Souper Kabocha Recipes February 8, 2010

Hello friends!!  My left wrist has been hurting really bad.  I must have done something to it and it just progressively keeps getting worse.  Yoga is definitely out for awhile.  Big bummer.  So, this post is going to be as light as possible with words since typing is really doing my wrist no good right now.

 

So remember that recipe I promised with the hint that it started with a “K” and rhymes with “gotcha?”  If you guessed Kabocha, you are right!!  How do you pronounce it?  Anyway, Andrew made us a gorgeous Kabocha Soup on Saturday night.

 

He started by cooking some kabocha (skins and all) and a large carrot in the crockpot on low all morning long.  He added in about a cup of water. 

 

After it had cooked completely, he added in 1/2 pint of cream, 2 cans of chicken broth, shitake mushrooms, and some salt.

 

 

He roasted up little “kabocha croutons” to go on top!

 

 

 

It was so amazing, but just be careful not to eat too much… this soup has lots of fiber… I won’t get into any TMI, just take my word for it. 

 

We had some leftover “croutons” so I used them in my breakfast the next morning.

 

 

Who needs breakfast potatoes when you can have breakfast kabocha??

 

 

Awesome breakfast!!

 

And using some of the leftover soup, I created tonight’s dinner……………………….. CHOCOLATE PROTEIN KABOCHA ICE CREAM!!   Using recipes I’ve seen here and here, I came up with this fabulous concoction in a  jar.

 

 

• handful of ice cubes
• handful of spinach
• 1 cup of frozen leftover kabocha soup
• 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder
• 1 tbsp dark cacao powder
• 1/2 carton of 2% plain chobani yogurt
• 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum
• 2 packets of stevia

Crush the ice and frozen kabocha, add all the other ingredients, blend well, and ENJOY!!   It was awesome to eat while scraping the PB off the sides of the jar.  So decadent and delicious!!  As for the xanthan gum, LOVE IT!  But I can definitely see how I’m missing out by not having guar gum.  I think I’ll have to order some online because my Whole Foods doesn’t carry it. 

 

And on the side, I had a piece of toast drizzled with olive oil and something new to me – nutritional yeast!!

 

 

I love nutritional yeast!!  I’ve also been eating it on apple slices.  Yum!!

 

And in un-kabocha related news… here is what I made for the Super Bowl party we went to last night.

 

 

King Ranch Chicken Casserole from Southern Living.

 

 

It got rave reviews!!

 

 

As did Andrew’s corn flake crusted jalapeno poppers!!

 

I need to get in bed soon…I went to bed at midnight last night and I’m paying for it today!! 

 

Goodnight, yall!

Gluten Free Em February 6, 2010

Thank you all so much for your sweet comments about our engagement anniversary.  I enjoyed reading about all of your engagement ring stories too!  

 

I’d like to say I’m such a supportive wife that I am also gluten free 100% of the time, but I’m not.  While I know I could do it if I had to, with my past food issues, I really don’t think it would be a good idea for me to restrict all foods with gluten from my diet.  But, I do enjoy gluten free food and I also don’t mind at all giving up gluten when Andrew and I eat meals together.  I think it’s a fun challenge to try to make yummy gluten free treats for Andrew and I try to pick up fun gluten free products that I think he’d love to try.

 

So when I WON Kelly’s gluten free giveaway last week, I was beyond excited because I knew Andrew and I both could enjoy all of the goodies!!   When I opened up the package, I found a sweet card on top.

 

 

 

How sweet is that?!  Thank you so much Kelly!!  I am so happy to have found her blog.  She is an amazing woman for many reasons and she just recently QUALIFIED FOR THE NYC FULL MARATHON!!  Um, yeah, she’s pretty much a rockstar with crazy fast superwoman legs.  She has a fabulous blog with tons of healthy living ideas.  Go check her out for yourself!!

 

Look at all of this fun stuff!!  As you’ll see, she sent us way too much!!

 

 

Oh, if only you all knew just how much Andrew loves rice… and this sounds so unique!!  Andrew is going to be putting this in the rice cooker for us very soon!!

 

 

Andrew loves bars almost as much as I do and now we definitely have a huge variety to choose from thanks to this generous package!!

 

 

 

 

 

Andrew ate the caramel apple bar this morning and he said he loved the texture and the flavor was very apple-y and tasty!

 

There are a few things that I am selfishly claiming as my own, hehe!

 

 

 

Very lucky for me, Andrew isn’t a big fan of either chocolate or PB, so these babies are allllllll mine!  I love dark chocolate so much and will be opening this up very soon to try.  And I’ve never had Justin’s PB, so of course new nut butters are always fun to try out!!

 

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it much or not, but I am obsessed with hot tea!  I drink a huge cup of green tea religously everyday and I credit it for keeping me healthy despite being around 20 germy 6 year olds everyday.  So I was way happy to find this strawberry tea among all of the goodies!!

 

 

Doesn’t it look wonderful??!!

 

 

Ok, maybe I’ll share these with Andrew, but I’ve already been enjoying these almonds!!  I am already head over heels for them.  So perfect for when you want a little something sweet to much on.  And another thing I love is that on the side of the jar, it’s clear and there are little measuring lines to show you when you’ve eaten an ounce of them.  Great for someone like me who needs portion control, otherwise I’d eat half the jar before I know it!

 

 

And last, but not least, Kelly sure did hook a Type A sistah UP!  Look how adorable these little notepads are!!  I’ve already put the one on the right in my purse and used it to write down my grocery list for the week.  SEE?!!  I told you she sent us way too much!!  KELLY, thank you so much from both Andrew and me!!

  

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So now I’d like to catch you up on a few gluten free recipes I’ve tried out this week.  First of all, my Massive Protein GF Oatmeal Pancake.

 

 

I combined 1/3 cup Egg Beaters, 1/2 cup GF oats, 1/2 serving of Jay Robb’s vanilla whey protein powder, 1/8 cup of cottage cheese, 1/8 cup of pumpkin, about a 1/4 tsp of baking powder, cinnamon and pumpkin spice, a packet of Truvia, and topped with some Maranatha Dark Chocolate Peanut Spread. 

 

 

And yes, I had brussel sprouts with my pancake… and I might have drizzled some maple syrup on them… but that’s beside the point… if you’re a volume eater like me, you must try this out!!  It seriously made such a huge and very tasty pancake!!

 

That was Thursday’s dinner…

 

Now onto last night’s dinner!

 

 

I got the idea from Julie’s Two Ingredient Crockpot Chicken recipe.  All I did was put some chicken breasts in the crockpot in the morning covered with BBQ sauce and put it on low for 7 hours.  Then I used to forks to “pull” it.  So easy – thanks for the idea, Julie!!

 

I used this BBQ sauce I found at Kroger last week.

 

 

I was pretty impressed that it only had 20 calories for 2 tablespoons.  AND, I thought it had a great flavor.  “Very vinegar-y” in the words of Andrew.

 

The chicken was cooked perfectly.  I loved it!

 

 

I had this with a ginormous baked potato topped with cheese.

 

 

And some steamed broccoli and cauliflower.

 

 

Andrew enjoyed it as well!!

 

And I will leave you with this… MY VERY FIRST GREEN MONSTER!!

  

 

 

My GM had a few ice cubes, a frozen banana, packet of Amazing Grass Wheat Grass powder, strawberry yogurt, a packet of stevia, and a clementine.  It was awesome!!  So wonderful in fact, that I picked up some fun new smoothie ingredients today – spinach and xanthan gum!!  I’ve been too nervous to try out these GM’s, but finally took the plunge and now it looks like I’m hooked.  If only they didn’t make me so COLD!!  Oh well, just gotta layer up before drinking them!!

 

I’m also excited because xanthan gum is called for in a lot of gluten free recipes, so I’ll be able to do a bit more experimenting with gluten free cooking now. 

 

If you are gluten free, what is your favorite gluten free product and/or recipe?  If you aren’t, what would you do if someone close to you was gluten free?  Would you give it up completely too?

I’ll be back soon with a recipe you won’t want to miss!!  Hint: Starts with a K and rhymes with “gotcha” (or at least I think it does??)

 

A Groundhog Engagement February 2, 2010

Two years ago today Andrew and I went on a walk in the park right next to our old apartment.  I thought this was just another regular old walk with our 2 dogs, but little did I know that this walk would change my life forever.  As we walked along on the lonely path, Andrew all of a sudden asked me what was on our puppy Ripsey’s collar.  I looked at him like he was crazy and said, “I don’t know?”  Then he told me to go look and see.  What I saw attached to her purple collar was the most beautiful, sparkling diamond ring I’ve ever seen.  Andrew dropped to one knee and through his tears told me how much he loved me and asked me if I would do him the honor of being his wife.  I was so shocked and of course said YES!!  No one was at the park that day, so the rest of the walk was just us and we just kept laughing and talking the entire rest of the way about how happy we were.  That was definitely one of the very best days in my life.

  

   

At dinner that evening at Anis (french bistro) after the proposal in the park.

   

While we don’t exchange any gifts or anything on our engagement anniversary, we do like to remember back to that day and at least do some kind of special dinner.  Last year Andrew cooked us a special meal.  I didn’t even have this blog a year ago, but I was definitely destined to be a food blogger, because I do have  photos of the meal he cooked for us.  

   

  

   

Asparagus and Carrots

   

Homemade Bean Dip

   

Homemade Pita Chips for dipping in the Bean Dip

   

These weren’t gluten free, but he knew how much I loved pita chips and made them just for me.  He had gluten free rice crackers for himself.  

   

 

Seared Scallops

   

   

This year we decided to go out for a nice dinner.  It’s a good thing because Andrew was in no shape to stand and cook a big meal for us.  Poor guy injured his back over the weekend and the pain got so bad today that he actually left work 3 hours early to come home and rest.  He never does that.  So on the way home I got a few supplies to help cheer him up.  

   

  

   

This is a big deal because we usually just roll with the Diet Big K’s (Kroger brand).   

   

  

   

Some Valentine’s Caramel filled Hershey Kisses.  

   

  

   

And these gluten free brownies!!  

   

The box calls for 1/2 a stick of butter, but I only used about an 1/8 of a stick of butter.  The secret ingredient to make these brownies so yummy was the addition of 1/2 of my sample of plain Chobani greek yogurt.  I also added in some walnuts and mini marshmallows.  Andrew was the first to sample them and he gave them 2 GF thumbs way up!  

   

After taking care of Andrew, I got ready and we headed out to a fancy cuban restaurant right down the road from us.  We’d never been before, but we had a coupon, so we thought we’d try it out.   

   

When we sat down, we were greeted with some buttery garlic bread and this green stuff to dip it in.  

   

  

   

It tasted like pesto sauce, only with cilantro instead of basil.  It was so amazing, but somehow I managed to only dip in 2 bites of bread.  It’s easier for me to abstain from the bread basket since Andrew can’t eat it.  I feel too bad eating it in front of him, so I usually just taste it and then stop.  

   

All of the entrees were pretty pricy, so I ordered off of the appetizer menu.  I ended up getting 2 chicken tamales, a cup of black beans, and yuca fries.  

   

  

   

I don’t have much experience with tamales, but these were really good.  Those black things you see in each of them were whole black olives.   

   

  

   

The black beans were good, but there really wasn’t anything special about them.  To be honest, they tasted the same as the canned black beans I heat up at home.  

   

  

   

But the yuca fries were awesome!!  I ate most of these, but Andrew managed to swipe a couple.  There were only 7, but they were HUGE.  

   

To get Andrew back for swiping some of my yuca fries, I stole some fried plantains from his dish (bottom right corner)!!  

   

  

He ordered the fried pork, which came with yellow rice, black beans, and plantains.  The plantains were sooooooo good.  Even better than Andrew’s which we decided was because these were deep fried.  At least Andrew’s are a little healthier!  

   

After running a couple of errands after dinner, I talked Andrew into getting a $0.99 vanilla cone from McDonald’s.  YES, HomeCookedEm went to McDonald’s *gasp*!!    I love their cones so much!!  I saved it for when we got home so that I could have it with this little darling…  

   

  

   

MMMMMmmmmmmmm, a melty vanilla cone with a teeny gluten free brownie.  What a sweet ending to a sweet evening.   

   

If you’re engaged/married, did you pick out your ring?  If you’re not engaged/married, do you think you would want to pick out your ring or be surprised?  

    

Andrew and I never went ring shopping and I was totally surprised by the ring he gave me.  I would not have picked this one out myself, but I couldn’t possibly be more in love with it.  It’s by far my most precious material possession because he picked it out and designed the setting  just for me.  I wouldn’t have it any other way!  

Photo taken the day he proposed.

  

   

One of our Engagement Photos

Engagment Photo Spring 2008

 

I Eat Real Food January 31, 2010

So I think I’ve said it 1000 times before, but I just have to say it again.  My very first food blog I ever began reading was Kath Eats back in early summer of 2008.  Early on I discovered her amazing kale chips.  Andrew, being the brilliant husband he is, has made note of this and picked up some kale recently.  We finally made them last night!!

 

 

Usually I’m the one making them, but Andrew was in charge last night and I have to say, his were way better than mine have ever been.  It’s definitely because he wasn’t shy with the olive oil!  

 

 

Andrew likes them too, but does not agree that they should be labeled a “chip.”  Oh well, at least I should find success in even getting him to eat them, right?

 

Andrew also created a really delicious lentil dish.  He cooked up the red lentils my mom gave us for Christmas with some okra, chopped red pepper, chicken broth, and Frank’s red hot sauce. 

 

 

He completed the meal with some baked chicken breasts.

 

 

What an awesome dinner!  I love eating healthy dinners together.  It used to be I’d be eating my “diet” food while he ate his fatty sausages and french fries.  Now I feel like we’re both finding a healthy balance and enjoying delicious, healthy, REAL food together!

 

And for dessert we had…………………………………………………BANANA SOFT SERVE!!  Why did it take me so long to make this?!

 

 

It was so easy and I still can’t believe all you need are bananas!!

 

 

I put lots of chocolate sauce on Andrew’s because I was afraid he wouldn’t be super crazy about it plain, but he actually complained that I put too much chocolate sauce on his.  That’s a good complaint to have, right?

 

Then for tonight’s dinner, we finally got to use another huge surprise Andrew brought home for me.

 

 

I swear he must be stalking me or he reads food blogs or something because I have never told him that I wanted to try kabocha.  I think I almost cried when he brought this home.  I was so excited and totally impressed.  I mean seriously now, out of all the weird, funky things he could have picked up, he chose this?! 

 

I knew exactly what I wanted out of this baby.  Kabocha fries!!

 

 

They. were. so. good!!

 

 

This squash will be a permanent part of the HomeCookedEm diet from now on, I can ga-ron-tee!  (Said in the voice of Justin Wilson.)  It is so much better tasting even than butternut squash *gasp!* and you can even eat the skins!!  Do not confuse this for buttercup squash.  I did awhile back… I thought they were the same and was so disappointed when I ate it because it tasted just like acorn squash.  Don’t get me wrong, I like acorn squash, but it is not even in the same league as kabocha!!  I love kabocha so much I’m gonna ask it to marry me. 

 

We also had some of Andrew’s sausage and shrimp gumbo he made last weekend.

 

 

Even though I said I didn’t want any sausage in mine, you can see one piece on the right side of the picture… and even though I said I didn’t want any white rice you can see a sprinkle in the center.  Sometimes he listens, sometimes he just wants to be a smart alec.

 

 

I also had a side salad with a hefty dollop of light pimiento cheese on top. 

 

 

What a delicious feast!!  This totally filled me up and then some.  As I was eating all of this, I really felt blessed that we are able to put such healthy food on our table. 

 

I hope all of you had a relaxing weekend!! 

 

Is there a recipe you’ve gotten from the food blog world that has become a standard in your diet now?  Please share!

 

 

The Best Part of Waking Up January 30, 2010

The only reason I was able to actually get out of my warm, cozy bed this morning was because of my hungry belly.  Otherwise, I think I could have easily stayed put until the middle of the day, easily!  This past week wore. me. out.  Before actually climbing out of bed, I tried to figure out what it was that I so desired for my lazy Saturday morning breakfast.  To be very honest, I really wanted to go to The Flying Biscuit!  But I knew it would be crazy busy on a Sat. morning and the wait could be an hour or more and I wanted food ASAP.  We have plenty of food here – why spend money out?!  So I thought about what I would want to order there if I were to go.  I most definitely would order eggs, something involving cheese, a biscuit, maybe some soysage, and some fruit on the side.  So next I thought about all of the ingredients we had, and I made it happen as close as I could…

 

I started by cooking up a 1/2 cup of Egg Beaters and toasted one of these.

 

 

Have you seen these?  I was pretty excited to see them last week at Kroger.  And they are awesome.  Way better than sandwich thins.

 

I put my eggs on top of each half of my bagel thin and topped it with a very thin slice of Boar’s Head smoked gruyere cheese (my favorite cheese ever!!!!!)!!!!!!!

 

 

I also warmed up a Morningstar Farms breakfast patty and had 2 clems on the side.

 

 

This was so good and definitely took care of my desire to go out.  Besides, it’s rainy and COLD out there.  I got to stay in Andrew’s big sweat pants (sexy, no… comfy, YES!), curled up in a blanket, and on my comfy couch while eating it.  Why can’t every morning be a Saturday morning??

 

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You ladies continue to just pour in the support.  WOW!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!  I love you all!!  So here’s the latest update:  I’m still feeling GREAT!!  I have this exciting, new found confidence and I can tell it’s just radiating from me.  I’ve been getting a lot more compliments lately and I know it has more to do with how I’m feeling on the inside.  I think when you’re feeling happy and good about yourself, it just makes you look so much more attractive. 

 

Since I used to weigh in on Saturday mornings, for about a minute I thought about sneaking a peek this morning.  But then I talked myself out of it by reminding myself how good I feel right now.  I don’t want this feeling to end.  I no longer need a number to tell myself that I’m doing well.  All I need is my desire to be healthy and happy and that tells me I’m doing good.

 

Have a fabulous weekend and please stay safe and warm!!

 

What is your favorite breakfast to order when eating out?  Have you ever tried recreating it at home?

Beautiful January 27, 2010

I’m still feeling so overwhelmed with all of the positive comments and emails that have been pouring in supporting my recent realization.  How did I get so lucky to have such wise, beautiful women send me such heartfelt words of understanding and encouragement…  I updated my Who is HomeCookedEm? page to reflect the changes I’ve made.  I also wanted to give you a few updates:

 

• As you can tell I deleted My Progress page!  For anyone just tuning in I had been keeping track of my weight on a seperate page, but it was only letting me down when I was not seeing the scale move like I had hoped.
• I deleted all my old calorie & weight documents from my computer and threw out my old journals documenting weight loss.  This was not so easy.  I definitely flipped through them one last time… I’ll spare the details, but I’m just so happy that I am no longer depriving myself of the healthy food my body needs.
• I have not weighed myself and have no desire to anytime soon.
• I have not gotten rid of my old clothes.  But the fact that they’re in my house isn’t bothering me, haunting me, or putting pressure on me. 
• This week I have felt more beautiful and confident than I have in the past year.  It’s funny how loving yourself for who you are does that.  It’s not in a cocky, “Hey look at me and how pretty I am…”  It’s more of kind and supportive self-talk going on in my head.  Like talking to myself as I would talk to a friend…  I highly recommend it!

 

Want to see something else quite beautiful?

 

 

Salad toppings in no particular order: broccoli & cauliflower, homemade guacamole, sweet mini gherkins, salsa, TJ’s cilantro jalapeno hummus, and a little drizzling of Farmer Boy’s greek dressing.

 

 

As you can see this was a Hugh Jass in all its glory.  And yes, that bowl is actually meant to be a mixing bowl and I am very proud!

 

 

And this was actually my second time trying out my newest favorite – a sweet potato topped with PB!!  Y’all know the feeling… when you eat something so simple, yet so delicious and think, why have I not been eating this before???

 

Ok friends, I’m going to start wrapping things up so I can get to bed no later than 10:00 tonight.  It feels like it should be Friday tomorrow.  This work week is drrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaggggggggging…

 

What would toppings would be on your perfect salad?

Mine would have pecans, craisins, sliced pears, and goat cheese!

Thank You + At-Home Date Night January 24, 2010

I don’t even know where to begin.  I’m overwhelmed with the amount of support I’ve received from so many of you.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of you who weighed in (couldn’t resist the pun) on my last post.  I don’t usually do this, but I replied back to each of your comments because they were all so thoughtful, supportive, and thought provoking.  Yesterday really set the stage for a “way of thinking” makeover.  It won’t happen overnight, but I’m ready to start accepting myself and I think the following changes need to be made in order to make this happen:

• Delete My Progress page.  I no longer want to use it as a way of measuring my success.  I may replace it with another, more fun, page in the future.  Any ideas are welcome!
• Delete all my old calorie & weight documents from my computer and throw out any old journals documenting weight loss.  I went for 2 whole years counting every single calorie and recording my weight daily and kept track of it in a document saved on my computer.  I keep holding onto it and periodically look at it and secretly have been wishing I was still as diligent.  But now I am at a much healthier place than I was back in those days.  What good is it doing me to hold onto these records?? 
• Stop weighing myself.  Yep, at least for awhile.  I can’t promise I won’t sneak a peek in another month just to see where I am, but I am not going to be doing weekly weigh-ins because they cause unnecessary disappointments.  I am strong and feeling great so I am not going to let the scale ruin anymore Saturday mornings for me.  It’s just what is best for me right now.
• Get rid of my old clothes?  This is the hardest one for me.  I don’t know if I can do it.  I really just want to keep them in our guestroom and if I still can’t fit into them in another year or 2, then I’ll get rid of them.  But if doing what I’m already doing happens to get me back down to that weight, then great!  But I’m no longer going to wish to be back in them.  I’m going to let my body find its happy weight and if it stays here, so be it.  I will accept and love myself.

I’m so thankful that I’m finally beginning to figure this whole weight/body image/food issue out.  I think it’s very important that I figure it out now, before I get pregnant and raise children.  I do not want to pass on any negative issues to my future children.  I want them to have me as a role model who is confident, self-assured, happy, doesn’t engage in “fat” or “diet” talk, and lives the healthiest/happiest life without any rigid restraints. 

 

Now I want to show you what my sweet and talented chef of a husband made for us last night.  He went to our Super H Mart and picked up lots of fresh produce to prepare our At-Home Date Night meal.  He used our wok to make a chicken stir fry.  He used chinese eggplant, bok choy, and sugar snap peas.

 

 

I loved it so much and really enjoyed the sugar snap peas!

 

 

We didn’t feel like waiting around for the brown rice to cook, so we used white.

 

 

I can’t remember if I said something about wishing we’d made brown rice or how it came up, but Andrew said that between all the oatmeal and whole grain everything that I eat, a little white rice certainly wouldn’t do any damage to my diet.  He’s the yin to my yang.

 

Then for dessert, he made……………………….. FRIED PLANTAINS!!!!!!!!!!!  Anyone remember these from the summer??  Oh how I love them so!!  Andrew presented them to me with some Maranatha Dark Chocolate Peanut Spread drizzled on top while I was reading blogs last night.

 

 

This was definitely a splurge and what a delicious splurge to have!!

 

Now we’re just hanging out on the couch, fighting a case of the Sunday Night Blues.  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!! 

 

Did you splurge on anything extra special this weekend?

The Scale Got Me Thinking January 23, 2010

I stepped on the scale this morning.  And then said out loud, “You have to be kidding me.”  Up 0.2 pounds from last week.  It’s on My Progress page (I almost feel silly calling it that right now).  I know that’s not a big gain, but when your goal is weight loss, that is very frustrating to see.  I know, I know, I know.  I’m more than a number.  I have to be happy that I’m feeling so good and I’m eating healthier than I ever have.  Then I started thinking of things to blame it on… my first thought was “the scale has to be broken…” haha!  Then I started going over everything I’ve eaten this week.  I stuck to my workout plan for the week, so that isn’t an area I really need to improve in.  It must be how I’m eating.  I eat so healthy and have cut out even more sugar lately, upped my protein, lowered my carbs, upped my healthy fats, drink plenty of water.  I count my calories everyday – pretty much as accurately as possible.  The only thing I can figure is that I meet the higher range of calories for the day each day.  Maybe I should simply eat less.  But I know I wouldn’t have as much energy and would feel deprived.  I just don’t want to do it.  I’ve also had my thyroid rechecked and my levels are back to normal without any medicine.  And if even if I did have a thyroid problem or hormonal issue to blame, it is still possible to lose weight… just maybe not as quickly as other people.  I haven’t lost any weight.

 

 

So I came downstairs and explained everything to Andrew.  After listening to me on the verge of tears, he simply said, “I think you look lovely.”  A friend of mine at work this week told me I looked great.  My pants are fitting better than they did a month ago.  I feel great, have plenty of energy, and for the most part feel pretty comfortable in my own skin.  The only reason I want to lose weight is because I’ve been thinner before and I really, really liked the way I looked and felt at that weight.  I still have my old clothes and they are so cute and I want to wear them again.  So I don’t know what exactly to think/do.  Do I eat less, cut out more stuff from my diet, take out the fun of working out and try do even more?  Or do I finally, for once in my life, just find happiness in where I am in my life without any weight loss goals?  Well, after thinking about it this morning, I think I want to just stick to doing what I’m doing.  My husband’s happy with me, my family and friends actually seem happier with me now than when I was smaller (I think this mostly has to do with my change in attitude), and I am happy with myself. 

 

 

Seems like I need to let go of fitting-back-in-my-size-6 dreams right now.  It’s just hard when that’s all you’ve ever known – to constantly want to lose weight.  It’s really become such a part of my way of thinking – to always want to lose weight.  And when did this all start?  Well, I’m not going to write a novel right now on all of it, but I can tell you that I’ve felt fat ever since I was 5 years old.  Sad, right?  I’ve always thought I needed to lose weight.  My first memory was sitting on a swing next to my first best friend and thinking my legs looked bigger than her’s.  I can also remember putting myself on a diet and writing out that I should only eat 10 lima beans at dinner.  And then when I didn’t eat just 10 lima beans at dinner, I felt so guilty and probably ate way more than I would have in the first place.  I can remember running laps around my house at the age of 7 because I knew that exercising could make you thinner.  I don’t think I want to look at my past anymore than that right now, but I kind of think I need to make peace with myself.  The only way to do that might be to remember back to how all of my issues with food/weight came to be and finally forgive myself.  Ruby’s post on this has really made me start thinking about it.  One thing I do know is that no one is really to blame.  I think everyone has their “issue” in life, and this is mine.

 

 

Ok, now onto lighter, more delicious business.  Saturday mornings make me want a bigger breakfast for some reason, so I made a serving of Fiber One pancakes and added in a spoonful of pumpkin.  I also heated up a Morningstar Farms breakfast pattie and sliced up a banana on the side.  A drizzling of sugar free syrup on my pancakes and sprinkling of cinnamon on my banana slices were the perfect finishing touches to a perfect breakfast!

 

 

So tasty and satisfying.  It will definitely give me the fuel I need for my workout in a few minutes. 

 

Happy Saturday!!  Writing this post has made me feel so much better already, so I’m ready to pick myself up and enjoy the rest of my weekend!!

 

Any exciting plans for YOU the rest of the weekend?

Spaghetti Squash Salad January 21, 2010

I know alliteration is totally overused in blog post titles (mostly my own ;) ), but I couldn’t think of anything else to call it!   After making my Spaghetti Squash Bake on Monday, I had a 1/2 of a squash leftover.  So tonight I heated some of it up and just started throwing things on top of it.  It ended up looking like a salad, so that’s what I decided to call it.

 

 

 

On top of my spaghetti squash is steamed broccoli & cauliflower, 1/2 cup black eye peas, 1/4 cup of store bought light pimiento cheese, Frank’s red hot sauce, and sweet gerkins on the border. 

 

 

This wasn’t good.  It was AWESOME!!  So much food for appx. 350 calories.  It was comfort in a bowl.  I’ll admit it.  Sometimes I’m just in the mood to eat a lot.  Whenever that mood strikes me, I try to satisfy myself with big healthy servings of things like spaghetti squash, steamed veggies, pickles, salsa, butternut squash, etc. so that I can eat a lot without eating a lot of calories. 

 

By the way, I just found those sweet gerkins at Kroger last weekend.

 

 

They might be ugly…

 

 

but they sure are tasty!  I think I ate about 4 of them while cooking and then 4 more with my salad. 

 

Then for dessert I had one of my last remaining Chobani samples.

 

 

 

O.M.G.  This is heavenly.  It’s fluffy greek yogurt with a decadent raspberry sauce mixed in.  Amazing.  I will be talking to the folks at my Kroger and threatening them politely asking them to order this along with the pinapple flavor ASAP.  Pineapple is still in the number 1 spot, but this is very close 2nd!!

 

I’m so glad tomorrow is Friday.  YAY!!  Goodnight!!

 

Q: Do you ever feel like eating a bigger volume of food sometimes?  If so, what kinds of things do you eat and/or do to “pimp” up your food without adding too many calories? 

Brag, Brag, Brag January 18, 2010

Happy MLK Day!  I had a great day off.  I slept in, ate breakfast, did Jillian Michael’s Boost Your Metabolism on Exercise TV, showered, ate lunch, and then went to the dentist.  No cavities, YAY!  I sat down in the chair and the dentist came in and did the examination first since the dental hygienist was busy.  She said my teeth looked so good that it looked as though the hygienist had already cleaned my teeth.  My mom is rolling her eyes right now (maybe some of you are too?), haha, because I already called and bragged all about it to her.  

 

Ok can I squeeze in one more brag? Please?  Because tonight’s dinner was pretty tasty, healthy, and husband approved!!

 

Beef, Broccoli, and Spaghetti Squash Bake

Ingredients:

1 pound of lean ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onions

1/2 of a spaghetti squash, cooked

12 oz. package of frozen broccoli

1 cup shredded reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese, divided

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground pepper

8 oz. tomato sauce

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Warm up broccoli and drain.

3. Brown beef and onion in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.

4. Stir in spaghetti squash, broccoli, 1/2 cup of cheese, S&P, tomato sauce, and Worcestershire sauce.

5. Spray a casserole dish with Pam.  Spoon your mixture in and cover with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese.

6. Bake for 20-25 minutes. 

 

 

The original recipe called for rice, but I substituted the spaghetti squash to see how it would work.  It was so great!!  Andrew loved it and told me he would definitely like for me to make it again.  That is the ultimate compliment in my book.  He even sang “yum, yummy, yummy” as he went back to the kitchen for 2nds! 

 

 

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Thanks for all of your advice and thoughts on protein powders!!  I really appreciate all of your input.  My sweet friend Em from Eating to Run said it perfectly when she said “I think I’m still going to try and get most of my protein from natural sources, but it will be good for smoothies (or yummy cottage cheese sammiches!).”  I totally agree, Em!

 

Ok, so now it’s your turn to brag!  Tell me something you’re proud of yourself for today!