Jan 6, 2012 Posted by Jennifer on Jan 6, 2012 in a day in the life of me!, Half marathon training, recipe make over | 1 comment

Five Buck Friday/Getting ready for Kick-off for Half Marathon with Team in Training!

Hi everyone! I hope your first week of January is going well! Everyone is getting out of vacation mode and getting back to work – our kids are still off school – they start back Monday, so next week I’m sure will be more of a challenge now that there will be homework, making lunches, getting up earlier, etc.

My husband and I are super excited because tomorrow is the Kick-Off party for Team in Training for our event taking place on April 28th. I am running the half marathon and my husband is going to do the full marathon.

We are raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society – SO we have started a 5 buck Friday – if you have an extra $5.00 to spare – please consider donating to this great cause!

Our FUNDRAISING PAGE IS HERE WHERE YOU CAN MAKE A DONATION ONLINE.

The kick off is always great. You meet the coaches, we get a mentor who we will also meet for support throughout the season, as well as getting to know the other runners. I will be updating everyone throughout the training about how we are doing, so come back to check up on me!

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Since I love to cook, I record a TON of cooking shows. I am lucky to not only have Food TV, but also the Cooking Channel too. As I was scrolling to see what shows were on, I was intrigued by one show so I decided to record it.

Bobby Deen, Paula Deen’s son, has his own cooking show that feautures recipes that his Mom has made, but Bobby has revamped them into healthier fare! I’m including the link to Cooking Channel and the recipes he’s redone.

Check the recipes out here

The interesting part was he would compare the calories and fat of his Mom’s food (which has horrible stats of course) and then compare to his version. Did you know she makes a bread pudding casserole that has Krispy Kreme donuts as the base of the recipe??? He redid that one using skim milk, non fat whipped cream and whole wheat donuts as the base (and a lot less donuts too!)

So, if you don’t have Cooking Channel, they have tons of recipes on line.

So, what’s up for your weekend plans??? Have a great one!

Jan 2, 2012 Posted by Jennifer on Jan 2, 2012 in a day in the life of me!, holiday foods, kid friendly | 6 comments

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! It’s been a great Holiday – I’ve had 10 days off in a row, so I cannot complain about that

I also slept in every day, I did run a few times (running into my friend Jacky while we were both running in our neighborhood. I had Christmas with my husbands side of the family on Christmas Day and yesterday was spent having a 2nd Christmas at my Mom’s since she was out of town visiting my brother.

I got a little more organized, I spent time reading a new book “The Kitchen Counter Cooking School” which is a great read, we got a new to me (used) car – which I am VERY Happy about. Here is my new car:

We took the kids to the eye Dr. and Mark and Paul’s prescription changed (Mark’s doubled!) and Claire was complaining she couldn’t see close – so she got new glasses too! We went to America’s Best – and if you don’t get all the “extras” it is 2 pairs for $69.95 WITH the eye exam – so it’s a great deal. We are waiting to pick those up – but they are super excited about getting new glasses

So here are some pictures from my Holiday:

So – all in all a great Holiday. And I am one of those people who makes New Year’s Resolutions – so here are mine:

Enter a cooking contest sometime this year
Learn to can – I really want to make homemade sweet and spicy pickles this year
I have an idea for a cookbook – so I’m going to start working on that
Run a half marathon – since I’m signed up I have to do it! April 28th 2012. Don’t forget to donate HERE
And I’m not putting down lose weight, my plan is to continue eating great and exercising and because of that the weight will come off, but I’m not going to count points, or calories, just focus on healthy foods and correct portions!

SO what’s your New Years Resolutions???

Dec 29, 2011 Posted by Jennifer on Dec 29, 2011 in Dinner Idea, kid friendly, pasta | 0 comments

Turkey Kielbasa shrimp noodle dish with garlic lemon sauce

Normally when I start cooking I almost always start with a recipe. That way I know at least it will turn out OK and I will adjust when necessary. I wish I was more of a home chef that just throws stuff in a skillet and it all comes out perfect.

Well, I had an idea of a recipe today that in my head sounded amazing, and I just went with my instincts. How did it turn out? Fabulous!

This recipe serves 7 servings

1 package Jennie-O Turkey Kielbasa
1 package egg noodles
1 tablespoon butter
juice of 1 lemon
5 oz. fresh shrimp
5 green onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 1/2 cups chicken stock, divided
1/4 cup all purpose flour
zest of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons fresh parsley
1/2 cup shredded Asiago Cheese

In a large pot, bring water to a boil and cook egg noodles according to directions, drain and return to the pot.

In a large skillet, add the 1 tablespoon butter, the garlic and green onions and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Add 2 cups of chicken stock. In a small bowl add the 1/2 cup of extra chicken stock with 1/4 cup flour and stir. This is going to help thicken the sauce. Add that to the skillet and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes until thickened. Add the shrimp, the cut up turkey kielbasa, the juice and zest of 1 lemon and add the parsley. Heat until the shrimp and turkey kielbasa is heated through.

You can sprinkle some more Asiago cheese on top before serving.

I entered the calories in www.caloriecount.com and for each serving it’s only:

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 246 g
Amount Per Serving
Calories 240Calories from Fat 77
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 8.5g13%
Saturated Fat 4.2g21%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 83mg28%
Sodium 674mg28%
Total Carbohydrates 22.9g8%
Dietary Fiber 1.3g5%
Sugars 2.0g
Protein 20.0g
Vitamin A 9% • Vitamin C 15%
Calcium 11% • Iron 13%

I loved the sauce the best, it was lemony, but enough sauce so the dish wasn’t dry. I will definitely make this again and for my family of 5 – no leftovers! So I always take that as a good sign

Are you more comfortable cooking with a recipe – or do you just throw things together that sound good??

And – my husband wrote a great post about our Team in Training for the marathon and half marathon we are doing the end of April – it talks about where the money we raise goes for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Check out his post HERE to learn more about that.

And if you can spare any amount – no matter how small, our Team in Training Donation Page is HERE.

Dec 27, 2011 Posted by Jennifer on Dec 27, 2011 in breakfast, dessert, holiday foods, kid friendly, recipe make over | 4 comments

Easy Cinnamon Rolls

Happy Holidays everyone! My site was down for a few days but everything is back up and fine. I hope you had a wonderful holiday with family and friends!

I am off of work until January 3rd – so I am SUPER excited to have so much time off in a row. I don’t have any specific plans, but I know there will be some time spent in my kitchen!

I made these cinnamon rolls the night of Christmas Eve so that all I had to do was pop these in the oven while the kids were opening their gifts. The best part about this recipe, is it’s so easy – no yeast is required, you don’t have to wait for the dough to rise an hour before you roll it out. And the dough is super soft and pliable so it’s a great dough to work with, even if it’s your first time working with it.

This recipe is based on a Cooks Illustrated Recipe. It called for a cream cheese frosting and I just did a simple glaze. I DID figure out the calories, even though it is the Holidays, I’m trying not to go crazy and so far it’s working!

Each Cinnamon Roll without the glaze is:

247 calories
6 grams of fat
43 carbs
4 grams protein
1 gram of fiber

If you add 1/2 a tablespoon of the glaze – add 25 calories.

All in all, I didn’t think it was that bad – considering I analyzed Paula Deens recipe for Cinnamon rolls and hers were 478 calories per cinnamon roll with 22 grams of fat!

So – this recipe makes 10 cinnamon rolls (I split the prepared rolls between 2 pans)

Ingredients:

Rolls:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for the counter
2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Cinnamon Filling:

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Generously coat a 9 inch round cake pan and a wire cooling rack with vegetable oil spray.

2. Make the filling: combine together the brown sugar, 1/4 cup granulated white sugar, cinnamon, salt, and the 1 Tablespoon melted butter until the mixture resembles wet sand.

3. Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour; 2 Tablespoons white granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk and 2 Tablespoons of the melted butter together.

5. Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until absorbed, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough out onto a generously floured counter and knead until smooth, about 1 minute.

7. Press the dough out into a 9 by 12 inch rectangle using your hands. (I used a rolling pin)

8. Sprinkle the dough evenly with the filling, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Press the filling firmly into the dough.

9. Loosen the dough from the counter using a bench scraper or a metal spatula.

10. Starting at a long side, roll the dough, pressing lightly, to form a tight log.

11. Pinch the seam to seal. Slice the dough into 10 even pieces.

12. Place the slices in the greased pan. (I used Pam Cooking Spray)

13. Bake until the edges are golden brown, 20-25 minutes.

14. Use a knife to loosen the buns from the pan. Flip the buns out onto the prepared wire rack, then turn buns upright and let cool for 10 minutes before adding the icing. Prepare the icing while rolls are cooling.

For the icing, I just mixed 1 cup of powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon of milk. If it’s too thick add a touch more milk to get the right consistency. (You will have leftover icing).

*I lessened the amount of butter by 4 tablespoons. The original recipe called for brushing the dough with 2 tablespoons melted butter before putting the filling in and then adding another 2 tablespoons of butter over the top before baking. I didn’t really think this was necessary – so I omitted that part.

These turned out great! So tender and gooey. After making these, I just covered the pan with saran wrap and placed in the refrigerator overnight. As the rolls cooked, they spread out covering the whole pan.

Enjoy your week if you are off! I did overindulge on Christmas, but was back on as of yesterday and I ran 3 miles yesterday with my hubby on the local high school track. We were both wearing shorts and t-shirts the day after Christmas! It was 45 degrees and sunny out – no signs of winter yet here in Chicago – but I am fine with that!

Dec 21, 2011 Posted by Jennifer on Dec 21, 2011 in a day in the life of me!, breakfast, cookies, dessert, party food! | 2 comments

Cinnamon-Sugar Cookie squares

I found this recipe from Gilt Taste. The other day they were featuring recipes from Momofuku Milk Bar in New York. If you aren’t familiar with Momofuku milk bar, they are famous for cookies, pies and shakes.

I wouldn’t really call this recipe cookie squares because to me they taste more like a coffee cake, but either way – these are great. I make all the gifts for teachers and crossing guards, so I’ve been trying some new things. Not only would these be great as teachers gifts, but also for guests staying at your house for the holidays, because it makes a lot!

Here is the recipe:

Cinnamon-Sugar Cookie Squares
Makes approx 150 bite-size cookies

½ cup butter, room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup canola oil
2 eggs
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
Cinnamon sugar, to garnish*

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease an 11-by-15-inch pan.**
Mix all the ingredients together with an electric mixer, beginning with the butter, sugar, oil, eggs, milk and finally the dry ingredients.
Pour into the pan and spread evenly with a metal spatula or knife. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar all over and bake for 20 minutes or until the edges are light brown.
Allow to rest for 10 minutes, then invert onto a cutting board and cut into bite-size squares.
*To make cinnamon sugar, mix ½ tablespoon of cinnamon for every ¼ cup of sugar.

**Who has an 11×15 baking pan?? I don’t! I used an 11×17 jelly roll pan, or I’m sure you could use 9×13 pan – they would probably just need to cook a little longer.

It’s been such a busy time – I haven’t been able to read everyone’s blogs – but starting Friday the 23rd I am off until January 3rd! It will be the longest I’ve been off in a row in 7 years!!! I am so excited!!!

And, it’s the 21st of December and I have successfully stayed away from all treats at work – can you believe that?? Gourmet popcorn, cookies, fudge, donuts, muffins, coffee cake, etc… I’ve had NONE!!

And I’ve been working out every day too. I’ve started training for the half marathon. The official training starts in January, but I want to be able to not be totally out of breath when I get there! So I’ve been running, doing Taebo, my son Mark hooked up the VHS and now I have about 20 Firm tapes to work out to – I think I’ve had those for 20 years!!

How are your Christmas plans coming along???