25 February 2016
Doing THIS could be the key to sticking to your diet this month
RESEARCH has revealed one in five Brits head straight to the fridge for a snack in an effort to lighten our mood.
Layered Pepperoni Pizza Dip
We have this one dip recipe in my family–a Mexican cheese dip that’s such a favorite that we make for just about every party. It wouldn’t matter if we were serving lasagna or glazed ham; we’re making this dip. Aren’t we considerate?
The recipe couldn’t be simpler…or richer: Mix 1 8-ounce block of cream cheese, 1 12-ounce bag of shredded cheddar cheese, and 1 small jar of salsa in a microwave safe bowl; microwave on high, stirring halfway, until melted, about 4 minutes. Stir and serve with tortilla chips. It’s a 5-minute cheesy miracle, obviously, but it’s not the lightest appetizer.
Now, I knew I couldn’t mess with tradition–at least not beloved recipes with only 3 ingredients that will probably be engraved on my my family crypt–so I decided to try making a new hot and cheesy dip. I wanted it to taste rich without breaking the bank calorie-wise.
So…pizza dip! Layered pepperoni pizza dip–cheesy and gooey and hot from the oven. It has all the Italian flavor of pizza: from the cheese to the sauce to the toppings. The bottom layer is cream cheese, seasoned with oregano, garlic, salt, and pepper. On top of that is a half cup of your favorite tomato sauce, then fresh scallions, basil, artichoke hearts, and olives. You finish the layering with shredded mozzarella and pepperoni, then bake until the dip is melted and gooey.
It’s a dippable pizza, friends! Grab your pita chips and dig in.
Ingredients
- 8-ounce package ⅓ less fat cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (4 ounces)
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup your favorite tomato sauce
- ½ cup finely chopped scallions
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil, plus more for garnish
- 1 cup canned artichoke hearts, packed in water, drained and chopped
- ¼ cup sliced black olives
- 12 slices turkey pepperoni
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, stir the cream cheese, ½ cup of the mozzarella, the oregano, garlic powder, and pepper. Spread the cream cheese mixture over the bottom of the prepared pie plate. Spread the tomato sauce over the cheese layer. Layer the scallions, basil, artichokes, and olives evenly over the sauce. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella over the top then arrange the pepperoni over the cheese.
- Bake until the cheese is melted and the dip is warm throughout, 18 to 20 minutes. Sprinkle with additional fresh basil and serve hot with baked pita chips for dipping.
Nutrition Information & Notes:
Nutrition Information for 1/12 of Recipe: Calories 89.2, Total Fat 6.1g, Sat Fat 3.7g, Carb 3.7g, Fiber 0.7g, Sugars 1.3g, Protein 4.7g
Nutrition Information for 1/8 of Recipe: Calories 133.9, Total Fat 9.2g, Sat Fat 5.6g, Carb 5.6g, Fiber 1g, Sugars 1.9g, Protein 7.1g
The post Layered Pepperoni Pizza Dip appeared first on Andie Mitchell.
End of February Coffee Date
Some nights, the last thing I want to do is touch my computer and blog; some nights, I feel like checking in but don’t have much to say, stare at the computer for a while, and ultimately waste time beating myself up for writer’s block.
I don’t have much to say tonight, to be honest, but I feel like chatting anyway, and here’s what I’d be talking to you about if we were having a glass of wine together right now. Well, I’m currently having a glass of Kim Crawford sauvignon blanc, so we are having wine together if you’re reading this, yeah?
I’m happier and calmer than I’ve been in a long time. I got good news about my mom, I’m moving next week, and work is going well. (Ok, and I’ve been meditating more. They are totally related.)
Instead of belaboring them, I’ve made a lot of quick decisions about decorating my apartment. At the end of the day, it’s just stuff. I haven’t actually read that book, but I’ve been KonMari-ing the crap out of my apartment, and it’s so satisfying. Also, I found at least four of my favorite now-discontinued eyeliner, so the move is worth it if not just for that. But I’m still obsessing over duvet covers…I will likely never buy this one, but it’s adorable.
Although stepping back a bit from my Junior League responsibilities was the right decision at the time, my life definitely feels emptier without that in my life. I have a bunch of Junior League events over the next week or so, and I’m really happy and excited to see all of my people again.
My current fave workout, Fhitting Room, is offering a free workout with code RACKEDFHIT16 for first-time clients. I got an email yesterday that they’re about to raise their rates, so GET ON THAT. (And take Dara’s class because she is the. best. Shameless plug that you can also catch her on DB 365 :))
I had to leave for work 1.5 hours earlier than I usually do Monday through today to get to our LIC studio early, and I’m super excited to get some more sleep tomorrow. HALLELUJAH.
What’s up in your life?
Week 28 Weigh-in
I was up half a pound, likely from Eli's special day yesterday. I had some salty popcorn at the movies, and we ate out at La Pita. Eating out always makes me retain some water weight. My calories were very similar to the previous week, so I don't think it's a "real" gain.
Average calories per day for the week was 1899, which was nearly spot-on with my plan of about 1900! I wasn't consciously focused on eating 1900 per day, but I deliberately ate just a little more than last week, and it ended up being right where I'd planned. Since I lost half a pound last week, and gained half a pound this week, I'm guessing that around 1900 is probably about my maintenance level. I'll have to continue for a few more weeks at this calorie count to know for sure. I'm going to aim for roughly the same amount this week, and see what happens, then adjust as necessary.
A few people have asked if I am going to change my goal weight, since I'm now 10 pounds under my goal. I may end up changing it in the future, but right now, I'm still figuring out a good maintenance plan. I really like the way I look and feel at this weight, so of course I'd like to maintain it; but if it becomes too difficult, then I won't be upset to gain 5-10 pounds back. I'd like to give it six months or so to see how I feel about it. Summer is the most difficult time of year for me to NOT gain weight, so right now, my biggest goal is to stay at or under my goal weight of 133 through the summer.
It feels so strange that I can eat 1900 calories a day and not gain weight. Logically, it make sense; but all these years of dieting have ingrained in me the idea that I have to eat much less than that to lose or maintain weight. I really think that being consistent has paid off. I gave it enough time to really work this time. In the past, I may have undereaten for a little while to lose weight (probably 1400-1500 calories, thinking that was necessary); felt very deprived; binged; and then started over. So, I wasn't eating at a particular level for very long to see real progress (except for when I lost the weight in 2009-2010).
(I'm still getting a lot of email with questions about calorie counting--this post explains pretty much everything. I really just keep it very simple--count my calories, try to keep them reasonable, and eat what I enjoy.)
Anyway, as far as my long term goals this week:
Stay binge-free: Today is Day 204! I think this is my longest streak since 2010. My longest streak ever was 365 days, so I am determined to beat that. Interestingly, it's getting easier and easier. Sometimes I still get binge urges, but I don't really entertain the thought of it anymore. The less I think about it, the easier it is to resist. So, if the thought pops into my head, I immediately try to think of something else. It's been very helpful!
Try one new recipe weekly: This week, I made this recipe for Italian Breakfast Casserole. Holy smokes, this was so amazing! It was really fast and easy to throw together, and despite having eggs, it was even good reheated the next day. Jerry and I both loved this! The kids liked it, but didn't eat the crescent roll crust--the best part, in my opinion ;) (I used cheddar cheese instead of Italian cheese, but that's what I had on hand).
It's basically layers of crescent roll dough, ham, salami, scrambled eggs, peppers, onions, and cheese. We ate it for dinner (I love breakfast for dinner!).
My running was good this week, as well.
I did a couple of afternoon/evening runs, which I really enjoyed. I may start doing some more like that. I ran with Joey a couple of times as well. On Monday, Jerry and I took Joey to the state park for a run, which was actually really fun. We saw about a dozen bald eagles while we were there! There were a couple of people with fancy cameras there photographing them (I didn't even bother taking a pic with my phone, haha). But Jerry got a cool picture of Joey and me at the end of our run:
I don't really have much going on this coming week, so let's hope I have another good week on maintenance! :)
Several readers have asked me recently about doing some sort of accountability group for Wednesday Weigh-ins. I created a group this morning called Runs for Cookies Wednesday Weigh-ins on Facebook, and if you are looking for accountability and/or support, you are welcome to join! It's a closed group, so only the people in the group will see your posts. You can post weigh-ins if you'd like, and share your success, struggles, etc.
The only "rules" of the group are: 1) No selling/promoting anything, and 2) Keep the comments positive (I don't want anyone to feel hurt or upset by comments, because the group is about support). Also, I would appreciate if you don't just go to lurk--please introduce yourself, share what you're comfortable with, and support others! Here is the link if you'd like to join. (By the time this post goes live, I will likely be sleeping--I've been going to bed by 9:00 each night!--but I will approve the requests to join in the morning.)
24 February 2016
How To Take Your Vitamins
Hello! Today’s post is super super random. I blame the fact that it’s a rest day and I didn’t get to run off my weirdness. (I don’t know what my excuse for being weird is every other day though.) Anyway. Try to piece this together and let me know if it makes sense.
(By ‘let me know’ I mean ‘carry on with your life because I don’t want to know either way thanks’.)
1. Last night was Pad Thai night thanks to the fact that the Thai place by my house has a special on Tuesdays and it’s only $5.35 with tax. Boom.
2. I had a major craving for cantaloupe that would not be ignored.
(Well, it could have been ignored by anyone with reasonable enough self control to not buy overpriced precut fruit, but we’re talking about Monica “no self control” Olivas here…)
3. I ate a whole massive can of hominy over the last 24 hours. Straight. Well, with salt.
4. I bought these Star Wars gummi vitamins for Ben because they were on Manager’s Special. But they didn’t have any safety seal!
So I counted them to see if someone just opened them to eat a few in the store (no harm no foul).
There were supposed to be 120 in the jar.
I counted 128. Um, what?
5. This morning I took a walk, did some strength and cooked up the usual.
6. Does this car wash picture look like I was in a color run?! Ha!
7. SR used some jedi-mind tricks to convince me to hang out with her this weekend.
I already committed before I got this card in the mail of what she really thinks of me!
9. Peanut Butter Popcorn. What more do you need in life?
Maybe just some Spark for energy and vitamins and stuff.
10. Get some RER gear for 15% off!
Get 15% off All Orders in my Spreadshirt Shop !!
February 24th – March 2nd
Enter the code STPADDY at checkout.
The post How To Take Your Vitamins appeared first on Run Eat Repeat.
EXCLUSIVE: Experts reveal THIS could save MILLIONS dying from heart disease
EATING more foods packed with omega-6 polyunsaturated fats could prevent almost a million deaths from fatal heart disease, according to a new study.