Quick & Easy Southwest Chicken Soup

Quick & Easy Southwest Chicken Soup

This was something I put together on the fly recently when it was real cold out and I didn't want to really "cook" a meal. I used some things I had left over from other meals and made a small pot of soup! 

Breast meat from Rotisseri chicken, hand shredded

1 small onion - diced

2-3 cloves of garlic - diced

Handfull of shredded carrots

2 handfulls of frozen corn - mine is actually roasted corn found at Aldi

1 jalapeno - seeded and diced

1 can rotel

1 box light chicken broth or vegitable broth

1 can tomato paste - less is fine

Saute the onion and garlic until softened. Then add in the carrots, jalapeno and chicken. stir in the tomato paste, and then add remaining ingredients. bring to a boil. Then lower heat to simmer about 20 mins or until ready to eat. I might have seasoned it with some Mrs. Dash Chipotle Seasoning and probably sea salt and Black pepper!

I like to top mine with small handfull of crushed chips, cheese, sour cream and cilantro. You can do it however you want!

Venison Bolognese

Tonight I made THIS recipe and followed it to a T. I wasn't real impressed with the flavor, when the sauce was done so I ended up adding a little cumin. I'm pretty sure it was the coconut milk that threw me off. Anyway, hubby liked it and my friend Kendall enjoyed it. She even took some togo for lunch tomorrow.

My notes, if interested on what you might do differently:

1) The blogger used Coconut milk. I happen to have some in the fridge. I used it. I didn't like it. Next time I will use regular milk or heavy cream.

2) I think Mushrooms would go great in this dish, but then again I think Mushrooms go great in many dishes.

3) I might try to find an actual dry red wine to use instead of just buying the red cooking wine on the shelf next to the vinegars at Kroger.

4) Don't forget to refer back to my previous post about the Spaghetti Squash so you can enjoy some roasted seeds like I am right now!

Easy Meatballs and Marinara (Low Carb)

Meatballs & Marinara

7 Turkey meatballs, pre-made frozen. (If cooking one serving)

1 can diced tomato

1 can tomato sauce

1 T tomato paste

Italian seasonings - garlic, basil, salt, pepper... All to taste preference!

Combine all tomato products in pot, season and heat to a boil. Add frozen meatballs and simmer about 30 mins. 

Serve all 7 meatballs with 1 cup of sauce. Enjoy with a simple side salad for more veggies!

Note: the 7 meatballs with a cup of sauce was one serving for me, pre WLS. Now I could probably eat 3 maybe four meatballs depending on the size. 

Spaghetti Squash - done right!

Spaghetti squash:

Take one spaghetti squash, carefully cut it in half long ways. Dig out the seeds.

Pour some olive oil in the bowl shape and spread it all around. I used my hands. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic, Italian seasoning... Whatever sounds good.

I put them skin side up on a rack that fits inside my cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 20 mins. Turn them over and add a dollop (about 2 tbls) of real unsalted butter (in the bowl) and cover with foil. Bake for 30 more mins foil side up.

Remove from oven let cool a few mins while you prep some garlic bread and bake that... be careful, the butter is just sitting in a pool under that foil! 

Then, and this is the really exciting part, you get a fork and scrape the inside of the squash and watch the magic unfold! You'll probably need to empty the "spaghetti" into a bowl b/c there's SO much!! Scrape and scrape and scrape some more!!

Stir it up real good to even out the butter and seasonings. Toss in a little fresh Parmesan cheese and top it with your favorite meaty sauce! YUM-O!

again, no pics :( but here's another blog with a similar plan that also sounds yummy and has lots of fantastic pics! 

http://steamykitchen.com/11285-baked-spaghetti-squash-with-garlic-and-butter.html

DO NOT - and I'm serious! DO NOT THROW OUT YOUR SPAGHETTI SQUASH SEEDS!!! 

BONUS RECIPE!

Seperate the seeds from all the muck, rinse them really good and let them dry out on a towel. Overnight if you can wait that long. Me? no I'm not that patient. 

line the cookie sheet you used earlier with a sheet of foil. spread your clean and dry-ish seeds out on the foil. Spray with one of those low cal/no cal butter flavor sprays. sprinkle with seasoned salt. Then you bake them low (250) and slow (many hours) until they get a nice golden brown color to them. OR, if you are impatient like me, you can bake them for a little while and then turn on the broiler and and roast them quickly! be sure to give a few shakes to move them around. they will start to pop and that's when I know they are just about brown enough! 

I just LOVE these roasted seeds better than the store bought pumpkin seeds I tried to fill a craving with! yuck! the best part is that you control the flavor! I like a little season salt and a little darker brown. They taste like popcorn to me! and YES! you eat the whole seed, shell and all!

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

I'm Baaaaaaaaaack! 

Haven't blogged in quite some time. Lately, I've been thinking I should really start putting my recipes someplace where I can find them or easily send someone to them when asked. and  duh! why not blog them! Come to think of it I have put a few things here before!

Anyhoo... this recipe is for my deliscious Green Chile Chicken Enchilada's. It's a little different everytime. For example, I have made them all the same ingredients except I used ground Elk meat instead of Chicken. they were still very tasty! Also, fair warning about how I roll: You know how Rachael Ray used to work on 30 min meals? a little of this a little of that, no specific measurements? well if you can work with that then this will come easy, if you need exact measurements, good luck! and I probably won't go back and grammar check or spell check either so deal with the mistakes or go somewhere else! Lastly, some of the work I have done way in advance...

Sorry, I don't have any pictures to post of this one. I'll try to add some next go round!

My basic recipe is something like this:

1 Rotisseri Chicken -Skinned, Boned and and Shredded.
4-6 Hatch Chiles roasted, skinned, deseeded, diced. reserve half for sauce (this is that work done way in advance part)
1 onion, diced sauteed.
3ish garlic cloves finely diced sauteed with onions
1 bag shredded cheese - Quesadilla cheese (white) but any kind of creamy melty white cheese will do.
1-2 cans rotel 
cilantro 
cumin
salt/pepper

(optional ingredients: Drained/rinsed black beans, Mexi corn, Spinach, mushrooms, BACON!)

2 doz or more tortillas....

back to basics: The SAUCE!

1 jug heavy whipping cream (the mid size)
about 8 oz sour cream (half a container) light or fat free is fine, but at this point why bother!
half block cream cheese
half the Hatch chiles from above
butter, and flour for rue...
1 avocado
cilantro
salt/pepper
1 more bag of cheese (same as above)

Preparing the innards:

The Chiles. IF you have Hatch chiles, use them. fresh roasted are the best flavor! but if you don't you can use canned chiles. 1 can for the chicken mix, 1 can for the sauce mix (approx). I prepared my fresh hatch chiles when they came in season. roasted a bunch and canned them in 4 oz jars.

Chicken. If I've used a rotisseri chicken I shred it and put it through the food processor with the juices too and chop it into a fine mix. Doing it this way really keeps the moisture in the chicken and helps the entire recipe over all have a better taste and texture! (that, my friends is the big secret in this recipe)

place your finely diced chicken paste in a large mixing bowl and add to it the Chiles, onion, garlic, rotel and cheese. Season to taste with the cumin, salt, pepper and cilantro. Stir it all together until it's all evenly distributed.

Now... the easiest thing to do is roll the mixture into some softened FLOUR tortillas (taco size) and start lining them into a greased baking dish... if you choose to use corn tortillas there's a whole extra step. Corn tortillas should be slightly fried in a shallow bath of hot oil before rolling. This step helps to bind the corn tortilla so it doesn't crumble and crack when rolling. Pros: good corn tortilla enchilada's. Con: lots of extra work and grease... Everyone has preferred my flour tortilla enchiladas over the corn so I will be using flour.

Once you've gotten all your enchilada's rolled you make the sauce!

CREAMY Green Sauce!
Start with a rue: equal parts (two tbls) butter and flour in a pan it will clump and turn brownish. Start whisking into the rue the whole jug of whipping cream on a med/high heat. (about a pint, i think) whisk until the clumps are mostly gone from the rue and the cream starts to thicken some. Add to that the cream cheese in small clumps, sour cream, avacodo (also in small clumps) and the other half of your chiles. season with salt and pepper. Turn heat to low and simmer while whisking until it's mostly creamy. You may have a few small clumps of avacodo and the chiles of course but mostly it's real creamy. you can also get out your handy dandy hand blender if you have one - I do and it's fabulous! I use it almost daily for something!

Pour sauce and spread evenly of your enchiladas sprinkle with cheese and bake (at 350) until the cheese is all melty and maybe a little crusty! sprinkle a little cilantro on top for color and flavor... or leave it out. either way. All DONE!

Should yield at least 2 doz Enchilada's, probably more... (note: this batch made 3 doz)

Sorry if I'm all over the place! These were a HUGE hit last time I made them. Even my bro in law admitted they were great and he thinks he makes the best enchilada's! LOL! :)

March 25th was the big day... my very first 1/2 Marathon!! The Dallas Rock n Roll Half Marathon!

For most of the month of March I've been dealing with some major allergy attacks. So when I woke up with swollen/spotty tonsils on Friday before race day I was a little worried I might not get to run. I went to work and decided to cancel my last two appointments of the day in order to get to the Dr. before it got too late! I went to CareNow and saw the same Dr. I had seen earlier in the month when I though I had the flu. He swabbed me for Strep - Negative - then recommended a steroid shot. the shot worked like magic! I was feeling great before the night ended and actually was up until about 2am! Saturday I went back to work only to find that I had two cancellations and the one I still had ended up no-showing. I hung around doing laundry and stuff since Rhonda was picking me up from work for our big Run weekend!

We get downtown and fight a little traffic before deciding to just check in at the hotel and walk to the expo. This might be a good time to mention how much I dislike Dallas after living/playing in and around Fort Worth. The parking garage attached to the hotel was very tight. It certainly wasn't meant to hold large vehicles! The cost of parking was also ridiculous, not just there but any of the lots along the way to expo were crazy high! if they're going to charge so much they should at least take measures to monitor the cars being parked. We discovered Sunday Morning after we loaded all our belongings into Rhonda's car, that the car parked right in front of us had been broken into overnight... great, that's what I want to think about after I just loaded my laptop and purse up for the day as I run all over Big D. ...give it to God and get on with it!

Anyhoo, back to Saturday night. We get to the Expo and get checked in, get our shirts and swag bags... walk around a little, go back to registration to look for Kristy... OMG this one volunteer lady was a total B****!! we were trying to help Kristy get her bib and she didn't have any of her paper work with her so we were walking her back to the start and this lady was like I'm sorry this isn't an exit. So we explained that she needed to go back to the registration tables. She says well she can go but you can't (to me) I looked her in the face and said I'm trying to help my friend who doesn't know what she's doing or where to go... she clearly just walked right through all the first steps as it was. and that lady said I can't let you back in there! so again I said to her very firmly "She DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO, I'M TRYING TO HELP HER" Kristy was already frustrated when she arrived and this lady was like the icing on the cake. Rather than get ourselves kicked out by a volunteer - when we paid for this event - I let her go and walked away from that lady before I completely forgot all about what Jesus would do here.  Then Rhonda and I snuck through the curtain barricade and walked back through the main entrance to find Kristy on the other side of the gate keeper! We got her all situated and headed back in to shop around!

Later we had the Inspiration Dinner at the Hotel. I had to fight off a few moments of emotion so I didn't cry in my pasta dinner. Kind of a bummer to find out our coaches who have worked hard training us all season didn't get a free ticket to the dinner therefore, they weren't there... But it was a short and sweet night followed by finishing touches on our race shirts and a quiet night trying to get some sleep!

Mar 25, 2012 5:06 AM - Text from Coach Dianna "Happy Race Day!!!"

aaaaaaand I'm up for the day. no sleeping now! get out of bed about 5:30ish and get a shower. Yes, I actually did my hair and makeup, and YES! I wore fish-net gloves!  - it IS the Rock n Roll marathon after all, I have to look cute! Ate my usual Power Crunch Energy Protein Bar and started on a bottle of Vitamin water. Everyone suggests to go # 2 before the race... well that wasn't working out for me. I tried, no luck. We packed up and loaded the car. After a brief visit in the lobby followed by group photo session with the entire North Texas TnT participants we headed out for the Start! Everyone walked to the start as a group then we dispersed to the different corrals or headed to the porta-potties for one last attempt at whatever needed to happen! I drank a 32oz Powerade while waiting in line and barely got a trickle - guess I was nervous!! :-)

 We decided to start out in Corral 11. My number started with 11 b/c I was ambitious when I filled out my paperwork and thought I'd finish in 2.5 hours... Rhonda had Registered for a 3.5 hour finish time, but she was the time keeper for us all season and was always calculating estimated finish times and telling me how fast we'd have to go to finish in 2.5 hours! I knew we wouldn't get to 2.5, but I was definitely hoping for 3 hours... the cool thing about getting to the corral early is that you can be right in the front! When they were moving us forward to the start we were front and center! perfect for all photo ops!! The excitement was building and we were waiting to be counted off... and then it happened! We were running our first 1/2 Marathon!

Running mile 3 with Coach Dianna beside us!

The first couple of miles went pretty easy. Then it started warming up a little, sun was shining... it really was a great day for a run. We just weren't so used to the warmth having trained over the winter months. But we had our water belts and drank at every water stop along the way. Somewhere about mile 7, I started  counting down in my head... mile 8, only 5.1 to go. Mile 10, only 3.1 to go... I hurt, I was tired, it was hot, my water bottles were warm, my lips were DRY... when we walk I could feel every pounding step from my toes to my hips...I wanted to stop so bad, but I wanted to finish even more!! I know this is supposed to be about the Cancer survivor's and victims that I was committed to raising money for all season. But at that moment it was about me, and what I did to get to this point. Where I was a year ago compared to this day and this moment... running in this race.

I wanted my mom to see me running.

I wanted my dad to be there...

I wanted my sister, brothers, nieces, nephews...

I wanted them all to see me running.

It wasn't just that I was running, it was that I was accomplishing something that not everyone can do, let alone actually WANTS to do! 

Then I thought about Rhonda... her family isn't close by. She doesn't have a husband there to greet her at the finish. She beat her Cancer. And she's running! I had to quit feeling sorry for myself and suck it up! I came to win after all! (win=finishing) Fight-Conquer-Thrive, Survive-Prosper-Rise!  In those final miles when everything in your body is telling you to stop because it hurts, we had each other. From start to finish we stuck together!

Crossing the finish line

Finisher Photo!

Bling Bling!

What a weekend it was!! Rhonda and I had set up appointments to have a post-race massage. I bought one for TJ as well. So we got cleaned up and headed to our afternoon of relaxation! I wore my Medal all day! That night we met up with a couple of others from the team and had some celebratory drinks and dinner. I was exhausted! Thank goodness I though ahead and had taken the next day off work!

What it looks like to feel like Winner's!

6 Month Post-op

An open letter to my team at WeightWise!

March 5, 2012

Dear Team,

I was in the Weight Wise offices today for my 6 month follow-up. I have a lot of time to think during my 3 hour drive from Fort Worth. I always think about the changes that have taken place from the beginning of this weight loss journey. The true beginning for me is from Dec 2010 when I was at my heaviest known weight of 285 pounds. I went through a couple of stages of the popular HCG diet and actually did really well the first time around but tapered off by my 3rd attempt and re-gained half the weight I had lost within months. 

November 2010 before I went on the HCG diet

I had my consult with Dr. Broussard on July 11, 2011. 274 pounds

the beginning...

He was my second consult and I knew coming in what I wanted. I had already decided on Gastric Sleeve Surgery and was ready for whatever it took to get me to surgery. I also was already prepared for all the pre-requisites there would be having heard about all of that at the info meeting prior to consultation. I didn’t care, my mind was made up and I was ready to do whatever I needed to do! It seems the process might be a little easier when you’re a self-pay patient as I’ve heard a lot of stories about those dealing through insurance! I’m so thankful we were blessed at the right time and able to do this and remain debt-free! 

September 13, 2011: Surgery Day. 253 pounds

Only pic I took of myself on surgery day

I was a bundle of nerves.  I can’t remember my pre-op nurses name, but she re-assured me that everything would be great! She told me she was Dr. B’s very first VSG Patient and a little about her story and success. She looked great and that was enough for me. The last thing I remember before going under was asking someone in the surgery room if they would be taking any pictures inside me?! I wanted to know b/c 1) I’m a Massage Therapist and the body is my business. and 2) I’m fascinated by the Body Worlds Expeditions and thought it’d be cool to see my own insides... probably better I didn’t though. Anyhoo, Surgery was great from what I could tell. I have a vague memory of coming out of anesthesia in my recovery room, seeing my hubby through blurred vision across the room. Waking up, sipping water, sleeping, waking up, sipping water, sleeping... and finally having to actually get up and move around. Over all the pain was very tolerable after the first day. My after care nurse was SUPER sweet! Wish I could remember her name too... Somebody find out and tell her thank you from me!

In the weeks and months following my surgery I have been through (I’m sure) the typical roller coaster ride that most bariatric patients go through. However, I will say that I truly have been blessed with a smooth ride! No complications, few mis-haps, and a lot of progress! 

Nov 2010 vs Nov 2011

I started training for a 1/2 marathon in November, only about 8 weeks post-op! I started out walking, but there was an urging inside that told me to run! So I began somewhere around an 18 minute mile walking and am currently averaging between 12/13 minute mile at a light run, walking as needed. Every Saturday the team does the longer runs, and every time I achieve a new distance I get emotional b/c I never was able to run 1 mile before, but here I am running 6...8...10... 12 MILES! the first time I ran 8 miles I was fighting the tears for the last two because I couldn’t believe I was actually running. It seems so simple now. Lots of people run. Young people run. Hell... even elderly people run! But I was never a runner... NOW I AM! I catch myself saying things like “it’s only 6 miles” or “I found my stride about mile 5...” I mean really, stuff that only runners would say. I have to give credit to Team in Training and my coaches and friends for helping and supporting me along the way! I WOULD NOT have done this alone!!! I could have, but I wouldn't have...

the runner!

   

After my first 10K! February 24, 2012

Some of the little things I think about from time to time or discover and either get emotional over or excited about... 


- Using a normal sized towel after my shower and it wraps all the way around me and closes at the ends! I used to use Bath sheets for that feeling... no more!

don't even have to hold it up!

-having people view me as a normal, healthy weight... I had a client comment on her own weight the other day in a way that made me feel like she didn't think I could relate to her being obese. She had never seen or met me before that day so how would she know that this time last year I was nearly 300 pounds?! This was an interesting pill to swallow for me!


-realizing at 185 that I was 100 pounds less than my heaviest known weight!

at 185 pounds holding 100 pounds of Brittney!

NYE 2011/2012

The dynamics of my marriage have also changed. We have had our moments in the 5 years we’ve been married. Moments where I would question if he was even attracted to me any more. The more I felt bad about my self, the worse it seemed that he felt about me too. My husband has been very supportive of my surgery from the get go. He doesn’t show emotion well, but I knew he was worried about me going into surgery and the healing process afterward. It may be hard for him to understand the mood swings or crying over food loss. But he is certainly enjoying all the rewards that come with this process! He tells me how pretty I am all the time, looks at me differently than before and likes to threaten me that he’s going to tell on me when I eat something I’m not supposed to.  I am actually 30 pounds smaller now than I was when he met me! So he is now getting to know a whole new version of me, as I transform! He has made it all about taking care of me for a while now and I’ll be glad to support him the same when he begins his journey to optimal health as well! 

Inspiring others: I never ever considered going into this that I would be an inspiration to others. Especially to those who are unable to go through this procedure. I’m starting to understand why, but it’s still hard to wrap my head around it. I want to encourage people to start somewhere, even if it’s just giving up soda’s it’s a step in the right direction. Sign up for a 5K and give yourself a reason to train! Having this influence on others give’s me extra pressure to succeed and stay on task. I’m much more of a goal setter now than I was before, and I have the motivation and confidence to achieve those goals now! I've never had so many people telling me that I'M inspiring THEM! This is very humbling!

6 Month post op, weighed in at 178!! 3/05/2012

So, as I sit here nearly 6 months post op and reflect on progress... I’m thankful for now having a life worth living! I’m thankful that what I’ve gained has been more than a tool for me but a tool to motivate others around me! I’m thankful that I can run! I’m thankful that I’m 25ish pounds from goal in such a short amount of time! I’m thankful that I can wake up every morning and like what I see in the mirror! 

       

6 week post op, weight around 225 (October 2011)

Dr. Broussard, I would like to say to you that I am forever grateful for the path in which you chose to pursue as a Bariatric Surgeon. You have been given a gift as talented surgeon and are using those skills to change peoples lives for the better. You have been kind and straight forward with me from the get go and I always look forward to making you smile when you open that door for follow-up! 

Chris, Always so energetic and uplifting! Even when I know you’re going to get on to me about the things I eat/drink or my lack of vitamins I still enjoy visiting with you! The program you have created along side Dr. Broussard has been amazing for me. Difficult at times, but it works! I hope to remain a long term success story that you all can brag about for years to come! 

Lauren, I’m so excited to have become a runner of these 6 months! I hated when I first started and you were telling me not to take it too fast! I’m content with my current pace and progress and look forward to running the relay with you in April!! Thank you for the motivation and encouragement!


This whole experience has been so great from the start with everyone at Weight Wise! I am right now at 175 pounds! Just 10 days from running my first 1/2 marathon. Running my 2nd 10k this weekend and I feel fantastic! I cannot believe the difference this has made on my life! ... and it feels like just the beginning!

Sincerely,

Susan Griffith