'll admit it, I am a hazelnut iced coffee-holic. Recently, I went out of my comfort zone to try Yogi Tea: Berry Detox.

This particular Yogi Tea was very subtle in flavor. I did add a sprinkle of sugar to liven the tea up a bit. The package stated the Yogi Tea was supposed to cleanse my body, but I honestly couldn't tell if it did or not. ;) Maybe like the flavor, it had a subtle cleansing factor. So far my favorite Yogi tea is the Calming version.

**As a side note, I just learned that there is Yogi Cereal. Go on the Yogi website and customize your Yogi cereal based on: Mood, Flavor, Purpose. I chose Revitalized Mood and was paired with the Granola Crisps: Mountain Blueberry Flax. Hopefully I can find this in a local grocery store because it looks delicious!

BEFORE:
Stonyfield Farm Oikos Honey Organic Greek Yogurt with diced banana and PB & Co. Cinnamon Raisin Swirl

AFTER:
All mixed up!

For dinner I made my favorite thirty minute meal: Parmesan Crusted Chicken. Honey mustard was the perfect dipping sauce for these crusted chicken bites.

Enjoy your day off tomorrow! Mine will be spent studying and watching online lectures. <3 HBB

**Giveaways Alert: The Lunchbox Bunch and Health, Happiness, and Hope

Why I'm a Food Blogger

Good evening lovely ladies! Considering it is only Monday, today was a very productive school day. In Sales Management class, my professor touched on a very interesting topic that we as bloggers, are very familiar with: Social Media. Of course, I felt an instant connection with this topic because of what I've learned overtime from BlogSpot, Twitter, Facebook, and Wordpress. Social Media is such an important aspect in business today because it allows otherwise, cold and serious companies to have a more approachable personality.

I found this quote on my LinkedIn eMarketing Association Network: "Technology is only as good as the soul behind it, I feel. Crafting that soul is where the opportunity lies."

The speaker of the quote hit social media dead on the nose. Companies will only find success in social media if they engage their customers, relay their unique corporate culture, and portray trustworthiness to the public.

With senior year upon me, I am extremely excited about pursuing my professional career. I began food blogging because I have a sincere passion for both nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. Post graduation I hope to work in the Marketing Industry for health food products. My ultimate goal would be to work for a company such as Stonyfield Farm, Kashi, Kraft, or General Mills. Each of those companies place their customers on such a high pedestal and value both nutritious and quality products. Overall, I would love assist in the incredible health food movement.

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What can I say? I just love being a food blogger! ;) I'm so happy to have met such unique and wonderful people all over the world. Thank you all for following my Healthy Beach Bum adventures. Each and every one of you truly make my day.

Omelette w/ Cottage Cheese + Turkey Slices + Kiwi

Salad with Kraft Vidalia Onion Vinaigrette, Chicken, Raisins, and Trader Joe's Peanuts & Dried Strawberry Mix

Today I received some wonderful coupons and a free sample of Kashi Honey Sunshine Cereal in the mail. :)

Thank you Kashi!

These bite-size golden rays of Honey Sunshine were so sweet and delicious! I highly recommend this cereal. For all of you college girls out there, Honey Sunshine is the perfect study snack. :)

Parmesan Crusted Chicken and Honey Mustard

Have a great night! <3 HBB

**Road ID sent me a coupon code for $1 off any Road ID purchase. It can be used up to 20 times in the next 30 days.
Coupon Number: ThanksShannon534440

Last Week of Summer

It's Monday! One more week at home and then back to the college grind. It's going to be a ROUGH semester.. so hopefully I can fit in 2-3 posts per week. It's my senior year, so I have to live it up. :)

You never know what kind of weather to expect in FL. The weather can be hot & sunny one minute, and then two seconds later be windy & rainy. This looked like a tornado.. but I guess it was the beginning of a crazy storm forming. Very scary!

Unattractive photo of some Cabot Plain Greek Style Yogurt-- I think we bought the wrong kind bc this definitely tasted like cream cheese. As soon as I get my car back, I'm going to use my Stonyfield Farm Organic Yogurt coupons. :)

Taco bites! Organic Mini Fillo Shells filled with ground beef, avocado, salsa, & cheese. These were yummy, but Pizza Bites are still my favorite. :)

Salad with parmesan crusted chicken, pickles, & Kraft's Vidalia Onion Vinaigrette

Canned peaches.. yum yum

I love my Publix Sushi. :) Crab, Cali, & Shrimp Rolls

I think the family and I are going to go on a mini road trip for a few days.. not sure where though. Should be fun! Have a great week. <3 HBB

PS I'm looking to buy a new camera that's preferably less than $150.. any suggestions?? Thank you!

Dolce and Gabbana, Fendi and then..Target?

Hey there! Today my mom, sister, and I drove to Tampa's International Mall and did some window shopping. All of those fancy, pricey labels are so intimidating! The Black Eyed Peas "My Humps" song with Fergie singing, "Dolce and Gabbana, Fendi and then Donna," is just not me! I am definitely a Target kinda gal. :) Any shirt over $15 is out of my league!

Total Cereal with blueberries and skim milk

Seneca Cinnamon Apple Chips

Apple chip up close :) These are SO amazing and I highly recommend them. They also come in 5 other flavors: Caramel, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Sour Apple, and Original.

At the mall food court I ate at Great Wraps: The New American Sandwich. I ordered the hot pressed Falafel Hummus Veggie Wrap. It was delicious! It had falafel, hummus, pepper jack cheese, romaine, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, red peppers, and banana peppers.

Confession: I love Planet Smoothie's "Frozen Goat Smoothie" that has coffee, bananas, chocolate, and yogurt in it. Instead of driving 5 miles to get one, I attempted to make it at home!

In my blender I added 2 cups of coffee, a big splash of milk, 2 handfuls of ice, 1 frozen banana, chocolate syrup, and 1 scoop of PB. The result? It was AMAZING!

Parmesean crusted chicken with onions + green pepper, avocado, & ancho-chipotle sauce

Have a great night! PS There is a Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives marathon on if there are any Guy Fieri fans out there! <3 HBB

Goo Goo Ga Ga

Today has been a very ploppy day. I've had no motivation to get up or go anywhere. I found this picture on Perez Hilton's site and I was in awe.

Lady GaGa (hence the goo goo ga ga title) in a Kermit Outfit-- What is this lady thinking?!?! Miss Piggy must be throwing a hissy fit right now.

In other real news, here are some of the meals I've been throwing together.. :)

Facebook and some apple + milk

Made a happy/scary lookin face of eggs, ketchup, turkey
*spot my dog!

Baked more Parmesan Crusted Chicken
This is such an simple & yummy recipe.. please try it! :)

Ingredients:
Butter
Parmesan cheese
Frozen Tyson chicken tenders
Parsley

In the microwave, defrost the chicken and then melt the butter. Make a 2 bowl assembly line. Mix the cheese & parsley together in one bowl. First dip the chicken in the melted butter and then thoroughly cover it in your cheese mixture. Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

toasted whole wheat wrap w/ black beans, salsa, and onions

frozen sliced bananas with cinny

Grapes

Hope you all have a great night! I'm going to complete this lazy day with a lazy night. :) I'm thinking about getting a Crisper's Summer Salad later. They are SO good with those candied pecans. Hmmm who knows. <3 HBB