One of my favorite things, is my husband picking me up on a sunny afternoon from work. There is nothing like seeing the person you love after a stressful or tiring day at work, and often, days are at least tiring. But when I walk outside, the fresh air hits my face, and I see my wonderful husband, everything starts perking up and my day is headed back in the right direction. Even if I have had a great day, there is nothing like seeing him look up and smile over the steering wheel.
I certainly appreciate him picking me up and I am savoring it while it lasts! Once he graduates and finds a job, I will have to find another mode of transportation and I may have to carry his picture around to perk me up as I am leaving work! Alright, well after that bit of day dreaming, I do have another great food idea!
So one of my bff's Tonya messaged Laura and I about a chicken recipe where she puts taco seasoning on the chicken and cooks them up. I was just craving chicken on the grill this beautiful spring day so I headed home, took out my nearly thawed chicken (Emma, one of my other bff's, told us her mom cooks with frozen chicken to keep it moist! point taken!)and rubbed it down with some taco seasoning. We put it out on the grill, served it up with baked potato's, onion and chive sour cream, and a big salad! The perfect spring meal! And I shredded a left over piece of chicken, put it on top of a salad for tomorrow and mixed some ranch and salsa for a little Mexican flare to my salad!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
life goes on...
I decided to do a little calculating on my own to ensure my points were spot on for the recipes I have been giving you! I found out that the lemon cookies I posted yesterday are actually 2P+, not 1p+…still a great value for a cookie, however, these were not my favorites! I would rather have the Banana Bread Cookies or the White Chocolate chip cookies which still came out to 2p+ when doing my own calculations! Yipee!
I played around in the kitchen tonight and made a variation of a recipe I found on http://www.danicasdaily.com. She has a Brown Sugar Banana Nut Bread but when checking the calculations, I was not coming up with the same points, so I played around and made my very own 5p+ Whole Wheat Banana Bread Muffins!
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup light butter
2 large eggs
2tsp. vanilla extract
4 mashed bananas (ripe works best!)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
Preheat oven to 350. Mix butter and sugar well, and then add whisked eggs. Add vanilla and mashed bananas. Mix the dry ingredients together and mix with wet ingredients.
Spray muffin pan with cooking spray, and divide mixture into 14 muffins. Bake for 30-35 minutes, inserting a toothpick to check if it is done! These are really thick, and moist, and hearty! The whole wheat flour makes them dense and adds a great nutty flavor!
.........................................................
Other than my recent obsession with baking, life has been going as usual. We are heading towards Chaz's graduation, and are in the midst of putting a closet into our basement apartment. Chaz has done a lot of mudding, sanding, painting, and carpet laying! He is quit the pro! Of course he has not worked alone, but it makes me happy to know I married a handy man!
We have two relaxing weeks ahead of us, and then we get into the busy time of spring hockey. I have volunteered seasonally for MN Hockey and their select camps and those begin in two weeks! That consists of two weeks, going morning till night, with nothing but hockey on the mind! Chaz will get to experience it this year as he is probably going to be helping out!
I also will be heading to USA Hockey Camp this June! I was just accepted to be a Team Lead for my third year and this year I will be working with the 17 and 18 year old girls! Super excited! So other than that, working out, eating, baking, and enjoying my class free weeks! Only three left before class starts up again!
...............................................
correction: Muffins are 4p+ each!
I played around in the kitchen tonight and made a variation of a recipe I found on http://www.danicasdaily.com. She has a Brown Sugar Banana Nut Bread but when checking the calculations, I was not coming up with the same points, so I played around and made my very own 5p+ Whole Wheat Banana Bread Muffins!
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup light butter
2 large eggs
2tsp. vanilla extract
4 mashed bananas (ripe works best!)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
Preheat oven to 350. Mix butter and sugar well, and then add whisked eggs. Add vanilla and mashed bananas. Mix the dry ingredients together and mix with wet ingredients.
Spray muffin pan with cooking spray, and divide mixture into 14 muffins. Bake for 30-35 minutes, inserting a toothpick to check if it is done! These are really thick, and moist, and hearty! The whole wheat flour makes them dense and adds a great nutty flavor!
.........................................................
Other than my recent obsession with baking, life has been going as usual. We are heading towards Chaz's graduation, and are in the midst of putting a closet into our basement apartment. Chaz has done a lot of mudding, sanding, painting, and carpet laying! He is quit the pro! Of course he has not worked alone, but it makes me happy to know I married a handy man!
We have two relaxing weeks ahead of us, and then we get into the busy time of spring hockey. I have volunteered seasonally for MN Hockey and their select camps and those begin in two weeks! That consists of two weeks, going morning till night, with nothing but hockey on the mind! Chaz will get to experience it this year as he is probably going to be helping out!
I also will be heading to USA Hockey Camp this June! I was just accepted to be a Team Lead for my third year and this year I will be working with the 17 and 18 year old girls! Super excited! So other than that, working out, eating, baking, and enjoying my class free weeks! Only three left before class starts up again!
...............................................
correction: Muffins are 4p+ each!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Sharing the love!
Since I love you all so much, here is a blog I read and honestly, she has some of the most amazing recipes! Anyhoo, she is doing a giveaway so if you like free stuff, head on over and enter! http://shannonskitchencreations.com/2011/03/27/chobani-greek-yogurt-giveaway/
Who knew "eating adventure" meant making more cookies?
Seriously, since beginning this "eating adventure", I have come across a host of WW cookie recipes from all the blogs I love to read! Since I have an incurable sweet tooth, all these recipes have really helped! Right now I just made a batch of lemon cookies and you can find the recipe here! http://danicasdaily.com/light-meyer-lemon-sugar-cookies-recipe/ I mean, who can say no to creamed sugar and butter!
A little lemon, and little love, and viola! Nummy nummy in my tummy! I followed the recipe except instead of fresh lemon juice, I had to use bottled lemon juice. And I did not have white whole wheat flour so I used whole wheat flower. And with out a fresh lemon, I did not have lemon zest, so i zested an orange. Tasted great, however, real lemon juice may make them a bit less tangy! No matter, I really enjoyed them and just love the fact that they are 1 p+. And they taste bomb over some light vanilla ice cream! And you will have to notice that all this cookie baking has lead me to buy some new equipment! Silicone baking mats! Woot woot!
With all this cookie baking, I have made sure to keep the exercise regimen up! Since running the 5k a few weeks back, I have been addicted to running! Here is me and the crew on my birthday before heading out to the Irish for a Day 5k!
And here is a pic of my running towards the finish line! I ran the whole thing and was so pumped! This was my second 5k but the first I actually trained for! I am already excited to participate in my second 5k which will be in about two months! I run for distance but I may try and up my PR!
All this running has encouraged me to seek out stretches that are healthy and will keep me injury free. This is my favorite for stretching my calves. I sit with my legs straight out with a slight bend at the knee, place my palms on the bottom of my foot, and pull forward. I hole this for 30 seconds and do it 2-3 times.
My next goal is to do some Internet research or talk to a trainer about the correct way to train. I want to do this injury free and make sure that I am crossing training! I know I can't run 3 miles every other day...I need to come up with a schedule and make sure I am doing everything safely and correctly. I run about 3 days a week, anywhere from 2-3 miles, and the other days I do the elliptical machine, Biggest Loser DVD's and my 30 Day Shred.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Cookie fest!
So prior to my birthday weekend, I wanted to try some cookie recipes that were WW friendly! I found these two recipes and they are amazing! AND, they are both 2p+ per cookie!
The White Chocolate almond cookies are simply decedent! Sweet and creamy! Yum! You can find the tasty recipe here!
www.shannonskitchencreations.com/2011/03/05/zumba-and-white-chocolate-almond-cookies/
I also made these delicious Banana Bread Cookies that have raisins and oatmeal and bananas and are super gooey deliciousness! You can find the recipe here!
http://shannonskitchencreations.com/2011/02/21/low-fat-banana-oatmeal-cookies-2-pts/
Feast!
The White Chocolate almond cookies are simply decedent! Sweet and creamy! Yum! You can find the tasty recipe here!
www.shannonskitchencreations.com/2011/03/05/zumba-and-white-chocolate-almond-cookies/
I also made these delicious Banana Bread Cookies that have raisins and oatmeal and bananas and are super gooey deliciousness! You can find the recipe here!
http://shannonskitchencreations.com/2011/02/21/low-fat-banana-oatmeal-cookies-2-pts/
Feast!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Dairy Queen and Berries!
Food
Forever and 5 days I have been addicted to you
Overly luscious and satisfying, you bring about the greatest of joys
Only now have I realized, I can find joy in other things, like working out, and
Dirt
Not true! Lol, I just wanted to be funny! But for realz now, food is a highlight in my life. Not just because I love the taste, texture, and satisfaction, but because I have always seen baking as a bit of an art. I love making cookies and cakes and recipes that people shed tears trying to recreate. Somehow, I have always been able to hop in the kitchen and generally create some appealing dishes, and yes, there have been some failures, and there are some WW recipes that have added to those failures, but generally, I keep it real, I keep it simple, and I keep it really simply delicious. Hehe…so with my “food adventure”, I have been trying some new recipes, and honestly, there have been so many good ones and only a few duds! I have talked about a few recipes previously but now I am going to lay it all out on the table! Food, pictures, taste tests! Nummy!
Tonight my computer is being a butt so I can't upload pictures for actual recipes but I will give you a treat idea!
Take some beautiful blackberries, or any fruit for that matter.
Top with one Dairy Queen Chocolate bar (1p+)
A super nummy 1p+ treat! Great for the afternoon snack attack!
More recipes tomorrow once I get all my pictures uploaded!
Forever and 5 days I have been addicted to you
Overly luscious and satisfying, you bring about the greatest of joys
Only now have I realized, I can find joy in other things, like working out, and
Dirt
Not true! Lol, I just wanted to be funny! But for realz now, food is a highlight in my life. Not just because I love the taste, texture, and satisfaction, but because I have always seen baking as a bit of an art. I love making cookies and cakes and recipes that people shed tears trying to recreate. Somehow, I have always been able to hop in the kitchen and generally create some appealing dishes, and yes, there have been some failures, and there are some WW recipes that have added to those failures, but generally, I keep it real, I keep it simple, and I keep it really simply delicious. Hehe…so with my “food adventure”, I have been trying some new recipes, and honestly, there have been so many good ones and only a few duds! I have talked about a few recipes previously but now I am going to lay it all out on the table! Food, pictures, taste tests! Nummy!
Tonight my computer is being a butt so I can't upload pictures for actual recipes but I will give you a treat idea!
Take some beautiful blackberries, or any fruit for that matter.
Top with one Dairy Queen Chocolate bar (1p+)
A super nummy 1p+ treat! Great for the afternoon snack attack!
More recipes tomorrow once I get all my pictures uploaded!
Monday, March 21, 2011
fresh air...
Oh, sorry for the little break there! Last week my final was due for class and it took a lot out of me! Blah, glad it’s over! I get a 4 week break before my next class!
This weekend was great! I went out Friday night with some of my Auggie ladies to celebrate Alyssa’s birthday! Not only do we look similar, act similar, and dress similar, we also have birthdays in the same month! Crazy!
We got a hotel room in downtown MPLS and hopped from one bar to the next. We tried out some for the first time and it was nice finding some different atmospheres! I really liked a bar downtwon called the Loon!
Saturday morning we woke up way too early after drinking way too much! We headed to Sawatdee for birthday lunch and as soon as I got home around 2:30pm, I was out! Out until the D. Lo came and woke me up at 7:15pm….ah, the joy of sleeping! We watched a movie, You Again, which was a pretty good movie to rent, and then it was back to bed…I pretty much love not having homework!
Sunday was a rainy, romantic day. It was dreary and wet, yet it was a nice break from the sun and it sure made that snow disappear rather quickly! I headed out for a workout then came home to clean, then Chaz and I headed off to Maple Grove to take in a date night! We went to Trader Joe’s, the movies, and then a nice dinner at Granite City! I love date nights with my husband!
As for this week, I foresee lots of relaxing, working out, and reading! Oh, and we are getting a closet put in so maybe by the end of the week, I will be organizing a new closet! The best part of this week however, is we get to see some Durgin family! Chaz’s dad is coming into town for the week and I am excited! It is so great having two families and two groups of people you feel really comfortable with. I love the Durgins and the great time that usually follows them! I wish we could see more of them, but Denis will have to suffice till we make our way to the great city of Reno in May to see Laine graduate!
This weekend was great! I went out Friday night with some of my Auggie ladies to celebrate Alyssa’s birthday! Not only do we look similar, act similar, and dress similar, we also have birthdays in the same month! Crazy!
We got a hotel room in downtown MPLS and hopped from one bar to the next. We tried out some for the first time and it was nice finding some different atmospheres! I really liked a bar downtwon called the Loon!
Saturday morning we woke up way too early after drinking way too much! We headed to Sawatdee for birthday lunch and as soon as I got home around 2:30pm, I was out! Out until the D. Lo came and woke me up at 7:15pm….ah, the joy of sleeping! We watched a movie, You Again, which was a pretty good movie to rent, and then it was back to bed…I pretty much love not having homework!
Sunday was a rainy, romantic day. It was dreary and wet, yet it was a nice break from the sun and it sure made that snow disappear rather quickly! I headed out for a workout then came home to clean, then Chaz and I headed off to Maple Grove to take in a date night! We went to Trader Joe’s, the movies, and then a nice dinner at Granite City! I love date nights with my husband!
As for this week, I foresee lots of relaxing, working out, and reading! Oh, and we are getting a closet put in so maybe by the end of the week, I will be organizing a new closet! The best part of this week however, is we get to see some Durgin family! Chaz’s dad is coming into town for the week and I am excited! It is so great having two families and two groups of people you feel really comfortable with. I love the Durgins and the great time that usually follows them! I wish we could see more of them, but Denis will have to suffice till we make our way to the great city of Reno in May to see Laine graduate!
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