Watermelon Juice

Watermelon is one of the few foods I associate with Summer. It's easy to see why, but I instantly go back to sitting in my Grandma's backyard or sitting at the beach in a bikini. Chomping away at some juicy watermelon. I wasn't much of a seed-spitter, the seeds just slowed me down. Now, there's the beauty of seedless watermelon, and I will take full advantage of that.

Watermelon Juice

3 cups of cubed seedless watermelon
1 tbsp honey or simple syrup
1 tbsp mint, and more for garnish (optional)
1 cup crushed ice

Place all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth. You can add more or less simple syrup or honey depending on the sweetness of the melon. Garnish with a sprig of mint and enjoy!

This has been my go-to snack/dessert/ breakfast smoothie for the past couple of days. It's incredibly refreshing, just sweet enough and so easy. I just cut the watermelon ahead of time and store in it the fridge. Them it's ready to go when I am. Don't even get me started on adding some booze. It's going to be a great Summer. 

-Akemi-chan

Mango Banana Smoothie

The best part of Soring is letting go of Winter. I'm shedding my sweaters and boots and slow cooked one pot wonders for t-shirts, sandals and salads. It's difficult to make that change, but it's for the better. Keep your eyes on the horizon and make way for the new.

One of my favorite parts of warmer weather is the produce. The sunshine is nice, but the fruit is better. I'm trying to get back into the smoothie routine and I know the perfect way to do it.

Mango Smoothie

1 mango, cubed 

1 banan

1 cup crushed ice

1 1/2 cups of almond milk

Place all ingredients in a blender and mix it up. Blend until smooth. Sometimes I'll add some psyllium husk in order to get a little more fiber. Either way, nothing makes me feel better during the warmer months than an ice cold smoothie first thing in the morning.

Cheers and enjoy smoothie season!

-Akemi-chan

Cantaloupe and Mint Smoothie

I'm at the tail end of my rare three day long "weekend" (Tues-Thurs). I'm a little bummed because I was planning to spend this time in San Francisco with my bestie, but due to the recent Asiana 777 crash, SFO is operating with limited runways and subsequently, cancelled flights. Cancellations mean overbooked flights and that means stand by is out of the question.

Since I was planning on flying to the Bay Area, Boyfriend scheduled to work in Chicago while I was out of town. So it's been me, Puppydog and Netflix for the past few days. I literally went through the entire Firefly series and three different movies. When Boyfriend is gone, I have certain tendencies, including a decrease in cooking and an increase in junk food and dessert intake.

Now to balance the sour cream and onion potato chips and ice cream, I wanted something fresh and light. Since I still didn't want to cook, I refer to my trusty blender.


Cantaloupe and Mint Smoothie

1 1/2 cups of fresh cantaloupe
1 cup crushed ice
3 tbsp mint simple syrup
4 leaves of mint, torn
1/4 cup plain yogurt

Blend in a blender until smooth. Enjoy cold.

Imagine a cantaloupe with cottage cheese and mint... just in a smoothie. Light, refreshing and forgiving. Unlike those potato chips, I can feel good about this meal. Now I just need to let those brownies cool.

-Akemi-chan

Green Smoothie: Chia, Mango, Coconut and Kale

Yesterday (Sunday) I agreed to work a morning shift at the airport. Thanks to our handy trading system at work, I covered a coworker's shift as a thank you for covering me so I can rendezvous with my family in New York. So once again I was waking at 4AM to work a morning shift. Since I was working a double shift, I made anticipatory preparations for food. 

I love smoothies and when I plan on being up for 20 hours a day, it's a great snack/ light breakfast. In an effort to get my fruit and vegetable servings I made another protein packed green smoothie.

Snacking on smoothies in between flights

Mango Coconut Green Smoothie

1 tbsp chia seeds
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 mango, diced
1/2 banana
1 tsp grated ginger
1/3 cup almonds
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1 cup kale
handful of ice
1/4 tbsp water

Add chia seeds to a small bowl and add coconut milk. Soak chia seeds for an hour or overnight in the fridge. Add all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.


It was a hard and complicated day and I'm glad I took the time to get easy meals together. When you spend a good amount of time running around and lifting bags, it's good to have a filling smoothie. That way I didn't have resort to fast food, like many of my coworkers do. I like burgers and fried chicken just as much as the next person, but it just leaves me feeling heavy and sluggish. Not ideal for a day full of physical labor.

I was at work from 5AM til noon, returned at 4:30PM and stayed until 1AM thanks to delays. Thank you Midwestern thunderstorms. I may not consider working another double for a while, but I know it won't last long. My love for traveling is too great and trading shifts to embrace said traveling is bound to happen. Totally worth it.


-Akemi-chan

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Smoothie

When I was working at a bank, my coworker used to obsess over Steak N Shake's seasonal chocolate covered strawberry milkshake. Strawberries and chocolate are always a welcome combination, but lately strawberries have been a little too sweet for my taste. An addition of almond milk and yogurt should help round out the flavors. Just wish I had some chocolate syrup on hand.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Smoothie

2 cups frozen strawberries
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
1 cup almond milk
2 scoops chocolate protein powder
1 individual packet of strawberries and cream instant oatmeal

Pour all ingredients into blender and mix until smooth.

YUM! Again, I wish I had some chocolate syrup on hand to enhance the chocolate flavor, but maybe it's for the best. I've been getting back into the habit of going to the gym, so I don't need any more empty calories. Enjoy!

-Akemi-chan

Peanut Butter, Chocolate, Banana and Oatmeal Smoothie

My friend and I used to go to a health food store in Honolulu that specialized in peanut butter banana smoothies. Amazing! I mean, how can this combo go wrong? Now it's my turn to take a whack at it.

Peanut Butter, Chocolate, Banana and Oatmeal Smoothie

1 banana
1 packet banana flavored quick oats
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 scoop chocolate protein powder
1 cup almond milk, I used original flavor
2 tbsp Greek yogurt

Place all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth.

Nothing like the combination of peanut butter and bananas. What can I say? Elvis knew what he was doing when he made that iconic sandwich. The goodness of bananas, oatmeal and protein powder with the sweetness from peanut butter and chocolate.

-Akemi-chan

Green Smoothie: Spinach, Apple, Banana, Ginger, Carrot

Green smoothie take two. I followed a recipe I found online that involves ginger. Ginger is supposed to have anti-inflammatory and immune system boosting powers and since I've been feeling sluggish and under the weather, I figured it couldn't hurt.

Green Smoothie: Spinach, Apple, Banana, Ginger, Carrot

1 banana, sliced
1 apple, diced
1 carrot, grated
1 celery stalk, grated
1 inch fresh ginger, grated
1 cup fresh spinach
1 cup Greek yogurt
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup milk, I used almond milk

Blend all ingredients together until smooth.

Pretty colors

This smoothie definitely has a kick thanks to the ginger. It was almost too much ginger for me. The spinach was a great addition and gave it a fresh feeling. Now I have to figure out what green smoothie combination I'll try out next.

-Akemi-chan

Green Smoothie: Kale, Apple, Peanut Butter, Yogurt & Banana

There's been a massive trend in health magazines, blogs and pinterest involving green smoothies. The concept intrigues me. Add the sweetness of fruit with the heath benefits of raw leafy greens, yogurt and supplements. The meal on the go has gone green.

As my introductory green smoothie, I decided to use my new favorite vegetable: kale. I really wish I had some flaxseed or chia seed or vanilla protein powder to add, but there will be more green smoothie opportunities in the near future.

Green Smoothie

1 cup Kale, torn into little pieces
1 medium granny smith apple, cut into 1/4' pieces
1 medium banana, sliced
1 cup Greek yogurt, plain flavor
1/2 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp peanut butter, smooth
1/2 cup soy milk, I used original flavor
1/4 cup water

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. You may need to push the ingredients down into the blade depending on your blender and in what order you dumped the ingredients.

Easy peasy

The smoothie turned out mild in flavor and beautiful in color. It had a few hints of sweetness from the banana and honey, some tart from the apple and very filling from the peanut butter, yogurt and milk. Since raw kale has very little flavor it, I didn't notice it except for the green color. 

I can't wait to try out more green smoothies. Pineapple, spinach, peaches, blueberries... the possibilities are endless.

-Akemi-chan

Chocolate Coffee Banana Smoothie

Right now, I'm kinda on a smoothie kick. It's the perfect sweet breakfast pick up or post-workout treat. Plus, I'd give any excuse to use my new blender, I think it's true love.

I've been on a coffee kick as of late. It's been a change of habit since I'm normally a tea person. So to incorporate my new daily beverage into my new smoothie obsession, I found inspiration in a chocolate covered banana.

Chocolate Coffee Banana Smoothie

1 banana, sliced and frozen
1/4 cup lowfat yogurt, I used original flavor
1/2 cup coffee, cold
1/2 cup low fat milk
1 scoop protein powder, I used chocolate fudge

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

-Akemi-chan

Chocolately Blueberry Banana Smoothie

Background info: Boyfriend's Dad and Step Mom got me a beautiful blender for Christmas. I've been using it to indulge with some breakfast smoothies. Totally worth the clean up.

Chocolately Blueberry Banana Smoothie

1 small banana, sliced and frozen
1/4 cup blueberries
1/4 nonfat yogurt, I used original flavor
2 scoops lean protein powder, I used chocolate fudge flavor
1/2 cup milk, I used 2%

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Makes enough for two small smoothies or one large smoothie.

In order take it easier on the blender, I sliced the banana before I froze it. I usually add ice to my smoothies, but I omitted the ice for the frozen banana. The smoothie was like a chocolate banana smoothie with a hint of berry sweetness. Yum!

-Akemi-chan

En route to Hawaii

Today is the day that starts an all too familiar ritual of sleep deprivation, rushing, anticipation and eventually relief. Today is the day I flew home. Start with 3 hours of forced sleep, rushing to the airport, sleeping my way to DFW, grabbing fast food for sustenance and then enduring the almost nine hour flight to home sweet home.

Grabbing some Jamba Juice at DFW, and yes it’s green. (Apples N’ Greens to be precise)

One of the most stressful but exhilarating parts of flying standby is outfit selection. For me, this process normally takes at least an hour and up to a few days. You want to look professional enough to occupy a possible first class reclining chair, but also comfortable enough to be sitting for  10+ hours in a cramped seat. Not to mention the adaptive capabilities of an outfit, considering I’m going from 25 degree Illinois, to 45 degree Dallas to 80 degree Honolulu.

Frost-covered Illinois

Frosty car

This time, the outfit planning took about 3 days. Not only am I extremely indecisive, but I’ve been steadily losing weight thanks to limiting dining out and an increase in exercise. Therefore, my clothes do not fit as well as when I bought them, especially pants. I must’ve spent a small fortune on clothing when I worked at The Limited, due to my apparent lack of Fall/ Winter clothing when I first moved to Illinois. Now, I have about 5 pairs of pants that give me the appearance of a sagging backside.

I finally settled on my staple standby style of a cardigan and black slacks, with a little twist. Tie blouse into a bow, cropped slacks and loafers in lieu of pumps.

Chiffon Blouse: Banana Republic

Kelly Green Cardigan: The Limited

Cropped Black Slacks: New York and Company

Leather Loafers: Cole Haan

"We know why you fly"

I spent a grueling 8 and a half hour flight after a 2 hour flight. But it's all worth it to spend one whole week in Hawaii for the best holiday. Lots to do, lots of people to see and so little time. Posts will probably postponed until after the trip due to sheer amount of awesomeness that will commence. TTFN!

-Akemi-chan