Invasion of the Green – A Geek Girl Mommie Makeover Entry

June 19, 2012 Leave a Comment

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a post about this Geek Girl Mommies makeover progress. Honestly it’s been a couple of weeks since my last post. I’ve been so busy trying to find a 9-5 job that posting just went right out the window. But now I’m back and ready to chatter about anything and everything. You poor poor people. You probably thought you’d gotten rid of me didn’t you?

Long ago and far away (okay, so it was only a year ago or so) I decided that it was time to really step up the campaign to get me fit, back on track and back to looking and feeling the way I did when I felt svelte and pretty. There was a couple of reasons for this: 1) I was sick of feeling like a frumpy mass of unsightly jiggle and 2) I didn’t want Little Lass to look back and remember me as a frumpy mass of unsightly jiggle. It’s been a stop and go process and the last month I’ve actually gained weight instead of losing it. My wardrobe project faltered. In other words, I fell off the wagon and watched it turn a corner without bothering to chase it down. Now I’m tracking it all over the country side, following the cryptic clues it’s been leaving at every stop it makes.

I keep reminding myself that I only fail if I never pick back up where I dropped off. On the plus side Flyboy has been passive aggressively supporting me on the journey. I say passively aggressively because what he does is mention he’d like something for dinner or a snack and it reminds me to actually eat healthier and stick of my commitment. One of those things is a Green Smoothie. Initially it was introduced to me on Facebook on a mommie group I was a part of at the time. I admit that I was a little unsure about it at first, it sounded so health foodie. And it is. Really health foodie. But just one a day makes so much of a difference and it’s become something that Flyboy looks forward to before he leaves for work.

What exactly is a Green Smoothie you ask? It’s a smoothie made with spinach and tofu at it’s base. Here is what I use:

1 cup (approx.) of spinach

1 medium banana

1/4 of a block of tofu

1 cup of chocolate almond milk (or soy milk)

That is my starting point, every one of my smoothies starts with those ingredients. To that I mix approximately a cup of whatever fruit we have on hand or in the freezer. Or a tablespoon of peanut butter. The peanut butter is really one I love but Flyboy could do without. If you love peanut butter and banana sandwiches you’ll love this addition.  Trust me.

I’ve got this smoothie making process down to an art. It even rivals my mad skills with deviled eggs and I’m finding more and more that it’s a welcome part of our evening. The making of the daily smoothie means that Little Lass is comfortably in bed for the rest of the night, that adult time has started. It pretty much heralds the end of the day for us. It’s a little blessing we look forward to.

Maybe, just maybe it will benefit you too.

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Middle Eastern Lamb Stew

May 23, 2012 2 Comments

One of the things that has suffered since Little Lass has come into our lives has been how we eat. Trying to eke out time to cook as been tough, and we’re learning how to work it into our schedules. We know one thing for sure though. The crock pot/slow cooker isn’t just for winter anymore.

Original recipe was from Eating Well, what follows is our altered version:

Middle Eastern Lamb Stew


(image credit to Eating Well)

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless lamb stew meat
1 tablespoon olive oil or canola oil
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 large or 2 medium onions, chopped
1 18-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 12-ounce can tomato paste
3/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 15- or 19-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
6 ounces baby spinach

Preparation

  1. Place lamb in a 4-quart or larger slow cooker. Mix oil, cumin, coriander, cayenne, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Coat the lamb with the spice paste and toss to coat well. Top with onion.
  2. Bring tomatoes, tomato paste, broth and garlic to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour over the lamb and onion. Cover and cook until the lamb is very tender, 3 to 3 1/2 hours on high or 5 1/2 to 6 hours on low.
  3. Skim or blot any visible fat from the surface of the stew. Mash 1/2 cup chickpeas with a fork in a small bowl. Stir the mashed and whole chickpeas into the stew, along with spinach. Cover and cook on high until the spinach is wilted, about 5 minutes.

Extra Notes

1) The original recipe had no tomato paste and a larger amount of diced tomatoes. We felt that the original might be a little too soup like so we added the paste for body. It worked out great and it was perfect for on top of rice.

2) We also added more spinach than they listed because we love spinach and we liked the extra color.

We loved the way this came out and we also love that there’s a lot of room for experimentation. Next time I think we’re going to try less onion and add mushrooms. If you try this and make changes of your own let me know how it goes! I’m always looking for new twists.

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