It's been a while. I know. I'm not even going to ask for forgiveness, because I've been trying to enjoy life. It is summer now. Maybe I will get in more updates. Maybe not.
I've been walking down memory lane lately. I've decided to sell my piano (and have sold it, just waiting for it to be moved to the buyer's house. It is going to a teenage girl who will play it instead of use it as furniture like I do, since I didn't learn enough during my piano lessons to play it well). The only reason why I was holding onto it was because of the sentimental memories attached to it. But I can write down some memories and hold onto them, and still let the piano go to someone who will give it life and use it the way it was meant to be used.
When I was a kid, my parents let me take piano lessons. They bought a piano and my piano teacher came over to the house and gave me a lesson. I hated to play the piano. Well, most of the time. There was one song I played over and over and over. "The Little Birch Canoe". Today I called my mom and said "listen!" and put down my phone and played the song for her. I haven't played the piano in years but I remembered that song and played it for her. She laughed.
There is a mark on the piano bench. It looks like a bunch of scratches in one concentrated area. When I was young I used to do everything I could do to avoid practicing. Where the piano was located, I could see down the stairs to the family room, straight to the TV if I bent down enough. I would sit on the bench and plink around a bit to give the illusion that I was actually practicing, and then I would get on my knees on the bench and bend down and lay my head on the bench (kind of like in a yoga child's pose) so that I could see the TV. I would watch and every commercial break I would plink around. I don't think I was fooling anyone. :) But I still tried. Well I had a pair of boots that I loved to wear. It was the kind where you had to twist the laces around hooks in order to pull it tight and tie it. I wore those shoes one day while practicing, and the shoes, while in my child's pose position on the bench, scratched the piano bench. I was afraid of losing that memory after passing on the piano. I wanted to write it down.
I hope that the girl getting the piano will have her own memories attached to it. In the meantime, I will be learning the art of photography with my new camera (well when I buy it... sometime between tomorrow and Wednesday!).
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Creamy Cheesy Chicken Lasagna Rolls
I have a bunch of requests for this recipe, and I've been meaning to blog about it... so here it is! They are SUPER yummy and VERY easy to make! We doubled our recipe this time and it made 14 rolls, so that is the recipe I will put on there. It came from the Clean Eating magazine March 2011 issue, but it had tilapia in it instead of chicken. Since we do not eat seafood, we substituted chicken breast and it was very good! So without further ado...
Ingredients
*2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
*1 carrot peeled and either shredded or chopped into small pieces (we chopped with our Pampered Chef hand chopper... best kitchen tool EVER)
*1 package of whole grain lasagna noodles
*1 cup of skim milk
*8 oz of low fat cream cheese
*7 oz of all natural mozzarella cheese
*1 tsp of dill weed
*1 tsp of sea salt
*spring onions (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350*. In a large pot, boil the lasagna noodles. For the last 90 seconds, throw in the layered shoots of the spring onions to get them limp so that you can tip them around the spring rolls if you would like. We have done it with and without. They don't add much flavor, but they do give it a neat look.
2. While noodles are cooking, boil and shred the two chicken breasts.
3. While both the noodles and the chicken are boiling, peel and chop the carrots.
4. After the chicken is finished, in a medium saucepan combine milk, cream cheese, dill weed and salt into a saucepan and cook on medium to low until the cream cheese is broken up into the milk, whisking continuously. When the cream cheese is broken up, add half of the mozzarella cheese into the mixture and continue to whisk until the cheese is melted and it is a thick sauce (about 1 minute). When it is finished, remove from heat, pour about 1 cup into a liquid measuring cup and set aside.
5. Remove noodles from heat when they are finished and drain.
6. Combine the chicken and carrots with the sauce and mix until evenly distributed.
7. On a non-stick pan, lay out a lasagna noodle. Spoon about 2 tbsps (I just eyeball it) of the mixture onto the lasagna noodle and then roll it up. If you are using spring onion shoots, take a shoot and tie it around to hold the roll closed. If not, then just place the roll on top of the loose end so that it stays shut. Continue until you run out of the chicken mixture.
8. Pour the sauce that was set aside evenly over the lasagna rolls. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese evenly over the rolls and sauce.
9. Place in oven and bake until the cheese starts to brown. Remove from the oven and ENJOY!
I have even had this leftover and it is wonderful left over as well!
Ingredients
*2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
*1 carrot peeled and either shredded or chopped into small pieces (we chopped with our Pampered Chef hand chopper... best kitchen tool EVER)
*1 package of whole grain lasagna noodles
*1 cup of skim milk
*8 oz of low fat cream cheese
*7 oz of all natural mozzarella cheese
*1 tsp of dill weed
*1 tsp of sea salt
*spring onions (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350*. In a large pot, boil the lasagna noodles. For the last 90 seconds, throw in the layered shoots of the spring onions to get them limp so that you can tip them around the spring rolls if you would like. We have done it with and without. They don't add much flavor, but they do give it a neat look.
2. While noodles are cooking, boil and shred the two chicken breasts.
3. While both the noodles and the chicken are boiling, peel and chop the carrots.
4. After the chicken is finished, in a medium saucepan combine milk, cream cheese, dill weed and salt into a saucepan and cook on medium to low until the cream cheese is broken up into the milk, whisking continuously. When the cream cheese is broken up, add half of the mozzarella cheese into the mixture and continue to whisk until the cheese is melted and it is a thick sauce (about 1 minute). When it is finished, remove from heat, pour about 1 cup into a liquid measuring cup and set aside.
5. Remove noodles from heat when they are finished and drain.
6. Combine the chicken and carrots with the sauce and mix until evenly distributed.
7. On a non-stick pan, lay out a lasagna noodle. Spoon about 2 tbsps (I just eyeball it) of the mixture onto the lasagna noodle and then roll it up. If you are using spring onion shoots, take a shoot and tie it around to hold the roll closed. If not, then just place the roll on top of the loose end so that it stays shut. Continue until you run out of the chicken mixture.
8. Pour the sauce that was set aside evenly over the lasagna rolls. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese evenly over the rolls and sauce.
9. Place in oven and bake until the cheese starts to brown. Remove from the oven and ENJOY!
I have even had this leftover and it is wonderful left over as well!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
I love giveaways!
I'd like to do one someday on my blog! But for now, I can enter them and share them. Here is a giveaway that Katie from When Hello Means Good-Bye is doing. The giveaway is something from Etsy seller, the r house, who makes beautiful, encouraging jewelry and is a major supporter of adoption.
Check it out and check out Katie's blog! She is one of the most positive bloggers I have ever read, especially after her heartwrenching but amazing life story!
Check it out and check out Katie's blog! She is one of the most positive bloggers I have ever read, especially after her heartwrenching but amazing life story!
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Baked Ziti
So I haven't made a whole lot of brand new recipes to blog about lately... more of the same stuff that we've already made. We did make one or two things that we didn't like (like Tandoori Chicken... EW! Definitely not good!), but tonight I made Baked Ziti from the Clean Eating for Family and Kids book (which I highly recommend! As long as any of the other Clean Eating books) and it ROCKED. I don't have a picture because facebook changed their photo settings and now for some reason I can't get the image address from my own picture. So now I need to figure out another option.
Ok... so enough babbling and on with the recipe:
Baked Ziti (with my changes... there are some changes in the recipe itself, but I am not going to note those because I think the way I made it was wonderful)
Ingredients
*1 lb ground beef or ground turkey (I used beef)
*2 cups of shredded carrots (I did not put this in)
*1 small onion, peeled and diced
*2 cloves of garlic peeled and pressed (or 1/4 tsp of dried minced garlic)
*26 oz can of crushed tomatoes (I used 28 oz)
*1 cup of chicken or vegetable stock (I didn't have this so I used low sodium natural chicken broth)
*8 oz of whole grain penne, ziti, rigatoni (I used 12 oz of rigatoni)
*2 tbsp of fresh basil leaves finely chopped (I used 2 tsp of dried basil leaves)
*1/2 cup of fresh mozzarella (I used an 8oz bag of natural, shredded mozzarella)
Directions:
1. In a large skillet, combine meat, onions, and garlic and cook until meat is brown. Drain the fat. At the same time, in a separate pot, boil water and then put the noodles in to cook.
2. Add to the meat the tomatoes, chicken/veggie stock/broth, basil and let simmer.
3. When the noodles are al dente, drain and then combine with the sauce.
4. Put the noodle/sauce mixture into a lightly greased baking pan (I used a 9x13) and the coat with the mozzarella cheese.
5. Bake at 350* until cheese is brown.
ENJOY!
Ok... so enough babbling and on with the recipe:
Baked Ziti (with my changes... there are some changes in the recipe itself, but I am not going to note those because I think the way I made it was wonderful)
Ingredients
*1 lb ground beef or ground turkey (I used beef)
*2 cups of shredded carrots (I did not put this in)
*1 small onion, peeled and diced
*2 cloves of garlic peeled and pressed (or 1/4 tsp of dried minced garlic)
*26 oz can of crushed tomatoes (I used 28 oz)
*1 cup of chicken or vegetable stock (I didn't have this so I used low sodium natural chicken broth)
*8 oz of whole grain penne, ziti, rigatoni (I used 12 oz of rigatoni)
*2 tbsp of fresh basil leaves finely chopped (I used 2 tsp of dried basil leaves)
*1/2 cup of fresh mozzarella (I used an 8oz bag of natural, shredded mozzarella)
Directions:
1. In a large skillet, combine meat, onions, and garlic and cook until meat is brown. Drain the fat. At the same time, in a separate pot, boil water and then put the noodles in to cook.
2. Add to the meat the tomatoes, chicken/veggie stock/broth, basil and let simmer.
3. When the noodles are al dente, drain and then combine with the sauce.
4. Put the noodle/sauce mixture into a lightly greased baking pan (I used a 9x13) and the coat with the mozzarella cheese.
5. Bake at 350* until cheese is brown.
ENJOY!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Crispy Chicken Sandwich and our menu for the week
So I will have to find a new way to put pictures on here. I was uploading them to my facebook and then copying them over to here, but with facebook's new changes in their photos, I can't get the photo address anymore.
We made a pretty yummy chicken sandwich today! My Clean Eating magazine finally started coming (HOORAY! I love it!) and you will be seeing a TON of recipes from these magazines when I get them. Today we tried the Crispy Chicken Sandwich. We used to LOVE going to Wendy's and getting a Spicy Chicken Sandwich and we have been missing having a chicken sandwiches because they are usually friend. This is as well, but it is in olive oil and it is pan fried, so it isn't unhealthy. It was very yummy! We did not like the sauce that was with the recipe, so I am not going to include it in the recipe. I dipped my sandwich into some agave nectar as I was eating it and it gave it a very sweet, yummy taste. I am the type of person who liked to dip my chicken into honey, and agave nectar is the perfect substitute.
Here is the awesome recipe from the Clean Eating Magazine, March 2011 edition:
*1/8 tsp each of sea salt and ground black pepper, divided
*4 egg whites
*1 tsp Dijon mustard
*1 cup whole-wheat panko bread crumbs (our grocery store only had regular panko, so we used whole wheat bread crumbs instead)
*1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
*4 4-oz boneless, skinless chicken cutlets, pounded 1/4 inch thick
*1 tbsp olive oil
*4 thin whole-grain sandwich buns, toasted
1. In a small bowl, whisk together egg whites, Dijon, salt, and pepper and set aside. Transfer panko/bread crumbs to a shallow pan or plate.
2. Dredge each chicken cutlet in flour, shaking off excess, then in egg white mixture. Press cutlets gently into panko and transfer to a baking tray or plate.
3. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet on medium-high. Working in batches if necessary, sear breaded chicken cutlets for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown and fully cooked. Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate.
4. Toast whole-grain buns and assemble your sandwich!
We served this with baked potatoes. It was very yummy and I have 3 left to last for a few lunches this week. Yummy!
Also on our menu for the week:
Tandoori Chicken
Chicken Stir Fry
Potato Chowder (we need to see if we can find low sodium, nitrate free ham before we make this)
Chicken Cheese Steaks
We made a pretty yummy chicken sandwich today! My Clean Eating magazine finally started coming (HOORAY! I love it!) and you will be seeing a TON of recipes from these magazines when I get them. Today we tried the Crispy Chicken Sandwich. We used to LOVE going to Wendy's and getting a Spicy Chicken Sandwich and we have been missing having a chicken sandwiches because they are usually friend. This is as well, but it is in olive oil and it is pan fried, so it isn't unhealthy. It was very yummy! We did not like the sauce that was with the recipe, so I am not going to include it in the recipe. I dipped my sandwich into some agave nectar as I was eating it and it gave it a very sweet, yummy taste. I am the type of person who liked to dip my chicken into honey, and agave nectar is the perfect substitute.
Here is the awesome recipe from the Clean Eating Magazine, March 2011 edition:
*1/8 tsp each of sea salt and ground black pepper, divided
*4 egg whites
*1 tsp Dijon mustard
*1 cup whole-wheat panko bread crumbs (our grocery store only had regular panko, so we used whole wheat bread crumbs instead)
*1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
*4 4-oz boneless, skinless chicken cutlets, pounded 1/4 inch thick
*1 tbsp olive oil
*4 thin whole-grain sandwich buns, toasted
1. In a small bowl, whisk together egg whites, Dijon, salt, and pepper and set aside. Transfer panko/bread crumbs to a shallow pan or plate.
2. Dredge each chicken cutlet in flour, shaking off excess, then in egg white mixture. Press cutlets gently into panko and transfer to a baking tray or plate.
3. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet on medium-high. Working in batches if necessary, sear breaded chicken cutlets for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown and fully cooked. Transfer to a paper-towel lined plate.
4. Toast whole-grain buns and assemble your sandwich!
We served this with baked potatoes. It was very yummy and I have 3 left to last for a few lunches this week. Yummy!
Also on our menu for the week:
Tandoori Chicken
Chicken Stir Fry
Potato Chowder (we need to see if we can find low sodium, nitrate free ham before we make this)
Chicken Cheese Steaks
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Our life has been crazy and tonight's dinner
Jeff has been working some strange hours and I've been pretty tired by the time I get home, so we have either had leftovers, gone out for Valentine's Day, or gone out to grab a quick bite. For a quick bite, I like to go to Panera because they have a lot of pretty healthy foods and I can pick and choose what I do and don't want to eat to a point.
I didn't take a picture of tonight's dinner. We had turkey breast and I had mashed/smashed sweet potatoes and Jeff had mashed regular potatoes. The sweet potatoes were good, but I didn't cook them enough! They still were good.
I used for the sweet potatoes:
2 cut up and boiled sweet potatoes, 1 tsp of pure maple syrup, and about 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, as well as a splash of soymilk.
The turkey breast was seasoned with 2 tbsp of olive oil, 1 tsp of rosemary, 1 tsp of basil, 1 tsp of thyme, 1 tsp of sea salt, and 1 tsp of black pepper. I mixed them together and rubbed them on top of the skin and under the skin and then baked. It was very good!
We were missing some sort of gravy. We need to learn how to make our own because we used to use the powder gravy in the packets.
Overall, it was decent. It felt great to cook tonight.
Jeff made the menu this week and it was just too much of the same (for example chicken tacos and Mexican chicken wraps. We made the tacos but not the wraps because we weren't in the mood for it after having tacos. He loves mexican food... I don't). Next time we will make the menu together. There are a few recipes from the Eat Clean books that we got that I really have been wanting to try.
Tomorrow we are having soup my grandparents homemade. They have a tradition that every winter, when it snows a measurable snow for the first time they spend the day making homemade vegetable beef soup. It is so good! I am sure it isn't 100% clean, but I'm not asking because it is just too good! There is a lot of natural ingredients in it, so I will be a happy camper. YUM! I can't wait! Maybe we will make some bread to go with it. Depends on the time I have in the afternoon tomorrow. I have a half day but it has been so nice that I have been hitting the streets on a few runs.
Come on weekend!
I didn't take a picture of tonight's dinner. We had turkey breast and I had mashed/smashed sweet potatoes and Jeff had mashed regular potatoes. The sweet potatoes were good, but I didn't cook them enough! They still were good.
I used for the sweet potatoes:
2 cut up and boiled sweet potatoes, 1 tsp of pure maple syrup, and about 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, as well as a splash of soymilk.
The turkey breast was seasoned with 2 tbsp of olive oil, 1 tsp of rosemary, 1 tsp of basil, 1 tsp of thyme, 1 tsp of sea salt, and 1 tsp of black pepper. I mixed them together and rubbed them on top of the skin and under the skin and then baked. It was very good!
We were missing some sort of gravy. We need to learn how to make our own because we used to use the powder gravy in the packets.
Overall, it was decent. It felt great to cook tonight.
Jeff made the menu this week and it was just too much of the same (for example chicken tacos and Mexican chicken wraps. We made the tacos but not the wraps because we weren't in the mood for it after having tacos. He loves mexican food... I don't). Next time we will make the menu together. There are a few recipes from the Eat Clean books that we got that I really have been wanting to try.
Tomorrow we are having soup my grandparents homemade. They have a tradition that every winter, when it snows a measurable snow for the first time they spend the day making homemade vegetable beef soup. It is so good! I am sure it isn't 100% clean, but I'm not asking because it is just too good! There is a lot of natural ingredients in it, so I will be a happy camper. YUM! I can't wait! Maybe we will make some bread to go with it. Depends on the time I have in the afternoon tomorrow. I have a half day but it has been so nice that I have been hitting the streets on a few runs.
Come on weekend!
Thursday, February 10, 2011
A look back at Skillet Chicken Cutlets with Button Mushrooms and Peas
We made this meal last month and made it again today. It was very good! This time we actually followed the recipe and instead of using lemon pepper seasoning, we used lemon juice and salt and pepper. I think I like the lemon pepper seasoning better because I wasn't as thrilled with the lemon juice seasoning the mushrooms, but it wasn't terrible either. Once again we added peas and they were great!
Another note... I lost 8 lbs!!! I had a doctor's appt today to follow up from starting the metformin for my PCOS and the doctor was happy that I lost 8 lbs! I have another at the end of March. I really hope I lost more by then! I do have to say that it wasn't the medication that made me lost the weight. It was the clean eating and the exercising. The meds helped my PCOS symptoms and the amount of insulin my body needs because PCOS makes the body insulin resistant. There is no such thing as a magic pill! Get out there and do the work! :) I hope I keep losing!
Another note... I lost 8 lbs!!! I had a doctor's appt today to follow up from starting the metformin for my PCOS and the doctor was happy that I lost 8 lbs! I have another at the end of March. I really hope I lost more by then! I do have to say that it wasn't the medication that made me lost the weight. It was the clean eating and the exercising. The meds helped my PCOS symptoms and the amount of insulin my body needs because PCOS makes the body insulin resistant. There is no such thing as a magic pill! Get out there and do the work! :) I hope I keep losing!
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