Losing weight isn't ALWAYS about the scale...

I weigh myself every day. I know I know, the first rule of weightloss is whatEVER you do, DON'T weigh yourself everyday! It's right up there with don't eat a cheeseburger and avoid muffin-tops like the plague. But I can't help it. I need that daily check in to be sure I am not going all crazy. And maybe I am crazy! What of it?

So I have been going to the YMCA for over a month. And I have only heard the song YMCA while there once. I think that's pretty good. What is frustrating is that in that time I have lost but one wee little pound. ONE. As in UNO. A tad frustrating as you can imagine. I feel great though (except for this week's mini-migraine) and I am sticking with it. I have also been cutting back on the ol portion sizes and eating out of smaller bowls (it works!). And the good news is my clothes are starting to fit differently. I think I am even dropping a pant-size. Not dropping my pants to be clear. It's not THAT kind of Y.

So even though that pesky scale isn't telling me what I want to hear, things are happening in my body. And the more I treat it right, the more it will respond. That said, feel free to shower me with encouragement :-)

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Squash Blooms in April!

Well I can't believe it but we already have at least TEN squash blooms in our vegetable garden! I mean actual squash! That is growing! And will be ready to eat in a matter of weeks! OR LESS!

I really didn't think we would be getting fruit this soon, but I am not complaining! I just need to watch them to be sure our soil is balanced so we don't get blossom end rot, the sworn enemy of squash and a variety of other garden veggies. I did however, stumble upon several little green mama bugs with babies. I am still trying to figure out who they are so I can get rid of them. NO VACANCY in this garden.

In the meantime, we'll continue to eat our lettuce and monitor the status of the other tenants. The front beds are doing great this year and we just added 4 hydrangea to the mix! I'll post pictures of that soon. The weather has been so perfect for working outside. It's hard to believe it will be hot and muggy soon. I'll just try and enjoy it while I can!

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From my Kitchen to yours!

Two food posts in as many days! Look at me go! The thing is, I do not create recipes. I just don't do it. I love reading them and getting them from other people. And following them to a T. I might sample one ingredient here or there or omit something because I don't have it on hand, but my mother always said, "if you can read, you can cook". And baby, I can read. So you can imagine my excitement when not only did I create something, I created something GOOD!

I should disclose that the idea of this recipe isn't even mine completely, but it is close enough. You see, I made this amazing meal last week and it was such a hit that I decided to experiment. And my creation was born!

I don't know what to call it. Maybe you could help me name it? My very first recipe! Yay!

Ingredients:

I didn't include amounts because I just sort of eyeballed it.This isn't spicy though it definitely could be!

Vegetable Broth
Black Beans
Fresh Cilantro
Chili Powder
Cheddar Cheese
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
Chicken Breasts
Yellow Rice
Sweet Peppers (I used Orange and Red)
Sour Cream
Avocado

For the Chicken:
Lay chicken breasts in a crock pot and cover with vegetable broth. Add salt, pepper, and garlic. Cover on low until done (depends on quantity - usually a couple hours)  - add peppers toward the end of cooking time.

For the Puree: 
Combine black beans, fresh Cilantro, Chili Powder and Salt in a food processor with a bit of water and pulse until smooth. Add a bit of cheese and heat either on the stove on low or in a microwave.

Rice and Veggies:

About 30 minutes before chicken is done, begin cooking the rice as the package directs (usually takes about 25 min) and throw the peppers (now sliced) in the crock pot on top of the chicken. This will steam them and add flavor to the chicken!

Pile it Up!

It's no secret in my house that we love our food in a pile, This can be served in a bowl or on a plate. I went with plates because it looked nicer for the pictures. Start with the rice and spoon on the black bean puree, top with chicken and veggies and a dollop of sour cream! Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve with avocado wedges! Seriously, so so yummy.

Let me know if you try it! I'd love to know what you think!

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Reader Response: Sortof

I have been neglecting this question for sometime because, quite frankly I don't know the answer! But with the help of a delicious recipe, I can at least come up with something now. The question posted via formspring (go ahead ask me anything!) was this:

What is your favorite meal to cook for guests?

And I still don't have an answer. We honestly haven't had a dinner guest in I don't KNOW how long. And it seems like each time we do, I make pizza. Which, while delicious in it's own right, isn't really all that spectacular. But I digress.

This week we went to Community Group and I decided to try a new recipe for carrots. I had some fresh carrots and wanted to try something other than my normal butter/salt regimen. And I now have fresh rosemary! So I had to put it to good use. And I can tell you that this side will be going in my arsenal of guest-worthy dishes.

 I went to Taste of Home for a recipe and the rest is history! The recipe serves two so I doubled it. I also used minced garlic instead of powder and omitted the parsley. The result was wonderful! Try it! I think you will love it.

Slicing carrots on the diagonal is a nice touch

Mmmm Rosemary Butter....delicious!

  

Voila! I can almost taste them now!

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Dig Dig Dig

I am super excited about Garden 3.0, let me tell you! We were gifted some lettuce by our neighbor and I planted it last week. I wasn't really sure what to do with it because it needs partial shade and for the most part, we just moved our boxes to full on sun. That is, we thought we had until last evening. I noticed that the back half of the far box was shaded in the late afternoon, so I moved the lettuce there.

Today I went to the Farmer's Market to pick up the transplants for this year. While I think it's awesome to start from seed and probably more fulfilling, I know my limits! So to market I went. It was such a beautiful day! I could really get lost at the farmer's market. Sigh. There were so many choices, but I kept to my decision of sticking with what I know and what we will eat. Here is the 2010 Garden:

• Better Boy Tomatoes
• Slicing Cucumbers
• Golden Sweet Peppers
• Yellow Squash
• Bib Lettuce
• Red Lettuce
• Basil
• Rosemary
• Cilantro

I also decided to pot the herbs instead of putting them in the box with the big kids. I've never had a problem with any plants getting choked out, but they are so pretty, I wanted them to stand out a bit. And having them on the back porch makes them even more accessible.

I am so ready to eat these veggies! Grow babies grow :-)

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Let the Gardening Begin!

Saturday marked the official first day of Spring, I know this because Rita's was giving away free Italian Ice, a provision that would have been awesome had my local store BEEN OPEN. I digress.

The weather was nice and I decided it was time to get our square-foot-gardening boxes prepped for planting. This year, we decided to move them closer to the house because a) The sun is better, and b)last year they turned into giant litter boxes. We are hoping that having them closer will also make it a wee bit easier for me to maintain them since Jerry has decided to be hands off (see giant litterbox).

old location

Although, I don't know if we can really consider prepping the lawn, digging trenches and shoveling dirt hands off. You decide. We moved the old dirt to the back of the yard and cut new weed cloth to lay down. Jerry dug a couple trenches to level the boxes and we were done!

 new location!

We moved the Jade plants to the former garden area because they seemed to get a little too scorched last year. I am really excited about the new setup! I plan to keep it simple with tomatoes, squash, cucumber, peppers, basil, cilantro, and lettuce. We just need to get our dirt mix (we'll use a combination of black kow, black hen, and vermiculite with some peat moss) and we'll be ready to plant!

new home for the jades!

Oh yeah, and don't even ask me about seeds. I have no idea. I deal only with transplants. If you really want to get dirty, check out Paige at Pocket Smiles for some great gardening tips! What are you planting this year? Will you start from seed? Or will you be harvesting the grocery garden?

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Keeping Busy

I am amazed at the rate Oscar is learning. He has started to really grasp inside/outside this week and has been stacking his cups and his favorite, Dada's CDs (which are conveniently located right at toddler eye level). He is playing with his toys differently too. I don't know if it's being around older kids from time to time or if something just clicked, but he is defiintely a little individual who knows what he wants.

His eating has drastically changed this month too. He isn't eating as much volume at each meal, but rather sometimes he eats a TON (like this mornings 2 waffles and a banana) and other times not much at all. He is heavy on the dairy and bread and light on the protein. He will still eat meat, but now shuns vegetables and beans. He loves peanut butter so I imagine we'll add more of that for now. I still offer a variety, but I am not going to worry, I know this to be normal and we'll just ride it out. We did try baby food veggies again to see if he would take to that, thinking it was a texture thing, but no go. One thing I am noticing is that he wants to eat the big pieces. If I let him take a bite of a big slice of something, he is more apt to try it. Go figure.

This week has been full of amazing weather so we've been outside as much as possible. Oscar has been back and forth with his napping, but being outside is a definite way to keep him happy. He LOVES running around in the grass and playing in the dirt. He's on the fast track to being all boy, that's for sure. And I am really enjoying the process! Today it's a little rainy, so we'll hopefully get some of our errands finished. It's been a good week. 

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Fake 'N' Bake Empanadas!

I haven't posted anything for Meal Planning Mondays in a while because honestly, we haven't done anything new. We like what we like and I guess I haven't been all that adventurous in the kitchen as of late. Until this week! I got a good deal on ground beef and wanted to do something different yet easy. I don't claim this recipe to be all that original, or authentic.But it sure was good!

Easy Empanadas:

1) Saute Ground beef with one chopped onion/drain
2) Season with taco seasoning (or make your own with cumin, coriander, cilantro leaf and salt)
3) Add one can RoTel (I drained off most of the juice)
4) Add cheddar cheese

That's your filling!  
meanwhile:. Preheat oven and roll out croissants (I used Pillsbury)

5) Spoon filling onto each triangle, roll,  and bake!
6) Top with Sour Cream and hot sauce. Yum!

I used a little less than a pound of beef and had WAY too much filling for 8 croissants, just to give you an idea. I piled the rest in a pizza crust and folded it over to take care of the leftovers. That was good too, but the croissant went better with the mixture.

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Fruits and Veggies for a Toddler?

Oscar is a large child. He always has been and I love it. But I want him to be large in the strong sense and not so much the "in charge" way...He really loves protein, dairy and breads. We can do all kinds of meats, beans, rice, breads, milk, cheese and yogurt. But his Vegetable and fruit vocabulary has gotten decidedly smaller. Bananas are in, apples are in. Citrus is out. As are blueberries and grapes. I'm not really sure what else to try! Peaches are hit and miss. I am looking forward to summer and local foods more because I think they taste better.

As for vegetables, it's more about texture than taste. He will do very overcooked broccoli (I just learned by accident) and cooked carrots as long as they have cinnamon on them. Spinach is out, tomatoes are out (unless it's sauce), no potatoes, green beans or cucumbers either. He will eat the yogurt meals that sneak in fruits and veggies, but I have to be careful or we overload the dairy.

Do you have any fruit/veggie tricks? How do get your kids to eat more?

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