red as a beet

The theme of today's post is the color red. I made two Weight Watchers recipes, both quite red, and a barley recipe from my new favorite foodie blogger (Oh She Glows). Plus, see below for more red surprises.

Dessert first, as always. (This isn't how I eat, by the way. Well, not most of the time. It's just that I prefer this course!) Mahogany velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, WW style. I was very intrigued by this recipe because the red didn't come from red food coloring as in traditional red velvet cakes, but from beets!



I love the idea of using a natural colorant and adding some nutritional value at the same time.



Don't think for a minute that I was fooled into thinking that these are healthy, though.




Two disappointments: the cupcakes weren't very red (perhaps why the name is "mahogany" and not "red") and the cream cheese frosting wasn't very good. Fat-free cream cheese = no good.




Christmas cupcake liners were all I had. Must add to shopping list.





I never eat beets. I believe this is the fault of one of my school cafeterias - probably a school in France. Those suckers are really bitter - no wonder I didn't like them as a kid. Not sure I like them as an adult yet. Except in red velvet cupcakes, that is. ;-)



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The other Weight Watchers recipe was skillet chicken paprika. I wish I could share the recipe, but that is probably against copyright rules. Therefore, I'll just give you the ingredients: chicken, paprika, flour, onion, garlic, red pepper, olive oil, sour cream (I used Greek yogurt instead), and a can of diced tomatoes.



You cook the chicken and set aside. Then soften the onion and red pepper.



Then you add the flour and paprika. It quickly becomes a gorgeous red mixture that is very fragrant.




The final result is delicious. Yum!



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Another recipe I made this week (twice!) is Easy Creamy Tomato Barley Risotto from Oh She Glows. Have I mentioned that I love her blog? She makes vegan so easy, delicious, and attainable!

First you add the barley, oil, oregano, and basil.



Then you add the rest of the ingredients, including miso and nutritional yeast - two new ingredients for me, and let it simmer for about 30 minutes.



It's super easy and really tasty. I can't wait to eat this for lunch this week!



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My American breakfast this morning. Yum. Added some strong mustard to the eggs and it was spectacular. Hey...red strawberries!



Very similar to a lunch the other day. Nothing red here, sorry! Actually, there is paprika in the omelet, but you can't really see it.



And a delicious red drink. Mango rum, mango vodka, grenadine, cranberry juice, and pineapple juice, with a splash of Sprite.



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Speaking of red, my camera (which is red for those of you who haven't seen it) is still being fixed!! I'm lost without a camera. Thank goodness I have an iPhone!

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On the running front, so far so good. I completed the first week of training and all went well. I have done the first workout of the second week and I am proud to say that I was able to run every time I was supposed to. One uphill run was quite a struggle, but I made it and recovered. I'm on my way to 5K!! :-) Stay tuned!

New sneakers!


Very sweaty!


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The highlight of the week has to be winning the PSSC Spring 2011 Volleyball Championship. YEAH!! (Red shirts!)



I wish you a great week!

if everyone jumped off a bridge...

...would you?

Perhaps comparing running to jumping off a bridge isn't the best comparison, but it's kind of relevant in this instance. Allow me to explain.

As I have mentioned before, I have been reading a lot of food blogs in the last 9 months. I'm learning a lot about healthy eating and alternative ingredients. I have also noticed that a lot of the bloggers are runners. At first I thought, puh, I will learn nutrition lessons and try recipes from these bloggers, but no way will I get into running. I don't run. Been there, done that, didn't like it (in high school). That was my attitude for 8 months. Then in the last month I started thinking that running would be really convenient because all you really need are sneakers. You can do it anywhere, anytime during daylight, and by yourself. Realizing this, I decided that I wanted to become a runner. AKA, jump off a bridge. After all, everyone else is doing it!!

Great, but now what!? Oh crap, I actually have to go outside and RUN!?! What was I thinking?! I can't just run! It's too hot! My sneakers are too old! I'll get tired! I don't have time! It's going to be hard! These thoughts and many more ran through my head. I decided to get a little help and found a Couch-to-5K program that sounded perfect for me. Yes, I'm active with yoga and volleyball, but when it comes to running, I might as well be a couch potato. I just didn't know where to start. This program seemed reasonable and I liked that the first workout involved only short bursts of 1-minute jogs. I thought, I can do this!



And then a week passed and I still hadn't done it. Each day was a different excuse, mostly the same ones I already listed above. Friday I finally came very close until I realized that I would need something to time these intervals and that the most likely candidate was my iPhone. I did not want to run with my iPhone in hand and looked up running watches online. And before I knew it, it was 8 PM and the sun would set soon, and, and, and... Running didn't happen.

Saturday involved the beach and sunbathing and some discussion with a friend about wanting to be a runner. We came to the conclusion that signing up for a 5K might be the best way to get motivated. And then on Sunday, something miraculous happened: I ran!! I decided that I was allowing myself too many excuses. If I really wanted to do this, then I had to do it, running watch or not. I got up, put on some workout clothes, ate cereal, studied the 1st workout plan, and got to work on stretching. After 10 minutes of stretching and only doing one rotation of the stretches instead of two (I was only mentally prepared for 25 workout minutes, I couldn't be adding another 20 with the stretches!!), I walked out the door. Only to realize that I had nowhere to put my keys. Disaster and potential roadblock averted: I grabbed my (much less bulky) spare keys and tied them to my shoelaces. I had my iPhone in hand, the music blasting, and the stopwatch function on the screen.

And I was off! I followed the plan, but wasn't able to run every planned jog. I got tired much faster than I expected so I walked the last 8 minutes. I am so proud of myself for having finally gotten out there and tried it. It was tough, but it felt good. I was indeed hot, it was indeed hard, I was indeed tired, but it was worth it. And not just the physical part, which does feel good, but I'm even prouder of finally breaking through my mental games that were preventing me from making the first step out the door. I still have a while to go - this program is 9 weeks long - but at least I have started it now. I'm not even looking at the weeks ahead. I am going to do this at my own pace, and only move to the next workout once I feel like I can.



I did a little research about running and found a useful article titled Running 101. I'll be trying to follow some of the tips they gave.

At this point, I'm not sure that I am ready to sign up for a 5K. I have one in mind in October that I might like to try, but I am not ready to commit. All I can commit to right now, is taking it one day at a time, and listening to my body, without listening to the excuses. If I manage to run 3 times this week, I will get myself a new pair of running sneakers. It's going to be tough because it's a very busy week, but that's life.

I'm standing on the edge of the bridge now. Will I jump?

cookie dough

Have I mentioned before that I love cookie dough? Remember the chocolate chip cookie dough brownie?

I have tried two new recipes involving cookie dough recently. First, let's deal with the one that didn't work out so well.

The name is super long:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough + Cupcake = The BEST Cupcake. Ever.

Quite a name, right!?! For me, the equation ended more like this:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough + Cupcake = Lots of potential. But fail.

Oh well! I'll try again!

The cookie dough looked great. There may or may not have been some major sampling at this point. ;-)


The recipe actually involves making cupcakes from a mix. I don't really ever make cakes from mixes because I don't like the flavors very much, but I figured it would save some time and not be as noticeable with cookie dough so I did it that way.
Still looking very promising!


And then they came out of the oven looking delicious!


The reviews of this recipe warned that the cupcakes wouldn't look done but to take them out anyway. Within a minute of being out the oven, I realized that they clearly hadn't been in the oven long enough. They had all sunk in way too much:


I still sampled, because it takes a lot to deter me from dessert, but they just weren't edible. Way underdone.


I haven't given up on this recipe yet, but next time I will make the cake from scratch and I will leave them longer in the oven.

The other cookie dough recipe I made was a much bigger success. And was much easier. And is vegan!! It's from Angela over at Oh She Glows: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough "Blizzard"



If the "vegan" description turned you off, I beg you to reconsider. You would have no idea these were vegan if I hadn't told you.

At this point, once again, there may have been some serious sampling. I couldn't even resist eating one between these two pictures. Just look at these!


Then you blend a frozen banana and a few tablespoons of cookie dough, add a few cookie dough balls and you have a blizzard!


I'm sorry for the quality of the pictures for this recipe. My camera has been acting up so I sent it in for repair. I'm lost without it and have to make do with my iPhone. (Although I do think it's doing a decent job.)


The best part of this recipe? Aside from the deliciousness of course... I got to use my Ninja blender! Still loving it! :-)

small kitchen appliances

Someone recently asked me if I was one of those people who gets really excited about small kitchen appliances or gadgets. First of all, I didn't realize that was a defined group of people. Second of all, it doesn't sound like a group I want to be associated with - sounds pretty silly. So my first impulse was to reply nooooo. But as I prepare to write this post, I realize that I might just be part of that group because I am truly excited to tell you about my new blender!! But first, let's talk about my new slow cooker.

I've been wanting to get a slow cooker for a long time, but I am not really sure what held me back. I finally got one. I christened the slow cooker with Corn Spoon Bread from allrecipes.com. I didn't actually know what it was, so I didn't know what to expect.




It turned out like corn pudding. I liked it when I first ate it, but as time goes on, I've gotten less thrilled with it. I froze several pieces of it, and haven't yet had the desire to defrost any. Maybe it will grow on me. Maybe not.




PS: I'm intrigued by this product. I may have to try it on its own one day. I do love corn bread!



The second use of the slow cooker was more successful.



I decided to try a Slow Cooker Stout Stew from allrecipes.com, even though that's really a winter dish not exactly appropriate for the heat we're in.




Nonetheless, I'm glad I tried it because it was delicious. Very meaty.



Slow cooker = success!

And now, ladies and gentlemen, for the piece de resistance.... my new blender!! It is the Ninja, recommended by my dear friend Alicia. It is fantastic.



Pros:
- It's very powerful. It did not hesitate to crush through frozen fruit and ice!
- Everything except the motor goes into the dishwasher. And since I have a new working dishwasher, this makes me very happy.
- The blades are at different levels in the pitcher so you don't get stuck with unblended items at the top that you have to push down.
- It's very easy to use: just push down to run it. You either push down continuously or pulse depending on what you're trying to do.
- First you put the blades in the pitcher and then you add the food. When you're ready to pour out, you take the blades out and then pour. This means that you can get everything out with minimal waste, unlike traditional blenders.

Cons:
- It's a bit more work than other blenders to add things in while blending, because you have to remove the motor and the top. Minor drawback as far as I am concerned.



The maiden voyage was Fresh Pineapple-Berry Fiasco from allrecipes.com. A delicious smoothie. Well, I think it's supposed to be a bit more like a frozen drink because you're supposed to juice the fruit, but I skipped that part and just blended all the fruits together. Delicious! It was frothy and fresh and perfect. I highly recommend it!




This blender might be a keeper! Let's hope it fares better than my last 3! ;-)

Please note: I am an Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador (a voluntary position) and I’m not compensated for my work with Allrecipes.com. Products received from advertiser are only used for experienced-based reviews on "the hidden foodie in me". The reviews, content and opinions expressed in this blog are purely the sole opinions of Caroline C.