The Final Countdown!

As the end of my pregnancy creeps closer, there seems to be fewer and fewer hours in the day! Between work, weekly doctors' appointments, house cleaning, and last minute touches on the nursery, my free time is very limited these days. I can't remember the last time I put my workout routine at the bottom of my priority list, however, I admit that this week I have. After day 3 of not getting to the gym, I had to resort to bringing my workout to work. I frequently walk 2 miles during my lunch break, but my body and my brain were craving some strength training yesterday, so I brought my dumbells and resistance bands to work and got a full shoulder and back workout in during my lunch break!

Remember, it doesn't matter if you have 30 minutes, or 60 minutes, any workout is better than no workout at all. It may not have been one of the hardest workouts I've ever completed, but it got my heart rate up and my shoulders burning!

Here is a link with some great resistance band exercises that can be completed with one piece of equipment and very little space!

http://www.band-exercises.net/exercises/shoulders/




RECIPE OF THE WEEK.....

BAKED CRAB CAKES WITH CHEESEY JALAPENO GRITS





CRAB CAKES:

Ingredients:
1/3 cup prechopped red bell pepper

2 tablespoons lowfat mayonnaise ( you can substitute Greek yogurt!)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt                

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 green onions, chopped

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten

1 1/3 cups panko (Japanese breadcrumbs), divided

1 pound lump crabmeat, drained and shell pieces removed ( I used canned lump crab meat)
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided       

Dijon Sauce

2 tablespoons lowfat mayonnaise ( or Greek yogurt)

2 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream                               

2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

Preparation:

  

1. Combine first 7 ingredients. Add 1/3 cup panko and crab; toss gently. Divide crab mixture into 8 equal portions; shape each into a 3/4-inch-thick patty. Place remaining panko in a shallow dish. Gently dredge patties in panko.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan. Add 4 crab cakes to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan; keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining oil and crab cakes.

3. Combine 2 tablespoons mayonnaise and remaining ingredients; serve with crab cakes.       

**The recipe doesn't call for baking, however, after pan searing I baked mine in the oven on 350 for about 15 minutes to make sure they were nice and warm on the inside.      

 CHEESEY JALAPENO GRITS

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeño chili

1 garlic clove, minced

3 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth

1 cup 1% milk

1 cup quick-cooking grits

1 1/2 cups grated hot pepper Monterey Jack cheese (about 6 ounces)

Preparation:

1. Combine chicken broth and milk in a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil. Bring broth down to medium heat and slowly add grits. Stir frequently until grits are fully cooked.

2. While grits are cooking, melt butter in a medium sauce and add peppers, jalapeno and garlic. Sauté until peppers are soft (about 5-6 minutes).

3. Add cheese and pepper mix to the cooked girts.

 HAPPY FRIDAY!

"WAKE UP WITH DETERMINATION, GO TO GET WITH SATISFACTION"- ANONYMOUS

GET YOUR WOKROUT IN TODAY!!!

FOOD DUMP!!!

My appetite and I are not the best of friends right now! I am in the "see-food stage"; I see food and I want to eat it! I've been controlling myself fairly well by keeping healthy snacks like vegetables, trail mix, and fruit in my lunch box at all times; but I'm not going to lie, I have indulged in foods lately that I never would have before. It's OK to indulge every now and then, just remember moderation is key and exercise is important!!!!!

I've spent a lot of time in the kitchen lately whipping up some healthy recipes to satisfy my cravings so I thought I would share some of my favorites.

This first recipe is one of my new favorites!  Josh and I were drooling over it; it tastes JUST like restaurant orange chicken without the fattening fried coating. The chicken is from  calicooking.com but the rice was whipped up free hand. I actually have to thank my friend Shelby for the rice; she cooked some shrimp fried for me a few months ago and I loved it so much I had to try my own version!

Orange Chicken and "Not So Fried Rice" :

 Ingredients:

-3 medium chicken breasts
-1/3  cup of flour
- 1.5 Tbsp olive oil

Sauce:
-9 oz of pulp free orange juice
-3 tsp corn starch
-3 Tbsp of brown sugar
-2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
-1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
-1-2 Tbsp of lemon juice
-3-4 minced garlic cloves (I used the minced garlic in a jar and it was great)
-1/2 tsp salt

Method:

Cut chicken breasts in 1/4 inch pieces and put in freezer bag with 1/3 cup flour. Shake the bag until all chicken is lightly coated in flour. Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan. Cook chicken in pan over medium-high heat until mostly cooked.

In a separate bowl whisk all the sauce ingredients together . Add the sauce to the chicken pan, and cook chicken in sauce on medium low heat until chicken is cooked all the way through and sauce has thickened.

Rice:

Ingredients:

-1 cup of rice ( I used jasmine- it cooks quickly and fluffs nicely)

- 1 cup of frozen peas and carrots, thawed

- 1/2 cup of onion-chopped

-1 Tbsp olive oil

- 1 egg

- 2-3 Tbsp Low sodium soy sauce

Method:

Cook rice as directed and cool in refrigerator for 30-45 minutes. Saute onion, on medium heat, until soft and translucent, add peas and carrots and cook 1-2 minutes. Push onion, peas, and carrots to one side of the pan and scramble 1 egg on the empty side of the pan. Add the rice to the pan and mix all ingredients together. Add 2-3 Tbsp of low sodium soy sauce to rice mixture and stir well.

Turkey Patties:

I always try to keep 3 types of meat in the house: Chicken breasts, low-fat ground beef, and canned tuna. My grocery store had ground turkey on sale a few weeks ago so I stocked up on it as well. It came in handy a few weeks ago when I got home from work late and was in need for a speedy dinner.

I whipped up a few Asian turkey patties with a side of ginger salad. I didn't use a recipe, I just used a bunch of asian sauces I had in the cabinet. I ended up with something along the lines of this:

1 lb of ground turkey

1 Tbsp ponzu Sauce

1 Tbsp hoison Sauce

1/2 Tbsp low Sodium Soy sauce

1 Tbsp teriyaki Sauce

1 tsp of onion powder

1 tsp of garlic powder

1/4 cup of chives, chopped

Mix all ingredients together and form into 4 patties. Place on a wire rack over a drip pan so that any extra fat can drip off while cooking. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 F or until meat is white all the way through.

For my salad I used romaine lettuce and a whatever vegetables I had in stock. In this case that was onion, green pepper, and cucumber. Top with 1 Tbsp Chinese noodles and 1 Tbsp of ginger dressing ( I LOVE Naturally Fresh ginger dressing. It's low in calories and a little goes a long way) and BAM dinner.

I got this next recipe from cookinglight.com and tried it last Friday night for the first time; it was a SUCCESS! The sweetness of the apply jelly blends perfectly with the kick of the horseradish. Pair with your favorite green vegetable and mashed potatoes and you've got yourself a healthy, omega- rich meal! Oh and for the record I wanted to make sweet potatoes instead of regular mashed potatoes but Josh isn't a big fan of sweet potatoes unless they are coated in marshmallows and brown sugar. So I took one for the team and made regular potatoes using a small amount of fat-free half and half, garlic, and pepper.

Apple and Horseradish Glazed Salmon:

Ingredients:

-1/3 cup apple jelly

-1 Tbsp of chopped chives

- 2 Tbsp of prepared horseradish

-1 Tbsp champagne vinegar ( I couldn't find this at the store so I used white wine vinegar)

-4 (4oz) salmon fillets, skinned

-1/4 tsp ground pepper

-2 tsp olive oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 350°
Combine apple jelly, chives, horseradish, vinegar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt, stirring well with a whisk.
Sprinkle salmon with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add salmon, and cook 3 minutes. Turn salmon over; brush with half of apple mixture. Wrap handle of skillet with foil; bake at 350° for 5 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Brush with remaining apple mixture

My friend Beth introduced me to Oikos yogurt dip on our glamping trip. O-M-G their dips taste like a touch of heaven in my mouth! She had the roasted red pepper, but I couldn't find it when I went to the store so I bought the cucumber dill and the french onion flavors. I keep the dill dip in my lunch box with carrots at all times. It's a great healthy snack! Only 25 calories per 2 Tbsp!

Wheat Thins dipped in the french onion dip is a great alternative to the average high fat french onion dip and potato chips.

My favorite yoga instructor is teaching night time classes again!! Wahooo!!! I ended my hump-day the right way with a great yoga session! Did you get your workout in yesterday????