Protein Packed Lunch!

I struggle with lunches everyday. I kind of just eat whatever I come across in the fridge from leftovers to lunch meat and string cheese. It is by far my least favorite meal of the day. However, I have a new favorite that is something that most of us have in our cupboard somewhere. TUNA! However, I went a little more extravagant and bought Italian tuna packed in Olive Oil. Oh my! It is a bit more expensive but definitely worth every penny. I made this the other day and was in Heaven by how satisfying and delicious it was! Not to mention, good for you!!

Just a brief outline of how I made mine... (make yours to your liking but pack in those veggies! Not only is it great for you but it bulks up the amount of tuna you have!)

Drain the tuna, I do not like any liquid in mine. I added just a tiny bit of mayo to help bind everything together, a tiny dollop of Dijon, yellow bell pepper, celery, onion, salt and pepper. I ate mine in lettuce cups. Enjoy!

Bacon Quiche and White Bean & Tomato Salad

The weather here in New York has been amazingly warm and that means lighter dinners to accompany the sunshine! Yesterday (and today) seemed to be one of those days where there just wasn't enough hours in the day to get everything done. I did not have that much time to prep dinner and as of 2:00pm I did not even have anything planned. It was one of those nights I had to grab things from around the kitchen and make something on a whim. I decided to make a delicious quiche and wanted a nice light and healthy side to go with it....so white bean and tomato salad it was. It was perfect and could not believe how quickly it was devoured...only one small piece left last night which happily I ate for lunch today :)

Bacon Quiche

Frozen Pie Crust, thawed
1/4 large onion, diced
1/2 green bell pepper
frozen spinach (if frozen thaw and squeeze out any water), I used about 3/ 4 of frozen box
5 slices of low-sodium bacon, sliced the short way and cooked (drain fat)
5 eggs
1 cup skim milk
about 1/3 (maybe a tad more) of shredded cheese of your choice
salt and pepper to taste
couple of dashes of hot sauce (Chalulah)

Lay pie crust into a pie plate. Saute onion and green pepper until tender. In a bowl, mix eggs, milk, salt and pepper, and hot sauce.
Layer onions and peppers in the pie crust, add spinach, cheese, bacon, and top with egg mixture.
Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes

White Bean & Tomato Salad

1 14oz can of white beans
2 tomatoes, chopped in large pieces
2 Tbl of Olive Oil
1 medium lemon, juiced
1/2 Tbl of oregano
salt and pepper

Mix together. I let sit in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Serve at room temperature or cold.

Back and Not Counting Calories for this Recipe :)

So it was a long three plus weeks of no oven and finally we got a new one put in. I could hardly contain my excitement that I just had to make a full-fat, no reservations meal. However, only the stove-top and broiler were used and I still have not had a fully-oven-cooked meal yet. I have had the itch though and I am just waiting for the right meal to share with you...besides this one :)
I decided to make croque-madames and spinach salad with warm bacon dressing! Yum yum! I do not think I can ever think of a ham and cheese the same way again. This is one of the most delicious sandwiches I have ever had and I do not regret the amount of calories that were consumed. Luckily I have a treadmill, two children, and a large house to keep me busy. Anyway, I do not deprive myself of certain meals and treats. ALL THINGS IN MODERATION!

Croque Madame (3 sandwiches)

6 slices of sourdough bread
Thin sliced ham
3 large slices of Munster Cheese (or Gruyere) and 1/4 cup shredded for sauce
Dijon Mustard
2 cups Skim Milk
3 Tbl of butter
3 Tbl of flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
grated nutmeg
3 eggs

(PREHEAT BROILER TO LOW)

Bechamel Sauce

Melt 3 tbl of butter in a small sauce pan on low heat. Whisk in flour and cook until it becomes a roux (light brown). Whisk in the milk until it comes to a boil, whisk constantly. Reduce heat and simmer, whisk occasionally. Whisk in salt, pepper, nutmeg, and 1/4 cup of cheese. Remove from heat.

To Make Sandwiches

• Spread bechamel sauce over three slices of bread, just enough to coat. Top with one slice of cheese and then ham. On the remaining slices of bread, spread a thin layer of dijon mustard. Put together to form sandwiches.
• In a hot skillet, spray a coating of PAM (or you can use butter). Grill sandwiches like a grilled cheese so that they are light brown on both sides.
• Top each sandwich with a thick layer of the bechamel sauce and stick under the broiler for  a few minutes or until they are bubbly and starting to brown.
• While the sandwiches are under the broiler, fry up your three eggs.

Top each sandwich with an egg and eat immediately! Trust me, you won't be able to wait!!

Improvise!

I am currently going on 3+ weeks of no oven. You do not realize how fortunate you are to have certain things until they are gone. It has been three weeks of improvising meals. However, I am lucky to have a gas stove so I can still use the cook top and the handy-dandy crock-pot. Regardless, it is still time consuming to use the cook top over the oven and I am slowly getting tired of it. Not too mention, the two kids that are continuously distracting me and needing my endless love and attention :) Luckily the weather has been beautiful and we have been spending everyday outside, at the park, and having lunch picnics. One of these days I will find the time to shower my blog with recipes. Until then, I would love to share with you the two things that make my world go round. Hope that everyone is enjoying life and not taking things for granted <3

Breakfast Quinua with Bananas and Pecans

Sometimes it is just easier to make breakfast for dinner. We usually do this once a week on days that I am not feeling like cooking a lot. Tonight is one of those nights. I wanted to do something different from an omelet or pancakes so I decided to make something with Quinoa. This is also a healthy and satisfying dinner!! I have never made Quinoa sweet so I grabbed things that I found around the kitchen that I thought would be delicious together. I must say, this concoction turned out AMAZING! This is definitely something that I will be making again!

1/2 cup Quinoa, Rinsed under cold water and drained
1 and 1/2 cups Silk Vanilla Almond Milk
1 Ripe Banana, mashed to desired consistency (I like mine with a few chunks)
Splash of Almond Extract
Touch of Cinnamon
Tiny pinch of salt
A handful of toasted pecans, roughly chopped

In a sauce pan, add the Silk, almond extract, salt, and cinnamon. Once the Quinoa is rinsed and completely drained, add it to the Silk. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 15 minutes or until the Quinoa is tender. Remove from the heat and add the mashed bananas and toasted pecans.

Making Life A Little Easier

I fill my days of being a stay-at-home mom with taking caring and playing with the kids, homework, getting a workout in, cleaning, and cooking. At times, I have found myself wondering where the day went and realizing I have yet to sit down and relax. I have come to terms that not everything on my "to do list" is all that important so I have managed my time so that I do have that extra time in the day to myself. (Well maybe not myself but to relax....with a baby on my lap and a 4 year old asking for  a snack.) Either way, knowing that managing my time has really become a blessing.

One trick that I have discovered is making to do lists for each day. This way I am not redoing or overdoing something. I make my list from Monday through Friday. **The weekends should be time to enjoy relaxing and going on adventures with the family.** For each day, I list what room in the house to clean. This way, during the week, I am cleaning a room or area of the house and it is done for the week! Usually I won't have to deal with it until the next week. This method also goes hand-in-hand with my list for weekly dinners. Already today, I have cleaned all three bathrooms, I know what I am making for dinner, have made my weekly baby food, and I am about to get my workout in.

To do lists may seem cheesy to some people but I have found them to be a great tool to regulate my time in the day. It feels good to check things off of my list and know that things are getting done.

Oscar Night!

So, I am making an Oscar night menu for the family tonight but only myself is aware of the occasion. If I told my husband he would only laugh and think it was silly but in the end...he cannot resist my food! I am not a "huge" Oscar fan but I am a fan of watching the pre-show Red Carpet segments. I like to be my own judge of who is "best dressed" and "worst dressed." In the end, there is nothing that goes better with skinny, gorgeous, perfect actors and actresses than a plate full of delicious food! So here is my Oscar night menu lineup!

Feta and Sun-dried Tomato Turkey Sliders with a Sun-dried Tomato Mayo

Marbled Baked Potatoes

Kale Chips with Parmesan

And finally to top the night off... my Golden Popcorn! A sweet and salty treat to enjoy with the show.

These recipes are healthy alternatives and beyond delicious! Try them, you will not be disappointed! Happy Oscar Night!

Turkey Sliders

1 lb ground turkey
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped spinach leaves
Salt & pepper to taste

Sun-dried tomato Mayo

3/4 cup mayo (Hellman's Reduced Fat Mayo with Olive Oil)
About 3 medium sized sun-dried tomatoes chopped
1 tsp lemon zest

Blend in a magic bullet (or blender)
Mix all ingredients in a bowl  and shape into slider-sized patties. We grilled ours on the grill but you can also cook them on the stove.
*Top with mayo and spinach leaves on a whole wheat slider roll.

Marbled Potatoes

2 Russet Potatoes
1 Sweet Potato
Light Sour cream
Margarine
Salt & pepper to taste

Bake potatoes at 400 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour or until tender. Cut potatoes (the long way) in half. First scoop out and smash the sweet potato and do the same to the russets. Add the rest  potatoes together and lightly blend together. Add sour cream, butter, and salt & pepper to taste. Place back into the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Kale Chips

1 head of kale, washed, dried, & with ribs cut out
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt & pepper
Grated Parmesan

Lay bite sized pieces of kale on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper and toss together. Bake at 275 degrees for about 10 minutes. Turn the leaves and sprinkle with Parmesan. Cook another 10-15 minutes.

Golden Popcorn

1/2 cup unpopped popcorn

2 Tbl Canola Oil

1 Tbl butter

1/4 cup Agave Nectar

1 Tbl of Brown Sugar

Salt to taste

Put the unpopped popcorn into a large pot with the canola oil. Cover tightly and cook over a medium-high heat. Give the pot a good shake about every 30 seconds once popcorn has started popping. Remove from the heat once the popping has started to subside.

Mix and melt together the butter, nectar, and brown sugar. Drizzle over popcorn and sprinkle with salt. Enjoy!!