My First Thanksgiving- A success!

I had the pleasure of hosting Thanksgiving this year for my in-laws. Since it was going to be a small family gathering of four adults and an infant, I decided on an intimate Thanksgiving dinner. (Finally an excuse to use the fancy stuff!)
Our menu included butternut squash soup, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, pull-apart rolls, turkey with carrots and green beans and for dessert, pumpkin pie cheesecake.
I was incredibly nervous to host Thanksgiving, but it turned out to be quite a success!

Here's some photos:

A Hoot Hoot Halloween

Okay, I know its been quite a while since my last post, but I haven't just turned into a zombie with nothing to write about. On the contrary, I have been a very busy busy bee, just behind on my posts :)
For Halloween this year I made a simple owl costume for my baby boy. Here's a small tutorial on How to make it for your baby next year-

Materials:
onesie
multiple shades of brown and cream tear drop shaped felt pieces
matching thread
tan knit fabric for cap or pre-made baby cap
yellow felt for eyes and beak
black felt for eyes

1. To start I cut out a few dozen tear drop shapes from my felt to represent feathers. I decided to have lighter colored feathers across the stomach and darker across the back and sides.
2. I began sewing the first leaves along the bottom of the onesie and proceeded to sew overlapping layers until I reached the neckline.
3. It was mostly time consuming to sew through the thickness and to arrange the felt pieces, but honestly once all the felt is cut its pretty easy.

1. For the cap, I traced a preexisting cap that already fit his head, but included a slight curve for the "ears"  and added a seam allowance, then I cut out felt to match the top portion so the "ears would stand up instead of slouching. 
2. After sewing the pieces together I cut out the beak and circle shapes for the eyes and hand-stitched each using matching colored threads.

If you have a baby girl, it would be super cute to use pink colored felt feathers too, or even a white or pink onesie.

There you have it, super simple, and an adorable baby boy to boot!

I hope you had a fun Halloween!

Cupboard Organization Like my kitchen has NEVER Seen!

As you know, I recently moved from Arizona to Kansas, and while my square footage has dramatically increased, my cupboard space has decreased. In this new place I no longer have a pantry! So, while I am now shoving cans into any available nook and cranny, I did decide my main cooking cupboard needed a makeover. Just take one look at this horrible excuse for a cupboard!

Not very Molly Mormon-like, or practical for that matter, and since I spend quite a bit of time cooking, I knew I needed to have a suitable space to take pride in and enjoy. I find that clutter in my life clutters my mind, which is never a good thing. I take pride in a clean and organized home and my husband certainly appreciates it also.

Its always a challenge when you move into a new place. Where do you put everything? I had one set of drawers and a couple other drawers throughout the kitchen, whereas now I only have one set of drawers. That immediately stole three drawers worth of space. So now I needed to downsize the number of items going into drawers. Then out came the cooking utensil canister to place near the stove. I also moved my measuring spoons into a decorative flower pot and placed them and my measuring cups into my baking cupboard, next to the mixing bowls.

My baking grains, flours, sugars and powders all needed a long-term storage solution as they were all still sitting in their original bags, with me rolling the top down after each use. Not the cleanest way to store, plus, now that I am in Kansas I would have to worry about humidity effecting my dry ingredients. SO the solution!? Wonderful plastic storage containers!.. all organized on the top shelf.
My loose pasta was also in need of a place, so they were upgraded to decorative containers instead of their sad boxes.
Through the advice of my beautiful mom, my oils now sit in a black bin for two reasons; one, easy access to pull them out and two, protect the cabinets from oil leaks. Rubbermaid makes wonderful shelf drawers for your cabinets, I put my gelatins and seasoning pouches into one of these. My middle shelf contains bins for baking, seasoning and spices not contained in my spice rack, and nuts and seeds. I also have quick and easy access to spices, vegetable oil, EVOO and white vinegar on my counter.

My bottom cabinets contain all of the other items I use for food prep and cooking, including my mixer, food processor, cutting boards, colanders, baking dishes and cookbooks.

Ta-Da! Now this is a cooking station! It is working beautifully for me.... One small step in the journey to Molly Mormonhood, one giant step for my kitchen! Hope this gives you a little inspiration to get organized in your own kitchen (if you aren't already).

Strawberry Chicken Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

I love salads! They’re refreshing and a wonderful way to pack a whole lot of goodness into one bowl. I know in a previous post I mentioned a book called Skinny Chicks Don’t Eat Salads, but I should clarify that my mom purchased the book for me, maybe because she thought I thought the only way to be skinny was if I ate salads all the time. That simply is not the case. I just thoroughly enjoy salads- maybe it’s just a remnant from my vegetarian days? But if you enjoy salads like I do, then you’re also aware that the most fattening part of the salad is the dressing. (Unless you’re one of those bacon bits type people, then I don’t know how to help you.)

However, some of the keys to keeping off the fat in your salad dressing are as follows. First, stick to a serving size. Don’t overdo the dressing, if a serving size is 2 Tbsp- which they typically are- then use only 2 Tbsp. The reason people get into trouble with salads is because they do not enjoy the actual salad, they enjoy the dressing. So if you are one of those people, you would probably be better off eating something else, but if you like the taste of the actual salads and use the dressing as just a topping rather than a main component then continue on… Secondly, know what’s in your dressing and make appropriate substitutions. YES! We’re back to that… substitute the fatty ingredients for similar slimmer ingredients. Lastly, make sure the other components of your salad are contributing nutritionally, not just adding more fat. Be wise when compiling your salad.

So I was trying to decide what kind of salad I wanted to make when I thought to myself anything with poppy seed dressing and grilled chicken. Then my head started to roll with all of the wonderful salad mix-ins that go great with poppy seed dressing. I love fruits with poppy seed dressing, all kinds, like mandarin oranges, strawberries, blueberries, a few walnuts or almonds perhaps, some red onions and mushrooms, it’s all up to you!

So my foundation salad recipe for you to customize to your personal taste is a recipe I like to call:

Strawberry Chicken Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing

First we will go over the poppy seed dressing- this is where I use my own customized substitutions. I looked over several different versions of poppy seed dressing. Some of them included lemon and others included onion, some had mustard while others contained no such thing. So, after looking over a couple different versions deciding which components I liked in some and what I didn't like about others, I finally decided on the version below:

Poppy Seed Dressing:

¼ c +2Tbsp oil*

¼ c non-fat greek yogurt*

1/3 c white vinegar

1/3 c sugar substitute

1/4c grated red onion

¾ tsp salt

2 Tbsp honey mustard

¾ Tbsp poppy seeds

Combine all ingredients together, you can use a processor, and refrigerate to store.

*Side Note: In this version, the oil is cut in half from the original version and replaced with Greek yogurt which cuts the fat in half and adds protein.

It should also be noted that this recipe yields a considerable amount of dressing, but a serving size is still 2Tbsp, so although it seems like a large amount of oil and sugar (the ones we need to watch out for) in reality, your consumption per serving is not bad. Plus, your oil has good fats in it; it just needs to be regulated.

Here’s how I make tender chicken breasts for my salads:

This recipe is also modified by me, so that it is healthier than its original version, which is found in Joy of Cooking.

Ingredients:

1-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ c whole wheat flour
1 tsp freshly chopped herbs (optional)
1tsp Olive oil
½ Tbsp Omega 3 light spread**

**Side Note: Most margarines contain Trans Fat, which is a BIG No-no! If you own anything that contains Trans Fat or hydrogenated oil or partially hydrogenated oil, get it out of your house! Look for this in margarine, shortening, some butter substitutes, or peanut butter. I've even seen it in my tortillas! There are spreads that are mostly vegetable oil that do not contain any of these, purchase a light version with Omega-3 and use that as a healthy substitute for butter in recipes.  

To Make:

1. Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness.

2. Salt and pepper chicken breasts.

3. Mix in half teaspoon of salt and some ground pepper with the flour along with any herbs you may be using.

4. Just lightly coat the chicken breasts in flour mixture (we’re not going for breaded chicken, we’re just sealing in the moisture.

5. Heat a sauté pan over medium-high heat. When it is quite hot, add the olive oil and butter. Swirl them together.

6. Turn the heat to medium. Add the chicken breasts. Cook for just about 1 minute to until slightly golden on one side. Then flip each chicken breast over.

7. Turn the heat to low. Place cover on the pan. Set a timer for 10 minutes. Important!- Do not lift the lid- the steam helps cook the chicken.

8. After 10 minutes have elapsed, turn off the heat, but do not lift the lid. Reset the timer for 10 minutes and leave the chicken breasts in the pan.

9. After the 10 minutes are up, take the lid off, there you have your perfect for salad chicken breasts! Yum!

Put it all together!

For the Strawberry Chicken Salad combine the following:

Romaine lettuce

Grilled chicken- see recipe below

Sliced strawberries

Julienned red onions

Candied almond slices***

Top it with 2 Tbsp dressing!

 A good alternate to my version here would be spinach instead of romaine and add some blueberries. Then you could pack in some great antioxidants! I just didn’t get around to it, but it was delicious nonetheless.
If you choose to cook the chicken another way, just be sure to keep out the fat, that means regulate the amount of cooking oil/butter.
Also, I made candied almonds, which definitely adds sugar, instead you can just toast the almonds and they would be much healthier.

***Side Note: A serving size for nuts is 1oz. Most nuts contain twice the amount of fat as protein; therefore you should count them toward your fat intake rather than protein intake, and certainly keep quantity down- not to say they aren’t good for you, just in moderation. Now, if your almonds have sugar, the portion may need to be reduced from the 1 oz.

So there you have it! An amazingly yummy and also healthy salad!

Nutritious Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins

Here’s another dose of Healthy Substitutions! 

Okay so if you’re family is anything like mine, you’re often running late, trying to get everyone out the door and often times food gets thrown on the back-burner. My family is so new and small that I’m not up when my husband is getting ready for work, instead I’m trying to catch a few zzz’s while my son is still sleeping. Unfortunately, that often means my husband is waking up late and skipping breakfast, which is a big no-no. One idea I had was to try to give him something good to eat on the go. Now I’m not suggesting that this should be your everyday breakfast replacement, but when in a pinch, the balance of nutrients that I’ve packed into this simple muffin will help stabilize his blood sugar for the first few hours of the morning until he can finally eat something a little more filling. I’ve taken a basic Pumpkin Muffin Recipe and have made a few simple substitutions that make it a Protein-packed Pumpkin Cranberry Breakfast Muffin.

Here’s the original Pumpkin Muffin Recipe:

1 ½ c. sugar
2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda                                 
¼ tsp baking powder                         

1 2/3 c. all-purpose flour

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp cinnamon
¾ tsp salt                                              

½ c. vegetable oil

½ c. cold water
½ tsp cloves                                         

1 c. pumpkin puree (about half a 15 oz can)

Let me start by saying that one of the key items to substituting ingredients, as I have found, is understanding what you are trying to replace, and the item you’re trying to replace it with. For example, if a recipe calls for ½ c vegetable oil and you use ½ c olive oil, you are still using the same amount of oil, you still have the same amount of fat, just a slightly different flavor. However, if the recipe calls for ½ c oil and you substitute it for ¼ c oil and 3Tbsp nonfat greek yogurt, you just cut out half the fat! That’s one healthy substitution! J Now yogurt is a well chosen substitute in baking, but the flavor may not always be what you’re looking for in other items, so in those cases there are other worthy substitutions to be made.- I’ll write another post just to go over worthy substitutes.

Anyway, back to the muffins!

Looking at the original recipe I can tell you right now the only protein inside of this recipe is in the eggs, but there’s plenty of sugar and fat mixed in there! That’s healthy, right? Umm… no, not really.

Okay then, let’s see what changes we can make. I colored the items I’m going to replace in red. First, let’s look at the sugar content. We are making 12 regular sized muffins in this recipe, so maybe we can reduce our sugar intake. Instead of granulated sugar, I am replacing it with brown sugar, which has molasses which will still add flavor even as I reduce the amount. Instead of whole eggs, I will replace it with egg substitute, again, to cut out the cholesterol. Obviously the all-purpose flour will be replaced with wheat flour, but to add in some protein and Omega-3, I will also include, vital wheat gluten flour and ground flaxseed. Finally, as I explained above, we will cut the oil content in half and use non-fat Greek yogurt as a protein packed replacement.

 Thus, My Healthy Pumpkin Muffin Remake:

½ c. + 1 Tbsp brown sugar

½ c. egg whites       

1 tsp baking soda                              
¼ tsp baking powder                         

1 1/3c. whole wheat flour

¼ c. vital wheat gluten flour

2 Tbsp ground flaxseed
½ tsp cinnamon

¾ tsp salt                                              

½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp cloves  

¼ c. vegetable oil

3 Tbsp non-fat Greek yogurt

½ c. cold water                                     

1 c. pumpkin puree (about half a 15 oz can)* 

*Side Note: When purchasing your Pumpkin Puree, be sure its 100% Pure Pumpkin, the ingredient list should have only one ingredient, Pumpkin!        

**If making Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins, simply add ¼ c dried cranberries or chopped fresh cranberries to add some antioxidants to your muffins!   

To Make:

Mix all ingredients together.  Put in greased muffin tin.  Bake at 325 degrees.

12 Muffins = 40-45 minutes

24 Mini muffins = 25 minutes

All of the healthy substitutions are listed in green. As far as protein content- egg whites, vital wheat gluten flour and non-fat Greek yogurt are all packed with protein. Included in your carbohydrate content are the whole wheat flour, yogurt and pumpkin. Omega-3 is in the flaxseed. Fiber is in the pumpkin, and antioxidants are in the cranberries. Nutrition all around in these things!

So now you have a muffin you can actually feel comfort in giving to your husband and children, knowing that it is actually way better for them than bad! Plus my husband loves them!

SO Easy Mini Breakfast Bagel

This is a simple, quick, delicious and nutritious recipe!

Mini Breakfast Bagel:

1 whole wheat mini bagel*                  110cal 4g protein 20g carbs 0.5g fat

3Tbsp egg whites                               25 cal 5g protein 2g carbs 0g fat

1oz.  Nonfat cream cheese                  30 cal 4g protein 2g carbs 0g fat

Tomato slice        

Sliced mushroom

Baby spinach

Salt & pepper

Simply spray your skillet with cooking spray and sauté mushrooms until slightly tender, then add egg whites and spinach. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook until done and fold like mini omlet. Spread cream cheese onto bagel assemble like a sandwich, adding egg white omlet and tomato. 

About 165 cal, 13g protein, 24g carbohydrates, 0.5g fat, 0mg cholesterol

 *Side Note: When you purchase whole wheat bagels, make sure under the ingredient list the FIRST ingredient is in fact 100% whole wheat. A lot of bagels label themselves as wheat bagels, but are in reality just disguised enriched flour- which is not what you want.

I used spinach and mushrooms because that’s what I had on hand, you can substitute those veggies for whatever you like or even add a slice of turkey bacon into your eggs or up the amount of egg whites you want to use. This is just a good foundation to build your personalized breakfast bagel off of. You know how many calories, and how much protein your body needs and therefore you know how many grams carbohydrates to add to it (twice as much) so mix up your own plan.

Yummy! Give it a try!