Big Blue and Healthy Dinner

I may live in Texas, but I will always bleed blue. Kentucky blue. For those of you who don't follow college basketball, my beloved Wildcats played our in-state rival team, the Louisville Cardinals, last night in the Final Four. The whole week leading up to this game I thought I might throw up. Or cry. Or stop breathing. And that was all before the game even started. Keith was scheduled to work so my friend Cami saved me from myself having to watch the game alone. And as a bonus, both our husbands actually got to watch it with us at the last minute.

To spread some Big Blue Nation to the land of burnt orange (or more relevantly, Baylor women), I thought we could theme our food. Here's to staying healthy AND school spirited!

Pulled chicken, aka pulled cardinal bird, sandwiches

Salad with BIG BLUE cheese (why did I always think it was bleu cheese?)

BIG BLUE chips and salsa

I'd like to think this nutritious spread had something to do with the Cats' victory last night. Perhaps we can serve up a side of jayhawk Monday night for the championship. GO CATS.

RD Day

Happy Registered Dietitian Day! Did you even know there was such a thing? I really love being a dietitian. For a foodie like myself, it's a role that has combined hobby with work. 

Annnnnd.... Did you know being a dietitian played an integral role in my relationship with Hubs? Yup. Most guys I met would stare blankly when I told them I was a dietitian (ok, so maybe I just met morons). Or they thought I just talked about food all day (which is only partly true!) Nope, not Keith. He looked me dead in the eye and said "So you know all about tube feeds and advancing them to goal?" HECK YES I DO! Never thought I'd be won over with enteral nutrition.

I hope everyone had a happy, healthy RD Day! Do your favorite dietitian a favor and follow her blog? Yes?

Spice-Rubbed Roasted Salmon

When I first got married, I had visions of myself cooking only these amazing, healthy and delicious meals with Hubs singing praises of my lean meats and vegetables. How quickly those dreams were shattered! I made turkey meatloaves only to learn Keith thinks turkey smells like cadavers. I made southwest salmon burgers only to learn Keith thinks burger means "from cow only." I made butternut squash and beef stew only to learn Keith thinks winter squash should be smothered in butter and sugar. So any time I make something new, I'm always anxious to see how it will go over. And let me tell you, I was THRILLED when Keith told me this salmon from Cooking Light was.....wait for it.... the best salmon he's ever had.

And I agree. This salmon definitely rivals any good salmon I've ever had from a restaurant.

 

The best part? The spices on the salmon add NO CALORIES, just great flavor. I paired it with some rice pilaf and broccoli, but we've also had it with the lemon-garlic spinach like Cooking Light has listed. (Tip: If you make the spinach, I'd try reducing the lemon ingredients by half. I followed the recipe exactly as written and it was way too lemony.)

Spice-Rubbed Roasted Salmon 
1/2 teaspoon salt  
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 
1/4 teaspoon paprika 
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
1 (2 1/4-pound) skinless salmon fillet  
2 cups thinly sliced onion  
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400°. Combine first 6 ingredients; rub spice mixture evenly over fish. Place onion in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Place fish on top of onion; bake at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of doneness.

A Recipe-less Post

I'm well aware it's been a while since my last post. I've had some flops in the kitchen lately. Do not try store-bought raspberry-chipotle marinade. It's gross. Of course, it could taste gross from me absolutely charring it to death on the grill. Then there were the Cajun red beans and rice. The bag said they would take 2-3 hours. No big deal. Nine hours later, the beans still weren't done. And once they finally were, I left them out on the counter overnight. Good thing Hubs is less fearful of the Temperature Danger Zone than I am so the beans didn't go completely to waste. What can I say? Once food safety certified, always food safety certified.

Of course, I've also had some fun recently too which kept me busy. My great friends from college came to visit and Mrs. Nutritious left some of her healthy eating habits behind. Hey, when you're trying out food carts and BBQ joints in Austin it's ok to stray a little! Here's a few pics I stole from Patrick.

Eating at Scholz Garten...open since 1866 and great place for pre-UT game festivities....

Which is exactly what we did next.

Luckily, I have had some cooking success since my friends left and will be posting about a delicious salmon recipe next! Check back soon... I promise it won't be as long this time!

Apricot-Lemon Chicken

I've been trying to plan all our meals for the week on Sundays when I do my grocery shopping. This way I don't waste 30 minutes when I get home just on deciding what we're going to eat. But last week I fell into a funk. Nothing sounded good, especially when trying to guess what I'd be in the mood for in 4 days. Luckily my good friend Amber pointed me toward this simple recipe for Apricot-Lemon Chicken. And it was....soooooo....good!

The best part is there are only 4 ingredients. (I don't count water, salt, or pepper.) And none of these ingredients add significant calories. Even better! Take a look.

I'm well aware that's an odd looking chicken breast. That's because I bought "young chicken" breasts, mostly because they're thin and easier to cook in a skillet. I paired it with roasted red skin potatoes and green beans. Amber paired it with squash and salad. Cooking Light peared paired it with Sweet Lemon-Mint Pear Salad. The choice is yours!

Apricot-Lemon Chicken
1 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Cooking spray
1/3 cup apricot spread (I used Smuckers Simply Fruit)
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp water
2 tsp grated lemon rind (don't really think you need this)

1. Combine first 3 ingredients in small bowl. Rub mixture on chicken.
2. Place large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Cook chicken 6 minutes on each side or until done (likely longer than 6 minutes). Remove chicken from pan, and keep warm.
3. Add apricot spread, lemon juice, and 2 tbsp water to pan, stirring until smooth. Cook over medium heat about 1 minute. Spoon sauce over chicken; sprinkle with lemon rind.

Cornbread Chicken Salad

One of the things I like most about Hubs is his love for a good salad. Seriously, salads are an integral part of a dietitian's life and I don't know what I do with a man who doesn't love some fresh veggies like I do.

I'd really been wanting to make this Cornbread Chicken Salad recipe I got from a co-worker of mine when I lived in Louisville (which is weird because I don't love cornbread). She used to have us over for summer nights of salad, sweets, and sangria. And since Texas pretty much feels like summer even in January, I thought it would be acceptable to do salad for dinner this week.

Maybe when I'm a more experienced blogger I'll remember to take step-by-step pictures. But for now, all I have is the finished product (sans the dressing).

I promise there is chicken in there. It's just hiding.

The key to this salad is working in advance. Last night, I cooked the cornbread and grilled the chicken so they could both cool overnight. Who wants hot chicken on a cold salad? Ick. Plus, Mondays are my long day at work so when I got home, all I had to do was chop up some veggies and the chicken, crumble the cornbread, sprinkle some cheese and voila!....Cornbread Chicken Salad.

Cornbread Chicken Salad
6 oz. Jiffy (or Jiffy-style) Mexican cornbread (prepared according to package), crumbled
2 stalks Romaine lettuce, torn into pieces
3/4 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 small can corn with green and red peppers, rinsed and drained
2 tomatoes, chopped
1-1.5 cups Mexican cheese (or reduced-fat cheddar works too)
4 green onions, chopped
Bacon bits, to taste (The real kind. Not those weird, hard bacon-flavored square things)
Low-fat Ranch dressing
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I sprinkled mine with salt and pepper, then just grilled them indoors on my stove top grill pan. Chill overnight.)

Combine first 9 ingredients in large bowl. Stir. Cube chilled chicken and place on top. Dish out and top with salad dressing (a carefully measured tbsp for us ladies, a slathered plate for the menfolk). Serves about 6. Hello, leftovers!

Here Comes the Bride, There Goes the Diet

It's the classic story. Boy meets Girl. Boy and Girl fall in love. Boy proposes and Girl starts swapping cookies for apples, fries for carrots until that buffet on the honeymoon cruise starts calling her name.

There's something about walking down an aisle with 300 of your closest friends watching your every move that sends women into a diet frenzy (or so I hear, since there was no aisle and 15 people at my wedding). But what about after the big day? Everyone knows of the post-wedding weight gain curse, almost more deadly than the Freshman 15. Do vows and a ring exchange mean it's ok to throw all your bridal healthy habits aside? I don't think so! That's not to say there aren't challenges. In my pre-marital days, give me some cottage cheese, tomatoes and crackers and I'd call it a meal. But try serving that to your hubby...can't you already hear him asking where the meat is? The challenge is cooking man food for him and meals that don't break the scale for you. It's hard! So that's my plan for this blog. To provide dietitian-approved meal ideas and tips for staying healthy while keeping your husband asking for seconds. Just call me Miss-us Nutritious! (Hey, I can't resist a good rhyme.)