Comfort Food

I came home early from work today because of this......

It was cold and icy, so I was glad to get home before the roads got too bad.

Because of the wintery weather I decided to make this....

Easy Chicken Noodle Soup~I used what was on hand at home tonight because I did not want to stop at the grocery on my way home.  Here is what went into the mix:

• Egg Noodles (usually I use the Grandma's Egg Noodles-but I didn't have any in the freezer) 
• 2 Shredded chicken breasts
• Chopped Celery-I used 5 small stalks
• Chopped Carrots-I used 3 full carrots
• Chicken Bullion-sodium free
• Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• Salt, Pepper and a dash of Garlic Salt
• 1/2 C of skim milk whisked with 1/4 C of Flour (to thicken)

I started by boiling my chicken breast in chicken broth and water.  I removed those when they were done and threw the egg noodles in for a quick boil themselves.  I then added celery, carrots and seasonings. I let that cook down for a bit while I shred the chicken.  Throw the chicken into the pot along with milk/flour mixture and just let everything simmer for a bit.  I think the longer it simmers the better it tastes!  You can add more liquid if you want a more soupy soup :) I also made quick and easy biscuits tonight and served those with the soup for a little delicious dipping.  Easy Monday night meal!

Now it's off to fold laundry, and watch the last 45 minutes of the Bachelor.  It's so strange, I have never watched The Bachelor before this season and now, somehow,  I find myself hooked.  That darn Reality TV! 

One smart guy...

"Be who you are and say what you feel because 

those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."

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Chicken Caeser Wrap

I am on a roll! Another easy, healthy lunch option for y'all :) The recipe comes from Eating For Life by Bill Phillips.  Bill Phillips is the creator of Body for Life, which is an exercise and eating plan that I really like.  I don't follow the plan daily, but I do like alot of his recipes. 

Chicken Caeser Wrap

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped romaine lettuce
• 1 serving of chicken (I like to use the pre-cooked Tyson brand chicken if I am running short on time-there are 2 servings in each package-perfect for me and the husband)
• 1 TBS light parmesean cheese (I use the Kraft light in the green shaker)
• 1 TBS of light Caeser Dressing
• 1 spinach tortilla (Often I find myself using a plain flour tortilla, or a low carb tortilla because we already have some at home, and why spend more money, right?)

Mix the first four ingredients together in your mixing bowl and then place in the tortilla.  Wrap your tortilla around the filling and enjoy! I typically double this recipe because I am making lunch for 2.  Sorry I haven't posted with a picture on these latest recipes-I have been rushing out the door to get to work and don't have a second to spare on picture taking.  Totally unacceptable, I know.

Happy Wednesday!

Pita Pizza!

If you are anything like me, I am always looking for a fast, easy to make, healthy lunch that isn't boring during the work week.  I don't know why, but lunches always seem so boring-turkey sandwich, salad, PB&J-nothing interesting there at all.  Well this yummy recipe is easy to make, with minimal ingredients and not boring at all!  I found this recipe in my Flat Belly Diet cookbook and I love it, and more importantly the husband loves it. I think he feels like it isn't one of the "healthy" things I always make him eat.  Little does he know, it is one of those "healthy" things I always make him eat. :-)

Pita Pizza-

(recipe adapted from The Flat Belly Diet)

Ingredients:

• One whole wheat pita
• 13 turkey pepperoni slices
• 1/4 cup of marinara sauce ( I personally love spicy sauce so that is what i use-it gives it a little pizzazz!)
• 1 TBS of olive oil (your healthy fat)
• 2 TBS of low moisture part skim Mozzarella cheese (I will be honest, I always add a little extra cheese. Because I LOVE cheese).

Brush olive oil over pita.  Spread sauce over pita, then place pepperoni on top of sauce.  Sprinkle cheese over the top and place under the broiler on low for 3-5 minutes.  

Easy, healthy lunch! 

House Hunting

The day has finally arrived.  Jason and I are beginning our journey of finding our first home together.  Of course our condo has been our "home" for the past 6 years, but now it is time for a house.  A house with a yard for Zito bear, a basement for J's mancave that he has been dreaming of for at least the past 3 years, and please God, a bigger kitchen for me.

The most difficult part of this process for us is leaving the neighborhood we live in now.  It's close to all the things we love, and we live right on the most beautiful park in Denver.  Unfortunately all of the homes in our neighborhood are insanely expensive just a little bit out of our price range.  So like most couples our age, we are going to have to leave our beloved city life behind and move to the burbs.  Well hopefully not the burb burbs, but somewhere in between.

We are meeting with our realtor tonight to walk through a home we found online.  It's a bit scary because you just never know if the pictures online are what you are really going to see when you walk through the front door.  I am sure many of my future posts are going to be all about house hunting, and putting our condo on the market (another scary endeavor).  I am hoping that we can find a house that needs a little work and TLC, but already has some of the qualities we know we want in our home.

Here's hoping for a successful first home tour!

Happy Tuesday~

A Lazy Weekend.....

Was just what we needed.  After the craziness of the holidays, two head colds, and a looooong week at work our lazy weekend was much needed.  Friday night we put on our j's (jammies) around 7 -no judgement please. We enjoyed a delicious dinner of shrimp scampi by candlelight courtesy of my sister Kate, who gave me the most beautiful candlesticks for Christmas.  They look a lot like these----gorgeous and so pretty with candles lit.  Aren't they lovely? 

After dinner we both settled in-Jason playing Angry Birds on my new iPad, he is officially addicted.  What did I do you ask? I caught up on a few of my guilty pleasures-Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.  Grey's was finally good, keep it coming Shonda Rimes. It's about time Christina Yang is back at Seattle Grace! ;)

Saturday started off with a cup of coffee and then we ran out the door.  My parents gave me a few sessions with a personal trainer for my birthday/Christmas, and my first butt kicking, sweat-filled session was Saturday morning.  I LOVED it.  It was just what I needed after the holidays to get started again. I am looking forward to the next few weeks to see what kind of tricks Brian has up his sleeve-BRING IT!  The rest of the day was spent running errands made up of pricing out carpet, buying new ski poles, picking up some necessities at Ulta and enjoying a tasty Greek Salad from one of our favorite local restaurants.   We spent the rest of the day watching football and relaxing.  Jason grilled the perfect steak filets to pair with twice baked potatoes, asparagus and a glass of Fantesca Cab.  It was a great ending to a great day. 

Sunday, oh Sunday, I do love you so.  We woke up to this-----

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It was a snowy scene, so beautiful and peaceful. We hit the grocery store and Moe's Bagels, our new Sunday morning tradition.  I got my usual - a sesame bagel with egg and garden veggie cream cheese-it's to die for good.  I know bagels are not the best choice when trying to eat healthy, but sometimes you just have to splurge.  And this is such a splurge worthy breakfast. After breakfast I left Jason at home to watch football and play MORE Angry Birds.  I went over to the spa/salon to get pampered.  Now you would think the best part of that experience would be the service she provided, but it gets so much better.  Rachel, my aesthetician, added me to her VIP customer list and from now on, no matter what service I receive, I get 40 percent off!!! Every time.  Every single time!!!!!! SOOO FABULOUS!!!! 

The rest of the day was spend putzing around the house and just hanging with my hubs. Such a perfect Sunday. I just finished making us this for dinner, and it too, is to die for.  You must make it on a cold, snowy, wintery evening.  I doubt you will find anyone who doesn't find my sister's risotto delicioso! 

We are supposed to get 5-10 inches of snow tonight in Denver, so it is going to be an early night because it will be followed by an EARLY morning.  The good thing is I was supposed to serve Jury Duty tomorrow, but I called the information line and no jurors are being called for tomorrow!! Fantastic!  That must mean that it is going to be a great week!

Weekly Dinners

So one of my many New Year/ New Me resolutions is to be more organized and more creative with my weeknight dinners.  Towards the end of 2010 I felt I was either too busy, or too lazy (I suppose), to make dinner.  I was always scrambling to throw something together after work, or picking up takeout. And let's be honest, takeout isn't good for the waistline or the wallet.  So this year my goal is to plan my meals ahead of time, get all of our groceries the weekend before so that my husband and I are guaranteed to have healthy, tasty meals Monday through Thursday. Oh and the best part of this plan happens to be that most meals I make serve four, so everyday we have lunch the next day too-not much easier than that!

So far I am 3 for 3 this week on healthy dinner at home and everything I have made has turned out great.  And what is even more fun is that the first three recipes this week came from a fun, informative, healthy living blog that I follow.  You can check out her wonderful blog at Iowa Girl Eats.  She always has delicious recipes and fun workouts to experiment with.  Thank you Kristin at Iowa Girl Eats!

My menu this week looks like this:

Monday- Proscuitto Wrapped Stuffed Chicken with some healthy veggies on the side- Ahhmazing!

Tuesday- Chili Verde with low fat corn bread- SO good

Wednesday- BBQ pulled pork sandwiches, with my mom's healthy coleslaw and vegetarian baked beans. *see note below*

Thursday: Body For Life's Shrimp Scampi

*I will say that I wasn't sold on tonight's meal for many reasons:

A. I have only used my crockpot once and the first time did not go so well.

B. I don't love BBQ, but the husband does, so sometimes you have to sacrifice.

C. I have this really strange obsession with undercooked meat-and by obsession I mean I tend to overcook EVERYTHING-not a good quality.  It is very difficult to judge the "doneness" of your slow cooked pork, my friends.  I only made Jason look at practically every piece of pork I shredded- "does this look done babe?" He was actually on our elliptical at one point when I brought a plate of pork over for him to double check the doneness.  Oops.   In fact, maybe this needs to be another one of my resolutions-stop FREAKING out about undercooked meat. Yeah, probably not going to happen, but a girl can dream.  Enough about undercooked meat. Jeez, you would think I was obsessed or something. :)

Surprisingly tonight's meal was really good.  More importantly, Jason LOVED it.  Oh and I think it was cooked-guess we will find out tomorrow if I have to call in sick to work ;)

Tomorrow night's meal is going to have to be pushed to Friday, because we are heading to the Colorado Avalanche game! It's our first game of 2011-I can't wait.

Hope you all are having a fabulous start to this beautiful new year, I know we are.  I am off to watch a Webinar~until next time friends. xo