Monday, April 30, 2012

Rainy weekend

Forget about May flowers.  April showers bring productive weekends.  The average unpacking time for me tends to be 17.5 days, but I'm happy to say that with lightning speed it only took me seven days to unpack.  Yes, I acknowledge that's still 6 days overdue.  Progress, people.

Big highlights include my baby brother's birthday (ok, 23, so maybe not 'baby'), a Saturday night out with friends, and lunch with my husband's family.  Here are some of the smaller highlights of the weekend:
Springy fruity soap.  Thanks Bath & Body Works.
My husband and I went for an 11-mile run.  Half-marathon is only two weeks away.  How cute that we have matching his 'n' hers Asics, huh?  The thing is we can't stand to run with each other.  So we developed a system- we plan a circular route, and take off in opposite directions, and pass each other at the halfway point with a high five.  It works well.  I may be biased though, 'cause twice now I've beaten him home.
Essie "Mint candy apple" nail polish.  So springy and fun.  It reminds me of Easter M&M's.
 I switched out my winter clothes.  Now that all my wool sweaters are packed in totes, it can't snow anymore, right??  Nice to see bright colors hanging in my closet again.
Found these in the fridge.  Don't judge.  I, uhh, was purposely keeping those bananas shoved in the back, so...uhh...I could make some banana muffins.  It was all part of the plan.
Banana Oat Muffins
-1 cup Bob's Red Mill oat bran (or else toss 1 cup of oats into a food processor until finely ground)
-1 cup all-purpose flour
-1 tablespoon oats
-1/2 cup chopped walnuts
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-pinch of salt
-1/2 cup butter substitute, such as Best Life spread or Brummel & Brown
-3/4 cup sugar
-2 eggs
-2 ripe bananas, mashed
-1/2 cup plain or vanilla nonfat Greek yogurt

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.  In a smaller bowl, beat together eggs, butter, sugar, yogurt, and vanilla.

Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture.  Stir in bananas.  Be mindful not to overstir, as that makes the muffins tough.  Fill a 6-cup muffin tin (jumbo) or 12-cup tin (regular) with batter, sprinkle a bit of dry oats on top, and bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
These muffins are hearty and dense, thanks to the Greek yogurt.  They're quite big too, if you make the jumbo ones like I did- similar in size to Perkins'.  Only instead of packing 610 calories and 30 grams of fat, one of these has 330 calories, 59 g carbs, 10 g fat, 10 g protein, and 5 g fiber.  Great for a Monday morning breakfast.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Vacation Recap

I'm back from Nicaragua, and I can say that it was nothing like I thought it would be.

Ahead of the trip I was a bit nervous actually, fearing it would be unsafe, buggy, and food poisoning would be constant. 

Happily none of that was true and we had a great trip.  Our recent trip to Mexico was pretty lazy, and this trip was the opposite.  We did everything from surfing, paddleboarding, zip lining, hiking through the jungle (and encountering many monkeys), and swimming in a former volcano crater. 
This is the view from the balcony of our rental house.  We stayed in San Juan Del Sur, a little beach town.  Up on the hill in the distance is a large statue of Christ.  Fittingly, on Sunday morning we took a walk up to visit him. 

Awkwardly posing on the beach. 

This is the main street in San Juan.  We found a taco stand that had awesome tacos and quesadillas for under a dollar (equivalent). 

We found a bakery in town (actually run by a guy from Chicago) that had amazing mango bread.  We bought a pineapple and some bananas from the market.  Best fruit we've ever had.  And I miiiiiight have washed it off with soap and water just to make sure it was clean.
We spent one day in Granada, one of Central America's oldest cities- built in the 1700's.  This is a cafe in the town square.

Guava juice.  I'd never had it.  Now I want more of it.  Of course it probably costs ten times more to buy here than it did down there.  Guava juice is one of the main ingredients in:

El Macua is the official bird of Nicaragua, and this drink shares its name.  Our tour guide suggested we try this.  Delicious.  I'm going to want to drink this all summer long.  Screw cigars- I should've brought back guava juice with me. 

This is "tipico"- typical Nicaraguan breakfast, minus the black beans and rice.  You can see the little sausage here- it is more like a tiny hot dog.  Not something I usually include with my breakfast, but hey, when on vacation...

Beautiful endings to our fun-filled days. 

Now, who's going to go find me some guava juice? 


 

Friday, April 13, 2012

April showers bring...vacations.

It's been at least 90 days since my last tropical vacation, so I simply must get away.

Ha.  If only I was actually that kind of person. 

It's the eve before we set off for Nicaragua. Swimsuits?  Check.  Sunblock?  Check.  Costco-size box of Clif bars?  Check.

Maybe Andrew Zimmern's Nicaraguan episode where he ate cheese made of maggot poop is not the norm down there, but I'm not taking chances. 

I'll be back in eight days, with likely some fun stuff to report.  Fun stuff that doesn't include anything involved with maggots.  I hope.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Baking in circles

I get that most crafty gals nowadays are making cute decorative wreaths for their home.  I've even seen pictures of a wreath made of Peeps
I say stop it.

Crafty people and Pinterest are making me feel inadequate.

I don't own a hot glue gun.  I have no scalloped-edge scissors.  The only stamp I own is one with our address. 

So in part protest, part joining-the-bandwagon, here's an edible wreath.  Dinner beats out decorations in this house. 

Broccoli Chicken Wreath
2 4.5-oz cans white meat chicken
1 cup finely shredded Cheddar cheese
2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped into smallish chunks
4 oz Neufchatel (lowfat) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
3 packages of crescent rolls

1. Using a hand mixer, blend yogurt and cream cheese and 1/2 teaspoon jarred garlic until smooth.  Stir in broccoli, onion, chicken, and cheese.  Season with a bit of pepper. 
2. Open up one tube of crescents and peel apart each individual triangle.  Arrange the triangles in a sun pattern, so that a little corner of each base overlaps with its neighbor.
3. Using a rolling pin, flatten the crescents, stretching them out a bit.
4.  Place a ring of filling on top of the crescents, and wrap each triangle tip around the filling.  When you're finished with the last triangle, use a fork to crimp the inside edges together (so it doesn't come off while baking.
5. Repeat with the remaining crescents, or until the filling's used up (I tend to make double batches of filling and freeze for later).

This is where I wish I would've taken more pictures to explain.

5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, or until nicely browned. 





Each wreath makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 250 calories, 24 g carbs, 13 g fat, 11 g protein.

I suppose I could let this sit on the counter for a few days, harden up, then hang on my door.  People would be all "oooh, she used broccoli in place of flowers!"  Or not. 

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Bursting Bubbles

You ever have it where something you believe to be held true is actually a lie?

I'm not necessarily talking about Santa Claus and the Easter bunny. 

"I have health insurance, therefore all my healthcare is free!"  I spent $80 to tell my doctor that I have no questions or concerns at my annual visit.

"Stain-resistant tablecloth!"  Didn't stand up to my husband's red wine spill.

"Clump-proof mascara!"  Not so much, Spider-Eyes.  

In the spirit of disappointing people, I've compiled a list of "foods that sound nutritious but really don't have much of anything good."  Or FTSNBRDHMOAG for short.  

1. Granola.
Shocker.  Oats?  Gooooood.  Nuts?  Goooood.  Coat them in sugar and call it a cereal?  Not good.  One cup of granola cereal has over twice as many calories, and almost twice as much sugar, as one cup of Lucky Charms.  Better choices would be more basic whole grain cereals, such as bran flakes, oats, Fiber One flakes, or Kashi. 


2. Granola bars
 Not surprising given what I just said about granola.  Many granola bars, especially Kudos and Sunbelt brands, are essentially candy bars.  Yes they have oats, but the power of oats gets smothered when they're coated in sugar syrup and chocolate.  Even though little Quaker granola bars that are geared towards kids don't really have a whole lot going for them.  They're low calorie (90) but lack any fiber or protein.  Instead try a granola bar with less than 10 grams of sugar and at least 3 grams of protein- Kashi makes some good ones.

3. Cereal bars
We're talking Nutri-Grain type bars and those "milk & cereal" bars.  Again, they are high in sugar and lack fiber.  Don't be fooled by any pictures of fruit on the box.  Choose a whole grain cereal and actual piece of fruit.  Are we in such a hurry that we need strawberry goo instead of actual strawberries?

4. 100-calorie Snack Packs
Can you think of a less satisfying food than a handful of mildly-Oreo-tasting wafers?  Guess what- if you truly want an Oreo, go have one.  It's 70 calories, and tastes a heck of a lot better than it's substitute.

5. Activia Yogurt
Ahh yes, poop yogurt.  TMI, Jamie Lee Curtis.  My beef against Activia isn't major, but the message is that all yogurts have healthy gut bacteria.  You don't have to pay a premium for this stuff.  Just get whatever lowfat yogurt is on sale.  Nonfat plain Greek yogurt has less sugar and 3-4 times the protein of Activia for about the same calories.  Nice swap.  Your gut will still punish thank you.

6. Juice smoothies
I'm talking about those Odwalla, Naked, and Bolthouse brand juice mixes.  Here's an example of why I'm not in love with these- in the Naked strawberry banana flavor, there are the equivalent of 22 strawberries, 1 1/3 banana, and 1 3/4 apple.  Now, you'd have a hard time eating all that solid fruit, but in juice form, it's easy to drink down the entire 16-oz bottle (which is actually two servings).  That packs a ton of sugar, and you miss out on the natural fiber and satisfying-ness of eating the whole fruit.
Smoothies aren't a total no- just make sure that you never drink more fruit than you'd normally eat, and add some nonfat Greek yogurt as a base to provide some protein.  Bonus if you add a teaspoon of ground flaxseed for some healthy omega-3 fats.

Any more bubbles I ought to be bursting?  Nutrition can be tricky stuff, and I never claim to have it totally right either. 

Don't ever quote me on that though.

Old News

A few months ago I cut 12 inches of hair off.  Locks of Love is a charity that makes wigs out of donated hair.

It's not so much that I'm philanthropic, but more that I'm lazy.

The cheapness of getting bi-annual haircuts at Great Clips lends itself to growing ridiculously long hair.

And then I get a free haircut at the salon, and a legitimate contribution to a charity.
And a creepy post-card as a thank you.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Cabinet Scrapin'

Some days I'm like the MacGuyver of cooks. 

Got 6 random ingredients? 

Game on. 

Just don't make those ingredients consist of Cheetos, oats, Hersey syrup, chocolate chips, Rice Krispies, and carrots.  I tried that once.  I was four. 

Black Bean Quinoa
  • 1 cup low sodium chicken (or veggie) broth
  • 1 can diced tomatoes
  • 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 onion, cut into 1" chunks
  • 2 cups quinoa ("KEEN-wah"- high fiber grain that also is a good source of protein)
  • Nonfat plain Greek yogurt
  • Corn (optional)
  • Cilantro (optional)

In a Dutch oven, heat up 1 Tbsp olive oil and saute onions until tender.  Add broth, tomatoes, and quinoa.  Cover and let simmer on low for 5-10 minutes.  You may need to add a bit more water so that the quinoa has enough to soak up.  Once the quinoa is cooked, stir in the black beans and corn.  Season with a few pinches of chipotle chili powder, onion powder, and pepper. 

Serve with a nice blob of the Greek yogurt (replaces sour cream and gives you additional protein) and cilantro. 

Okay so maybe I'm more like MacGruber.  Whatever. 

The shaky hand loses

Every time I need some seasonings it's like I am forced to play a game of Jenga.
I usually lose.

And yes, I have many duplicates.  One of the perks of getting married- the combination of spices.  Twice the rubbed sage?!  Sign me up!