The weekend!

This weekend FLEW by... but I guess they always do! So my eats for Saturday...

Breakfast: Quinoa with black beans, corn, and cilantro. I tried to make oatmeal, but it didn't work out. Oh, and a coffee.

Lunch: Quesadilla with goat cheese, roasted red pepper, mixed greens, and chicken. SO GOOD! Also 2 small artichokes, and creamy balsamic dressing to dip.

Molly had some chicken broth. Can you tell that she liked it???

Dinner: I was feeling better, so Walter and I went out to dinner. Since I've been on a sodium kick, i suggested we try a new place I've heard about called Magic Grill. Its a Chinese/stir fry place. I like to call it the "Stir Crazy" of NJ!! We started off with soup, each had a dumpling, and then went up to the "buffet" to make our own stir fry. First we got to pick our meat, which was thinly sliced and frozen in three separate tubs: one each for chicken, steak, and pork. I chose steak. Then we added lo mein noodles (the only choice), and loaded up on veggies! I basically took some of everything except pineapple and tofu. We then got to choose our sauce. We had 4 choices: Mild: sour or sweet; Hot: sour or sweet. I blended mild and hot sour, and Walter went for the sweet blend. We then had to add a ladle of wine, and one of sesame oil, and then someone stir fried it for us.


I wish i took a photo of the dish, because it looked a lot better then it tasted. Don't get me wrong, it was good, but it kind of tasted like regular lo mein. The meat was awful, so i skipped that. Walter went back for seconds, and i couldn't even finish my one bowl I was so full. In conclusion: Watch out Stir Crazy, I'm coming for you next visit!


Today Walter and I made a healthy omelet for breakfast with peppers, onions, cilantro, and shredded cheese. I had that with a slice of rye toast with margarine and jam, and a coffee.
Snack: multi grain chips and hummus (this HAS to stop)
Late Lunch: The rest of the artichokes with balsamic dressing to dip.


I also made turkey chili today, and it came out spicy! I used some chili seasoning we bought in Austin, and it has a kick. I will probably have some for dinner, but i already packed some for lunch tomorrow.


I hope I haven't sabotaged myself with the dinner, and all the chips and hummus I've had this weekend. Even if I didn't loose much weight this week, I know I have started to change my eating habits for the better. Before this week, I went out to lunch EVERY DAY, and didn't eat healthy. This week, I am going to think of some new goals to add to my weight loss journey!

Oatmeal... Part 2

So Walter has been trying to get me to try his plain oatmeal that he eats every morning for breakfast. After much procrastinating and "forgetting" to bring it to work, I finally gave in and tried it this morning. I made it in the work microwave (it didn't explode, which was a good thing!), dumped 2 splendas in, and tried a bite...

and it was good! (I think the 2 splendas helped!) I can totally see myself eating this every morning and actually enjoying it. I tried to add some cinnamon to a bite, and I was not a fan. The good news is, its healthier and cheaper then most other oatmeals out there. I was thinking of toppings i could add (fresh berries were all I could come up with so far). Any ideas? 

Snack: 1/2 a Kashi Go Lean Bar

Lunch: Some of the Quinoa with Black Beans, Corn, and Cilantro that I made last night, and some hummus with multigrain chips and red peppers.

Snack #2: Coffee and the other half of the Kashi Bar

Dinner: A can of Italian wedding soup with a slice of provolone cheese melted in, and 2 of the mini artichokes I made (one with stuffing, one without). They were SO GOOD! 

Walter was nice enough to make this for me because I still don't feel good. He brought my dinner AND Molly's dinner right up to us 2 sick girls!

I also drank my 64 oz of water (crystal light iced tea, if we need to get technical), and had no soda! Now only if I could get to the gym....


Awwww look! Molly is helping me write this blog as we speak!

She is too cutie. Annnnnnnd now she's sleeping... it must've been all that typing she did!

I think I am going to follow Molly's lead and get some rest. Night all!

A Cook?

SO... I am a cook! Or at least I am trying to be one... After work today I got busy cooking 2 meals i wanted to use for upcoming lunches and dinners. 


But first... LUNCH! For lunch, i went out with a co-worker (their treat!), and I had sushi. I had a spicy tuna roll, a tuna avocado roll, a small salad, and wonton/egg drop soup. (It was between this and pizza, and i thought this was a better option). For a snack, I had a coffee. 


Now onto dinner...
First I made mini stuffed artichokes in the pressure cooker. 

Pressure cookers are a-ma-zing! It cut my cooking time from over 2 hours to 18 minutes, and they tasted awesome!

Next up was Quinoa with Black Beans, Corn and Cilantro:

I combined 2 recipes from Epicurious and AllRecipies and came up with the below:

Quinoa with Black Beans, Corn, and Cilantro
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups chopped white onions

3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup quinoa, rinsed, drained
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste
11/2 cups water
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed, drained

1 15-ounce can corn, rinsed, drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
Crumbled Cotija cheese or feta cheese (optional)

Heat oil in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions, garlic, and red pepper; sauté until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in next 4 ingredients. Add water; bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until quinoa is almost tender, about 14 minutes. Add beans, corn, and 1/4 cup cilantro; cook uncovered until heated through and liquid is fully absorbed, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cilantro and cheese, if desired.

Both recipes had great reviews, and this was easy to make and tasted great! I would probably add more chili powder next time, or even some hot sauce for a kick. 

And below is what I ate for dinner:

I know these 2 meals don't "go" together, but I wanted to try both while they were still hot and fresh. They were both awesome! Now I have to figure out what to cook next...