Happy Monday & What We’re Cooking…

Lance had a golf weekend the past few days with his Dad, so his Mom came to stay with me and the girls. We had a great time shopping and NOT COOKING. Seriously. In an effort to give me a break as well, she wouldn’t let me cook a single meal all weekend. Suffice it to say, I feel like I need a severe eating-out detox this week.

Not to mention, this coming weekend, I am going on a GIRLS WEEKEND to the Dot Mom Conference!! YAY!!! There’s a small group of ladies from our small group going, and though we’ve been planning it for months, I cannot believe it’s already here! Since I’ll be eating ALL of my meals with girlfriends and plan to thoroughly enjoy myself, I’m choosing to “stay on the wagon” of healthy eating this week.

So in preparation– here’s what I’m planning to cook/ try new this week:

 

This Pork Tenderloin  from Chef Mommy.

Photo Courtesy of Chef Mommy Blog

I mean, YUM!!!! It’s currently marinating in a mixture of all things wonderful including but not limited to, Olive Oil, Garlic, Dry Mustard, Soy Sauce, etc. The marinade only took me 5 minutes to throw together and the best part is, you reserve 3 tbs. of it as part of a finishing sauce. I’m planning roasted vegetables and salad to accompany it. I love serving Pork Tenderloin because the girls will usually eat it without too much, um.. drama. I think it’s going to be good.. the marinade itself smelled heavenly. Hop on over to Chef Mommy and check it out! 

One of my “secrets” when I’m watching what I eat, is subbing out a regular lunch for something lighter, like a smoothie (with no added sugar but the fruit) or maybe some hummus or tabbouleh.

This is my favorite Tabbouleh recipe (photo courtesy of norecipes.com)

My favorite smoothie when it’s accompanying something else is just Greek Yogurt (plain) and frozen fruit.  But,if I’m needing a little more protein than that the yogurt provides, than this Green Monster smoothie is a favorite. Spinach, Greek Yogurt, Peanut Butter and Milk. I don’t mind drinking my veggies one bit when it’s like this! The author of the recipe refers to this smoothie as her “top secret diet weapon” and I would definitely agree. There have been days I drink one of these for breakfast or lunch and I really do stay full for hours, and get a huge serving of spinach in. Okay, I’ll stop trying to convince you.

Another recipe I recently made is Red Beans & Rice with Andouille Sausage. We eat a LOT of beans and rice in this family. Not only are they cheap, but they can be filled with added veg like peppers and onions, and they make a very nutritious meal. Lance has this AMAZING black beans and rice recipe (Trust me, it’s more exciting than it sounds!) and I really need to post the recipe soon. We eat it probably once a week, and we love it! However, we recently tried this Red Beans and Rice with Andouille Sausage from Can You Stay For Dinner and it is also a new favorite.

Photo from Can You Stay For Dinner

I just had to post a picture of this particular dish because it was every bit of this beautiful when we made it. The recipe supposedly serves 4 (with 500 calories for each portion) but we got at least 6 servings out of it since we made a salad too. DELICIOUS and healthy. I’ve enjoyed Andie’s site, she lost 135 lbs. several years ago and has kept it off with what seems to be a sensible, balanced approach at weight loss and health. Hop on over there and check it out! But first, put the ingredients for this dish on your grocery list!

So what’s on your meal plan this week?