Little Things....

So I think most parents try to make their kids happy right?  Seems like the littlest things can make them happy..... 

Turkey Taco Salad

What you need:

1 lb ground turkey breast (cooked and seasoned with your favorite taco seasoning) I use about 1/4-1/2 cup on the salad.
2 cups romaine lettuce
1/4 cup super sweet corn
1/4 cup black beans
1/4 cup colby jack cheese
2 tbls chopped sweet onion
2 tbls black bean corn salsa
1 tbls sour cream
1 tbls chopped cilantro

Combine on a salad plate, mix and enjoy!  OH SO YUMMY!

Going Public

Okay, action time! I decided to post my blog url on Facebook today. I need somewhere to go and post all the cool things and experiences I come across and a blog is the perfect fit.

Forgive my spelling, grammar and punctuation errors as you will probably find many. Hey, I am not an English buff okay, plus when you are trying to type down your whole life while your newborn sleeps (crossing fingers) and your toddler watches anything you can find on t.v. (yes I am a bad mom, after all who doesn't want some peace and quiet lol) then spelling and grammar are the last thing on my mind. For those parents out there with grey hairs you know what I am talking about.

I plan to add lots of things on my blog, but right now I am focusing on recipes. I am trying to stick to a low carb diet with no grains, flour, pasta's potatoes....you know all the good things. I am surprised I have found some very tasty things though and it is working. Sometime with in the next year I will hopefully post my before and after pictures, but I am not brave enough to post my before picture until I have an after if you know what I mean. My goal is to lose 70 lbs within the next year. It is definitely doable.

I have been walking at least one mile a day. Here is one of the hills I go up. Yeah, think it doesn't look bad? Try it with a double stroller and a toddler in it.

Here is a view of the hill we went down to get to the park.  Going down is much easier than up :)

I will be working my way into the gym and getting my butt onto that elliptical and strength training machine when I get back home.

So our daily walk drifted us in the direction of the neighborhood playground...funny how that works when you have kids.  Just kidding.  We knew we were going to the park and Mackenzie had tons of fun.

Well here you have it ladies and gentlemen, my current goals with my weight loss.  I hope to add lots of goodies in this blog.  For now, I better go write my turkey taco salad recipe NOM NOM!

Buffalo Cilantro Shrimp with Lime

What you need:

10 Large shrimp raw

1-2 tbls fresh cilantro

1-2 lime wedges

1/4 cup Texas Pete Buffalo Sauce ( DO NOT ADD BUTTER! it is already in there.....Did I just say that)

Preheat oven to 350.

Put shrimp on baking sheet and brush on buffalo sauce.

Chop cilantro and sprinkle onto shrimp.

Place in oven for approx 10 minutes. Once finished squeeze lime over shrimp and serve!

Honey Club Salad

What you need:

1 cup spinach leaves

1 chopped hearts of romaine

fat free cheddar cheese

1 hard boiled egg

cucumbers chopped

2 slices crumbled turkey bacon

1 slice honey ham chopped

1 slice honey turkey chopped

1 tbls onions chopped

2 mushrooms finely sliced

3 twists of fresh ground pepper

Mix and serve with balsamic vinegar! ENJOY!

Deviled Eggs

What you need:

6 Hard boiled eggs

1 tbls cottage cheese

3 tbls plain fat free yogurt

1 tsp of honey dijon mustard

1 teaspoon of organic brown sugar

1-2 tbls fresh chopped chives

salt and pepper to taste

sprinkle with paprika and chives

Slice eggs in half length wise.

Put yolks in bowl and mash with cottage cheese, yogurt, mustard, brown sugar, chives, and salt and pepper. You want a creamy texture.

Next, spoon mixture into a ziploc bag and cut a small hole in corner. Squeeze filling into eggs.

Finally, sprinkle with paprika and top with chives! YUMMY!

Asian Lettuce Wraps

What you need:

1 Head of lettuce

3-4 fresh chicken breast

4-6 white mushrooms diced

3 cloves of fresh garlic grated

1/4 cup red onion or shallots minced

1/4 cup bean sprouts

3 tbls Hoisin sauce divided (save one tbls for the end)

1 tbls sweet cooking wine

1 tbls sweet chili sauce

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup shaved carrots

1 lime

Sauces:

First, dice up all the chicken very small. I find it works easier if the chicken is partially frozen, but be prepared for your hands to go numb. Just make sure you don't cut your fingers off.

In a frying pan combine, chicken, onions, mushrooms, garlic, soy sauce, cooking wine, hoisin sauce, and sweet chili sauce. Saute until chicken is fully cooked. Once chicken is fully cooked add the remaining 1 tbls hoisin sauce and mix fast and remove from heat.

Serve chicken with lettuce, bean sprouts, green onions, shaved carrots and sweet chili sauce.

I usually add some chicken mixture to my lettuce cup with some bean sprouts, green onions and carrots and a little spoon full of chili sauce. I roll the lettuce and devour the wrap! YUMMY!

Strawberry and Almond Grilled Chicken Salad

What you need:

2 cups hearts of romaine lettuce

2-3 strawberries quartered

1 tbls chopped red onion

10 red grapes

1 small fresh chicken breast halved long ways

1 tbls oven roasted almond slices

I serve with red wine vinaigrette or raspberry vinaigrette.

Healthier Shepherd's Pie

What you need:

1-2 lb Lean ground beef

1 cup frozen vegetables (peas, corn, carrots and green beans)

1/2 cup sweet onion chopped divided

2 garlic clove grated

1 tbls of Worcestershire sauce

1 head of cauliflower

3 tbls cottage cheese

1/4 cup skim milk

3 tbls 1/3 fat Philadelphia onion and chive cream cheese

1 teaspoon fresh minced chives

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 beef bouillon cube

1 cup water

1/4 cup fat free cheddar

1/4 cup Parmesan

2 tablespoons stewed tomatoes or tomato paste ( I prefer tomato paste)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat over to 375.

In a large pot place cauliflower and about 1-2 inches of water to steam. I cut the core base of the cauliflower and break into chunks. Steam until cauliflower is soft.

Cook ground beef, onions, garlic, salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce in pan until cooked. Next, add veggies, beef bouillon, tomato paste or stewed tomatoes and water. Let simmer.

Once cauliflower is soft add cream cheese, salt, pepper, milk and cottage cheese. Make sure to mix with a mixer right away. Mix until desired consistency. Fluff in chives with a fork.

Once meat mixture is done cooking pour into casserole dish. Layer on creamed cauliflower and top cauliflower with cheeses and sprinkle with paprika.

Cook for 25 minutes. Then turn on broiler and crisp up the top. Enjoy!

Liz's Cabbage Rolls

What you need:

1 Head of cabbage

1 lb Lean ground beef or ground turkey

3-4 white mushrooms diced

2-3 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup onion diced

2 tsps Worcestershire sauce

2 cans organic tomato sauce (less sodium in organic)

2 beef bouillon cube

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 tsp organic brown sugar

salt and pepper to taste for meat mixture

1/2 cup reduced fat mozzarella

Preheat over to 450.

Boil cabbage in pot of water for 20-30 min covered. When leaves are tender let cabbage cool and pull off the leaves.

Next, take your cans of tomato sauce and mix in the beef bouillon, water, and brown sugar. Let simmer on stove top.

You can make the filling one of two ways... Saute garlic, mushrooms, and onions in a pan and combined with uncooked meat, Worcestershire, cheese, salt and pepper and a little of the tomato sauce mixture (usually about 1/4 cup) or you can cook the meat in with everything.

Once the mixture is cooked put about 1/4 to 1/2 cup onto the leaves and roll like a burrito. Let the seam side sit down in the casserole pan. I can usually make about 10 cabbage rolls. I then pour all the sauce onto the cabbage rolls.

Place in over at the 450 for about 25 minutes. Watch to make sure the cabbage does not burn. After 25 minutes remove and re sauce the rolls. Reduce oven temp to 375 an cook another 15 minutes.

Let cool for about 5-10 minutes and ENJOY! I LOVE THESE!!!

Simple Breakfast Fruit Bowl

This is my simple breakfast fruit bowl to have on the go. It goes great with some vanilla or strawberry greek yogurt.

What you need:

2 slices of cantaloupe cut into chunks

2 Strawberries cut into chunks

10 Red Grapes

1 Banana sliced (do this right before serving so the banana does not brown)

1 Kiwi sliced

Mix all and enjoy!

Spinach, Mushroom and Swiss Stuffed Chicken Breast

This one is definitely a keeper! Let's just say my new favorite thing is spinach. My next venture will be to try spinach in a smoothie, yes, a smoothie. For now let's stick to this amazing taste of goodness.

What you need:

2-4 fresh chicken breasts

2-4 slices of reduced fat swiss cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan shredded.

1-2 cups fresh spinach

2 tbls cooking wine

3 garlic cloves-grated

10-15 white mushrooms

1/4 cup chopped red onion

salt and pepper to taste

Paprika

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1/4 cup olive oil

Heat coconut oil in frying pan. Add grated garlic, onion, salt and pepper, and 10 mushrooms (diced). Saute all together and put in food processor to make a paste like texture.

Next, add spinach and remaining mushrooms (sliced) to skillet along with paste mixture with cooking wine and cook until tender.

Next, butterfly the chicken by cutting in half length wise but, not all the way through. I then use a meat tenderizer and pound out the chicken. Salt and pepper the chicken to your liking.

Put a slice of swiss on the chicken and place about 1/4 cup of the spinach mixture onto the chicken and sprinkle with Parmesan. Roll the chicken up and secure together with a tooth pick. Make sure to put the seam side down. Repeat with remaining chicken and mixture.

Finally, brush olive oil on top of the chicken and sprinkle with paprika, salt and pepper.

Heat oven to 375. Place chicken in oven for 20-25 minutes. Make sure chicken reaches internal temp of 160 degrees.

ENJOY!!!

Salsa Ranch Chicken and Black Bean Quesadillas

I don't make this often since it contains wheat, flour and carbs. This would be my one "bad" meal a week, but I still try to keep it healthy :).

This is one of my favorites, but is not low in carbs. I only have this every once in a while and this recipe was inspired by a Weight Watchers recipe.

What you will need:

4 Fresh Chicken Breast (diced)

8 Multi-Grain or 100% Whole Wheat Fat Free Tortillas

1 cup Black Bean Corn Salsa ( I like Kroger brand Private Selection)

4 tablespoons Philadelphia Reduced Fat Onion and Chive Cream Cheese

1/2 packet of Hidden Valley Dry Ranch Mix

1/4-1/2 of a red onion-diced

1/4 cup SteamFresh super sweet corn

1/4 cup black beans (any brand)

1 teaspoon Cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

3 cloves of fresh grated garlic

Optional:

sprinkle of FAT FREE Kraft cheddar

Combined diced chicken, corn, black beans, onion, garlic, cumin, salt, pepper, salsa and ranch into frying pan. Cook all ingredients until chicken is fully cooked.

In the meantime spread the cream cheese onto each tortilla. Can usually make 3-4 quesadillas (using 6-8 tortillas).

Once mixture is cooked set aside.

In a separate pan place the tortilla into the pan on medium heat. Make sure you do not place the cream cheese side down. Scoop the mixture onto the quesadilla until fairly covered and sprinkle with cheese. Place the top portion of the tortilla (cream cheese side down this time) on top of the mixture and press firmly, especially sealing edges.

Let cook 2-3 minutes on each side, cut with a pizza cutter and serve. Enjoy!