Low-Carb Sushi

I LOVE sushi, but it is by no means healthy for this non-carb eating girl.  After discussing sushi over lunch with a friend the other day, I was REALLY craving it.  So, this is what I had for dinner that evening.

It's zucchini, cream cheese, smoked salmon, and avocado.

You could make this by using cucumber, shrimp, crab, asparagus, etc.

Do yourself a favor and try it because it's 

absolutely delicious and cures that sushi craving.  

Jenn's Natural Protein Bars

A friend of mine is currently on the South Beach diet and is having great success.  In fact,  I'd even say that she's enjoying it.  ; )  I'm so proud of her!  Anyway, she was interested in my running protein bar recipe I posted the other day but was curious as to if it could be modified to be more South Beach friendly.  This would mean replacing the Jif PB and the honey with natural PB and agave syrup.  I felt like needed to figure out these modifications myself.  Oh, darn!  ; )

It turned out that some measurement modifications were necessary, but I think it was for the better.  The natural PB is a much sturdier PB and I couldn't get near the amount of oats stirred in, which means less carbs.  The fewer carbs the better in my opinion.

Here's what I came up with today...

Jenn's Natural Protein Bars

(South Beach Friendly)

Ingredients

1 cup natural creamy peanut butter 

(I used Trader Joe's PB. Ingredients: Peanuts, salt)

1/2 cup agave syrup (I used TJ's)*

1 1/4 cups protein powder (I used GNC)** 

1/3 cup quick oats (I used Walmart's Great Value)

2 Tbsp. flax seed (Whole Foods)

Directions

Microwave peanut butter and agave syrup in a microwave-safe bowl for about a minute. 

Stir well and add protein powder and flax seed until well blended.  

Add oats and stir well.

Mix might be kind of crumbly.  

Pour mixture into a lightly pammed 8x8 pan and pack mix down. 

Chill for about an hour and cut into bars. 

I get up to 36 bars out of this recipe.  

They are small, but are rich and filling

These freeze well!

I took these protein bars (along with non-diet friendly items) to a "girly party" tonight with a bunch of girlfriends.  Not only were these things disappearing, but they were disappearing FAST. The women loved them and couldn't believe they had protein powder in them.  Several women asked me for the recipe.  

Moral of the story: I should probably be more confident about my "healthy" creations and encourage others to be healthy with me.

A Day In The Kitchen

The average person would probably be tired of being in the kitchen after baking and decorating over 6 dozen cookies. It's a good thing I'm not average.  ; )

I prepared some yummy food for me and the hubster today. Here's what I made and/or ate...

Brunch:  

Multigrain Banana Nut Pancakes

• Whoa!  These were good. I used Trader Joe's multigrain pancake and baking mix. I halved the recipe on the box and used unsweetened soy milk instead of regular milk. I also added an entire mashed banana and chopped pecans. Mmm...
• David absolutely loved eating these with a cup of fresh coffee while chillin' in his pajamas. We LOVE lazy days

Snack:

On Your Own

• We munched. David had baby carrots and some other stuff. I munched on LF string cheese, raisins, and raw almonds.  

Dinner:

Garlic, Herb, & Wine Baked Chicken

• I marinated boneless, skinless chicken breasts with a seasoning packet by McCormick and then baked it this evening. So tasty!

Roasted Carrots

• I took whole carrots, scrubbed them well, cut off the ends, and placed them in a corningware baking dish with a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. I baked them at 375 for 30 minutes then turned the carrots, topped with a bit more olive oil, salt, and pepper.  They baked for another 30 minutes. I made them once before (recently too!) and David loved them so he actually requested them while we were at Sams today. We purchased a 5lb bag of carrots for 2.98.  Awesome!
• I experimented by making glazed carrots too. I scrubbed and cut off the ends of the carrots and then cut them in bite-sized pieces.  They were placed in another corningware dish along with 1Tbsp (all I had open at the time) and a nice sprinkling of brown sugar. The carrots were baked for 30 minutes at 375. When the timer went off, I pulled them out, gave them a good stir, and baked them for another 30. I was worried they'd be too sweet, but it only provided a very thin glaze. These were really good and similar to the glazed carrots that Red Rock Canyon Grill serves (but I bet mine were healthier). I'll be making these again.  

Cracker Barrel Limited Edition Cheese

• This cheese is out of this world amazing. For real. Cheese is expensive, but I can't live without it. It's honestly one of my favorite foods. I was at Walmart the other day and saw they had this cheese marked down to 1.98. I bought one to try and ended up going back to purchase four more. Like I said... it's out of this world (and currently affordable!).  

Olives

• I finally made it to an OKC Aldi the other day. My first Aldi experience was in St. Louis. Times were tough and ALDI helped us survive.  Whew...  Anyways, I became a huge fan of many of their products. Unfortunately, Aldi isn't as convenient or close to me as the one in STL so I won't be going there every time I go grocery shopping. Some of the products I love from Aldi are their OLIVES. I don't know what it is, but they have THE BEST BLACK OLIVES! I purchased some from Walmart and ended up throwing them out. A co-worker of mine agreed and informed me that she purchased a name brand can of olives at a local grocery and ended up throwing them out. I'm tellin' ya, ALDI's OLIVES ARE BEST!  I also love their Spanish olives, refried beans, canned beans, canned tomatoes, canned veggies, turkey ham, guacamole (just like Wholly Guacamole, but much cheaper), and their frozen turkey meatballs.  Oh Aldi, I have missed you!!! My pocketbook has also missed you. I promise to not wait so long before visiting you again.  

Oatmeal Cake

• I was obviously having baking withdrawal. I told you I wasn't normal.  = )  This recipe came from my Grandmother and it's incredible. It's the perfect winter dessert. The cake itself calls for 1 cup brown sugar AND 1 cup white sugar. I experimented and replaced the 1 cup white sugar with 1 cup Splenda for baking. The cake still turned out wonderful. It's topped with buttery coconut brown sugar goodness. I cut the cake into small servings, but David still had 3 pieces. How funny is that?! The man LOVES sweets.I keep telling him that he's sweet enough already.  ; ) 

That's our day in a nutshell. We'll be eating leftovers for the next couple of days. That gives me time to decide what I want to do with the turkey ham that's in the fridge and the pie crust. Hmmm...  Decisions, decisions.  

A "Cheesy" Dessert

My dear friend, Amanda, introduced me to the Mocha Ricotta.  I read all about it on her blog yesterday.  Last night I made a small, experimental portion.  It was a hit!  
I've enjoyed ricotta with protein powder plenty of times, but never thought about cocoa powder.  When I use the cocoa powder, I'm missing out on added protein (extra calories and fat too), but it's much lighter on the tummy.  Protein powder is really filling... and that's not always a good thing.
  
So, here's my version of the cheesy dessert.....

___________________________________

MOCHA RICOTTA

Ingredients:

Ricotta cheese (part-skim)
SF vanilla Torani
Hershey's special dark cocoa powder
A few raw almonds
A few semi-sweet choco chips (an optional naughty-naughty)

Directions:

Add first 3 ingredients in a small bowl and stir very well.
Sprinkle on toppings
Enjoy!

********************
Other Optional Toppings:
Pecans
Walnuts
Fresh berries
Unsweetened coconut flakes
A dollop of natural peanut butter
Banana slices
SF Caramel topping
SF Jam/Jelly/Preserves

__________________________________

Give this cheesy dessert a whirl and let me know what you think.  I'd love to hear about your Mocha Ricotta creation!

Also, feel free to follow Amanda's "Better Me Up" journey by becoming a FOLLOWER of her blog... and don't forget to click "FOLLOW" on my blog too!  = )

2 Busy 2 Blog

That's the story of my life lately. Teaching has been fantastic and keeps me busy. Staying busy is a wonderful thing for me right now. I really love my school. I'm one super blessed gal. ; )

David flew to OKC on Sept. 10 for a short visit. We spent all day Saturday together and then he drove his new wheels back to STL on Sunday, Sept. 12. He really loves his new car. I have to say that it is really nice. It's the nicest car he's had since we've been married and it's the first time he's had a car newer than mine.

I ran another 5K on Saturday, Sept. 18. It was the Swazi 5K with Bethany First Church of the Nazarene. My school principal attends that church. He was kind enough to turn in my registration and even deliver my race packet to me. How awesome is that? All I had to do was show up and run.

Race day was brutally hot. I didn't get in enough water before the run and I didn't get in my normal dose of caffeine either. It was a struggle, but I made it. I ran the entire 3.1 miles and it had been 2 weeks since my last run. Yikes!

Amy (Aunt In-Law) and April (Sister In-Law) also ran the 5K. Unlike myself, they've been training. They both did fantastic and I'm super proud of them.

Here's a photo of us right before the run...

My sister in-law, April, came over on Sunday evening. We made caramel apples and had a great time catching up. We were long overdue for some girl family bonding time.

I made us a delicious turkey and spinach crustless quiche to enjoy for dinner along with fresh broccoli, cauliflower, and olives. I also introduced April to a Green Monster Smoothie. She thought it was tasty. Really, I promise she did!!! You should give them a try too!

Jenn's Crustless Quiche

5 Eggs
3/4-1 cup shredded cheese
spinach (fresh or 1 pkg frozen) 
deli turkey (or any leftover meat)
salt and pepper to taste
opt: tomato slices on top

Spray pie pan with cooking spray.

Bake at 350 for 30 min.

Let cool for 5 min. and ENJOY!

__________________________

It's also great with:

bacon and swiss

sausage and cheddar

ham and swiss

ham and cheddar

chicken, black beans, and cheddar

pot roast and cheddar

beef and mozzarella

etc...

get creative!

On a very happy note, I started teaching a new clarinet student today. She is an absolute sweetheart! Not only is she in band, but she's giving cross country a whirl this year. I think we'll get along perfectly. I'm encouraging her to run some 5Ks with me. I told her that she'd beat me for sure, but I'd really love for her to chase me. Maybe that would speed me up a bit. Ha!

= )

Tomorrow is going to be a crazy long day. I teach all day and then have to be at the school until 7:30 (probably 7:45pm) tomorrow night. That equals a 12 hour day. We're there so late because of conferences. I can't complain too much because working extra on Tuesday and Thursday night gives me Friday off work. Woohoo! How am I celebrating? Well, David is flying to town on Thursday night. Do you think I'm excited? YES!!!

Off to bed I go. Have a blessed Tuesday! XOXO!

CHOCOLATE

I may have had a couple of

Sugar Free Dark Chocolate bars on hand.

My local Trader Joe's sells them for 1.99 a bar and

my local Walmart sells them for 1.47 a bar.

What on earth is a girl to do with

2 bars of chocolate?

Melt it and eat it with a spoon???

It could happen, but I wouldn't suggest it

with the sugar free stuff.

It's likely that you'll regret it in a few hours.

Check out the GORGEOUS STRAWBERRIES I picked up at a local farmer's market today.

And the STRAWBERRY meets CHOCOLATE!

It's a match made in heaven!

I may have dipped a couple of

frozen bananas too...

And then I dipped some peanuts...

Does it get any better than this?

Mmm... probably not.

I know it's a bad photo (iPhone and horrible kitchen lighting), but you get the idea...

Peanuts, bananas, and strawberries all dipped in

SUGAR FREE DARK CHOCOLATE!

All Together Now:

Oooohhhh......

Aaaahhhhh......

Kale Chips

The title says it all! I used to be addicted to chips..... more specifically, chips and salsa! They weren't just my favorite things to eat, they were a FOOD GROUP. No, I'm not kidding about that one. = ) I could eat chips and salsa 3 meals a day if someone would have let me. And I must say that the chip was only a means of transportation to get the salsa in the mouth. Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about... I know there are others out there who understand. Hehee...

I used to be able to sit down and eat an entire 16 oz. jar of salsa in one sitting. Looking back that sure does explain a lot.

Well, I no longer eat chips and salsa. In fact, the last time I pigged out on chips and salsa was at my birthday dinner last June (2009) with my husband and a group of our close friends. I swore them off after that moment. I rarely eat Mexican food and I rarely eat salsa these days. The only time I ever really eat salsa now is if it's on eggs. That's about it.

I've been craving a salty snack lately and chips, pretzels, and crackers are NOT a good choice for a former fat chick/recovering carboholic. It just isn't.... TRUST ME. Today I went to the grocery store to pick up some bananas and what did I see??? They had those yummy, scrumptious GOLDFISH crackers on sale. Those were things I never rarely ate when I did eat carbs, but I must have been in a weak moment today because they were calling my name. Really, they were! I suddenly remembered a recipe I saved for KALE CHIPS. Luckily I remembered enough of the recipe to know that all I needed was kale. So I quickly cruised on over to the produce section and bought a bunch of kale so I could make kale chips to go with our bun-less burgers for dinner.

Kale Chips

4 c. kale, chopped

1 tsp. Emeril's Essence seasoning (I left this out)

1 tbsp. EVOO

(I added a bit of salt)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Toss kale in oil and spices on a baking sheet.

Roast for 10 minutes.

Serve with hot sauce and ketchup.

Gotta say.... these hit the spot! They really did satisfy my craving for something crunchy and salty. I'll be hanging on to this recipe.

Turkey & Veggie NO-Pasta Lasagna

Ingredients:

1-2 pounds Ground turkey (depending on how meaty you want your lasagna)

1-2 cans tomato paste (1 for each pound of meat)

2 cups (16oz) 2% cottage cheese

2 large eggs

1-8oz bag shredded mozzarella cheese

Assorted cooked veggies

(I used a steamer bag of broccoli, cauliflower and carrots; asparagus, green/red peppers, zucchini, squash, mushrooms, etc. would also be good)

Spinach leaves (I used 1/2 a bag of the washed and ready to eat stuff... got it on sale for $1)

1/2 cup water

Italian Seasoning

Directions:

In a sauce pan cook the turkey meat.

Add tomato paste to turkey, stir well

Add water and simmer for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally

Add spices (Italian seasoning and I added a bit of salt to bring out the delicious flavors of the tomato paste)

In another bowl, .....

Add 2 eggs

Add cottage cheese to the eggs and mix until blended thoroughly

In a baking dish, add some of the meat mixture

Add some spinach leaves, cottage cheese mixture, and 1/2 the mozzarella

Add steamed veggies (I used broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots)

Then you can add more meat mixture, spinach leaves, cottage cheese mixture, tomato slices, and mozzarella. Get creative... the layers don't have to be perfectly organized.

And it's into the oven...

30 minutes later = )

YUMMO!

I think this was super quick and easy to make.

It tasted great and was healthy for us too!

Enjoy!

Daily Eats

My time is up with "Daily Eats," but I feel I should keep it going a while longer for accountability purposes. The little splurges of sugar I had during the weekend triggered something leaving me with an enormous sweet tooth. I guess it's not smart for a former carbohydrate addict to have an occasional carbohydrate just like it isn't smart for a former alcoholic to have some alcohol or a smoker a cigarette... you get my point.

I enjoyed 2 sugar free popsicles today and that still didn't satisfy my sweet tooth. Luckily I'm a crazy person that keeps a hefty stock of pantry items.... especially a tower of sugar free Jello. = )

Here's my dessert for the evening and it was loaded with protein. Not only did it satisfy my sweet tooth, but the protein and fat satisfied my tummy for hours.

Lime & Cottage Cheese Jello Salad

Ingredients:

1 pkg. sugar free lime Jello

1/2 (or 1) can crushed pineapple, drained and rinsed

1 small carton 2% cottage cheese

1/4-1/3 cup chopped pecans, optional

Directions:

Prepare Jello according to package directions.

Chill until thickened slightly (60-90 minutes).

Add pineapple, cottage cheese, and pecans and beat until frothy on top.

Chill until set.

* I used 1/2 can of the pineapple because an entire can has

too many carbs/sugar for my liking.

David is NOT a fan of cottage cheese so I made him his own Jello dessert. He had a bowl of sugar free orange Jello with my leftover pineapple and some mandarin oranges. YUM!

Greek Scramble

I wanted to detox today from all the junk I consumed this weekend (running 12 miles made me believe it was okay to enjoy some wedding cake... the scale proved me wrong today... NOT cool!). For those who are interested, my "detox" is basically a liquid diet including protein shakes in place of meals, Crystal Light, broth, sugar free jello, sugar free popsicles, herbal tea, and tons of water. I made it to about 5pm and I was absolutely starving. The aroma of the food David was preparing for his dinner just put me over the edge. I ended up eating a small portion of steamed edamame and 2% cottage cheese. At about 8pm I was starving again so I made some scrambled eggs. I used one whole egg and some liquid egg whites. I added some things to it and came up with Greek eggs. It was too good not to share.

= )

Greek Scramble

Ingredients:

Eggs (I used 1 whole egg and some egg whites)

Feta cheese

Kalamata Olives

Spinach

Greek Dressing, optional

Directions:

Scramble the eggs

Add feta and stir until slightly warm

Place a few spinach leaves in a plate or bowl

Place egg mixture on bed of spinach

Add a few kalamata olives

Top with a little Greek dressing, optional

Serve and Enjoy!

Mozzarella Caprese Omelette

I recently discovered the magic of Trader Joe's Basil Pesto.  

It's sooo GOOD!

This is what I had for brunch yesterday.  YUMMY!

MOZZARELLA CAPRESE OMELETTE

basil pesto

the best lil' mozzarella balls in the world!

3 eggs + 2 egg whites and pesto in my fancy crepe pan

once the eggs are mostly cooked, 

i pile on sliced grape tomatoes and sliced mozzarella balls

fold in half

it makes enough for 2 healthy servings

MOZZARELLA CAPRESE OMELETTE

Ingredients:

Eggs (I used 3 eggs + 2 egg whites)

Basil Pesto (I used about 1 Tbsp)

Mozzarella Balls (I used about 8)

Grape Tomatoes (I used about 10)

Directions:

1.  In a bowl, combine eggs and pesto.  Stir well

2.  Pour into ungreased crepe pan or skillet (no need to add oil or butter to pan because there's already olive oil in the pesto)

3.  Cook eggs on low to medium heat until mostly set

4. Add sliced mozzarella balls and sliced grape tomatoes

5.  Fold in half to form an omelette

6.  Heat until cheese is melty and gooey

7. Transfer to plates

Enjoy!