Day 1: West Coast Trip

The first non-travel day of our trip was yesterday. We went to my friends wedding which was beautiful. The ceremony was held outside at the Rockin J Ranch. The reception was great with dancing and even a pinata! So to the food: the ranch catered with beef and chicken, baked potato, biscuits and salad. My friend and his new wife (being as fabulous as they are) provided an outstanding meatless chili. It was made by the brides mother for the vegetarians at the wedding. The chili was hearty, smooth and spicy as hell! I ate my biscuit and my boyfriends biscuit(it was an emergency).
The wedding cake was made by a local brewery and was their classic tiramisu made with oatmeal stout beer. Superb! Mosit but it had a good consistency and didn't fall apart on the plate.
They offered smores kits as their gift to all guests. The kit was for the afterparty that was held at a very cool restaurant that had firepits for roasting marshmallows called San Tan Flats. We waited in line for what seemed an eternity which allowed is to get nice and loose (thanks to the beer). I got a salmon dish that was chargrilled to perfection. On the side potato pancakes and the worlds greatest creamed corn.

We danced under the moonlight to a local country band, ate, drank and chatted with our wonderful company. All in all: day 1 was great! I didn't take any pics but I will from here out.

See ya!

Three Bean Chili with Low-fat mozzarella

Three bean chili w/ low-fat mozz

Here is the recipe: 1 can crushed tomato
1 can whole peeled tomato
1 can kidney beans (No added salt,in water)
1 can chick peas (No added salt, in water)
1 can cannellini beans (No added salt, in water)
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
5 stalks celery
2 carrots
1/2 onion
2 sprigs of basil
1/2 green pepper
1 tbsp black pepper
salt to taste

Pour oil into a large pot and add garlic cloves. 
Allow oil to simmer and add the whole can of crushed tomato.
Using a knife, roughly chop the whole tomatoes into the pot. 
Gently rinse both cans with a small amount of water and add to pot. 
Drain all 3 cans of beans and add to the pot. 
In a food processor grind up the celery, carrot and onion. Add. 
Tear basil off of the stems and add. 
Add remaining seasonings and stir. 
Reduce heat to low and sit for 1.5 to 2 hours. 
Add low-fat mozzarella cheese to top or serve with a freshly baked corn muffin! 

** Using cans packed in water with no salt greatly reduces sodium intake of a normal chili. If you prefer to use dried beans: soak beans overnight in bowl. Be sure the beans are covered by an additional 1/2 amount of water to absorb. Cook the beans in the tomato mixture. 

** This dish is super flavorful and does not need a lot of salt, so taste it first and then add salt sparingly.


Sorry about the weird font/highlight color. I copied my recipe from my Facebook page!  Enjoy!

Great article about what oils are healthier than others!

Check out this great article on the different types of oils out there. You'll find that using olive oil and even butter in recipes offers greater heart healthy outcomes than fat free or tub margarines!

http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/are-cooking-oils-good-you

Quick Snack: Banana Parfait

Here is a hearty snack that is packed with protein, vitamins and minerals.
About 1 cup Greek yogurt vanilla flavor, granola and a sliced banana!
Hearty and filling!

Quick and Easy Italian

I was pretty hungry when I got home from work today so I whipped up a quick and easy Italian style veggie sandwich! I am definetely the kind of person that has to couple a sandwich with something so I chose some "Food Should Tasta Good" multi-grain chips. Here is what I put on the sandwich and how I made it.

1 Arnolds 100calorie roll

1 sliced plum tomato (from my dad's garden!)

1 slice romaine lettuce halved

thinly sliced red onion

shredded red cabbage

4 basil leaves (from my garden!)

olive oil

garlic powder

black pepper

sprinkle of salt

I have a fantastic little oil sprayer from The Pampered Chef. It allows you to use your own oil and convert it to a spray oil. This helps cut calories but mainain flavor. I sprayed the bun with oil and sprinkled my seasonings on it. I toasted it for about 5 minutes.

Slice the tomato and lay the slices onto the bread. Top with cabbage, onion and lettuce. Spray the vegetables again with a bit of oil.

Add a handful of chips. I coupled the chips with a Laughing Cow Tomato Basil Cheese wedge.

Enjoy!! Yum!

Spicy Pumpkin Soup

My pumpkin obsession continues! I have been wanting to dive into my pumpkin baking but always end up with excess pure pumpkin. I found a great recipe from Lisa Lillien's first recipe book, Hungry Girl- Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt Free Eating in the Real World (Amazon.com Link!). The book is really good and offers recipe ideas that are practical and often include kitchen staples! Love it!

So I modified the recipe a little bit because I did not have some of the ingredients but it turned out to be a hearty but not heavy soup that will be delightful tomorrow during our rainy day.

Ingredients
-16 oz. pure pumpkin
-16 oz. low-sodium vegetable broth (or chicken broth if you like)
-15 oz. black beans drained and rinsed (1 average size can)
-1 cup sweet corn (I used canned but use a fresh ear if you have it!)
-1/2 tsp cumin
-2 cloves of garlic minced
-1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
-1/4 cup prepared salsa (any spice level you prefer)
-8 oz water
-1 tsp olive oil
-Optional- dollop of fat-free sour cream or plain fat free Greek yogurt

Pour oil into a medium saucepan. Add garlic and allow to simmer.

Add chicken broth, water, cumin and red pepper. Bring to a simmer.

Mix pumpkin until smooth (will look watery). Add in corn, beans and salsa.

Stir and simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with/without sour cream and enjoy!!

My Love Affair with Pumpkin continues.....

Fibery, pumpkiny goodness!!!!

I cannot express enough how much I LOVE pumpkin sweets. This time of year offers a wide variety of sweet pumpkin treats that also pack a calorie punch! I opted to make 2 different pumpkin dishes with a large can of pure pumpkin.

I started out with Pumpkin Pecan Muffins.

Ingredients

3 cups whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground cloves

3 eggs + 1 egg white

2 cups sugar

1/4 cup veg. oil

3/4 cup applesauce

2 cups pure pumpkin

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cupcake pan with liners.

Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and cloves.

In a mixing bowl combine pumpkin, sugar, oil and applesauce. Mix on a low speed and add eggs one by one.

Slowly add dry ingredients until batter is thick and smooth. Fold in pecans.

Baked for 15-18 minutes or until the batter no longer comes off onto a fork when tested.

Yummy Pumpkin goodness!!

I also made a cream cheese glaze for the topping. Mix 1 stick of cream cheese with about 1/2 cup of confectionary sugar, 1 tbsp of vanilla and 1/4 cup water. Mix until smooth and drizzle over the muffins.