Another variational meal…

I love squash. Love love love it. Summer, winter.. I’ll eat it. Little salt, and I’m a happy girl.

Husband…not a squash fan.

What to do?

A little ditty that I decided to name “Squashed Baked Chicken”…

I take a steamed squash, in this “receta” is a summer squash similar to zucchini. Zucchini would work terrifically. Sadly, I cannot tell you exactly what squash it is that I used.. I cannot remember.

Okay, I take a steamed squash, and puree it. Then pour it into a glass pan. Adding a little chicken bullion, I then layer with fresh tomatoes, onion and celery leaves. Add chicken, then another layer of the vegetables.

On my husbands side of the pan, I add some cream cheese. Once done baking, I sprinkled some Parmesan-Romano cheese on his as well. (His is the one pictured, because it’s prettier.)

Bake at 350 for about 30-45 mintues. Served with rice and peas.

Provecho!

Cooking the same meal…

How do you cook for a person who wants to eat better and one that wants to eat… “richer”?

This has been the struggle in my house. You see, eating in a 3rd world country is                       E X P E N S I V E                   on one hand… or carb loaded on the other. So, my husband ensures we have proper groceries so we aren’t bogged down with casados. (and casados here, typically are just meat, bean, and rice… salad, tortilla, and plantain are ‘extra’).

Anywho… given that we don’t eat out. Seriously.. I have lived here over a year and we have eaten out less than the fingers God gave me.. So, given that we don’t eat out, the menu can get rather dull and lacking in ‘special-ness’.

My husband likes rich, tasty, palatable meals. Think alfredo and other cream sauces, steaks with cheddar, decadent desserts. his idea of a snack is bon-bons at times. (And he has a killer body.. damn metabolism.) But that’s what he can do, but my hips can’t take it!

So.. how does a woman make a meal that will satisfy the decadent one, without drowning in calories?

I think this will require my sharing of recipes!

Here is what I made for lunch today:

Mmmmmmmmm... Delicioooooooooooosooo!

The name? Hmmmm… Estoy inventando.. Entonces?

We’ll call it: Ebbin’s Open Face Skillet Burger

Okay, pictured is his version. The only difference in his version is:

Parmesan-Romano Cheese with Green Olives in the burger,Parmesan-Romano Cheese sprinkled on top, and glorious pesto mayonasie.

Pretty simple meal, really. Any meal I make pretty much can’t take longer than 30 minutes. I just start to feel trapped in that kitchen!!  Mix your hamburger meat with any desired spices. Given I was doing pesto, I put in garlic and a little bit of ranch dressing and water(need my burgers moist!! And then in his, added the cheese mixture and 5 sliced green olives.).  We were out of propane, so these became skillet burgers. While they were cooking, I took one of my homemade burger buns (which turned out not to my liking.. a bit dense, thus the open face…) and added just a little bit of pesto to my bun, and pesto mayo to his. Then I thinly sliced some cucumber and splashed some white vinegar on them. Finished up the skillet burgers, topped with the vinegared cucumber, diced purple onion, and slivers of chile dulce (red peppers).

Que Freaking Rico!!

You are what you eat..

or drink for that matter..

Do you know how much water, I mean, REAL water you drink a day? And really, that whole 8 8-ounces glasses is, um, bullocks. It truly depends on where you live, how much you sweat, and what you eat. The best way to gauge it is  to pay attention each time you urinate.  After the morning relief, your urine should be colorless and odorless for the remainder of the day;  assuming that you have normal functioning kidneys and no bladder disease or infection. If it is, VIOLA! you are drinking enough water.

I used to be super great about water.. but I have, er.. left water for other wonderful beverages. Batidos, te frio, cafe, and jugos.. all well and fine.. but, water is a wonderful thing. It helps keep your skin clear, your body balanced, and is the perfect drink.. calorie free and tastes like… nothing.

So, I have decide as of today, BEFORE each meal, I will drink 12 ounces of water. This wiill ensure a better amount of moisture in my system.. and will help fill up the ole stomach bag, aiding in not gorging myself, right?

Plus, it’ll keep my pee clear.

Well, I feel a bit leaner..

As I sit here eating a plum, drinking my water, feeling the cool Costa Rican breeze through my house, I know life is good. I know it will be even better tomorrow with the effort of becoming better that I put in today.

I think my efforts of snaking more healthy are starting to rub off. As My husband and i strolled through our PriceSmart, the Latin American Cosco, I could hear my husband saying “I just want to snack less.” Standing in front of the 2-pack Tositio’s Corn chips, he put back the bag. Even with my enticing of making homemade salsa, he reflected on how we haven’t had chips in the house for about a month. He then grabbed a single bag, and I could see the internal debate within him. Finally he put the bag down, and said, “No, I really don’t miss the chips.”

And with that, we walked to the produce selection, picking up galas, plums and some fresas to go with our bananas and watermelon at home.

We have both decided after our dinner of a nice green salad, with cottage cheese, red onion, pico de gallo, and a half a tablespoon of dressing, that we would have a salad for dinner, not just with, but for dinner at least 3 nights a week. Fine by me!

So it’s Sunday.. do you know how your butt is doing?

Sunday.. the typical day of rest and relaxation for all. The typical day of gorging on sweets. I have to admit, I haven’t curbed my cookie intake, but I sure have increased my vegetable and fruit intakes! Whew, one down, a few more to go!

Anyone know Denise Austin? I have one of her Pilates DVDs.. I’ve had it for some time, and I use it. She’s kind of annoying, but the “workout” is quick, fun, and not too repetitive. Plus, it allows for my sanity since I can’t get to the gym. I do that at least 5 times a week, no excuses anymore!

Oh, and I made my own cottage cheese a few days ago. I love it.. cottage cheese has been used by body builder and fitness enthusiast for decades.. low in carbs high in protein and filling. Great snack with fruit or veggies mixed in.. or puts some in a wrap….Mmmmmmmmmm.  I am forced to make it myself, because one little container is well over $5 (the price you pay for living in a beautiful tropical country), but I don’t mind because I can make it without salt.. bonus bonus since women like to retain water like the dickens!!

A real motivator

What more of a way to motivate yourself than to post pictures of my “attention areas”, right?

So, this is a profile view of my, um, derriere. OOOOO man. Not too shabby.. except for the double bubble I got going on. And I have always had that going on. Well, I’m packing it’s suitcase and waving good by with lunges, squats, and other tightening exercises in my pilates routine.

Not a great first day.. but awareness has kicked in.

Okay. Let’s say, coming from a THICK family, you learn a few tricks. You learn that queso crema is good on everything, and you learn how to dress slimming.

I am a master at both! HA

Like yesterday, I already had plans to go to a girlfriend’s house for sushi. Pretty healthy. But I brought the dessert. Fruit Pizza. not as healthy as it sounds.  Sugar cookie, queso crema, and then fresh fruit. I did pretty good, and only had a sliver over there.. but then I came home, and succumbed to the left overs.. eating the rest of the sugar cookie that was over cooked, and then a inch by inch square of the fruit pizza.

I know, not the worst thing in the world.. but it’s not about excuses anymore. Excuses add up calorie by calorie until that blueberry muffin I’m eating relocates to my very own muffin top.

But I have a bad habit about going hard core on diet things. And we all know that a 4 1/2 post-partum mom that is breastfeeding (we all know that, right?).. can’t restrict herself crazy like on food. And that’s nothing this normal woman wants to do anyhow.

But i figured something out. My daily intake, over 50% is CARBS. So.. that’s an easy fix!

So taking inspiration from NYCity Mama.. more greens (because I like them) and more veduras and frutas in general.

See… DUH! lol

A pound of flesh…

Where to begin… I guess I have become inspired by my Internet girlfriends to embrace a healthier lifestyle. (Shout out to Mama Cain and Freedom!) But it really starts before that….

I guess this all began in 6th grade, when I took my mother’s diet pills for the first time. This would not be last time a swallowed an ever promising pill of wonders…

See, my family has, um.. THICK genes… and when I say thick, I mean obese. The only healthy member of my family that I know of (and I don’t know her that well) is my father’s mother.. she has a pool, and swims everyday. She ALSO has a chest full of silicone, so how much of her thinness is true is a bet that one could wager in Vegas. Let just say I don’t put much stock in her thinness.

So, my genetics work a bit against me. But who can’t say that?

Anyway, this really began once I met my now husband. He has a body and workout regime to inspire. Seriously, fitness model potential. Abs harder than any other person than I have met (not that I have felt many stomach in my life).. Abs harder than any person you have met too, we can say! He is in great shape, and always has been.. but eats, well, not in a way that my body would agree..and doesn’t agree.

When we first start dating, I was around 160.. of flab. I weighed more than him. Yikes, huh? And well, for about 8 years, we have had conversations and hurt feelings about my weight. You see, I have this problem with really jumping on the “bandwagon” and then about two weeks in, falling off. And falling off for about a month or more at a time.

The best that I have ever kept a schedule of fitness in my life was a soild 3.5 months. And I was looking good, if I must say so.. not like skinny, but muscle tone, and not as much flab. I think I got down to 135lbs.. but I can’t say for sure, as I didn’t weigh myself.

And speaking of weight, I won’t really be weighing myself here either. Maybe here and there.. but it’s not about weight, it’s about appearance (why does that sound shallow?). Muscles, tone and happiness baby! That’s what I’m going for…in a healthy, happy manner!