Favorites (Food Edition)

Food, my favorite thing! You all wanted to see some more food content, and my master list of favorites felt incomplete without some noms. Here are my favorite breakfasts, meals, snacks, desserts, restaurants, and everything in between!

I know healthy eating isn’t the most fun thing in the world, but when you make the right stuff and use the right recipes, it’s really good. But of course as a note, listen to your body. Don’t try to restrict yourself to the point where eating causes you stress because you should be loving what you’re eating and eating foods that make you feel great. Most of the foods on the list are good for you or could be altered to be healthier, but if mint chip ice cream wasn’t on this list it’d be criminal.

All of the recipes from websites are linked where the food is mentioned, and recipes that me or other family members came up with are linked here! In general, when I’m making desserts from websites, I halve the sugar and use some of the healthier substitutes at the bottom. Hope this helps y’all, and happy reading (and hopefully eating)!

Breakfast

Left: banana peanut butter smoothie bowl. Middle: Frutta Bowl (acai bowl) from Frutta Bowls. Right: The Savory Avocado and The Bravocado avocado toast from Frutta Bowls.

• Smoothie bowls/acai bowls*

• Overnight oats*

• Peanut butter and bananas on toast

• Banana oat pancakes

• French toast

• Waffles

• Pancakes (life crisis alert: I used to be team waffle but now I think I’m team pancake)

• Chia seed pudding

• Avocado toast

• Breakfast burrito

• Cereal (Honey Bunches of Oats slap)

Lunch/Dinner

See the restaurant section for some more specific foods

Left: beef hand-sliced noodles from Taiwan. Middle: chicken pad thai and tofu dish from Pittsburgh. Right: bulgogi and black rice bowl from Pittsburgh (same place as the blog cover photo was taken).

• Pizza (recipe 1, recipe 2 - no rise time!)

• Sushi

• Pasta

• Pho

• Pad Thai

• Ramen

• Chinese hand-sliced noodles (all the noodles bro)

• Bulgogi with black rice

Snacks

What happens when I bake the corn muffin recipe in mini cake pans and add yogurt+fruit

• Corn muffins (scroll down for the Golden Yellow Corn Muffins)

• Quick fruit and nut bread*

• Greek yogurt + granola + chia seeds + fruit

• Good ol’ fruit

Dessert

Left: Perfect Match rolled ice cream from Frozen Rolled Ice Cream in Philadelphia. Middle: a subpar picture of Duck freaking Donuts. Right: Japanese souffle pancakes.

• Carrot cake

• Banana bread

• Chiffon cake

• Cinnamon rolls (substitute cinnamon filling for red bean paste if you want red bean buns)

• Mochi ice cream (love them from Trader Joe’s or Costco, but we’ve also make our own daifuku at home)

• Cheesecake (love the carrot cake, banana cream, and fresh strawberry cheesecakes from the Cheesecake Factory)

• Tiramisu

• Oatmeal cookies

• Cream puffs with homemade pastry cream

• Nian gao (Chinese rice cake)*

• Japanese souffle pancakes*

• Mint chocolate chip ice cream

• Thin mints (the superior Girl Scout cookie)

• Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food or Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream

• Baskin’ Robbins mint chocolate chip milkshake

• Duck Donuts maple bacon, mint chocolate, or blueberry-iced cake donuts

• Strawberries and whipped cream

Drinks

Left: brown sugar boba from Taiwan. Middle: flaming brown sugar boba from Vivi Bubble Tea. Right: brown sugar and black sesame boba from Taiwan.

• BOBA (my normal order is either a mango slush, strawberry rose slush, or flaming brown sugar milk with tapioca and 30%-50% sugar; been making this recipe during quarantine)

• Smoothies (fruit and milk essentially hah, but I used to get these all the time during my figure skating days)

• Peppermint hot chocolate

• Water because we are not cacti (if you’re reading this, drink some water right now)

Restaurants

Note: there are some restaurants that I’d love to recommend, but they’d also give away my location so that’s not fun! These are some really good chain restaurants and my normal orders. For Chicago specific recs, check out what I ate in Chicago.

I'm a member of the Cava fan club

• The Cheesecake Factory (my faves: Chicken Madeira, Chicken Bellagio, and Eggplant Parmesan)

• Zoës Kitchen (the Spinach & Mozzarella Piadina, Chicken Kabobs, and Mediterranean Chicken Plate sound so good right now)

• Whole Foods (the WF near me has this awesome seafood restaurant)

• Cava (my order: grain bowl with brown rice, eggplant + red pepper dip, tzatziki, hummus, falafel or grilled chicken, lettuce, corn, feta, tomato + cucumber salad, avocado, and pita crisps)

• California Pizza Kitchen (love the Mushroom Pepperoni Sausage Pizza)

• Chipotle (my order: burrito bowl with brown rice, black beans, chicken, pico de gallo, corn, lettuce, cheese, and guac if I want to spend a lil more)

• Panera Bread (I do a half Bacon Turkey Bravo and either half Chicken Noodle Soup or half salad; bread always)

• Cosi (would love a Chicken Parm Melt, Adobo Chicken with Avocado Bowl, or Korean Beef Bowl right about now)

• Frutta Bowls (see acai bowl and avocado toast recs in breakfast section)

Healthy Substitutes (or what to use when your fridge is barren)

For your viewing pleasure: making rolled ice cream (prelude to rolled ice cream in the desserts section)

• Greek yogurt or vegetable oil instead of butter

• Greek yogurt instead of vegetable oil

• Honey instead of sugar

• Natural maple syrup instead of sugar

• Monk fruit sweetener instead of sugar (haven’t tried but heard great things)

• Dates instead of sugar (soak and blend them up; I’ve also heard of making vegan caramel with dates)

• Applesauce instead of eggs

• Whole wheat, almond, or oat flour instead of white flour

* = recipe in document here