English Muffin Cheese Pizza

I have fallen in LOVE with Thomas English Muffins 100% Whole Wheat! I could put anything and everything on them! I like them better than bread, sand which rounds, or bagels!

For lunch today I was looking for something quick and easy while I put together tonight's dinner. (Turkey Chili.. recipe will come tomorrow) So I came up with common sense kinda English Muffin Cheese Pizza

Normally on my homade pizzas (I learned my lesson about ordering pizza) I add spinach, mushrooms, turkey, and whatever else makes it seem more healthy. This is so I don't feel quality as I dip that toasted crust into the ranch dressing. MmmmMmmm. Today I just wanted cheese though.. (no ranch with an english muffin)

English Muffin Cheese Pizza
*cal. 200  *fat 6   *sodium 410  *carb 26  *protein 12 

1/4 cup 2% shredded mozzarella cheese
*cal. 70 *fat. 5  *Sod. 180  *carb. .8  *protein. 7
1/4 tsp oregano
*cal. 1
2 tbls hunts no salt added tomato sauce
*cal. 10  *Sod. 10  *carbs 2.5
1 100% whole wheat Thomas english muffin
*cal 120  *fat 1  *sod. 220  *carb. 23  *protein 5

Toast both halves in toaster
Add toppings
Broil in oven for 1 to 3 mins (till desired melt)

I like mine a little burnt!

M.I.A No Longer!!

I have been M.I.A in the kitchen and in the cooking blog. Well not so much in the kitchen as in the blogging but the great news is I am back! I have been focusing on eating right and not so much cooking. Now it is time to combine the two things along with blogging and get back to what I first wanted to do with this blog!

I am counting calories. I KNOW. Everyone hates to hear those words but it helps. Read Here to find out my thoughts on counting or at least understanding calories and sodium.

So, here is the menu for the week.

SNACKS
Creamy Garlic Herb Dip
Orange Chipotle Spiced Pecan Mix
(Texas made the Pecan Tree the state tree in 1919)

BREAKFAST
Mediterranean Style Frittata  Bite Size Frittata
(Frittatas originally came from Italy and the original frittata means fried. Usually fried leftovers from the night before. In america it has taken on as a breakfast since the staple American breakfast food is used.. Eggs)

LUNCH/SOUPS
Oriental Soup with Mushrooms, Bok Choy, and Shrimp
(Bok Choy is China Cabbage. In 2009 a women died from consuming 1.5 kg a day. Bok Choy has toxins in it that if you eat large quantities, can cause upset stomachs and dizziness)  FREAKY!
Chicken Asparagus Salad Creamy Chicken & Asparagus Salad
Chicken Salad with Avocado Dressing
(Avocado has the highest protein than any other fruit. It also has very healthy fats but should not be eaten in large quantities at a time. If you have an avocado that is not ripe, place it in a paper bag to speed up the process or you can place it in the fridge to slow down the ripening process.)

DINNER
Skillet Shrimp with BBQ Glaze Glazed Skillet Shrimp
Balsamic Chicken and Mushrooms
Dark Bean Soup with Avocado Lime Salsa
Southwestern Chicken and White Bean Soup
Yucatecan Rice Salad
(Yucatecan is a mixture of Mexican and European. This is because the Yucatecan Peninsula, apart of Mexico, was considered to be to far to reach from all other parts of Mexico. The Peninsula was known for having ports and the European were able to reach the ports easily. This is when the Peninsula became influenced with the European was such as dress, architecture, and .. you guessed it, cooking)



Looks like I have some major cooking to do! Can't wait to cook, take pics, and share my recipe (tweeks as always from the recipe I get it from) Be looking for it as early as tomorrow!

Again, I will link each dish to the recipe and photos as I make/upload them!

Creamy Chicken Salad with Asparagus

This recipe had me excited and "ify". I love chicken salad. I Love asparagus. Putting them together? I was not sure. I don't like grapes in my chicken salad, or nuts, or really anything crunchy/hard. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised! In a good way. It was delicious. The asparagus was very refreshing in it. The creamy sauce is yummy! This will be going in my cook book for sure! (I only put recipes in my cook book if I want to make it again)

Creamy Chicken Salad w/ Asparagus Spears
*1 cup of cut asparagus spears
*1/4 cup of mayo (I use olive oil mayo)
*1/4 cut of butter milk
*half a lemon's juice (or less if you don't like lemon juice.i love it)
*you could add salt but I didn't add any salt
* shake of ground pepper
*1/4 tsp of parsley
*1/4 tsp of oregano
*1/2 tsp of garlic powder
*1/4 tsp mrs dash garlic lime spice
*2 cups of shredded cooked chicken
(I am sure some people would like to add fresh tomato slices)

Cook chicken if not already cooked and shred it
Cut the asparagus and then steam it until desired tenderness
Drain asparagus, then plunge into ice water. Then drain it
(you want the cooked asparagus to be cold not hot)
Combine Mayo and the next 7 ingredients into bowl and whisk
Taste and add extra spices to taste
Add chicken and asparagus. Toss lightly until all is covered by the creamy sauce.
Serve as is or place in fridge to chill. Add bread, crackers, or plain with a side of fruit. 

 This dish is for 2 people or half not half later.
The nutrition facts are for the full dish. If you eat half the dish, cut the facts in half! It is high in sodium but if you get reduced sodium everything, this could be lowered greatly.


Calories: 342
Total Fat: 14g
Choleserol: 71mg
Carbs: 23g
Protein: 30g
Sodium: 673mg

Glazed Skillet Shrimp

The recipe I used called this dish BBQ Shrimp. This is not what I thought of when I ate it. Actually when I made it I knew it wasn't even close to BBQ. I make my own bbq sauce so I know what goes into bbq sauces. This I will just call a glaze.

Glazed Skillet Shrimp*1 tablespoon of butter
*1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce
*    cup of fat free Italian dressing
*1 teaspoon of dried rosemary
*14 peeled tail-on thawed shrimp
*1 lemon wedge

Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl. Pour into a skillet and bring to a boil on medium heat.
Add shrimp to skillet and cook shrimp to preferred "doneness"
I flipped the shrimp once in the skillet
Cut lemon into wedges and serve

Great dish for an appetizer, part of a seafood or steak meal, or just as a small light lunch.

Bite Size Frittata

I had a recipe for a Mediterranean Style Frittata out of a cook book I borrowed from my Mom. Of course I knew I was going to tweek to the my liking but after all is said and done cooked and eaten, my recipe is completely different.

I just happen to have an idea that worked! I am proud to say the least!
I call these my:

Bite Size Frittata

*6 tablespoons of liquid egg whites
*3 medium sized eggs with yolk
*chopped up baby spinach leaves (to taste)
*2 tablespoons of low fat mozzarella cheese shredded (or to taste)
*sprinkle oregano
*sprinkle garlic
*sprinkle parsley
*(I didn't add any salt but it could have used some)
*mix all ingredients together with whisk
*pour the mix into a muffin pan (I use a rubber mini muffin pan)
*bake at 400 degrees until they look done. I want to guess it was around 10 mins most but I wasn't paying attention to the time, I was just looking into the oven. The picture below called DONE, shows what they look like when they are ready!

This I made 6 at first to see how it went and then I used the rest of the mixture to make more. I got about 12 mini bite size out of the reciepe. That could feed anywhere from 2 to 4 depending.

The entire recipe has

415 calories
29g fat
560mg Cholesterol
3.6g carbs
29g protein
407 mg sodium

if you eat a fourth of the recipe then it equals out pretty healthy with
103.5 calories
7.25g fat
140mg Cholesterol
.9g carbs
8g protein
101mg sodium

You could add mushrooms or better yet any type of protein to up the protein amount. Ham, turkey, turkey bacon. ETC.. There is sooo much you can do with this recipe! I am looking forward to making it again!

Chopped up baby spinach leaves

Before and after of whisking

Left is before they are cooked    *   Right is when they are DONE

They popped up like a cake!

Then when I took them out, they shrunk up on the bottoms. 

The End Results! They were YUMMY!

200 calorie meals

My last day of work is tomorrow.. and of course here it is 1:30 am. Why am I still awake? What am I doing at this time in the morning. Believe it or not I am looking at 200 calorie meals. This is why I have not been posting what I have been cooking. My meals have been.. well.. not that interesting. Now that I wont be working, these meals can become interesting. I am on a 200 calorie meal plan for 5 times a day. There is a lot more into my meal plan but that is the easiest way to put it. I have heard. DON'T COUNT CALORIES. Well, it works.. not just losing weight though. I have learned. LEARNED so much about what is good for you to eat. What is not good that I thought was good. AND that every damn thing has sooo much sodium in it.

Counting the numbers daily per meal Benifits:
1. I have learned that things I thought were good for me, because the box said so or because it isn't fried, really are NOT good for me (or you).
2. 1,200 calories split between 5 meals makes each meal 200 calories. This is very easy to meet. I actually am usually under, which is not good. I am working on adding more calories.
3. Sodium. Your sodium intake should be the same as your calorie intake (for most people trying to loose weight) Sodium is in EVERYTHING. There is no way to get around it. You can majorly reduce it though. It makes a huge difference if you get reduced sodium, or no sodium, or 1/3 less sodium things. Just read the labels in the store. COMPARE! You will be suprised!
4. Low or No Sodium things taste just the same! Low sodium soy sauce, or chicken stock, or popcorn. It all taste the same!
5. I have learned to think. Counting has made me think. Exspecially when I cook. It makes me think, Do I Really Need to Add That?
6. Mainly I have to say it has just opened my eyes on food. It has taught me that the fried chicken fingers every day are doing nothing good for me. That I am getting more carbs and calories and fat from the breading than the protien from the chicken. You can take chicken breast add some whole wheat craker crumbs, bake it, and have a healthy yummy chicken finger plate!
Counting has made eating healthy become a life style. Or at least working towards a life style. It is easy after the first month of it! 

I find when I don't write it down, I cheat. If I write it, I wont eat it because seeing it makes me feel bad and sick! WRITE IT DOWN, COUNT IT, LEARN IT!

I am doing it!

I am doing it! I am doing it!

I am actually drinking 8 glasses of water a day! NOTHING ELSE. well that is a lie. I have 1/2 a glass of skim milk in the mornings and some of the time 1/2 a glass at night. Also, tonight I did drink a Margaretta and a greatful dead. BUT.. I AM ACTUALLY DRINKING 8 GLASSES OF WATER A DAY


and I am peeing 18 times a day.  that is the truth!.  Jullian Michaels has a recipe for people trying to lose the retained water. Retained water is the water your body stores from not getting enough water. For people like me, who just flat out are not thirsty ever. I don't even drink during dinner, just after dinner to wash everything down. There is so much retained water that I don't get thirsty. SO, I have to get rid of the retained water by drinking (and peeing I assume) all day. Her recipe to help with this is as follows:


2 liters of water (I do 2.2 because I have a 2.2 liter water jug that I carry everywhere I go this = 8 glasses)
1 dandelion root tea bag (green life is the only place I found this at)
1 tbls of sugar free cranberry juice (green life)
2 tbls of lemon juice


This is how I have found it is easiest. fill a pitcher up half way with water, then add lots of ice, then boil a glass of water (I just use the hot water from my kureg) and let the tea bag sit in the hot water. I smush (no that that kind Jersey Shore watchers) mine around and then squeeze it to make sure I get all the flavor. (wow, after taking that sentence in a Jersey Shore mind in the gutter kind of way.. it did not sound to good) then pour water into the pitcher. Fill up the rest of the way and drink. I pour mine into my 2.2 L jug and add more water because my pitcher is only 2 liters.


I LOVE THIS DRINK!  I make it in the morning or at night before bed and put in the fridge till the morning.


p.s. I am also eating every 3 hours which is 5 meals a day for me. My last meal I actually eat prob at 2 hours because I don't want to eat late.


p.s.s. I am also keeping up with my food journal daily! AND I just downloaded a new application in my IPAD that I can keep all this food journal in. I LOVE THE APPLICATION!


P.S.S.S           I AM SEEING POUNDS GO DOWN!!


now, going to bed before 11:00 or midnight..
that is a work in progress

I am proud because I AM DOING IT!!