Oh What Fun

Had fun doing a mini shoot today of Cole and the girls :)

Breakfast Stack

Okay, I decided to go off track here from my traditional spinach, mushroom and egg white omelet. I ventured further and made what I call a "stack".

What you will need:

5 eggs (egg whites only)

1 slice of turkey bacon

1 slice of swiss cheese

1 Deli (thin) slice of honey ham

1 tablespoon of grated Parmesan cheese

A sprinkle of paprika

A dash of salt and pepper

Take 3 egg whites for your base. Did you know that egg whites taste best when you let them sit at room temperature for a bit? Yea, well if you did great, but this is something I just recently learned so leave the eggs out for about 20 minutes. Vigorously, mix the egg whites and pour into a microwave safe dish that has the diameter of approximately 3 inches. For me, I used a measuring cup. Cook in microwave for 45 seconds. Put this layer on a plate.

Next, sprinkle layer with a half tablespoon of grated Parmesan. Also, dash some salt and pepper to your liking. At the same time I am usually frying the turkey bacon on the stove. If you like your can fry your slice of ham too, but I cooked mine in the microwave for 45 seconds.

Add the bacon to the stack by breaking in half. Add the slice of ham. Immediately add the slice of Swiss so that the Swiss can melt over the stack.

I then take two more egg whites, mix, and heat for 30 seconds and add to the top of the stack.

The final steps are to top with the remaining Parmesan cheese, a sprinkle of paprika and some salt and pepper.

I served with 4 medium strawberries.

The entire meal is low carb and high in protein. The stack and strawberries contain approximately 328 calories!!! YEA healthy and low in calories!!!!

Now, the next question you may ask is, "okay Liz, this looks good but how do I eat it?" Well, I got myself a knife and fork and cut it all up and ate it! There is no right or wrong way to eat a stack.

Meatza

1.5 pounds LEAN ground beef, preferably grass fed beef

1 can tomato paste

1/2 cup water

1 egg

1 tsp dry basil or 1.5 tsp fresh basil

1 tbls Italian seasonings

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1 tsp organic brown sugar

6 cloves garlic dived

1 packet dry zesty Italian dressing mix (not using entire packet)

2 cups reduced fat mozzarella

1/2 cup reduced fat mild cheddar

Preheat oven to 375.

In a large bowl mix ground beef (uncooked), 1/3 packet zesty Italian, 2-3 pressed garlic's, egg, and 1/4 Parmesan cheese. Mix well and pat out on to pizza pan making the base for the pizza. I also shape the edge of the meat like crust. Try to spread the meat out as much as possible because it will shrink. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese and place in oven for ten minutes.

While meat is cooking combine tomato paste, 1/3 packet Italian dressing mix, Italian seasoning, basil, brown sugar, and water into sauce pan. Let simmer for 10 minutes.

When meat is done cooking remove and drain grease. Also, blot of grease with paper towels.

Sauce the pizza with the tomato mixture and cover with mozzarella and cheddar cheese and sprinkle with 3 chopped garlic cloves.

Add whatever toppings you prefer and place back in over for 5 minutes. Then put the broil on and crisp up the toppings and make the cheese brown and bubbly! ENJOY!

Pizza topping ideas:

Turkey Bacon

Turkey pepperoni

Red bell pepper

Yellow bell pepper

Green bell pepper

Onions

Mushrooms

Tomatoes

Jalapenos

Banana Peppers

Parmesan cheese

Pineapple

Canadian Bacon

Italian sausage

Also, can make pizza crust base with ground turkey or chicken.

Fruit Salsa

As promised, here is my fruit Salsa recipe:

5 Strawberries diced

1/2 Mango diced

6 rings fresh pineapple diced

3 kiwis diced

3-4 tablespoons strawberry fruit preserves or jam

Mix all together and chill for 4 hours. You can serve with cinnamon and sugar tortilla chips or eat it straight just like me!

Enjoy!

Leah Grace is here!

Leah was born on 01/23/2012 with typical chromosomes. She did not have down syndrome. My c-section went well and we were so relieved that everything went okay. I will say the worst part was the catheter and IV!!

Oh we love her so much! All 8 lbs and 7 ounces of her.

Down Syndrome

Down Syndrome was not what I was expecting to hear when the doctor called me. I am told that I have a 1:200 chance that my 2nd child can have down syndrome. The next steps are ultrasound and/or amnio. My level 2 ultrasound revealed no "soft markers' for down syndrome and I declined the amnio due to the risk of miscarriage. This baby is a miracle and in no way will I risk her life to determine if she has an extra set of chromosomes. She is our miracle, our rainbow after a huge huge storm. This child is our hope and we love her with or without an extra set of chromosomes.