The Duvall's
The Spain's
The Vaughn's
Amber & Me
"I am excited about what the future holds!" - Lindsey Vaughn, MSW (I have been wanting to sign that!ha - nerd)
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
UTA Graduate
May 14th we had a great time with ALL of my AWESOME family members. Graduation was held in Texas Hall at University of Texas, Arlington. It was a nice, simple ceremony. Besides the terrible weather that day I could not have asked for a better and more exciting day. After graduation we had a little party at Cantina Laredo(YUM)! Thank you to all my family who traveled near and far to come celebrate this fun day with Bryan and I. We love you and are so grateful for a wonderful and supportive family.
The Duvall's
The Spain's
The Vaughn's
Amber & Me
"I am excited about what the future holds!" - Lindsey Vaughn, MSW (I have been wanting to sign that!ha - nerd)
The Duvall's
The Spain's
The Vaughn's
Amber & Me
"I am excited about what the future holds!" - Lindsey Vaughn, MSW (I have been wanting to sign that!ha - nerd)
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
The Times are Changing!
Holy Cow. First off I have to admit about 3 maybe 2 years ago I didn't touch vegetables. Yes, I would eat green beans, and yummy potatoes, but that was about the extent of it. I would not touch corn and you were definitely not going to get me to eat zucchini, squash, onions or carrots. I was not going to do it. Well I am proud to admit that I have grown up a whole lot. I really do believe my mom now...She always used to say that her taste buds changed as she got older and now I believe that is a definite fact! What's funny, is that there are a few vegetables (mushrooms) that Bryan doesn't like and I have found creative ways to get them in our food without him knowing! Sheesh - so I went from not touching vegetables to now hiding them in our food so we are getting all our servings of vegetables! My my how the times have changed.
So enough talk - Who's ready for dinner?!
Lindsey's Lettuce Wraps & Quinoa :)
Ingredients:
Bib Lettuce
1/2 lbs Ground Turkey
Several whole fresh Mushrooms
Handful or 2 Baby Carrots
1 small can of Water Chestnuts
Low Sodium Soy Sauce
Hoisin Sauce (you can find this and water chestnuts in the Asian food section of your grocery store)
Directions:
Lindsey's Lettuce Wraps
Cook ground turkey on stove, while turkey is cooking you will want to get your other ingredients ready. Mushrooms, carrots and water chestnuts all need to be chopped in a food processor or food chopper. I chop each ingredient separately. Now here is where the trick comes in! (You want the mushrooms and carrots chopped really really really GOOOD!! Once ground turkey is completely cooked, mix in chopped mushrooms, chopped carrots and chopped water chestnuts. (So when all these yummy chopped vegetables are mixed in with the ground turkey - one should never know they are eating so many servings of vegetables - yes, the carrot color might give it away, but just say it is a spice if you have to! Moving on..So now you have all the vegetables and ground turkey mixed together and you will want to use about a 1/4 of a cup of hoisin sauce. Mix sauce with turkey and other ingredients. Then add soy sauce, 1/4 cup. I absolutely LOVE soy sauce - so I don't think you can ever not have enough. So really just add the hoisin and soy sauce to your liking. Start small, sample it and add more if needed. FYI: the hoisin sauce will go a long way, so you will not need a lot. Next, clean your lettuce and serve.
A good little side with the lettuce wraps is Quinoa. Cook based on directions on bag :) I also mixed soy sauce in with the Quinoa, because it is pretty bland by itself. But let me tell you it is a great source of protein!
So enough talk - Who's ready for dinner?!
Lindsey's Lettuce Wraps & Quinoa :)
Ingredients:
Bib Lettuce
1/2 lbs Ground Turkey
Several whole fresh Mushrooms
Handful or 2 Baby Carrots
1 small can of Water Chestnuts
Low Sodium Soy Sauce
Hoisin Sauce (you can find this and water chestnuts in the Asian food section of your grocery store)
Directions:
Lindsey's Lettuce Wraps
Cook ground turkey on stove, while turkey is cooking you will want to get your other ingredients ready. Mushrooms, carrots and water chestnuts all need to be chopped in a food processor or food chopper. I chop each ingredient separately. Now here is where the trick comes in! (You want the mushrooms and carrots chopped really really really GOOOD!! Once ground turkey is completely cooked, mix in chopped mushrooms, chopped carrots and chopped water chestnuts. (So when all these yummy chopped vegetables are mixed in with the ground turkey - one should never know they are eating so many servings of vegetables - yes, the carrot color might give it away, but just say it is a spice if you have to! Moving on..So now you have all the vegetables and ground turkey mixed together and you will want to use about a 1/4 of a cup of hoisin sauce. Mix sauce with turkey and other ingredients. Then add soy sauce, 1/4 cup. I absolutely LOVE soy sauce - so I don't think you can ever not have enough. So really just add the hoisin and soy sauce to your liking. Start small, sample it and add more if needed. FYI: the hoisin sauce will go a long way, so you will not need a lot. Next, clean your lettuce and serve.
A good little side with the lettuce wraps is Quinoa. Cook based on directions on bag :) I also mixed soy sauce in with the Quinoa, because it is pretty bland by itself. But let me tell you it is a great source of protein!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Are you ready for this???
Here is another great flavorful recipe for you. (Side note: spices, herbs, seasonings are what it is about..When making healthy meals you can cut fat and extra calories without lacking flavor..if using those items.)
Margarita Grilled Chicken, Fiesta Rice & Black Beans
Ingredients:
Chicken
Tequila Lime marinade
1 can of Black Beans
Brown Rice - We tried the minute brown rice "ready to serve" - already in individual servings
1/2 can of Rotel Tomatoes
Cilantro
First I marinaded the chicken all day. We enjoy grilling the chicken. Gives it a great flavor! OK. So you have your chickens grilled now you must get the rest of the meal prepared.
Black Beans
Warm them up! Ready to serve.
Rice
So considering I went the easy way - all you have to do with these individual rice cups is put them in the microwave. After the rice was heated I mixed the majority of the Rotel tomatoes into the rice. (Save a little bit of the Rotel for the chicken) Finely chop cilantro and mix into rice. The Rotel and Cilantro gives great flavor and zest to your boring rice.
Lastly - plate your food and top the chicken with Rotel tomatoes and Cilantro.
Eat it up!
haha.. - please disregard my chipped plate! nice Lindsey, real nice!
Margarita Grilled Chicken, Fiesta Rice & Black Beans
Ingredients:
Chicken
Tequila Lime marinade
1 can of Black Beans
Brown Rice - We tried the minute brown rice "ready to serve" - already in individual servings
1/2 can of Rotel Tomatoes
Cilantro
First I marinaded the chicken all day. We enjoy grilling the chicken. Gives it a great flavor! OK. So you have your chickens grilled now you must get the rest of the meal prepared.
Black Beans
Warm them up! Ready to serve.
Rice
So considering I went the easy way - all you have to do with these individual rice cups is put them in the microwave. After the rice was heated I mixed the majority of the Rotel tomatoes into the rice. (Save a little bit of the Rotel for the chicken) Finely chop cilantro and mix into rice. The Rotel and Cilantro gives great flavor and zest to your boring rice.
Lastly - plate your food and top the chicken with Rotel tomatoes and Cilantro.
Eat it up!
haha.. - please disregard my chipped plate! nice Lindsey, real nice!
Monday, May 3, 2010
Go to Meal
There are many nights after a long day at work or a long day of classes that neither Bryan or I want to cook. Sunday or Saturday we always make a schedule of our weekly meals - so it is hard to justify going out to eat when we have all this food at home waiting to be cooked. So, we have a Go To meal. By this I mean, if we have nothing else in the house 9 out of 10 times we will mostly likely have ingredients for Mexican food! It is a staple in our house, 1. because it is so quick and easy to cook, and 2. it is easy to make a few tweaks that make it a healthier meal as well.
Mexican Tacos
Ingredients:
Ground Turkey or Ground Veal - these are much leaner than beef
Old El Paso Taco Seasoning
Tortillas (I opt for Flat Out Wraps b/c I don't feel regular tortillas are worth the extra calories & with the Flat Out Wraps I use one and cut it in half and it makes for 2 soft tacos)
Salsa - always keep this on hand! :)
Fat Free Old El Paso Refried Beans
Chips (remember to look at the serving size - usually 12 chips!)
Yummy Table Side Guacamole for 2 people (this is a great filling food!!)
2 Avocados
1 Sweet Onion
2 Roma Tomatoes
1 Bundle of Cilantro
1 Lime
1 Lemon
Garlic Salt
Taco Directions:
Cook desired meat until done. Add taco seasoning to cooked meat and stir until all meat is covered in seasoning. Heat refried beans in the microwave - takes about 2minutes to get them hot. And then place tortillas of choice in the microwave for 20 seconds. Spread refried beans on tortilla, place meat on top of beans, and cover with salsa. You can always put cheese on these - I usually opt out just to cut the calories. It's your choice though! Enjoy!
Guacamole Directions:
Cut open guacamole and remove avocado from shell. Remove seed and place in a bowl. With a fork mash guacamole. Place onion in food processor until it is sliced into small pieces. You will also want to put the cilantro, and the tomatoes in the food processor as well. Mix everything together in a bowl; avocado, cilantro, tomatoes & onion. Lastly, cut the lemon and limes in half and squeeze the juice into your guacamole and stir. Final touch is to put garlic salt in and mix - probably will take at least 1 tablespoon.
Mexican Tacos
Ingredients:
Ground Turkey or Ground Veal - these are much leaner than beef
Old El Paso Taco Seasoning
Tortillas (I opt for Flat Out Wraps b/c I don't feel regular tortillas are worth the extra calories & with the Flat Out Wraps I use one and cut it in half and it makes for 2 soft tacos)
Salsa - always keep this on hand! :)
Fat Free Old El Paso Refried Beans
Chips (remember to look at the serving size - usually 12 chips!)
Yummy Table Side Guacamole for 2 people (this is a great filling food!!)
2 Avocados
1 Sweet Onion
2 Roma Tomatoes
1 Bundle of Cilantro
1 Lime
1 Lemon
Garlic Salt
Taco Directions:
Cook desired meat until done. Add taco seasoning to cooked meat and stir until all meat is covered in seasoning. Heat refried beans in the microwave - takes about 2minutes to get them hot. And then place tortillas of choice in the microwave for 20 seconds. Spread refried beans on tortilla, place meat on top of beans, and cover with salsa. You can always put cheese on these - I usually opt out just to cut the calories. It's your choice though! Enjoy!
Guacamole Directions:
Cut open guacamole and remove avocado from shell. Remove seed and place in a bowl. With a fork mash guacamole. Place onion in food processor until it is sliced into small pieces. You will also want to put the cilantro, and the tomatoes in the food processor as well. Mix everything together in a bowl; avocado, cilantro, tomatoes & onion. Lastly, cut the lemon and limes in half and squeeze the juice into your guacamole and stir. Final touch is to put garlic salt in and mix - probably will take at least 1 tablespoon.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Recipe Time!!
I thought I would post several blogs this week sharing simple, easy and healthy recipes! If you have any healthy tips, ideas or recipes you would like to share please do!!!
Feta Turkey Burgers & Potato Fries
Ingredients:
1/2lb Lean Ground Turkey
Sandwich Thins (we use these instead of a regular hamburger buns)
Fat Free Feta Cheese
2 potatoes
Oregano
Basil
Garlic Salt
Onion Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Directions:
Turkey Burger -
Combine ground turkey oregano, basil, garlic salt and feta cheese and create into patty. (I don't measure the seasonings, I just add till I think it is good :) These seasonings have a lot of flavor so you do not have to over do it with them. Once patties are ready, place on grill about 20-30 minutes until done.
Potato Fries -
Clean 2 potatoes and cut both potatoes into very thin silvers/slices. When done place all silvers/slices into a bowl and add a small amount of olive oil. Maybe 2 tablespoons of oil. (You will want just enough oil to help all the seasonings stick to the potatoes) Use your hand to mix all ingredients and to make sure potatoes are covered with oil. Next add oregano, basil, garlic salt, and pepper to bowl. Mix all with hand, making sure to coat all the potato slices with seasonings. (I probably used at least 1 to 2 tablespoons of each seasoning) Place aluminum foil on baking sheet and cover with pam. Spread the potatoes out over pan and cook at 400 degrees for 40-50 minutes, or until desired crispiness.
And the finished product
Bon Appetit!!
Feta Turkey Burgers & Potato Fries
Ingredients:
1/2lb Lean Ground Turkey
Sandwich Thins (we use these instead of a regular hamburger buns)
Fat Free Feta Cheese
2 potatoes
Oregano
Basil
Garlic Salt
Onion Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Directions:
Turkey Burger -
Combine ground turkey oregano, basil, garlic salt and feta cheese and create into patty. (I don't measure the seasonings, I just add till I think it is good :) These seasonings have a lot of flavor so you do not have to over do it with them. Once patties are ready, place on grill about 20-30 minutes until done.
Potato Fries -
Clean 2 potatoes and cut both potatoes into very thin silvers/slices. When done place all silvers/slices into a bowl and add a small amount of olive oil. Maybe 2 tablespoons of oil. (You will want just enough oil to help all the seasonings stick to the potatoes) Use your hand to mix all ingredients and to make sure potatoes are covered with oil. Next add oregano, basil, garlic salt, and pepper to bowl. Mix all with hand, making sure to coat all the potato slices with seasonings. (I probably used at least 1 to 2 tablespoons of each seasoning) Place aluminum foil on baking sheet and cover with pam. Spread the potatoes out over pan and cook at 400 degrees for 40-50 minutes, or until desired crispiness.
And the finished product
Bon Appetit!!
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