Tastefully Simple

I decide today due to the fact that I'm always buying the products and have been talking about doing this for a while... I'm officially becoming a tastefully simple consultant. 

I have the support from Brad, I just need to gather a good network to build a business. Right now, my schedule is a little hectic but I am always up for parties on week nights. 

Tastefully Simple has changed in the past few years, adding less party foods and more real meal dinner options. Not only can you enjoy their classic appetizers and dips but now also enjoy meal planners and freezer meals. 

I'm really excited about this venture and hope I can get the support I need to make it a great part time business. Once I get set up, I'll post more information. 

I also will use this blog as a place to showcase various recipes and teach you how to make them with the Tastefully Simple Products! 

Let me know if you would be interested in being one of my first hosts! I need somewhere to start. 

In the meantime, keep cooking! 

Skillet meals!

Done with the spring semester, so I have a week until the next semester! I am exactly half way done with my masters program! 

Since I have been pretty busy, I have been making skillet meals. I am still following the 21 day fix clean eating and I never seem to get enough veggies during the day! My skillet meals consist of meat, and about three or four types of veggies and sometimes pasta! 

I put all this stuff into the skillet, including uncooked pasta. My new favorite veggie is canned diced tomatoes. Putting the tomatoes in adds a little liquid which helps cook the pasta.

Tonight, I made a turkey sausage, mushroom, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, onion, and green peppers and pasta. I added cilantro, parsley, pepper, and oregano. Brad was a huge help! I love that he enjoys being in the kitchen with me. He learned how to cut peppers from the food channel, so I asked him to cut them and he also cut the sausage. Sausage is definitely nothing something I'm used to cooking or prepping so it was much welcomed. :) 

I cooked it down for about 25 minutes. It turned out so good! It was a little soupy because I added too much water to cook down of with it, but lately I was burning stuff for not using too much. Better safe than sorry!! 

This picture is of a taco version. It has ground beef, corn, tomatoes, onions, peppers with cumin and chili powder. 

Try some for yourself! Let me know how they turn out! So easy and delicious, about 20-30 minutes, just keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't burn. Ha! 

Keep on cooking. :) 

Crab Cakes!

Hello there!

I just want to post one more Lenten recipe right after Easter. I hope everyone who celebrates the holiday, enjoyed it and got all the candy they desired!

21 Day Fix update: I finished the 3 weeks on Easter! It was such a treat to fit into a blazer that was too tight three weeks before. I lost 7lbs as well. :)

These crab cakes aren't 21 day fix approved, but I had crab and it was Good Friday, so this is what I made:

I used this recipe: Best Ever Crab Cakes

Except.. I didn't use the lemon juice or tarragon. Have you ever tried to buy Tarragon? IT'S LIKE 8 BUCKS! No, thanks, not for one recipe. The lemon juice, although always in supply at my house, is not at Brads and I forgot to buy any.

So, basically I followed the recipe but used basil, and added a little more mayo to make it stick. I used reduced fat clubhouse crackers. I think they were super awesome and Brad agreed. Just be careful when putting them on the burner. I had it up to about 4 - 4 1/2 and they were very crispy. Good, but pretty burnt. The crackers gave it more of  a buttery flavor which I liked and didn't make them seem super dry.

Let me know if you give them a try with any different results!

Simple prepping ideas!

Hello!

It's been a bit since posting. 21 day fix has kept me busy as has school and work. I'm currently enjoying buffalo chicken dip with carrots for lunch.

Yup, you got that right.. I can eat buffalo chicken dip! It's modified... using Greek Yogurt, shredded chicken, hot sauce and mozzarella cheese. I did 4 oz of chicken and 2 oz of Greek yogurt, as few splashes of hot sauce and 1/4 cup of the cheese. It's pretty much the best thing ever. :)

It counts towards 1 red, 1 blue, and 1 green (for the carrots). It's crazy how much you can still enjoy while on this meal plan just with modifications.

But back to the reason I wanted to post. If you are prepping for this plan, I realize I don't want to cook chicken or whatever meat every day.

I have decided to put a big crock pot of chicken with just enough chicken broth to keep the chicken moist. Basically, cover the bottom of the pot and not much more. I put it on low before bed and turn it off in the morning.  It works out perfectly! I have enough chicken for the week, it's shredded so it's easy to put in containers (and use for buffalo chicken dip or wraps). You can always season your individual portions differently so it's a different taste every day.

You don't even have to do this for the 21 day fix or just if you need a quick meal on the go. :)

If you have any other thoughts to make prepping easier, I'm always open to suggestions! Right now I feel like I'm in the kitchen half my days, and it's getting a bit wearing.

Greek Yogurt Cream Sauce

Marisa asked me to add this to my blog even though I don't have any pictures. Last night, I needed to get about 3 reds, 3 greens, a yellow, a blue, orange and a few tsps.  So I had to come up with some very creative dinner.

Here's what I did. I researched some recipes about Greek yogurt cream sauces, then made my own (basically because I didn't have the ingredients, but I might try others later, they look delicious.)  Look up Tomato Creamy Sauce with Greek Yogurt. YUM.

I put 6 oz of Greek yogurt in a bowl and added 3 shakes of basil, parsley, oregano, and garlic with 5 squirts of lime juice. I sauteed mushrooms, sweet peppers, and mushrooms up in EVOO while my orzo pasta was cooking. The diet says to do whole wheat, however I don't have any in my house at the minute, so I just used regular orzo pasta.

I drained the pasta and put it on top of my Greek yogurt mix, then added the veggies and put 1/4 cups of Parmesan cheese and 6 oz of shredded chicken on top of that. I had SO much food. I definitely couldn't finish it all, but I tried. I got to about 5 bites left, and had to stop. I still had to workout and burping Greek yogurt isn't that fun.

I still didn't get in my container goal, which I actually am lowering today. I hopped on the scale this morning and am already down 2 lbs! I am definitely feeling a difference, now if my legs would start working again after Monday's total body cardio fix. I have a lower fix today, it's going to be a struggle but I need to push through!

This nutrition plan is definitely helping with my creative recipes! Being aware of how much and of what you have to eat is a challenge, but definitely worth it! I believe this will become a new lifestyle after the 21 days. :)

Turkey Stir Fry - 21 day fix style

Hi! As I said before I'm on this 21 day fix program from Beach Body. It's portion control and daily exercise for amazing results!

Yesterday was my first day. I'm starting at 222 lbs. I didn't take my measurements, because I don't have a measuring tape, but I'm sure my pants will tell me the results soon! I'm currently at a size 18. I'm hoping to be about 10 lbs down and a size 16 or lower by the end of these 3 weeks!


The way the fix works is you get different colored containers and have a certain number of them a day. See below of the chart of what the measurements are. Orange is seeds and dressings, Blue is healthy fats & cheeses, Yellow is carbs, Red is proteins, Green is veggies, Purple is fruit and Teaspoon is oils & butters.

Containers	Measurements
Orange	2 tbsp	1 oz
Blue	5 tbsp	2.5 oz
Yellow	.50 cups	4 oz
Red	.75 cups	6 oz
Green	1.25 cups	10 oz
Purple	1.25 cups	10 oz
Tsp

You get to eat A LOT of food. There is a chart to figure out how much you get based on your weight and calorie level. I get 1 orange, 1 blue, 4 yellow, 6 red, 6 green, 4 purple, and 6 tsp a day! That's a ton of food. 

For dinner last night, I used 1 red, 3 green, 1 blue, and 1 tsp. I made a Turkey Stir Fry-esque thing. 

As you can see there is a TON of food on my plate! 

I started with 6 oz of ground turkey and fried it up in 1 teaspoon of olive oil. I, then removed the cooked turkey, and put in the almost 4 cups of veggies of broccoli, cauliflower, and mushrooms into the frying pan and cooked them up for about 10 minutes. 

After everything was cooked, I put them on my plate and put 1/4 cup of sharp cheddar cheese over it all.

 

The only thing I'd do different would be to add spices to the turkey, it was a little bland! But other than that, a HUGE plate of food and delicious! 

To learn more about the beach body diet: Go to Beachbody.com 

Oatmeal Breaded Baked Chicken!

Hello! I haven't posted in a while, well basically because I haven't really cooked. Brad's been doing most of the cooking on Fridays for Lent since I'm not really sure how to cook fish! We have very delicious steamed fish and veggies on the grill. Brad continues to impress me with his culinary skills. I definitely lucked out and got a guy who can and will cook, but also enjoys when I cook. I love it!

Saturday, we went to my parents for dinner and to watch Saving Mr. Banks. What an emotional movie! I was not expecting it to be that heavy, but it makes me want to read the books and explore more about P.L. Travers life!

Well as I said at the beginning, my mom is a big reason I cook the way I do. Of course, I'm not just a guest (neither is Brad), in the Mueller house, so she had both of us helping with dinner. I ended up taking over only because Brad didn't know where anything was located then again, neither do I..Mom moves stuff every 3 months or so!

I told her about the 21 day fix which I officially started today, but it was good to have a few days of practice to see if I could actually handle it. (Get ready, I have some SUPER tasty recipes to talk about as I go through this 21 day journey!).

I sent her the list of stuff I can eat, so she made oatmeal breaded chicken and fish.

You start with a dish full of EVOO, and a dish of bread crumbs, oatmeal, cilantro, garlic, basil and parsley. Next you take your raw chicken (I also did the fish, with fresh ingredients), and dip it in the olive oil to coat it, then into the bread crumb seasoning. I used the extra seasoning to coat the chicken after it was on the tray. Put it in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. and Volia! A super healthy but delicious meal! :)

Until next time, I'm going to go enjoy some cucumbers, carrots and hummus! mmm mm.