Gluten Free

Portobello Mushroom Benedict with Sriracha Hollandaise

12.03.2012 25 Comments

Food is one of the greatest choices we have as members of the 1st world. For the most part, we get to choose what we put in our bodies, and how much.

The path people take to the way they eat as adults is a direct result of the experiences they have as children. Although I am no longer a practicing vegetarian (as evidenced by the extensive number of bacon related posts on my blog) I did spend about 4 years in my early 20’s with a very meatless existence. That choice was a direct result of the farm style living of my youth.

Just before I started Junior High, my parents moved me from the Central Coast of California to a small farm in Eastern Washington state. It sounded like such a romantic and adventurous journey, my love of animals having the full indulgence it had always wanted.

I was a 4-H kid, and the idea of acres and acres of animals was like a dream and within hours of a pig pen fully inhabited by squealing little pink and brown creatures I was in love. I named my favorite guy Garfunkel, as an nod to my love of 70’s music. I spent the summer feeding, walking, and training my new pet. In my head was the knowledge of the inevitable fate of this little guy, but some how it didn’t reach my heart.

Then, towards the end of summer, came an old Chevy pickup truck. White and faded with wooden boards rising up above the sides of the truck bed. I watched from the window as the town butcher consulted with my step father, compared guns, pointed at the pigs, and unceremoniously shoots Garfunkel in the head.

He struggles to get up. Another shot. He moves again. Another shot.

Three days later, I stared at the pork chops on my dinner plate, unable to get the image of his last moments out of my head. Unnerved by the feeling of knowing the first name of my dinner.

Although this is a brutal reality for the meat eating world, and one that we should come to terms with if we choose to eat meat, I am not advocating for everyone to go vegan. I know that the pigs my family raised had great lives. They were loved, cared about, and fed well. If it wasn’t for the dinner they became, they wouldn’t have existed in the first place.

Choice. Choosing to spend more for free range. Choosing to support local growers. Seeking out raw milk and cheese from reliable farms.

Because if the story of Garfunkel is horrifying to you, it is Disneyland compared to way some commercial farms are like.

Just some food for though.

Let me know what you think. If you disagree, agree, or even if you don’t care.

In the interim, here is a meatless breakfast that will give you a break from meat, if that is what you are looking for.

Portobello Mushroom Benedict with Sriracha Hollandaise

4 Portobello mushrooms

1/4 cup olive oil

pinch of salt

4 cups fresh spinach, chopped

1/4 cup chopped onions

3 cloves of garlic minced

4 eggs

1 large tomato, cut into slices

For the Hollandaise:

4 tbs melted butter

4 egg yolks

1 tbs lemon juice

2 tbs room temp water

1 tsp sriracha sauce

salt and pepper

In a pan over medium high heat, add the oil and allow it to get hot but not smoking. Place the mushrooms in the pan. If the pan is two small for all of the mushrooms to fit, cook in two batches. Turn the mushrooms once the bottom has turned dark and has softened, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and allow to cook on the other side until the entire mushroom is dark, soft and cook all the way through. Remove cooked mushrooms from pan and add the spinach, onions and garlic, cook until soft.

Poach the eggs in lightly salted simmering water. (Tutorial)

Melt the butter in the microwave. In a good quality sauce pan, add the yolks, lemon juice and water and whisk quickly and continually over low heat until it’s frothy and doubled in size (this is an arm work out, be prepared). You don’t want too much heat or you’ll have scrambled eggs. If you need to step away for even a second, or if it’s getting to hot, remove from the heat. While continuing to whisk, slowly add the butter in a steady stream. Continue to whisk until thickened, and almost doubled. If your sauce gets too dry and thick, you can add a few tbs of water. Add the sriracha, and salt and pepper to taste.

Place the mushroom on a plate, top with spinach, then tomato slice, then poached egg and drizzle with hollandaise.

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Prosciutto Wrapped Olives Stuffed with Goat Cheese

05.03.2012 14 Comments

Last week, I mentioned how bloggers rarely make the same recipe more than once. We are in constant pursuit of the Next Big Thing. That exciting recipe that will be pinned, and shared and trafficked like crazy. Our poor spouses wondering why we rarely make their favorites anymore.

Over the weekend I had some readers ask me which recipes I DO make all the time, so here is a list for you.

Ten recipes I make on a regular basis:

1. I made these breakfast muffins last night, as a quick on-the-go breakfast for this week. Less than 200 calories and keep me full until lunch.

2. In one form or another, I make this salad several times a week. It’s my go-to lunch.

3. This is the pie crust I always make.

4. I always make this vegetable gratin for holidays, it was one of my first posts so forgive the photos.

5. When I make layer cakes, this vanilla pastry cream is what I usually use as a filling.

6. This Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake is an easy dessert that I tend to make again and again. And once you make the whipped cream from scratch, you’ll never buy store bought again.

7. I roast a chicken at least once a month. You should too. It is cheap (about $5 and feeds 4), easy and you can make delicious broth from the scraps.

8. Eggs Benedict is a fav of my husbands and I make it at least once a month. This Italian Eggs Benedict with Pesto Hollandaise is a one of my favorites.

9. I’ve also started to make my own tortillas. Not just because they are so much better, but they are also a way to use up that bacon fat I store in the fridge and they only cost a couple of cents to make yourself.

10. And for number ten, I’m including this recipe below. It was so easy, quick and with only 3 ingredients I can’t imagine never making it again. Oh, and super addictive if you love goat cheese and prosciutto as much as I do.

Prosciutto Wrapped Olives Stuffed with Goat Cheese

Ingredients:

24 large (or colossal) Black Olives

6 thin slices of prosciutto

2 oz goat cheese

Directions:

Cut each slice of prosciutto in half, length wise, and then again width wise forming a “T” cut. This will leave 4 sections of prosciutto, about 4 inches by 1 inch for each slice of prosciutto.

Stuff all of the olives with goat cheese.

Wrap each olive with a small slice of prosciutto and secure with a toothpick.

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Spinach Quiche In Red Pepper Cups

06.02.2012 19 Comments

I once knew a man who lived to be 101. We had a bit of an unlikely friendship, since he had reached retirement age long before I was even born. He was smart, funny, and seems to have no concept of the age gap, reminding me that once his hip was better, he would take me dancing and then I would fall in love with him and leave my husband.

Life was a constant opportunity to make people laugh, and he took full advantage of it.

When he moved to Los Angeles in the 1940’s to get his pneumonia stricken daughters out of the frigid East Coast winters, he was without money, without a job, and without an education. He walked in to a Taxi company headquarters and asked for a job. He had a fantastic driving record and a winning smile, in his book, that’s the only resume he needed. As soon as the hiring manager found out that he had only live on the west coast of a week, knew nothing about Los Angeles freeways, and had never driven a cab, he shut down the interview.

"If you don’t know how to get from LAX to the Roosevelt Hotel, how are you going to get the client there??"

Jack responded with this famous smile, "Well if you don’t give me the cab, it’s gonna take a whole lot longer!"

He got the job.

Jack worked as a cab driver, running tourist from the Airport to Hollywood for over 30 years. He was also the very first Employee of the Month for the Cab company, and to date, the recipient of the most complimentary letters ever sent to the cab company about one of their employees.

As I sat with him only a few months before he died, I asked him if he had any regrets.

"Not really. The secret to living 100 years and not regretting anything is this: Do your best. Don’t hurt anyone. Make friends with anyone who will let you."

Not bad advice.

Here is another recipe to make for your friends. Sit together on long Saturday mornings, chatting, making memories and friends that will stay with you, even when you live to be 100.

Spinach Quiche In Red Pepper Cup

4 large red bell peppers (try to find ones with flat bottoms, that will firmly stand up straight when set on a plate)

6 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup heavy cream

3 raw breakfast sausages, casings removed, chopped

1/2 cup shredded Gruyere or Mozzarella, (plus 2 tbs for garnish if desires)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 cup fresh spinach, chopped

1 tbs scallions, chopped

Place oven rack on the lowest position and preheat oven to 350.

Cut the bell peppers in half, across the middle. You can chop the top half of the bell peppers, removing stems and seed, and place pieces in a freezer bag, saving it for a later meal.

Place the bottom half of the bell peppers in a glass baking dish, cut side up. Make sure to use bell peppers that can stand up on their own, or baking them will be a challenge.

In bowl, beat the eggs until well combined. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until well combined.

If you use, chopped frozen spinach, make sure to thaw, rinse and remove as much water as you can, too much moisture won’t allow this to set up.

Place baking dish with red peppers inside the oven. Pour the egg mixture into the red pepper cups until almost full (leave about 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch space at the tops) and sprinkle with cheese, if desired.

Bake for 45-55 minutes or until the center of the quiche no longer wobbles when you gently shake the rack.

Baked Sweet Potato Chips With Cinnamon Caramel Dipping Sauce

03.02.2012 18 Comments

I made these little chips the other day.

The where so cute, slightly chewy and a little crunchy.

And they are even healthy. Only about 7 calorie each. But, no one eats ONE, that’s insane. So, think of it like 70 calories if you have 10, or 140 if you have 20. And it makes you think that you are eating something that’s bad for you, which makes it taste better.

But of course, I got to thinkings. About how much I like to dip things.

And how in love I am with sauces. Even though this Cinnamon Caramel Dipping sauce makes it SO much less healthy, its super yummy. And it’s a good example of that balance thing I’m always running my mouth about.

Baked Sweet Potato Chips With Cinnamon Caramel Dipping Sauce

2 large sweet potatos

Olive oil flavored cooking spray

1/4 tsp sugar

Caramel Sauce:

1/2 cup sugar

2 tbs honey

4 tbs unsalted butter, cut into cubes

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 375

Slice the potatoes as thin as you can possibly make them. Using a mandolin slicer is the best way to do this, as it insures that your potato slices will cook evenly. If you don’t have a slicer, use this as an opportunity to practice those knife skills! Remember that thick slices will yield much different results.

Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil, shiny side up. Spray with olive oil spray. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the baking sheet, making sure they don’t touch each other. Spray lightly with olive oil spray and sprinkle lightly with sugar. Flip the slices over and repeat. Bake at 375 for ten minutes. flip over and continue to bake until the potatoes are browned, about 8-10 minutes. Keep a close eye on your chips, they go from done to burned very quickly.

Make the sauce:

In a pot over high heat, add the sugar and the honey. Stir until the sugar is disolved, do not stir again while the caramel is cooking, but swirl the pan every 30 seconds to redistribute the caramel sauce. Allow to cook until the sugar is an amber color and about 220-225 degrees. Remove from heat and stir in the butter. Add the cream, vanilla and cinnamon and stir until combined and the sauce stops bubbling. Allow to cool a bit before serving.

Printable: Sweet Potato Chips With Cinnamon Caramel Dipping Sauce

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The Best Little Quinoa Salad Ever

25.01.2012 33 Comments

By now, you have probably heard a thing or two about this scandal with Paula Deen. If you haven’t, here is a recap:

Paula Dean was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.

Three years ago.

The number 1 treatment for Type 2 Diabetes is diet and exercise.

She continues to cook large volumes of high fat, high sugar food on TV, in her restaurants and cook books.

She now wants to endorse a Type 2 diabetes drug and "comes clean" about her diagnoses.

The public freaks out.

Although we all have opinions about, well, just about everything and everyone we have ever met, I’m not concerned about Paul Deen. I don’t know her, and it’s none of my business.

But I am concerned about you. And me. And what I feel like is my responsibility to you. I have quite a few "special occasion" food recipes on this blog, made with high fat, high calorie, high sugar ingredients. And I hope that doesn’t give you the wrong idea.

I hope you all read my post about how I don’t eat like that all the time and how I stay in shape.

Learning from someone else’s mistakes is better than making one yourself, the same dramatic positive changes without the mess to clean up. Use her as inspiration, not as fodder for gossip. She is unhealthy and needs to make changes in her life, but that’s her business. How can we take this all in, look at ourself and see how to make our own changes rather than making her the villain? How can we help the people we love who are living unhealthy lives? How can we all be in this together and use it as a way to live better and eat better?

How can we have those uncomfortable conversations with people we love who are killing themselves with food? You know who just popped into your head when you read that. Why haven’t you talk to that person?

Use Paul’s story as an icebreaker in your own life. As inspiration to change.

Whether she decides to change or not, who cares?

I’m glad this came out, but can we stop pointing fingers and starting living better?

Here is my salad, my way of staying in shape. I eat it about 5 days a week in various forms and this one is my favorite.

Chocked full of protein, iron, amino acids, general good stuff. It also keeps me full until dinner.

Best Quinoa Salad Ever

2 cups arugula (or spring greens), chopped

1/2 cup cooked quinoa (Here is how you cook Quinoa the RIGHT way don’t cook it like rice or it will be mushy)

2 tbs pine nuts

1/2 an avocado, chopped

1 oz goat cheese

1/4 cup Pomegranate seeds

2 tsp Balsamic vinegar

Toss it all in a bowl, makes about 2 servings.

Printable: Best Quinoa Salad

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Jalapeno Popper Filled Potato Bites

18.01.2012 10 Comments

Everyone has guilty pleasure foods. No matter how "foodie" you think you are, there is a food that you love, but would never want to be eating if Thomas Keller decided to peek in your kitchen window.

For me, that’s good ole American bar food. Nachos, potato skins, jalapeno poppers, onion rings. Love it. Plus, it just brings up good memories. Do you have any BAD memories of eating chicken wings and drinking a beer?

Here are two of my great guilt pleasure loves, in one bite. The love child of Jalapeno Poppers and Potato Skins.

Jalapeno Popper Filled Potato Bites

12 baby red potatoes

3 tbs butter

1/2 cup chopped red onion

4 cloves of garlic, minced

4 medium sized fresh jalapenos, seeded and chopped

8 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

4 strips of bacon, cooked and chopped (you can leave this out if you are vegetarian)

1/2 tsp Kosher or sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

In a large pot of lightly salted water, boil the potatoes until fork tender, about 18-22 minutes. You want the potatoes to be soft enough to bite into, but firm enough to hold their shape as mini cups.

Remove from water and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Cut each potato in half, down the middle. You want to cut the potatoes in a way that will allow them to lay as flat as possible. The best may to do this is to just place them on a flat surface and see how they naturally want to lay and cut parallel to the surface they are sitting on. If you cut them according to what looks nice, they may roll all over once they are filled.

Once they are cut, remove most of the inside with a mellon baller, leaving enough of the walls and bottom intact to hold the filling.

Make sure and save that potato middles you just scooped out, you will add them to the filling.

In a pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Add the onions and cook until opaque. Add the jalapenos and stir, cooking until Jalapenos are soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir. Add the cream cheese and stir until melted. Remove from heat and add the potato middles and mash with a potato masher until combined. Return to heat and add the bacon, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper and stir until cheese is melted. Allow to cool, then fill the potatoes. Serve warm.

Printable: Jalpeno Popper Potato Bites

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Quinoa Risotto

13.01.2012 23 Comments

Risotto was the first recipe I ever mastered. I was so proud of myself, I could make a recipe without even looking at the directions once. And to this day, it’s my husbands favorite dish that I make, I’m pretty good at it.

And I’ve recently had this fascination with quinoa (you pronounce it Keen-Wa). It’s a pretty amazing little grain, it has protein, fiber, iron, and even has some magical powers. Well, sort of. It is credited with preventing migraines, assisting in rebuilding torn tissues, lowering blood pressure and even promoting fat burning. Pretty much something I want to put in my body on a daily basis.

I make quinoa salads for lunch at least once a week. Chop up whatever vegetables I can find, mix with a 1/2 cup quinoa and some balsamic and I’m set. Even keeps me full for hours.

This dish is a mix of those two loves, risotto and quinoa. To be quite honest, I prefer the rice version, but as far as a quinoa dish goes, this was pretty great. With all of those fabulous attributes that are in quinoa, I might as well call this Magical Risotto.

Quinoa Risotto

3 cups chicken broth

3 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 tbs chopped shallots
3 cloves of garlic, minced

1½ cups Quinoa, rinsed and dried

1/4 cup dry white wine (like Savignon Blanc)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup heavy cream

Salt and Pepper

Place the chicken broth in a sauce pan and bring to a mild simmer, keeping to warm, but not boiling.
In a pan, toast the dry quinoa, stirring constantly, until you can smell a nutty aroma, about 3 minutes.
In a separate pot, add the butter and allow to melt over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until opaque, but don’t allow to brown. Add the garlic and cook until you can smell them, about 20 seconds
Stir in the quinoa, cooking until it is completely coated with butter, don’t allow to brown. About 2 minutes.
Add the wine and cook until the pan begins to dry, stirring frequently. About 6 minutes.
Add a ladle full (about 2/3 cups) of broth into the quinoa. Stir frequently until the broth is almost dry, and then add another ladle full and repeat. This process should take about 15-20 minutes. Don’t leave the risotto while it’s cooking, the rice on the bottom of the pan burns easily. If you run out of broth, just use hot water the same way you would broth. If you have made risotto before, just know that the quinoa version will require less broth.
Once your risotto is cooked through (taste it to verify that the quinoa is cooked), turn heat to low and add the cheese, cream and salt and pepper to taste. Risotto should be soft and wet, not dry like typical quinoa. It should be firm enough to be served as a side on a plate, but soft enough to giggle when the plate is shaken.

Printable:Quinoa Risotto

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Tandoori Roast Chicken

26.12.2011 12 Comments

The holidays are over. I ate. A lot.

Pie, cake, tarts, pasta.

It was amazing. And now it’s time to detox. But I still want warm and yummy comfort food, I’m not ready for cold vegetables and health food yet.

This awkward week, between Christmas and New Years, when the world is still in transition, I am using to step down from holiday excess and transition into my New Years Healthy Eating. This week will be yummy, warm and comforting. Less sugar and fat than last week, but still more that I will allow myself next week.

Sort of a Nicotine Patch for fat and sugar.

This is the perfect recipe for that. It takes some time over all, but your active time is pretty short.

Its impressive, full of flavor, east to make, inexpensive, and low on calories. Plus the leftovers make great sandwiches.

This is also a great recipe for a get together, keep it in mind for your next diner party.

To get caught up on the step by step How To of roasting a chicken (if you have never done it), check out my How To Roast A Chicken post.

Tandoori Roast Chicken

Marinade:

1/2 cup sweet smoked paprika (not bittersweet. Can use a combination of sweet and smoked)

2 tbs corriander

1 tbs kosher or sea salt

1 tbs fresh ground black pepper

1 tbs sugar

1 tbs ginger

1 tbs turmeric

1 tsp cayenne

2 cups plain, non-fat yogurt

4.5 lb whole roasting chicken, thawed, insides pouches removed

1 large oven bag (does not need to be turkey sized)

4-6 cups of water

In a large bowl, combine the first 8 ingredients, stir with a fork until well combined. Add the yogurt and stir again until completed combined. Add the thawed chicken to the oven bag and pour the yogurt over top.

Move the bag around with your hands until the chicken is coated. Tie the top of the bag, making sure to remove as much air as possible.

Place in the refridgerator and chill for 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 425.

Remove chicken from oven bag and place on a roasting rack inside a roasting pan. Brush the entire chicken with a pastry brush to evenly distribute the marinade, making sure the entire bird is well coated.

Pour warm water into the bottom of the pan (avoiding the chicken) until about 2 inches of water is standing at the bottom. Make sure the water does not touch the chicken.

Bake at 425 for about 1 1/2 hours, or until the internal temp reaches 165 degrees. Cover with aluminum foil if the chicken starts to blacken. Allow to rest before carving.

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Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad

30.11.2011 23 Comments

I get asked a lot of questions as a food blogger. Some are about food. Some are about blogging. Some are more personal. But one of the most common questions I get asked is, "How do you stay so skinny when you cook so much food?!"

First, it’s hard. Really.

Work, being a mom, a wife, a blogger. AND trying to stay in shape is a lot of work.

A lot.

Here are some of the rules that I use to a balance food blog and skinny jeans:

1. I don’t eat fast food. It is a really rare occasion when I do, and never, ever, ever for dinner. More of a road trip occasion, or an I’m running late so I’m going to grab the one sandwich under 400 calories at Quiznos occasion. And no chips, and an unsweetened iced tea.

2. I always eat breakfast. Once in a while I have fatty things, like that french toast I still can’t stop thinking about. But 5 out of 7 days, its 2 slices of reduced calorie whole wheat toast (or whole wheat english muffin) with 1/2 tbs peanut butter each. For breakfast, you want the trifecta: low cal, high protein, good carbs.

3. I read ALL the labels of everything I put in my mouth. And just assume that you will have more than the serving size. For instance: most cereal puts a "serving size" of 3/4 a cup. Really? That’s less than my cup of coffee. You will probably have more like 2 cups. So that cereal that you think is only 175 calories. It’s probably more like 430. Thats like eating a burger. But at least the burger is worth it. Bottom line, if you are counting calories, measuring your food is a BIG part of that.

4. Snack well. I like to get the most food possible for the least amount of calories. It’s like a game. But I don’t eat a lot of processed foods, and even when I did, those 100 calorie packs aren’t really a calorie bargin. I want 2, and if I’m going to eat 200 calories, I’d rather have a snickers. This is one of my go to snacks: 1 cucumber, peeled and sliced, drizzled with lemon juice, sprinkled with salt and chili powder. It’s like 15 calories. I also do that to radish slices. Crispy and salty. Like chips, but good for you.

5. Know your weaknesses. I know I like to cook big breakfast on the weekend, and eat more for dinner when I get to cook for other people. So on the weekdays, I eat a low dairy, high plant, low fat diet. Such as: Salads with low-cal dressing (or just balsamic vinegar) or even my favorite salsa instead of dressing, non-dairy soups, roasted veggies with skinless chicken.

6. Know your calories. I have the Lose It app on my phone (it’s free) and I try to stay under 1,600 calories a day during the week. Give up calories where you can, but don’t feel like you have "earned" an extra slice of pie. That just ruins all the work you did. The truth is, unless you are an Olympic swimmer who burns 14,000 calories a day, you will never reach your goal weight with exercise alone. Never. You have to get your eating in check. Can you indulge? Sure, once in a while, but make sure you make up for it but eating lots of plants. Don’t starve yourself, it makes your body store everything as fat. So you are hungry and still gaining. That sucks. Think of calories like you think of money. You only have so many (probably around 1,700 a day if you’re a girl) to spend before you go "into debt" (meaning: gain weight). Is that mediocre lunch really worth half of your calorie budget? Do you like that White Chocolate Mocha from Starbucks 600X more than a regular cup of coffee? Because that’s how many more calories are in it (a venti White Chocolate Mocha, with whip has 620 calories, a plain cup of coffee has about 5 calories). Spend where it counts, cut when it doesn’t.

7. Find the WHY. I have a Masters Degree in Psychology. Did you know that? It’s true. The mental part is hard. Probably harder than being hungry, is being unmotivated. Write a list of WHY you want to stay (or get) in shape and post it everywhere, and keep updating it. And talk yourself down when you do want to grab for that bad stuff. Oh, and don’t keep in the house, it just makes it that much more difficult for yourself.

(pretty much my WHY for everything good in my life)

8. Replacement behaviors. This is an important part of therapizing yourself. Find your bad habits and replace them with good ones. For me: 3pm candy jar. My coworkers all have them, and I do as well. Instead of wandering around chatting with the intention of snacking, I walked my office building for 15 minutes, stairs and all. Now, my candy jar is filled with candy I don’t like and I’m not even tempted to eat, just for those people who come to visit with the intention of snacking.

9. Just have one. If you really want to try a new recipe for cupcakes, pie, cookies, thats OK. Try and plan to make them when you can give the rest away. For me, most of the fun of cooking is having a recipe in my head and trying to figure out how to make it work in the kitchen. But most of my food, the sugary, high fat stuff, is given away. Take it to the office, or to a friends house, or let your husband take it to his office. Find a charity, like a women’s shelter, that might want it. Or throw it out. It sucks to waste food, but is it really doing any good taunting you from the fridge? Or, you can make a half or a quarter of the original recipe using an online site like Half Recipe.

10. Move a lot. Even though exercise doesn’t burn as many calories as we would like, it’s still important to move. For me, it’s spin class. Because it’s the most amount of calories I can burn in the least amount of time. If I really push myself, do everything that spin guy is yelling at me to do, I can burn nearly 700 calories in an hour. Thats a lot. Do that 3 times a week and thats 30 lbs a year. Find something that you will actually do, and do it. A lot. Spoil yourself with dance class, then treat yourself to shrimp cocktail (fairly low cal treat).

11. Water is essential. Get a water bottle and carry it around like a security blanket. First, it flushes out your body. Second, the human thirst reflex is so weak, it is often mistaken for hunger. Drink a lot of water and you will eat less and glow more.

Now onto the recipe. This makes 2 large entree sized portions, at about 330 calories each, or 4 side salad portions at about 165. If you want a little more, you can add 3oz grilled skinless chicken.

Sweet Potato Quinoa Salad

1 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

1 cup cooked quinoa

1 tsp fresh sage, minced

1 1/2 cups fresh kale, chopped

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1 large roasted red bell pepper, chopped

2 tbs shallots, minced

2 tbs balsamic vinegar

2 tsp raw honey (sub agave for vegan)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Boil the sweet potatoes in a large pot of lightly salted, boiling water until fork tender, about 5-8 minutes. Remove from water with a slotted spoon, allow to drain. I did a guest post of Eating Rules about the proper way to cook quinoa, if you are interested.

In a large bowl, combine the quinoa, sweet potatoes, sage, kale, cranberries, and red pepper. In a small bowl, add the shallots, balsamic, honey, salt and pepper, stirring to combine. Drizzle over the quinoa salad, tossing to coat.

Legal Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionsinst. The ideas presented here are just what works for me.