Kale Chips

I have heard about these in the past and always wondered if they were any good. Today I tried out the recipe and they are amazing! The great thing is they are only 45 calories for a cup of "chips". Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
Kale
Sea Salt
Olive Oil

Recipe:

Pre heat oven to 375. Cut kale off of stem and into bite size pieces. After that wash and dry the kale really good, I used a salad spinner to dry mine. Place on a baking sheet lined with foil. Toss with some olive oil and sea salt (I used the sea salt that is not ground up). Bake for 10-15 min, watch to make sure the kale doesn't burn. Mine took about 12 min until it was crispy.

Hope everyone enjoys this recipe!

Until Next Time!

Spinach Meatballs

I made this recipe last week and am just getting around to posting it. This is a great way to get your veggies into a meal, whether you need to hide them from your kids or your husband no one will notice. I also love these great meatballs because they are low carb. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1lb ground beef
1/2 bag frozen spinach thawed
Italian seasonings
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 egg

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 350. In a bowl mix together the ingredients and form into meatballs. Place on a baking sheet and bake 25-30 min.

These are awesome with some tomato sauce and noodles.

Enjoy! Until next time!

Crispy Peanut Butter Chicken Fingers

For dinner tonight I decided to play around with some different flavors combinations for crispy chicken fingers. Following my new low carb eating style, it has been difficult to find different ways to make foods that are similar to high carb but are low carb. I was successful with this recipe and will definitely be making it again.

Ingredients:

1 lb chicken breast strips
3 tbsp chunky peanut butter
3-4 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp dijon mustard
3 garlic cloves grated
1/2 a package of spicy pork rinds

Recipe:
Preheat oven to 350. In a bowl whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, dijon mustard, olive oil, and garlic. Place chicken in a zip lock bag and add in peanut butter mixture, mix around so all the chicken is coated. In another zip lock bag crush up the spicy pork rinds, and pour into a bowl. Dip the chicken into the crushed pork rinds and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 30 min, or until chicken is cooked through. Enjoy!


What is your favorite fake out meal?

Until Next Time!!

Camping Meals

Tomorrow we are headed off to Lake Powell for a few days. I always love going camping, and eating is always part of the fun. Sometimes it seems like we eat better while we are camping then when we are at home. Here are a couple of my favorite camping meals!!

Breakfast:

Chorizo and Eggs are a staple. We always cook everything in one pot and then make burritos. First I cook up a bag of fresh hash browns, (I like these better then frozen), remove and set aside. Then I cook up the chorizo. Once that is cooked add in the hash browns and eggs. Top with cheese and wrap up in a tortilla!!

Lunch:

A favorite lunch item, whether we be at the lake on the boat or in the pines going for rides, are tortilla roll ups. These are also simple and you can use what ever ingredients you like. Here is how I make them.
Ingredients:
Tortillas
Cream Cheese
Deli Turkey
Can of Diced Green Chilies

Spread the cream cheese over a tortilla , sprinkle some green chilies over the cream cheese, add a slice or 2 of turkey and then roll up. After they are rolled slice into threes. These are easily transportable and don't get soggy!

Dinner:
Pulled pork is a great option to take camping. I usually make mine before we go, which makes less work when your having fun. Here is how I make my pulled pork.
Ingredients:
1 pork butt bone in
Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Chopped Onion
5-6 Cracked Garlic Cloves
Salt and Pepper

In a crock pot place the pork butt. Pour enough apple cider vinegar to cover about half of the pork. Salt and pepper the pork, and add the onion and garlic over the top. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, remove bone and shred.

I usually let the pork cool down before I shred up the meat. I put the meat in zip lock bags to take with us. We usually use the meat for different things, pulled pork sandwiches with bbq sauce, quesdillas on the grill, and it is also good pasta salad!


I would love to hear everyone's camping meal recipes! Comment them on my blog or add them to the Facebook page, www.facebook.com/foodloversfindings .

Baked Parmesan Crusted Chicken

It has been awhile since I have posted. Running around after a 6 month old has been taking up a lot of my time, but in the past few weeks I have made some great recipes and have also tasted some great recipes, so stay tuned for upcoming post.

Still going strong on my lo carb diet I have been experimenting with different foods so I don't have to continue to eat the same old food day after day. Last night I made this Parmesan crusted chicken and it was sooo good, I didn't even miss the bread crumbs. Here is the recipe, I only cook for two so you can always double the recipe.

Baked Parmesan Crusted Chicken

2 chicken breast
1/2 a bottle of Italian dressing
2 cups of grated Parmesan cheese
Garlic Salt
Onion Powder
Pepper

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 350. Pour the Italian dressing into a bowl. In another bowl mix together the Parmesan cheese, garlic salt, onion powder, and pepper. Dip the chicken into the dressing and then into the cheese coating both sides. Place on a cookie sheet, or baking sheet. Bake for 40 min.

Hope you enjoy! Untill Next Time~

Low Carb isn't that bad!

After a week of being on my crazy low carb/high protein diet I have learned a lot. Here are a few of the things I have learned so far:


1. Vodka has no carbs!
2. Turkey Bacon is actually good (and only 35 cals a slice)
3. I can cook ground turkey/chicken and make it taste good enough my husband will eat it.
4. The Kroger Carbmasters yogurt is really yummy.
5. Applebees actually has great low calorie options that will also fit low carb as well
6. Skinny Girl Margarita's only have 1.5 carbs in a serving
7. Almonds are a great snack when on the go.
8. Dijon Mustard is a great substitute for Mayo with tuna fish
9. Arbonne's Engery Fizz Tabs work great and have no carbs
10.One regular egg and one egg white makes a great omelet (of course adding in some turkey bacon or spinach to the mix also)



There are some of the things I have learned over the 1st week of my diet. So far I am down 4lbs and 1 inch in the waste. On to week two, finally get to add in more veggies/fruit, stay tuned for more results and some great healthy recipes!

Until Next Time!

Left Over Turkey Meatball Soup

I think I mentioned a few post ago about trying not to waste so much food. I have this really bad habit of cooking for 6 or more people and there is only two of us eating. I set 2 goals for myslef to quit wasting and save some money: 1. make a new meal out of left overs  & 2. cook smaller portions. So far I have been doing great at both of these goals and throwing away less and less food.

From yesterday's turkey meatball dinner, http://foodloversfindings.blogspot.com/2011/07/bathing-suite-meals.html, I had 4 meatballs left over. I knew this wasn't enough to make another meal out of and didn't really feel like eating it over a salad again. So I decided to make a soup. I didn't really measure out the ingredients but here is what I did.

Left Over Turkey Meatball Soup

Ingredients:

Left over turkey meatballs
Mushrooms
Fresh baby spinach
Olive Oil
Chicken Stock
Half of a Lemon
Worcestershire Sauce

Directions:

In a pan lightly sautee the mushrooms for a few min. Add in the meatballs to reheat. Tear up the baby spinach and sautee a little longer. Pour in chicken stock, lemon juice, and a few splashes of worcestshire sauce and bring to a boil. Once spinach is wilted serve.

I also added a few sprinkles of parmesan cheese and it was delicious!

Hope you enjoy!

Untill next time!

Bathing Suite Meals

Looking at the calendar I realize in a little over a month we will be going to Lake Powell for Labor Day Weekend. Ever since having Dylan I have been trying to avoid the bathing suite, or at least wearing it in front of large groups of people. So I have decided to eat healhty and exercise to try and look good in that bathing suite come Labor Day! I don't k now exactly how Dusty is going to feel about the meal choices for the next month but I guess he will have to eat them, or figure something else out.

For tonights dinner I decdied to go with turkey meatballs. This way I can eat mine over a salad and Dusty can have his with noodles and sauce, see he can't complain too much I could have made him eat the salad. Anyway here is the recipe I came up with for the turkey meatballs. Hope you enjoy!

Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients:
1lb ground turkey
1 egg
2 tlbs dried italian seasonings
3 garlic cloves
1/2 of a small onion
1 cup parmesan cheese (the kind in the can)

Recipe:

In a large bowl combine the ground turkey, egg, dried seasonings, and parmasean cheese. I like to grate in the onion and garlic that way there are no chunks. Mix togehter with your hands and make sure everything is combined.

Form into balls.

Cook in a pan over mead heat with olive oil. About 5 min each side. You could also bake these at 350 for about 20-25 min or untill cooked through.

So what is your favorite bathing suite meal??? I would love to hear everyones recipes.


Untill Next time!

Orange Lime Jalapeno Chicken

Everytime I go to the grocery store I always check out the meats in the discounted section, you never know what you will find. Lots of times I find meats I have never really cooked before and if its on sale might as well buy it. Last week I found boneless chicken thighs for a great deal, so I bought them even though I have never cooked with them before. So here is what I came up with the boneless chicken thighs, and it was a hit in our house!

Orange Lime Jalapeno Chicken

Ingredients:

1 package boneless skinless chicken thighs
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil
1 jalapeno chopped up
2 garlic clovers chopped or grated
1/2 cup orange marmalade
2 limes
1/2 cup of white wine (or chicken stock)

Preheat Oven to 375. Place chicken thighs in oven safe dish and salt and pepper the thighs.

Over med heat add a few tablespoons of olive oil to a sautee pan. Add in chopped jalapenos and garlic, cook down a few min. Add the zest of one lime to the pan and the juice of both limes. Add in wine or chicken stock and organce maramlade. Cook untill maramlade has melted down.

Pour sauce over chicken and bake for 40 min then enjoy!!


I was going to take a picture of the final product, but got a little side tracked playing with Dyaln. By the time I realized I had forgotten to take the picture there was nothing left to take a picture of. So here is a picture of the happy little chunka a monka instead.

Untill next time!

Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

Looking for ways to hide some veggies in your food. Here is a great mac and cheese recipe where I threw in a head of cauliflower and nobody complained!



Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

1/2 package of macaroni noodles
1 head of cauliflower chopped up
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons flour
2 1/2 cups of milk ( you can also sub chicken stock for less calories)
1 bag shredded cheese
1/2 tablespoon honey mustard
Bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese


Directions:

In a big pot bring salted water to a boil. Once boiling add in the macaroni and cauliflower, cook about 6-8 min untill noddles are soft. Drain noodles and cauliflower and set in an oven safe dish.

In a saucepan melt butter and add in flour and cook 2-3 min. Wisk in milk and bring to a boil. Add in cheese and stir untill melted. Add in honey mustard for an extra kick.

Pour the cheese sauce over the macaroni and cauliflower and mix well. Top with bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Bake at 400 for about 20-25 min.

Let cool and then enjoy~ This is the perfect side dish for chicken, steak, or pork!


Until next time!!!

Breakfast Foods??

I find myself so often posting about dinner, but I am very curious what everyones favorite breakfast foods are (healthy and non-healthy). I am the kind of person who wakes up starving and needs to eat now!!!! Often I have to step back and think of something healthy or I end up eating a cheese crips with two eggs fried in butter in the middle. Lately I have been doing pretty good with healthy breakfast here are a few of my breakfast tips.

From the post, http://foodloversfindings.blogspot.com/2010/02/pancakes-pancakes-pancakes.html, I have found that adding fresh blueberries to the "pancake" mix is amazing. Also I make an over med egg, with olive oil instead of butter, and place on the top and of the oatmeal pancake so yummy! Another tip for this recipe is to add in a half a scoop of fiber, I really like Arbonnes fiber, you can check that out at http://www.arbonne.com/ or message me for a sample.

When I am in the mood for eggs I have been eating omelets with tons of veggies. My main trick here is to use one regular egg and one egg white, that way you aren't getting all the fat and calories in two eggs. I like to add mushrooms, zuchinni, bell peppers, fresh spinach, or any veggies I have in the fridge.

My last breakfast that I have been eating a lot of lately is the 100 calorie english muffins with Nutella and bananas! So yummy and this is great before a workout!


What is your favorite breakfast?? Love to hear from everyone!!

Untill Next Time!

Left Over Mexican Chicken Casserole

I am always looking for new ways to use left overs. One of my recent goals was to use up leftovers in new dishes, since for some reason we don't like to eat left overs. So far I have been doing pretty good.
After a great bbq with friends and family on Friday we had some left over grilled chicken to us up that I didnt want to waste. I searched through my cabinets and came up with this casserole that turned out really yummy!!

Left Over Mexican Chicken Casserole

Ingredients

1/2 yellow onion diced
1 small green bell pepper chopped
1 jalapeno chopped
2 cooked chicken breasts diced up
2 cups cooked rice (it was one cup uncooked)
1/2 bag frozen corn
1 can of chilli beans (or any beans in your pantry)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 bar of cream cheese
1 packet taco seasoning
1 bag shredded cheese
Olive oil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Over med heat sweat down the onion, bell pepper, and jalapeno in olive oil. Once that is done in a big bowl combine all of the ingredients, except the shredded cheese. Pour the mixture into a baking dish and top with the cheese. Bake for about 30-40 min, or untill cheese is bubbley and enjoy.


I topped mine with a little bit of sour cream! It was a super yummy dish I will be making again.

What to do with chuck steak???

Here is a great recipe for a cheaper cut of meat. So delicious. We are having this tonight with sauteed bell peppers and onions for a version of fajita/tacos! Also great on top of a salad.


1 Boneless Chuck Steak
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
Garlic Salt
Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 an onion chopped
4 garlic cloves smashed
1 can of green chiles
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes
1 can of beer (or beef broth)

In a large pot put in enough olive oil to cover the bottom. Seat heat to med/high. Season the chuck steak with salt, pepper, garlic salt, and red pepper flakes on both sides. Sear the steak for about a min on each side and turn the heat down to low. Add in the onions, green chiles, garlic, tomatoes, and then poor the beer over the top. Simmer on low for 3-4 hours. Shred up or cut up for tacos, fajitas, or burriots.


You can also do this in the crock pot on low all day. I broke the lid to the crock pot so I have been experimenting with different ways to cook low and slow!

Enjoy Untill Next time!



So I wanted to add what else I made to go with this meal. I made a spanish rice, what I did was took the liquids and some of the tomatoes and green chiles out of the meat pot and made the rice with that which was amazing! I also sauteed some bell peppers and onions up to add into our flour tortillas.

Summer Pasta Salad

Ok so I know its been awhile but tonight I made a yummy pasta salad to go along with some Salmon, which didn't turn out so good so thankfully we had the pasta. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 package of rotini pasta cooked (or any kind)
4 tbl spoons olive oil

3 tbl spoons balsamic vinegar
1 tbl spoon dried basil (or fresh if available)
salt
pepper
1 cup of cooked corn
1 tomato diced
1 red bell pepper diced
1 cup chopped fresh spinach
chopped chives
1/2 cup grated Parmesan


Recipe:

This recipe is pretty simple. While cooking the pasta, in a large bowl add all of the other ingredients. Once the pasta is cooked and drained add to the bowl and toss. Refrigerate for at least an hour and then serve.


This recipe is perfect to make the day before. Also corn is in season now, so what I did was take 2 ears of corn and cut the off the kernels of the cob and boil in water for 2 min.


Hope you all enjoy!

Untill Next Time!!