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Well, certainly not that kind of love, but you know that feeling of awe and sheer admiration for another person?  That feeling of excitement that makes you shaky and speechless? . . . Monday was pretty much the same ol’ same ol’ for me, except I got to meet Giada DeLaurentiis!!!!!!  I’m sure all of you well know who she is and shame on you if you don’t!  She is pretty much my idol and I adore her sense of style, amicable nature and of course delicious and elegant cooking.  

I first became a fan of Giada my sophomore year of high school when I began to become infatuated with cooking and preferred to watch hours and hours of FoodNetwork instead of MTV any day.  She was just so inspirational and always had the most delectable, yet easily approachable dishes that everyone could love.  I’m also a huuuuge pasta fan, if you couldn’t tell by all my pasta dishes and largest pasta tag in the sidebar 🙂  It’s just, well, darn good!

Kristen‘s mom was so nice to get to Sur La Table early and wait in line for us.

By the time Kristen and I got there after work it wasn’t that long at all before we were about to meet Giada! aaaah!

I didn’t even know what to say, would she think I was a big goof, what if I totally tripped or . .

Ok, let me just say that she is just as absolutely gorgeous and amicable in person as she is on TV!!!  and I think I adore her even more now.  Kristen walked up for the signing first, and as I approached she said, “another Kristen,” and I replied, “yes, we’re both Kristen, both registered dietitians, both have food blogs and we both LOVE you!” OMG, what a dork! I thought.  She replied with a big Giada smile, “well, I hope you enjoy these recipes!”  I about keeled over right then and thanked her for signing her new book.  We also grabbed a few pictures afterwards with Kristen’s camera. We wanted to just stand there in amazement and watch or stay after and see if she wanted to grab some dinner 🙂  ha!

I’ve already looked through her new cookbook and I can tell you there are some great recipes to be tried!

There are also some great stories of her life in Italy and also of her new family and adorable daughter, Jade.  I’d also really like to pick the brains of the food photographers because the photos are absolutely stunning.  A few recipes that stood out for me to try first include:

• cheesy baked farro
• cheese-stuffed dates with prosciutto
• lemon chicken soup with spaghetti
• rigatoni with creamy mushroom sauce

Yes please!!!

I was just so thrilled for this opportunity.  It was very surreal indeed.  The only other time I was able to meet a celebrity chef was almost 3 years ago at FNCE when Kristen and I also met Ming Tsai, and he signed his cookbook that I won!  Such fun 🙂

Thanks Giada, it was so wonderful to meet you!

Other than meeting famous people 😀 I haven’t been up to much, just working, going to school and trying to get back into the swing of fitness again.  I managed to get a 26.5 mile ride on Sunday, but I only averaged 14mph and was really not feeling too hot.  I had to get Chris to ride back home and come pick me up, geez.  Well, that’s what happens when I take 2 weeks off and expect to be right back at it.  But the views around the lake were stunning even with that darn headwind!

I did make it to body pump tonight and I felt energized and not as decrepit as my first attempt after the long stint of no exercise last Thursday when I ended up super sore.  It’s getting there!

I’m also on the hunt to find a whey protein powder that doesn’t taste like crap and I have a few to review.  Optimum Nutrition sent me a sample packet of their HydroWhey to try and I really wasn’t a fan.  I mixed what was a half serving in the packet with about 4oz of NF milk and a bit of water and had it after my weight session.  It had a fairly nice chocolate flavor up front, but the back end was not that tasty with a plastic-y, weird after taste.  I’m not sure about their other whey products though?

Jay Robb was also kind enough to send me a large sample packet with a variety of their different protein product flavors, along with a shaker bottle (love these!), some protein bars and a tank-top t-shirt.  So far I have only tried the Chocolate flavored whey and I was hoping I wouldn’t be able to taste the stevia, but I just don’t like that aftertaste!  And any sugar alcohols seem to make my tummy go crazy.  I’m still working through the other flavors 🙂

The one promising contender in the flavor department is BSN.  Even though it is a mixture of different protein sources and has the addition of a small amount of sugars, it has the best flavor by far.  I tried the chocolate coconut on it’s own with milk and it was like a delicious and thick chocolate milkshake that tasted real.  I also tried the banana nut bread mixed with some yogurt and that was the bomb too.  I’m looking forward to trying the cinnamon bun flavor soon!

Well, that’s about it from here.  I apologize for my absence lately 🙁  I’m in the community for the next 3 weeks and it’s hard to find that little bit of extra time.  Plus it’s getting down to the wire for the end of the semester . . . eek!  Wow, it went by really fast didn’t it?  I have a feeling that it’s going to continue to fly.  Chris has been sick, battling a cold and he’s supposed to be riding a century this Saturday for the Tour de Cure! = /  I’m trying to convince him to do the metric and no one will think any less of him.  I just want him to be okay.

Know that I appreciate each and every one of you and adore your blogs!  A little birdie told me there may be a giveaway coming up 🙂

I’ll leave you with a quote that really touched my heart from Giada’s new cookbook:

Home cooking is a way to express your love for family and friends, and to make time in your life, no matter how full, for togetherness and new traditions.  I hope this book will encourage you to spend a bit more time around the table, and to enjoy every moment — and every bite.

Hope you are having a nice week!