Another Easy Peasy Dinner

Well, I'm back with another SUPER easy dinner that I threw together the other night. Again, it's nothing fancy and I'm sure nothing new & inventive in the cooking world. But it was quick, pretty healthy and tasted SO good!!!

Shrimp & Broccoli with Rice:

Sauteed about 20 small shrimp (I love shrimp) in EVOO, minced garlic and some crushed red pepper
Boiled broccoli (like the bag said), but then baked it in the oven (10 min) with some s/p/Parmesan cheese
Microwaved some white rice
Tossed all together with s/p

You could make this dinner with steak, chicken, tofu or just some other vegetables. I've been buying those little cups of rice (white & brown) that you can just pop in the microwave for about a minute. They are the perfect serving size and super easy. Plus, there's a coupon in each package! :) Also, I tossed the leftover EVOO mixture together with the shrimp/broccoli/rice...and it gave it so much flavor! You could also substitute the white rice for brown rice - I was out of brown rice, unfortunately, but I try to mix it up from meal-to-meal. All in all, quick & delicious!!

So I don't know if can you tell, but I'm on a health(ier) kick lately:

 

Mango-flavored coconut water; taco salad; my "easy peasy pasta"; salad with chicken, cheese & Italian dressing

Apple; edamame; baked potato with cheese

 Panera's Thai chopped chicken salad, apple & iced green tea; Panera's grilled chicken Caesar salad, chicken noodle soup, apple & iced green tea

You know I'm serious when I'm even eating healthier at Panera...it's one of my go-to places on a weekly or biweekly basis, but I'm usually ordering their broccoli-cheese soup, a panini, bread bowl, bagel...not as healthy, but SO yummy! I will say, if you haven't tried their iced green tea, go for it! It's AWESOME!

Hopefully I can stay on this kick, because I'm finding that it's easier to make healthier choices when I plan out meals, use things I already have in my pantry, and look at restaurant menus ahead of time.

I found this on Pinterest, and I'm trying really hard to listen to it, because I think it says a lot:

Pinned here (Fitness Board)

I don't know about you, but that just makes me really STOP and THINK about what I'm putting in my body!! I'm not perfect though...and I'm still learning - I have cheat days, I may not be eating something that is as healthy as I think it is...but I'm trying. It's a work-in-progress!

I'd love to hear about any quick & easy dinners you've been throwing together...or things you're eating that are on the healthier side - leave them in the comments!! :)

Easy Peasy Pasta

So over the years, I've definitely struggled to cook for 1 (since the hubby and I have spent lots of time a part). Heck, what am I saying, it's even hard cooking for 2 sometimes!! Am I right?! But so I've definitely stumbled upon a few favorites that I try to cook if I'm trying to stay at home for a meal. Recently I came across an awesome, quick pasta concoction and thought I'd share it! It's nothing fancy, and I'm sure others out there have made it or something similar, but I literally just created this by throwing some things that I had in my pantry/cabinets together:

• Cooked & drained about 1 cup of twi-colored bowtie pasta (you can use any kind of pasta)
• Mixed with a splash of EVOO, parmesean cheese, garlic powder, s/p, sprinkle of red pepper flakes

That's it! It was easy, flavorful and a perfect serving size for one (obviously, you could fix it for a whole family though). I chose to use EVOO instead of butter, but that's an option too. Depending on your spicy preference, you could also add more of the red pepper flakes or opt to not use them at all. And I'm sure other spices would be great too (oregano, Italian seasoning, etc.).

Any other readers have any go-to meals that are quick & easy, and perfect for just 1-2 people? If so, please share...I'd love to hear them! 

Lazy Lasagna Night

I have Rachel Ray to thank for tonight's dinner! I am definitely a daily consumer of watching the Food Network...any time of day, any show (but my favorites are Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives and most recently, Chopped). I also occasionally will watch Rachel Ray's talk show and last week, she made this lasagna and it looked so appetizing, that I just had to try it:

Lazy Florentine Lasagna

Broken lasagna noodles (that were boiled until almost al dente)

Mushrooms, spinach, onions and garlic

Creamy, roux sauce

Noodles mixed with the mushroom mixture, topped with the roux sauce and then sprinkled with LOTS of cheese (I used an Italian cheese blend)

Baked to cheezy-bubbly goodness...

And delicious!

I would definitely make this lasagna again and not having to layer the noodles/sauce/cheese made it a lot easier to put together.

*Recipe can be found by clicking on the link of the title above*

A Great Thanksgiving

Well, the hubby and I didn't end up heading home to family for Thanksgiving...but that doesn't mean we didn't have a feast for ourselves! We ate lots of Thanksgiving deliciousness...which lasted us a few days, needless to say. Here were some of the highlights:

 We snacked on a cheese ball and some veggies/dip

Sipped on some lovely vino

And turned this:

Into yummy green bean casserole:

And this (don't judge, I love boxed stuffing):

Into delicious stuffing:

There was also sweet potato casserole (sorry, no before picture...I got into a cooking rhythm and forgot) :)

And...

Ham, all the way from a butcher in Hagerstown, MD. A friend of ours' parent's sent us this ham last year and loved it so much that we ordered one for ourselves this year. It was well worth it!

I left the carving to the hubby

And, finally...my Thanksgiving plate:

For some of you that have been a follower from the beginning, you'll notice that I have meat on my plate, yet I've been a vegetarian since January 2010...I recently made the decision to go back to eating meat (definitely in moderation...especially red meat). It was just something that I had been thinking about for awhile now. And plus, I just couldn't pass up this ham!! ;) 

Needless to say, we had a great holiday spent together! Now that Thanksgiving is over, we say goodbye to this little fella:

And hello to...

Christmas time!! My favorite time of year!