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Archive for category Handy Kitchen Tools

Happy Sprouts Dancing, Dirty Chai Trying and Veggie Spiralizing

Nov 17

Posted by Shari B. in Handy Kitchen Tools | 8 Comments

Hi friends! 

So I’m back for a second time today to give you the recap of yesterday’s Feats & Eats.  Twice in one day, wow!  But before that I want to let all you awesome readers know that I am going to attempt the WordPress update very soon.  If things look a little wonky here and there, that’s why.  I’m crossing my fingers all goes well!  :)

And speaking of crossed fingers… thanks for all your good vibes yesterday for my dentist visit!  It helped!  Because I didn’t have a cavity! Wahoooo!  See, all this good eating does a body (and teeth) good!

First thing out of bed yesterday, MSP and I were feeling the need for a DVD to motivate us to workout.  My brain wasn’t wanting to wake up, so at that point listening to some other trainer boss me around sounded just fine with me.  We chose Cathe’s “Legs & Glutes”.  She killed us.  We were sweat machines and today our bums are S-O-R-E… which I L-O-V-E.  It was about a bazillion reps of squats, lunges, and step-ups with about every variation you can imagine for an hour with no breaks. 

Thank you Cathe for clearing out my Monday cobwebs.

***

Look what’s still coming along in my kitchen…

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My sprouts are doing great!  They got to sit in the window sill to collect a little chlorophyll!   I’ve grown something!  I’m doing the Happy Sprout Dance!!

In other random news, I had an interesting visit to Starbucks yesterday…

Me:  I’ll have a grande soy 2-pump chai latte please.

SBUX guy tries to sell me on a bunch of stuff to which I kindly decline.  I wanted to say, “Hey, put your mugs on clearance and maybe I’ll buy something besides this ridiculously expensive soy milk”  but I digress…

SBUX guy:  do you like coffee?

Me:  Yes, but generally only first thing in the morning.

SBUX guy:  So you normally get chai then?

(Soon SBUX Guy will be renamed to Captain Obvious if this keeps up… is he going somewhere with this or just weirdly chatty)

Me:  Um yes, but usually in the fall because it feels holidayish to me.

SBUX guy:  Ever heard of a Dirty Chai? 

Me:  Um no.

It took him forever to get to the point, but ultimately I’m glad I was polite and stuck it out.  Because a dirty chai is a chai latte with a shot of espresso in it.  So they offered to let me try one with a decaf shot and if I didn’t like it they’d make my drink over. 

And you know what??  It was really good!

Next time  you’re at Starbucks and want something new, give Dirty Chai a try!

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Which segues perfectly into ANOTHER new thing I tried yesterday:  a spiralzer!!!   My friend Pat loaned me her spiralizer to play with since I am asking Santa for one for Christmas this year.  (Thanks Pat!  I’m having too much fun!)

Look at what it does!!

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I made a little Zucchini Pasta Salad to eat while I was waiting for my dinner to cook.  I added 3 pieces of artichoke hearts, some kalamata olive and sundried tomatoes.  Oh so good!  This makes eating zucchini entirely too fun!

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I even had to put some of the bigger zucchini ribbons on my pita pizza!  (Mine are the ones with tomato and spinach on them.  MSP’s are pesto and light mozzarella.)

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Doesn’t it look DEE-LISH-USH?  It was another great dinner chock full of veggies! 

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I am getting ready to clean up and head out for dinner at a friend’s house – which means more fabulous veggies are in my immediate future!  (and I bet some vino as well!)

I hope that you all had a fabulous day!  Thanks to those who chimed in for today’s discussion on egg yolks in my previous post. 

I’ll see you tomorrow — maybe a bit later than usual just depending on how upgrading goes!  :)

– Shari B. =)

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A Veggieful, Movieful Halloween

Nov 1

Posted by Shari B. in Handy Kitchen Tools, Keeping Fit | 1 Comment

Good morning FitFeat Friends!

Hope you had a marvelous Halloween!  From some of the blogs I’ve read this morning, sounds like it was a great holiday for many!  My Halloween was happy indeed.

Started the day with a pumpkin-themed green smoothie which I thought would turn out a crazy brown color by adding the pumpkin puree, but luckily it was still green! 

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Then out to run a few errands, one of which included picking up this early Christmas present for our kitchen:

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I’ve been making splashy messes all over the kitchen when washing greens, so when we got a $10 off coupon for Bed Bath & Beyond in the mail, it was time to make the purchase!  I can’t wait to use it!

Next stops were my two favorite places:  Starbucks and the library!  I had a soy steamer with no flavoring and picked up my “Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen” which was on hold for me at the library. 

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Later, we decided to go see a movie.  We hit up Whole Foods on the way to grab a portable lunch, sneakily stuffed it into my purse!

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I ordered “The Hampden” which was roasted veggies, pesto and feta on a flatbread.  Taking a picture with no flash in the theater does this…

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After a brief outdoor stint where I soaked up some vitamin D for the day (yes, I chose outside over yoga) we actually went BACK to Whole Foods for dinner.  We were going to go somewhere for takeout and I couldn’t make up my mind.  All the online menus I looked at and nothing sounded ‘perfect’.  So I asked MSP if we could just do the hot/cold bar at WF, where I could get a few things to please my tastebuds. 

I chose the marinated Gigande Beans, a Quinoa Pilaf, and some sauteed veggies.  And a Gingerberry BUBBLY!!  mmmmm  dinner was FAB! 

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We scanned through our Netflix on demand movies to find something Halloween-ish without being scary.  (I’m not a fan of scary movies anyway, but after a particularly intense scary movie last Halloween that still has me crazy scared of the dark a year later, we have decided that it’s just best for me NOT to watch them.  MSP does not like to have me underfoot and tripping him glued to him when it’s dark!)   We decided on “Interview with the Vampire”.  I’d never seen it all the way through when it was first released.  And as it turns out, have STILL not seen it all the way through since I konked out about 2/3 into it.  Yes, another night that I was unable to stay awake to see 9:00 p.m.   :)  

And as I figured, this morning when my body thought it was 5:00 a.m. LIKE CLOCKWORK my eyes sprung open.  Only thanks to the time change it was really 4:00 a.m.

I’ll probably do a face plant in my dinner tonight at like 6:15.  If I even make it to dinner….!

Luckily I have a Broncos game to watch in about 30 minutes, so maybe I’ll catch a few winks during that snoozefest game! 

– Shari B. =)

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A Tool to Stretch Your Produce Dollar

Oct 8

Posted by in Handy Kitchen Tools | 13 Comments

The “dreary” is upon us in Colorado today!  I am so grateful that we had a beautiful day yesterday because I really did get outside to enjoy it and store up some extra Vitamin D. ;) It may be a number of days before I see sunshine again!  33 degrees and rainy out now, no blue to be seen anywhere – only gray!

But the good news is:  It’s FRIDAY-EVE!!  And it will be great weather for ‘must see TV’ night on NBC.  It’s the big wedding on The Office tonight – Jim and Pam!  Think it will actually happen, or will something stand in their way yet again?  :)

***

Today I wanted to share with you another of my favorite kitchen ‘tools’:  my FridgeSmart Tupperware containers.  (And no I’m not a Tupperware lady – so I’m not trying to sell you anything!)  ;)  

These containers have paid for themselves many times over (I’ve had them for about 7 years.)  Since I am essentially the only one in my household that eats a large amount of veggies regularly, I need a way to make my produce last long enough for me to eat it – especially when buying things in bulk saves money.

The containers have ridges on the bottom to keep allow the moisture to collect and keep the produce lifted away from that moisture. 

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They also have little air buttons on the front that you can adjust for high/medium/low moisture.

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This chart that comes with it shows which produce needs which buttons opened for maximum freshness. 

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I don’t think you want to know how long I’ve been able to keep spinach, celery and broccoli ‘alive’ in these containers before.  It might gross you out.  :) (Sometimes 3+ weeks!) I realize that the longer I keep my produce, the less nutritional value they have.  But when we are all shopping on tight budgets, I have to make the money I do spend on produce stretch as much as possible.  Having to throw out bad produce on trash day just kills me. 

Do you have any special tricks or tools that you use to prolong your produce?  Please share in the comments section so we can learn from each others’ experiences.

 ***

On to Wednesday feats and eats…

My Wednesday smoothie was extra-green tasting!  I guess I didn’t get as much fruit in there as usual.  Plus I added a new-to-me sprout.  This mix had:  mung bean sprouts, alfalfa sprouts, cucumber, celery, spinach, 10 pineapple chunks and half a banana.  It smelled like fresh-cut grass, which was fitting since Wednesday is my YARDIO day!

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I’ll be out of my wrap-rut for a bit because I am out of tortillas… so instead I used whole wheat “sandwich thins” (which are kind of like a ‘thin crust hamburger bun’) with Tofutti spread, pepitas, mung bean sprouts, spicy mustard, tomato, cucumber with a sprinkle of pepper:

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On the side, I ate leftovers from Tuesday night’s Pesto Gnocchi w/ Veggies.  I ate it cold like a pasta salad and it was even better than it was WARM!  I think I’ve found a new dish!

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Shortly after lunch, I decided to go get in a mini-hike.  Just a quick 30 minutes in the area they consider “the backcountry” by my house.  Just look at the sky!  So blue.  It was breezy and around 70.  Perfect! 

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And to make it an even MORE perfect afternoon, I added a tall soy chai latte to the mix…

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 With a side of Larabar…. the one that tastes like a brownie to me.  Can healthy eating get any yummier?  I think not!  :)

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Dinner was random.  In my continued quest to eat ‘new-to-me’ veggies, I purchased some golden beets.  But I just could not make up my mind what to eat them with.  So I just roasted them and ate them with a side of green beans.  Having only ever had pickled beets before, I must say I do like beets this way too! 

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Beets-n-beans alone weren’t enough to fill me for the night, so later I had “dessert” which was a decaf coffee and 1/2 of a Jocalat Larabar (Chocolate Orange flavor).  This bar has some INTENSE orange flavor, like an orange peel or maybe an orange liqueur.  A little of this bar goes a long way.  I cut the half-bar into pieces & put it on a wasabi dish… we eat with our eyes!!  If it looks fancy, it will taste fancy, right?  

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Movement for the day was the aforementioned yardio and hiking, along with a Lower Body weight training session full of lunges and squats.  :)   I think a rest day may be on tap for this cold Thursday – we’ll see!

Have a TERRIFIC Thursday!  See you again soon!

–Shari B. =)

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What a Tool!

Sep 5

Posted by in FitFeature, Handy Kitchen Tools | 2 Comments

Happy Saturday morning Blog Buds!  Hopefully you all get to enjoy the extra day off Monday for Labor Day!

First off I want to say thanks for all the great comments and emails about the blog!  Keep ‘em coming!  I love hearing from everyone!  As I mentioned in the email announcement I sent, I’ll offer this site’s first giveaway once there are two consecutive posts with comments from 30 or more different people.  Hmm, I wonder what the first prize will be? A unique mug for your morning coffee?  A cookbook?  An assortment of Larabars?

(speaking of prizes, be sure to read through to the end of the post – you’re in for a fun dessert treat!)

Today’s FitFeature is about a particular kitchen tool, the hand chopper (you may have seen a knock-off version on late night infomercials called the “Slap Chop”.)

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About 6+ years ago it seemed that everyone I knew was having Pampered Chef parties (including me).  As direct marketing parties go, Pampered Chef was a good one!  (Someone cooks food for you then you eat yummy treats!  Gotta love that, right?)  Over the years I have amassed quite a collection of various Pampered Chef tools.  And I must admit that they really do make the prep work easier.  This particular one is a favorite of mine if only for making chopping onions easier and less tearful!  Plus it is really easy to take apart and rinse off.   Kitchen tools that cut down on your prep time are definitely worth the upfront investment if they will propel you to make more healthy home cooked meals with fresh ingredients.  I have a small list of great tools that I use regularly and will feature from time to time.  Here are just a few of my favorites:

  • Mandolin slicer
  • George Foreman Grill
  • ThunderStick (it’s NOT what it sounds like it is!)
  • FridgeSmart containers by Tupperware (keep my veggies fresh much longer)

What is your favorite kitchen tool? Drop me a comment!

On to Friday’s round-up of Feats and Eats!

Weight Training (Back & Tris)

  • Barbell Bent Rows 4 working sets of 12 reps
  • Parallel Grip Lat Pulldowns 4 working sets of 12, 9, 7, 12 reps
  • Tricep Pushdowns 3 working sets of 12, 10, 10
  • TRX Low Row 3 sets of 10, 10, 10
  • Overhead KB Tricep Press 3 burnout sets of 20, 20, 20

Poor pups didn’t get their “wogging” session but we’ll make up for it over the weekend!

Friday started with a cup of coffee pre-workout.  Yet another Starbucks mug, I know!  Those damn mugs call to me when I’m in the store…

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After the workout I was really hungry, so not only did I go for two pieces of toast this time, but I also make a rice protein & almond milk shake.  My usual Ezekial 4:9 sprouted grain bread was nowhere to be found at the grocery store, so I had to go with another version by the same company called Genesis.  This one has a lot of sprouted seeds and has a distinctly sesame taste. – can’t decide if I’m ok with that or not.  After toasting I added raw almond butter to both, then topped one with raw honey and one with raw agave nectar.  While the nectar tasted great, it is thinner than honey and had pretty much rolled off the toast before I got to eat it!  I’m using my favorite toast plate (which is really a sushi plate – my friend Beth made it for me at a ceramic studio as a gift and I use it all the time!)

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We had plans for an early (10:00 AM, cheap seats) showing of a new movie called “Extract” so I packed up some pepitas to take in my purse into the movie with a bottle of water:

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Lunch was my usual BIG salad, this time with a side of wild rice.  I added some orange pepper to my salad today – the only rainbow color I’m missing here is blue!  Spinach, romaine, arugula, dulse, pepper, nutritional yeast, fresh tomato, sundried tomato, olive oil and balsamic vinegar:

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Mid-afternoon snack was just a cup of decaf coffee with non-dairy creamer and a side of two-bite extra dark chocolate (while reading my Kindle – the PERFECT afternoon!)  Had to use my “reading glasses” mug:

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Finally dinner time! I’d been smelling this all day in the crock pot!  My mom’s chili recipe!  (It’s so good!)  But it does have ground beef in it so before I add the beef, I divide some out for me and put MSP’s batch into the crockpot.  First I sauteed some onion and green pepper (that I had used my hand chopper to chop up):

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Then I cut up half a block of remaining tofu I had in the fridge to add to the pan:

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Then I took the plant-based items out of the pan and partially browned the ground beef, just long enough to get it really crumbled (it will cook the rest of the way in the crock pot.)  I added the tomato juice, chili beans, kidney beans and spices to the crock pot and mixed it all up.  I put my tofu, green peppers and onion into a small pan and spooned out some of the chili mixture for my vegetarian version, then added the beef to the crock pot for MSP’s beefy version.

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His is on the left with cheese mixed in, mine is on the right topped with some nutritional yeast (for cheese flavor + some B12) and a few crushed Baked Tostitos:

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It was a GREAT meal!  Very filling!  And SO easy (which is how I like every meal to be – if it’s not easy, it probably won’t get made in my kitchen!)

After dinner we toasted the holiday weekend:

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And later on into the evening, it was time for a dessert.  MSP had standard ice cream and I had the HEALTHIEST ICE CREAM EVER!!  This recipe is credited to  Gena, a fantastic raw food blogger in NYC Choosing Raw, and the post where she shows how to make this banana soft serve is titled “This Post Will Change Your Life” (Click on the title of her post to check it out and see the recipe.)  She’s not kidding, either – it will change your life!  :)   You would never imagine that you could make ice cream out of JUST frozen bananas, but it really does come out that consistency.  It’s GREAT!  I love having an awesome “go-to” dessert that I can feel really good about.   Gena, I thank you for this heavenly creation!  Here’s how it looks (topped with a squeeze of agave nectar):

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Well that’s my Friday friends!  Hope yours was a fine start to a great holiday weekend!  Enjoy!

See you soon!
– Shari B. =)

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