Itty Bitty Squash Cups

One of my goals is to try new recipes or to try to create new presentations to my foods. I tend to stick to a pretty monotonous diet, however, I like what I eat so that isn't a problem. But there are other things that I would like to venture out and try every now and then. 

I have to admit, these were supposed to be mushroom cups, but as you can see, that didn't happen. The mushrooms were too small, and we had a handful of squash in the fridge so I decided to make them instead. 

Fist step, cut the squash about three inches wide and then "scope" out the insides (you can chop that up and add it to your quinoa mix so it doesn't go to waste)

Stir fry your veggies (you can use whatever you like) and then assemble your cups on a nonstick pan. 

(Your oven should be preheating to 350 degrees)

Now your going to stuff it....your squash cups I mean, stuff them with your veggie mixture.

Then bake them for 10 minutes 

served with mashed potatoes, bread, kabocha squash, tomato and green beans is optional. 

Ingredients: 

1 tbs EVOO

1/2 red bell pepper 

3 small Mexican squashes (each cut into three pieces)

1C mushrooms (chopped)

1/3 onion (chopped)

2 c of broccoli chopped

1/2 cup of quinoa, raw

1/2 tbs of paprika

1/4 tbs of curry powder 

salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

cook quinoa to package instructions 

Chop all of your veggies (except the squash)

Heat the oil on a large frying pan, first add the onions and the mushrooms. 

Add the curry powder and the paprika. 

Saute until translucent. 

Now add the rest of the veggies (and the squash "guts")

add the cook quinoa, season with salt and pepper to taste , let simmer for about 5 minutes.

Assemble the squash boats on a pan and fill up with the mixture

Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. 

Serve with hummus. 

New Years Goals

As I wrap up this year, I am currently thinking of the things that I have done in the past year. I have made plenty of mistakes, have slowly learned from them but I know that I will fail again. Life is about mistakes.

I try to keep busy and tend to rush through some of the important things in life

I don't listen to my body and tend to push it to the limits

I try to eat healthy all the time--which leads to my pitfall (Oreo cravings at night)

I sometimes and very bad at texting or communicating with people, I need to make an effort to become more friendly. 

I am not reading as much as I should of, I have let my passion for reading diminish and can barley get through a book in two months.

I don't want to just write random goals and hope to accomplish them. I really want to sit down and have a plan. Some things for sure:

I want to volunteer more
I want to stop calorie counting
I want to go back to school
I need a new job
I want to stay organized
I need to be happier
and lastly, I want to take a family picture at least once a month. EVERYONE. Someone is always missing from our pictures. 

SAD

Do you ever feel down?

The winter time is strongly correlated with the holidays and drinking hot chocolate and eating cookies and pie. It also means that people are together with their family, eating, talking, playing, and hopefully enjoying a few presents to share. However, this is not always the case. Sometimes we don't have a lot of family around us, or our family bonds aren't as strong as we would like them to be. Its sad, but its life. Life isn't so perfect, but that's a topic for another day. The fact that the weather isn't so optimal to keep your spirits up created a problem in our everyday lives.

People periodically experience SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) AKA the winter blues. This period is mostly caused by the lack of light one experiences. Mostly, SAD is cured when one exposes themselves to light, even if its for a short period of time. Most scientist (http://www.webmd.com/depression/features/seasonal-affective-disorder) believe that this is caused by the bodies' internal clock, which is regulated by the sun. It is innate to know when to wake up and go to sleep because our bodies are directed by natural sunlight. However, if we wake up and its always gloomy outside, our internal clock doesn't know how to process the information, the use of artificial light does not help provide the warmth and vitamin D that the sun's natural exposure would of.

So what are natural remedies to prevent feeling SAD?

1. If you have the time and money you can always go to a light box ()

2. Vacation to a light sunny place.

3. Exercise

4. Eat right

5. Fill your house with holiday spirit or with tropical items such as a tiki or hulas

6. Eat tryptophan rich foods such as fruits (apricots) and basmati rice

7. Limit alcohol and caffeine

8. Surround yourself with lighthearted people who often laugh or are very "happy go lucky" (just don't feel jealous that they are so gleeful, it might rub off on you)

So there is my list. Also remember to eat plenty of good carbs. If your glycogen storage tends to dip, you may feel a negative ship in your mood because you cognition isn't working properly. Besides that try to enjoy the weather and take it as an opportunity to go out and relax and use it to wind down and drink some yummy tea. Live in the moment and encourage your body to wind down.

WIAW

Does anyone get up early to run and think that God decided to paint a beautiful picture for them and only them? No? Okay. Despite the freezing cold temperatures, I always get super excited when I am running and get to see the sun rise. Its like a gift that was meant for only me and I love it dearly. 

Recently, it was my birthday and I got one of these bad-boys as a present. I tested it out today. 

Hmm, I am not completely sure how I feel about it. 

So breakfast was a repeat  of an oldie but goodie. Frozen (leftover pancakes) crumbled up over applesauce and diced pears. 

Snack was pb, celery and pineapple (yes, I know this is an orange)

The infamous daily smoothie. 

with leftovers: Spaghetti squash with beans, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, and spinach. 

Veggie burgers and cornbread. 

Then the snack-age began.....

Homemade papaya roll 

edamame  

Cereal and yogurt 

persimmon and cutie 

Dinner was soup and a corn muffin .. okay, two corn muffins

dessert was a chocolate chip pumpkin muffin with shaved almond milk

Then I decided to have apples with Pb and another muffin....oops. 

I think the hungry beast within me is tame....for now at least. 

WIAW

Do you guys ever fall into food ruts where you eat the same thing over and over again? I tend to eat the same thing every day for breakfast: Oatmeal Lunch: leftover soup  snacks: apples and PB
So, I am trying to change it up a bit and add other foods to my diet. 

I started running in the park. Its really nice to run with other people, it also helps me with my speed. They help me stay motivated and keep up my pace so I don't have time to stagger around. 

For breakfast, I opted for pumpkin pancakes and soy yogurt with fruit on top. It was a nice change, but it didn't seem soo filling as normal oatmeal. 

I can't let go of celery without PB for my morning snack because celery alone is too salty. But I did trade in the apple for an orange. 

I made this spicy quinoa and chickpea dish. It was perfect to pair with my sweet potato for lunch. 

Some things never change! 

Ice cream with bananas and sprinkles to end the night. It was awesome and a nice change. 

Post Thanksgiving Thoughts

So now thanksgiving day is over. Finally, time to rest and reset. I have been reading a lot of other blogs lately such as TheRealLifeRD and RunEatRepeat. They are doing some type of challenge. I feel that they are all inspiring individuals and we should all steal some of their ingenuity and complete a challenge.

 

I love the fact that Robyn decided to focus on resting and bringing peace to one's life. She also stresses that we live in a low calorie world where everyone decided to diet themselves thin instead of trying to create a healthy environment.

 

Monica from RunEatRepeat decided to perfect or try a new exercise or routine each day. She focuses everyday as a start to new healthy living. I love her idea because sometimes we tend to think of exercise as only running, only weights, only using the elliptical. But there if more to it. Circuit training is a fantastic workout that you can do in half the time because it forces you to challenge your body and do something different. Also, circuit training increases your heart rate and increases the after burn affect that you will experience. Thus, its a nice way to spice things up every now and then. However, including just one or two moves will challenge your body to do something different.

 

While I am not following any specific guide or plan I am stealing snippets of both of these fabulous ladies ideas. I am going to work on limiting processed foods and sticking to whole foods this month (limiting sugar *read*icecream*read) to two or three times a week. I am also going to try to eat REAL food at meal times. I can't just rely on a simple pb&j. Even though its wholesome and good I am an adult and need to start eating adult food. I need to get creative and start trying out new things. My little kid pallet is so used to fighting the urge to branch out but now is the time. Plus that means I can try new recipe's such as Pumpkin Chocolate Brownies right?

 

Also, I love running. Running may or may not love me in return. Also, the weather may not be so fond of runners because it rains on our parade (haha...okay not soo funny). But now I am going to try to include strength training, circuit training, and some other shenanigans to move my tooshie. (The fact that I also have just ordered a new dumbbell set from amazon helps to). I want to get stronger, leaner, and fitter (yeah, they all mean the same thing but I just want to exaggerate the point). I want to challenge my body so I can have the agility that I always wanted. I am no longer that chubby kid who would sit with a family bag size Doritos and a 2 liter bottle of coke and watch cartoons everyday. I am now a fitness and health enthusiastic who should start to emphasize it in my own life.

 

Cheer my friends!  

Happy Post Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is meant to be full of festivities, instead people are starting to dis-guard the holiday in order to start their shopping for Christmas. Don't get me wrong, I love deals and specials. I mean, why pay full price for an item that you can get for 50% off right? But discounts aren't the problem here. The problem is that people are being forced to work ON Thanksgiving day or are abandoning their family or loved ones in a way to save a spot in line in the freezing cold so that they can be sure to score some pretty sweet deals on new toys. The fact that stores open on midnight Friday, forces people to rush through the traditional festivities. Its a literal drive-by in terms of eating.

 

I feel that everyone is forgetting to be Thank-FULL on this special holiday. This is the only holiday that forces us to spend time with family without expecting gifts or any other type of monetary or physical payment. It also forces us to focus on being FULL. As in full of love, life, happiness, and lets be honest--stuffed to the brim of yummy food.

 

Even though there has been talk about boycotting Black Friday, it would be very difficult to establish. Many people don't believe in the traditional thanksgiving tradition so they don't care about spending the evening out in the cold waiting for a good deal. Also, many people are greedy with their money. Good deals are hard to come by. This is the day where the stores want to make the most money. But don't you think they will be able to do so if they open the doors at 8 or 9am instead of 12? Wouldn't the margin of profit be the same. Only, the employees won't feel the drag of waking up in the wee hours of the morning for something that isn't even going to benefit them.

I bet people who shop on Black Friday actually end up spending more than they originally intended because of the deals they see (of stuff they don't need) and end up regretting the purchase.

 

 

To all, I really hope you have a blessed day and hope you enjoy this guilt free day. Enjoy it with the ones who matter most in your life, enjoy the memories and traditions. Keep them alive and try to be happy. Lets try not to focus on materialistic items and be happy.

 

Eat! Enjoy! Live! Love! Laugh!!!

 

Went for a run on thanksgiving day 

said hi to the ducks 

ate some really yummy food

had like three plates of dessert

Went to bed like a happy camper