...exercise every day!
I know, I seem to be stuck on smoothies lately. Why not? They are quick and easy and you can take them in the car.
Blend 10 ounces skim milk or plain soy milk, 1 T natural peanut butter and 1 banana. Add ice if you want a thicker consistency.
Breakfast in less than a minute. Now you have no excuse not to eat!
Taken from the new cookbook Hungry Girl, adapted from the website Hungry Girl. I'll be reviewing this book late next week - after I remember to answer the questions you all asked twelve moons ago.
Ooey gooey Chocolate Cherry Muffins
1 box No Pudge! Fudge Fat free Fudge Brownie Mix
1 cup fiber One bran cereal (original), crushed
2/3 cup light cherry pie filling
1/4 cup light vanilla soymilk
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients together. Place batter evenly into 12 cup muffin pan sprayed with nonstick spray or lined with baking cups. Bake for 20 minutes.
Per muffin, 131 calories, ,.05g fat, 121mg sodium, 35g carbs, 3.5g fiber, 24g sugar, 3g protein. Points value 2.
'Nuff said.
Word.
Tropical Fruit Smoothie
Place 1 1/2 cup frozen mango cubes or peach slices, 1 cup hulled and halved fresh strawberries, 1 cup fat free vanilla yogurt or light vanilla soy milk, and 1/2 cup chilled mango nectar into blender. Blend until well combined and smooth. Add 2 Tablespoons Flaxseed oil and blend until just comined.
Why the Flaxseed oil?
It is a monounsaturated fatty acid, which is a proven weapon against fat around your middle. Want more information on MUFA's? Check out flatbellydiet.com and click on the food tab.
Source: Prevention magazine, April 2008
Taken from Women's Health, April 2008
1 can water packed pink salmon, drained
1/2 cup whole grain crackers, crushed
1/2 tsp crushed garlic
1/2 tsp pepper
3 T light mayonnaise
1 T lemon juice
Discard skin from drained salmon and place fish in a bowl. Using a fork, flake fish and mash any small bones. Add crushed crackers, garlic, mayo, lemon juice, scallions, pepper and stir well. Divide salmon mix into fourths and shape into patties. Coat nonstick skillet with cooking spray and place over medium high heat. Add patties and cook for about 3 minutes on each side until lightly browned. Serve plain or on toasted buns with lettuce and tomato if desired.
When I used to work as a nanny, the mom had me make these muffins. I used to love them and hate them, because the kids would eat tons and the diapers and bathroom would be awful. But, for grownups, they rock. The entire recipe makes 6 dozen, so either use an enormous bowl to mix the batter, or plan to make half and refrigerate the rest. Or, half the recipe. Your call.
2 cups All-Bran (which has HFCS, which wigged me out when I read the label)
2 cups oatmeal
1 cup GrapeNuts
1 cup melted butter or margarine - I used applesauce
4 cups buttermilk
1 cup sugar - it's high, but, remember, it makes 6 dozen. I've done it with 3/4cup and no difference in taste
4 beaten eggs - I used egg beaters
2 cups whole wheat flour
3 cups white flour - I used all white whole wheat for the 5 cups total
1 teaspoon salt
5 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups raisins - I used more and mixed in dried cherries, dates, and the jumbo golden and red raisin mix
1 cup molasses
Combine cereals, margarine and buttermilk. Stir in rest of ingredients. Bake in muffin tims at 350 for 10 minutes.
From Fitness magazine, April 2008
In a small bowl, whisk together 8 ounces low fat plain yogurt and 3 T balsamic vinegar until well blended. In a plastic food storage bag, combine 8 thin cut chicken breasts and the marinade. Seal the bag and turn to coat and place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
In a large skillet, heat 1 T olive oil over medium heat. Add 1 chopped onion; saute 3 minutes or until slightly softened. Add 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar and 2 T water. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for about 7 minutes until liquid is reduced and onion is tender. Increase heat to medium high; add 1 pound of plum tomatoes, cored, chopped and seeded. sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Remove skillet from hear, let cool for 2-3 minutes. Stir in 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into cubes and 1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, chopped..
Grill chicken 6-8 minutes per side. Top with tomato mixture and serve.
224 calories, 24 g protein, 6 g carbohydrates.
From the good folks at Sunmaid Raisins
1 T olive oil
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
3/4 cup raisins
3 T lemon juice
3 T packed brown sugar
2 t grated fresh ginger or 1/2 t dried ginger
1/4 t cinnamon
1/4 black pepper
Heat olive oil over medium high heat 3 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and set aside. Add tomatoes, raisins, lemon juice, brown sugar, ginger, cinnamon and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 3-5 minutes or until slightly reduced. Add chicken back to pan. Cover and cook 10-15 minutes until chicken is completely cooked.
Served with a bit of brown rice, this was really good.
When it's cold, I really like soup. A few of my kids like it, but most of them don't. My husband HATES it. I think I'm going to make this just for me this week.
Saute one chopped onion, 1T cumin and 4 minced garlic cloves in 2T olive oil. Add 3 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth, 3 chopped tomatoes, 1 15 ounce can black beans and 1 1.4 ounce can diced green chile peppers. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for five minutes. Add 1 T cilantro. Garnish with crushed tortilla chips.
Makes 4 servings. Each contains 245 calories, 10 G protein, 34 g carbohydrates, 11 g fat, 8 g fiber
This was in Fitness magazine, February 2008. I was skeptical. I made it and didn't tell my family exactly what was in it. My kids were divided - the little one hated it - I think because it was dark chocolate and not milk. My bigger kids ate it up. No one knew it contained tofu. Wait, don't turn up your nose. Tofu is tasteless and has a great consistency. Try it. I think you'll like it. I'll make it again, using a less bitter chocolate, and I think it'll be a bigger hit.
12.3 ounces silken tofu, drained
3 ounces dark chocolate, at least 60%
1/4 unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup water
1 T brandy - I substituted Kahlua
1/3 cup powdered sugar
In a blender, process tofu until smooth. (Note: I had to add a bit of water, as it wouldn't blend without.) Combine chocolate, cocoa, water and brandy in saucepan and stir until melted. Remove from heat. Stir in powdered sugar a little at a time until smooth. Add chocolate mixture to tofu and process until smooth. Refrigerate at least an hour.
Low fat/no fat brownies - sounds too good to be true, right? That's what I thought when I saw the box of No Pudge brownie mix on the shelf at the store. How in the world could you make rich, thick, fudgy brownies with no fat? I've tried many different recipes for low fat brownies, and I'm always disappointed. See, when I make brownies, the recipe calls for 2 cups sugar, 2 cups brown sugar, 6 eggs, and 3 sticks butter. Nothing low fat about THAT recipe. Seriously, those are my favorite brownies, and nothing else comes close, so I typically just don't make them.
I bought a box to try out. The label said that the only ingredient to add was 2/3 cup fat free vanilla yogurt. I was skeptical, but started stirring. The batter was extra thick, but it finally mixed in. I stuck a finger in - delish! It was deep, dark fudgy goodness. I baked them the required time, and by the time they were done, I was ready to take a bite out of the wall. I could hardly wait until they were cool enough to eat.
Verdict? Delicious. Deeply chocolate, very little fat but a plethora of taste. I'd highly recommend buying these, and I'll certainly buy them again. They come in Original, Cappuccino, Mint Fudge and Raspberry, but the original was so yummy that I'll stick with that version.
Have you bought these? Did you like them?
