Trim Healthy Mama

I have wanted to write about this book/diet I have (halfway started). It's called "Trim Healthy Mama". I read the book once but they say to read it 2-3 times to really start to understand the concept.  I have Facebook stalked the THM group and saw so many testimonials on how this diet had worked for people.  The first week I tried it I lost 5 pounds in a week!  Then I started cheating…… but I am back on the bandwagon.  I highly encourage you to look it up for yourself since, frankly, I am terrible at explaining it!  Here is an excerpt from the book:

"The two primary fuel sources for the body are glucose and fats.  It is crucial that protein be included in every meal, but it is not a primary fuel for the body.  Once you focus your meal on one fuel source at a time, your body will be able to burn through that fuel, and then switch directly to the task of burning your own adipose tissue (body fat) for fuel.  Results?  Natural weight loss."

There are two types of meals that you eat.  An Energizing meal. (E meal)  That meal is Higher on good carbs and low fats.  Then there is a Satisfying meal. (S meal).  That meal is Lower in carbs but higher in fats.  Both meals you are always adding protein.  The book is thick with information, recipes and food lists.  I have had some AMAZING meals and I will try to start posting recipes. You can eat whichever type of meal that you want but if you are going to switch to the other type (E to S or S to E) then you need to wait 3 hours so that your body can be digested and ready to switch.  For me, the S meals are so easy and delicious so I usually have that for breakfast and dinner and put an E meal to give me energy for lunch.

I'm going to start with a drink recipe that is not in the book ( I couldn't find it) but it is on the website.  I made it and when I saw the ingredients I was SCARED!  haha  I didn't want to take a drink but when I did, it was so good!  I just drank a Quart in about two and half hours. It's really good for you and it is better to make this then diet soda or juice.  Give it a try!  Do it!  Tell me what you think!

Good Girls Moon Shine

Ingredients:
1-2 Tbs. raw, Apple Cider Vinegar (try to find one with the mother included)  I bought Braggs brand   (I heard that makes a huge difference)
1 tsp. ginger powder (ground ginger)
2-4 mini spoonfuls of Stevia Extract
water
ice

Instructions:
1.Fill a Quart Sized jar with water and ice.
2.Add raw apple cider, ginger powder and sweetener
3.Stir well and enjoy!

Scheffer/Parsons Cinnamon Rolls

I feel a little funny being the one to post this recipe. I kept hearing about these cinnamon rolls that my friend,Sara, had the recipe for. I'm a die hard Pioneer Woman cinni lover so I had to try these out. I asked with a pretty please and she gave me the recipe. When I started posting pictures on Instagram, people started asking for the recipe. I asked Sara if I could share it and she was so nice about it. Blame Sara's mom for the extra 5 pounds you will put on after eating these pups. Here is Sara.Here we go! 2C. flour, 2t.salt, 2T yeast (2 packs), 2C. quite warm water, 1/2C. potato flakes (Betty Crocker potato buds), 1/3C.butter(softened), 1/3C. sugar,2 room temp. eggs

Place all of the above ingredients(EXCEPT THE EGGS) in a bowl. Beat for 2 minutes until smooth. Then add the 2 warm eggs, beat until mixed.

*Add 3 1/2C. more flour. Stir with a rubber spatula. Then with your hands, place dough on the counter with a lot of flour underneath. Cover the dough with the bowl and let rest for 20 minutes.
Roll dough out into a rectangle, roughly 18x6 (Sara does it bigger to get a tighter roll with more goodies....trust me...do as Sara does). Spread butter over the dough (1/3C. or more)
*Mix together 1/2C. brown sugar and 2t. of cinnamon (Sara does more...so I did too.) Sprinkle evenly over the dough.
Roll the rectangle (lengthwise) and pinch the seam.
Cut about 1" slices and place on a greased pan. Cover with saran wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight. (Sara says you can bake them the same day but give them a good amount of time to rise.) Take out the next morning and let them rise for 20 minutes.

Bake them at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. (until lightly golden on top.)

Makes 18-20 rolls(roughly)

Frosting- 1/2C. melted butter, 1t. vanilla, 1lb. powdered sugar (roughly 4C.), 1/4C. milk, pinch of salt. Beat together until smooth. Spread over warm rolls.
Sara....AMAZEBALLS! Thank you for letting me share.

Sizzling RoundUps

Every Sunday morning we are called to the breakfast table at 7:30 sharp! It is Sizzling Round Up day. They are so good that Ivy asks me if it's "church day" so that she can have the round ups. This week my Mother in law asked me if I wanted to learn how to make them. I wish that I would have taken a picture of every step. But here it is.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Take an 8oz. ramakin. Spray it with Pam.

Put 1 piece of turkey bacon around the rim.

Make a layer of crumbled bread or seasoned roughly crushed croutons to fill the bottom.

Cover with shredded cheese and lightly press down.

Pour an egg on top. Use a knife to spread the white on top. (don't break the yoke.)

Bake 22-27 minutes. (Ramakins may vary.)
Take a serving spoon and wrap it around the round up and pop it out onto a plate.
So yummy!
Enjoy!

Easy Taco Casserole

(Lucy needed a job so I put her to work doing the dishes.)

Easy Taco Casserole

1 lb. ground beef ( I use ground turkey)

1 c. salsa

1/2 c. mayo

2t. chili powder

2c. crushed tortilla chips ( I never measure these)

1 c. shredded Colby cheese

1 c. Monterey Jack cheese ( I just used all cheddar tonight)

tomato

shredded lettuce

Brown beef, add salsa, mayo and chili powder (you can omit the powder), mix well.

In an ungreased 2 Qt. baking dish, layer half the meat mixture, chips, cheeses. Repeat layers.

Bake uncovered @ 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until heated through. Before serving, top with lettuce and tomato.

You really can't mess this up. I would double the recipe for a big family or company. I browned the turkey and then basically Ivy did the rest. Another fun way to teach my girls to love the kitchen.

New Recipes

(Wish I was a better photographer)

I made some new recipes tonight that I made from Pinterest. The meat balls I had made before but not the broccoli cheese bites. My mother in law had some frozen meatballs left over that she wanted to get used so I put them in the crock pot. I didn't want to make the same old steamed broccoli for dinner so I found this recipe and it turned out great! They were kind of like crab cakes. A mom had made them to get her kids to eat veggies. I've taken these meatballs to a party before and it was a hit. I just served them with toothpicks.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

1 pkg. frozen meatballs (can use turkey)

1 jar of grape jelly

1 12-16oz. jar of chili sauce

Put the chili sauce and the grape jelly in the crock pot and stir until smooth.

Heat if necessary.

Add meatballs

Coat them and cook on low 2-4 hours.

Serve over rice.

Broccoli Cheese Bites

16oz. frozen broccoli

1.5 cups cheddar cheese

3 eggs

1 c. Italian bread crumbs

thaw and strain excess water from the broccoli

Mix everything together

Form into small patties and put on parchment paper

Bake for 25 min. at 375 degrees (turn patty after 15 minutes)

Enjoy!

Summer Food Crawl continued....

I have made a couple AMAZING things to eat this summer. I made 2 things this week and I will share one of them today. It tasted amazing but I don't think I made it right. I can't wait to make it again. I got a cookbook from my friend,Kelli for my birthday. It was from a restaraunt we went to in Nashville called The Loveless Cafe. Such great food!

I made the Suppertime Beef Casserole

1 (7 ounce) package macaroni and cheese

1 pound ground beef

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 (10 ounce) can onion soup

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the macaroni and cheese according to the package directions. Brown the ground beef with the garlic in a skillet over medium heat, stirring until crumbly, drain. Add the soup and prepared macaroni and cheese. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon the mixture into a 2 Qt. casserole dish. Bake for 30 minutes.

Keep in mind this is a southern recipe so it is not diet friendly. I used steamed broccoli as a side dish to make myself feel better. Matt loved it! Every day since then he says, " I wish we still had some of that macaroni casserole." :) Enjoy!

Ivy's Recipe.. Strawberry Delight...Food Crawl #3

I wanted to do something fun with Ivy today because it was her 1st day at summer camp at Legacy (where she is going to Kindergarten). I'm not going to lie, it was a hard day. I cried alot. I could write a whole post about it. Just realizing that she is going to be a Kindergartener hit me hard. I miss her when she is not here. Anyway...Ivy has been asking me to help her make something out of one of HER cookbooks and I chose the "Paula Deen's My First Cookbook". We made Strawberry Delight. (It's not diet food!)

Ingredients:

1 large angel food cake

8oz. block of cream cheese

14 oz. can of sweetend condensed milk, regular or fat free

2 10oz. packages frozen,sweetened, halved, strawberries, thawed

7oz. can of whipped cream

1. Tear the cake into bite size pieces into a bowl. Put the cream cheese and the sweetened condensed milk into a medium bowl and mix with an electric mixer until it's smooth.

2. Put about half of the cake pieces into the large glass bowl. Pour about half of the cream cheese mixture on top of the cake pieces and use a spatula to spread it evenly from one side of the bowl to the othere. Open 1 package of strawberries and evenly pour the berries and juice over the cream cheese mixture. Take the can of whipped cream and make a thin layer evenly over the strawberries. Make sure you don't use it all because you need more for the top layer than you do for the bottom layer.

3. Repeat the layers. You can decorate the top with fresh strawberries if you like.

4. Cover the top with plastic wrap and keep this in the refrigerator until after the meal is over. Then bring it to the table and everyone will ooh and ahh and think you are just the best cook ever!

So yummy! Enjoy!

Marston's Salad....food crawl continued...

A couple weeks ago Matt and I took the girls and used a gift card we had to a new place in town called Marston's. They have a very successful restaraunt in Pasadena so this is another location. The food was AMAZE-BALLS! I had the most amazing salad. I had heard that the their San Pasqual salad dressing was so good and that they sold it. You can get it here . I quickly got out my phone and wrote down the ingredients so that I could make the salad at home. I added some rotisserie chicken and I think the only other thing that would make it perfect is some crumbled goat cheese.

Here are the ingredients:

spinach leaves

green onions

candied walnuts

avacado

bacon

Marston's San Pasqual dressing

Matt said that it was the best salad he ever ate. Score!

Enjoy!

Amazing Bacon Wrapped BBQ Burgers

Ok, to go along with Grandma's baked beans, I found this amazing bacon wrapped BBQ burburger recipe. It was amazing but you could almost split a burger with someone else. Here's Matt making the patties.You put the mixture of sautaeed onions, mushrooms and BBQ sauce in the middle of 2 patties and push them together.
Wrapping in bacon goodness.

Enjoy!

Grandma Gorsh's Baked Beans

Me and Grandma (Mary) Gorsh
I told Matt yesterday that I wanted to do something this summer. Kind of like a food crawl through out the summer. We still need to watch our weight but I am thinking a little splurge once a week. (In this case twice because we had leftovers.) With Matt out of work right now, I still want to make amazing memories this summer but we can't spend extra money so... you have to buy groceries anyway right? I would like to try a new recipe each week.

I am going to post about our amazing burger later in the week but I wanted to share my Grandma's WONDERFUL recipe for baked beans. You HAVE to make them this summer for a BBQ.I dragged my Jr. Chef out of the pool to help me prepare the beans.

Grandma's baked beans. You'll be wanting her address to send her a thank you note after you try these beans!
Grandma Gorsh's Baked Beans:

VanKamp's pork n beans 2-3 cans (1 lb. cans)

1/4 lb. (4 slices) bacon, kind of crisp, crumbled

large hamburger patty, cooked and crumbled

medium onion

1/4 cup brown sugar

1T. molassas ( I never put this in because I don't have it)

1T. Ketchup

1T. mustard

Mix and heat. Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Dinner

I have been really excited to plan my menu this year for Thanksgiving. I think I narrowed it down (although I think I need to make something a little sweet or light...any ideas?) Here is what I decided:

Turkey

Very Best Sweet Potatoes (found at Tasty Kitchen)

Stuffing

Garlic Parmesan Green Beans (found at Tasty Kitchen)

Pumpkin Butter Gooey Cake

Then I brought alot of my favorite cook books to bed with me last night to find recipes for the leftover turkey so that we don't overload on turkey sandwhiches....even though I think Matt would kind of like that, I don't want to throw anything away. I am hoping to freeze or use 12 cups of leftover turkey.

Here is what I have planned:

Paula Deen's Turkey and Stuffing Casserole ( I am sure you can find it on Foodnetwork.com, I am using "Paula Deen Celebrates"

Turkey Shepard's Pie (Katie Lee Joel.... I have her website on the right of my blog)

Turkey Corn Chowder (from my Grandma Kitty's cook book. I will have to post this recipe at some point.)

Think on these recipes because you might be going to someone else's house where they give you some leftovers to take home. What are you guys making? Let me know!

Pumpkin Butter Gooey Cake

Ok. Before we get any further into the holiday season, I have to share with you my favorite Thanksgiving/Fall dessert. It is from Paula Deen and it is our absolute favorite! Matt doesn't even want pumpkin pie anymore because this out does it for sure. I thought I would share the recipe. TRY IT! You will thank me for sure. It is Paula's pumpkin version of her famous gooey butter cakes.

Pumpkin Butter Gooey Cake

Cake:

1 18.25-oz. box yellow cake mix

1 egg

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter,melted

Filling:

1 8oz packaged cream cheese, softened

3 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 16oz. box confectioner's sugar

1/2 cup (1 sick) melted butter

15 oz. can of pumpkin pie filling

Directions:

preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 13x9x2 in. baking pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine cake mix, egg and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside. Still using the electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth, add eggs and vanilla. Dump in confectioner's sugar and beat well. Reduce speed and add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40-50 minutes. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don't bake it past the point. (If I see the bottom cake looks done, I take it out. You want the top to be jiggly.)

Remove from the oven and allow the cake to cool completely. Cut into squares and don't forget to top with whip cream.

Even Paula says that you will never want pumpkin pie again! Tell me what you think if you try it! Enjoy!