Hi Thursday.

Ermehgersh you guys.  I made a really really great dinner last night.  So good that my husband said "wow, this makes me *#%!@*@^&$!" 

Now I am sure that versions of this recipe are all up on that schmancy place called Pinterest, but this is something I made up.  On my own.  Without Pinterest.

Why the chip on my shoulder with Pinterest? 

It is because I am...deep down...afraid.

Afraid that it will make me feel inadequate for not having homemade hair jewelry.  For having a lack of decorative hand-enscripted wall hangings.  For only knowing one way in which to wear a scarf.  For a deficit of hand-prepared lemon curd in cute little jars with old-timey fabric and ribbon and homemade shortbread cookies on which to serve ON PURPOSEFULLY-MISMATCHED-PLATES-FROM-ANTHROPOLOGIE.

I can make me feel inadequate on my own, thank you very much.

But no feelings of inadequacy from this recipe.  Enjoy.

Buffalo Chicken Pasta Bake
-1 box whole wheat penne pasta
-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about a pound), pounded to 1/2 in thick
-1 1/2 cups chopped celery
-1 cup chopped yellow onion
-1 Tbsp oil
-2 cups skim milk
-1/4 cup butter spread
-1/4 cup all purpose flour
-5 oz blue cheese crumbles
-1/2 cup Buffalo sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)
-1 cup shredded Colby Jack

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add pasta.  Meanwhile, sprinkle a bit of Lawry's and cumin (if you want) to the chicken breasts.  Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat.  Add chicken and cook until internal temp is at least 160.  Go drain your pasta, add it back to the pot, and set the cooked chicken aside.

In a large skillet, heat oil and add chopped celery and onion.  Cook until slightly softened and beginning to brown.  Add to pasta pot.

Now go and cut up the chicken into 1/2 cubes.  Add to pasta pot.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter spread over medium heat.  Whisk in flour until smooth.  Add 1 cup milk.  Whisk until smooth.  Add second cup of milk.  Get a spatula and stir constantly until mixture begins to thicken and boil.  Remove from heat.  Stir in a pinch of pepper and your blue cheese crumbles.  The blue cheese won't completely melt- this is ok. 

Stir in Buffalo sauce.

Pour sauce over pasta/chicken mixture and stir to combine.  Go coat a 9x13 glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Spread pasta evenly.  Top with shredded Colby Jack and bake 15-20 minutes, or until cheese gets lightly browned and bubbly.

Makes 8 servings.  Per serving: 350 calories, 45 g carbs, 5.5 g fat, 30 g protein. 

Must-See TV

Why has everyone been asking me what I did last Thursday?

I made homemade chicken nuggets and watched Parks & Rec and The Office.

Like any other Thursday. 

But with pretty pink roses.

And a card with a heart-felt note.

Plus Dwight Schrute.


Homemade Chicken Nuggets
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, thawed and cut into 2" chunks
-1 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
-1 egg, lightly scrambled
-3 teaspoons seasoning of your choice (I did 3 different varieties- chipotle chili powder, Lawry's, and ranch)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with canola/olive oil cooking spray.

In a medium shallow bowl, combine breadcrumbs with seasoning of your choice.  Dip a chicken chunk into the scrambled egg, then dip into the breadcrumb mixture.  Place on the baking sheet and repeat until all the chicken has been dipped and coated. 

Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until internal temp registers minimum 165 degrees.

Makes 2 servings.  Per serving: 380 calories.

Happy Valentines Day! 

Q&A

Q: What’s *not* the best way to knock the garage light off the wall?

A: With your head.

I had a dumb accident last night.  I blame the ice.  I blame the sharpness of the metal & glass.  I blame my traction-less (but super cute) sequin Uggs.  This is just further evidence that helmets need to become mainstream as fashionable headwear. 

Consequently, I have a staple in my head.  Just one metal staple.  If I were Ke$ha I would add a few more dozen, plus glitter. 

I will admit that I have totally been slacking when it comes to my diet.  It’s really easy to not eat vegetables.  It’s easy to be lazy and procrastinate.  Remember a few months ago when I made fun of my husband for never eating his apple?  I’ve had the same baggie of carrots in my lunch for almost a week straight.  Am I waiting for them to get mushy and fuzzy? 

I subscribe to “Real Simple” magazine, which I’m pretty sure makes me a mature and responsible adult (goodbye, Cosmo!).  In the February issue they highlight green veggies- you know, the ones we are most frightened of.  I figured I would try some of these smoothie recipes.  I’m usually anti-smoothie because I believe you should eat your food.  Buuuuut clearly that hasn’t been happening, so I will endorse plan B: liquefied greens.  With fruit.

Each recipe makes 2 servings and has 140-200 kcal, 5 grams fiber, plus 200% of your daily needs of vitamins A and C.

Collard greens smoothie with mango & lime

2 Tbsp fresh lime juice

2 cups stemmed and chopped collard greens (or spinach)

1 ½ cups frozen mango

1 cup green grapes

Combine the lime juice, ½ cup water, collard greens, mango, and grapes in a blender and puree until smooth, about 1 minute, adding more water to reach the desired consistency.

Spinach smoothie with avocado and apple

1 cup apple juice + ½ cup water

2 cups stemmed and chopped spinach (or kale)

1 apple- unpeeled, cored, and chopped

½ avocado, chopped

Combine the apple juice, spinach, apple, and avocado in a blender and puree until smooth, about 1 minute, adding water to reach the desired consistency.

Kale smoothie with pineapple and banana

 ½ cup almond milk (or coconut milk)

2 cups stemmed and chopped kale (or spinach)

1 ½ cups chopped pineapple

1 ripe medium banana, chopped

 Combine the milk, ½ cup water, kale, pineapple, and banana in a blender and puree until smooth, about 1 minute, adding more water to reach the desired consistency.

A few days in the Mitten

     You know what is a bad idea?  Watching a TV show called “Air Disasters” before you are scheduled to fly to Michigan via Chicago on a tiny plane in icy cold weather.  Particularly bad if said “Air Disasters” episode features a tiny plane in icy cold weather that crashed in Chicago because of ice buildup.  If you are ever on a tiny plane sitting in seat 7C and you see fingernail indentations in the arm rest, it very well could be the plane I was on. 

     So why did I travel to Michigan?  To spend some quality time with Grandma and Poppy and cousins.  I found this gem of a picture while going through a box of old photos.

With my doll (named Katie, bee-tee-dubs) in one hand and some sort of weapon in my other hand.

Yeah!  Crib cousin power!

Here’s a recipe based on Grandma’s spaghetti recipe. 

• 3 cans low sodium tomato soup
• 1 pound extra lean ground beef (or turkey)
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1 box whole wheat spaghetti

     Bring a large stockpot of water to boil.  Add pasta and turn heat to medium.  Meanwhile in a large pan, sauté onion and ground beef until beef is no longer pink.  Stir in tomato soup.  Drain pasta and serve sauce over noodles. 

    This is a basic recipe, kind of like goulash.  You could take this in many different directions- add hot sauce or red pepper flakes, add paprika and cumin, or add fresh chopped tomatoes and spinach. 

Makes 6 servings.  Per serving: 385 calories, 60 g carbs, 5 g fat, 26 g protein.

Thanks for having me G&P!