Spinach Smoothie II

One should never mess with success. My first spinach smoothie was a success, so I made another one a little different and this one a lot different. Not so good...the main problem was I got this stuff called Amazing Grass superfood powder (because it has lots of good-for-you stuff in it, so I could put it in smoothies and stuff) and it is NASTY! I thought protein powder was bad, but you can't hide this stuff! It smells like very pungent earthy lawn clippings and tastes awful. I thought a smoothie would hide it but it did not. Otherwise, I think this version of a spinach smoothie would be good. 

I used one yogurt, a banana, one scoop protein powder, frozen strawberries, and 4 cups spinach. Add water and enjoy (you won't have to plug your nose and drink it like I am...haha).

Lunchtime Adventures

Leftovers!

Knitting in the Park...or parking lot haha

Whole Wheat Protein Pancakes

Breakfast for Dinner? I say yes! These pancakes are good for you and will leave you feeling full. Whole wheat flour and protein powder combine their forces for good...who could resist? You can also omit the protein powder if you don't have any; I'm sure they would still be filling. They are yummy too - firm from the egg but not too heavy. They would hold up well to any toppings you might come up with (be creative)! For example: peanut butter and banana, any fruit pie filling and whipped cream, butter and syrup, applesauce, etc.

DIY Communication Station

"DIY" is all the rage on the Internet these days. From "DIY" teeth whitening paste to "DIY" jewelry made from household items...we seem to be against buying a whole item anymore. We must buy several items and then assemble it into our own "DIY" project so we can brag to others how crafty we are.

Commence bragging: I made something. It is cool and I made it myself. Out of two items I purchased separately and combined all by myself. (Should I say myself once more?) I did find the idea on Pinterest. I came up with the name too - DIY Communication Station. Very clever of me. 

Mat Kearney - Ships in the Night

I've been listeng to Mat Kearney's CD Young Love in my car during my commute to and from work the last couple days, intermittently with the radio. This is my favorite song on the CD.

Knitting Isn't Just for Old People

I have started my second official knitting project! I am making a ribbed scarf for myself. I am using Lion brand Homespun yarn in the "Edwardian" color. It is a multi-colored, kinda fuzzy, 95% acrylic yarn with black, cream, and gray in it. I am also using the recommended size 10 needles. (Yes, I usually follow directions - ha ha).

Spinach Smoothie

Want to try those green superfood spinach smoothie recipes you've been seeing online, but kinda scared to? It sounds much grosser than it tastes, really. I like spinach, and I was still leery about making a smoothie with it. But I gave it a whirl (literally) and it turned out surprisingly well! It really just tasted like the fruits I added in - the banana, orange, and blueberry.

You can't even taste the spinach at all, so it doesn't give it a weird flavor or aftertaste. You could also add protein powder if you desire, but I didn't this time. I like that you use 4 whole cups of spinach for this smoothie and you barely even notice that you're eating spinach at all (just the weird color!).

 

 

Healthy Weekend Breakfast Sandwich

Keep it simple and delicious on the weekend with a healthy turkey bacon breakfast sandwich! And it's only 325 calories!

Crock Pot Pork Country-Style Ribs

Mmm, so meaty!

Sometimes you just need a super-simple dinner that is ready when you get home and is warm and fills you up. That said, I am not usually much of a dinner-maker. My husband and I have cereal (or oatmeal for me) several nights a week. We both get up early (4:30 and 5 am), so we try to go to bed by 8:30 or 9 pm. I usually get home from work around 5:30 pm, so that doesn't leave a lot of time for preparing and eating a meal before bedtime. So, we eat easy-to-fix things. I sometimes make a pasta casserole or homemade pizza ahead of time, and then we have leftovers for a few lunches. But generally, we go for fast and easy on the weeknights- which this recipe is! It cooks all day while I'm at work.

Simple Lunch 3

When the weather looks like this...

you need a lunch that sticks with you...

2 packets low sugar Quaker instant oatmeal and a banana!

No Bake Cookie Protein Bars

Breakfast today!

Yes, these have butter and sugar in them. Don't kill me yet. And yes, they are the best protein bars I have ever had to date. My own ingenious mixture of everyone's favorite no-bake cookie recipe and a healthy protein bar recipe. And they have 14 grams of protein per serving!

What's My "Ideal Weight"?

Many people would point you in the direction of the BMI equation.

Body Mass Index is a fancy equation that takes into account your height and weight and tells you if you are in a healthy weight range, or if you are overweight or obese.

Bread Machine Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

Buying a bread machine off of Craigslist was seriously one of the best decisions ever - for one reason: I can make really good (mostly) whole wheat pizza dough very easily! Basically dump all the stuff in and 90 minutes later it's ready to be put on the pizza pan, slathered in sauce, topped with cheese and whatever else, and 20 minutes later ready to eat. Couldn't be much easier! The recipe I use is a combination of two I found on food.com, modified to my liking: this one for the dough itself and this one for the spices added.

Cauliflower not included!

Simple Lunch 2

Two bean and cheese burritos and baby carrots/sugar snap peas and Diet Snapple! 500 calories total. (Lunch is usually my biggest meal of the day).

I used the fajita-size (small) Carb Balance tortillas for 85 calories each and 1.5 servings (3/4 cup) of no fat refried beans mixed with 2 tablespoons of Pace hot salsa, topped with 1/4 cup of Mexican blend cheese.

Yum.





What I really do all day...

Simple Lunch

Spicy black bean burger with whole wheat sandwich thins and veggies.

Oatmeal Raisin Protein Cookies

I have been on the quest to find a decent-tasting, somewhat healthy protein bar/breakfast cookie sort of thing I can make, that is easy to grab for breakfast. I have tried several that were super crumbly or just tasted like...sawdust. Not really how I want to start my day!

I just made these yesterday, and I tried one, and they are much better than any other ones I have made so far. They are a bit weird-shaped, becasue the liquid kind of drained to the bottom of each cookie and made a little lip at the bottom. I found the recipe on food.com (as I usually do) and modified it a little (as I usually do). You can see the original recipe here.

Easy Blueberry Cream Pie



the completed masterpiece

the cream layer waiting for the topping!

I made blueberry cream pie for Father's Day and my nephew's first birthday that we celebrated today. I found the recipe on food.com, but modified it a little (original used a packaged graham cracker crust but I used the easy Betty Crocker recipe --with less sugar-- for a homemade one). You can see the original recipe here.

[Putrid] Protein Powder

The not-so-delicioso duo

I learned my lesson! Plain vanilla protein powder with just milk = gross. I will definitely make a fruit smoothie or something next time to mask the nastiness. I advise you to do the same.

Breakfast of Champions

After I got home from hot yoga this morning, we had a power breakfast! Jeff made the egg scramble and I added the strawberries and yogurt because I was very hungry.

Egg Scramble

Egg Scramble = 4 eggs, a splash of milk, 4 ounces of taco-seasoned ground meat, and 1/4 cup of Mexican cheese sprinkled on at the end. Sooo good!

Strawberries and Yogurt

Let me know if you can't figure out the recipe for this one...

Fitness Friday...



My fitness center



...seems to be a common theme in the blogosphere. Do we work out to be healthier, to sleep better, to be happier, or to look better? Some people may have an emphasis on one of those reasons, but my answer is a resounding "all of the above!"

 I have been using my treadmill off and on since we got it last October (meaning I could use it more often, not that I fall off...)



nice view :)



Hot Yoga for Dummies

In this new blog, I will will write about trying new things in many areas of my life. One of my newest adventures is yoga - hot yoga, in particular. It started with a LivingSocial coupon (so begin so many of my adventure stories...lol) to a yoga studio about 2.5 miles from my house. (Let me preface this story by saying I have never done yoga before, at all.)

Imagine that this is me...

I decided my first class should be...Yoga for Beginners (Level 1). I went to this one-hour class twice and I enjoyed it - it wasn't hard but trying to see how to get into the poses and not knowing what the heck I was doing was a little interesting. So I decided to try the hot yoga classes next (I have 20 classes total to use). This yoga studio offers 60 minute and 90 minute hot yoga classes throughout the week and on weekends. For my first time, I chose a 90 minute class. I thought if I did the 90 minute class, the 60 minute wouldn't be so bad. Or I would definitely be going to a lot more Beginner Yoga classes if I came close to death (or, I guess, a lot fewer if I did perish.)

First post...

Better make it good! Well, here's just a picture. Of what I should be doing soon. Work!

And staying calm :)