Quick Lunch/ Dinner Update

I have been really bad about remembering to take pictures of lunches, but I do have a few, so I thought I would share them...

All beef hotdog on a whole wheat bun, half an apple, snap peas and cherry tomatoes, and yes... the famous Bishop's pumpkin cake.  So bad, but so good.

Whole wheat pumpkin waffle sandwich (with peanut butter), homemade blueberry applesauce, 3 sausage links, and quaker granola fruit bar.

In the thermos is organic refried beans, and carne asada.  In the ziplock container is a whole wheat tortilla, guacamole, shredded cheese, and strawberries.

The above picture is today's lunch,  Last night I made carne asada for dinner,,, recipe for the marinade here: Carne Asada

The night before I made a crustless quiche...

Quiche:

10 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup almond milk

3/4 cup shredded cheese

1-2 cups ground sausage

1-2 cups chopped broccoli

1/2 slice olives

salt

pepper

Preheat oven to 350

Grease  9x13 pan

mix eggs, milk and cheese, pour into pan.

Add sausage and broccoli (I put broccoli on one half because I have a non broccoli eater)

Top with olives, and bake for 45 minutes, or until egg is set.

Tonight I think I will make this sausage stir fry...

I think that's everything I had on my list to share!  Have a good rest of your week!

Catching Up

I didn't think I would ever get this blog posted!  I swear I have been working on it for over a week.  Life has just been busy!  Between school, midterms, work, tutu orders (shameless plug: www.facebook.com/itsybitsbowtique) and the kids, I just haven't had a free second it feels like!  So anyway, those are my excuses, and here is my blog :)

A few nights ago we tried a new recipe, Kate's request for the monthly menu:

Cajun Chicken Stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese & Spinach

Ingredients:

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts

• 6 oz pepper jack cheese, shredded
• 1 c frozen spinach, thawed and drained (you can also use fresh cooked spinach)
• 1/2 cup cream cheese, soft
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp Cajun seasoning 
• 2 tbsp ground flax seed
•  salt, to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Lots of toothpicks 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Flatten the chicken to 1/4-inch thickness.

In a medium bowl, combine the pepper jack cheese, spinach, cream cheese, salt and pepper.

Combine the Cajun seasoning and ground flax seed together in a small bowl. 

Spoon about 1/4 c of the spinach mixture onto each chicken breast. Roll each chicken breast tightly and fasten the seams with several toothpicks. 

Brush each chicken breast with the olive oil. Sprinkle the Cajun seasoning mixture evenly over all. Sprinkle any remaining spinach and cheese on top of chicken (optional).

Place the chicken seam-side down onto a tin foil-lined baking sheet (for easy cleanup).  Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

It was ok, the kids liked it, the husband ate it, I could take it or leave it.

Here is something I am much more excited about!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008EHTBXS/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00

These thermoses are awesome!  I heat the food at 7:00 am, I put it in the thermos, and set the thermos in a bowl of HOT water.  the kids put them in their lunch bags around 7:45 and off they go.  Guess what?!  At lunch time, according to both kids the food is still just as hot as if it had just been heated up.  Score!  Not to mention they are user friendly (easy to open, close, clean, and no spills)!  So I would definitely recommend looking into one if you send lunches off in the morning.


Speaking of lunches, I have been slacking on my pictures, sorry!  I will try harder next week.  Here are two that I remembered to take...

So my goal for months has been to be at my goal weight by the time we went to Tahoe (next week) to celebrate mine, Kelly's, and Katie's 30th birthdays.  We all turn 30 within a few months of each other this year, so we planned this trip to celebrate together.  At the end of Biggest loser I was 9 lbs away from my goal weight, and I have gone up and down between that and 13 lbs since.  Yesterday morning I weighed in back at my biggest loser weight, that was a nice surprise.... But I doubt I will lose 9 lbs by next Thursday.  But, that's ok.  I set a goal, I tried, and I will just keep trying.  However, I must say, my muscle definition in my arms has increased a lot in the passed month or so, so I attribute some of my weight fluctuation to muscle gain :)

And with that, I am off.... time to get back to home work.  Yay.  Posts my be a little scarce the next few weeks, bare with me, I'm in a transition of sorts, and will have plenty of posts for you once I get situated!

Happy Friday!  Make some fun fit plans for your family this weekend and stay active!

Random thoughts

Lots of random thoughts today, so I am just going to throw them all out there!  Enjoy ;)

Let's start with Milk.  I recently learned, partly from my nutrition class, that Milk is a no no for a low carb no sugar diet.  I knew it had sugar, I just didn't realize how much, and me, the queen of label readers, never really paid attention!  Anyway, when I finally did, I was shocked.  1 cup of 1% milk contains 13 carbs, all from Sugar.  Yikes.  Here I was, mixing it with my LOW CARB protein powder, using it with my 100% shredded wheat with no sugar, etc.... and all the while, sabotaging myself!  So, I decided to try some alternatives.  My first substitute was almond milk.  I hate almonds, so even though I had heard so much about it, I had never cared to try it for fear that it would taste like them!  Well, it doesn't.  I used it with my shredded wheat, and I used it with my protein shakes (actually half water half almond milk) and it was great.  Just be sure to get the unsweetened version.  So, now that I was feeling brave, I figured I would try coconut milk as well.  I also hate coconut, so I was a little apprehensive   I didn't like this as much.  It was a little thicker, and I wasn't impressed when I used it with the shredded wheat, It was fine in a protein shake though (again, half water half coconut milk.  I also used it in a few recipes that called for milk.  So there you have it, my thoughts on milk alternatives. For less calories, less fat, less sugar, and more calcium, I am sticking with Almond milk.

Next on my mind is target fat burning.  I hear this all the time, and get asked about it a LOT in class.  "What exercise can I do to get rid of the fat around ____________(insert body part here).  Unfortunately, the answer is nothing.  You can NOT control where your body decides to burn the fat from.  You can do 100 crunches a day, and your body could use that to burn fat from your thighs.  

"The fat contained in fat cells exists in triglycerides, Muscle cells cannot directly use triglycerides as fuel. The fat must be broken down into glycerol and free fatty acids, which then enter the bloodstream. So the fat broken down to be used as fuel during prolonged exercise can come from anywhere in your body, not just the part that is being worked the most.  You are more likely to shed your love handles by taking up a running program than by doing crunches and sit-ups every day, simply because cardiovascular exercise is a much more efficient calorie-burner. High-intensity interval training (alternating between brief periods of high-intensity and low-intensity exercise) can be particularly effective, due to the phenomenon of after-burn – that is, an increase in resting metabolic rate that occurs for up to 24 hours post-exercise. Weight training can also help to achieve optimal results. It is important to maintain your muscle mass because you will not achieve a toned look if you lose lean tissue along with fat. Finally, good nutrition is essential. After all, even if you burn 500 calories by exercising, you will not end up losing any fat if you also consume 500 more calories than usual."

http://www.yalescientific.org/2011/04/targeted-fat-loss-myth-or-reality/

Third, I have race results!  Carrie and I did did the "Run your Gourd Off" yesterday at Bishops Pumpkin farm.  We did a 5k around the farm, through pumpkin fields, walnut orchards, and corn fields.  It wasn't very forgiving terrain!  Lots of unvevn ground, tractor tire groves, sandy dirt, hills, rocks, etc! But even, with those conditions we ran the whole thing.  I finished with a time of 33:11, and came in 7th in my age division!  Woo hoo!  

And lastly, meals.  Yesterday I made home made chili for dinner.  Tonight I am grilling steaks with Broccoli and salad.  

Chili

1 lb ground sausage

1 lb ground turkey or beef

1/4 cup minced onion

2 tbls garlic

2 tbls olive oil

3 cups Pinto beans (cooked)

3 cups Kidney beans (cooked)

4 cups pureed tomato

Chili powder to taste

Cayenne to taste

Directions

In large pan, heat oil. onion. and garlic.

Add meats, and brown.

Drain, and pour into crock pot.  Add beans, tomato puree, and spices.  Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or low for 6+ hours.

Todays lunch was left over chili, triscuts, apple slices and pb.

Guess what?!  It's Monday!  It's a new week, AND a new month, a fresh start!!  Take advantage of it!  Make a change today that will better your tomorrow!