I like to consider myself creative, but I also usually need a blueprint for how to start a new recipe. Tonight I decided to get wild and crazy and just experiment because our fridge is STILL ON THE FRITZ - what is this now - 2 or 3 weeks? - I just don't want to go grocery shopping until I know that all of our food can stay fresh. We are using the outside "working" fridge for things like dairy products, leftovers and things along those lines, and the inside "broken-ish" fridge for things like sauces, marinades and things that I don't think will spoil. A fridge is supposed to register at 37 degrees, so at 50 - 58 degrees, we are cautious of the inside fridge.
I knew my base ingredients - plenty of leftover egg noodles, some sauce from the beef stroganoff (no beef), some beef consomme soup and some fresh veggies. It was just a matter of becoming a mad scientist and devising a plan.
I started out by chopping some baby carrots, celery, onion, fresh ginger, and garlic and sauteeing in some olive oil. I then added a can of beef consomme soup and a larger can of beef stock. From there, I started to throw in some spices - I believe I used tarragon, salt, pepper and perhaps a tad of chili powder to give it heat. I also added in the leftover sauce from the beef stroganoff, and got even crazier and added a bit of horseradish sauce, soy sauce, worcerstershire sauce and half and half. Oh, and I chopped up the leftover green beans into smaller pieces. I really think that's it...and just let it simmer for about 1/2 hour. And added in a bit of grated parmesan cheese. Then I added in the leftover egg noodles and let it blend together for a few more minutes. Just served it with some sliced Italian bread (for dipping) and let's just say it was YUMMY!!!
A vegetarian option would be to use vegetarian stock, delete the beef strogranoff sauce and I think that's all you would have to do. We did not have a true meat in there...maybe tofu would be an option???
Anyways, it hit the spot and was super easy which is what I totally needed tonight!!! Thanks to those who have joined me on My Fitness Pal. Again, my user name is mariccarroll if you want to be my motivator (and I will motivate you).
Tonight the treadmill was NOT something I wanted to do. I had god awful cramps and just felt puny - but I did still walk on it for 45 minutes at my 4 mph, just turned the incline down from 6 to 4, but still VERY proud because I "just did it"!!!
Tomorrow is FRIDAY!!!! YAY!!!!!
Just to at least get a picture on here to make it pretty, here was my plate of leftovers from last night.
Notice the HEAPING pile of green beans, the fist sized chicken parm, a small portion of noodles (still trying to find the refrigerated kind in multigrain) and one piece of bread. This all leads me to my "step it up" goal, motivated by my sister and niece when they were here.
All in all, I have always been pretty good about eating healthy, exercising and drinking water. But once I turned 40, it feels like you have to really work at it and thankfully, this past weekend, I got just the extra inspiration and tool that I needed.
My niece introduced me to an app on my phone called My Fitness Pal. You basically enter your starting weight (don't worry - no one sees it!) and your goal weight. It calculates the calories you should consume each day. You can add in food and water, and it is even smart enough to be able to scan a barcode on packaged food. You also log any exercise you do, so obviously, those exercise minutes give you a greater allowance of food options.
It is the simplest thing I have ever used to track, and one of the bonuses of it is that you can have "fitness buddies." So for example, if I see that my niece worked out for an hour, I can comment something like "way to go". Because I am really focused now, I would like to invite anyone who is interested to download the app on your smartphone (it's free) and send me a friend request. My user name is mariccarroll and this will be a fun way to have new virtual workout buddies who have common goals. This will help me be more accountable and I'm excited about the prospect!!!
Don't be shy - if you are working on your fitness, let's do it together. The more the merrier, and I can't wait for my first weigh in next Monday when I hope I can actually show a loss. We are in such a great electronic age where we have access to tools that can improve our lives, so I'm ready to take advantage of it for sure!
Hope to have some new workout friends the next time I post! And I will truly try to focus on healthy meals - well balanced and tasty!
To all - drink your water, eat healthy, exercise and take your vitamins! I started taking my vitamins with dinner b/c they would nauseate me so much in the morning - it made a huge difference and I have actually taken them 2 days in a row. I want to be around as long as I can for my wonderful family!
So thanks again Sue and Sarah for really jump starting me. We can all do this!!!
