My new favourite sandwich...what should I name it?

I apologize, my focus has been greatly on food.  That is because I'm really trying to master my relationship with food so that I can achieve my goals of a long healthy life for me and my family.  I will write another post this week on a non-food related item...just not sure what yet.

So weekends.  Whole family at home.  Lots of relaxing and often times we end up slipping on our food.

I will be honest.  I cheated.

I even baked.  I did!  And I will tell you about that in another post where I review a recipe.  :)

BUT, the hubs wanted grilled cheese and onion rings for lunch.  Buddy was ecstatic!  He absolutely loves onion rings.  As do I.  But I'm trying here.  Trying!

SO I indulged in the onion rings.  It's not like we have them everyday.  (We do have half a bag still in the freezer...😋)

But instead of the grilled cheese I looked to Pinterest for other options and came up with my new favourite grilled cheese.

It was still grilled.

It was still cheese.

But I like to think I added a bit more in the nutrient department.

Sliced tomato, 4 thin slices of mozzarella cheese, and sliced avocado on flax bread.

It was so delicious.

So today I tried again slightly different:  Tomato, honey ham, avocado, red onion and marble cheese (we used the mozzarella on pizza Saturday night)  Equally delicious!

What do I name it now???

In terms of eating healthy, I don't believe in fat free.  I don't believe in free of anything.  I believe we need to take the time to learn more about the nutrition in our foods and then add more nutritious food.  There is nothing wrong with eating a grilled cheese sandwich.  But we can add to it and make it that much better for our bodies.  Anyone with me?

Ok, as promised...no more talk of food until I write a non-food post.

photo?  Sure thing.  Cue the drooling!

Food Prep Friday

Fridays won't always be my food prep day.  Saturday or Sunday will most likely be the day.  But I went shopping yesterday and gotta get 'er done.

I still need to establish a routine for groceries.  It used to be that I would shop every two weeks on Tuesdays.  That worked well for us until Winter came and I started working.  Life is so hectic with working.  So now I think Fridays may just have to be the shopping night.  And with Winter, it's hard to find local fresh anything...so it'll likely have to be a weekly chore...have I mentioned how I hate grocery shopping...but I like food.  Oh do I like food.

And following my goal, I bought healthy groceries!

Food prep with two kids running around proved to be quite the challenge.  Next time I will focus on this task on a Sunday afternoon.  So groceries on Saturdays may be the best plan for our family.  At least until the kids are older and more independent...

So, What did I accomplish?

I made baked egg white cups for quick breakfasts or a healthy snack.

I made chicken burrito bowls, and chicken burritos for supper.

I made sauce for  pasta.

And chopped veggies for freezer and fresh to eat with hummus.  Overall I think I did well.  Hoping to do some baking this week to fill the freezer with more quick healthy snack/breakfast options.

Links to the recipes that I made:

https://www.facebook.com/healthylivingtricks/videos/1004771106295249/ <- Egg white cups

https://www.buzzfeed.com/hannahmars/17-delicious-healthy-grain-bowls-that-will-fill-you-up?bffbtasty&utm_term=.dixMrWgZmR#.sb24bjXNeV

https://www.buzzfeed.com/melissaboyajian/this-lemon-chicken-and-spaghetti-squash-is-soooo-good

Let me know what you think of these recipes.

Poached salmon and salad

I went grocery shopping.  YAY!  I have fresh vegetables and fruits and bought some meet to prep some foods.  Stay tuned for that post...hoping to post later today.

Last night for supper I made Poached Salmon and salad.

Now, I am not a culinary goddess...I cheated and bought the salad.  But it was good.  And it was healthy.  And our kids even tried just a little.  They aren't sold on quinoa though.

So how did I do it you ask?  Lemme tell you.  (obviously not the salad part...that is easy.  I went to the cooler section of the produce department and chose the flavour of kale salad that I really really wanted...it was on sale too!  BONUS!)

Making quinoa is like making rice.  2:1 ratio water to quinoa.  I rinsed the quinoa first because I googled and that is what Google told me to do.  

:)

I steamed the brocolli in my stovetop steamer.  Easy peasy!  Kids love their trees!  Battle avoided there!

Now the salmon was just as easy.  I placed about an inch of water in a frying pan that could fit a lid.  Gently set the salmon in the boiling water.  Sprinkled each with salt and pepper and Epicure's Lemon Dilly dip mix (I know a lady, if you need a fix) and then left to cook until fish flaked.  

All was done within the half hour and we all sat down to enjoy our healthy post grocery meal!  

YUM!

Sweet and sour pork stirfry and baked sweet potatoes

Ok.  So everything we make may not be 100% super duper healthy.  But along with trying to eat healthy and lose weight, we also try to eat real home made meals in this house.  And quick and easy along with good for us real food is key.

So, I hadn't yet gone grocery shopping and needed to be creative with the foods in our freezer.

So I made some sweet and sour pork stirfry.

The ingredients in themselves aren't unhealthy, just a lot of sugar in the sauce.

First, start your rice.

Stirfry Ingredients:

4 small (palm size) pork chops, cubed.
salt and pepper.
olive oil (or whatever cooking oil you have, I had olive oil)

Start by frying the pork, sprinkled with salt and pepper.  Stir often until cooked.  (Sorry I didn't take pictures of the steps...)

Remove pork from pan.

Add:

- pineapple chunks (probably about half a pineapple)
- 1 cup green beans (from my mom's garden)

Fry and stir.
- add 1 cup chicken stock.

Once fruit/veg is cooked, remove from pan.

Mix sauce in pan:
- 3/4 cup sugar (add to chicken stock)
- 1/3 cup white vinegar
- 1/4 cup soya sauce
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed in half a cup of cold water.

Cook sauce until thickened.

Stir in pork and veg.  Serve over rice.

And the baked sweet potatoes.  Oh so yum!  Wash, dry and poke with a fork.  Bake at 400 degrees (I lined the sheet with aluminum foil) for 30 minutes.  Turn and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until done.  They were so amazingly sweet.  I didn't even add butter to them, but you could add some buttery goodness with cinnamon.  That would be good.

So there was my first attempt at a new meal this 2017.  

Let me know how it turns out for you.  

(You can substitute the chicken stock for 2/3 cup of water if you do not have chicken stock.  Check out my post on making your own chicken stock too!  I should update with how I make my stock in the crock pot now!)

New Year. New Goals.

This time of year causes people to reflect on the year that just passed and make plans for the future.

My reflection on the year and planning for goals got me thinking, why do we just do this one day a year.  I mean, why not see each day as a new chance for reflection and improvement.

I've said before I don't like resolutions.  I never keep them.  Plain and simple.  And let's be honest, how many of us actually do?

Still, I find myself reflecting and making plans and goals (resolutions, if you wish) for 2017.

Here are some of them:

1.  Of course this one is on the list...weight loss.  For the past I-don't-know-how-many years I have vowed to eat healthy and exercise and lose that extra weight holding me down.  Well alas, this is on this year's list again, so you can guess how well last year went.  I am happy to say that I did not gain any more weight, but I didn't lose.

The extra weight is starting to affect my overall feeling of well being and at my young age, I'm experiencing many aches and pains.  I am hoping that losing weight will help me feel more alive and allow me to be able to play more with my kids.  So Healthy eating and exercise and WEIGHT LOSS is number one on my list.

2.  Organization.  Well well...Domestic Diva sucks at being Domestic...at least in the house keeping department.  So my second goal is to get my home in a state of organization...real organization.  Not organized chaos, as this has been my excuse for a LONG time...and it isn't really fooling anyone...even me, really.  I used to say it's ok because I can find anything I'm looking for, and I probably could, but it would take a long time and our lives don't have the extra time.  So this year I need to get on top of it.  It's going to be hard.   I am going to have to be dedicated 200% to this goal. My OCD should make keeping it organized easier...but to get there will be the challenge.

I have a few projects in mind.  One is my desk/office area.  It is in desperate need of organization....DESPERATELY!

Second is my pantry.  I've got lovely glass top mason jars to get everything into its place!

Thirdly is my new crafting space.  YAY!  More on that later!

3.  More family time.  This should be number one!  I want to devote more of my time to my family.  More games nights.  More impromptu dance parties!  More sliding parties!  More outdoor walks.

4.  More outdoors.  Let's face it, outside is the best medicine.  (Besides Music of course!)

5.  Devotion to daily devotions.  (Should be number one too)

6.  Teach my littlest to use the toilet.  NO MORE DIAPERS!

Ok I'm sure there is more, and it's ok if I can't think of them all right now.  Every day is a new beginning.  I can keep adding as I go.  This list here is a great start to a New Year.

What does your 2017 look like?  Will you be making any changes/goals?

(GIF from http://www.fg-a.com/newyear.shtml)