Monthly Archives: April 2015

protein, recipe, Soups and Stews

Easy Crockpot Chili

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Hello! I hope your week is going as awesome as mine is! I slept for 12 hours Saturday night and Sunday night, so all week I’ve been bursting with energy. I’m running more now that the temperature is perfect in the mornings… Hopefully it’ll stay this way for awhile! With running before work I’ve had less time for food prep. This crockpot chili has been the perfect solution! I make it once and it lasts all week. It’s so hearty and the acidity is well balanced with a bit of sour cream and cheddar cheese. This and other lower carb lunches I’ve been packing for work have my stomach feeling flatter, which is great since it’s almost pool season. I even folded laundry in a bikini yesterday! I’ll bet that if you eat this chili your tummy will be just as happy :)

  
Easy Crockpot Chili Recipe found here. The only changes I made to the chow.com recipe were to use a combination of red kidney beans and pinto beans and lean ground turkey instead of ground beef.

  
Oh, I also usedextra sharp cheddar on this one. You get the most flavor with the fewest calories that way… Which reminds me, I’ve been experimenting with Weight Watchers for the past few months to learn more about the program and see if it’s a good diet plan for my clients. I’ve noticed that fat “costs” you a lot of Points Plus, so using low fat or fat free products seems to be a good strategy for keeping to your Points Plus limit for the day. It’s a trade off, though. When you choose fat free cheese or sour cream, you get fewer calories but a more processed product. So what’s better for weight loss? What do you think?? Would you use full fat sour cream and cheddar on this chili or go for fat free cheddar and fat free Greek yogurt/ sour cream? BTW, if you’re interested in a full review of the Weight Watchers personal coaching program, please let me know! I’m thinking about doing a post about it.

One more chili pic.. Yum!

  

Entrees, protein, recipe, vegetables

Turkey and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

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This month’s Recipe Redux theme is “Spring Cleaning!” Clearly, my pantry is still in need of it:

Never mind. I was going to include a picture of the mess in there, but it’s too embarrassing! 

As I was going through my pantry to find an ingredient for this month’s challenge, I found an entire Costco sized package of canned tomato sauce. Well, if you’ve ever accidentally bought too much tomato sauce like I did, I have a great recipe you can put in your lunch or dinner rotation now!

  
Turkey and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

  

Ingredients (makes 6):

6 bell peppers: red, orange, and/or yellow

15 oz can tomato sauce

1 cup dry quinoa

2 cups chicken broth or water

16 oz lean ground turkey

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 small can diced green chilis

3 garlic cloves, chopped

Taco seasoning, to taste

6-12 oz shredded cheese (I used 2% fat Mozzarella)

Preparation:

1. Remove the tops and seeds from each bell pepper. Heat a large pot with enough boiling water to just cover the bottom below a steamer basket. Place bell peppers in the steamer basket and steam, covered, for about 5-10 minutes or until desired tenderness is achieved. You can boil the peppers submerged in water to soften them instead. Remove the peppers, pat dry with a paper towel, and allow to cool on an aluminum lined baking sheet.

2. As the peppers cool, toast the dry quinoa in a saucepan, stirring frequently for 2 minutes. Add 2 cups boiling water or broth and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook covered for 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

3. While the quinoa is cooking, sauté the onions And garlic in 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once softened and golden, set aside. Brown ground turkey in the pan until there is no pink visible and the meat is in small crumbles. 

4. Stir taco seasoning, tomato sauce, cooked onions, cooked quinoa, and diced green chilis into the turkey. 

5. Distribute the meat and quinoa mixture evenly among the bell peppers, top each one with 1-2 oz shredded cheese, and broil until golden and bubbly.

  
These reheat well in the microwave and pack easily for lunch at work! Enjoy with a side of salad. 

  
Check out other Recipe Redux creations below:

Entrees, protein, recipe, vegetables

Favorite Workday Salad

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I love finding a portable meal that’s flavorful, protein rich, and easy to prepare multiples of for the week! This salad has been my go-to for two weeks now and I’m still not tired of it.

Ingredients:

2 eggs or 3 egg whites, hard boiled & chopped

1/2 can of tuna

1 medium tomato, diced (or 1/2 cup grape tomatoes sliced lengthwise)

2 tablespoons finely diced red onion

1/2 cup garbanzo beans

1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley

Large handful of spinach or mixed greens

1 tablespoon olive oil

Squeeze of lemon

Salt & pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Place eggs in a pot of cold water. Bring to a boil. Cover, remove pot from heat, and set a timer for 12-15 minutes. Run the eggs under cold water to stop the cooking process and make them easier to peel.

2. Layer all ingredients except for greens in a bowl or travel container. Add lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

3. Top with mixed greens or spinach.

4. When ready to serve, stir or shake to combine all ingredients.

And done! I like to make 2-4 of these at a time to keep in the fridge for lunch on weekdays. They hold up well as long as the spinach/greens are on top!

Enjoy!

food, restaurants

Naked Fish – Sushi in Las Vegas

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After a busy couple of weeks, Colby and I enjoyed a sushi date night at Naked Fish. If you’re in Las Vegas, definitely check out their happy hour menu, 5-6pm daily. For $21 you can get 3 sushi rolls and a beer, or order items a la carte. A glass of Chardonnay was $3 and a large seaweed salad was $4. I love the unique texture of seaweed salads, and while they’re high in sodium, seaweed is nutritious because it is rich in calcium, antioxidant compounds, and iodine (which isn’t present in many dietary sources!)

  

We also got a cucumber salad free for checking in on Yelp! You can choose between that and an order of edamame when you check in. The salad was pleasantly sweet and crunchy.

  

For $7 per order, I chose the yellowtail jalepeno and salmon yuzu, which were both very refreshing. The salmon was my favorite of the two because of the delicious marinade it was served in and there were more pieces included in the happy hour price!

  

Thr yellowtail jalepeno!

  

The salmon yuzu!

Colby ordered sushi rolls. The Japanese lasagna roll was served warm with melting cream cheese on top:

  

This one is the Roppangi roll, filled with spicy tuna and topped with more tuna and eel sauce. Delicious! 

  

I love that this meal was as much a feast for the eyes as it was for the taste buds! We finished off our dinner with a shared order of mochi ice cream ($4). The mango and strawberry flavors were both tasty. The also have a black sesame mochi that sounds intriguing!

  

Next time you’re in Vegas (with a car), head over to Naked Sushi for an awesome happy hour meal and friendly service! If you’re interested in seeing more restaurant reviews and/or healthy dining tips, please let me know!