Parmesan chicken and kale...

If you're looking for a delicious, go-to meal, try this one on for size. I have to give a shout-out to my neighbor Cory, who introduced me to this chicken recipe. It's gotten rave reviews in my house and it's really simple. 

PARMESAN CHICKEN 

3 Chicken breasts

1 cup of mayo

1 cup of breadcrumbs

1 cup of shredded parmesan cheese 

PREHEAT oven to 375 degrees.

MIX mayo, breadcrumbs and cheese. 

SEASON the chicken breasts with salt and pepper on both sides.

COAT one side of the chicken with the mayo/cheese mixture. 

BAKE for 25-35 minutes. 

KALE

1/4 onion

1 clove of garlic

2 Tbsp olive oil

Balsamic vinegar

Kale

In a pan, sweat out the onions and garlic in the olive oil until they become translucent. Add in the kale and sauté. Remove from heat and let cool for a bit. Toss with balsamic vinegar. 

When choosing your cheese for the mixture, I used the shredded, bagged parmesan, not the powdery, grated cheese in the canister. I think it gives it a better texture and it gets nice and crispy towards the end of cooking. I even toss it under the broiler for a few minutes to make it even crispier. It's really easy to make and so flavorful for so few ingredients. We're trying to have less carbs with our dinner so the meat and vegetables need to have flavor, and this recipe hits a home run. 

What are your go-to recipes? I'd love to hear what your family enjoys. 

what's your flava?: homemade infused olive oil...

A little while ago, I was trying to come up with a unique housewarming gift for a friend. While perusing the aisles of HomeGoods, I found some glass bottles and got an idea... infused olive oil. The gift turned out to a be a hit so I decided to try a few different flavors to use at home. 

I decided to make rosemary olive oil and citrus olive oil. Making the rosemary oil was simple. I just clipped some rosemary from my garden, rinsed it off, put it in the bottle and then poured olive oil over it. For the citrus blend oil, I zested half an orange and half a lemon then combined the zest with the olive oil. 

It's such a simple idea for a gift or for use at home if you want to add a new kick to your cooking. Any herb or spice will work, it all depends on your taste. I'm looking forward to using the citrus blend with fish and the rosemary on a pork loin I have in the freezer. And both would be delicious for dipping. 

what's cookin': spicing up your almonds...

I'm a snacker. Admittedly, a not very healthy snacker. I can put down a sleeve of Fig Newtons before you can bat an eye. I've tried all the "healthy" snacks but none really get my taste buds going. But I'm getting older, my metabolism is slowing down and I need to start making healthier decisions. I'm always hearing that a "handful of almonds really satisfies." A handful of plain almonds makes be feel like I'm chewing on wood chips. And the flavored ones have so may artificial ingredients. So I took a stab at jazzing up my own.

The name says it all. Take bag of almonds, squeeze the juice of one lime into the bag, add some chili power and shake, shake, shake it up until the almonds are completely coated. 

I topped mine with a couple shakes of nutmeg and BOOM! a tasty, healthy snack that tastes significantly less wood-chippy. Enjoy! 

what's cookin'?: homemade hummus...

A little while back I took a cooking class and one of the dishes used garbanzo beans. I always thought I didn't like them, but I loved this fresh salad, so I bought some cans of beans thinking I'd recreate the recipe. I never did.

Then today I was craving some hummus and the tub we had was expired – gross! Then I remember the can of beans. With just a few more ingredients that I already had on hand, I whipped up some homemade hummus in a matter of minutes. So good and good for you!

HOMEMADE JALAPENO HUMMUS

• 1 can of garbanzo beans drained
• Juice of a lemon
• Half of a small can of diced jalapenos (if you're using fresh, I would say 3-4 medium sized jalapenos, seeded)
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 Tbsp of olive oil

Combine those all in a food processor or blender. Blend until smooth and you've got yourself some homemade hummus.  Enjoy!

brussels sprout salad...

I have been stuck in a side dish rut. I make the same things over and over which are usually potatoes and then a canned or frozen vegetable. snoozapalooza.  In an effort to eat healthier and cut out unnecessary starches, I perused the interwebs for some inspiration. That's when I stumbled upon a recipe for a warm brussels sprout salad from The Fit Cook.  It sounded healthy and delicious but also comforting for the cold winter months. I tweaked it a bit and honestly can say I've eaten this as a lunch three times since Christmas. I am obsessed. And I know you will be too. Here goes:

What you'll need for this recipe is:
A bundled of brussels sprouts
Half an orange
Bacon bits (about 1/2 cup)
Feta cheese
2 Tbs of EVOO

First cut the stem off of the brussels sprouts, then cut them in half, remove the leaves and place them in a bowl. You will not used the core of the sprouts for this recipe, but you can certainly save them and use them in another fashion.

In a skillet over medium high heat, add the EVOO and the bacon bits. Let these warm for a few minutes. Then add in your sprout leaves and cook until the leaves start to brown and wilt. Tossing every so often.

Once these are cooked, transfer them to a medium mixing bowl. Sprinkle with feta cheese and squeeze the juice of 1/2 an orange over the top. Toss together and salt and pepper to taste. 

It's great as a side dish or a healthy dinner salad. Like I said, I have eaten it for lunch three different times since Christmas and I can't wait to have it again. Yum! 

It's low in fat and very satisfying. I hope you enjoy it too! 

Send me your healthy recipes, I'm always looking for new ones to try. 

summer salad...

one of the best parts of summer is all of the fresh produce. but fruits and vegetables don't have to stay in separate corners like boys and girls at a grade school dance. mix them together, get creative! the combination of flavors will give your taste buds a welcome surprise.

delicious summer salad with grapes, strawberries and blueberries.

yesterday for lunch I threw leftover fruit salad on top of a bed of lettuce, sprinkled it with fat free feta and some bacon bits then topped it with my new favorite White Balsamic Vinaigrette. it was light, bright and delicious. perfect for a summer day.   

lettuce get healthy: healthy living recipe

The Mr. and I didn't hold back in Boston. Beer, steak, burgers, seafood... beer. It was great and I don't regret one minute of it. But now we're getting serious. Healthy eating, working out, making better lifestyle choices.

For our first dinner back home, I "remixed" one of our favorite meals into an even healthier version. I took my healthy Pad Thai recipe, cut the amount of chicken in half and turned them into lettuce wraps.

I left out the spaghetti squash and cilantro and just used chicken, half the amount of peanut sauce, carrots, cabbage and spicy peanuts for the filling. The beauty of lettuce wraps is that they are instant portion control. Unlike the mounds of pad thai I can heap into a bowl, you can only add a spoonful or two to the wrap because they are so delicate.

I paired it with Thai rice with lime and lemongrass. YUM! Delicious and nutritious, and met with rave reviews from the Mister. As a big taco and burrito family, lettuce wraps are definitely going to be a new staple of our diets. Chinese chicken, tacos, and buffalo chicken would all be delicious wrapped in crisp iceberg lettuce. 

healthy living...

I have become a statistic. The new bride who gains weight. The stars aligned to create the perfect storm of weight gain for me in the first year of marriage.

   Moving to a new city
   Living with my parents
   My dad's (full-fat and delicious) cooking
   Buying a new house
   Working from home
   Newfound love of frozen mini-candy bars
+ Preference for decorating my home over working out
   A little more to love


I'm determined to lose those pesky 10 pounds so I started eating better, cooking healthier for me and my husband, and working out more. Another thing I added to my daily routine is Jillian Michael's bloat banishing drink.

Bloat-banishing drink ingredients

Here are the details: 

I don't know if it's just upping my water intake or the dandelion root tea bag, but this has really worked. I feel awesome and my stomach is much less bloated. And, shockingly, feeling better makes me want to eat better. A groundbreaking revelation, I know. 

Since the water I buy comes in 128oz jugs, I just double the recipe and drink half a jug a day. It actually tastes delicious and I am a person who cannot stand tea in its usual incarnation. So if you're looking to lose a little extra water weight, I highly recommend Jillian's concoction. 

I am going to try and keep this healthy living train rolling, wish me luck!