My Very Own Episode of Fear Factor

My Very Own Episode of Fear Factor

Do you remember that old show Fear Factor where people would try to overcome their fear of things like like snakes or spiders? Well If I would have ever appeared on that show my fear would have been cicadas.

I’ve been scared to death of those things ever since my family moved to Texas when I was eleven. The first time I saw one I was horrified at their big green, bulging eyes, and as soon as one took off in flight its spastic flapping wings confirmed that I could probably be driven to insanity if placed in a small room with a dozen or so of these terrifying creatures. 

As the years have gone by I have been thrilled that although you can hear these creatures quite loudly each summer, thank goodness they are rarely seen. They seem quite content to hum loudly in the trees throughout the summer. 

That is until this past weekend when my four year old grandson approached me with one pinched between his two fingers. Apparently his Papa had convinced him to hold on to it by its wings, and use it to scare Mimi. Thank you Chuck!

Just a few moments before he had run into the house with the empty cicada shell he had found in his backyard. As creepy as that was I was not too concerned since it was sans the flying insect that once had inhabited it, so the expected reaction was not what was hoped for. 

When Chuck then sent my oldest grandson in to scare me he never expected what actually would happened next. To be honest, neither did I!  As I stared down at my extremely brave grandson, I thought, “What the heck, now is as good a time as ever to conquer my fear.”

I reached down and cradled the young cicada in my hands. As he looked up at me with those bulbous eyes I realized he actually wasn’t all that scary. I’ve always tried to instill a love of nature, and God’s creatures in my grandson, and for some reason freaking out about a little ole cicada seemed a little hypocritical.

The cicada felt no different than a June bug or two that I’ve held before in my hands. Not exactly pleasant, but certainly not terrifying. All these years I’ve clung to my fear never giving this winged creature a chance. 

We then walked the little guy outside to the pecan tree to let it go. I placed it gently on the tree, and wouldn’t you know...that darn thing spastically took off for the nearest branch. My hands immediately went toward my face to prevent what could have been a collision of epic proportion.

Oh well, I was brave for a whopping three minutes. On the ride home that day, Chuck relayed his total shock that I had reached down and picked up that cicada. I had to admit, I was pretty shocked as well. 

I guess the moral of the story is don’t hold on to fears that you haven’t faced yet. 

 

Dessert

Dessert

For some reason healthy dessert sounds kind of like an oxymoron. I’m of the mindset that when it comes to dessert always indulge in the real deal, just don’t do it too often. 

That being said, I have come across some pretty sweet treats along the way that don’t seem to break the bank. 

Chocolate Hummus

One of my most recent finds is chocolate hummus. I often wonder who first came up with the idea for this 8th wonder of the world? Pair it with strawberries or mandarin oranges, and it makes the perfect dessert option for someone looking for a healthier choice. My two grandsons are quite enamored by chocolate hummus, and the youngest one refers to it as hummy, a combination of the words hummus and yummy which describes it to a tee. 

Cool Whip

Adding cool whip can turn the mundane into the divine. Add a dollop to a Jello sugar-free pudding cup for a tasty treat. Mix it with chopped strawberries or spread it between two graham crackers and freeze it, and you have some pretty tasty dessert ideas. I have found the original Cool Whip to be the best rather than the lighter version. 

Chocolate Syrup

You can add just a tiny bit of chocolate syrup to bananas or strawberries or both, and it elevates the fruit more into a dessert range. I got this idea from my friend Gina many years ago at a Weight Watcher meeting, and it always satisfied my sweet tooth craving. 

Grilled Fruit

The next time you are grilling out consider grilling fruit for dessert. Place whole strawberries on a skewer and grill them. Then drizzle a Balsamic reduction over the grilled strawberries when serving. Basically all this entails is bringing a cup of balsamic vinegar to a boil, and then reducing the temperature and allowing it to simmer for 10-15 minutes. You end up reducing the amount by about half, and it thickens as it cools. 

Grilled peaches are pretty amazing as well, and although it takes away from the lower points value, adding some Bluebell Homemade Vanilla ice cream to the grilled peaches can’t be beat. 

Dark Chocolate 

If you can control your portions, a piece of Dove dark chocolate can be a very satisfying dessert. The trick here is to savor each bite. Sometimes I pair it with a Little Cutie, and it is delicious. My other latest obsession is the dark chocolate peanut butter cups from Trader Joe’s. The secret here again is indulging in only one, although the one is pretty satisfying.

I try to save all other types of traditional desserts more for special occasions. Life is too short to never indulge, and sometimes having them only occasionally makes them more special. 

Healthy Dinners

Healthy Dinners

I’m going to focus on two dinner ideas which can be fixed in a multitude of ways. The secret to healthy and delicious dinners really are fresh ingredients, especially vegetables.

Growing up I hated vegetables. They were something to be gagged down each night with my dinner. Now the only vegetables I ate growing up were canned, except for an occasional serving of corn on the cob. Even then, the poor ear was boiled into oblivion, and required plenty of butter and salt and pepper to compensate for the mushy texture. 

It wasn’t until I started steaming my corn in the microwave that I realized that corn actually has a sweet taste and a crispy texture, and only requires a hint of butter to make it delicious. 

My mother would never believe that the same girl who used to pick all the green peas out of her chicken pot pie would love vegetables so much today. The secret is all in how they are prepared. Literally you can roast any vegetable, and the flavor will be so enhanced you’ll be begging for more. 

Sautéing veggies in a little broth for a stir fry or to add to scrambled eggs is also another healthy and delicious way to serve vegetables. 

The first method I’m introducing is the Build-A- Bowl method. If you’ve ever eaten at Chipotle’s you are probably familiar with their burrito bowl. Rather than wrap everything up in a tortilla, the same ingredients are served in a bowl. 

About a year ago I came across the book, Build-A-Bowl by Nicki Sizemore. I highly recommend this book because it includes seventy-seven different bowl ideas. Her basic concept is to include the following ingredients in each bowl:

A whole grain

More than one veggie

A protein (which can be a plant-based protein like chick peas)

A sauce ( my favorite is non-fat plain Greek yogurt with lime)

Something crunchy like nuts or seeds if you like

One of my favorite bowls is the Mediterranean Bowl. I include quinoa, roasted chick peas, tomatoes, cucumber, crumbled feta, kalamata olives and my yogurt and lime mixture. 

Now if you don’t like quinoa then substitute a grain you do like, perhaps some kind of rice. The Seeds of Change brand has plenty of grain combinations, and they only require 90 seconds in the microwave. 

One of my favorite Tex Mex bowls is actually made with polenta as the grain, with black beans which have been drained and heated up just a tad, add tomatoes, and avocados and some salsa, and you have a yummy, healthy meal. You won’t even miss the cheese on this one. 

The second type of meal I’m including today are sheet pan meals. Now sometimes I take the things I’ve made on the sheet pan, and serve it as part of a bowl, but this is not required. I chop up things like sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, red onions, and different colored peppers and roast them on a tray at 400 degrees for 20-3O minutes. I add oil I’ve oil and salt and pepper to the veggies before I roast them. 

If I am using pork or beef smoked sausage I cut it up, and add it to the tray, and cook everything together. If I’m using turkey smoked sausage I sauté it separately on the stovetop, because it doesn’t have as much fat, and can get dried out in the oven. I prefer the turkey kielbasa, and have found it to be quite tasty as well as lower in points. 

I usually cook some rice in my rice cooker to serve with the tray meal. I love my rice cooker which was an unopened wedding present that I found at a garage sale many years ago for just a couple of dollars. I’m pretty sure you can use your Instant Pot to cook rice easily as well.

Other tray meal choices could be broccoli, roasted chick peas, cauliflower, butternut squash, and apples. Just like with the bowl idea you can mix and match whatever sounds good or whatever you happen to have on hand. 

Of course Pinterest can be your best friend here with a plethora of choices available at your finger tips. Healthy cooking doesn’t have to be complicated or time consuming. If you have a method or two up your sleeve then with just a few heathy ingredients you can pull together a healthy, satisfying meal. 

Snacks

Snacks

My favorite snack, and something I eat daily is popcorn. I have been a fan my entire life, and have popped popcorn on the stove, in a popcorn popper with oil, in the microwave, and I’ve even popped Jiffy Pop back in the day. 

Today I use a hot air popper. I actually prefer less greasy popcorn, but in order to flavor it you need to spritz something on it to hold the seasoning. My favorite is spritzing a little olive oil on top, but I do know they make butter sprays you can use.

I used to add salt and Parmesan cheese to my popcorn, but now I substitute my own plant-based Parmesan and I like it better. I blend one cup of slivered almonds, 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, and 3/4 tsp kosher salt in the blender to make this mixture. 

I buy my nutritional yeast in the bulk section of places like Whole Foods or Sprouts because it is cheaper that way. You don’t want to buy too much at a time because it will lose its flavor if it sits too long. 

What I like about popcorn is I can eat quite a bit of it as compared to any kind of chip. In fact, chips are my downfall, so choosing them as a snack doesn’t usually turn out too well for me. I save them more for a side with a meal. 

What I’ve learned about snacking is that you really should consider getting some sort of protein if you want to stave off hunger pains. One of my favorite low points snack is light string cheese with seven almonds ( this comes to 2 points in WW). Sometimes I add one of those thinly sliced apples to the mix, and end up with a very satisfying snack.

I usually carry almonds in my purse just in case I get hungry. Amazingly just seven almonds can do the trick between meals if your plans get postponed, and you end up eating later than you had planned. 

Another snack idea is cut up veggies and hummus. If you keep some chopped up veggies in your refrigerator then you will have a handy snack available to you when you need it.

Another thing to consider is portion size. Sometimes I’ll snack on pretzels but I try to portion them out into a cup instead of eating them out of the bag. It’s just a way of not letting the snacking get too out of hand.

I usually don’t snack in the morning because my big breakfast seems to take me to lunch. Around 3:00 I’m usually ready for my popcorn. I’m not sure it’s because I’m actually hungry or if it’s just a habit?

Either way, snacking is not a bad thing as long as you make healthy choices. Waiting too long to eat between meals might end up being counter productive. I always try to include healthy snacks in my day when I can. 

Lunch

Lunch

Now I admit I basically eat the same thing every day for lunch. I know this sounds boring, but I really don’t mind. 

My current favorite lunch is an Amy’s burrito topped with my favorite Walmart salsa. I add a carrot along with some broccoli crowns, and serve this with classic hummus. Sometimes I’ll include a clementine.

Another option for me is a sandwich using reduced calorie bread. I’ve found these 45 calorie slices to be just fine.

I use mustard instead of mayonnaise, and my favorite choice of lunch meat is Mesquite smoked turkey breast. I do usually add a slice of Deli Deluxe American cheese. 

As much as I love chips I often substitute an apple instead. Now the secret to the apple is all in how you slice it. I usually buy a bag of small Gala apples, and slice them paper thin. I can’t tell you how much I have enjoyed these, and how satisfying they really are. I’m thinking it’s the crunch that does the trick.

Sometimes I have leftovers from dinner for lunch. The other day our leftovers were chicken salad and quinoa salad. Whenever I make a salad that requires mayonnaise I usually substitute nonfat yogurt for about half the mayo. You still want to include some mayo for the taste. 

I found this ready made quinoa at Walmart which made this salad super easy. Remember, though, that any kind of grain can be higher in points so be aware of portion size. Check out Pinterest for salad ideas. 

Now back in the pre-pandemic days when I used to meet friends for lunch I would try my best to choose restaurants that had a variety of healthy options. Some of my favorite places are Zoey’s Kitchen, Panera Bread, Corner Bakery, and Chick-fil-a.  Of course, you still have to be mindful about what you order, but they really do have some tasty options.

Some More Breakfast Ideas

Fruit

I always try to include some kind of fruit with my breakfast. 

Breakfast Banana Split

This is one of my absolute favorites, and is a great way to use up any bananas about to go bad. Peel your banana and use a fork to break the banana in half. Then smoosh the banana down. Add any berries you have on hand on top. (My favorites are blackberries and raspberries) Then take one walnut and break it into tiny pieces and sprinkle on top. 

Parfait

Begin with nonfat plain yogurt. Layer yogurt and berries of your choice. If this is not sweet enough add a dollop of raw, unfiltered honey to sweeten it. (My honey of choice is Nature Nate’s.) Try to avoid adding granola to the top because although it is promoted as healthy it actually is high in calories. 

Other fruit choices are bananas, cantaloupe and clementines. 

English Muffins 

One of my favorite way to eat English muffins is toasted, smeared with Laughing Cow light Swiss cheese, and topped with toasted pepitas. The key here is to eat only a half of an English muffin. It keeps the points down. I use the Magnolia Table recipe to toast my pepitas. (2 Tablespoons butter, dash of nutmeg, cayenne and kosher salt. Add your pepitas and stir continuously so they will not burn over medium heat. Stir for just a few minutes, and use your nose to know when they are done. Drain on a paper towel.)

Sometimes Chuck and I place a fried over easy egg on one half of an English muffin. This is another delicious option for eggs. 

Steel Cut Oats

I have never been an oatmeal fan until I discovered steel cut oats. I fix mine on the stovetop, and usually just add fresh or frozen blueberries on top. I’ve tried mangos and strawberries as well, and they were quite tasty. I do not add any sweetener (honey), but Chuck usually does. Although raw unfiltered honey is healthy it is also added points that I don’t usually need. 

Substitutions

Smucker’s Simply Fruit is a great substitution for jelly or jam. It’s a little less in calories, but not in taste. 

Almond milk creamer is also another way to save a few points, actually half as many to be exact. When my morning cup of coffee costs me only two points rather than four it leaves room for something else during the day like my Trader Joe’s dark chocolate peanut butter cup after dinner. 

More Breakfast Ideas

Omelette

Chuck is the omelette king around our house, and usually we keep them very simple with a slice of American cheese. However, the last time we had omelettes we skipped the cheese, and just added diced veggies (mushroom, red onion, peppers, and tomatoes) We topped the omelette with fresh salsa, and it was delicious! We did not miss the cheese at all. 

(My go-to salsa is from Walmart, and I find it in the produce section of the store. I like restaurant style medium crave.)

Avocado Toast

Now this is more of a weekend breakfast, but it is absolutely delicious. Although, avocados are very healthy they are higher in WW points so I don’t eat this regularly. 

I keep my avocado very simple. I basically mash up one or two avocados depending on the size with a fork. I squeeze about half a lime into the mashed avocado, and then I sprinkle some seasoning on top. I use a seasoning blend made by the grandfather of one of Brittany’s college roommates, but I thinking something like Season All might do. I’m not making guacamole here so I do not add, onion or tomatoes to the mix. 

The key to this recipe is actually the toast. I use Ezekiel Bread with Flax. I usually buy one loaf a month, and keep it in the freezer. This is a sprouted bread, and is actually a complete protein. The secret to this bread is in the toasting. 

Chuck is the fried egg chef around here, and he fries up over easy eggs which we place on top of the toast smeared with avocado. When you break the yolk of the egg, and let it drizzle over the avocado toast mixture you will not believe how luscious this breakfast can be. If you can get a higher quality egg ( fresh or pasture raised) with a bright orange yolk it is even better. 

Breakfast

Breakfast

I used to eat a bowl of cereal every day for breakfast. It was quick and easy, but I was usually starving by ten o’clock. What I didn’t know then was that I wasn’t getting enough protein, and was predictably hungry just a few hours later. 

Today I make sure I get protein at my first meal of the day, and I’m generally fine until lunch. I also save my higher point (WW) breakfasts
 for the weekend. Today I’m going to share some healthy breakfast ideas.

Eggs

Hard boiled eggs are a quick and easy way to get a protein packed breakfast. For several years I baked my eggs in the oven, but now I use an egg cooker to hard boil them. If you want to bake them in the oven this is how to do it:

Preheat oven to 325
Place raw eggs on rack in oven
Cook for around 27 minutes (adjust accordingly to your oven)
Remove with tongs or an oven mitt and plunge into a bowl of ice water
Let eggs cool for 15 minutes
Peel and store in a glass container in your refrigerator

I like to sprinkle my eggs with Everything But the Bagel seasoning from Trader Joe’s.

Scrambled Eggs

I often times scramble an egg for breakfast. I usually add a splash of half and half, and I like to add grated Parmesan cheese to these eggs. 

Sometimes I slice mushrooms, dice red onion, and slice grape tomatoes, and sauté them in either vegetable broth, chicken broth or even water. The trick here is to only use a splash of broth so your veggies don’t stick to the pan. Add a splash more if needed as you sauté. 

In a separate pan scramble your eggs ( this way your eggs remain yellow and look more appetizing.) When both are ready add the veggies to the eggs. This is one of my favorite ways to eat eggs. 

Stay tuned to tomorrow for some more “eggcellent” ideas.


Parmesan cheese tip:

Buy your Parmesan in a block, and grate it yourself. I store mine in an old Parmesan container. By grating it yourself it has more surface area resulting in more flavor.