This week I’ve been resorting to fairly easy fix ‘er uppers for dinner, mostly because it seems like time is of the essence lately.  Is there really ever enough time?  Sometimes I have this crazy hope that someday we will be able to freeze time in its tracks, just for a few hours or so to get caught back up.  I could see this being a major problem, but it’s always nice to dream!

The wind has greeted us yet again here in the desert, and when it does it really does!  I think last night we had gusts up to 63 mph and I thought our townhouse was going to break away from the foundation and take us away like the Wizard of Oz. Well, we’re still here safe and sound, but it hasn’t left much by way of bike riding, especially in the afternoons when it really kicks up.  

I tried to get up this morning at 4:15am to ride the trainer, but my body said heck no you crazy person!  So I crawled back into bed guilty with myself and unable to fall back asleep anyways, ugh.  I did manage about 45 min on the trainer this evening with 15 min of abs and stretching while rockin’ out to my Ludacris station on Pandora

It looks like it will be slightly windy again tomorrow morning, but Saturday is looking good!!!  *fingers crossed* I’m keeping my hopes up for 65 miles to try and break in the bike again to see if I can get used to the new positioning. I think I still need to go back and work on some fitting adjustments though.

On to our dinners so far this week . . .

We are loving TJ’s Soyaki marinade for chicken.  It of course isn’t the lowest in sodium, but it sure makes the chicken lip-smacking good!

This time around I sauteed some frozen veggies and microwaved some sweet potatoes to place everything on.  I also had 2 chicken potstickers from TJ’s as well.  This one was done in a flash!

I also added a splash of light soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and pb to the veggies.

Even though it was windy, the temperature wasn’t too bad, so Chris and I decided to eat outside.

mmm potstickers

Next up on the easy dinner line-up this week was spruced up Annie’s Mac.  Love this stuff!

This time around the sauce included:

• cheese pack in box
• 1/4 cup NF Wallaby plain yogurt
• 1/3 cup NF milk
• 2 light garlic and herb Laughing Cow
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• garlic powder, TJ’s 21-seasoning salute + pinch of cayenne

I also sauteed up 8 oz of criminis + 2 zucchini and tossed that in with the mix.  Yum!  I’ve made several more spruced up Annie’s because it’s pretty darn easy.

And some baked kale chips on the side for crunch.

Sprinkled with a bit of olive oil, kosher salt, garlic powder and parmesan cheese.

~~~~

I won a Kleen Kanteen from Gelareh’s giveaway and I’m super excited to try it out!  It looks very sturdy and well made, plus they come in a variety of colors, sizes and tops.  Here are some other great things about Kleen Kanteen:

Toxin-free materials
100% stainless environment
Fair labor standards
Refill, reuse, reduce
Eco-friendly & Recycleable
BPA Free Caps

As many of you know Gelareh also raised a great amount of money to benefit the MS Society, while training for the MS-150, and I wanted to share some information about MS with you.

Here are some facts about MS:

• MS is usually diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with a risk in the general population of approximately 1/750.
• Two hundred people are diagnosed with MS every week and more than 2.5 million people are living with this disease worldwide.
• Like other autoimmune diseases, MS is more common in women than men.
• The most common symptoms associated with MS include visual disturbances, balance and walking difficulties, debilitating fatigue, weakness, numbness, and bladder dysfunction.
• While there is currently no cure for MS, there is a great deal a person can do to manage the disease and maintain their quality of life. The best place to start is with reliable information about MS.

Thanks Gelareh!  And I’m wishing you a safe knee procedure tomorrow and a super speedy recovery

Well, that’s about it my lovely readers, I can’t believe tomorrow is Friday, whaaa?  I’ve been craving fro yo something fierce so that just may be on the agenda for tonight

What’s your easy din din option?

This week I didn’t do too well in the planning dinner department.  Well, I did plan it out, but I didn’t account for somehow not having enough leftovers for us to have the next night, oops!  So I had to figure out some quick, easy and cheap dinner ideas which included

Roasted Tomato Panzanella Salad

Serves:  6

• 16 oz cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 loaf TJ’s roasted garlic ciabatta or any of your favorite bread, cubed
• 2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 package of prosciutto, chopped (about 1.5 oz, optional)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1.5 tbsp white balsamic vinegar (we like our dressings with more vinegar)
• 1 tsp of honey
• sprinkling of grated parmesan cheese
• pepper to taste

Simply saute the cherry tomatoes in a large pan until slightly charred on the outside (you could also bake them at 400 F).  Place them in a strainer and squeeze out all the juice into a bowl.  Saute the cubed bread in a little olive oil until crispy (you could also bake these too)

While the tomatoes are straining, saute the prosciutto in a pan until crispy and add to a large bowl, along with the bread, romaine, carrots, and chickpeas.

Once all the juice has been drained, add the olive oil, vinegar and honey to the juice and stir.  Add the vinaigrette to the salad bowl, stir and sprinkle with parmesan.  Easy!!  We also had a little grilled cheese along side with the roasted garlic ciabatta used for the croutons.

This one we did have some ready for lunch leftovers.  I always try to assemble leftovers for lunch the next day while making dinner because it makes it so much easier to have it ready to go!

The next quick recipe for the week . . .

Omelets

I’m a huge fan of eggs for a quick and satisfying meal.  These ones we made individually, but the ratio is usually always the same and you can add pretty much anything you like!

For mine:

• 2 eggs + 1/4 cup egg whites, whisked together
• sprinkling of dried oregano (we love this with eggs!)
• 1/2 cup sauteed veggies (I had mushrooms, zucchini, leftover prosciutto, tofu and spinach)
• 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 sliced avocado

Place eggs in a heated saute pan and immediately start shaking the pan back and forth in quick movements horizontally over the burner until slightly set.  This technique makes the eggs nice, fluffy and tender.

Once it’s slightly set you can add the oregano and fillings; fold two sides over gently and cook until fully set.  Top with cheese and avocado.  Yum!

And last but not least . . .

Salmon Salad

Because I don’t tend to get enough fresh salmon in my diet, I love to use canned salmon as a great alternative.  It also is a good source of calcium because it contains the bones (don’t worry they are super tender and can’t be noticed).  This recipe is also very versatile and can be adjusted by ingredients you have on hand.

I like to use TJ’s canned red salmon which is also wild.

• 2 cans wild salmon
• 2 light garlic and herb laughing cow cheeses
• 1/3 cup NF greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup grapes, chopped
• 1/2  red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• few good glugs of rice wine vinegar or lemon juice
• I also added mrs. dash garlic and herb

I chopped up some romaine and topped it with whole wheat cous cous, chopped pistachios and dried cranberries and then I topped that with a dollop of the salmon salad.  Refreshing and packed with protein!

You can check out my other version of Persimmon Pistachio Salmon Salad too

It can be tough juggling everything and still get a meal on the table, so these recipes are pretty quick and fairly easy to do.  I hope you enjoy them as is or you can make adjustments to your liking!

Boy, is anyone else glad it’s Friday tomorrow??

I am!  6am spin in the morning woo-hoo!

Usually in my meal planning I like to include an easy prep meal that I can fall back on if something comes up during the week, or if I get home later and just don’t feel like putting something together.

Well, it was one of those days yesterday and I love having something for plan B that is simple, healthy and filling!

It has finally started to cool down somewhat here, well, it’s still in the 70s during the day which is like summer for many of you.  I am enjoying being able to open the windows and having a considerably lower power bill.  Another great thing about the cool down that I absolutely adore is starting to make more soups and casseroles again!!!!  Yay!  I think those are my favorites to make because they are so easy and can be adjusted based on what ingredients are on hand.

On to the easiest recipe in the world. . .

• TJ’s Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup (I get the low-sodium version)
• 1/2 box low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 cups frozen veggies and big handfuls of torn spinach
• 1 cup grilled balsamic-marinated chicken or you could sub chickpeas/beans
• Various spices, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, cinnamon (gives it some warmth)
• 2 cups cooked pasta, or some rice, quinoa, etc.

In a pot place all the ingredients and warm to your liking.

These are also great if you don’t have fresh basil on hand.  It’s not as flavorful as fresh, but it works.  I used about 8 cubes for the soup.

That’s it!  I like to serve it with a nice grilled cheese or cheesy naan for dipping (fontina with oregano).  I am addicted to naan with pretty much anything at the moment.

What’s the easiest back up meal you like to make?

This week was certainly not my best as far as fitness goes.  So far I haven’t made it to the gym this week!  I think all the studying/working and fitting in the fun last weekend with lack of sleep really started to get to me.  I think it was Tuesday when I started to feel like ick and my body was definitely trying to tell me something.  After having to get up for work at 4:30 that day, I came home, took an hour long nap, ate dinner and then went to bed for a total of 10 hours!  This is totally not like me.  If I take a nap after 3pm I usually can’t sleep at night.  I think I’m just running myself down right now and really need to take it easy somehow.  It was really weird, I felt nauseous tired and my muscles didn’t want to work.  Has anyone else had this feeling?

I loved college because at least when we stayed up late studying and working (and occasionally a fun time?), we got to sleep in to at least 7 or 8am.  I’ve been taking my daily vitamin as an insurance policy right now, especially with the season of germs starting and going out to the middle schools (germ factories) now.  My iron levels are normal since last visit, so I don’t know what’s my deal.  Ah well, hopefully the funk will pass and sleep will miraculously just not be needed.  I think that would be wonderful if I didn’t have to sleep because so many things could be accomplished in those 5-7 hours!

I am looking forward to the month of October though because my hours are being cut back.  It’s just for one month based on my contract position which is kind of weird.  This really isn’t a good thing as far as the paycheck goes, but I think it will be nice to have a tiny bit of extra time.  It seems right now my time is worth more than what I’m getting paid.  Unfortunately, I think I will have to request less hours with my next contract.  Just for me, I don’t think I can do this and work on my thesis and research.  Half the time I’ll be working on something only to look down and see that it’s already 11pm and wonder where the heck the time went and why didn’t I accomplish more?

Anywho, I turned in my first very rough draft outline to my chair today and hopefully we can get my committee formed!  I’m excited, yet nervous!

This weekend doesn’t look as exciting as last   I’m going to try to at least get a bike ride in on Saturday morning and then I’m not sure if Chris has any plans Saturday night for our 3-year anniversary (the non-wedding type)?  I told him we don’t have to do anything, especially since we splurged on dinner and the concert last weekend.  Sunday will be reserved for lots of school stuff!

Lately, I’ve been going for easy dinners   Tonight we had some good ol’ sloppy joe’s!  Kind of reminds me of childhood when my mom would use that packet or canned stuff.  As I got older, I really didn’t like those pre-prepared packages, and making sloppy joe’s from scratch isn’t too bad.

I adapted the recipe only slightly from the blog Pinch My Salt.  This blog has some great photography and recipes

Sloppy Joes

• 1 onion, diced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, pressed
• 1 T. Olive Oil
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 t. chili powder
• 1.5 t. ground cumin
• 1/8 t. cinnamon (this is so good!)
• 1/8 t. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 t. kosher salt
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1/4 cup fruity balsamic vinegar
• 1 T. brown sugar
• 1/3 C. ketchup
• 1/2-3/4 C. water

Sauté onions, peppers and garlic in olive oil until softened; add beef and cook until browned.

Make a circle in the middle of the pan, add tomato paste and balsamic vinegar and cook down for 10 minutes.

Add all other ingredients to the ground beef mixture and cook, stirring, over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes).  Add more water if it gets too thick.

Serve in whole wheat buns and get messy!

I like to serve a big salad along side.  This time mine had goat cheese, cranberries, heirloom mater and carrots.

Also topped it with some gooey cheese . . .

What’s a food you remember from childhood?  What do you do when you get in a funk?

Have a great weekend!

Yay for Wednesday!  I hope all your weeks are going well.  Last night I was determined to be efficient with my limited time.  I was thinking about stopping at the Whole Foods on the way home, since I was missing a few ingredients for dinner, but I knew that would just be danger.  I try to make only one or two grocery-related stops per week, otherwise if I just stop to pick up one thing I tend to walk out with the entire store!  I like to peruse the aisles, finding any cool thing to try and discover.  Any one else like that?  Plus it’s a big waste of time, so I decided to fight the urge to stop and improvise with what I had at home.  But, somehow I still managed to go to the store, you’ll see (I mean read).

I decided to make lettuce boats sometime this week and last night was perfect because they are really pretty quick.  I also killed two birds with one stone and prepped veggies for the peanut butter noodles I plan on making for Thursday.  I think this is really what I need to do from now on.  I need to prep on the weekends with the little spare time I have (ha!) so that dinner during the week isn’t so laborious and time consuming.  Cooking is supposed to be fun, right?  I love cooking because it is like an outlet for me and I enjoy the time and every sensory aspect of it, but it is just not as feasible now.  Plus, Chris is also working full-time and taking classes at night so while he’s getting ready for class, I’m left prepping and cleaning up.  Even though he is a good helper when he has time

Another great and quick dinner is Annie’s Mac and Cheese, but I always have to ‘spruce up Annie’ with a little extra ingredients like veggies, tofu, mushrooms, yogurt and cheese.  This time I just threw in random leftovers we had in the fridge, easy and yummy!

Here’s the lettuce boats, don’t you love the ancient plates   Hey, they work, right?

Yum!  They turned out really good and refreshing.  Here are the lettuce boats   I also like to pair them with some soba noodles.

Before I left from work around 4pm I had a snack of greek yogurt, cereal and cantaloupe, because this helps me from getting too hungry for dinner.  If I get too hungry I tend to raid the kitchen like a crazy person.  Usually I just much on baby carrots while I make dinner and that works.  I also felt pretty full from dinner, but for some reason I was still craving something after dinner!  Oh no, the munchies were attacking!  Okay plan B.  When this happens I try to go for a walk or go upstairs to work on things to take my mind off of it.  I did the above and usually that works, but last night I was really craving some fro yo!

The urge would not leave me (Chris was also not helping) and so I decided to fuel our cravings and went to a nearby Fresh & Easy to get something cold and creamy.  I normally don’t shop here exclusively, but boy this store is dangerous and has really good prices.  I went in for some frozen yogurt and came out with cereal, fig bars and pb pretzels too, geez!  All for only $10, though.  I can’t be controlled in any grocery situation   Every grocery store should come with a warning:  CAUTION! you WILL buy more than you really need.

I had a bowl of 1/2 fat vanilla bean and a crumbling of 1/2 leftover banana muffin on top  mmmm . . . but then I proceeded to grab a handful of popcorn and pb pretzels to try!  And that was it, the munchies were defeated, well sort of.

I am sooo looking forward to the weekend and the GREEK FOOD FESTIVAL!!!!!!!!!!!! We absolutely love this every year and the food is well, phenomenal.  We may also be going to a pink martini concert on Sunday night (this group is really awesome), but I really have to study, research, get ready for a project and an exam on Monday eek!

What do you do to battle an attack of the munchies?

I love annie’s mac and cheese, but I always like to add a little bit more to it and spruce it up.  I like things with contrasting flavors, colors, textures, so just having a plain bowl of mac and cheese just doesn’t do it for me.  I want more adventure!  So I like to add just a few things to change it up a bit.  When I make popcorn, I have to mix some cereal or chocolate chips in it because I can’t have just popcorn.  When I eat cereal I have to have about 4 different kinds all mixed in, because I can’t just eat one kind. So weird!

Usually I make things from scratch and always despise making things out of a box or freezer bag.  My dear mother used to love making those hamburger and tuna helpers, and I absolutely despised it as I got older!  She always tried to fit in in there somewhere.  Maybe that is where I get my culinary inspiration from?  No one in my immediate family enjoys cooking that much, except my great grandmother (she passed away when I was 3, so sad we didn’t get to cook together) and grandmother on my mom’s side.  Isn’t that funny?

But, oh when i was younger my grandma used to make me Velveeta brand mac and cheese, and oh how I loved the salty, creamy goodness of it!  She probably put extra butter in it too, oh grandma and her butter.  She would make me peaches and cream too with the real stuff, yes whole milk, chopped peaches and sugar!  It was so good though.  I used to also love those Little  Debbie nutty bars.  I think I’ve had a love affair with peanut butter from birth!  It’s crazy the junk food kids love and are attracted to these days with great media tactics.

Here are some previous attempts at sprucing up Annie:

Tonight here’s what I came up with:

I added chopped shallot, garlic, a few mushrooms, leftover corn, 1 zucchini, 1/2 bell pepper, 1 small head broccoli and tofu and sautéed it until golden.  I also like to add about 1/4 cup each of non-fat milk and greek yogurt to it for its tang and creaminess, along with herbed goat cheese, a little fontina (leftovers from the peppers), parmesan and all-purpose seasoning.  It was delish!  Next time I think I’m going to add some chipotle chilis in adobo and black beans for a Mexican twist?  Or caprese mac and cheese?  mmm . . . endless possibilities!

Mac and Cheese tower . . .

Brought me back to my childhood

What are some nostalgic childhood junk food memories you have that you wouldn’t think of eating today?  I’d love to hear them!

We found out that we won’t be able to close until next week sometime because there are 25 people ahead of us waiting to close at our title company and they are slammed.  And I thought people weren’t buying houses right now?  Even though we will be pushed back a bit, we still can spend time doing lots of packing this weekend.  Ugh!

I also made a quick and easy dinner since C has class tonight.  Basically it’s a couscous pre-mix doctored up with some sautéed tofu, mushrooms and broccoli.  So easy!

But for starters I had some home-made Italian-style hummus with a can of drained chickpeas, 2 garlic cloves, 1 roasted red pepper, handful of basil, 1/4 cup parmesan and 2 tbsp pine nuts along side some whole-wheat naan from Trader Joe’s for dipping!  I saw this naan in the store when I was shopping today and thought . . . I want to make some hummus!

I can’t wait to try all their naan flavors, and they even have some in the frozen section, which would be conducive to less spoilage and a better texture believe it or not.  I usually freeze all my fresh breads and cakes before frosting because they don’t dry out that way.  I loved this stuff!  It has a wonderfully moist texture and is the perfect accompaniment to hummus.

The whole wheat also has 8g of fiber per serving!  I want to try this for a quick pizza base too.  Yum!

On to the main course . . .

• 1 box of pre-mix whole-wheat couscous with pumpkin and red pepper (Sofella brand from Costco) cooked according to the package, with just water
• 3 stalks broccoli, chopped
• 1/2 carton crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 2 blocks TJ’s Teriyaki flavored tofu, cubed
• splash of rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Cook the couscous according to the package directions (I used the pumpkin with red pepper flavor not the one to the left), omitting the oil.  Gently steam the broccoli until al dente; drain and rinse with cold water to preserve the green color.  Sauté the mushrooms and tofu in a large pan with a little olive oil until golden.  Add the broccoli and continue to cook to char it up a bit.  Turn off the heat.  Splash a couple glugs of vinegar, with the hoisin and sesame oil and mix everything up.  Serve along side the couscous or mix it all together.  Yum!

I made this bowl at one of those pottery places awhile ago and it has a sunflower in the middle at the bottom.  I Love cute eating-ware because it makes eating such an even better experience!

Any fun weekend plans?

Happy Weekend!  The new demo site for eatingRD is up and running!  It will just give a little preview of what I’m piloting for a new business endeavor.  It’s still being tweaked and adjusted and there are still many things we need to add, so that is why I am asking for all your comments and feedback.  You all have such great ideas and insight and I would love to hear from you, good or bad, about what you think.

Here is the link!  There is a short survey you can take that will give us some insight as to what you think of the new site, your impressions and expectations of RDs and a business like this, and ways you think it can be improved.

Five entries will be chosen at random to win a 1GB flash drive from newegg.com.  Here’s an example one at the left.

Now on to dinner! . . .

This is definitely my favorite go-to dish because it’s pretty easy to make and it was the first recipe I ever got comfortable with.  It’s such a great feeling when you are in the kitchen and can just grab ingredients ‘a little bit here, a dash of that’ and it turns out well!  That’s what makes cooking so much fun, even if it doesn’t always turn out.  It’s a big experiment!  Go ahead and try it with different types of sausage (lower fat of course) and pasta to make it your own. I have made it for several family and friends, who always request me to make it, and it’s great for a casual yet elegant dinner party.  It always seems to disappear too fast!  This dish is great for leftovers, and I am all about the leftovers! They can be a great way to stretch food dollars.

Broccoli Sausage Pasta

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• Freshly ground pepper or Mrs. Dash seasoning
• 2-3 heads broccoli, trimmed and washed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
• 5 links turkey or chicken sausage (lower fat), casing removed
• 1 1/2 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth whisked with 1 1/2 tbsp flour and 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 12 oz of your favorite pasta, such as campanelle or farfalle
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan/Romano cheese, plus more for sprinkling

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and shallots; cook until just golden. Add sausage; sauté, breaking up with the back of a spoon, until cooked through and forms crumbly bits on the bottom of the pan. Add broth mixture and scrape bits off bottom of pan. Cook until heated through, thickened and reduced down a bit, about 10-12 minutes.
2. While that is reducing, add pasta to large pot of boiling water; cook according to package directions until al dente. Add broccoli florets, in the last 3-4 minutes of cooking.  Drain together.
3. Add pasta and broccoli to skillet or large pot; toss everything to combine. Season with black pepper and/or Mrs. Dash, and crushed red pepper. Sprinkle with cheese; toss to combine and serve!

You can increase the amount of veggies by sautéing mushrooms and zucchini with the sausage too. I also recommend serving it with a nice piece of crusty bread and a fruity balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Yum!

Along with the pasta we tried a new Chardonnay that turned out to be great!  This is the perfect malolactic – type chard if you have never experienced it before.  I would highly recommend it.  It was so full and buttery, and yet still crisp and refreshing.  The sausage I used in the pasta was slightly spicy, and this chard stood up to it well and enveloped the spice in its buttery goodness.  There were notes of melon and nectarine with a slight citrus-y brightness.  It was pretty reasonable too at $12, you should try it!

After dinner, we cuddled up (well, my guy fell asleep!) and watched Twilight.

I’m still trying to find the time to get through the book portion!

This weekend I am planning on making a batch of granola bars (I tried them with 2 egg whites and less oil and they turned out good!) and Oatmeal Triangles with a new product from TJ’s to last for the week, along with a little bit of prepping of recipes to come . . . I see a twist on lasagna maybe?  Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

How do you find time to make your meals?  Do you prep before hand or put it all together the same day?  Or rely on other quick methods?

Some days I wish I could just freeze time, or at least start dinner around 3 so I can have fun and mess around in the kitchen . . . yea right!  Since Chris gets home so late from work and class, I wanted to whip something up pretty quickly when I got home.  My soon to be mother-in-law gave us a couple boxes of flavored rice and I wanted to try them out.  This one is basmati rice with green lentils and it was really good, without any artificial ingredients, just the basics.  The other one I tried was couscous with pumpkin and red pepper and I think I like that one even better.  I also added some sautéed tofu (teriyaki flavor from Tj’s), leeks and garbanzo beans.  Leeks have such an interesting flavor and it’s one of my favorite aromatics.  It’s not too hard to prep either, you just have to make sure to clean and rinse out the grit pretty well between the layers before chopping.

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On the side I had my staple salad that I like to have with almost anything!  Crispy romaine, champagne pear vinaigrette (from Tj’s), various chopped veggies, herbed goat cheese and some dried fruit.

I’m saving the last of our roasty walnuts for another recipe to be featured in a bit!  Along with the salad I had some steamed broccoli.  I haven’t had broccoli in awhile and it was so yummy, just plain and steamed.  This dinner was very satisfying even without the ‘meat,’ but I still wanted a little sumthin’ sumthin’ afterwards.  I decided on some cuties and a small handful of grapes.  These are so filling because of their water content and fiber.  Boy, I’m pleasantly full!  Hope you had a wonderful dinner!

After getting home a little later than usual, I decided to make something that is really quick and easy, but still very filling and comforting.   I would have to say that pasta is absolutely one of my favorite things (among many others), especially good ol’ Italian food.  There is just nothing like it in my opinion.

Here are the steps, so easy!

1. First I boiled some leftover pasta (which I always have somewhere)
2. Sauté various veggies in a pan with a little olive oil, mrs. dash or any of your favorite Italian seasonings.  You can also add some chicken sausage in there too, but I didn’t have any on hand.
3. Warm up some marinara sauce (I had some leftover homemade sauce in the freezer)
4. Then assemble to your liking:  I placed about 1 cup pasta on the bottom (I was hungry!), 2/3 cup sauce, a big scoop of veggies (more the better), 1/3 cup of fontina and mozzarella cheese, sprinkling of parmesan.
5. Place under a pre-heated broiler and broil till golden brown and bubbly!  Sprinkle some fresh basil on top.  So yummy and so easy!

After visiting with my grandma, who is in town from NC, I was still kind of hungry (gasp!)  So I had a small bowl of cereal with chocolate almond milk and a few grapes.  I know it sounds weird, but the chocolate almond milk from Almond Breeze is soo good!  Now I’ll have plenty of energy stores for spin tomorrow at 6am.  Wish me and my bum good luck