strawberries

I like the idea of strawberries, but whenever I buy them, I lose interest in eating them. Last time I even bought Cool Whip in the hopes that it would motivate me, but that didn't do the trick either. Therefore, as with most fresh fruits and vegetables I buy, I ended up with a lot left as they were starting to lose their freshness.

I decided to bake with them so I searched for a strawberry recipe that wasn't a pie. And that's where the Strawberry Bread comes in. (Although I have to admit that once I cut these up, I was definitely in the mood to eat them instead of baking them!)

I didn't have high hopes, because I thought it sounded weird and wasn't very inspired by the pictures. Boy, was I in for a treat! The bread turned out moist and delicious and I ate right through it.

If you want to try it, find the recipe here, but I suggest reading the comments (especially mine of course) before making it as it doesn't need nearly as much oil as the recipe calls for.

The pictures don't do it justice. Trust me, just try it.

dessert obsession... and two healthy dishes

I have a few things to show you today. Let's start with the sweet stuff, shall we?!

My favorite classic flavor combination is vanilla and chocolate. Take that into baking dessert and we're talking about brownies with vanilla ice cream, chocolate fudge, and whipped cream. With the brownie preferably warm. One of my favorite ice cream flavors is Ben & Jerry's Half Baked that includes chunks of brownies and cookie dough. Imagine my excitement when I came across a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownie recipe over at recipegirl.com!! I was slightly disappointed, maybe because my expectations were so high, but that doesn't prevent it from being a delicious indulgence that I would still recommend. Here is the result:

Now moving on to actual meals... I tried another recipe from my favorite daily food blog: dailygarnish.com. This Mexican Quinoa with Black Beans and Avocado looked good and I already had most of the ingredients so I made it just a few days after her. The only modification is that I had red quinoa, but I doubt that impacted it much. I thought this dish was really good. I never would have combined these ingredients on my own, but they worked really well together. You should try it. Super easy too.

And last, but not least, I made an oldie but goodie from allrecipes.com. Chicken breasts with balsamic vinegar and garlic served with mashed potatoes. Yum! Look for my comment (in 2008) to see what I change in the recipe... really just don't flour the chicken and add a bit of cornstarch mixed in with cold water at the end to thicken the sauce.

And I will end with this: would you believe that my new blender broke?! It overheated one day while I was making a smoothie. I used it, what, 3 times!?! Anyone know of a good blender I could buy that will actually last a while? Anyone?

i've been busy

Let's just say that something had to give between Pilates, volleyball 2 nights a week, yoga, coaching, new boyfriend, normal socializing and working, and a new blog. And the loser (or winner, depending on how you look at it) is the blog. So I'm going to keep adding new posts, but it's going to be whenever I can, not on any regular schedule. It's too bad though, because I really like the idea. Perhaps a little later when my life isn't so busy.

It's also too bad because I think this makes me focus more on healthy eating. Sure, I track everything I eat, but somehow that still isn't enough motivation to eat as well as I should. I just go way over my points and then feel bad at weigh-in every Tuesday (or at least the last 3 - tomorrow should also be fun).

But on to more positive things: a good dinner. Tonight I made 15 Minute Creamy Avocado Pasta from the Oh She Glows foodie blog and a bunch of vegetables. Delicious. The avocado pasta cost me a lot of points, but it was worth it. The veggies were a good supplement. If you want to make the veggies, here it is:

Serves 3-4 as a side dish

Ingredients:

2 tomatoes

1 zucchini

1 yellow squash

1 eggplant

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Italian herbs

breadcrumbs (optional)

shredded cheese (optional)

garlic powder

salt + pepper

Directions:

Slice all vegetables. Stack against one another in a glass dish. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle breadcrumbs, herbs, cheese, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to your liking. Use your judgement here.

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for one hour.

This reheats well so don't be afraid to double the recipe. Also, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar before cooking adds a punch of flavor and blends great with the veggies.