Vegetarian Taco Pizza

I found this recipe in this month’s edition of Fitness Magazine. Since my favorite protein source seems to be red meat, I try to find other (healthier) options, such as BEANS! This recipe features beans, avocado and tomatoes….you can’t go wrong!

Ingredients:

1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup thawed frozen corn kernels

4 roma tomatoes, chopped into ¼-inch pieces

½ cup chopped scallions (green onions)

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 avocado, diced into ¼-inch pieces

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

16 ounces pizza dough, regular or whole wheat (I used a pre-made wheat pizza crust)

1 cup finely shredded reduced fat cheese (cheddar or Mexican blend)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 and place an empty baking sheet on the middle rack.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the black beans, corn, tomatoes, scallions, cumin, chili powder, avocado, salt and black pepper.

3. If using pizza dough, roll the pizza dough into a 13 inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Place dough (or pre-made crust) on warmed baking sheet. Crimp edges to form a lip at the edge of the crust. Top with bean mixture, sprinkle with cheese.

4. If using dough, back 20 minutes. If using pre-made crust, bake according to package directions.

5. Cut into 8 slices. Serve with fat free or light sour cream if desired.

Per serving (2 slices): 499 calories, 24 g protein, 73 g carbs, 16 g fat (4.7 g saturated), 12 g fiber

Another Movie Review

Saw Just Go With It last night with a friend. It really was really was laugh-out-loud hilarious. In my opinion, it was one of Adam Sandler's funniest films. As always, Jennifer Aniston was great, and it was a totally different role for Nicole Kidman. How can you go wrong with those 3 actors?

The King's Speech

If you haven't already seen it, I definitely recommend it!! The movie really gives the public a feeling for the emotions behind a person who stutters. As a speech pathologist, it was especially interesting to see a portrayal of my profession 60+ years ago. While many things in the area of fluency therapy have changed, there are several aspects of the story that still hold true today. A recent article in the ASHA Leader (a newspaper mailed out to members of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association) outlines many of the techniques that are, and are not, credited in current practice.


Techniques/ideas shown in the movie that are credited in current practice:

• Recognizing that motivation is essential to achieving success in therapy
• Establishment of a supporting, reinforcing, encouraging, and equally-balanced relationship between client and therapist
• Fluency-enhancing techniques such as masking, singing, speaking loudly and cursing
• Desensitization of stuttering through continuous practice
• Involvement of family members (the queen)
• Relaxation, diaphragmatic breathing, and continuous phonation
• Pausing, bouncing, and light articulatory contacts
• Gliding into a word with a short prolongation or starting a word with a slight exhale
• Monitoring of rate of speech, and focusing on "forward moving" speech.
  

Techniques/ideas in the movie that are not credited in current practice:

• Marbles in the mouth
• Smoking to "relax the throat"
• Stuttering is caused by forcing a left-handed child to be right-handed or by a harsh upbringing
• Adult stuttering can be "cured"

For the full article, click here.

veggie-rific fried rice

Every so often, I get a craving for Chinese food, so today, I made my own! A while back, my friend Lindsey recommended the Hungry Girl cookbooks, one of which I recently got for Christmas from my sister in law:
This cookbook is loaded with quick, easy and healthy recipes! The veggie fried rice that I made today is probably one of the most involved recipes in the book, but it still only took 30-45 minutes.


You don't have to go buy the book for the recipe, I will share :)

Ingredients:

1 packet (about 1 ounce) dry friend rice seasoning mix (found in the asian section at the store)
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute, OR 2 eggs beaten
2 cups frozen diced carrots and peas (my mixture had corn as well)
1 cup chopped mushrooms
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 cup chopped bean sprouts
1/4 cup chopped scallions (green onions)
salt and black pepper, to taste:

Directions:

In a small dish, combine seasoning mix, garlic powder, and ground ginger with soy sauce and 3 Tbsp warm water. Stir until seasoning mix has dissolved. Set aside.

Spray a wok or large skillet with nonstick spray, and bring it to medium heat. Add eggs and scramble until cooked, 2-3 minutes, using a spatula to break it up into bite-size pieces. Remove scrambled bits form the wok/skillet and set aside.

Add frozen veggies and mushrooms to the wok/skillet, and cook and stir until mushrooms have softened and all veggies are hot. Remove veggies and set aside with the egg-y bites.

Remove the wok/skillet from heat, re-spray with nonstick spray, and bring to high heat on the stove. Add rice and seasoning mixture, and stir to combine. Add bean sprouts, scallions, and the previously cooked veggies and scrambled eggs, and mix thoroughly to integrate. Cook and stir until entire mixture is hot, there is no liquid left in the skillet, and rice is just beginning to crisp. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Per serving: 167 calories, 0.5g fat, 30g carbs, 8.5g protein, 4g fiber, 4g sugars

**I added some shrimp to mine, but you could also add chicken or beef to make it more meal-like!

Butternut Squash Risotto

My grandma gives me a yearly subscription to Women's Day magazine (thank you, Nano!). I usually find a recipe or two in each issue that I want to try. This month, a recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto struck my eye. I had never had butternut squash or risotto of any kind. But I was very pleased with this new dish! The butternut squash was easy to find in the grocery store. I looked on YouTube to figure out how to peel and cut it (click here to see).

Here's the how-to:

You will need:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 medium butternut squash (about 1 lb), peeled and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
salt and pepper
3/4 cup Arborio rice
1 cup dry white wine
3.5 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
2 tsp fresh thyme (I did not have this and it turned out fine without)
1/4 cup (1 oz) grated Romano (I also did not have this, I just substituted Parmesan cheese)

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until tender, 6-8 minutes.

2. Add the butternut squash, garlic, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until the squash is beginning to soften, 5-6 minutes. Stir in the (uncooked) rice and cook for 1 minute.

3. Add the wine and simmer until absorbed, 8-10 minutes. Add half the broth (1.75 cups) and simmer, stirring once, until absorbed, 8-10 minutes.

4. Add the remaining broth and simmer, stirring once, until the rice is tender and creamy and the broth has been absorbed, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the thyme and Romano. Serve with additional Romano if desired.

Makes 4 servings.
Per serving: 306 calories, 10 grams protein, 44 grams carbs, 10 grams fat (3 grams saturated fat)

Super Bowl Sunday

There was nothing healthy about our game-day food. But seriously, Super Bowl food is just meant to be that way. It was just Kyle and I, and we picked up some "comfort food" at the (very busy) grocery store this afternoon. It was a drawn-out afternoon of eating:

Course #1:
Bob Evans Macaroni & Cheese

Course #2:
Little Smokies

Course #3:
Taquitos with sour cream and homemade guacamole
(ok, so guacamole might be the only healthy part)

20 minute circuit

I was inspired by my cardio class on Friday to do more circuit training on my own. So I created this 20 minute circuit to do at the gym:

0.5 mile treadmill run or walk on incline 3
40 crunches
10 burpees (see demo below)
25 lunges on each leg
1 minute jump rope
15 push-ups
1.5 miles on stationary bike, resistance set on 12
24 bicycles (ab excercise....see picture below)
50 jumping jacks
20 side kicks each leg (see picture below)

Repeat for a 40 minute workout, and do it three times if you're feeling really ambitious! This circuit can easily be modified for lower or higher impact.

Burpee

Bicycle


Side kick

Winter Project

I have yet to print wedding photos for display in our apartment. I wasn't sure how I wanted to do it, but I finally found a fun and creative way to remember our special day. This has been my project over the last month or so.

I found this "Artist's Photo Trey" at Archivers, a scrapbooking store (click here to see more sizes and colors available). Then I just used a combination of what I already had and some interesting things I picked up along the way.

The "C", "k", and "s" were the toppers I made for our wedding cake.


















I kept the wedding announcement from the newspaper that contains all the essential details. The 3 gold keys are not yet glued down....I can't decide where to put them! Ideas?













I found the 2 mini picture frames at Michaels. I painted them to go with the color scheme. I also painted the keys gold (they were originally silver). The backgrounds are just scrapbook paper and the black numbers and tiny gold bead string can be found in the scrapbook department at Hobby Lobby or Michaels. I painted Mod Podge as a protectant/sealer over all parts except the photos.