WIAW: Baked Tilapia and Zucchini & Corn Fritters

Hello & Happy Wednesday!!!  Time to have a peek into my daily eats!

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Breakfast: Egg Sandwich

For breakfast over the last few months, there are few days when I don't want eggs for breakfast.  Today I had a whole wheat English muffin with a wedge of Laughing Cow Swiss cheese (35 calories for cheese is okay with meeee!), some avocado and an over easy egg.  Such a perfect sandwich!

Snack: Pear & Animal Crackers

For snack I had brought a pear, but then saw these (100 calorie) animal crackers in the kitchenette..so I had both.

Lunch: Tuna Melt & Veggies

It was raining at lunch (meaning we did not walk the dogs like we usually do), so I took my time preparing some tuna melts.  I used those pre-made pouches of tuna from Starkist (there like 80-100 calories, depending on the flavor you get).  I made us (my boyfriend and I) one of each flavor I had: one lemon pepper and one classic tuna salad.  Just smeared the tuna on a little piece of toast, topped with mozzarella and tomato and broiled until melty.  On the side we had veggie chips and actual veggies with hummus.

For dessert we had homemade iced coffee and a teensy baby cookie.

On the way to/from lunch everyday we pass this one yard that normally is just green, but it's lily season so they were poppin!  Since it stopped raining, I had to stop and take a picture--so pretty!!! (I'm pretty sure people who passed me taking pictures of a stranger's yard thought I was insane...but whatever.)

Dinner: Baked Tilapia, Healthy Zucchini & Corn Fritters, Sweet Potato

For afternoon snack I had a Fresca and a 90 calorie granola bar, but I sure forgot to take a picture!  Oh well.

Dinner was a winner, though!  I saw these little zucchini fritters over at PaleOMG and thought it would be a fun way to serve veggies with dinner.  I halved the recipe and added corn and goat cheese..

Baked Zucchini & Corn Fritters
makes 6 muffins

1 medium zucchini, shredded
1/4 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup flour
1 egg, whisked
1 ear of corn, cooked and kernels cut off (or 1/2 cup of frozen corn)
1/4 cup cheese (I used goat cheese)
1/2-1 garlic clove, minced (I used half a clove because our cloves were huge)
salt & pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven ot 400F degrees.
Mix all ingredients in a bowl and either grease a muffin tin or line with parchment cupcake liners (they are non-stick--I love them), then scoop the batter into the pan.  Mine made 6 not quite full muffin cups.
Bake for 30 minutes.

These are like little frittatas!  They would be great to serve to people who aren't crazy about veggies or just to change it up with your veggies on a weeknight.

I seasoned my fish with a tbsp of butter with a squeeze of lemon juice and some Old Bay seasoning (along with some torn, fresh basil) and threw it in the oven to bake for the remaining 10 minutes for the fritters.  Also, I microwaved a sweet potato for about 7 minutes (it was a big potato) and split that between my boyfriend and myself.
Such a lovely dinner!

After dinner, the weather was sunny and beautiful, so Bizzy and I headed out on a walk.

She's a happy girl!

Later that night I had a scoop of ice cream--yum!

Thanks for reading!  See ya on the flip side!

WIAW: {Healthy} Grilled Turkey Meatball Subs

Hey, hey, hey!
It's time for What I Ate Wednesday again!  Yay :)
My eats aren't too exciting today, though.  They are almost a version of last week's post.

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Breakfast: Egg White with Cheese on English Muffin

Seriously with the eggs.  I cannot stop!  This week I bought the egg whites in the carton, because I was feeling bad about wasting yolks.  So I had 1/3 cup of liquid egg whites with some shredded cheese mixed in on a whole grain English muffin with some cilantro on top.  Yum yum!

Once again, I had no time for a morning snack.

Lunch: Fish Taco Salad

I made extra fish taco fixins on Monday night and turned it into a salad today.  In the mix was spring mix lettuce, cauliflower rice, smashed black beans, sauteed zucchini and onions, seasoned pan seared fish (tilapia) topped with sour cream and cilantro.  It was a really good salad!

After lunch, we played with the dogs in the backyard.  I had an iced coffee and some of these candies! I ate half of the 200 calorie bag and then saved the rest for later.

My sweet Bizzy girl loves spring weather!

Afternoon Snack: Grapes

I ate these grapes while driving home.

Dinner: Grilled Turkey Meatball Subs & Roasted Veggies

Sometimes you just need a meatball sub, am I right?

Well, I tried my hand at a healthier version, and it turned out pretty good!

Grilled Turkey Meatball Subs

serves 4

1 12" loaf of bread (I used some sourdough I got on markdown)

premade pesto (optional)

marinara or spaghetti sauce

shredded mozzarella cheese

4 slices provolone cheese

for the meatballs:

1 lb lean ground turkey (I used 93% lean) 

2 slices of 35-45 calorie wheat bread, toasted & ground in a processor (or just use 1/2 cup of premade breadcrumbs)

1/8 cup liquid egg whites 

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 cup cheese (grated parmesan would be best, but I used mozzarella)

generous sprinkle of the following spices: salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder

Mix all of the meatball ingredients together and form into golf ball sized balls.  Mine made 15 meatballs.

Cook in a grill pan for about 4-5 minutes on each side or until done.  Assemble!

1-Split the bread into four slices, hollow out the middle of the bread and discard extra bread.  

2-Smear on pesto and top with a sprinkle of mozzarella.

3-Place 3-4 meatballs on the bread.

4-Spoon on a little (or alot--whatever you like) marinara sauce

5-Top with a slice of provolone and melt in the oven (or in the microwave-whatever)

This might not be too pretty, but it sure was tasty!
I served mine with roasted brussels and broccoli for a perfectly balanced meal.

For dessert I had a 160 calorie toffee ice cream bar.

Thanks for reading!  Hope your day is filled with sunshine and happiness!

WIAW: Healthy Eggplant Falafel "Burgers"

Hello, hello!
It's time again for another What I Ate Wednesday!  Yay!

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Breakfast: Egg White Sandwich

For breakfast I cooked up 2 egg whites and topped them with colby jack cheese.  A whole wheat English muffin makes it a yummy sandwich!  I put the berries on my plate, but totally did not feel like eating them, so I saved them for later.

No time for a morning snack today!  The office where I work is very busy this time of year.  Sometimes I lose track of time when buried in paperwork.

Lunch: Salmon on Salad

For lunch I brought out some leftover Pesto Baked Salmon (<--click for recipe by GZ on The Kitchen!  Love that show!) and a little leftover spinach brown rice and broccoli.  I put it on a bed of romaine lettuce and baby spinach with a little lite caesar dressing.  Very fresh and delish.
Oh--I totally forgot to take a picture of my dessert, which was a chai latte powder mix.  It was a nice, sweet finish to the meal.

After lunch, I started snacking on candy--dangerous!

Lemonheads are my absolute favorite candy (and have been for years).  Although I could go nuts on them and eat a million, I portioned out exactly 20 pieces for 100 calories.  #treatyoself

Afternoon Snack: Yogurt & Berries

Around 4 p.m., my tummy told me I needed a snack.  Out came the berries from breakfast and a yogurt I had stashed in the work fridge.

Looks gross, but it did the trick.

Dinner: Eggplant Falafel Burger, Sweet Potato & Roasted Veggies

Sometimes I want something a bit different for dinner.  We had some wheat buns that we didn't end up using last week, so I was trying to think of an easy veggie burger to make.  So, I made this delicious greek inspired "burger" along with a microwaved sweet potato and roasted cauliflower & broccoli.  Winner winner, veggie dinner!!

Healthy Eggplant Falafel "Burgers" 
makes 4 patties

1 medium-large eggplant, peeled & sliced into circles
1 can chickpeas, drained
1/4 cup diced red onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
handful of fresh herbs (I used parsley and cilantro)
1/2 tsp greek seasoning
salt & pepper to taste
1 egg
1/3 cup Italian breadcrumbs
olive oil, for cooking

Brush the eggplant circles with olive oil on both sides and salt and pepper lightly.  Cook the eggplant until done.  You can roast it in the oven if you want.  I used my stove top grill pan and just grilled it on both sides until it was done (maybe 5 minutes on each side).
Throw cooked eggplant and all other ingredients in food processor and blend until combined.  Split the mixture into 4 and patty it out.  It would be ideal to chill this for a little while in the fridge..but ain't nobody got time for that.
Cook your patties on an oiled griddle and be very careful when flipping them.  Cook for about 8 minutes on each side.
Serve with lettuce, tomato and tzatziki sauce on a wheat bun!

tzatziki sauce
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup cucumber innards (split the cucumber longways and scoop out the middle with a spoon)
pinch greek seasoning
salt & pepper

Mix it all up with a spoon and you're done!

These veggie burgers were super simple, yet full of flavor and very satisfying.  Try them!!! :)

After dinner, I enjoyed one of these tasty beverages.

So good!
Then I had one of these ice cream sandwiches.
I love ice cream sandwiches, because they are preportioned treats.  Sometimes I might go overboard portioning out my own desserts ;)
So for 180 calories, these babies are worth it!

Well, have a great rest of the week!  Here's a Bizzy picture...just because.

WIAW: Sweet Potato Chicken Enchilada Crunch

Hello, hello!!

Well, we finally had a little bit of snow here in the south.  By a "little bit" I mean it melted well before lunchtime.

But, it was Bizzy's first snow, so we had to get out there and take some pictures of her reaction.  She kind of loved it.  Doesn't she look like a deer in the snow above?  I love her deerly (sorry, couldn't resist).

Ok, onto the food stuff!

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I guess it's "Love your Veggies" month.  Cool.  I got a couple veggies in today..

Breakfast: 1/2 Bagel with Egg, Berries

My love affair with the over easy egg continues.  We bought bagels this past weekend, which we almost never do, but we wanted to try this bagel quiche (worth it!).  We did get whole wheat bagels, so that's something.  I had half of a wheat bagel with a Laughing Cow Swiss cheese wedge and an over easy egg.
Fresh strawberries and coffee on the side!

Such a satisfying start to the day!

Bizzy smelled the egg cooking and came to beg.  I think this is the only picture I have of her sitting in her "beg" stance..my hand is just petting her, not holding her up or anything.

Lunch: Stuffed Pepper Soup

I actually did not have time for a morning snack.  Usually I make time, but I had forgotten to pack a snack..and that really helped my decision making process ;)

So, I was starving at lunchtime.  Had a bowl of leftover Stuffed Pepper Soup.  I made a few changes to the recipe.  I added celery, carrot and 3 kinds of peppers.  So yummy!

For dessert I had a whole wheat cookie that I made Sunday.  This picture makes it look huge, but it was really about an average sized cookie.

Snack: Apple

Since I had lunch with my boyfriend, I asked him to bring me an apple for snack (since I ran out of the house forgetting to pack snacks).  I enjoyed it thoroughly.

But was hungry after work, so had a 35 calorie (healthy life, I think is the brand) piece of toast with Skippy natural crunchy peanut butter.

I needed this fuel for boot camp.  It was a booty burner for sure, with squats, lunges, dead lifts and more.  Wowzer.

 Dinner: Sweet Potato Chicken Enchilada Crunch & Broccoli

This dinner.  I mean.  It was epic.  Looks like a mess, but was so perfect.

I was in Subway last week getting a turkey sandwich for lunch and noticed they have a new sandwich.  This is it:

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Enchilada drenched shredded chicken with cheese and Fritos on a flatbread.  Sounds innocent enough.
Nope!
I looked it up and a 6" is 580 calories.  That's insane.

So, I took inspiration from that sandwich and created my own chicken enchilada crunch.
I was going to put this on a Hungry Girl Flatbread, but decided I'd rather have it on a sweet potato.

I am obsessed with sweet potatoes.

This is really, really good.  You should try it!

Sweet Potato Chicken Enchilada Crunch
serves 4

3 chicken breasts
3 tbsp taco seasoning
1 can enchilada sauce
1/2 cup corn chips (like Fritos--you can buy them in the little, bitty bags at the gas station..good portion control so you don't have a giant bag of chips in your house to tempt you!)
4 medium sweet potatoes

For the chili lime cheese sauce:

2 tbsp lite butter (like I Can't Believe It's Not Butter)

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1-2 tbsp flour

1/2 can green chilies

2 tbsp lime juice

1/2-3/4 cup chicken broth

3 Laughing Cow Swiss cheese wedges
salt & pepper to taste

Heat a medium sized skillet on medium heat, coating the bottom of the pan with non-stick spray.  Season your chicken breasts and sear both sides in the pan, cover with enchilada sauce and cover the pan with a lid until the chicken can be shredded with forks (about 10-15 min).  Shred chicken and leave in the sauce for a few minutes to absorb.

While the chicken is cooking, microwave some sweet potatoes (I washed and pierced 4 medium sweet potatoes and microwaved them in a gallon Ziploc for about 13 minutes) and make your sauce.

For the sauce, heat a small sauce pan to medium and melt butter, add garlic and cook for a minute.  Add flour and whisk around.  Pour in a little chicken broth and whisk lumps out.  Add chilies, lime juice and additional chicken broth until it is the thickness you want.  It will thicken a little more upon cooking.  Add the cheese wedges, breaking up with your whisk.  Season with salt and pepper.

OMG, the sauce is so good!

Lay out your sweet potatoes on individual plates (I put two of mine in to-go containers for lunches) and smash them open with a fork.  Season with salt and pepper.
Add 1/4 of the shredded chicken to each potato (it's probably about 1/2 cup of chicken), top with sauce and a sprinkle of Fritos.

Add cilantro to the top, if desired.

Holy yum!

That's it for me!

Have a lovely rest of the week!

Project Lean and Clean, Part 2

Ok, so I might have been putting off getting this post together.  My millions and millions of food pictures can be pretty overwhelming!  But I am currently stuck at work because my car broke down (lucky?  unlucky?), waiting for my parents to pick me up (best parents ever!!!)...and now I finally have time to work on this-yay!

Too much of an explanation?  Maybe.

So, without further ado.  Here's part 2 of Project Lean & Clean!

I hope that this helps people come up with healthy meal plans and ideas.

Here's a little blurb to remind you all what this is about:

I thought it would be fun to do a quick round up of my self-imposed January challenge that I call Project Lean and Clean.  I have been posting these pics every weekday in January on my Instagram to help me with eating healthy, balanced meals full of all the good stuff.

*Keep in mind that I may have had an ice cream cone or occasional glass of wine after some of these food collages took place...I'm human ;)

I will include links to any recipes I used.

January 16

Breakfast:  Aldi Raisin Bran and an apple
Snack: Orange and a rice cake
Lunch: Leftover Grilled salmon and grilled veggie couscous
Dinner: Cauliflower "rice", fajita veggies and chicken (homemade), smashed black beans and fresh corn

January 17

Breakfast: Toast with pumpkin peanut butter (equal parts PB & pumpkin puree with cinnamon and honey) and a tropical smoothie containing frozen mango, pineapple, splenda and almond milk
Snack: Rice cake with pumpkin peanut butter, apple
Lunch: Leftover Cauliflower "rice", fajita veggies and chicken, smashed black beans and fresh corn (and a tortilla)
Dinner: Store bought wheat pizza crust with spinach, artichokes, mushrooms and parmesan cheese; roasted cauliflower and butternut squash

January 20

Breakfast: English muffin with pumpkin peanut butter, banana slices and honey
Snack: Pear and homemade granola bar
Lunch: Salad of spring mix with roasted butternut squash, salsa and a frozen black bean burger
Dinner: Stuffed Pepper Soup

January 21

This entire day's eats can be seen on this What I Ate Wednesday post (how's that for lazy?)

January 22

Breakfast: Aldi Raisin Bran with banana
Snack: Pear, almonds
Lunch: Some salsa verde chicken soup my mom made, grilled cheese and roasted cauliflower..followed by a cookie bite
Dinner:  Spaghetti Squash Primavera

January 23

Breakfast: Whole wheat English muffin with 1 egg, plus 1 egg white
Snack: apple, homemade granola bar
Lunch: This was a canned soup.  I think it was Progresso heart healthy black bean and vegetable.  Pretty  good..
Dinner: Leftover Spaghetti Squash Primavera topped with a piece of chicken that I baked with pesto on it.

 January 24

Breakfast: Whole wheat English muffin with natural peanut butter, banana and honey
Snack: apple, homemade granola bar
Lunch: Salad with leftover pesto chicken and veggies..followed by a Starbucks salted caramel cake pop
Dinner: Spinach Tortellini Soup (except I added zucchini and mushrooms)

January 27

Breakfast: Chocolate Toast Crunch with strawberries
Snack: apple, homemade granola bar
Lunch: salad with deli roast beef, edamame, cottage cheese and tomatoes..followed by half of a funfetti cupcake (that I made for a friend's bday)
Dinner: Taco Soup

January 28

This whole day's eats can be found on this What I Ate Wednesday post!!

January 29

Breakfast: English muffin with pumpkin peanut butter and bananas
Snack: homemade granola bar
Lunch: Leftover pumpkin enchilada casserole
Dinner: Israli Couscous with veggies and roasted pork loin (I used this recipe)

January 30

Breakfast: Overeasy egg on a half of an English muffin

Snack: Chocolate Toast Crunch cereal with almond milk and an apple
Lunch: Leftover pork loin and couscous
Dinner: Baked crusted tilapia, quinoa pasta with (jarred) butternut squash sauce and steamed broccoli

January 31

Breakfast: Over easy egg over half English muffin with tomatoes and provolone (under the egg), strawberries
Snack: Chocolate Toast Crunch cereal with almond milk
Lunch: Panda Express--I had the mushroom chicken and some sort of pepper chicken (basically the only non-fried entrees) and mixed veggies.  I did not finish this plate, just so you know.  Way too much food!
Dinner: Microwaved sweet potato topped with steamed broccoli, slices of turkey sausage and a little cheese.
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Ok, so that about wraps things up!  Thanks for sticking with me! :)  This challenge was very helpful for me to visually see what I eat and a way to mindfully make better choices on normal days (not just WIAW days).

I doubt that I'll do another challenge where I flood people's social media newsfeeds with my daily eats, but there will always be What I Ate Wednesday for a peek into my current food obsessions.