Armadillo Eggs

This is one of the easiest recipes I've made.  I grabbed this one from Pinterest, and the pin led nowhere, so unfortunately I don't have anyone to give credit.  But I certainly didn't come up with the name of this myself.  Thankfully the entire directions were in the pin, so here we are.

Armadillo Eggs:

Ground beef

Cheese of your choice (I used string cheese since it was easy to stuff the peppers with)

Varying peppers (I used sweet mini bell peppers, but in the future I'd try something with some kick, like poblano)

Seasonings of your choice for beef

Preheat over to 375. Cut the stem off of the peppers and de-seed.  Stuff with cheese (don't over fill). Season beef (I used pepper, garlic powder, salt and worchestershire sauce). Flatten out small patties of beef (make them as thin as possible).  Wrap each stuffed pepper so that the cheese is sealed inside. Bake 20-30 mins until the "eggs" are brown on the outside.

Even though I'm not a fan of bell peppers, this wasn't so bad (though like I said, I'd love to try this with spicier peppers).  I tend to find that the mini peppers have a milder flavor, which is probably why I could tolerate this.  The only reason I used them though is because we had them in the fridge (and I don't know why, I'm sure Sakief bought them for some reason). 

What I like the most about this recipe (other than melted cheese, noms) is that it's a different way to use ground beef.  Sakief and I often have ground beef in the freezer, and aren't usually so creative with it.  It's nice to be able to use it for something other than hamburgers and spaghetti sauce.

Winter Squash Soup

I had an excellent weekend, and as per usual, am sad that it's coming to a close. Sakief and I got a lot of our holiday shopping done, and Erin was kind enough to take our holiday card pictures today. I can't believe it's November already!

I also had a major win today. After pictures I accompanied Erin, Adam and my two favorite little girls to Chuck E Cheese... And I didn't eat any pizza! CEC has a surprisingly good/fresh salad bar, so I ate a TON of veggies sans salad dressing. I'm pretty proud of myself.

When I got home I did make a real dinner for Sakief and myself. Another new recipe, another win for the day! We had some leftover pumpkin (whole) and butternut squash from a recipe Sakief tried last week (I subsequently turned the pumpkin into purée and froze some as well), so I decided on a soup. I have realized recently that I really should be giving more credit to the original sources when I find a recipe, so with that, I give you Ina Garten's Winter Squash Soup (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/winter-squash-soup-recipe/index.html) :

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 Tbsp olive oil (I actually didn't use this, mostly because I forgot...)

2 cups chopped yellow onion

1 can pumpkin purée (I used my homemade, about 1 3/4 cups)

1 1/2 lbs butternut squash (I used 1/2 of a large squash-chunked, no skin)

3 cups chicken stock or broth

Pepper

Salt

1 cup half and half

Sour cream (as garnish)

In a stock pot heat the butter (and oil if you use it). Cook the onion until translucent. Add pumpkin, butternut squash, broth and salt and pepper. Cook until butternut squash is soft. The original directions call for the mixture to then be blended in a food mill, but I just used a stick blender. This means you don't have to transfer everything to and from the stock pot and simplifies the process (I think). Blend until smooth. Add half and half. Simmer for a few minutes. Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream. Makes 4 servings. 

This is an awesome meal for a cool fall evening, and is very filling. I'm glad I have leftovers!

Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai

Sakief wants me to start blogging again, and it can't say that I disagree with why. I've completely fallen off the wagon, and only been able to really get back on this week. I'm so afraid of what the scale will say that I've actually hidden it away. Give me a few weeks and I might be brave enough to dig it back out. Anyway, I've mentioned it before, but blogging helps to keep me accountable, so it makes sense to get back to it. That, and I've had posts starred for weeks now to share recipes and they've just been sitting, waiting for me to write them. Le sigh.

The following recipe is the first recipe I feel like I can after least somewhat claim as my own. I got the idea from Pinterest (duh), but the pin led to nowhere, and while the text of the pin told me the ingredients, I had to figure out the measurements. This was a HUGE win, and will make if again, soon probably. It was not only delicious and healthy, but Sakief (who is super tired of spaghetti squash) didn't complain because it had so much flavor to cover the squash.

I proudly present: Spaghetti Squash Pad Thai

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts

1 medium spaghetti squash

1 cup vegetable or chicken broth

1 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp rice vinegar

1 Tbsp smooth peanut butter

2 large carrots (shredded- I used my spiral slicer)

4 baby Bok Choy (chopped, no greens)

1/2 cup chopped peanuts

Green onion

Diced garlic

Cilantro

Lime wedges

Cook spaghetti squash. I cut mine in half length wise, scoop out the seeds and roast at 375 for 45 mins or so.

While squash is cooking: Chop chicken into bite size pieces. Add broth, garlic, soy sauce and rice vinegar to wok, or large pan. Over medium heat cook chicken in broth mixture. When chicken is cooked through, add carrots and Bok Choy. 

When vegetables are cooked, scoop out cooked spaghetti squash and add to wok. Mix together. Add peanut butter and stir thoroughly. Let simmer to cook off some of the liquid (not all). Add chopped peanuts and green onion and mix. Let simmer about 5 more minutes. Garnish with cilantro (not pictured, we were out) and squeeze some lime over the top before eating.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did, and I hope to share more recipes and dieting life things soon. Back at it :)

Italian Chicken

So the picture that goes with this post has been sitting in my drafts since the beginning of October... Whoops! Just goes to show that I really do need to blog more often.  Also, I need to not ignore the super awesome recipes that I've tried! Sakief and I have eaten this a few times. It's simple, cheap, but very flavorful.

Italian chicken:

4 4 oz chicken breasts

1 can artichoke hearts (I use quarters)

Tomatoes

Olive oil

Shredded mozzarella

Fresh basil

Salt

Pepper

Generously salt and pepper the chicken breasts. Place in greased glass dish. Drain artichoke hearts. Cut up tomatoes of your choice (pictured is cherry, but I've also used Roma, whatever I have on hand). Mix tomatoes, artichoke and about 1tbsp of olive oil together. Spread this mixture around the chicken breasts. Cover each breast with approximately a quarter cup of mozzarella. Bake at 375 for approx 30 mins. Sprinkle basil over the top and continue baking 15-20 mins until chicken is fully cooked. 

If you have enough veggies in the pan, this doesn't really need a side dish. Otherwise it goes well with just about anything. The original post suggested serving with pasta. I always suggest more green veggies!

My inspiration came came from here:http://aaronandjillw.blogspot.com/2011/08/italian-chicken.html

Spicy Guacamole Chicken Enchiladas

I have so many recipes to post, and I've been such a slacker.

This is a recipe that I can't believe I haven't posted before, because it's a new favorite in our home, and we've eaten it on multiple occasions. Since we had it again last night I made it a point to take a picture so that I could post it...finally! This is another Pinterest inspired recipe, though we tweaked it quite a bit for our needs.

Ingredients:

Rotisserie chicken (hand shredded)

2 large avocados

2 Roma tomatoes (diced)

Shredded Mexican cheese (or cheese of choice)

Low carb tortillas (8)

Diced onion

Cumin

Salt 

Pepper

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup salsa verde

1/2 cup sour cream + dollop for guac

Cilantro

Serrano or jalapeño (1 or 2 depending on desired spice level)

Minced garlic

Garlic powder

Butter

To make guacamole:

Mash together avocados and dollop of sour cream. Mix in cumin, salt, pepper, garlic powder and diced tomatoes. Add diced jalapeño and cilantro if desired. Set aside for enchilada construction.

To make sauce:

Sauté jalapeño/Serrano pepper and minced garlic (to taste) in medium sauce pan with butter. Whisk in chicken broth and add cumin, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and whisk in salsa verde and sour cream. 

Preheat oven to 375. Grease large glass pan. Spread approx 1/3 cup sauce across bottom of pan. 

To construct enchiladas:

Layer guacamole, shredded cheese, onions and chicken on a tortilla. Roll tightly leaving ends open. Place into glass pan. 

After all enchiladas are in the pan (approx 8), pour the rest of the sauce over the top. The open ends will allow the sauce to integrate into the enchilada. Sprinkle more cheese and cilantro over top. Bake 15-20 minutes until bubbly. Serve hot with any left over guacamole on top.

Sakief and I each eat two for a meal and that's more than enough. Delish!

Breakfast cups

I'm down another 3lbs! And we are now less than a month from Corrie's wedding, and just days from her shower and bachelorette! Ah! I am so beyond excited!

I have found recently that as much as I love my breakfast quiche, if I don't switch up my breakfast routine, it just gets old.

I got my inspiration for these from Pinterest, of course, but as with the Hawaiian burgers I made awhile ago, I had to use pictures without directions, so it required a little creativity.

Ingredients:

12 slices of your favorite lunch meat 

Shredded cheese of your choosing

4-5 eggs

Foil cupcake liners

Cupcake pan

Preheat oven to 375. Place liners in cupcake pan. Put one slice of meat in each liner. Sprinkle a tiny bit of cheese into the slice of meat. Beat eggs (I used a two cup pourable measuring cup so it was easy to pour the egg into the cups). Pour a tiny bit into each slice of meat. Top off until all of the egg is used. Bake for 15 minutes.

I have now used both jalapeño turkey and honey ham for the cups. I recommend that the meat not be sliced too thick or it's hard to get the cheese and egg into the cup. I eat three cups for breakfast, along with avocado slices, and it's plenty. The also keep well, so it's a nice make ahead meal, which I love during the work week.

I listened to Sakief and remembered to take pictures of some of the food that he made in the past week. Since he cooked it, I'll need him to sit down with me to write out the recipe, but I'm looking forward to sharing his tasty food!

Spinach and Artichoke Chicken

I got the chance to cook last week and tried another new recipe from my Pinterest boards. Sakief keeps griping that I don't ever document his successes, so I'm going to try to do a better job of that, but for now, I'll stick with mine!

This was a very yummy win. It's basically just chicken topped with spinach and artichoke dip. Yum! It's also really simple!

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts

1 block frozen spinach (thawed and drained)

1 13-14oz can artichoke heart quarters (drained)

2 shallots, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cup mayonaise

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

Salt/pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375. Spray or grease baking dish. Place chicken breasts in baking dishand salt and pepper each side. Bake 15 mins. While chicken is baking mix together the other ingredients. Spread over chicken and bake an additional 20-25 mins. 

Sakief and I both agreed that the dip on its own was awesome, and I'm planning to try it during football season. I kept it healthy with low fat mayo and cheese. Each serving was about 350 calories, with the chicken. I honestly can't wait to try it again!