Photo-a-Day Challenge Recap

Posted on June 1, 2012 by amy

I’ve been participating every other month or so in the Photo-a-Day Challenge on Twitter. It is so much fun to see how many people are taking part and to see all the different perspectives on the prompts.

I thought it would be fun to do a photo essay showing a recap of some of the photos I’ve submitted.

Prompt: Black & White

Prompt: Color

Prompt: Shadow

Prompt: Orange

Prompt: Something You've Found

Prompt: Sunset

Prompt: Hair

Have you participated in the challenge? I think it’s such a fun, easy way to do something creative every day. I’ll probably be doing June’s as well so follow along on Twitter!

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Pretzel Crisps Covered Chicken with Herbed Potato Salad

Posted on May 28, 2012 by amy

So, technically this recipe doesn’t fit in with my magazine recipe theme this month. But who cares? I’m so excited about it I figured I’d make an exception. And technically the side dish of herbed potatoes came from a ‘magazine’ of sorts. I found it in a booklet from the grocery store, which was made by Champions for Change. A government initiative to get people eating healthier. There are so many delicious-looking recipes in here, and I definitely want to make it a mission to try more of them.

Now on to the main course. Have you had Pretzel Crisps yet? If not, you MUST try them. They have all kinds of flavors, including Buffalo Wing. But, if you’re like me having a bag of these things in the house is dangerous. I thought I shouldn’t keep these around or I’ll gobble them all up… and that’s when the idea for this recipe came to me. Just like Corn Flake Covered Chicken I figured these crisps might make a great crunchy coating.

Actually, I’m not gonna lie. It’s taken buying three bags to finally have an untouched bag to use for this recipe. That first bag is when I had the idea, but I quickly found myself making another trip to the store when I’d eaten the whole bag. Pretzel Crisps didn’t pay me or give me any free incentives to write this post. They have no idea. I’m totally doing this on my own accord. I like them that much!

Buffalo Wing Pretzel Crisps Covered Chicken

Ingredients:

  • 4 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless
  • 3 cups Buffalo Wing Pretzel Crisps
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground sage
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • salt/pepper to taste

Directions:

  • Heat oven to 375F.
  • Pour the Pretzel Crisps into a large sealable plastic bag and crush them. You can bang on them or roll over them with a rolling pin, etc..
  • Then add the flour, paprika, onion powder, and sage into the bag. You can also add some salt/pepper if you want. Just be careful, since the crisps have salt on them you don’t want to over salt!
  • Pour the milk into a bowl.
  • Then dip each piece of chicken into the milk then into the bag and shake it up to coat them thoroughly (you can do in batches if needed).
  • Then place the chicken on an ungreased baking sheet.
  • Bake for 40-50 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

The chicken came out cooked to just the right temperature. It wasn’t dry at all. I tend to favor chicken thighs over breasts because they hold their juices better but I think the coating did its job. They didn’t come out super pretty as the coating looked a bit dry. But it wouldn’t have done to cook it longer as then the chicken would have gotten dry. I did like how the cooking process softened up the pretzels. The buffalo flavor was a little lost after cooking, but every other bite or so I’d get the strong fragrance and taste of the buffalo seasoning. This definitely encouraged me to try again and think of ways to incorporate Pretzel Crisps in to other meals.

Herbed Potato Salad

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 pounds red potatoes, cubed (I used the small ones)
  • 1/2 cup light Italian dressing
  • 1/2 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup sliced green onions

Directions:

  • Cook potatoes in boiling water until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain well and let cool.
  • Place potatoes in a medium bowl after cooled.
  • In a separate small bowl, combine dressing, mustard, parsley, and seasonings; pour over potatoes and toss well.
  • Carefully stir in bell peppers and green onions. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

I ended up using my bell peppers before I made this dish, but decided I could do without. I think it still came out pretty good. Although, next time I think I’d skip the Italian dressing. It just overpowers things too much and ends up being all I can taste. I’d rather do a mix of some apple cider or some balsamic vinegar mixed with some lemon juice and olive oil and let the potatoes shine a bit more. I get that the booklet is probably catering to folks who don’t cook obsessively like us food bloggers, so they’re obviously trying to make these healthy foods as easy as possible.

Do you have any favorite snacks that you’ve incorporated into a meal?

p.s. Happy Memorial Day!

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Friday Pasta Madness: Fettuccine With Shrimp, Garlic, and Broccoli

Posted on May 25, 2012 by amy

The last installment in Friday Pasta Madness (for now :) ) is another great find from Fitness Magazine. I’ve also had this recipe for a while- its from the Nov/Dec 2011 issue.

I decided to make this one weeknight recently, and ended up modifying the recipe quite substantially. Either way you make it, by the recipe from the magazine or with my modifications, it makes a fairly healthy and quick weeknight meal. I’ve got the original recipe below for you, and my notes on what I did different following that. If you make this, I’d love to know which version you went with, or did you add your own twists?

Fettuccine With Shrimp, Garlic, and Broccoli

Ingredients:

  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 1 medium sweet onion, diced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasonings
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 3/4 pound frozen medium shrimp, thawed
  • 8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
  • 3 cups broccoli florets

Directions:

  • Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and carrot; saute 5 minutes. Add Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes; cook 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic; reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes.
  • Meanwhile peel shrimp and remove tails; set aside. Prepare pasta according to package directions, adding broccoli florets to the pot for the last 2 minutes of cooking. Drain and set aside.
  • Add shrimp to the tomato sauce; cook 2 to 3 minutes, until opaque.
  • Serve shrimp and sauce over pasta and broccoli.

When I made this, I had just come home from the gym, so I prepared what I could ahead of time, hit the shower, then came back and finished cooking. It made for a quick and easy dinner! The key: I used extra of the Roasted Red Pepper pasta sauce from last week. We loved it so much I made an entire batch solely for the freezer to pull out and use instances like this. Here’s my recipe version:

Amy’s Fettuccine With Shrimp and Broccoli

Ingredients:

  • Premade, frozen roasted red pepper sauce. Get recipe here.
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
  • 2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes (I like it SPICY! So, use the amount in above recipe or none at all if you wish)
  • 3/4 pound frozen medium shrimp, thawed
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon parsley, chopped
  • 8 oz whole-wheat fettuccine
  • 1 bag of frozen broccoli and cauliflower florets
  • salt/pepper to taste

Directions:

  • Steam your broccoli/cauliflower bag in microwave according to package directions and set aside.
  • Fill a pot with water and add carrots and boil water. Add pasta and cook till al dente and carrots are tender enough to pierce with a fork.
  • Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a pan and saute shrimp. Add red pepper flake, black pepper, and parsley.
  • Defrost sauce enough to spoon out desired amount into pan with shrimp and heat slowly. Add broccoli/cauliflower to sauce/shrimp mix.
  • Drain pasta, and combine with sauce mix and serve!

I think the red pepper sauce was the perfect compliment to this dish. Overall there was a nice sweetness from the carrots and red pepper sauce and I couldn’t stop eating this up. I also think having the premade sauce, and using the frozen veggies cut down on cooking time some.

What do you do to speed up weeknight meals without sacrificing on flavor/quality?

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Wicked Wednesdays: Pear and Strawberry Smoothie

Posted on May 23, 2012 by amy

Here’s another very simple smoothie recipe from You Are What You Eat, by Gillian McKeith. This recipe is so easy but I still couldn’t help myself and did just a tad bit of tweaking to make it more my style. Below I listed out the original recipe.

Pear and Strawberry Smoothie

 Ingredients:

  • 2 ripe pears, cored and roughly chopped
  • 1 ½ cups of strawberries

 Directions:

  • Blend until smooth and creamy

As I’ve noted with other smoothie recipes I’ve done recently I felt the recipe definitely serves at least 2. This recipe does note it can serve 1-2. The tweaks I made included adding about 1/4-1/2 cup of low-sugar/low-cal apple juice, which I felt was a nice addition to the flavors, plus I find the blender doesn’t cooperate so nicely without a little liquid to help it along, so even some water would help here if you don’t have or want to use the apple juice. I also used frozen strawberries to give the drink some chill. If you don’t have frozen fruit I’d suggest adding in a few ice cubes if you like your smoothies cold.

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Onion-Herb Focaccia from Food Network Magazine

Posted on May 21, 2012 by amy

I love that when digging through my magazine recipes I found stuff from 2009 and earlier! This recipe comes from Food Network Magazine, November 2009. Just goes to show, good food never goes out of style!

As I mentioned a couple weeks earlier, E. and I paired this with the Mushroom Pasta from Prevention Magazine. It made a great combo. But this easily could be eaten on its own and maybe paired with a side-salad. I also added some prosciutto to it. I mean, when you have salty meats in the fridge, and you’re making something they can be added to, why wouldn’t you?

Onion-Herb Focaccia

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound refrigerated pizza dough
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons chopped rosemary and/or oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • pinch of sea salt

Directions:

  • Roll out the dough into a 10-by-15 inch rectangle (or as close as you can get- as you can see I didn’t quite get to a rectangle shape)

  • Press it into an oiled, rimmed baking sheet
  • Mix the olive oil, rosemary, red pepper flakes, and salt.

  • Brush half of the herb oil over the dough. Set aside till puffy (about 1 hour).
  • Make dimples in the dough with your fingers and top with thin onion slices and shaved Parmesan. And in my case, some prosciutto as well.
  • Bake at 400 degrees until golden, about 20 minutes.
  • Brush with remaining herb oil, cut with a pizza cutter, and serve.

I’ve noticed a trend with dishes this month: lots of red pepper flakes. Am I alone in my apparent obsessive adoration of this awesome spice???

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Friday Pasta Madness: Spaghetti with Roasted Red Peppers

Posted on May 18, 2012 by amy

It’s Friday, which means it’s Pasta Madness people! Can you handle it? I hope you’ve been enjoying the pasta dishes as much as I have. I’ll admit I’ve been a little carbed up these days, but this pasta-lovin-girl is not complaining! :) Just means I have to force myself to go run with all that extra energy…

Anyway, today’s is one of the favorites I’ve done this month and comes from Fitness Magazine, so it’s got your health and waistline in mind. In fact E. and I loved this so much I bought more Roasted Red Peppers and made a huge batch and froze it so I can pull it out on a whim. It really doesn’t take much time to make, but pulling it out of the freezer takes even less time. And something about knowing its sitting in there waiting for me whenever I crave it makes me incredibly happy. Its the small things, I’m tellin’ ya.

Spaghetti with Roasted Red Peppers, Walnuts, and Goat Cheese

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces spaghetti
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1/4 medium onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 4 jarred roasted red peppers, finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped walnuts
  • 3 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled

Directions:

  • Cook spaghetti, reserving 1 1/2 cups pasta water
  • Meanwhile, heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook till softened (about 5 minutes). Stir in tomato paste, roasted red peppers, and sugar and cook until just thickened (about 2 minutes).
  • Transfer mixture to a blender and process till smooth (may need to use some of the pasta water to get the blender moving good).
  • Return pan to stove, add thyme and red pepper flakes and cook over medium-low heat until fragrant (about 1 minute- don’t burn the thyme!).
  • Add spaghetti, salt, and red pepper sauce mixture and stir to combine. Add reserved pasta water and cook over medium-low heat for another 2 minutes, stirring.
  • Serve and sprinkle with goat cheese and walnuts as desired.

This sauce has such a tangy freshness to it, with just the right amount of sweetness. I don’t like my pasta sauces overly sweet. And as you can guess, when I saw it only called for 1/2 a teaspoon of red pepper flakes I ignored that and just shook red pepper flakes into the pan to my hearts content (I rarely measure this) and it came out with an extra spicy kick that we were loooovin… You also could completely disregard the goat cheese and walnuts if you wanted to cut the calories down a bit. Of course just a sprinkling of goat cheese created a nice creamy contrast but in all honesty the sauce is so awesome it stands on its own.

Do you make big batches of sauce, soups, or other freezable items when you find something you love?

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Wicked Wednesdays: Magazine Workouts

Posted on May 16, 2012 by amy

I usually skip over the workouts they show in the fitness and health mags. But, lately I wanted to add some extra workouts to my home routine. I go to both The Training Room and CorpBasics, which are awesome workout facilities that allow you to pay-per-class and that have fun and challenging classes. But I know I can’t get there every day and I do want to try and incorporate activity into those days I’m not headed to the gym. We have a stationary bike, which I do love to use, but I want to sure I’m doing more than just that to challenge myself. These home workouts are great for when the weather isn’t conducive to being outside. I also like them because if I’m honest I really don’t like to run. But I do love strength training workouts, especially ones that incorporate some cardio in a balanced way.

When I saw this 1-hour workout that Katherine McPhee follows in the February 2012 issues of Shape. I read through it and thought “I can do this.” I preferred it to ones I normally see as it didn’t have a bunch of unheard of or complicated moves that they try to show with poorly illustrated photos, but rather was just a good old workout with basic moves that most people know. There were some things like running on a treadmill or pull ups that I had to modify, but in general I found that this workout was pretty good and flowed well. Below I’ve created a table showing the original workout suggestions along with any modifications I made.

Suggested Workout from Magazine My At-Home Modifications
5- minute warm up run on treadmill at 6 mph 5 minute warm up equivalent on stationary bike
Total body stretches to loosen up Same
Upper Body Circuit: Using 5-pound weights, perform 10 one-arm rows; 10 lateral side raises; 10 front raises; 10 bicep curls to an overhead press Same, but used 8-pound weights
5 push-ups; 5 burpees Same
30 seconds of alternating jump lunges I skipped the jumping as my lower body is my weakness so I did alternating backwards lunges without the jumping.
Run up and down a flight of stairs; repeat twice Same
Pedal on a stationary bike for 5 minutes at resistance 10 or 15. Same
10 jumping jacks; 10 push-ups Same
Abs circuit: 10 crunches; 15 crunches w/ hands under tailbone, curling knees to chest; 15 crunches with legs extended; 15 full sit-ups with feet planted; 30 seconds straight-leg flutter kicks; 30 seconds of leg scissors; hold plank for 15 seconds Same, except I held the plank for 30 seconds.
3 minute run on treadmill at 7 mph 3 minutes on stationary bike at equivalent speed
Repeat abs circuit Same as above- just held plank for longer
10 jumping jacks; 10 push-ups Same
Assisted pull-ups: 3 sets of 10 reps I used 5 pound weights instead and did overhead presses but brought the weights to the back side of my shoulders stopping just above the shoulder. I did this to simulate doing a pull-up.
3 minutes jumping rope I put on a 3 minute-long song that was high energy and did a combo of “fake” jumping rope and dancing.
30 seconds hold plank Same
Repeat stair run. Same
Pull-ups: 3 sets of 6 Used 5 pound weights instead and did overhead presses but brought the weights to the back side of my shoulders stopping just above the shoulder.
3 minutes on the bike at resistance 10 Same
10 push-ups Same
3 minutes jumping rope I put on a 3 minute-long song that was high energy and did a combo of “fake” jumping rope and dancing.

I have to say I was sweating and out of breath during parts of this workout and I’ve happily incorporated it into my workout rotation. I do all the jumping-related activities on a thick rug to spare our downstairs neighbors. If you’re looking for something to jumpstart your workout routine I suggest giving this a go. If you don’t have stairs, a bike, etc… just improvise like I did. If you do this, I’d love to hear your modifications!

 What are your opinions on magazine workouts? Do you ever try them? Do you like working out at home or do you prefer to be outside or at a gym?

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From Real Simple: Tapas Plate with Marinated Chickpeas

Posted on May 14, 2012 by amy

This dinner idea from Real Simple is the perfect combination of light, refreshing, and so easy. As we get into warmer days and want to spend less time cooking over an open flame or with a hot oven this Tapas plate allows us to pull a quick and healthy meal together on those busy weeknights and enjoy it with a nice glass of wine. Also E. loves dinners like this. As he says, they relax him. Maybe it’s knowing one isn’t stuffing themselves silly, maybe it takes us away to the Mediterranean, or maybe its the ease at which the meal comes together and is eaten. Either way, I have to agree.

Tapas Plate with Marinated Chickpeas

Ingredients:

  • 1 15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • 2 scallions, sliced
  • 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons quality balsamic vinegar
  • sea salt/pepper to taste
  • 1/2 pound Manchego cheese, sliced
  • 1/4 pound thinly sliced Serrano ham or prosciutto
  • 1/2 cup mixed olives
  • 1/2 small loaf country bread

Directions:

  • In a bowl, combine all the ingredients from the chickpeas to the salt/pepper. Put in fridge and chill for 30 minutes.
  • Serve with the cheese ham, olives, and bread.

I added a few touches here that weren’t in the original article. I decided to include the red pepper flakes and the balsamic vinegar to give an added kick. I think this gave a little extra heat, which E. and I always appreciate and the vinegar added another layer to the dish that I think brought out the flavors of all the other ingredients nicely. I also used bagel crisps instead of bread. I would have preferred the bread, but I knew I was likely to forget to buy bread the day of or before and I didn’t want to get it ahead of time at the grocery store and have it go bad. The crisps were a nice alternative, so that we didn’t have to worry about having stale bread!

Do you have a no-cook dish you love to make on warm weather weeknights?

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Friday Pasta Madness: Sausage-Noodle Bake

Posted on May 11, 2012 by amy

One of my favorite magazines for recipes is Rachael Ray’s Magazine. Not as big of a fan of the Food Network show with her “sammies,” “evoo.” and “yummoos.” But some of my favorite recipes have come from her magazine and/or website. Sometimes they’re not always the healthiest, but if needed, I can usually lighten them up a bit.

I also love me some egg noodles. So, for this week’s pasta dish I pulled this Rachael Ray casserole recipe that I’ve had for who knows how long. I honestly sometimes just eat egg noodles with a little butter when I want something quick and simple. But that wouldn’t make much of a blog post now would it?

Sausage-Noodle Bake

Ingredients:

  • 12 ounces of wide egg noodles
  • 7 ounces of turkey kielbasa, sliced
  • 1 stick of butter, sliced
  • 4 cups baby arugula
  • 5 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
  • 1 cup low-fat sour cream
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
  • In a large pot, boil water and add egg noodles, cooking till al dente.
  • Drain pasta and return to pot and stir in butter and kielbasa.
  • In a separate bowl mix eggs, arugula, cottage cheese and sour cream. Season with salt and pepper
  • Add egg mix to the noodle mix and stir. Then transfer mix to the baking dish and bake for 30-35 minutes.
  • Let stand for 10 minutes then serve and enjoy.

What magazines do you enjoy the recipes from most?

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My First BzzAgent Campaign: A Review of Garnier Fructis

Posted on May 9, 2012 by amy

Recently I became a BzzAgent. If you’re wondering, ‘What the heck is that?’ BzzAgent is a Boston-area marketing by word of mouth company. The premise goes that you sign up, answer fun surveys on your use of various products and then get invited to ‘campaigns.’ With those campaigns you get to often try products for free and then if you want you can write a review on the website, on your blog, on Facebook, Twitter, etc. I signed up as I thought it sounded like fun! Especially since I knew there was the opportunity to try food products, amongst other things.

My goal is to only accept campaigns for things I genuinely have an interest in and/or that I think my readers would also be interested in. I receive these products at no charge, and will always write my honest review, even if I don’t like something.

My first invite was for Sleek & Shine shampoo and conditioner by Garnier Fructis. I decided to accept is as I know I personally deal with major frizz issues and I know I’m not alone when it comes to fighting with my hair. I’m betting plenty of you also have your own hair issues.

So, it’s been one week since I started using the Garnier Fructis shampoo/conditioner that I received complimentary from BzzAgent. My overall impression so far is it’s a nice shampoo/conditioner and I’d definitely consider buying it to use again in the future. But, I’m not necessarily over the moon for it.

I have long, thick, wavy hair that blows up like a balloon at the slightest hint of moisture in the air. After years of dealing with it I’ve learned never to expect miracles from any product. Some definitely work better than others. But no product is going to totally change the DNA makeup of my hair. And I’m OK with that.

I’ve learned how to manage my hair well enough and know I will never have thin, straight, and undamaged hair! What I can expect is that there are products out there that will help me in that management of my crazy hair. I think the Sleek & Shine does a decent job at that. In the past week I’ve noticed a reduction in the size of my hair (even on rainy days). It feels smoother and less damaged then it actually is (from all these long years of hair color abuse! :) ) I really like the consistency of the conditioner. Recently I started using the little conditioners that come with the hair dyes because they are thick and really make my hair nice and smooth. The Sleek & Shine conditioner had a similar feel. So, if nothing else I think I’d keep some of this conditioner on hand.

Now, I don’t love the smell. I prefer vanillas, coconuts, etc…But it doesn’t smell bad either and I suspect plenty of people would like it just fine. Just a personal quirk I guess and not a big deal really. Honestly, I’d prefer a product that works first and foremost, which I ‘d say this does. My hair definitely feels sleeker and looks shinier. Is it thinner, smoother, and totally resistant to all humidity? No, but I wasn’t expecting that anyway.

So, overall I’d give this product a passing grade. Like I said, its impossible for any product to change your hair into something its not, but it is possible for it to make life a little easier when dealing with it; and that Sleek & Shine does well! Heck, based on my good experience with the shampoo I decided to try out the hair color as well…these days those grays come in too fast to get to the expensive salon all the time…sigh… :)

So, amiright? Am I not the only one with hair woes? :) Would you try a new shampoo/conditioner for free or do you have a tried & true brand that you would never cheat on?

My next campaign is a food product, which I’m very excited for! If you’re interested in becoming a BzzAgent, go to their site and sign up! I’m having fun so far, and I say this on my own accord- no one has paid me or even asked me to say so!

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