A Crazy Rant That Only a Pregnant Lady Can Get Away With (I Hope)

This bump has taken over my life already. Everything I eat and do revolves around this boxer in my belly.I take giant bags to work filled with organic, healthy food that I relentlessly devour throughout the day. Then, by the time I get home, I am STARVING again. Poor Dean has the option of cooking (ha!), ordering in (again!), or eating my mostly plant-based dinner. Never has the man eaten so much salad, spinach, kale, brussel sprouts, and a little more veg on the side. Where has his carnivore wanna-be-chef wife gone? Not to mention my hair. My hair has been horrible. (OK- this is a digression, I know, but I finally went for a highlight at an organic, no chemical salon in Tribeca. Cut was fab, color was a little red but SO much better).Anyway.. back to the FOOD. SO…. I don’t want to really cook, but I do want to eat healthy. And chicken makes me gag. Even writing that evil word… gag.

Enter: Blue Apron. You order 3 meals and they deliver local, healthy ingredients that can be made into a great meal in 30 minutes or less. I went with the vegetarian for two. Sorry, Dean. It arrived in a cooler box with little bags of the right portion size. No measuring cups, no wasted leftovers.

This week’s menu is:

Kung Pao Tofu with Chinese Broccoli & Brown Rice

Quinoa with Baby Squashes, Basil & French Feta Cheese

Spring Minestrone with Fresh Fava Beans & Asparagus

Will report back in my adventures of eating for two with aversions for ten. Up tonight (recipe and ingredients included):

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Kung_Pao_Tofu_back_detail

* Blue Apron has no idea who I am or what this blog is. This is NOT a sponsored post. *

Posted on May 2, 2013 at 6:00 am | Leave a Comment

Guilt-Free Chocolate, Chocolate Chip Muffins

Skinny Muffins

Earlier this week I had lunch with two women, which is quite a rarity in our old boys club of an industry. It was refreshing and lovely. Like men, we spoke about politics, business issues and ideas… and a little bit of diet talk. The three of us agree we want to be fit and healthy, but we also really have a love affair with food. It’s quite a dilemma balancing the two. I preached the importance of knowing where your food comes from and they nodded. They cried at the evilness of bread and pasta and before I had a chance to agree or disagree, I was saved by the waiter.

“A salad with grilled salmon please”

“A salad with grilled shrimp please.”

And then me… “Um… Hmm.. I can’t decide..” But I knew exactly what I wanted. “Oh hell, I’ll have a big bowl of linguine with clams please.”

And. It. Was. Worth. Every. Single. Carb.

When I got home, I was in the mood to bake but still guilty from my mid-day indulgence. I decided to try a “skinny” version of Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins. No butter, no oil. My hubby is a big fan of the full-fat, over-sized Costco muffins so that these passed both of our tests is a major feat.

skinny muffin

Skinny Chocolate Banana Fudge Muffins

Author: Adapted by Love U Madly from http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2012/11/11/skinny-chocolate-banana-fudge-muffins/

Recipe type: Breakfast, Snack, Healthy

Serves: 12

I was surprised how moist and delicious these were. I thought they’d be the type that’s only good fresh out of the over, but these were even better the next day.

Ingredients

3 large bananas
⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
⅔ cup sugar in the raw (next time i will try ½ cup of honey as substitute)
1 large egg (if you want to avoid eggs altogether, you can probably add ½ an additional banana, I used 1 omega-3 enriched egg)
1 cup whole-wheat flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (confession: i used milk chocolate chips, i like them better. skinny or not)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375F degrees. Line a muffin tin with baking cups (or spray tins). Set aside.In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork or potato masher. Mash them very well – no big lumps. Stir in the sugar, egg, and applesauce.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda and baking powder into the wet ingredients. (sifting helps avoid cocoa or flour lumps) Lightly mix to combine. Fold in chocolate chips. The batter will be a little chunky. Do not overmix.
Divide the batter between the 12 muffin cups – fill them all the way to the top. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Muffins stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

skinny choc muffin

* I’ve gotten a few questions about my square muffin tins… you can find a silicone version here and a metal version here.

Posted on March 14, 2013 at 7:21 am | 3 Comments

Surviving the Frigid Temps: Whole-Wheat Oatmeal Pancakes

This past weekend I was here:

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Now I am back home and it is freezing in New York.

No, not just freezing. Horrible, hurt your face, make you hate the place you love, freezing.

The good news is in the next few days it might go up to thirty degrees. That’s sarcasm. If it stays so icy through the weekend, you better believe I will be staying in my heated apartment huddled with my hubby. I will definitely be making these delicious pancakes. They are a healthy, guiltless version of this stack. Instead of white flour, I used oatmeal and whole wheat flour (I bought a mini-bag since I don’t cook with whole wheat flour often. Instead of buttermilk, I used fat-free milk. And instead of chocolate chips, I used blueberries. Guess what? It was just as good! Ok maybe the chocolate chips win, but still… this is a great pancake you won’t feel bad about.

whole grain oatmeal blueberry pancake stack

Ingredients

¾ cup quick-cooking oats
1½ cups reduced fat milk (I used Lactaid)
¾ cup whole-wheat flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
blueberries

Instructions

Soak oats in ¾ cup milk 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.
Stir egg, butter, brown sugar, remaining ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, and oat mixture into dry ingredients until just combined. If batter is too thin, add flour.
Heat a griddle over medium heat until hot and lightly brush with oil. Working in batches, pour ¼ cup batter per pancake onto griddle and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden-brown, about 1 minute. Drop blueberries into pancakes. Flip with a spatula and cook other side, about 1 minute more. (Lightly oil griddle between batches.)

Posted on January 24, 2013 at 6:00 am | 4 Comments

Never Too Late to Declare a Resolution

“Dont be so hard on yourself, Kim.” My husband says this almost daily to me.I have no idea what it means. But, he knows me pretty darn well so if he thinks I’m too hard on myself, I know he’s right and I know I want to fix it. Sure, I get the overall idea, I’m just not really sure how to apply it. This will be my New Years resolution. Don’t roll your eyes. It’s not too late. I can still do it.

First, figure out what it means to be too hard on yourself. Then, figure out how to stop being that way.

I’ll start by being nicer to myself which I think is different but must be somehow related. A few nights ago when it was cold and miserable in New York, I made the most delicious chocolate chip dulce de leche cookie bars in the world. That was very nice of me. I first tasted them as part of a bloggers cookie swap and I’ve been dreaming of them since (thanks Stacciatella Bella).Now I have 348 days to figure out the rest, but at least I found my favorite cookie of the year.

Salted Dulce De Leche Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Author: Love U Madly via Stracciatellabella

Ingredients

2⅛ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups chocolate chips
10 ounces of dulce de leche (this is my favorite, but you can also melt 10 ounces caramel candy squares, unwrapped, with 3 tablespoons heavy cream)
Fleur de sel (or other sea salt), for sprinkling over caramel and bars

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch square pan; set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Using an electric mixer, mix together the melted butter and sugars on medium speed until combined. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and mix until smooth. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix on low, just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
IF using caramel squares instead of dulce de leche follow this direction: In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the caramels and heavy cream. Microwave on high until the caramels are melted, stirring every 20 seconds. This will take about 2 minutes.
Press half of the cookie dough into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula. Pour the dulce de leche/caramel over the dough cookie dough and spread into an even layer, leaving some empty space around the edges. Sprinkle the caramel with the sea salt. Drop the remaining cookie dough in spoonfuls over the caramel and gently spread the dough with a spatula until the caramel is covered. Sprinkle the bars with additional sea salt.
Bake the cookie bars for 30 minutes, or until the top of the bars are light golden brown and the edges start to pull away from the pan. Cool the bars to room temperature, then refrigerate for about 2 hours to allow the caramel layer to set. Cut into squares and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

Posted on January 17, 2013 at 6:00 am | 4 Comments