A few new favorites...

Morning, everyone!  Since we're having a RARE lazy Saturday morning around these parts, I thought I'd hop on here to show you some of my NEWFAVORITETHINGS from the past few days.  Not to mention, I think from this moment on, the weekend is going to be FOOD MANIA.  Might as well share now before my Monday blog looks like a college thesis!

ANYWAY!

The 'I liked it so much, I had it 2 days in a row breakfast':  

1/3 cup pumpkin pancake mix (or any mix!), 1/2 tablespoon chia seeds and enough milk to make a batter consistency which creates 2 nice sized pancakes which are JUST enough to enjoy a 'cake breakfast WITHOUT overindulging.  Not to mention the chia seeds act as an egg replacement, taking out the extra fat and adding in a whole slew of health benefits (and you can't taste them at all, except for maybe a random CRUNCH here or there!)

"Healthy" + festive?  I'm ok with this.  I had them with a little butter since the mix is so flavorful & spiced that syrup isn't really even needed.

I like the idea of being able to HAVE pancakes for a weekday breakfast WITHOUT feeling like I'm blowing my week, ya know?  I love any chance you can get to make "forbidden foods" seem more acceptable, because if I've learned ANYTHING in my weight loss journey, it's that forbidden foods = deprivation = binging.  At least in my calculations.  Nothing is ever forbidden as long as it's kept in a good portion!

On the same token, here's a Flatout wrap pizza I made on Thursday for lunch that I felt fell into the same category...

Cilla's Cooking Chronicles totally inspired this quick lunch of my (OVER) toasted 100 calorie wrap, topped with roasted tomatoes and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and heated until warmed through.  HIT. THE. PIZZA. SPOT for a bazillion less calories!J  So good!

And now my newest FAVORITETHINGEVER, which has been my snack on Thursday, lunch on Friday and yep, even my breakfast this morning:  Wheat toast with a THIN spread of mayo, 1/4 mashed avocado & a sprinkle of sea salt...

I had gotten Gwyneth Paltrow's cookbook from the library the other day, which was where I had gotten the idea of adding the smear of mayo (even if she used soy mayoJ) to avocado toast.  That little bit just gave it that littttllleee extra decadence to put it over the top and feel super indulgent, satisfies any creamy/salty/crunchy cravings and making it very filling.  PerfectionJ

And just a quick cap on our dinners from the last 2 nights:  Thursday brought us Kristin's Apple Almond Quiona...

A mix of maple sausage, diced apples, green onions, chopped almonds, craisins, crumbled feta & quinoa...

I was skeptical serving this to Scott, but after deeming it "busy," he actually thought it was really good once he got used to all the textures...and there were indeed a LOT!

And last night's attempt for a SUPER QUICK dinner, all while keeping the delivery man at bay, was met with a little help from Trader Joe's.  OK...a LOT of help because all I had to do was break these babies out of the freezer...

Boil for about 6 minutes before tossing in a SUPER quick sauce of brown butter & sage... 

I must say, I've made my own version of BOTH of these ravioli varieties, but really may just let the TJ's have at it from here on out.  They both had really flavorful fillings that were perfectly spiced to bring out the tastes of both squashes.  Pick these up in the 'fresh pasta' refrigerator section soon because I doubt there going to last much longer than this glorious season.J

Well, I better shake off my 'lazy Saturday morning' haze and get a movin'!  Hope you guys have fun plans and have a great weekend!J

Busted...

Wednesday Recap:

8:00am:  Coffee with creamer

9:30am:  Breakfast- Protein pancake with peanut butter & maple

10:30-11:45am:  Power Yoga

And it was a GOOD THING I had a hearty breakfast cause this class was SOOOOOO TOUGH!!!  Lots of planks, low planks, push-ups and just a bevy of power moves.  Felt TOTALLY toned after this one...if not totally BEAT!

1:30pm:  Lunch- Salad with cheese, trail mix, olive oil & sea salt

3:30pm:  Snack- Laughing Cow cheese

5:00pm:  Dinner- Roasted butternut Squash & Apple soup & a slice of wheat toast with butter

This couldn't have been easier!  First, I chopped up a butternut squash, apple & onion, coated them with olive oil & salt and let them roast at 400 for about 30 minutes.  Truth be told, I wished I had left them in for about an hour to get really toasty, but time was of the essence and I had to press onJ

Next, I added the squash/apples to a pot along with:

• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup 1% milk
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• Sprinkle of cinnamon & nutmeg
• 5-6 torn sage leaves

Then I hit it all with the immersion and allowed it to come to boil and then a simmer for a few minutes.

Couldn't have been easier for a FALL-Y & cozy soup!  The maple brought out the sweetness of the apples with the squash brought out the savoriness of the butternut squash and onion.

The only thing that was missing was a little garlic.  Next time I'll toss a bulb of garlic on there to roast along with the rest of the veggies.  I think it would have given it that extra touchJ

5:30pm- Body Jam class
Annnddd here's where hell on done broke loose as I was in the middle of dancing away when I felt a sharp pull in my hip.  I kept tryin to dance it out before I decided I should probably stop for the night....which led to a 'code blue' announced on the intercom and being escorted out of the class by the trainers.  Ei yi yi!!!!!  ONLY ME!  Guess I have to cool it off in the workout department for the next few days.

I'm sure this had NOTHING to do with itJ

Have a great Thursday!J

Fall photo shoot commencing...

Tuesday Recap:

8:00am:  Coffee with creamer

9:30am:  Breakfast- Apple with peanut butter

12:00pm:  Lunch- Federici's Pizza

Well, yesterday was just toooooo gorgeous to stay inside.  And since the rest of the week is forecasted to be in the 50's, I just had to get out and let Katie enjoy the gorgeous day.  And OF COURSE, it started with food with my friend & I meeting at Federici's for a pizza (and salad & fries) lunch!

I almost felt like I had cheated on Scott when I had to tell him that I took Katie there for the first time without himJ  hahahahahha  But I told him it'll be an easy sell to go back since she enjoyed it so muchJ

After lunch, we headed to the park to let the kids enjoy running around in the leaves...

And taking the required "fall photo shoot," of course!J

And while we were out, we just HAD to stop for some ice cream at a little bakery shop/apple orchard nearby.  I had held off from buying a half a gallon of pumpkin ice cream for the house (that only I'd really eat.  Scott's not enough of a fan to spoon himself out a dish), but I told myself if I was out & about, I was going to enjoy that ice cream, and that I did yesterday!J

5:30-6:30:  Pilates on the barre

I had taken a pilates on the barre class (a new offering at my gym) a few weeks ago and it was a REALLY fun class that combined 'mat pilates' with enough barre work to let me pretend I was a graceful ballerina (or something like that).  Well, last nights class also included mat & barre work PLUS lots of weights, arm and leg work!  We were barely moving and I was sweating like crazy!  It was sooooooo tough but REALLYYYYYY great!  Can't wait to try it again soon.

And OK, not that it was REALLY needed since I already had enough food for the day, but I also had small bowl of popcorn while we watched TV last night.

"The Biggest Loser" to be exact.  The irony was not lost on meJ

Well, as forecasted, it is indeed a cold & drizzly day.  I forsee something warm & cozy on the horizon for dinner.  Oh yeah, and I think I'm gonna get to packing away my flip flops for the season.  Seeing as how next week is NOVEMBERJ

Have a great Wednesday!

Wedding bells!

Morning, everyone!  Sorry it's been awhile, but it's been a whirlwind over here getting ready for our best friend's wedding this past Sunday!J

To say it was a GORGEOUS & BEAUTIFUL wedding and that we had an absolute BLAST is an understatement!J

We got to celebrate a wonderful wedding of Scott & I's dearest and oldest friends...

...party with our little princess...

...and dance the night away with old friendsJ

Oh yeah...and danced, danced, danced some moreJ  Do I need to say any more after I show you this pic??

Couldn't have asked for a better or more fun weekend!  Certainly memories I'll cherish forever!J

I DO at least have a fun meal to show you in the 'food department' (this whole blog can't just be dance moves & gold flip flops after allJ)  After our Fall Harvest menu success at "That's Amore" last week, there was one more menu in the bunch that completely stood out.  And for me, it was Catelli Duo in Vorhees, NJ.  I LOVE the concept of this place because you can either order one main entree or smaller portions to share & pass around.  SOOOOOOOOOOO my favorite!  But our order of the day was their Fall Harvest Menu (which was actually not available for lunch, so I owe MUCH gratitude to our waiter & chef for still making it for us!  SO NICE!)

There were tender & flavorful meatballs stuffed with short ribs and served over CREAMY polenta and perfectly tangy tomato sauce...

DIVINE! 

Next up was the "Harvest Chopped Caesar," which was a kale, sweet potato & shaved brussel sprout (LOVE me some shaved brussels in a salad!) Caesar salad sandwiched between 2 Parmesan "pancakes."  This salad was light, yet hearty from the kale/brussel/potato mix.  It LOOKED small, but I could hardly finish even half of it.  It was just enough! 

I NEARLY ordered Scott's choice as my entree, but figured I'd still get a taste of the short ribs over butternut squash risotto since he ordered it...(also got to sample the cheese steak eggroll and sweet potato gnocchi which were  fabulous!)

The short ribs were absolutely perfect and super fork tender and the butternut risotto brought just that little bit of extra decadence and a touch of sweetness to this dish.  Sublime!

And my main entree was pretty unique and I though "oh so Fall!": Fig-tastic pizzaJ

Sweet and chewy figs mixed with smoked speck, tangy gorgonzola, creamy pesto all covered in a sweet balsamic drizzzle.  1000 flavors combined that all just work.  So fun!

And finally, our little 'dessert sampler':  A flourless chocolate bomb (which tasted like a truffle), warm krispy kreme bread pudding (which was one of the items that JUMPED out from the menu!) and my favorite- the salted caramel pretzel pudding!

A layer of salted caramel & creamy vanilla pudding all served over a cookie crumb 'crust,' this was the absolute standout of the 3 (even if that bread pudding was REALLY good too!) and the perfect amount to sample of each.  I left feeling full, but not stuffed!  (although, I did try one of my friend's mini zepploes rolled in cinnamon & sugar and that nearly did me in...even if it was tinyJ)

On the exercise front, I made sure I kept up with yoga on Friday & Saturday and I think I burned about 2,000 calories on the dance floor Sunday night because the scale was QUITE friendly Monday morning despite all the 'wedding treats' we enjoyed over the weekendJ  Last night, however, savasana couldn't come SOON enough for my 'Monday yoga.'  I was B-E-A-T!!  hahahahahahha

Alright, well let me scoot and see what today calls for!

Have a great Tuesday!