Put the Lime in the…

May 14th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (1 Comments)

…coconut and drink it all up! ;-D

There was a lot of lime for my birthday–skinny margaritas and lime pie! Perfect for this warmer weather. Sam made me the lime pie, and my Mom got me this cute little lemon-lime tart earlier in the day.

mini lemon tartBy the way, this mini lemon tart is still almost 200 calories! What the heck!

And of course, Psycho Holiday Baker got me the most decadent cake the day before: “Million Dollar Cake”. I am not sure why it is called this. It could be due to the extremely rich layers of chocolate mousse, cheesecake, and brownie!

million dollar birthday cake

million dollar cake

And you got to love this card from my brother telling me that I must eat unhealthy foods on my birthday ;-)

unhealthy birthday card

Earlier in the day we did have some tasty healthier food.

Mat-the-w made some bruschetta with me as his sous chef.

bruschetta with mozarella

cooking dinner at home

vegetable pasta and salad

pasta primavera dinner

Dad made a delicious pasta primavera with the veggies and chicken grilled, and then mixed with the pasta. The key was to top it with smoked gouda! Yum! You can find a similar recipe here.

There was quite a lot of rich food this birthday weekend, including some nachos last night ;-) Hehe. No worries, I already ate some veggies and an apple today. Back to my normal routine.

birthday balloons

So long year 26. It was nice, but now on to year 27!

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What’s for Lunch?

April 24th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (1 Comments)

I am a big fan of packing lunches for my day. I used to pack lunch the night before, but now I mostly do it in the morning. I just make sure I set enough time to do it–and it only takes 5-10 minutes! The payoff is huge. You save calories and a lot of money by eating packed lunches.

I recommend this to my patients all the time, but they complain that it takes too much effort. If it’s not part of your routine, it’s time to create this new habit. It may be a little difficult in the beginning, but it will get you feeling healthier in no time :-)

People are always wondering what I am eating for lunch, so I will post a few examples for you. You can also follow me on Instagram where I post many of my lunches ;-)

Brown Rice “Pizza” Tortilla

This was one that I made on my day off in the toaster oven. A brown rice tortilla, topped with fat free ricotta, sun dried tomatoes, spinach, sliced peppers, onions, and then topped with some cheese at the end.

wrap as pizza

tortilla as a pizza

Turkey Burger Salad

This is a typical lunch leftover. I usually will take whatever leftover dinner meat/protein that we have cooked and put it on top of some salad greens. A little crazy, but it is super easy.

turkey burger salad

Whole Foods Lunch

This is not really a pack-a-lunch meal, but Whole Foods lunches can be a treat from time to time. I usually get some type of kale salad with a protein source like tuna (pictured below). and of course, a kombucha to drink. The salad was only $4!! The trick is to fill it mostly with greens that don’t weigh that much.

lunch at Whole foods

Black Bean Burger Leftover Lunch

This is another leftover lunch from when we made homemade black bean burgers. I added a side of Brussels sprouts, all on top of  a bed of spinach. On the side, I think I had some salsa and light sour cream.

homemade black bean burgers

Lighter Tuna Salad

Most tuna salad can be crazy high calorie because of all of the mayonnaise. But, we make ours with a light or olive oil mayo and some other seasonings (and some mustard).

Just another typical lunch of a protein on top of some veggie or greens!

healthy tuna salad

I use very little dressing due to the flavor of the other ingredients. And, I don’t like when my lettuce gets soggy.

You may be asking where are all of the carbohydrates? Well, I usually eat fruits and nuts for my snacks during the day, and more carbs in the morning and evening (example: oatmeal and sweet potatoes). If we had leftovers that work well to bring to lunch, I will include it (for example: beans or quinoa). I usually pack some sort of side to my lunches–maybe another fruit or random healthy snack like Mary’s Gone crackers!

My lunch bag is similar to this one below. I like it because it looks more stylish and like a purse–not a diaper bag or lunch box!

What is your typical lunch?

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Coconut Oats and Pollen Week

April 13th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week | Healthy Living - (0 Comments)

Did you know that bee pollen may actually be good for us? I know, it sounds ridiculous. But, I got to thinking about it after this pollen filled week. Here is Georgia, the pollen count reached 8000 and we are at peak pollen season. It’s fine if you don’t suffer from allergies, but for those who do, we kept up inside. Blurgh.

Total Pollen Count for 4/11/2013: 8024

Anyway, fyi, bee pollen is thought to be the next up and coming superfood due to its antioxidant content, and mysterious supposed healing qualities… We can not really say for sure what it may be good for, but a lot of scientists and doctors have been experimenting with it in areas such as in chemotherapy healing.

So, before the pollen hit, we got engagement pictures taken in the most beautiful spring weather!

engagement photo

And, in the meantime, I have been neglecting my blog. Poor blogosphere… Oh well, sometimes it is good to take a break.

…Just like I took a break from eating oatmeal. Sometimes I’ll eat oatmeal for weeks, then I take a month long break until I find a new way to cook it. Well, I have discovered a new oats creation!

coconut oatmeal

Coconut oats!

Cook some plain oats with your favorite milk (or water), add a pinch of cinnamon, 1 packet of stevia, and add 2 Tbsp. of unsweetened coconut. Make sure the coconut you buy is the unsweetened flakes in the bakery isle. Heat for a few minutes as needed, and enjoy! I usually stir in 1-2 Tbsp. of chopped walnuts to make it more filling.

The coconut is nice because it adds a little bit of fat to make it satisfying and a hearty breakfast. Have you tried adding coconut to your oats?

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Spring Break Eats

April 3rd, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (0 Comments)

The past Easter weekend, I headed to the beach with my family to a short break. We went to Destin, Florida area which is also near the location for my wedding this Fall. So, I got in a little wedding planning while I was there. But, mostly, we relaxed and enjoyed the ocean and the food!

On the way there, we passed this disgrace:

hardees pork and biscuit

Pork and gravy biscuit? Eww, no thanks.

I brought my seed crackers for the ride down, and my sister enjoyed her Twizzlers ;-)

healthy cracker for travel

I was happy to get to the beach and enjoy some shrimp!

steamed shrimp

We went to Shake’s after dinner. My family and I love Shake’s–the ice cream is so creamy and is more of a “custard”. We only get to have it when we are near Destin!

So, don’t freak out about this less healthy option.

Shake's hot fudge sundae

I will say that they have increased their portions. The “regular” size used to be smaller than this, so we were all surprised when we got this huge ice cream!

Yum! Then, the next night I ordered salmon and asparagus.

salmon on cedar plank

We enjoyed some wine most every night ;-) And took plenty of walks and went for a few runs.

Rosemary Beach restaurants

For Easter, Psycho Holiday Baker brought a huge Costco size Jelly Belly container. And Dad picked up some Donut Hole treats. They are known for their key lime pie, but also have tasty donuts and baked goods. I eat mostly fruit and some natural peanut butter, but enjoyed half a chocolate coconut donut!

Donut hole donuts

It was a fun weekend, but now it’s back to the day-to-day normal routine!!

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Eats this Week: Best Salad Ever and The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

March 4th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (0 Comments)

We had a lot of tasty eats this week! Mr. Cyclist and I discovered that if you roast little mini peppers they become even more sweet and delicious.

We ate them with a turkey burger (I left off the bun because I was saving room for chips hah):

turkey burger with roasted peppers

All you need to do is get the big bag of mini peppers from Costco or your local grocery store (if you can find them there) and then roast them on a baking sheet in the oven under the broiler until they brown. We add some olive oil and a few spices.

Next, we added those same peppers to what I am calling the best salad ever (for the moment anyway).

shrimp avocado salad

Lemon shrimp, avocado, Romano cheese, roasted mini peppers, spinach, onion, sun-dried tomatoes and a few olives. So tasty!

For another dinner, we took more avocados and put them on top of a vegetable omelet.

omelet with avocado

Served with a side of spiced black beans for a complete meal.

Last night, Psycho Holiday Baker made a batch of some of the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever had. Even my Dad couldn’t stop eating them! And he doesn’t usually care much about cookies. The recipe was from Savory Sweet Life.

best chocolate chip cookies

For today, we went to one of those make-your-own stir-fry restaurants.

At first, I was horrible at putting together ingredients, but now I am a pro. Haha. Anyway, first I made a vegetable and tilapia curry mix:

tilapia vegetable red curry

And then, a second small vegetable mix with vodka sauce! It was amazing:

vodka sauce stir fry

Look at all of those veggies!

make your own stir fry

I don’t think he really liked getting his picture taken.

Now, it’s time to make some gumbo and relax. I already did my exercise by wandering around on a trail in the woods with Mr. Cyclist! Hah. Typical for a day off.

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When’s the last time you had a Philly Cheesesteak?

February 25th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (0 Comments)

What’s wrong with this picture? Haha.

easy cheese

My answer to this question would be… maybe in middle school? I have no idea. It has been forever. My Mom used to cook us that frozen meat and put it all under the broiler. It was delicious.

Since I am not a fan of beef and cheese, I had a modified cheesesteak for dinner. My Dad was kind enough to cook me chicken.

chicken Philly cheesesteak

Then, I topped with loads of lettuce and some spicy sauce.

healthier Philly cheesesteak

I was so excited about the sweet potato fries, that I had already been eating them off my plate before the picture ;-)

baked homemade sweet potato fries

For all of you who are don’t like to eat much white bread, here is a trick I use:

Pick out the fluffy inside of a bun, so that all you have is a bread sandwich “shell” to hold your toppings.

low carb sub roll

Now, compared to my meal, here is my brother’s cheesy less healthy meal. Ugh.

homemade philly cheesesteak

Does not look appetizing to me. Just looks gross. By the way, I was reading the ingredients of the Easy Cheese, and they seem to be a little better now. Easy Cheese is made with cheese, and canola oil now. And, of course, a list of preservatives and chemicals, but it is not as bad as I remember.

We all got excited about Philly Cheesesteaks, and were rushing to get to watch the Oscar’s that this happened:

dropped eggs

Whoops.

When I came home after the Oscar’s, the cats were loving their new Banana Republic shopping bag!

cat in shopping bag

cat in bag

Until tomorrow bloggies!

Going to start working on getting ready to get in my bikini at the end of March when I go to the beach. So, I will be posting some beach body worthy foods and recipe ideas starting Monday!

Until then…

cat in a shopping bag

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Eats this Week: Oat Creations and Spaghetti Squash

February 17th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (0 Comments)

This past week i made homemade granola, so I had a small bowl with bananas and almond milk:

granola with almond milk

Up next, I made this antioxidant-rich oatmeal with mixed berries and walnuts:

berry oatmeal with nuts

I added some cinnamon and 1 packet of stevia to even out the bitterness from the berries.

For a snack, I had my favorite ants on a log snack since I had some peanut butter in the house (I usually only have almond butter around).

ants on a log healthy

The night before Valentine’s Day, Mr. Cyclist whipped up some homemade green curry. Again. Yes, once again!

homemade green curry

Served with black rice, avocado, and basil garnish! YUM. We have decided that we are a little tired of those flavors… for now.

I made the same type of spaghetti squash as I did last week because I enjoyed the flavor combinations so much.

healthy spaghetti squash

If I haven’t posted this recipe yet, I will because so far this is my favorite way to cook it. Sun-dried tomatoes and onions! A perfect combination in the squash. I served it with some low fat ricotta for protein.

What did everyone do on Valentine’s Day? I dressed up in red for work that day:

Valentine's Day outfit

For dinner, we made salad with shrimp and avocado:

shrimp and avocado salad

One of my favorite salads!

For a sweet treat, I brought Mr. Cyclist some mats to make s’mores!

healthy s'mores ingredients

Did you know that most all graham crackers contain trans fat? YES, terrible. So, I got these Mi-del graham crackers that are much healthier. The marshmallows are still full of corn syrup, but what can you do?

s'mores healthier

They are pretty fun to make in a toaster oven. No, I do not have a fireplace.

Yesterday morning, Mr. Cyclist walks in the bathroom as I am just rolling out of bed, and says, “I made huevos rancheros”. Haha.

healthy huevos rancheros

Eggs with tomato, onion, spices, avocado on top, and a brown rice wrap!

By the way, I got a new phone, so I now have Instagram. Hence, the reason for some pictures with silly filters. I don’t care if people don’t like it because it is just a fun thing to do! You can find me on Instagram here.

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Weekend Eats: Thai & Painting Inspiratation

February 10th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week | Recipes - (0 Comments)

More curry this weekend!

green curry

I ordered green curry with shrimp, and I was pleasantly surprised. It was loaded with julienned vegetables, had a nice thick sauce, and seemed pretty light for a curry dish.

Meanwhile, Mr. Cyclist was out at another restaurant with some friends eating green curry! Hah! I guess we really love curry.

This is the Thai restaurant I went to North of Atlanta called Lime Juice. It has been under new management for about half a year now, and the food seems to be much better. And everyone is so nice there. It is tucked in a shopping plaza hidden away so you wouldn’t know about it. I highly recommend it for anyone in the Atlanta area.

Afterwards, we went to a wine and painting class. My Dad chatted it up with the wine man, and my sister and I had eagle eye focus on our paintings.

My Dad has this unique painting style. It’s like he’s wanting to paint a Kinkade style house, but ends up with something more pop art style.

dad painting

My painting came out pretty good. I still could have used more extreme lights and darks for better shadows.

diy tuscan painting

Anyway, it was a bunch of fun to see what everyone came up with in the end!

Now, on to food.

Here are some of my meal planning ideas for next week:

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Caitlin turns 25 after the Super Bowl

February 3rd, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (0 Comments)

We went for a walk with Nala and MatTheW up Sawnee Mountain to enjoy the sunshine. I was shocked to find “No Dogs Allowed” signs in many of the nearby parks. So, we had to park at a church and just walk up a road to get to the top of the mountain. Still a great view!

sawnee mtn

When we got home, it was time for an artichoke and spinach appetizer!

light spinach artichoke dip

We had it with some of these brown rice crackers (Food Should Taste Good brand) that I LOVE:

brownricecrackers

For dinner we had a homemade vodka sauce with crab meat served over pasta.

family dinner

MatTheW thought his salad dressing bottle had a shaker top, and spilled about one-third of the bottle all over his salad… Figures. But, at least we could dip our crusty bread in the extra dressing!

spilled dressing

We watched some of the Super Bowl, then had some birthday cake!

happy 25th birthday

family eating sitting on couch

Nala wants some too.

Back to watching the Super Bowl… or the game that shall not be named.

This week I made some delicious spaghetti squash, and will post my new recipe tomorrow. Good night!

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Salmon Dinner Night: Danny Turns 17

January 19th, 2013 | Posted by Nicole in Eats of the Week - (0 Comments)

My little brother, who is not little anymore at all (he is 6’3″ tall), turned 17. This makes me feel old. I know that is silly. I still decorated a cookie cake kid style just to make myself feel even younger.

dinosaur cookie cake

Dinosaurs vs. toy soldiers. Haha. Everyone got a kick out of it. Not healthy, but at least Psycho Holiday Baker made it from scratch.

For dinner, Dad made some awesome salmon “burgers” made from fresh salmon. They were delicious! And much more nutritious.

salmon burger

Since I ate leftover turkey lettuce wraps at 3 pm, and we snacked on brown rice crackers and cheese before dinner, I just ate a small salmon burger with a bed of lettuce.

Of course, Danny would not be eating salmon on his birthday. This is the unhealthy version of the birthday dinner night:

unhealthy onion rings and burger

Danny's Birthday

Anyway, tomorrow I will probably go out for a run to burn off the buttery sugary cookie cake. Going to be beautiful weather here in Atlanta. A nice break from the nasty, cold and wet weather we had all this week.

Tomorrow I will have my guacamole quinoa recipe posted!

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