Homemade No-Sugar Peanut Butter Cups!

31 days of no sugar and no artificial sweeteners!  Only three migraines! 

I am SO excited and proud of myself that I made it a whole month without chocolate and my anti-inflammatory research paid off!  Three migraines instead of eight or more a month is definitely worth the sacrafices!

I'm planning to continue my  no sugar, no artificial sweeteners, so enriched flour products and red meat sparingly.  Also, I am going to replace my regular cow's milk with almond milk.  I tried it this morning with my puffed wheat cereal and it was surprisingly good!

To celebrate my success, I have been hunting down the ingredients to make homemade peanut butter cups. 

So as soon as I got home from work I started in on my special treat.

This is where I found the amazing recipe for no-sugar peanut butter cups...it's at the very bottom of her post. http://asmallsnippet.blogspot.com/2012/01/natural-eating-and-recipe.html. 

She has some great pics and here's her recipe card.



I used 12 tsp. of honey in mine.



Here's the elusive coconut oil.  I couldn't find it anywhere until I went to my local natural food store.  There it was only $10.39 a jar.  A great deal, right? Not.  But if it helps me have a sweet treat I'm okay with it.  Plus the recipe only calls for 3 tbsp of it so I'll be able to make lots of batches.

One would think coconut oil would look like oil.  However, clearly it doesn't.  It does feel VERY oily though.  It would make a great lotion.

Here's my peanut butter cups ready to rock into the freezer.  I have no mini muffin tins so I went for a flat peanut butter cup shape.  Bonus...some of them turned out looking like hearts.  Sweet:)

Here's a close up of my peanut butter heart.

Straight out of the freezer.  Delicious? 

YES!  I give it an A+. 

Definitely making these guys again!

Creamy Mushroom Pasta, Berry Banana Ice Cream & Homemade Pizza

Sundays used to be my least favorite day of the week because it meant that I had to wake up to an alarm the next day, but now they are my favorite day of the week.  It's a day I get to spend the day with my hubby going to worship at church, go grocery shopping, get some good cooking done, read the newspaper, and most importantly, put my feet up and just relax. 

Unfortunately, last night I started to feel "migrainy" and woke up with a big start to a migraine. 

I was desperate for it to not turn into a full blown migraine so I took Tylonol and busted out the ice pack.  It took me through church, but on the way home I started to feel it coming on stronger.  When I got home I took more Tylonol, but to no avail.  It was a migraine.  However, I am thankful because I was able to take my medicine and it worked within an hour. 

Three migraines is way better than ten so I'll take it!

So the Great Migraine Battle continues...

Laura : 26  Migraines : 3

I have been trying to figure out what the trigger was and I haven't had any sugar, got plenty of sleep, exercised regularly and I've narrowed it down.  I think it may have been the huge increase in dairy I have been eating the past couple of days.  The anti-inflammatory research claimed dairy was an inflammatory food, but I didn't want to believe it because I feel milk's calcium and Vitamin D benefits are so important to a healthy diet.  However, I had LOTS of sour cream and butter on my baked potato at Tom's work dinner Friday night plus my fish was swimming in butter. 

I also ate 1/3 of a block of cheese these last couple of days as my snacks.  Then yesterday I made a new recipe...Creamy Mushroom and Shrimp Pasta which has 10 tbsp of butter and 3 oz of cream cheese and washed it down with a nice big glass of milk.  Yeah.  I think the dairy did me in.  So when Tom and I went grocery shopping I got some almond milk to try.  I've heard good things about it so we will see.  It has calcium and lots of vitamins in it and I will continue to eat cheese but will be eating it sparingly.  I will continue to try to figure out these triggers.

Here's my creamy shrimp and mushroom pasta from last night.  Had the leftovers for lunch after church today it was even better the second time around.  I don't even have to convince you to try this because the picture says everything. :)

Here's my afternoon snack...blueberry banana ice cream.  Frozen banana + frozen blueberries + milk + Magic Bullet = yumtasticness (no that's not a word, but it totally describes this concoction)

So I've been telling you all about Tom's famous Sunday night homemade pizzas and I kept forgetting to take a picture before we cut into it and started eating because it's so darn good!  Tonight Tom reminded me to take a picture as soon as it came out of the oven.  His side has pepperoni and Italian sausage.  My side has fresh pineapple.  The crust is Jiffy Pizza Crust and has no sugar :)

We found some great snacks on our grocery shopping adventure this afternoon. 

These are delish and sugar-free!

I got to eat cookies for dessert tonight!!!

On another note, I am wanting to do something different with my hair.  I'm thinking about getting a body wave.  I'm trying to grow it out and the last time I got my hair cut, my hair dresser cut REALLY short layers and I want to do something simple and easy with my hair while it grows out.  A body wave might just do the trick.  Wash, gel, scrunch, go!  Any other suggestions??

2 Weeks of Pre-Planned Meals!

So in the past I have planned a month of meals at a time and then proceeded to shop for a month's worth of food.  I would still go to the store throughout the month for milk, eggs, fresh produce.  My thought was that this would be a great organizational tool for meals.  WRONG.  I completely wore myself out by making a HUGE list of ingredients plus spending a couple of hours pouring over ads and coupons to try to find the best deal.  Once I had divided out the food I needed at each grocery store I ended up going to 5 different grocery stores and shopping for 5 hours.  Bleh.  I got burned out on that quickly.  So now I'm going to try 2 weeks at a time instead.  I'm planning to continue to put up all of my recipes so you can follow along and enjoy these meals with us!

Here it is...

Sunday: Homemade Pineapple Pizza
Monday: Chicken Florentine Casserole
Tuesday: Cilantro Lime Chicken Crock Pot
Wednesday: Spinach Artichoke Pasta
Thursday: Lemon, Lime and Garlic Shrimp
Friday: Three Cheese Turkey Ziti
Saturday: Chicken Bruschetta Pasta
Sunday:  Super Bowl!  I'm making homemade cheese stuffed pretzels and spicy tortilla roll-ups for sure!
Monday:  White Cheddar Chicken Pasta
Tuesday:  Turkey Black Bean Tacos
Wednesday: Crock Pot Chicken Lime Fajitas
Thursday: Parmesan Crusted Tilapia
Friday: Chicken Enchilada Soup
Saturday: Cajin Seafood Fettucini

Can you tell I love pasta??!!  :) :)  I'm also going to try out a new dessert recipe...all natural Peanut Butter Cups with no sugar or artificial sweeteners!  We will see how they turn out!  I'll be sure to post for you!

Tonight's dinner is from chaosinthekitchen.com

Creamy Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta

serves 4, prep 5 min, cook time 30 min

• 4-8 oz fettuccine or linguine
• 10 tbsp butter, divided (I know, but I’ve tried it with less and it’s just not the same)
• 8 oz fresh, sliced mushrooms
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 oz cream cheese, cut into small pieces
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped (you can use dried herbs if that’s all you have)
• 2/3 cup boiling water (from your noodle pot)
• 1 lb cooked shrimp (feel free to buy frozen-gasp!)

1. Boil and salt a large pot of water and cook your pasta.  I usually only use about half of an 8 oz box, preferring fewer noodles.
2. While your pasta is cooking, cook your shrimp if necessary and reserve.  If your shrimp are pre-cooked and frozen, quickly thaw them under running water.
3. In a large skillet melt 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat and saute mushrooms until soft and brown.  Season with salt and pepper.
4. Reserve cooked mushrooms and melt remaining butter in the skillet.  Add minced garlic, cream cheese, and herbs.  At this point, I generally feel like something has gone terribly wrong.  The cream cheese doesn’t really melt and starts to look almost curdled, don’t worry about it!  It will all smooth out and be wonderful when we add the water. I promise.
5. Simmer cream cheese mixture until well blended. Get a scoop of boiling pasta water from your noodle pot and mix it in, stirring quickly to smooth out the sauce.
6. Keep sauce hot and add shrimp and mushrooms, mix well and simmer (stirring often) until everything is hot and thickened, about 10 minutes-you wont ruin this sauce by accidentally boiling it so don’t worry.
7. Toss sauce with cooked noodles and serve.

I am VERY excited to try this tonight! I'll let you know how it goes! :)

Aldi and a Leftovers Breakfast Wrap

This morning I woke up to a gorgeous winter day.  Wow our God sure can make nature look beautiful even without any leaves on the trees.  I have so much to be thankful for and one of those things is our ability as a society to have virtually any kind of food at our fingertips.  Do I have to wait til berry season to get delectable strawberries, blueberries or blackberries?  No.  Do I have to fly to Hawaii to taste the sweetness of a pineapple?  No again.  Do I have to go to the streams of the North to find salmon?  No way.  We are so fortunate to have all the food we could ever ask for right down the street at our local grocery store.  So much of the time I get caught up in life and completely forget how blessed I am.  Today I went to Aldi.  I do hope you have found a place in your heart for Aldi.  It is THE BEST place for cheap, quality fruit.  Let me give you an example.  Here's what I got for this morning...

1 pineapple
5 lbs. apples
1 cantaloupe
3 pkgs strawberries
4 pkgs blueberries
2 pkgs blackberries
6 kiwi
5 limes

1 pkg whole wheat spaghetti noodles

3 jars of spaghetti sauce (no sugar in the ingredient list...yes!)

2 gallons of milk

4 lbs. oranges

1 container of chili powder spice

Go ahead and total that up in your head of what you would normally pay for that amount of produce and groceries.  Got it figured up?  Okay now I'm going to brag on Aldi a little here....

My total:  $33.81

Cha-ching!  That's the sound of my money rolling around still in my purse ;)

So BEFORE I went grocery shopping, I didn't have a whole lot to choose from so I made a leftover meal.  I just grabbed things from the fridge and here's what I came up with...

2 eggs

brown rice (leftover from dinner the other night)

sprinkle of colby jack

chopped mushrooms

handful of fresh spinach leaves

tortilla (last one in the bag)

I sauted the mushrooms with a little olive oil then added the eggs, a tbsp of water and sprinkle of cheese.  Stir up the mix and then when the egg is cooked and cheese is melty, add in spinach.  Serve on a tortilla.  As you can see my tortilla is almost completely covered up with goodness.  Yeah I had to use a fork at the end ;)

The Great Migraine Battle update:

Laura : 26  Migraines : 2

Praise God for anti-inflammatory foods! :)

Lemon Pepper Salmon Time and Go, Go, Go, Away Vertigo!

I see the light!  The dizziness is succumbing to my meds. 

YES!!! 

Praise the Lord for modern medicine!  Now we just need to get past this tiredness and we'll be all set.

Lemon Pepper Salmon has been on my "to make" list for a couple of weeks now and I finally got to make it.  Super easy.  I just got those little individual salmon fillets, threw on some olive oil, a sprinkle of lemon pepper and popped them in the oven.  Match with a side of brown rice, spinach saladnaan and steamed edamame.  Yum...I love edamame.  I found some salted edamame in a steamable bag, which equals happy Laura.

  There was so much food on my plate I couldn't even finish my naan....yeah I know.  I couldn't finish my naan...my favorite part.  It's true.  I tried a new kind of naan and it was super yummy...not as flavorful as the garlic naan but delicious none the less. 

Here it is...

Here's my meal:

Just looking at it is making me hungry again.  I might have to go pop some popcorn now. 

Ok, I'm back with a huge bowl of popcorn so now I'm better :)

Anyway, tomorrow is going to be my first venture out to a Steak House on this anti-inflammatory diet.  It's a work party for Tom's workplace.  I don't know what they are serving so it might be a rough meal but I know I can have veggies, fruits, baked potatoes, cheese, fish, chicken, and more. 

I can do this. 

I've done this thing for 26 days so I can do another day, right?

And plus it's COMPLETELY worth it because......

The Great Migraine Battle continues...

Laura : 24  Migraines: 2

Awwwww...yeah.

Dizzy Nights and Vegetable Soup

So you know how I mentioned the other day that I wasn't feeling too good?  Well it got worse and then a little more worse and last night hit an all time high.  Dizzy. Nauseous. Light-headed.  Headache.  Chest pains.  What the heck is going on??  I couldn't even lay down or move my head without the room spinning out of control.  Tom wanted to take me to the E.R. but I had already made an appointment with my doctor for this afternoon so I decided I would try to stick it out.  Throughout my restless night I kept wondering, what if it's my anti-inflammatory diet that's throwing my body out of whack?  It doesn't really make sense though because this whole month I've been eating extremely well, taking a prenatal vitamin with TONS of great things for me, getting regular sleep and exercising on a consistent but not too strenuous basis.  I prayed and prayed every time I woke up that God would calm me and give me wisdom to know whether or not I should let Tom take me to the E.R.  God is so good, you know that?  He did...as if I needed to doubt.  I don't know why I ever doubt Him because He is forever faithful. 

I made it through the night and most of the day until it was time to go to my appointment.  Tom was even able to take off work early to take me to the doctor.  The nurses and doctor took very good care of me and I was diagnosed with Benign Positional Vertigo.  My doctor explained it like this...my inner ear has a crystal of calcium that has been dislodged from its rightful place and every time I move, the crystal is moving too and messing up my inner ear.  She prescribed me some medicine to stave off the dizziness. 

They took my blood and I warned them I was a "passer outer" but did they take me seriously?  Not really.  But by the time they had to bust out the smelling salts, call for more nurses, towel me down and give me fluids they understood that yes indeed I was a "passer outer".  Turns out though that my blood work came back normal so yay for anti-inflammatory foods!  No issues with the diet.  I've taken my first dose of the prescription and I am eagerly awaiting my second tonight before bed.  I am so thankful that my condition is easily treated and that my blood work came back normal.  God is so good. 

So after the whole fiasco I really I mean REALLY wanted some comfort food.  McDonald's was just down the street, but instead I defrosted my mom's homemade vegetable soup and it was AMAZING.  Nobody can make vegetable soup like she can....she must add an extra dose of love or something :)  Anyway, I got my comfort food without caving and guess what??  Laura : 22  Migraines still: 2!!  It is working!  By the way, my doctor was really surprised and impressed that I had done so much research and that this diet is actually keeping my migraines at bay. 

Here's my mom's vegetable soup recipe.  I promise you it won't taste as good as hers, but it will still be fantastic! 

Mom's Vegetable Soup

Chuck Roast (3 lbs.)
1 large can tomato juice
chopped onion
1 c. diced celery
1 c. sliced carrots
1 c. sliced potatoes
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can corn (check the label for no sugar)
1 can green beans
small cabbage (chopped into pieces)
6 c. water
Touch of love <3

**Usually she adds 2 tsp. Worchestershire Sauce and 4 beef boullion cubes but since they have sugar in them she didn't put them in.  Tasted just as good...maybe better :)

Simmer meat, juice and water for 2 hours. 
Add veggies and simmer for 1 more hour.

Enjoy!  Thanks for all of your prayers and encouragement.

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia & How I Met Your Mother

First of all, I wanted to thank all of you for reading my blog.  I have received so much positive feedback about it.  I'm glad you are enjoying reading about my adventures in the kitchen and I have been praying that God would use my blog to inspire you through my writing and of course, lots of pictures. :)  I also appreciate all of your encouragement as you come along with me on my fight against migraines.  This whole not eating sugar thing has taken some serious prayer and lots of support from my amazing husband, family, co-workers and friends like you.  Thank you.

The Great Migraine Battle stats are in:
Laura : 21   Migraines : 2

I tried another Larabar today.  My friend from work was so sweet to bring me an assortment of Larabars this morning.  Cherry Pie, Banana Bread and Peanut Butter Cookie.  Guess which one I tried first???

Well yes of course!  Peanut Butter Cookie :)  It was really delicous and satisfied my sugar craving this afternoon.

I love you Larabar...and it's not just because you have a rockin' cool name ;)

Oh a random note, I love How I Met your Mother.  So I'm writing this as I'm watching Monday night tv in my pjs.  Doesn't get better than this.  Tonight I was really tired so I made a super easy recipe. 

I found a recipe through Pinterest that is a Rachel Ray creation. 

Here it is friends...

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

• ¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• 4 tilapia fillets (about 1 pound total)
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Directions: Preheat the oven to 400°. In a shallow dish, combine the cheese with the paprika and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle the fish with olive oil and dredge in the cheese mixture. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until the fish is opaque in the thickest part, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve the fish with the lemon wedges.

**Miss Rachel claims 10-12 minutes, however, I must have had some stubbern tilapia because mine took about 23 minutes to cook through.  I baked it on a Pampered Chef baking pan with foil so I don't know if that affected the cooking time or not.  Just keep an eye on it and when it flakes with a fork it's done.

I served it with couscus, naan, sauted mushrooms and a spinach salad.  Awesome and easy.  Love love love.

Tom also loved it.  I blinked and his fish was gone.  Sweet. 

Well, I'm off to go make some banana blackberry ice cream. 

1 frozen banana + handful of blackberries + 1/4 c. milk + magic bullet = tricking my brain into thinking I'm eating ice cream.  Yessssssss.....

Pasta 2 Ways

One thing I absolutely love to eat is pasta...pasta absolutely any way I can get it really.  Tom and I were both craving some beef this week so I made a meaty marinara on top of whole wheat noodles. 

I don't want to cut red meat out of my diet completely and the anti-inflammatory research I have done said to eat it sparingly (1-2 times per month) so this was our first red meat meal of the month.  It's a really simple recipe where I just throw in spices without measuring. 

Here's pasta the first way...Laura's Specialty

I will try to write down a recipe for you.  This is close to what I throw in I think.  You can tweak it to your taste.

Laura's Specialty

(serves approx. 4 large helpings)

1/2 box whole wheat penne

1 can marinara sauce (watch the label for sugar)

1 lb. lean beef or turkey

2 tbsp garlic

1 tsp Italian Seasoning

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 small can mushrooms

dash of salt

1 tbsp parmesan

Boil the noodles in water with a dash of salt.

Combine meat with spices and mushrooms in a large skillet.  Brown spices, mushrooms and meat. 

Add marinara to contents of skillet.  Top noodles with marinara meat sauce. Sprinkle parmesan and enjoy. :)

Pasta the second way is the Spaghetti Crock Pot recipe I was talking about earlier this week.  It's made with turkey and A LOT of spices!  It is incredibly flavorful and easy to make.  It was a nice change up to my normal pasta recipes.  The picture didn't turn out the best, but it sure tasted good!

Here's the recipe again...the original is called Skinny Spaghetti Crock Pot, but I didn't see anything skinny about it.  Maybe the turkey makes it skinny.

Sauce Ingredients:

1 jar spaghetti sauce (Watch the labels for sugar!)

2/3 box whole wheat spaghetti (uncooked)

1 c. low fat ricotta cheese

1 c. shredded mozzerella cheese

1 tbsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Turkey Sausage Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp. dried sage

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp. dried oregano

Directions:

Combine turkey and seasonings to make the turkey sausage.  Cook turkey with seasonings.  When pink is gone, drain fat.  Add spaghetti sauce to meat.

In a large mixing bowl combine mozzerella, ricotta, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.  Mix to combine.

In a slow cooker, spoon a layer of meat sauce onto the bottom, add a double layer of pasta (break to fit if necessary), top with cheese mixture. 

Repeat layering until the ingredients are all used up.  You should have 3-4 layers.

Cover and cook on low for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until spaghetti is Al Dente (firm but not hard)

Serve with a side salad or veggies.  Enjoy!

The Great Migraine Battle continues...

Laura : 20  Migraines : 2

I have still only had two, but lately I have been lacking energy and have been extra tired.  I have been getting 9 hours of sleep each night, eating really well, exercising 5-6 times a week, and taking a multi-vitamin.  I was really expecting to have more energy with these lifestyle changes.  Maybe my body is just getting used to this, but I am thinking about going to see my doctor to make sure I'm not anemic or have sleep apnea or something like that.  Any suggestions?

The Great Cupboard Purge

This Saturday morning was spent getting rid of all the food on the naughty list.  Tom and I examined every single label in all of the cupboards.  We eliminated everything that included sugar, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, artificial sweeteners, or monosodium glutemate (MSG).  Labels with enriched flour were put on a "maybe naughty" shelf.  I really have a strong feeling that the root issue is sugar in all it's forms (besides that which occurs naturally, i.e. fruits) that is causing inflammation and therefore providing me with lovely migraines.  The first thing I am going to reintroduce into my diet is enriched flour products...I have really missed those tiny oyster crackers.  I am going to introduce those first because I don't think that's what's causing my migraines. 

Here's what has been on our shelves that I've been passing up for the past 21 days...

Yeah those are Godiva Chocolates.  Tom got me 5 HUGE bars for my Christmas stocking.  I haven't touched 'em this year.  :) 

There were also 2 grocery bags full of canned goods.  We are giving my mom a lot of it and some to the food drive at church.

The Great Migraine Battle:

Laura : 19  Migraines : 2

This morning on Facebook a friend posted this link about aspartame.  It's pretty interesting and honestly a little scary.  I am very thankful that soda has never been a big temptation for me.  Here's the article.

http://msmorphosis.com/aspartame

Have a great weekend!  Tonight is Spaghetti Crock Pot!  I can't wait!!

Breakfast for dinner & Larabars for breakfast

Another day of no migraines!  Yes!!! 

I am SO excited about only having two migraines so far this month.  It is amazing. 

The Great Migraine Battle continues...

Laura : 18   Migraines: 2

Still haven't caved.  I didn't know I could do it.  It's amazing to be able to belive in myself and not be dependent on sugar.

Another encouragement is that I have lots 6.5 lbs since the beginning of the month, which is a great bonus.

Tonight was breakfast for dinner.  Boy do I love breakfast food!  Once again we had whole wheat pancakes with scrambled eggs.  So thankful for the Hodgson Mills company who sells that awesome pancake mix! 

They even have recipes for biscuits and waffles on the back of the box.  I can't wait to try the biscuits!  It will be nice to eat a biscuit again :)  I'll let you know how they turn out.

Today I made another great discovery!  I can eat LaraBars!  My friend brought me the Apple Pie one today and I ate it for breakfast.  Delish!  The ingredients are all natural...they use almonds, dates, apples, cinnamon...all ingredients that work for my migraine control diet.  There are other kinds and I am excited to see if I can have other flavors. 

This is the blueberry muffin bar.  Sounds GREAT too!

Migraines and Spaghetti Crock Pot

Yep, I got hit with a migraine this afternoon.  It hit me right after school and I could not get home fast enough.  I took my meds and the pain started to subside within an hour.  Thank the Lord for modern medicine.  Still feeling a bit woozy, but I'm alright.  So The Great Migraine Battle continues...

Laura 16 : Migraines 2

I'm still really happy with the results of the diet switch.  It's been 18 days and only having 2 migraines is heaven!  I don't know what exactly triggered today's migraine, but it will be okay.

In other news, tomorrow I'm trying out a new recipe...

Skinny Spaghetti Crock Pot

Sauce Ingredients:

1 jar spaghetti sauce (Watch the labels for sugar!)

2/3 box whole wheat spaghetti (uncooked)

1 c. low fat ricotta cheese

1 c. shredded mozzerella cheese

1 tbsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Turkey Sausage Ingredients:

1 lb. ground turkey

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp. dried sage

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp. dried oregano

Directions:

Combine turkey and seasonings to make the turkey sausage.  Cook turkey with seasonings.  When pink is gone, drain fat.  Add spaghetti sauce to meat.

In a large mixing bowl combine mozzerella, ricotta, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.  Mix to combine.

In a slow cooker, spoon a layer of meat sauce onto the bottom, add a double layer of pasta (break to fit if necessary), top with cheese mixture. 

Repeat layering until the ingredients are all used up.  You should have 3-4 layers.

Cover and cook on low for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until spaghetti is Al Dente (firm but not hard)

Serve with a side salad or veggies.  Enjoy!

I hope this recipe turns out as good as it sounds.  Let me know if you try it out! :)

Turkey Noodle Soup and Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Tacos

Yesterday I made use of the yummy leftovers from my cousin's welcome home dinner by making Turkey Noodle Soup.  Thank you comfort food!  It was pretty easy.  Here's the recipe...

Turkey Noodle Soup

2 c. turkey breast (break into bite size pieces)

1/2 celery stalk

4 c. turkey stock

1 c. water

1 bag of frozen Reem's Egg Noodles

Salt and pepper to taste

Bring stock, water, and celery to a boil.  Then pour in noodles.  Cook for 20 minutes or until noodles are tender.  Add turkey, salt and pepper.  Simmer for 10 more minutes.

Tonight I fixed a new recipe.  It's not exactly healthy, but it is sugar, high fructose corn syrup and flour free so it's good for me!  Double check your labels especially on the sauces and the cheese.  I got the recipe from Pinterest, but of course I switched it up.  The original recipe called for diced chilis and for the mix to be served over pasta.  I think tortillas are more appropriate for this mexican dish. 

So here's my version...

Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Tacos

2 chicken breasts (cut into strips or shredded)

1 green or red pepper (diced)

1 medium onion (diced)

2 tbsp. olive oil

8 oz. red enchilada sauce

16 oz. green enchilada sauce

2 tsp. chili powder

3 tbsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. cumin

2 c. shredded cheese

1 c. sour cream

tortillas

Cook chicken breasts.  Cut up pepper and onion.  Saute onion in olive oil 3-5 min in large deep skillet.  Add pepper, garlic, cumin, chili powder and simmer 3-5 more min.  Add enchilada sauces and chicken.  Simmer for 8-10 min.  Take off heat.  Stir in cheese until melted.  Stir in sour cream until well mixed.  Serve on tortillas.

The Great Migraine Battle Update:

Laura 15 : Migraine 1

Tonight I'm not feeling the best, not sure what's going on.  Maybe my body is trying to fight off a migraine.  Hoping I can continue on this no migraine streak.  Only time will tell.  On the upside, I've lost 5 pounds since the beginning of the month.  :)  Nice bonus.

The Wonders of the Pineapple Corer Demo

 I want to share with you my favorite kitchen appliance...well besides my Magic Bullet and my orange peeler.  Well I really do love my oven too.  Okay okay it's in my top 5 favorite kitchen appliances.  Some of my friends have asked how to use it so here's the demo.

This is what the pineapple corer looks like.

Here's the demo:

Cut off the top of the pineapple with a knife. Line up the blade on the top of the pineapple and begin to twist while holding onto the rind.  Be sure to put it in a bowl.  It's gets pretty juicy.

 Once you hit the bottom of the fruit, pull up and out of the rind.  The core will be inside of the corer and the spiraled pineapple will be around the corer.

Remove the core and cut up the spiraled pieces into little slices.

Ta da!

Tom put this pineapple on my half of his homemade pizza tonight.  Yum.

Homemade Sugar Free Strawberry Banana Ice Cream...oh yes.

Just came across this recipe on a Facebook page and immediately made a beeline to the kitchen to make it.  I couldn't wait for the strawberries to freeze so I just had to go with the frozen banana and the fresh strawberries.It just made it a softer "meltier" consistancy.

It is soooooo easy and soooooo good for you.  I won't make you wait any longer.  Here's the scoop...haha get it?  Ice cream...scoop...hehe.  Anyway, here you go. :)

Homemade Sugar Free Strawberry Banana Ice Cream
1 frozen banana
5-6 frozen strawberries
1/4 c. milk

Combine ingredients in blender (I used my Magic Bullet)

Eat straight out of the pitcher of the blender like I did or you can be classy and put it in a bowl ;)

Oh and to update you on "The Great Migraine Battle"....

Laura 14 : Migraine 1

YES!!!!!!!

Chicken Curry and Spinach Artichoke Dip!

Yay!  It's Saturday! Glad I made it to the weekend becasue this was a really busy week full of temptations.  It was COMPLETELY worth it though because the Great Migraine Battle is as follows:

Laura 13 : Migraines 1

Praise God!  Avoiding sugars/sweeteners of all forms, corn syrup of all forms, red meat, white flour, preservatives and processed foods is working so far!  There is a light at the end of the tunnel.  I'll be the first one to tell you this hasn't been easy...

Wednesday I went to Bible Study and there was an entire table full of cupcakes, nilla wafters, oreos and chex mix.  All my absolute favorite desserts.  I just stayed away from the table and focused on why I was there...to hang out with some great women and have some great conversation about our faith. 

Yesterday I passed up cake, cupcakes, my favorite kind of sour dough bread and cheese soup at work.  Instead I brought a cut up chicken breast and my own dressing and mixed it in with the salad they provided.  YES!

Then I went to a friend's house and passed up white chocolate popcorn, blackberry pie, blueberry bread, and sausage rotel dip.  WHEW!  I did it and you know what?  I'm okay.  Last night I brought pepper jack cheese with Triscuits and green tea to drink.  Also, my friend made this AMAZING spinach artichoke dip that I was able to eat.  Believe me I ate, ate, ate it up last night...here's the recipe as I remember it.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

16 oz. frozen spinach (thawed and drained)

1 c. sour cream

1 c. parmesan cheese

1 c. romano cheese

1 c. half and half

2 tbsp. garlic

1 c. mozzerella cheese

1 can artichoke hearts

Mix together artichoke hearts with parmesan, romano and garlic.

Mix together sour cream, half and half and spinach in a different bowl.

Combine all ingredients and spread evenly in a 9 x13 pan.

Sprinkle mozzerella on top.

Bake for 15-20 min. at 350 degrees

I am so thankful for my amazing support system.  Tom is so great with encouraging me and my co-workers have been really sweet.  Thanks goes out to my mom for listening to me vent as well.  My friends and co-workers have told me they admire my determination and discipline, which has really been an encouragement to me.  But I have to give God the credit, because this has taken some divine intervention and lots of prayer and faith to be able to rely on Him when food is all I can think about and I start to feel sorry for myself.  To God be the glory because I certainly couldn't do this without Him.

The other night I decided to continue on with my international food journey and we went Indian.  I made curry for the first time.  I had never tasted it so I had no idea how it was supposed to turn out.  Tom said it tasted like it was supposed to and he liked it.  He even ate the leftovers for both lunch and dinner last night! However, I was not impressed with curry.  Maybe it's an aquired taste.  So if you do like curry then you will like this recipe and it's very easy.  If you've never tried it I would encourage you to widen your horizons and at least give it a shot.  If you don't like it, just check making curry off of your bucket list and move on. 

Chicken Curry Rice Bowl

I paired it with broccoli and the naan I made last weekend.  I couldn't add the peas it calls for because my canned peas have sugar in the ingredient list.  Tom doesn't like cooked carrots so I left them out too.

1 1/2 tsp olive oil

1 tbsp curry powder

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp cinnamon

1 lb diced chicken or ground beef

1 1/3 cups uncooked rice, well rinsed (in a pot cover with water, swoosh around then drain)

2 c. shredded carrots

1 package peas

3 c. chicken broth

Chopped cilantro and lemon wedges for garnish

Heat oil in large deep skillet.  Add spices stirring quickly to combine.  Add meat and brown stirring often to combine with spices as the meat cooks.  When meat is fully cooked, stir in rice, carrots and peas.  Add broth and bring to boil.  Cover and reduce heat to low.  Cook for 16 minutes.  Remove from heat and keep covered.  Let stand for 5 minutes until all liquid is absorbed.  Fluff with fork and enjoy!

Yesterday I went to the grocery store and got some natural peanut butter so I could put it on my Ezekiel english muffins for breakfast.  I also got some organic spaghetti sauce with no sugar so I can actually fix spaghetti!!! I've missed you spaghetti!!!  Found a great crock pot spaghetti recipe.  I will be trying that sometime next week and I will post the recipe and pics for you.

Ice cream temptations, homemade pizza and shrimp scampi

Today was a good day, no it was a great day.  It started out with a foggy drive with a frozen turkey rolling around on the floorboard of my car and ended with a relaxing night at home with my hubby.  A rolling frozen turkey you ask?  Well, my mom is being a sweetie (this is nothing new...she is awesome) and fixing a family dinner that I can have to celebrate my cousin coming home to visit so I brought her the turkey we had in our freezer before work this morning.  It always makes me smile to get to talk with her.  The kiddos were really on their A game today too. 

 One of my students even brought in ice cream cups to celebrate his birthday....ooooh ice cream cups...I love those things.  They remind me of being a kid at my great-grandparent's house eating out of a tiny cup with a little wooden spoon.  Why of course I would like one!  Thank you!  ERRRRRRRRT!!!!!!  STOP!  What are you doing Laura?  That's ice cream and ice cream has sugar in it.  Sugar = migraines (possibly).  Oh man...what could a little tiny vanilla cup hurt?  You think I caved don't you?  Proud to say I didn't.  I gave it away to another teacher.  YESSSS!  Score 1 for Laura.  The day got even better with another successful dinner.  It only took about 15 minutes too! 

Here it is:

Shrimp Scampi (adapted from the Barefoot Contessa) Serves 6

8 oz. whole wheat pasta
12 oz. pre-cooked medium shrimp
1/2 stick (4 tbsp.) unsalted butter
3 tbsp. minced garlic
3 tbsp. olive oil
dash black pepper
dash salt
1/2 c. lemon juice (4 lemons squeezed)
1 tsp. parsley
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Boil noodles while melting butter and olive oil over medium heat in large heavy bottomed pan.  Add garlic and saute for 1 minute.  Add the shrimp and stir often for 5 min.  Remove from heat, add parsley, lemon juice and red pepper flakes.  Toss shrimp mixture together with the pasta.  Enjoy!

Tom made pizza yesterday for lunch and here's his recipe:

Tom's Homemade Pizza (It's supposed to serve 4, but we usually eat the whole thing between the two of us because it's just that good)  ;)

1 Jiffy pizza dough mix according to directions (super cheap...less than 50 cents a box)
1/2 jar pizza sauce (check the label to make sure it's just tomatoes and spices)
1/2 bag Italian cheese
Toppings of your choice

Preheat the oven according to Jiffy box directions.  Make the pizza dough and spread on a greased pizza pan.  Add the pizza sauce onto the raw dough.  Put toppings of your choice on top of the sauce.  My half got fresh pineapple.  His half got pepperoni.  Top with cheese.  Bake according to pizza dough box directions.  Yum!!

Oh and the updated Migraine Battle is:

 Laura 8 : Migraines 1...YAY!

I also weighed myself this morning...lost 0.2 lbs in a week.  Honestly, I was really disappointed but I'm not eating this way to lose weight, but it would be a nice bonus.  I've increased my work out to 40 minutes 5-6 days a week for the past month.  Maybe I'm building muscle tone...let's think positively :) 

Turkey Chili & Whole Wheat Pancakes

Well, it will be a week tomorrow since I have started on anti-imflammatory foods.  It might just be lessening the frequency of my migraines.  I've only had one in the last 8 days.  Normally, I have 8-10 a month so we will just have to see.  It's been hard at times, but I'm learning that food is fuel, not comfort and the hope of less migraines really spurs me on.  I've also learned eating is not something to do when you are bored or upset.  God made food to be enjoyed and to give your body the nutrients it needs. 

Today I was going to make a turkey, but I was too tired from all that baking last night to think about defrosting the thing.  So I used some ground turkey we had in the freezer.  This chili is a new creation of mine inspired by my mom's chili.

Turkey Chili (serves many...probably 8-10)

1.5 lbs ground turkey
1 green pepper (chopped)
2 tbsp minced garlic (of course)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp minced onion
1 pkg. McCormick Chili Seasoning
3 cans chili beans
3 cans diced tomatoes
2 small cans tomato sauce
1 can mushroom pieces

Brown turkey while combining all ingredients in dutch oven pot.  Once turkey is browned, drain and add to pot.  Simmer for 1 hour or more...I simmered mine for about 2.5 hours.  Stir occasionally so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.  Top with cheese, crackers or whatever else you enjoy on your chili!

On Saturday I got to have pancakes AND syrup!  We found this great whole wheat pancake mix made by  Hodgson Mills and some great syrup from Walden Farms at the grocery store. 

http://www.waldenfarms.com/

Walden Farms makes all kinds of dressings, syrups, spreads and sauces that are zero calorie, zero sugar, zero fat.  I don't know how those people at Walden Farms do it, but they do it well!  The syrup was delicious.  We have also tried the ranch and italian salad dressings.  The ranch gets a thumbs up for taste...it's runnier than normal ranch but it's good.  The italian is ok...I plan to use it as a marinade for chicken and see how that tastes.

So because of these amazing products I was able to have pancakes and syrup.  I thought the whole wheat pancakes tasted better than regular ones, but maybe I am just appreciating my food a little more lately. :)

I served the pancakes with a side of scrambled eggs and an orange.  Perfect!

Homemade Goldfish Crackers & Homemade Garlic Naan

Tonight I embarked on a journey I never thought I would...

I baked my own Goldfish Crackers from scratch...and the craziest part of it all is I actually enjoyed it!  It's a sugar free recipe.  It calls for all-purpose flour, but I substituted whole wheat flour.  They just came out of the oven and boy are they yummy!  They don't have the same consistancy as a real one, but they have the same taste. 

Word to the wise...you DO need a food processor...a real one...you know the kind you plug in.  Not the kind you hand pump from Pampered Chef.  Not a Magic Bullet.  Not just a wooden spoon and some anger.  A real food processor.  Lesson learned.  Buy a food processor. 

Anyway, totally worth it so here's where I got the recipe.  She even teaches you how to make your own goldfish cookie cutter out of a soda can!  I did it so you can too.

 Here's what the dough looked like all rolled out.

Here's the homemade cookie cutter.

http://www.missanthropistskitchen.com/2011/06/22/homemade-goldfish-crackers-with-a-homemade-goldfish-cookie-cutter/

I also baked my own garlic naan because I really couldn't handle paying $4 for 3 pieces of bread.  So I found a recipe in a Pampered Chef cookbook...you know the little thin ones they give you for bringing a friend to a party. 

It turned out pretty tasty...a little dry, but if you brush some butter on it I bet it is yummy.  I just tasted a corner because I kind of filled up on Goldfish...hehe.

Here's the recipe for the naan:

1/2 c. grated fresh parmesan cheese ( I used the Kraft stuff you get in the plastic container in the "fancy cheese" section)

1 c. flour plus additional for dusting ( I used whole wheat flour...they recommend cake flour)

2 tbsp parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 c. milk

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp. minced garlic (of course this was not in the original recipe, but I added it cause garlic rocks my world)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Combine flour, parsley, salt, baking powder in mixing bowl and mix well.  Add milk and oil; mix thoroughly to form a soft dough.  Place dough on lightly floured cutting board.  Knead just until dough is smooth and no longer sticky, adding additional flour as needed. Roll dough into rectangle baking stone dish.  Brush on minced garlic.  Bake 23-26 minutes until deep golden brown.  Remove from oven to cool completely.  Yields 12 servings.

Just out of the oven.