mexican stuffed peppers

i LOVE stuffed peppers. like, seriously - they're one of my favorite dishes. 
i also love mexican. 
combine, the two? yes, please!

i could spend hours browsing through pinterest for the perfect mexican stuffed peppers, but decided i would just 'wing it' and make my own!

and of course, everything is better when you can just throw it in the crock pot all day!

and when you only need a few, staple ingredients.
all four of these can always be found in my pantry!

omg, drool.

ladies & gents:
the perfect mexican stuffed pepper.
[that's actually kinda healthy!]

4-5 peppers

1lb ground turkey

1 can black beans - rinsed/drained

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can corn - rinsed/drained

1 can tomato sauce

1 small onion - diced

handful of cheese

hollow the peppers out and place them in the crock pot!

mix up the ground turkey [yes, raw], beans, tomatoes & corn.

fill up the peppers!

pour the tomato sauce all around [you could really get by with only using half of the sauce]

cook: low 8hrs

          high 4hrs

top them bad boys with a handful of cheese right at the end

and ENJOY!

a different lasagna

if you follow me on Facebook, you'd know that i've never had cottage cheese before. i decide to buy some but could never bring myself to open the container and take a bite. so, i decided to make lasagna with it. i had heard of it being done before, but again, it was something i'd never done. 

here's my easy-weeknight lasagna - but with cottage cheese instead of ricotta!

start with 1 pound of ground meat - this is deer. 

as you can see i threw in a little bit of green peppers and onions. i like to throw in just a small amount because then it goes undetected by my kids! ;)

also - boil a pot of water and cook your lasagna noodles!

next - add your favorite tomato based sauce. this is Target brand tomato and basil! let that simmer while you're doing the rest!

next - mix your 3 cups of cottage cheese with 2 eggs, 1/2c parmesan reggiano cheese, 1tsp salt, few grinds of pepper and few shakes of italian seasoning! 

now we're going to layer! 

4-5 noodles, half of the cottage cheese mix

1 cup mozzarella [side note: i happened to have fresh mozzarella in my fridge. i decided to use it since it would go bad if i didn't. typically i use shredded mozzarella since it's what i have on hand and this is an 'easy-weeknight' meal!]

and then half of your meat/tomato sauce!

repeat your layering once. you'll end with meat sauce. you can either top that with some parmesan and bake - or top with another layer of noodles and then parmesan. whichever you prefer! once you're assembled, cover the dish with foil and bake for 30-40 minutes on 350.

we obviously devoured it before i remembered that i should have taken a picture for my blog! next time, folks! ;)

my day - in food

as i may have shared, i am on a mission to get my pre-baby body back. that meant joining a local gym (with daycare!) and changing my eating habits.
i don't follow a specific 'diet'; i just eat as clean as i can. i have also tried to cut out gluten as much as possible as it makes me feel really full/bloated. 

so some examples of how i eat:

breakfast - egg white omelet with red onion, tomatoes, portabella mushrooms and jalapeños! NOM. 

 [i didn't take a picture of my 'after' omelet because they never look pretty. haha!]

lunch - pre-cooked chicken breast*, one slice of cheddar cheese, 2 slices of apple and 1tbsp dijon mustard. grilled [on UDI's gluten free bread] to panini perfection!

dinner - taco salad. i use target blue corn chips (gluten free), ground deer meat (that my hubby killed!) and fixins such as: lettuce, tomato, avocado, jalapeños, kidney beans, shredded cheddar and a dollop of sour cream. of course, my eyes are always bigger than my stomach at dinner. i didn't even eat half. :sigh:

i also had a post-workout Arbonne protein shake [1/2 chocolate, 1/2 vanilla and 1tbsp of PB2] mid-day!

if you'd like to follow along this clean-eating, pre-baby body challenge - you can be my friend on My Fitness Pal - kaleysalene - :)




*we grilled some chicken earlier this week. it was grilled with olive oil, salt and pepper. DELISH. i love having pre-cooked chicken available to eat for lunch! 

teriyaki goodness

I love teriyaki and have searched for a gluten free bottle all over - with no luck! so, I decided to make my own! 

1 1/2 cups water 

1/2 gluten free soy sauce 

1/2 to 3/4 cup brown sugar 

1 tsp garlic

1 tsp olive oil 

2-3tbsp corn starch (preferably non GMO)

mix all in a pot and being to boil a whisk constantly! 

---

and now a recipe I stole from my good friend mande j! :D 

1lb lean beef steak - or in my case deer

1 zucchini 

1 squash

5 portabella mushroom slices

1 cup tri-colored quinoa 

chop the first 4 ingredients and cook in teriyaki sauce! 

cook the quinoa in 2 cups water 

mix all together and throw in the crock to keep warm! DELICIOUS and healthy! and gluten free! 

sweet chili chicken wrap

once upon a time I had a delicious wrap from McDonald's (gasp, I know ...)! albeit tasty, I am sure it was made with disgusting ingredients! so, I decided to try and recreate my own and recreate I did!! it was actually SO much better than yuck-Donald's! 

Sweet Chili Chicken Wrap

[251 calories if using 2tbsp chili sauce]

1 - 100 calorie tortilla

2oz boiled, chunked chicken breast 

5 or so - thin sliced cucumbers 

a bit of lettuce 

1-2tbsp - Mae Ploy Thai sweet chili sauce 

layer, wrap and enjoy!

-- I've also added sliced avacado before and it made it all the more delicious! -- 

chicken n dumplins

this is one of my favorite recipes - ever!! my mom used to make it all the time :) you can really make your broth however you'd like and add whatever veggies you like but here's how I do it!

1lb chicken breast
2 cups chicken broth (I make my own and freeze)
1/2 bag of carrots
3 celery stalks chopped
and any extra water as needed
salt and pepper to taste

I put everything in the crock and let it cook all day long!
about an hour before dinner time, I transfer to pot on stove. bring to a boil - you will probably have to add some more water at this point!

while that's heating - mix 2cups bisquick and 2/3cup milk. I also throw in some garlic and oregano!

drop by spoonfuls into the boiling soup. reduce heat and cook for 10 minutes. cover the pot and cook an additional 10 minutes!

it's so easy and the dumplings are SO good and fluffy! ;) &&& my kids tore it up! kullen even asked for seconds!

cleansing

a couple months back, i was introduced to a product called Arbonne. it was mostly skin care but then i learned they had a wellness line. after talking and talking about it - i decided to host a party, mainly for information on the wellness - and for host rewards! needless to say - i ended up getting the 3o day feeling fit kit - a body cleanse - along with a few other awesome products. after much debate, i decided that a 30 day cleanse was a little MUCH for me - considering i had never done one before. i decided that i would break the cleanse down into three 10 day cleanses - doing a 7 day cleanse in between. 
[difference between 10 day and 7 day is the 7 day is a drink that you drink throughout the entire day ... where as the 10 day is protein shakes and gluten/dairy free dinner - *in my own nutshell]

so, today is DAY ONE. 

8:00am:  half vanilla, half chocolate protein shake (breakfast)
10:00am: pomegranate fizzy stick
11:30am: one chocolate fit chew
12:30pm: half vanilla, half chocolate protein shake with half a banana added (lunch)
2:30pm: one chocolate fit chew
6:15pm: 4oz chicken breast with basil, mushroom & garlic and 1cup coconut, almond quinoa. (dinner -- recipe to follow)
7:00pm: 1 cup herbal detox tea

exercise:
9:00am - 10 minutes cardio. various exercises (squat jumps, high knees, jumping jacks, butt kicks) as well as 50 crunches.
this doesn't seem like much but for someone who doesn't work out at all - it's a start. 

i'm also debating joining the new planet fitness that is about to open for only $10 a month OR purchasing this instead. a bigger part of me is leaning towards the exercise bike at home. planet fitness is a good deal but they don't have a daycare. i'd have to wait until adam got home and go which can sometimes be stressful on us both. having a bike at home would allow me to get 30-45 minutes of cardio while kullen is at school. 

why am i doing this cleanse? i know it's not the answer to my problems - but i think it will be a good start for me. 10 days of restrictions is going to be tough for me but will allow me to realize there are plenty of good WHOLESOME foods - not just processed/boxed things.

i have really been stressing about the ONE meal a day that isn't planned for me. you'd think i'd be excited. i really love to cook and love the taste of a good meal so it's tough with so many restrictions. (example: i can't throw teriayki sauce on my chicken. i can't use a packet of taco seasoning - or even have tacos for that matter because i can't have tortillas, cheese, sour cream or even meat - BLAH!) i know that once i get in a routine of exercising and eating healthier - i will be able to eat that stuff again. i do not have a gluten or dairy allergy but for the purpose of the cleanse, i can't have it.

i plan on keeping a day-to-day diary of this cleanse. 
today has been really rough mentally more than anything. knowing that i can't have chick-fil-a or chocolate for 10 days feels like it's the worst thing in the world but i know how silly that is and am determined to get through these next 10 days with a happy attitude. 
if not, i'll use an extra pump of my prolief hormone cream! [BAHAH arbonne plug]

i also want to share my gluten free and dairy free dinner recipes on the interwebs in case someone else is doing this and is struggling finding good things to make! 

GLUTEN FREE/DAIRY FREE MUSHROOM CHICKEN:

2 chicken breasts - sliced in half length wise
1tsbp extra virgin olive oil
4-5 baby bella mushrooms - sliced
1 tsp garlic
6-8 leaves basil - chopped
1 slice lemon 
1/4 - 1/2 cup water - as needed.

put EVOO in pan along with some garlic juice - saute chicken until just about done - squeezing lemon slice over mid-way through.
add garlic, mushrooms, and basil - add water if needed - continue cooking on medium for 5-10 minutes COVERED until everything is cooked. check pan throughout cooking and add water if necessary.
season with salt/pepper if you want. i don't like salt so i just used some black pepper.

coconut/almond quinoa. 

1 & 1/4 cup silk almond milk with coconut
1 cup quinoa

[cook per package making sure not to boil over.]

it was actually pretty good all things considering. that was my first time having quinoa so i wasn't used to the texture at first but ended up really liking it!

here's to day two ... 


[also: these are my own thoughts. i was not paid or sponsored in any way by arbonne for this blog/review.]

apple butter

believe it or not, y'all - I have never had apple butter! well, okay, maybe I've tried it over the last [almost] 28 years but not that I can remember!
regardless, I decide to make a batch with some of the apples we picked!
OH.MY.GOSH! I am in love!!!!! & it was super easy ... I thought I messed it up by leaving my crock pot on all night but it was perfect!

I peeled, cored and chopped enough apples to fill up my crock. then drizzled with pure honey and cinnamon! I let it cook, covered for about 8hrs. then I took the cover off and let it continue to cook overnight - around 10hrs! I ran it through my blender just to make smooth and put into a mason jar. &&& taaadaaaa! amazing-ness in a jar!

frozen yogurt puffs

http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/03/frozen-yogurt-dots.html

I have seen this all over pinterest and, of course, wanted to try but never did so. well, not until yesterday! kullen wanted some of Rhys' yogurt puffs so I let him try. well, of course he loved them and wanted to eat them all and that's when it dawned on me. let's make you your own puffs!

so we went into the kitchen, grabbed two strawberry gogurts and squeezed them into a plastic bag. I cut the corner off and squeezed little
dots onto a cookie sheet. we popped them in the freezer and a little bit later, kullen had his very own yogurt 'puffs'!!

they were quick, easy and really good! they melt really quick though, which was okay because we, of course, gave Rhys a few! ;)

the 'egg mcmuffin' of egg cups!

i have pinned a couple different varieties of 'egg cups'
and have been itching to make them! 
[especially since i picked up a double pack of eggs from BJ's at my last trip!]
i also picked up some packaged ham slices [that was conveniently half off and only 50cals a slice!]

and cheese [forgot the scallions]
and set out to make them this afternoon!


here are the ones that i pinned:

Source: thesimpledelights.com via Kaley on Pinterest

Source: familyfun.go.com via Kaley on Pinterest

and what i did was ... kinda .. combine the two!
i wasn't sure about the runny middles of the first one [for kullen anyway, i enjoy a nice run!] but wanted the ham outsides. since i had the ham outside, i didn't need to add any meat like the second one suggests but i did add cheese, onion, milk and scrambled it all together before pouring into my 'ham cups'.
i think i used too many eggs because after filling my 'cups' - i had leftover egg. i am a 'waste not, want not' girl so i just decided to over flow my ham cups ... and the result wasn't as pretty as pinterest [of course, right?!] but the taste was amazing!! 
glad i'll have twelve eleven of these to last through the weekend! :)


here's my version:
12 slices ham
11 eggs
1/2c milk
1/2c shredded cheddar
little bit of onion - chopped really thin!
salt and pepper


preheat oven to 400degrees
spray muffin tins with pam!
put ham slices into bottom

mix eggs, milk, onion, cheese, salt and pepper - mix well!

pour into ham cups - overflowing is allowed ;]

bake for 20 minutes. if they're still runny-ish - bake until done!
scrape around edges to 'pop' out!

 and as you can see, they aren't perfect - but they're REALLY good and easy. i can make one for kullen in the morning within 15 secs and the hub can grab a couple to go for breakfast on his way to work! not only that, they're healthy!
next time - i think i will double the recipe and try freezing half. i'm curious to see how they would do frozen!



thanks pinterest!
i saw, i pinned, i DID!

pfchangs - pssshhhh

nom. I made lettuce wraps tonight! they were really easy too! I used beef but chicken can easily be subbed!

1lb ground beef and an onion chopped and browned/drained! add:
2 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
mix well

for sauce:
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup warm water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon hot water
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced

mix first seven ingredients and refrigerate until ready to eat! just before serving mix last three and add to sauce!

cut large pieces of lettuce, put beef mixture in middle and pour sauce over, roll up and enjoy! :)

feature!

happy monday! :)

i am being featured over at great expections today!

head on over and check out my quick recipe of the week!

when kyna emailed me and asked if i wanted to participate

there was no question!

my blog started off as partially a cooking blog

and i have totally lost focus of that.

i am looking forward to much more recipe posts

and continuing to cook my way through an entire cookbook!

let kyna know you're visiting from rogue poags!

and definitely make sure to let me know if you try my recipe

and if you like it!

strawberry cream cheese squares

i got my usual email from pillsbury last week and a strawberry cream cheese dessert was featured. it looked SO good so i decided to make it for easter! 

YUM!

strawberry cream cheese dessert squares

1 roll (16.5oz) Pillsbury fridge sugar cookies

2 packages (8oz each) cream cheese, soft

1/4 c - sugar

1c - strawberry topping (from 11.75oz jar)

2 - eggs

1 container (16oz) cool whip - thawed

couple drops of red food coloring, if desired

heat oven to 350.

roll cookie dough out and press into bottom of 13x9 dish. 

in bowl (or kitchen aide mixer!) beat cream cheese, sugar and strawberry topping on medium speed for about 1 minute. add eggs and beat for another 2 minutes or until creamy. spread evenly over cookie crust in dish.

bake 30-35 minutes and cool one hour. 

in bowl (or kitchen aide mixer!) mix cool whip with remaining 1/4c strawberry topping and food coloring. spread evenly over top and fridge 2hrs.

ENJOY! :) 

click click click!

insta-dessert

i'm sure you've all heard/read about the 'microwave chocolate cake in a mug'. i have gotten the email circular a few times and always thought about making it; but never did. until tonight! ;]

i wanted to make kullen [and myself, hehe] a little somethin sweet since he ate 3 [kullen-sized] helpings of cabbage&potatoes! unfortunately, our oven is out of commission so i am limited to what i can make. since we have no ice cream [or anything else unhealthy tasty] i immediately thought of the microwave chocolate cake!

i mixed all the ingredients together in a [microwave safe] coffee mug:

4tbsp: flour

4tbsp: sugar
2tbsp: baking cocoa
1egg
3tbsp: milk
3tbsp: flour
3tbsp: chocolate chips [optional, and you KNOW i opted]

microwave for 3 minutes! i put a paper towel down thinking it would 'run' but it didn't. just rose and then sunk back down afterwards.

take out of mug and enjoy! :]

suggestions: [which i didn't follow]

-make sure you stir bottom corners of mug - otherwise you'll have some flour lumps.

    -spray mug with cooking spray/pam. would probably help the cake to slide out easier.

    -keep ice cream on hand, it would have been delish!

not your moms taco salad

cuz it's MY moms :)

this is one of our favorite meals here in the poag house!

& it's SUPER easy!

brown your ground beef and drain.

add a packet of taco seasoning and half the amount of water called for. substitute catalina dressing for the remaining portion of water.

add 1 can of drained kidney beans.

place meat mixture atop crunched tortilla chips - top with your favorite toppings. ours include cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream and extra catalina dressing! [&sliced jalapeno's for the hub!]

NOM!

don't forget to vote - it's SUPER quick, no registration just click kullen and VOTE!