August 28 - September 4 Weekly Eats

I'm back and trying to get on a schedule! In the past week I have gone to Atlanta for a Pilates Workshop, then to visit my friend Sara in Columbia, SC and then to Santa Rosa Beach, FL for a fun weekend with friends! WHEW.... after all this have a fun Labor Day Weekend planned in NAPA! It is so hard to eat well and chart all of my foods when traveling and this is something that I need to get better at. I also find it hard to drive 5+ hours and find time to unpack and workout. So my workouts have been kind of bad lately. Anyways, hopefully this week will be better and I can keep myself accountable on this next vacation

Sunday:

Travel day back from Santa Rosa Beach, FL

Fruits: 0

Veggies: 2

Workout: 40 minute walk outside and wow it was a beautiful fall-ish feeling evening :)

Monday:

Fruits: 0

Veggies:2

Workout: 40 minute walk outside with Tucher and 55 minute core barre class taught by angel

Tuesday:

Fruits: 1

Veggies: 2

Workout: 55 minute walk outside

Wednesday:

Fruits: 2

Veggies: 4

Workout: 55 minute outside walk with Ryan and 55 minute advanced reformer

Shrimp and Crab Corn Chowder

I am not one that absolutely loves uploading pictures so you know when I immediately get done with dinner and upload one it is because the recipe is that delicious.... This was very refreshing for a different summer meal and I loved the ease of making it. Let me know if you try this dish

Shrimp and Crab Corn Chowder

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light (August 2011)

Ingredients:

6 slices center cut bacon, chopped

1 cup onion, chopped

1/2 cup celery, chopped (about 4-5 celery stalks)

1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

4 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels, thawed

2-3 cups fat free, low sodium vegetable broth

3/4 pound peeled and deveined shrimp

8 oz crab meat (I used claw meat but if you want to pay extra, use lump)

1/3 cup half and half

1/4 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp salt

Directions:

Heat a large dutch oven over med-high heat. Add the bacon and saute for 4 minute or until the bacon is just browning. Then remove a handful of the bacon and set aside to drain. Add the onion, celery, thyme, garlic to the pan and saute for another 2 minutes. Add corn and cook for 2 minutes stirring as needed. Then add the broth (I added closer to 3 because I like it more "soupy" than thick) then bring to a boil and cook for another 4 minutes.

Place 2 cups of the corn mixture in a blender (I used my vitamix). Secure lid on blender and blend until smooth. Return the pureed corn mixture to dutch oven. Stir in the shrimp and crab meat and cook for about 2 minutes until the shrimp are done. Stir in the half and half, pepper, and salt. Crumble the reserved bacon over soup

This makes 4 servings (1 and 2/3 cup per serving) for a total of 294 calories, 7 g fat, 26 grams protein, 34 grams of carb, and 4.3 g fiber

To note: The Cooking Light Recipe did not call for crab meat but I had a friend make it before I did and added the crab. I loved it and would always add the crab from now on!

Weekly Eats August 15 thru August 21

Monday:

Fruits: 2

Veggies: 3

Workout: 40 minute walk (outside and very hilly) around Highland Avenue and 60 minute level 5 reformer

Tuesday:

Fruits: 2 Veggies: 2

Workout: 60 minute YCross Cardio Class

Wednesday:

Fruits: 2, Veggies: 2

Workout: 55 minute core barre class (taught by angel) and 90 minute Bikram Yoga

The "quick add" calories under dinner was my shrimp/crab/corn chowder

Thursday:

Fruits: 3 Veggies: 2

Workout: 90 minutes at Dance Trance

Friday:

Dinner at Rebecca and Scotts

Core Barre workout

Fruits: 3 Veggies: 2

Note that I did not put my food into the program today

Saturday:

Travel day to Atlanta for Pilates Workshop

Normal breakfast, falafel and chickpeas for lunch, amazing French food for dinner and 1 glass of white wine. A little bit of granola to munch on along with an amazing chair class taught by Rachel!!!

Sunday:

Pilates workshop day... amazing mat class taught by Rachel that had me SWEATING! I love PIlates!!! Best sweat is in mat for me:)

Starbucks egg white, spinach, and feta wrap and a coffee with milk and sugar. Lunch was at EL Figo in ATL which was a zucchini, portabella, pesto, and sundried tomato sandwich on ciabbata bread... Snacks included some Trader Joe's blueberries and gorgonzola crackers. Dinner was at Sara's house... Amy's Organic Margheritta Pizza (3 slices)

Weekly Eats August 8 thru August 14

Monday:

Veggies: 4

Fruits: 5

Workout: 55 minute pilates chair and 60 minute dance trance class

Tuesday:

Veggies: 2

Fruits: 4

Workout: 45 minute outside walk

Wednesday:

Veggies: 4

Fruits: 3

Workout: 40 minute advanced mat and 55 minute jumpboard class

Girls night out at Dodiyos (still trying to master not overeating when in a large group or out to dinner!)

Thursday:

Woke up sick... think that I had some food poisoning... today was a minimal eats day with mostly an intake of bland carbs :)

Friday:

Saturday:

4 mile, 60 minute walk outside at the beach!!!!

Sunday:

Travel day back from beach...

Fruits: 2

Veggies: 2

Monday Reads

I found these two articles while wasting time on the good old World Wide Web and wanted to share them with you.....

Rice and Pasta are so 2009.... First of all, I have been exploring with tons of new grains lately and farro and quinoa happen to be on the top of my favorites list. If you haven't tried them yet, maybe this article will give you that extra push to add them to your meals. The farro with mushroom and dill looks amazing....

One thing that aggravates me is how influential celebrities are. Jennifer Anniston has Smart Water on set, Madonna has coconut water drinks at an after party, Dora the Explored is printed on kid's yogurts.... the list can go on and on. Basically, a lot of health fads start in Hollywood with lots of marketing money to influence us on what we "think" we need. All this being said, Coconut Water has been all the rage lately and when I saw this article I had to pass it on. As a dietitian I do believe the coconut water can be a way to rehydrate, but not if the electrolytes are mis-labeled. This goes back to the fact that we have to be aware buyers and not always trust what the celebrities are doing to be "healthy". I still believe in Gatorade (possibly because University of Florida came up with this amazing idea and anything with "gator" in it makes me happy to be a Florida Gator!!!!)

Ham and Cheese sandwiches

These are great for parties and for easy lunches that Ryan can take to work with him. We have made these several times and they are always a success! Very good to reheat and easy to take on the run.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

Recipe from Annie's Eats

Ingredients:

12 full size buns (I like Italian bread - something a bit harder than hamburger buns which are soft) or 24 mini rolls (mini Hawaiian rolls are delicious)

24 slices of honey ham (I love Boar's Head)

24 slices of swiss cheese

mayonnaise

1 1/2 tbs yellow mustard

6 tbs butter, melted

1 tbs onion, finely minced

1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce

poppy seeds

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Split the rolls in half and spread mayo on the bread (you can skip this step if you hate mayo). Fold the honey ham in half and add to the sandwich (Note if using the full size rolls, put two ham slices on, if using the minis- just use one slice). Add the piece of swiss cheese. Place the other half of the bun on top and place the sandwiches in a baking dish.

For the sauce, combine yellow mustard, butter, onion, and worcestershire sauce. Whisk to combine. Pour over the sandwiches and then sprinkle poppy seeds on top.

Cover with Aluminum foil and bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted then remove the foil and bake for 2-3 more minutes. Serve warm or reheat.

We love these for fun appetizers or like I said for lunches. Personally, for me this is a bit too unhealthy for lunch, but Ryan loves them!

Tabbouleh and Feta stuffed Pitas

Ina Garten does it again... she convinces me that another one of her recipes is sure to satisfy and always enjoyed. I would explain this recipe as "fresh". I see a lot of the reviews argue whether this is traditional Tabbouleh or not and to be honest, why can't we have more than one type of tabbouleh? Basically lebanese style has more parsley than bulgur wheat while Ina's recipe has more bulgur wheat than the traditional lebanese style does. Does it make it less delicious? I think not. So, if you want to make traditional tabbouleh, find another recipe but if you want a refreshing lunch then try this!

Tabbouleh and Feta stuffed Pitas

Recipe adapted from Ina Garten

Ingredients:

1 cup bulgur wheat

1 1/2 cups boiling water

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)

1/4 cup olive oil

salt

1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (I don't like scallions so didn't use)

1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves

1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 seeded cucumber, medium diced

2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in halves

1 tsp pepper

3/4 lb good quality feta cheese, crumbled by hand (try to buy block feta not the pre-crumbled kind)

4 whole wheat pitas

Directions:

Place the bulgur wheat in a large bowl and pour the boiling water on top and add the lemon juice, olive oil and 1 1/2 tsp salt. Stir all together and then leave at room temperature for 1 hour.

Then, add the scallions (if using), mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, feta, 1-2 tsp salt, and pepper. Combine all ingredients together well then cover and refrigerate. Stuff the tabbouleh into a pita and enjoy!

Note that the longer the tabbouleh sits in the fridge, the better the flavor enhances. I ate this for lunch for 4 days straight and it just kept getting better and better!

Weekly Eats August 1 - August 7

Monday:

B: coffee prepared as normal and 2 tbs of granola in 1/4 cup milk

L: Black bean taco (1 whole wheat tortilla with 1 black bean patty with fresh tomato, cilantro, 1 tbs sour cream, 1 ounce cheese, and salsa)

D: yogurt with berries and granola and 6 honey graham crackers with fig goat cheese (my obsession is fig goat cheese and I just finished the last bit thank goodness!)

Workout: 1 hour dance trance class and 1 hour Core barre class (taught by Kaitlin)

Fruits: 3

Veggies: 1

Tuesday:

Click on Tuesday to see what I ate!

Fruits: 4

Veggies: 4

Workout: 60 minute 3.5 mile walk OUTSIDE (supposed to be 110 today) with Mandi and Jake

Wednesday:

Click on wednesday to see what I ate and calories consumed

Fruits: 4

Veggies: 3

Workout: First Time trying Bikram (hot) yoga and it was AWESOME.... sweated so much

Thursday:

click to see food diary

Fruits: 3

Veggies: 4

Workout: 45 minute dance trance breakdown and 60 minute dance trance class (love me some booty dancing)

Friday:

Fruits: 3

Veggies: 4

Workout: 30 minute reformer

Bad day because we went to Mexican Restaurant (Cocina Superior) for dinner

Saturday:

Fruits: 1

Veggies: 4

Workout: 65 minute advanced reformer (whole level 5 work minus a few of the "secret" parts) and 20 minute walk in the HEAT to the pool!

Another bad day... drinks and the nacho splurge for snack is not a good combo.... gotta get the weekends back in order

Sunday:

Fruits: 2

Veggies: 0

Workout: 45 minute dance trance rewind and 60 minute 3.5 mile walk with Ryan outside