Spice It Up

It’s here!  I picked up my new laptop.  It’s an HP something or other.  I’m very technical, can you tell?  Anyway, the husband said it was a good one and the price was right which was the most important thing!  So shiny and new…

No more ghetto monitor hook-up :)

 

I skipped the gym in favor of meeting a friend early for coffee.  I had planned on getting a treat at the Starbucks, so I just had a Chobani nonfat blueberry yogurt before leaving…

At the Starbucks, you know what was calling my name…

I love Pumpkin Spice Light Frappuccino !!!

Lots of gabbing went on, then I had to leave for a call about some “blog stuff”.  More on that soon ;)  Tease!

I ended up way late for lunch again.  I was past the starving point and starting to get shaky.  The easiest thing that came to mind was a wrap, so I quickly threw together  turkey, chipotle pepper hummus and baby spinach in a high fiber tortilla.  Some POPchips and grapes and I was good to go…

Gobble, gobble.  I don’t even know if I tasted any of it, except for the hummus which, WHEW, did I say this was mild before?  It seemed pretty spicy today and basically overpowered the turkey.  I really do like it, though.  I’ve never been a fan of spicy things, but some do grow on me.  I just like to taste all the components of a sandwich or wrap, otherwise what’s the point of putting it in there, right?

Since lunch was so late, I didn’t feel the need for a snack and I kinda had a stomachache anyway.  Probably from scarfing down my lunch!

I decided on a simple dinner of Chicken Cutlets and Zucchini with Beans.  The chicken cutlets are always a hit with the husband and daughters, but I knew the zucchini with beans were going to be a tough sell.  For this easy dish, I pan-fried some fresh sliced zucchini and added in a can of Trader Joe’s Marinated Bean Salad.  Before serving, I added some sliced mozzarella (2 lite string cheese, cut-up) to try to entice the haters…

Very tasty!  I think it would make a great topping for pasta, too.  The husband was good with it;  the daughters not so much.  Try, try again.

I ended the night with THE HOMEWORK WARS and a few Trader Joe’s Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Cookie Bites…

Have a great one!!!

ONE GOOD THING:  I’m starting to think in terms of planning for certain treats.  If I know I want something, I cut back somewhere else to accommodate for the treat and I’m not doing it in a way that seems threatening or depriving.  It’s starting to feel like a natural progression.

Question of the Day:  Do you like spicy food?

For The Love Of Leftovers

This kitchen wallpaper removal/painting prep/nasty cold is not leaving me with much creativity in the food department.  The kitchen is a mess, so minimal “cooking” is going on.  So, I thought this is a good opportunity to stress the importance of “being prepared” with respect to staying the healthy eating course.  As the saying goes, “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail”!

During the weight loss journey, I have heard many people (including myself) say that they didn’t have time to cook healthy foods or didn’t have the right ingredients in their pantry, fridge or freezer.    This lack of time and staples makes it all too easy to opt for takeout, especially when you’re getting in late from work, activities or when your kitchen is a huge mess!  It is so important to have a basic stock of pantry staples, so that you are able to throw something together at a moments notice.  I always keep some canned soups for quick lunches or dinners paired with salad or grilled cheese.  Also, cans of diced tomatoes make great quick pasta toppings;  just saute with garlic and extra virgin olive oil, pour over some whole wheat pasta and finish off with some grated parmesan.  Canned beans are a good option, too.  You can add some chick peas or cannellini beans to a pasta dish for an extra protein punch or just add them to your salad for more staying power.  Some of my fridge/freezer staples are bagged salads ( I make my own by cutting up romaine hearts and placing them in large zipper bags), tortillas, baby carrots, apples, cheese, eggs, yogurt, veggie burgers (homemade or store bought), soups, precooked taco meat (turkey or beef), chicken cutlets and frozen veggies, just to name a few.

But, I have to say that my saving grace many days and especially during this kitchen project has been having leftovers in my fridge and freezer.  I used to balk at leftovers.  Why eat the same thing over and over??  Unless, it’s brownies, of course.  However, there probably wouldn’t be much of those leftover!  Now, I look at leftovers in a whole new way.  Leftovers allow me to have a quick and healthy option with minimal effort or fuss.  Knowing that I had those meals and fridge/freezer items made it easy for me to make good choices during this tiring project;  just heat and eat!  Gotta give props to the microwave!!!   Having these options, besides being a real time-saver, allowed me to “plan” to stay on track.  Failure was not an option!  Love it when a plan comes together :)

Onto the food!  Warning:  prepare to bored out of your mind.  Not much creativity here, just necessary eats!

Thursday

Started the day off with a hearty bowl of leftover oat bran.  I have to say, I wasn’t quite sure how precooked oat bran would translate, but it was just fine with the addition of a little extra water to thin it out while reheating.  I morphed it into PB&J Oatbran with a bit of grape jam and PB2…

Lunch was a Cedarlane Beans, Rice and Cheese style Burrito with a side of POPchips and a peach…

After tons more wallpaper scraping, I decided I needed a break.  I couldn’t shake another Starbucks craving!  The crack is back!!!  This time, I went for a Pumpkin Spice Light Frappuccino…

OMG!  Loved it and a Grande is only 150 calories, .5 grams fat and 3 grams fiber.  Heeeelloooo!!

Scrape, scrape, tape, tape, paint the trim.  UGH!

Dinner was a Dominex Eggplant Burger topped with leftover Hot Artichoke-Cheese Dip and baby spinach on a deli flat, a side of carrots and a Chobani nonfat strawberry yogurt for dessert…

Wallpaper on…

Wallpaper off ---thank, gawd!!!

Now to choose a color….

Friday

I felt a lot better this morning!  Still stuffy, but no fever and head throb.  Since I was on the mend, I decided to make a quick run to the gym.  The Arc Trainer was calling my name!  Brought my breakfast to-go…

The Arc Trainer whipped me good for 30 minutes which was all I had time for since I had a late morning doctor’s appointment.  On the way to the appointment, I munched on a Blueberry Apricot Oat Bran Muffin (from the freezer)…

I went for a routine physical and all checks out, except for my hip which the doc thinks is bursitis and wants me to consult with a Sports Medicine doc for it.  Yikes!

I made it home for a “leftover” lunch before running out the door again to pick up paint and supplies.  I went with Chickpea Croquettes and the ever easy side of carrots and apple…

Later, a Peanut Butter Cookie Larabar was needed to help with the paint color choosing…

And dinner was leftover crock pot chicken with a side of sweet potato fries (pre-cut from Trader Joe’s)…

Thanks for hanging in there with this marathon post!!!  Hope you have a great weekend!  I’ll see you tomorrow for the “reveal” :)

ONE GOOD THING: Leftovers!!!!!!