Cooking and Life with Twins

The Vintage Chain: {GIVEAWAY} $50 Gift Certificate

2012-01-18T09:10:00.000-06:00

The Vintage Chain: {GIVEAWAY} $50 Gift Certificate

Check out this link to the Vintage Chain. They have beautiful hand-stamped necklaces, great for you or a Valentine's Day gift. My favorite is the Domed Name Charms with Birthstones, hint, hint!

My First Official 5k Race & Day 6 of Purification

2011-11-01T10:56:00.000-05:00

I ran my first official race on Saturday, Oct 29 and I did awesome! It was the Gary Burns 5k benefitting Frisco Education and I ran my best time yet (37.03 minutes). The weather was great for running...a little cold while standing around waiting for the race to start.

Although I didn't have the same problems as one of my friends that went with me, I did see a lot of bodies falling from being tripped by dogs on leashes and teenagers from several sports teams cutting corners, taking up the majority of the path walking next to each other, and zig zagging thoughout the group for a short sprint.

Other than that, it was a great race! I can definitely tell that I was motivated to run when someone older or a kid under the age of 7 passed me :-) I was not having that! It was a fun competition and I really enjoyed it.

Jennifer, Me, Jenn

I have already signed up for my next 5k race called Believe in McKinney on Nov 26, then the Frosty 5k in Frisco on Dec 10.

I was on Day 3 of my Standard Process Purification Program when I ran the race. I had organic celery sticks and my shake (whey protein, whole food fiber, flaxseed oil, water and fruit) for breakfast before the race, then an organic apple and water directly after the race. I didn't have any problems and I felt energized!

The SP Purification Program has been going really well so far. My only problem is that on Day 2 I got a migraine and had to leave work an noon to go home to lay down. I didn't think it would be that bad without caffeine because, about six months ago, I had switched from black tea to green tea. Anyway, that was my only day with a headache. I was able to suffer through it without taking any medicine (it is a purification program, so no medicine allowed if not a prescription, if I can do it). I feel the toxins leaving my body as we speak :-)

I even made it through Halloween trick-or-treating last night without sneaking candy from my kids' Halloween baskets.

Melanie was a Bat and Madison was Sleeping Beauty.

So, back to my purification process....I am on Day 6 today. I have two more days on my Cleanse supplements, then I change to the Green Food supplements for the rest of the 21 day program; still drinking the Whey Protein and Whole Food Fiber shakes.

Besides that, I have been eating different organic fruits (mostly in shakes and snacks) and different organic vegetables. This is my first time to try lentils. I use them in my salads and by themselves....taste like beans. I have made my own Balsamic Vinegarette salad dressing with the SP recipe and it is really good and easy! I am going to bake some eggplant and cauliflower tonight. Great thing is that my kids eat all the vegetables as a side with their dinner at night...so I am not cooking two meals.

My advice today: If you just make one change toward better health, choose to buy organic apples and organic celery. These foods are the top 1 and 2 spots on the dirty dozen of having the most pesticides and other chemicals that are harmful to our bodies.

Well, until next time, I am going to keep running and feeding my body organic, healthy foods.

Purify My Body, Lose the Toxins

2011-10-27T11:32:00.000-05:00

It is about time that I add an update to my blog. It is hard for me to find extra time since I have been going to bed early in order to get enough sleep to keep my body healthy. No more staying up until midnight catching up on things!

My running has been going pretty well. I have not been running every morning like I would like to...getting up at 5:00 a.m. is really difficult. My first official 5k race is this Saturday and I am really looking forward to it. My goal for this first race is not to come in last :-) I will update later about that experience. Then I will look to my next 5k on December 10th.

Today is the start of my body purification program for 21 days using Standard Process Purification Program. www.standardprocess.com My goal is to get the toxins out of my body that affect my liver, kidneys, small intestine, and large intestine. There are hundreds of chemicals in our bodies that can disrupt our immune, endocrine, nervous, and reproductive systems. My areas for improvement are (1) emotions (2) headaches (3) skin and (4) weight. Some of our toxins are from external factors, but most are from what we eat. Eating clean foods during the program (and all the time) are key to getting rid of a lot of the toxins in my body.

I start days 1-7 with shakes, whole food fiber and cleanse supplements. Days 8-21, I continue the shakes and whole food fiber, but stop the cleanse and add the green food supplements. I can eat as many fresh organic vegetables and fruit as I want, plus lentils and 4 T healthy oils. I can add free-range, hormone-free organic chicken on day 11. No alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, nuts/seeds, dairy, grains (except wild rice), and no processed or refined foods. No medicine, so I will try alternative methods if I get headaches from lack of caffeine...which should be minimal because I switched from black to green tea a few months ago anyway.

During my program I will blog about how I am doing and how I have been experimenting with new vegetable recipes. I am making my own salad dressing today for lunch on an endive salad (organic balsamic vinegar, flaxseed oil, organic Dijon mustard and water - forgot my fresh garlic today).

I have been drinking a lot of spring water (not tap) and adding fresh organic mint leaves for flavor. It makes the water look so pretty and inviting too :-)

So Day 1 is underway...more to come soon.

Running at 5:00 a.m.

2011-09-21T10:47:00.000-05:00

Oh yes I did!!! I stuck to my commitment for my first day of running! I was out the door at 5:20 this morning and ran/walked until 5:55 a.m. I even woke up at 5:12 a.m., 3 minutes before my alarm was suppose to go off (sure husband appreciated that).

Last night, I downloaded an app for my iPhone called iMapMyRUN (thanks to the recommendation of a friend). It is a great app! It tracked my route and gave me my time, average pace per mile, and miles traveled. Today I ran/walked 30 minutes for 2.09 miles, average 14.24 minutes per mile. Not bad for Day 1.

There are pros and cons to running outside in the early morning hours.

Con - still dark. I ran to the end of my street to turn left toward the park and I noticed it was pitch black, no street or safety lights; so I turned right and ran toward a main street with lots of businesses that were already open....plenty of street lights and lights from the stores. Oh and, yes, I had a small hunting knife clipped to my waistband in case I had a visitor (human or animal)! My mom suggests wasp spray for better distance from the 'visitor'. Don't really see myself running with a can of bug spray; I would probably spray myself :-) I did feel like I needed to stop and get sick at one point, but I figured that was my body wondering what I was doing out of bed at that time of the day and why I was sweating! Reminds me of my girls' first day of kindergarten as their new alarm clocks started beeping at 6:00 a.m. "Mommy, why is my alarm beeping in the middle of the night?" "No, honey, that is what 6:00 a.m. looks like!"

Pro - so much cooler at that time of day! Husband is home (asleep) with kids; I didn't get to run last night because he was not home until 9:45 p.m. My motivation and energy levels are much higher in the morning than at the end of the day when I just want to sit on the couch and relax after homework, dinner, baths, cleaning the kitchen and putting kids to bed! It does feel really great to be in the office and know that I have already done my workout for the day; plus it gives me more energy to do my work (we will see if that holds up around 3:00 or 4:00).

So Day 1 was successful! It feels great to mark something big off my to-do list before I even head out of the house to work. Now I have my new t-shirt, new shoes and new app, PLUS I registered for my first official 5k race today. It will be on October 29th, so I have plenty of time to prepare! I am very excited and I hope this excitement sticks with me and does not fade away like new things usually do! My usual commitment drop off date is about 2 weeks, so I need to make it over that 2 week marker! Wish me luck!

Getting Back on Track

2011-09-20T10:39:00.001-05:00

HOW I FELL OFF THE WAGON

Hello, Blog! Oh how I have missed you! We had a great summer, didn't we?! We spent a lot of time together. My kids didn't have any special activities; we just relaxed and tried to do a lot of swimming when the pool water wasn't boiling from the Texas summer heat (miserable). I was able to work from home 3 days a week, which allowed me to start preparing and cooking meals earlier in the day AND allowed me to run up to the gym for an aerobics class and not have to worry about getting a shower and rushing back to the office. I was able to focus more on my weight loss journey and make those 7:30 a.m. Saturday morning Weight Watchers meetings. It is true that attending meetings or being part of some kind of support group really works better and keeps you on track and motivated.

Well, this week is starting the 5th week of kindergarten for my twin girls and back to the office 5 days a week for me. I have missed my Weight Watchers meetings on Saturday mornings each of those weeks because I want to sleep in after having to get up everyday at 6:00 a.m. to get ready and make lunches for school/work.

My days are so busy with school, work, activities, homework (me and girls), soccer practice and games, some kind of social life, my spiritual life, my "me" time, and of course keeping the house clean and laundry washed. With my husband working days, leaving the house at 7:30 a.m. and getting home around 8:00 p.m., it is basically like I am a single, working mom. So to fit in the exercise time is difficult.

However, with this new schedule, I have gained back about 8 lbs of the 24 lbs I had lost this summer. I am back to that point where I say to myself, "I will not gain back the weight I have lost AND I will continue working on my healthy, fit self, no matter what it takes."

WHY DO I NEED TO GET BACK ON THE WAGON?
Yes, I want to be skinny again so I look awesome in a bathing suit in the summer time, but I also want to be healthy in order to feel better and have more energy. Most importantly, I want to live a long, full life and see my kids grow up with their families AND set a good example for their healthy habits (good food choices and daily exercise).

Kids follow the parents and they are ALWAYS watching you. If you eat french fries or chips with your meal and put broccoli or asparagus on their plate, they are going to look at you like you are crazy; then say, "can I have some of your fries." I make one healthy meal at each mealtime and we all eat it. If I try a new food and it wasn't the best, I just don't make it again or use it in a different way, in a different recipe.

It is the same concept when kids are learning to read (like mine are doing right now). We tell them "ready is fun", but we never pick up a book in front of them for our own reading time. Instead, we plop in front of the TV. Then we wonder why they would rather watch TV than read a book. I try to limit my TV time to one hour after they are in bed each evening (9-10:00 p.m.). Unfortunately, my reading time is after they are in bed too (8-9:00 p.m.). So I just try to talk to them the next morning what I was reading about or I make sure they see that my reading material is out and ready to go after they are all tucked in bed.

So this healthy lifestyle is for ME and for my children!

HOW TO GET BACK ON THE WAGON
I borrowed this quote from another blogger. This quote is going on my bathroom mirror tonight for me to read every morning. This is what is going to get me back on track.

"Weight loss is about truly being honest with yourself and committing with your whole heart, mind and body to an extraordinary journey which will benefit your life in so many more ways than just your health and body image issues."

I have to be 110% dedicated to this lifestyle and stop making excuses. I was reading a weight-loss blog earlier today and she was talking about all the same stuff that I do..."Do I have this problem?" "That is not me!" Oh yes, it seems I do.

I am the one that says "Monday is the day I will start, just let me get through this weekend." "I am going back to my Weight Watchers meetings this Saturday, but wait, I am going out of town in 2 weeks for work, I will start then." I use the throw pillows on the couch, like she does, so that people don't notice that I don't have that flat belly. "I don't have time to exercise." Next thing I know it will be, let's just enjoy the holidays and I will start on January 1st." I don't want that to happen to me! I don't want it to take a doctor telling me I have cholesterol problems, or your knees hurt because you are carrying too much weight, or anything that I can prevent now. I AM DOING THIS! Now how do I get started? :-)

EXERCISE: Well, I bought new running shoes and a motivational t-shirt to get started (pictures below). Now I just need schedule some time. I get everything else done because I schedule time for it, why not schedule exercise or meal planning? I am starting TODAY!

My options are: (1) Run from 5:15-6:00 a.m. (still dark outside, so not sure); (2) Run from 8:00-8:45 p.m. (dark at that time too); (3) Renew my gym membership and go from 5:00-5:50 a.m. When the time changes, I will be able to go outside in the mornings for sure.

My 2 Week Plan:

Plan for 9/20 - Run this evening 8:00-8:45 p.m.

Plan for 9/21, 9/22, 9/23 - Run in morning 5:15-6:00 a.m.

Plan for 9/24 - Run after 10:00 a.m. soccer game

Sunday is my day of REST (spiritual dedication)

Plan for 9/26, 9/27 - Run in morning 5:15-6:00 a.m.

Plan for 9/28, 9/29, 9/30 - (Traveling) Run treadmill in morning at hotel

Plan for 10/1 - Walk the entire DC Mall and Museums with my friend
Sunday is day of REST (and travel home)

I think mornings will be better for me (even though I am not a morning person), because when I am getting ready for work, I am thinking that I wish I could go to the gym. When I get back from my work trip, I will reevaluate if I want to renew my gym membership and do the treadmill or class at 5:00 a.m. or continue running outside for now. Also, I am signing up for the 5k run on October 29th! OK, I have a plan for exercise!

MEAL PLANNING: I will start by tracking every piece of food I put in my mouth so I know what I am eating each day and don't have to wonder where I went wrong. I will be using my WW app on my iPhone (easy and no excuses there). I go to the grocery store every Saturday so I will do weekly meal planning on Friday nights, so I know what meals I want to cook and what I need to buy at the store on Saturday.

THIS WEEK: Since I have already gone to the store for this week, I will look at what I have already bought and come up with lunches and dinners for the remainder of the week.

FOR NEXT WEEK: Then on Friday, I will plan for meals on Saturday - Monday since I am traveling Tuesday - Sunday next week. I will purchase food for my family and post a list of easy meal possibilities on the refrigerator. For my meals on Tuesday - Sunday, I will plan three meals a day, plus snacks on my flight. I am staying in a suite with a kitchen, and my office has a microwave to heat up my lunch if needed, so I don't have any excuses.

FOLLOWING WEEK: The week I return is a late Sunday night flight, so meal planning for that week will be tricky. I will do my meal planning on the flight home Sunday night, then I will have to go to the store on Monday night after work and dinner.

NOW I HAVE A PLAN - EXECUTE
Now that I have a plan, I am going to execute and stay on track. I will use my Blog (hopefully daily) to hold myself accountable. I also welcome anyone that has other advice or words of encouragement for me. I will remind myself I am human and it ok to have a bite of chocolate and cheese...it is ok to have a portion-controlled pasta meal, but I just need to remember to track what I eat, watch my portion sizes, and choose healthy foods 85% of the time.

REWARDS
Looking great and feeling great should be my best reward for myself!!!! Really? Get real! I want a reward!!! My reward will be a massage, facial, or pedicure for every 10 lbs I lose.

READY, SET, GET HEALTHY (with a plan of action)!!!

Meatloaf & Kale Chips

2011-08-03T00:29:00.000-05:00

Dinner tonight was meatloaf...reinvented! My mom passed me her meatloaf recipe, which I have made before and it was delicious! However, my husband doesn't like anything crunchy in his foods like meatloaf. My mom's recipe includes onions and green bell peppers, so I had to search for something new. I took ideas from about three different recipes and came up with my own.

Preheat oven 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine 1.5 lbs grass fed 96% lean ground beef, 15 crumbled Back to Nature Stone Ground Wheat Crackers, 1 egg, 2 minced garlic cloves, 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes, 1 cup Horizon low fat organic sour cream, 2T worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp onion powder. Mix well together and put in a loaf pan sprayed with non-stick olive oil cooking spray. Pour 4 oz tomato sauce on top and cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Add 4 oz more tomato sauce on top and cook 5 more minutes. Sprinkle with 1/4 c shaved parmesan cheese and cook for 1 minute. Sprinkle with fresh chives and serve.

This week was my first encounter with kale. I found a recipe for Kale Chips, so I modified it to my taste and tried it out with the meatloaf. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut leaves off of the thick stems and tear into bite-size pieces; spread on a cookie sheet. Whisk together 2T olive oil, 1T white wine vinegar, 1/2 tsp sea salt, and 1/4 tsp onion powder. Drizzle over the kale chips. Cook in the oven for about 10-15 minutes until edges are slightly brown and leaves are crunchy. Enjoy!

Napa Cabbage & Chicken Salad and Choosing Healthy Foods

2011-08-02T16:27:00.000-05:00

This Napa Cabbage salad was today's lunch and my girls and I ate it all up!

I am so proud of my girls (5 year old twins) and how well they eat. When given a choice of what to eat, (most of the time) they will ask for salads, fruits, nuts. It is so much easier to get your kids to eat healthy when you start from the beginning of life.

We try to eat "clean" at least 85% of the time. We still love our chicken nuggets and waffle fries from Chick-fil-a, but we limit that to about once a month. I also have to squeeze in my cheese enchiladas about once a month too!

The best thing to do is to make the healthy foods very tasty, fun, and appealing so kids (and adults) will choose the healthy option. My goal is to do that with my cooking and plating of our family meals. These days, we are challenged with making foods, like cabbage, appealing to kids while competing with gummies and cereals that have prizes inside or cartoon characters on the outside.

An example of how to avoid the character cereal and gummies is to tell my kids "instead buying foods that just have a picture of the characters on the box, which will be tossed in the trash when it is gone, lets buy a coloring book for hours of activity fun." Then I can give them fruits, cheese, pretzel sticks, nuts, or air popped popcorn for snack. They appreciate the coloring book or even a little toy from the $1 section better than starring at a picture on a box. Now this doesn't happen all the time, so I don't mean go buy a toy every time they ask for junk food at the store, but it helps in moderation, then just say 'no' the other times.

Back to the salad above...In a large mixing bowl, whisk 1T lime juice, 1T lemon juice, 2 tsp dark sesame oil, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper for the dressing. Toss the following ingredients and coat well...5 cups thinly sliced Napa cabbage, 1 lb shredded cooked organic chicken breast, 1 cup matchstick-cut carrots, 1 medium red bell pepper, and 3T scallions. Once tossed and coated well with the dressing, top with 2T fresh blue cheese crumbles. Enjoy!

Fast, Healthy Breakfast for kids and adults

2011-08-02T15:59:00.000-05:00

Waffles with Organic Plain Yogurt, Organic Honey, Organic Strawberries and Almond Slivers....yummy breakfast!

This morning, I thought I would treat my little girls to something other than their normal organic cereals or eggs. We had Waffles and Yogurt.

I like the all natural Van's line of frozen waffles when I am in a hurry. I like the multigrain with blueberries or just the plain multigrain.

Toast 1 waffle, top with about 1/2 cup of organic PLAIN yogurt or Greek yogurt. The sugar in this dish mainly comes naturally from the honey and the strawberries, so do not buy the flavored yogurt for this meal....that is too much sugar in the morning (or anytime)! Drizzle about 1 tsp of natural organic honey over the yogurt and waffle. Top with strawberries (or any kind of berry or sliced bananas) and a few (1 oz) almond slivers.

My girls loved it and it is a great meal to start the day! I also like making this for myself. If I am running late, it is something that I can assemble at work (since we have a toaster) and eat at my desk if needed. With no butter or syrup, this is a healthy alternative to the usual pancakes! Enjoy!

As always, comments, feedback, and different ideas are welcome when trying these dishes!

Zesty Zucchini Pasta - this one has a kick!

2011-08-02T15:28:00.000-05:00

This is a great vegetarian dish and I love zucchini! Beware, this one has a little kick!

My girls and I really loved this dish....my husband probably would have preferred it in a smaller portion as a side to a steak or even add some grilled chicken to the dish.

Cook 12 oz of spaghetti (no oil or salt added), drain. Remove 1 chile from a 7 oz can of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce and mince. Reserve 1T of the adobo sauce too. Store the rest of the can.

In a skillet, heat 2 tsp olive oil; add 4 minced garlic cloves and the minced chile and adobo sauce; saute for about one minute. Add 4 cups of shredded zucchini and 1 medium chopped red bell pepper; cook about 4 minutes stirring frequently. Add about 1T fresh lemon juice and stir. Toss the pasta and the zucchini mixture together in a mixing bowl. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper and 4T shaved Parmesan cheese. For a little crunch, add 1/4 cup almond slices. I served this dish with whole grain toast triangles.

Pasta Salad with Arugula & Raspberries

2011-08-02T15:12:00.000-05:00

I may have posted this one before, but it is a great pasta salad if you want something light, refreshing and quick. I made this pasta salad after church on Sunday for lunch and we didn't need a nap afterwards!

One of my good friends gave me some of her arugula she purchased from a local farmer here in town and they were beautiful and fresh! Thank you Deborah!

The Pasta Salad with Arugula is very diverse because you can use which ever fresh fruit is in season...raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries...any kind of berry would work. Even chopped grapes or honey dew would probably work too.

Toast about 2T of chopped walnuts in a skillet for about 1 minute stirring frequently; set aside. Cook any kind of pasta you would like (about 6 oz uncooked)...bow ties, penne, spirals. Barilla has a great whole grain pasta with omega-3. Once the pasta is cooked, set aside 1T of the pasta cooking water for the dressing later. Drain the pasta and toss immediately in a large mixing bowl with 2 cups of arugula (stems removed). Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow arugula to wilt with the hot pasta for about 6 minutes. Stir in 2T of fresh, chopped chives and 1-2 cups of your fruit of choice (raspberries for me).

In a separate small bowl, whisk together 1T white wine vinegar, 1T extra-virgin olive oil (for dressings), 1/4 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Pour dressing over the pasta mix and toss well. Sprinkle with 4T freshly crumbled blue cheese. 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Family Brunch with Blueberries

2011-07-30T12:40:00.000-05:00

We are enjoying a lazy Saturday morning since Sunday is going to be busy, busy!

We started off our morning with a family brunch at about 9:30. Brunch was blueberry pancakes with 100% maple syrup (1 tsp per pancake), scrambled organic eggs with omega-3, and uncured Canadian bacon from Sprouts. I had tea of course, but my girls had organic 365 orange juice, and my husband can't stay away from the soda, so he had Pepsi Max.

I am not a fan of soda (even diet). Your body can't tell the difference and the sugars are processed the same by your body...actually artificial sweeteners are worse for your body than real sugar. You can read this article by Dr. Pick on diet sodas http://www.womentowomen.com/healthyweight/dietsoda.aspx But that is a full topic for another day. Back to blueberries!

According to http://www.blueberrycoucil.org/, blueberries have the following health benefits:

Blueberries are packed with vitamin C.
Blueberries are dynamos of dietary fiber.
Blueberries are an excellent source of manganese.
Blueberries are leaders in antioxidant activity. Blueberries are near the top when it comes to antioxidant activity per serving. Antioxidants work to neutralize free radicals — unstable molecules linked to the development of cancer, cardiovascular disease and other age-related conditions such as Alzheimer’s. Substances in blueberries called polyphenols, specifically the anthocyanins that give the fruit its blue hue, are the major contributors to antioxidant antioxidant activity.

**IMPORTANT** One of my girls has texture issues when it comes to food. She can not eat fresh blueberries because of the "squishy" feel in her mouth. As an alternative, what I do is wash all of them from the container and blot to dry. I put them in a plastic container without a lid and stick it in the freezer. It is like "candy" to them...crunchy sweetness. Try it...your kids will love them. Don't buy the frozen ones in a bag...continue to buy the fresh ones, wash and freeze yourself.

I used the frozen ones in the pancakes today and they warmed up nicely while cooking. I served the frozen ones on the side. They thaw out very quickly if you want them as a snack or add them to a shake straight from the freezer! Perfect!!!

What to do with Leftovers?

2011-07-30T12:14:00.000-05:00

I apologize that I forgot to take a picture for this post, but I wanted to share my quick meal from this week using leftover chicken breast.

One night we had grilled chicken, but I made too much and had three chicken breasts leftover. The next night was a busy one for me. Wednesday, my husband worked until 8:00 p.m., I wanted to take an aerobics class at 5:45 p.m. at the gym, I didn't get off work until 5:00...what about dinner?

Here is what I did....I worked from home until 5:00 p.m. While preparing the Chicken Spaghetti, I gave my kids a bowl of fresh fruit (already cut up) for snack to hold them over until we got back from the gym. They were snacking, I was cutting up 1/4 onion, 1 bundle of broccoli, 4 cloves of garlic, 1 sweet red bell pepper. I sauteed for about 5 minutes in 1T olive oil. While that was sauteing, I heated up a jar of cheese whiz (not the best choice...working on alternative suggestion) until soft in microwave and cooked a box of Barilla whole grain bow ties for 10 minutes. Since I had shredded/sliced my cooked chicken breasts before putting them in the refrigerator the night before, that was ready to use. I stirred the cheese whiz and pasta together, then mixed in the vegetables and chicken with 3/4 cup of low sodium organic chicken broth...topped with 2% shredded cheese. I covered the casserole dish with foil and put in the refrigerator. This took about 15 minutes to put together.

We dashed off to the gym for my aerobics class and fun club time for the kids. When we got home an hour later, I turned the oven on to 350 degrees while I showered. Then popped the casserole into the oven for 25 minutes. While that heated up, I gave my girls their evening bath and set the table. By the time it was heated and ready to eat, it was about 7:30 p.m. Since they had the fruit at 5:00 p.m. a late dinner was ok...everyone was already dressed and ready for bed...all we had to do was eat and brush our teeth!

The casserole was nicely presented with the neutral colors of the cheese and whole grain noodles offset by the bold, slightly cooked colors of the green broccoli and red bell pepper. Sorry I forgot the picture...it helps so much!!! Since the dish had the whole grains, protein, vegetables and dairy, it was a complete meal and no sides are needed. I did throw in some watermelon as a side since we love fruit. Kids were in bed by 8:30 p.m. and after clean up, I was in bed by 9:30 p.m. Yea! Busy MOM!

Pulled Pork

2011-07-24T23:18:00.000-05:00

Short and Sweet (and smoky)!

Tonight's dinner was a pulled pork sandwich, with a side salad and watermelon.

My mom bought me a jar of Pulled Pork Starter from Williams-Sonoma, so I ventured off to Whole Foods again this weekend to purchase a 3 1/2 lb boneless shoulder pork roast.

This morning before church, I browned the pork in a skillet on all sides for about 7 minutes in 2T of canola oil. Then I transferred it to the crockpot and added the jar of Starter. I let it cook in the crockpot for about 7 hours...just in time for dinner. All I had to do was pull the meat apart (so tender) and put it on a bun. I cut up the salad and watermelon and we were all set. My husband and kids really enjoyed this meal!

Indian Tacos and Cherry Squares (tonight's dinner)

2011-07-23T22:05:00.000-05:00

Cherry Squares

I am starting my entry off tonight with the dessert, because it was so surprisingly yummy!!! This was actually a Weight Watchers recipe in my Weekly for Blueberry Squares.

All you do is mix 1 box of Angel Food cake mix with one 22 oz can of Lite Blueberry Pie Filling. Don't use any other ingredient. Cook for 30 minutes on 350 degrees. Cool and cut into 24 squares (2 points+ each)

On the shelf, they had blueberry, strawberry, cherry, lemon, and apple pie filling. The only flavor that was lite was the cherry. I didn't want to mess up my points plus value in the dessert, so I went with cherry instead of blueberry. Because angel food cake is so plain, I believe that any of those flavors would have worked. If I can find the lite blueberry, I will try that next time. The lite cherry pie filling can was actually only 20 oz, so I added 2 oz of water and mixed with the angel food cake; poured it into a 9x13 baking dish and baked for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

It was so good, I had 2 pieces for 4 points plus! It was worth it :)

Indian Tacos

My awesome Weight Watchers leader provided us with this recipe for Indian Tacos at our meeting today. She explained it was called Indian Tacos, not "curry" food, but the original recipe called for an Indian flatbread that is used on the bottom. The recipe has been reworked for a healthier option. I posted a picture of the recipe below.

This dinner was wonderful! I like it because it is more like a casserole that you can eat on for a couple of days. Jonathan had just stuffed himself with sushi while I was cooking it, so he wasn't that hungry. He ate some and said it was good, but he didn't like the crescent rolls used on the bottom. He said it was too sweet and would prefer some other kind of breading like pita bread. I actually really liked it and wouldn't change anything that I did. I think he just wasn't in the mood to eat tonight. Our twins loved it. They ate the 1/2 serving size I put on their plates, then enjoyed a cherry square afterwards!

This was a great meal because I didn't have to make any sides since beans and vegetables are included. The only thing I did differently than the recipe below was I added 3 cloves of garlic to the onions and bell peppers while cooking the beef. Then when I added the taco seasoning, can of beans and can of tomato sauce, I also added a 4 oz can of green chilies. I followed the recipe otherwise. It was great!!!

Used a New Vegetable for Dinner - Jicama

2011-07-18T23:20:00.000-05:00

Jicama is a root vegetable high in fiber. I thought I would give it a try this week since I had a great new recipe from Weight Watchers for Summer Slaw.

It is an ugly vegetable, but it tastes pretty good. You can eat it plain on a vegetable tray, chop it fine and add it with cabbage to fish tacos, or mix it in with stir fry (use anywhere you would use water chestnuts).

Summer Slaw
Toss together the following into a salad bowl.
4 C shredded green cabbage
1 1/2 C shredded jicama
1 C shredded radishes

Add 2T fresh lime juice, 2T rice vinegar, 1 tsp dark sesame oil, 1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp sea salt. Toss together until well coated.

I topped it off with some chopped, fresh cilantro.

I served the Summer Slaw tonight with steamed broccoli and the oven fried chicken recipe I posted last week.

It was a wonderful dinner and my whole family enjoyed it! The Summer Slaw gets an 'A' rating from us!

Snack Time for Grown-ups!

2011-07-18T01:53:00.000-05:00

After a long hard week of work, parenting, exercise classes, and a 3.2 lb loss this week, I decided to have grown-up snack time after everyone was in bed. This is my "treat" to myself and I enjoyed every minute of it.

I had a 4 oz glass of red wine, mixed fruit and Australian cheddar cheese for my evening alone time. My snack came from Whole Foods (my first trip ever - not one very close to me) and it was fresh and delicious!

I am ready for another week full of excitement! Take care of yourself too!

Best App Ever - Fooducate

2011-07-18T01:46:00.000-05:00

I heard about the best app ever the other day from a fellow Weight Watchers member. I don't know how I ever survived without it! It is called Fooducate and it is a free app for iPhone and Android. Below is the "about us" message from their website. http://www.fooducate.com/ Try it out...start scanning foods in your pantry and refrigerator now!!!

About Fooducate

Are you confused by ingredient lists, nutrition labels, health claims and marketing hype? Fooducate is here to help. We are a team of parents, dietitians, and techies. We realize that at the supermarket you have very little time to analyze food labels and extract the information that is important to you. We'd like to help you make better choices for you and your family.
Get the Fooducate mobile application and use it to:

Automatically scan a product barcode
See product highlights (both good & bad)
Compare products
Select better alternatives
Dig deeper and learn more about food and nutrition

Features:

Created by dietitians and concerned parents
Uses your mobile's camera to effortlessly scan UPC barcode
Over 200,000 unique products and growing daily
Simplified information helps you make better choices
Works on iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android OS version 2.2 and up

"... Fooducate is like taking your own personal dietitian to the supermarket..."
Fooducate analyzes information found in each product's nutrition panel and ingredient list.
You get to see the stuff manufacturers don't want you to notice, such as

excessive sugar
tricky trans fats
additives and preservatives
high fructose corn syrup
controversial food colorings
confusing serving sizes
and more...

Just pick up a product from the shelf, scan it, and let Fooducate do the rest.
Fooducate is NOT funded or influenced by food manufacturers, supplement companies, diets, or any sort of magic pill.

What to do with Leftover Chicken

2011-07-18T01:18:00.000-05:00

We had left over grilled chicken from dinner one night, so I made a fast, new meal out of it two nights later. I turned my left over grilled chicken into soft tacos in about 20 minutes.

I heated up 8 corn tortillas and stuffed each one with the grilled chicken. Then I added some shredded low fat Mexican blend shredded cheese. I added 2T of salad beans in each taco (black beans would work best, but I had left over salad beans too). I used one ear of fresh cooked corn, removed the kernels and split between the 8 tacos. I heated in the oven on 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until heated. Remove from the oven and add avocado slices, tomatoes and shredded lettuce. Dinner is ready!!!

Fried Chicken that is not fried

2011-07-10T23:08:00.000-05:00

After church today (over at noon), I came home and made Oven Fried Chicken and a cold cucumber salad. This was a pretty fast meal to make...we were all sitting down eating lunch by 12:45.

I found these all natural Ian's Panko Whole Wheat Breadcrumbs at Sprouts. The directions for making Oven Fried Chicken are on the back.

In a flat pan, mix 1 cup breadcrumbs, 4 garlic cloves, 1 T parsley, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp freshly ground pepper. Put 3/4 cup unbleached flour in another flat pan. Mix 1 egg and 3 T of Dijon mustard in a third pan. Take 2 skinless, boneless, organic chicken breasts and cut them in half cross-way, making 4 pieces. Beat chicken with mallet between saran wrap to tenderize. Put each piece of chicken in the flour, then the egg/mustard mixture, then in the breadcrumb mixture - coating well. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until chicken is done through. (Serves four, each piece of chicken is 7 points+).

The cold cucumber salad is my recipe created while trying to figure out a side dish for the chicken at the last minute. It was 2 medium cucumbers (from the local Farmers Market) sliced and cut in halves, handful of cherry tomatoes cut in half, 1/2 avocado cubed, 1/4 cup salad beans, 1T cilantro chopped, 1 tsp lemon juice, 1T olive oil (for dips and dressings), 1 tsp vinegar, 1/2 tsp sea salt and freshly ground pepper each. Mix together gently and put in the freezer for about 10 minutes or in the refrigerator 30 minutes. Stir again before serving. (Serves four, 4 points+)

Tuscan Style Cantaloupe

2011-07-10T22:46:00.001-05:00

Have you ever had an Extra Sweet Tuscan Style Cantaloupe? It is bright, beautiful, and really sweet. My girls really enjoyed it for a snack this afternoon. I found it at my local grocery store. The regular cantaloupe didn't look very good this week, then I saw this one and thought I would give it a shot. It is a great new food find! It stays on the list!

Slow Cooker Lasagna with Kentucky Green Beans

2011-07-10T22:27:00.000-05:00

I had a request for this one and just my luck, I made this for dinner tonight.

This is actually a slow cooker lasagna from weight watchers (11 points+, 6 servings....half a serving is enough for me - it makes a lot).

Cook 1 lb ground beef with 5 cloves of minced garlic and 1/2 small minced onion in a skillet until done. I used grass fed 90/10 ground beef from the Local Yocal in McKinney.

Add 2 cans of diced tomatoes (I like to use the Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted tomatoes), 1 can of tomato sauce (15 oz), 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1/3 tsp dried basil, 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes. Stir together in skillet with the meat mixture. Low simmer for about 5 minutes.

In the meantime, mix together 1 cup part-skim ricotta and 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese. Take 6 whole grain lasagna noodles and break them in half (you will have 12 halves). Do not cook noodles before...you put them in the crockpot raw.

Put 1/3 of meat mixture in the crockpot first. Lay over 6 halves of the lasagna noodles. Spread 1/2 of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Add another 1/3 layer of the meat mixture. Lay over the last 6 halves of the lasagna noodles. Spread the last half of the ricotta mixture. Top with the last third of the meat mixture. Cook on low for 3 hours.

When done, mix 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese with 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese. Turn off the crockpot and spread the cheese on top. Put the lid back on and set for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and let set for 10 more minutes. Use a spatula and cut into 6 servings.

KENTUCKY GREEN BEANS

Check out these green beans!!! I served these tonight as a side to the lasagna with new red potatoes. I found these at the local Farmer's Market. I had never seen Kentucky green beans before. They are wider and larger than regular green beans and they take longer to cook, but they were delicious!

Blue Cheese Sliders - buying local

2011-07-09T21:48:00.000-05:00

This weekend was an adventure in food buying! Normally I stick to a couple of places to buy my food, but I felt adventurous this weekend.

We started on Friday as a family going to the Local Yocal in the square in McKinney, TX. We bought some grass fed fresh ground beef, German garlic, local cucumbers, and yummy chocolate chip cookies (without processing or preservatives).

Saturday morning as a family, we went to the Frisco Farmers Market and bought some freshly baked bread (to go with our garlic we are going to roast with olive oil), cherry tomatoes that Melanie picked out, Kentucky green beans that Madison picked out, some red potatoes, peaches and strawberries. Great local foods...all fresh and bright colors.

After lunch, I ventured out by myself to Sprouts and Kroger for the remaining groceries. Between the two stores, I find the best organic fruits and vegetables.

For dinner tonight, I made Blue Cheese Sliders with the local beef we bought in McKinney. They were wonderful and a perfect little size for our girls. Instead of french fries, we had thin asparagus steamed in lemon juice, fresh minced garlic, and fresh ground pepper.

To make the sliders, I minced 10 cloves of fresh garlic and put them in a mixing bowl. I took 10 organic stoneground crackers and put them in a baggie and crushed them with a rolling pin, then added them to the bowl with the garlic. I added about a teaspoon of freshly ground pepper. I crumbled 8 T of Salemville Amish Blue Cheese into the bowl. Toss and mix together, then add the pound of 90/10 fresh grass-fed ground beef. Knead together until you can make patties. I made 8 small slider-sized patties out of the mix. Cook on the grill (or inside griddle, since it is too hot in Texas to be outside) until desired doneness (well-done for me). Put on the wheat slider bun (make sure you get a brand without high fructose corn syrup). Add lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard or mayo of choice. (pattie plus bun is 6 WW points+)

ENJOY!!!

Food Kids Love

2011-07-06T15:22:00.000-05:00

Well, I am trying to get back on track from traveling for work last week and then a long 4th of July weekend filled with family fun!!! My twins finally got to see Cars 2 and they loved it!

COOKING CAMP (mommy learns from the kids)

This week my girls are going to Cooking with Christ camp for a couple hours in the afternoons. I told them to learn something yummy so they could teach me. Yesterday they learned to make, what they call, 'fruit tacos'. Toast with whipped cream cheese topped with a fruit face. I wanted to surprise them, so this morning I made toast with weight watchers whipped cream cheese. Then I used raspberries for the eyes, strawberry half for the nose and part of a banana for the smile. Then I used simply fruit grape jelly as "lip gloss" on the banana. They loved it! Can't wait to see what they learn today!

Yesterday and today, I made great lunches that kids and adults will enjoy AND these are my own recipes. Most of the time I will follow other recipes or adjust other recipes, but these are mine.

FAST, FUN WEEKDAY LUNCH IDEAS

Lunch yesterday was Cold Pasta Salad - simple, colorful, fun and yummy. Kids can help combine ingredients. Use 3C cooked whole grain bowtie pasta stirred with 1/4C freshly grated Parmesan cheese while pasta is still warm. Put if freezer while making other toppings to be cool. In a different bowl, combine some organic cherry tomatoes (halved), chopped English cucumber, sliced black olives, and some organic raspberries. Stir in 1T olive oil (for dressings, not for cooking - there is a difference) and 1/2T vinegar with 1/2 tsp sea salt. Mix dressing and veggies all together gently not to smash the raspberries. Toss in the pasta/cheese mix. Once fully coated, put in a bowl and serve. For protein, you can also add some organic canned chicken, found next to the tuna in the grocery store. This takes about 10 minutes to cook the pasta and 5 minutes to combine all the other ingredients. (Sorry I forgot to take a picture). This is a great one to be taken to the office for lunch too!

Lunch today was Chicken and Pineapple - husband and kids both loved this one. I cubed 2 organic chicken breasts. Heat 1T sesame oil in a skillet. Add the cubed chicken and 5 cloves of minced fresh garlic. Cook about 10 minutes searing on both sides, stirring frequently. While that is cooking, in a medium bowl, combine 1/2 fresh pineapple in cubed pieces 4T low sodium soy sauce, 2T fresh organic honey, 1T regular mustard. Stir until sauce is combined and covers the pineapple. Once chicken is cooked, add the pineapple and sauce mix. Turn the burner to low simmer and cover for about 4 minutes for the flavors to absorb together. I really wanted to throw in some chopped broccoli to steam down just a little, but we ate all the broccoli last night with dinner. So this was just chicken and pineapple with the oriental sauce. Serve in bowls...it was fantastic! (No picture, the brown color of the sauce with the chicken doesn't photograph pretty, but it tastes great...broccoli would have given it that great, green color contrast)

Those were both great lunches that my whole family enjoyed. Both days, we had a fun healthy dessert after lunch as well. These can be used as a dessert or a larger portion for an afternoon snack.

DESSERTS/SNACKS

Yesterday, I put all the ingredients in individual bowls and let my girls assemble and stir them together so they can "make" their own dessert. I buy organic plain Greek yogurt in a larger tub so I can use the portions I need. For dessert, I put about 1/2 cup of the Greek yogurt in 2 separate kid cereal bowls. Then I let my girls each add 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp fresh honey, handful chopped peaches. They stirred it all in with the yogurt, then we topped with 1T plain granola with almond slivers.

Today, in a blender, I used 1/2 cup of that same organic plain Greek yogurt, 10 oz organic 2% Horizon milk with Omega-3's, 1T fresh honey, 7 organic strawberries, and a few pieces of ice. Blend together to make a strawberry smoothie...cheaper and you know what is in it...no sugar! The organic honey and natural strawberry sugars add the sweetness needed to make this a healthy, yummy dessert! This amount was enough to split into two cups for both my girls.

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Eating Clean & Traveling

2011-07-01T17:31:00.000-05:00

It has been a little over a week since my last blog entry. Sorry about that. It has been really crazy and long days at work. This week, I am actually in Reston, VA at our corporate office assisting with our quarterly close activities. I travel up here at least once a quarter.

So here is how I survive the eating dilemma without gaining 5 lbs each trip. The first night I arrive, I go to the local grocery store to buy groceries instead of eating out for 3 meals a day. I make sure I stay at a hotel with a refrigerator (petite size is what I get, but good for up to a week). I always make my grocery list and meal planner during my flight so I am prepared when I go to the store. My office has a mini-kitchen/break area, so I can bring my lunch and dinner with me to work. I say "dinner" too because we are usually here through dinner-time also.

I DO NOT BUY FROZEN MEALS!!!! That is not the answer :)

Here is my plan this week. I was only here for 3 full days.

Wednesday
Breakfast - banana, organic peach, greek organic yogurt
Snack - handful naked almonds
Lunch - Wolfgang Puck organic black bean soup (added some fresh made local salsa)
Snack - organic grapes, laughing cow cheese spread with a few nut thin crackers
Dinner - salad: bought prewashed organic spring mix with herbs, organic cherry tomatoes, english cucumber and Newman's Own natural ginger dressing

Thursday
Breakfast - banana, organic peach, greek organic yogurt
Snack - handful naked almonds
Lunch - baked organic potato (microwave 6 minutes), spread with the laughing cow cheese spread (favorite flavor - I use the chipotle queso), and top with some of the fresh local salsa. Made a side salad out of the spring mix, tomatoes, english cucumber
Snack - organic grapes and strawberries, couple more almonds for crunch
Dinner - TREAT: picked up cheese tortellini from Italian restaurant and ate in bed (half portion)

Friday
Breakfast - 2 bananas, greek organic yogurt
Lunch - Wolfgang Puck organic chicken noodle soup, and organic baked potato with the laughing cow cheese spread and salsa
Snack - baby carrots and garlic hummus (shared with office)
Dinner - salad - use remaining spring mix, tomatoes, cucumber - top with handful naked almonds.

Saturday
I am attending a Weight Watchers meeting at 8:30 a.m. in Virginia. I am excited about seeing what goes on at these meetings in a different state. It is also scary because I weigh myself every day to see how I am doing and what to expect before I go to my normal WW meeting. I don't have a scale with me so it will be a total surprise.

After my meeting, I am heading to the airport. I will eat a salad for early lunch from Max & Erma's. They have a great Main Street salad with grilled chicken.

Just a note to remember, I know that my meal plan up top sounds a little repetitive, but I want to buy as little ingredients as possible and use them over and over so I don't waste them. I try to use them in different ways so it doesn't get too boring. Like this time, I will have salad dressing left over, so I will just leave that in the work refrigerator for others to use.

I also at least eat one meal from a restaurant in my hotel bed as a special relaxing treat for myself.

Other good snacks would be the healthy choice popcorn, all organic fruit, organic greek yogurt, naked almonds (limited), baby organic carrots or naked pita chips with garlic hummus.

I hope this is helpful for you on traveling and still being able to stay on a healthy eating track and eating clean/organic foods. I got plenty of protein in the organic black bean soup, organic chicken noodle soup and the greek yogurt.

Next week, I will get some new recipe pictures posted for your enjoyment :)

Weight Loss Journey

2011-06-19T23:30:00.000-05:00

Well, I am in the middle of my weight loss journey with Weight Watchers. Saturday mornings are my weigh-in days. Since starting the program 16 weeks ago on February 26, 2011, I have not missed one meeting. I have gone every week, weather the 7:30 a.m. or 9:00 meeting. I received my 10% key chain on May 14, 2011 after losing 21.2 lbs. I received my 5k charm for walking/jogging a 5k in about 40 minutes a few weeks ago. This past Saturday, I received my 16 week charm, with a 1.6 lb loss this week for 24.4 lbs total.

Although I would really like to maintain an average weight loss goal of 2 lbs a week, which would put me at 32 lbs after 16 weeks, I am still doing really good at a current weight loss of 24.4 lbs, just 8 lbs behind my "on track" goal.

My ultimate goal is to lose 62 lbs. At 2 lbs per week, I should be there at 31 weeks, 1st week of October 2011. I will check in weekly on my weight loss update. Looking to implement an exercise plan this week. I had been walking in the evenings, but have not continued in the last 2 weeks. If I can add some kind of cardio, it should boost my weekly loss.

Well, until then keep following my food updates!

Cooking Show for my girls

2011-06-17T21:08:00.001-05:00

Tonight was a fun night with my kids. They have sat through so many cooking shows with me on TV that they wanted to pretend that the dinner I was making was part of a cooking show and they were watching. As I cooked, I explained what I was doing and they kept clapping for me. I let them taste the food as I went along.

Tonight's dinner was homemade chicken nuggets with honey mustard sauce and macaroni.

Cut 2 organic chicken breasts into 24 nugget-size pieces. Cut 24 strips from refrigerated seamless bread dough. Dab a little drop of honey mustard on the chicken pieces. Roll each piece of chicken with each strip of bread dough. Place on baking sheet and cook about 20 minutes at 375 degrees or until chicken is cooked through.

For the sauce, mix 6T honey mustard with 3t low sodium soy sauce. Drop in chives or cilantro.

For the macaroni salad, mix 4 cups of the warm cooked pasta with 3/4 cup fat free mayo, 1/4 fat free sour cream and 3T sweet pickle relish. Once combined, add 1 cup split cherry tomatoes, 1/2 cup cucumbers, 1 green and 1 yellow diced bell peppers. 1/4 cup of diced red onion would be good too, but my husband doesn't like raw onions, so I did not add them. Use 1/4t sea salt and pepper each. Combine all together. Chill for about 15 minutes and serve.

Everyone loved the homemade chicken nuggets, but my girls did not like the macaroni salad. Both my husband and I really enjoyed the salad though.

Overall, it was a fun night at the 'cooking show'!!! Family time is great! Off to my Weight Watchers meeting tomorrow, then to the Farmer's Market with my family.

Best Chicken Dinner

2011-06-16T21:35:00.001-05:00

Ok, let me just say, if you only make one meal that I have suggested, this MUST BE THE ONE!!! This dinner tonight was incredible! The sweetness of the onion sauce absorbing into the pan-seared chicken was wonderful! The side of spinach was a perfect match.

Chicken with Sweet Onion Sauce
Cut 2 chicken breasts in half making 4 pieces. Combine 3T of all-purpose unbleached flour, 1/2t sea salt, 1/2t fresh ground pepper. Coat the 4 chicken pieces with the flour mixture.

Heat 2t olive oil in a skillet and add your chicken pieces. Cook about 5 minutes until golden, then flip and cook an additional 5 minutes until cooked through. Remove from skillet and cover to keep warm.

Cut a sweet yellow onion in half and thinly slice and separate. Mince 1T fresh garlic. Saute the onion and garlic in the skillet used to cook the chicken until the onions are browned and soft, about 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of reduced-sodium chicken broth, 2T balsamic vinegar, 1t chopped fresh thyme, and 1/4t salt and pepper each. Cook over medium at a low boil for about 5 more minutes. Turn off heat and stir in 1T unsalted organic butter.

To serve, slice the chicken and cover with the sweet onion sauce. YUM!!!

To cook the spinach, I heat up 2t seasame oil and 5 sliced garlic cloves. Add 4 cups of organic baby spinach leaves. While cooking add about 2T low-sodium soy sauce. Cook spinach just until wilted. It will continue to wilt (cook) after being removed from the stove. Serve immediately.

My family just loved this meal. Everyone asked for seconds and I caught them eating the sweet onions out of the pan. No leftovers from this meal!

Health Note - there are items you need to skip if you can't buy them organic and there are some that are ok if they are not organic. From this meal, you need to buy organic chicken and spinach. Onions are ok if they are not organic. Remember that there is a difference between organic foods and natural foods. In short, Organic is produced without chemicals. Natural refers to foods that are not altered chemically or synthesized. In a perfect world, all foods would be natural and organic.

Yummy Treats

2011-06-16T21:08:00.000-05:00

Everyone in my family loves these mini treats. This is a great dessert for after dinner on a hot day! It is a sweet little ice cream sandwich made with coconut milk. Don't worry, you don't have to like coconut. My husband is not a fan, but he really enjoys these chocolate, creamy treats of goodness. You can't taste coconut. We don't have any food allergies in our family, but it is a great alternative for families who have a dairy allergy. It is also the perfect size for my little girls and just 2 Weight Watchers points plus for me!

My second treat find is a Frutstix Organic Fruit Bar. One of my girls likes the creamy coconut with real pieces of coconut and one likes the strawberry bar with real strawberry chunks. Here is the link to their website. I just buy the organic products. http://www.frutstix.com/

I find both of these at the local grocery store.

Dinner tonight - Pasta Salad

2011-06-15T19:47:00.001-05:00

Dinner tonight was a Pasta Salad with Arugula and a side of asparagus.

My family loved this recipe. What made it so great was that I bought fresh blue cheese and crumbled it myself instead of prepackaged.

Jonathan suggested that next time I use raspberries instead of cherry tomatoes to off-set the bitterness of the arugula and the boldness of the blue cheese.

I boiled 1/2 box of Barilla PLUS Farfalle (bow tie) pasta. It is whole grain with added protein and Omega-3's. Save 1T of the pasta water, then drain the pasta. Once the pasta is cooked, I mix it with 2 cups of baby arugula leaves and cover until wilted. Once ready, mix it up again and add 3T chives and 1C of halved cherry tomatoes OR raspberries (your choice).

To make the dressing, in a separate cup, whisk the 1T saved pasta water, 1T white wine vinegar, 1T extra virgin olive oil, 1/2t sea salt, 1/2 fresh ground pepper. Add the dressing to the pasta salad and toss to cover.

Crumble 3T fresh blue cheese and toss on top with 2T coarsely chopped walnuts. Enjoy!

The asparagus was cooked on the stove top for about 8-10 minutes for the thin asparagus (few minutes longer for the thick asparagus). In the pan, I added 4 cloves chopped garlic, 1t lemon juice, 1T balsamic vinegar, 1t low-sodium soy sauce. Steam on stove with lid for about 8-10 minutes.

NOTE - this pasta salad called for extra virgin olive oil for dipping and salads. Please make sure you take note that there is a difference. There is an olive oil for sauteing and grilling (cooking) and there is an olive oil for dipping sauces and salad dressings (not cooking). If you heat up or cook the one for dipping and dressings, it could be harmful to your health or go rancid at high temperatures (tasting bad).

Lunch and Dinner from Tuesday

2011-06-15T16:47:00.001-05:00

Lunch yesterday was a Chicago-style Hot Dog. I used Oscar Mayer nitrate free hot dogs and Oroweat Wheat buns. You have to be careful with bread containing high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). HFCS and crystalline fructose, highly processed sweetner derived from corn, contain arsenic and metals. Corn has been injected with pesticides to produce the chemical itself to avoid spraying...really!! Ugh. See more on that at the end of this post. Oroweat and Pepperidge Farm breads are 2 of the best that I have found so far.

Dinner was a homemade chicken pot pie and butternut squash fries. These fries are a great alternative to french fries and my family loved them. My girls even asked for seconds. When buying chicken and beef, I always buy organic grass/grain fed without the hormones or GM processing.

Read this GM CORN short article (disturbing) - http://www.naturalnews.com/030045_GM_corn_rivers.html

New Blogger

2011-06-15T14:56:00.000-05:00

I am a new blogger! This will be my first blog with many more to come. I am very passionate about cooking clean, healthy meals for my family. My twins are five year old and I want them to grow up to make their own healthy decisions on food later in life.

I know eating healthy and clean 100% of the time is near impossible, especially in this day with all the fast food and GM (genetically modified) food offered today. I strive, for myself and my family, to eat clean at least 85% of the time; that is about 3 meals a week that aren't "clean" or necessary healthy. My weakness is cheese enchiladas with queso. I love cheese and enjoy eating out at restaurants a couple times a week. When eating at home or taking my lunch to work, I have full control of what I put in my body and 85% is a good target!

I like to experiment with different recipes while cooking meals for my family. I also work full time, so I find short cuts on quick clean meals. There are no excuses, not even money. Kroger grocery store has an awesome natural foods section in their stores. Next to the bulk bins are machines that will grind whole almonds and peanuts. This is where I get my almond butter and peanut butter. I know it is made from pure nuts because I am grinding them right there. A container of peanut butter is about $1.75; very comparable to Jiff or Peter Pan that have 10 plus ingredients.

My goal for this blog is to cook meals, post a picture of that meals and provide my family review of what they thought about the meal. I also like to do a little research on the latest information about clean foods...I will post those results too. We have fun family moments to share. I am also still trying to lose my 'baby' fat 5 years later so I am doing Weight Watchers. I am on week 16 and I have lost 22.8 lbs. My total goal is 62 lbs. I will add those updates on my blog as well. Sometimes I travel for work and I will post information on how to eat clean and travel. And just anything else that pops in my head!!!