Kitchen Livin...

Hello my little bloggeties. I hope you're all having a wonderful Sunday. Mine started off bright and early. For some reason I woke up at 7:30 today. Granted this is not considered early for most people, but for me on a weekend this was unheard of. I tend to sleep in whenever humanly possible. Sundays usually being the day when I stay in bed the longest.

No matter. I celebrated my early awakening with a cup of Kahlua and Cream coffee, topped with fat free whip and cinnamon.


I spent 2 hours (not even kidding) reading blogs. I fell behind and needed to rectify the situation immediately with some sweet bloggy-type therapy! I felt better with each passing droolworthy picture and cleverly written paragraph. You sassy little food vixens never cease to amaze me!

BREAKFAST (meal #1) at 9:30am.

I didn't get around to eating until 2.5 hours after waking up. Hey, it happens. I decided to make a MASSIVE sunny side up egg (1 whole egg and 3 egg whites) and a toasted Thomas's everything bagel thin (sprayed with Spray Butter).


I miss runny eggs. Why don't I have them more often? WHY? Sometimes (all the time) I make no sense.

Nick mozzied on down from Slumber Land while I was devouring my plate. His face tattooed with groves from his pillow. He clearly slept well. I love his tired and "tousled" look first thing in the morning. He started eyeing my breakfast and rubbing his stomach. I immediately recognized these ritualistic signs of hunger. I lovingly played my role of WONDERFUL girlfriend and whipped him up some greasy hashbrowns. It's all he wanted. Gross! I'm pretty sure I heard him moan as he ate. Smiling at me with his greasy lips. There was love in them eyes. HA!

LUNCH (meal #2) at 1:30pm.

All I wanted was a salad. I'm on a real salad kick lately. I just CRAVE them all the time. I can't help myself.

• Sweet butter lettuce
• Spinach
• Butter beans
• Bread & Butter pickles
• Roasted garlic hummus
• Sprouted sunflower seeds
• Tomato

I love this flavor combo!

I spent the rest of my afternoon being lazy. I played in the kitchen, cuddled with kitty, browsed for recipes online and read some magazines. I adore Sundays!

My kitchen adventures did manifest into creamy, decadent, low calorie hummus brilliance! BEHOLD!!

This contains 4 things. That's IT! 1 can of chick peas + 2 sauteed onions (cooked in spray butter, NO oil) + black pepper + garlic salt. After the onions were tender I tossed all four ingredients into the food processor and let it rip.


This entire pile of goodness is only 370 calories. And if my math skills serve me correctly, each 70 gram serving (which is roughly 4 tbs???) is only 62 calories (give or take). YAY! I'm sure I'll be consuming this crack all week!


SNACK (meal #3) at 5:30pm.

I was feeling snacky this afternoon. I made a big bag of 98% fat free popcorn that I shared with Nick. I jazzed it up with Spray butter, sea salt, Splenda, TONS of cinnamon and a small handful of raisins. Drool!


At this point I was starting to become restless. If it's not one thing it's another. When I have plans all weekend, I wish I didn't so I could relax. When I have no plans at all, I wish I did to avoid boredom. What is wrong with me? Nick and I decided to watch some episodes of Mad Men. That shut me up for a while but didn't keep me interested for long. Before I knew it I was wandering around the house looking for something to do. Somehow I ended up in the kitchen again. SHOCKING right? Wait, it's about to get more intense and mysterious. I DECIDED TO BAKE!

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you my sad attempt at healthy Maple Banana Raisin Oatmeal Cookies.

• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 wheat bran
• 3 mashed bananas
• handful of golden raisins
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp maple extract
• 5 drops vanilla custard Capella drops

This was enough for roughly 12 cookies. I baked them for 15 minutes at 375 degrees.


Verdict? Not sure! Not quite a cookie, not quite cake. Perhaps more muffin like? Or a banana bread nibble? Nick and I had one each and then I packed the rest away. We will call that Meal #4 mmmmkay? Trust me, the rest will get eaten as well. Perhaps I need to attempt more baking adventures to "perfect my skills"! :)

DINNER (meal #5) at 10:00pm.

I decided to make a healthified version of Tuna Casserole. I just can't stay out of the kitchen today. Here are the steps.

1. I boiled the pasta as directed.
2. For the sauce, instead of cream of mushroom soup, I used 1 cup of 2% milk and 3 wedges of light Laughing Cow Cheese. I cooked them together on low heat until the cheese melted.
3. I also sliced and sauteed some white mushrooms in garlic powder and Spray Butter.
4. When the pasta was done I drained it and stirred in the mushrooms, 2 cans of white albacore tuna in water (drained), 1/2 cup frozen peas and the cheese sauce.
5. I gave it a good stir and poured it into a casserole dish. I popped it into the oven at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.
6. Took it out, gave it a stir and covered it with a mix of crunchy Panko breadcrumbs, garlic salt, red pepper flakes and black pepper.
7. I popped it back into the oven for 10 minutes and voila! It was goooooooooood!

Nick's brother Dan is here for the Rally Race and dinner. I think I'll sneak upstairs and unwind with some TV and a magazine before bed. I'll let the brothers "bond". :)

Have a great night my lovelies!
XOXO

Ildie

Blog Power!

Another Monday is upon us. Don't fret, if we stick together we can make it! REMEMBER! Stay low and keep focused. Our super bloggy powers will protect us! BLOGGETTES UNITE!

BREAKFAST (meal #1) at 9:30am.

The office was cold (prison like) this morning. The only thing I could think of was warm coffee and steamy, gooey oats. I'm pretty sure that breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. I swear I wake up thinking about it! Slight obsession, I do declare!

• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 wheat bran
• 1 1/2 cup water
• 1 tbs unsweetened dark cocoa
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• dash pumpkin pie spice
• Splenda
• pinch salt
• (Microwaved and topped with 1 tbs ground flax + 2 tbs sugar free raspberry preserves + 1 tbs Better N' Peanut Butter.)

This warmed me right up. It also got me really full. Too full! Which in turn made me tired. I just felt like slithering into a corner and taking a nap. I also contemplated hiding under my desk. I bet my gym bag would've made a decent pillow. I'm NOT known for my luck though. I'm sure it would've only been a matter of minutes before I was discovered by some nosy coworker. Drooling on myself curled in a fetal position. Pretty picture no? I drank my coffee instead and tried to slap myself awake.

And then it happened. I WON! BY GOLLY I WON SOMETHING! I've never won anything in my entire life. No joke! NOTHING... NADA... Well wait, once I won an autographed football for SOMEONE ELSE! A friend of mine entered my name (along with the name of everyone she knew in the world) for this football that she wanted to win for her brother. Go figure.

But back to MY win now. I don't even know what it is but I'm excited none the less. From my lovely friend at SweetLifeBake. YAY. I'm excited. I can't wait to share what I got with all of you. I adore surprises!

LUNCH (meal #2) at 12:30pm.

I rocked this fabulous salad in my office. Yeah, you can be jealous. I'll allow it.

• Spring Mix
• Artichoke hearts
• Tomato
• Sugar Snap Peas
• Bell peppers (red, green, yellow)
• Hummus
• Sprouted sunflower seeds
• Spray Butter

Followed up by this lovely red pear. Looks can be deceiving. It appeared to be perfect but was quite hard. Don't you just hate that?


We fed our Target addiction during our break today. I accidentally ended up with a lovely purple tube top (purchased for vacation) and a sassy little pair of flats. I can't wait to wear them!

SNACK (meal #3) at 4:00pm.

I made a tasty little yogurt mess with plain Greek Dannon + strawberries + a cupcake courtesy of the lovely Ann. She made Naomi's recipe for apple cinnamon protein muffins. The flavor was good but the texture was a bit off. It was too dry. I think Ann followed the recipe for the most part but it just needs a bit of tweaking.


After work it was SWEAT time!

WORKOUT!

Tricep Pushdown (cable with straight bar)
90lb x 8
80lb x 15
70lb x 15
70lb x 15
Bicep Curls (barbell)
45lb x 15
40lb x 15
35lb x 15
35lb x 15
Shoulder Raise (barbell)
30lb x 8
25lb x 15
25lb x 15
20lb x 15
Overhead Tricep Extension (cable with rope grip)
70lb x 8
60lb x 15
60lb x 15
50lb x 15
21's (barbell)
30lb x 21
30lb x 21
25lb x 21
25lb x 21
Standing Military Press (barbell)
40lb x 15
35lb x 15
30lb x 15
25lb x 15
Tricep Extension (barbell + dumbbell)
20lb x 12 (this felt "off" and my form was bad so I switched to dumbbells)
20lb x 15
15lb x 15
Elliptical Cross Trainer
30 minutes, 2.74 miles, intervals of levels 6 & 10

Total time at gym = 1:20
Max HR = 173
Average HR = 142
Calories burned = 671

SNACK (meal #4) at 7:15pm.

I refueled with something that I've been hearing about for weeks now. A chocolate cherry bomb smoothie. I did NOT use Quick chocolate mix though. I used protein powder.

• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup water
• 1 scoop chocolate whey protein
• 1 tbs sugar free Torani chocolate syrup
• 14 frozen cherries
• 1 cup ice

Blended to pure cherry perfection. Yummy!


Nick was slaving away in the kitchen with his dinner. He was making pierogies (which were swimming in oil) with sauteed peppers and onions. It smelled magnificent but I refrained from indulging. I enjoyed a nice healthy meal instead.

DINNER (meal #5) at 9:30pm.

I sauteed broccoli + cauliflower + sugar snap peas + radishes + bell peppers in Pam + Spray Butter and seasoned them with garlic powder & S+P.


I also made a quick burger with a Morning Star Farms black bean burger on an Ezekiel bun with swiss + hummus + low carb ketchup.


A bit later I had a MINI indulgence. I made a cup of blood orange cranberry tea and enjoyed them with a small handful of CUTE alphabet cinnamon cookies.


I can't seem to keep my eyes open right now. I may have passed out for a second before hitting publish. I think I better go to bed!!

Goodnight my lovelies. Be back tomorrow!!
XOXO
Ildie

Mr. Gassy...

Well, I won't keep you in suspense. Mr. Stupid Scale won this morning. I resisted grabbing the hammer to show him my "inner demons". Instead I kicked him (delicately) just once and stomped out of the room! HA! I gained 1 pound. What can I say.... It happens. I could try and come up with 10 things to blame it on but what it all boils down to is that womens bodies are crazy. I did nothing wrong. Next week is another week and I'm moving on. I refuse to dwell on it.

On other news, only 36 days until we take off for vacation. Don't even lie! I know you were all dying to know! I have the final countdown playing in my head now. Great! It's an amazingly horrible song. Te-Heeeeee....


BREAKFAST (meal #1) at 9:00am.

The traditional, the classic, the wonderful, the wholesome, the usual.

• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/4 wheat bran
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• dash pumpkin pie spice
• pinch salt
• Splenda
• (Microwaved and topped with 1 tbs ground flax, 2 tbs sugar free raspberry preserves (Smucker's) and 1 tbs Better N' Peanut Butter.)

Work was busy but not hectic today. I think I had the Friday glow going on though so nothing could get me down. I got a ton of work done and it felt great. I set some new projects up, filed, organized and updated all of my spreadsheets. FASCINATING I KNOW!

LUNCH (meal #2) at 12:30pm.

I had the BEST salad for lunch. Spinach + tomato + green pepper + bread & butter pickles + sunflower seeds + Morning Star Farms black bean burger + steamed broccoli + spray butter.


Yes, I use spray butter instead of dressings. I'm a freak. I think it tastes amazing with veggies. It doesn't mask the flavor like dressings do, it accentuates it. I LOVE it and you can think what you will of me but I assure you it's great. I don't use a TON or anything crazy like that. Just a little drizzle. :)

I had to leave the office at 3:30 today to meet Mr. Gas Man at my house and have the meter inspected. ANNOYING! Someone was out less than a month ago to check it but they "have no record" of him ever being at my house. So either they are a disorganized mess at the gas company or I let a strange man (not from the gas company) into my house last time to play in my basement. HEY, he was sporting a bright orange vest and tool belt. He looked the part. UGH!

SNACK (meal #3) at 4:30pm.

While waiting on Mr. Gas Man, I made a quick yogurt mess. To put it simply, it was freakin AMAZING!

• Plain Dannon Greek Yogurt
• Fresh Pineapple
• Fresh Strawberry
• Cinnamon
• Udi's original granola

Uhm, this was seriously tasty. Udi's original granola is by my favorite variety from the flavors that I have sampled. I also loved the fresh pineapple with the plain yogurt. HEAVEN!

Mr. Gassy finally showed up at 5:00 and was in and out in a matter of minutes. YAY! They better document their findings this time!!

I tossed in some laundry while I waited on Nick to get home. I also filled up the French Press with Dulche De Leche flavored coffee. It was a dreary, dull, raining/snowing at the same time MUST have coffee kind of day. (Yeah, I said snowing, I hate Ohio!! It was 80 degrees just last Tuesday!)

SNACK (meal #4) at 6:00.

I also had some pretzels. I love pretzels with coffee!


No more than 3 minutes passed before Nick turned the Wii on after getting home. HA! Oddly enough (shocking even) I'm not complaining. We spent hours bowling, flying, and shooting arrows together. Sadly I suck even at fake bowling. Figures! It was fun though. :)

DINNER (meal #5 at 9:30pm.

I was craving Mexican so I decided to whip up some chicken fajitas. I love this dish because it's full of veggies, healthy and relatively low in calories.

In a large pan with a lid I sauteed some yellow pepper + red pepper + green pepper + onions + mushrooms. I never use olive oil. Weird I know. To me the healthy fats aren't worth the high calories. Instead I used my non-stick pan and added a splash of water. My food never sticks so WHY in the world would I even fathom using oil?


When the veggies were nice and tender (not mushy) I took them out of the pan and tossed in a large chicken breast which I cut into thin strips. I seasoned it with pink salt, black pepper, cayenne and a sprinkle of taco seasoning.


When the chicken was done I tossed the veggies back in to heat them through and dinner was done.


Nick enjoyed his with flour tortillas and I had mine with a FlatOut wrap.


I just had one with some extra veggies and sour cream on the side per the usual.


I would normally add avocado but the one I have at home is not ripe enough yet. I died a little on the inside when I realized this! I did have some spicy hot sauce which made up for it. Sort of.


I have a SERIOUS workout scheduled for tomorrow morning. Lower body, abs and cardio. My "delicate" parts are feeling just fine today so I should be up for a full workout. It's time to get serious!! I still want to lose 10 more pounds before we leave for vacation. Or close to it. Time to puuuuuuuuuuuuush it and RELEASE THE FEROCIOUS BEAST within. Time to build up those sweet-sweet muscles for Summer.


I'm going to go "golf" and "sword fight" now. Have a great night. I LOVE FRIDAY'S!

XOXO
Ildie