Hot Caprese, Jalapeno Turkey Burgers, and Dessert!

One of my all-time favorite things to eat is caprese salad.  For those who have never had it, it usually consists of tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and fresh basil.  It’s so simple and amazingly delicious.      

After my Jambalaya! success last night, I decided to try the recipe for Hot Caprese in the July/August 2010 issue of Clean Eating Magazine.       

I used their basic ingredients, but modified it to keep it a little healthier (and also to bring it down to a single–albeit it large–serving).      

  • 1 cup grape tomatoes
  • 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp olive oil
  • S&P
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 light babybel cheese
  • fresh basil

Mix all the ingredients (except the cheese and basil) in a bowl, then pour onto a piece of foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  Wrap into a pouch, taking care to ensure all edges are sealed so that no liquid seeps out.  Poke a few holes in the packet to let steam escape, then pop into a 350 degree oven for 20-25  minutes, until the tomatoes have started to burst and let their juices go.       

Next, I carefully poured the liquid out of the packet and topped the tomatoes with a cubed light babybel cheese round.  Close the packet back up and make sure to leave space between the cheese and the foil so that the melted cheese does not stick.  Cook for an additional 5-10 minutes until the cheese is melty.      

When the tomatoes were finished cooking, I poured them out onto my plate and topped with fresh basil that I grew in my very own back yard!  🙂      

backyard herbs

 

To go along side the tomatoes, I cooked up two Jalapeno turkey burgers that consisted of:      

  • 10 ounces 99% lean ground turkey
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 a small zucchini, grated
  • 1/4 cup white onion, chopped
  • S&P, RPF, Onion powder
  • 1/2 a jalapeno, seeds removed,  chopped

Once the burgers started cooking, my nose could tell that the little jalapeno was gonna add some kick to the burger.  So I decided to top the burger with some tomatoes, onion, and cool fat free sour cream atop a Pepperidge Farm 7 grain deli flat.      

      

Sooooo tasty!       

Word to the wise — use more seasonings on the tomatoes than you think you need.  I’ll def bump it up next time.      

Also, I definitely want to add some fresh herbs to the jalapeno turkey burger next time.  Possibly cilantro or flat leaf parsley.      

Stats on Dinner:  387 calories, 46g carbs, 7g fat, 47g protein, 7g fiber     

Post-Dinner      

After dinner, I completed Day #2 of my interval running/walking plan.  I was able to complete all 5 intervals of running without any knee pain!  Yay! 🙂      

After exercising, I threw half of a peach onto the george foreman grill for about 6 minutes.  Then I topped it with some plain greek yogurt I had sweetened with 1/2 packet of truvia and a sprinkle of cinnamon and cloves.        

      

This was quite tasty!  But let’s be honest, I was thinking about ice cream the entire time.  Definitely need to give this a shot with the good stuff.      

Other thoughts before bed      

For those of you who have hopped on the Greek Yogurt train (gimme a whoop whoop!), and even for those of you who haven’t this FitSugar link gives a few different ideas on how to switch up your normal yogurt routine.      

I’m trying out some new things for breakfast and lunch tomorrow….  this should be interesting  🙂      

Oh yes!  I tried the Oatmeal Luna Bar today, and thought it was pretty darn tasty!      

      

Not my all time favorite flavor, but overall I was very pleased with my afternoon snack. It definitely tasted like an oatmeal cookie.  I went to a grocery store by work tonight rather than my usual store, and they had a huge selection of Lara Bars.  So I picked up a few of those to try out 🙂      

QUESTION FOR ALL YOU SILENT READERS OUT THERE:  Have you tried overnight oats yet?  If so, did you love them as much as I do?  If you haven’t tried them, what’s holding you back?

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Starting the week off on the right foot

Happy Monday 😀

This morning I decided to start my week off on the right foot with a 2.5 mile power walking session.  This was a follow up to Day#1 of my interval running/walking plan, which I started yesterday.  My knee only bothered me slightly during the running intervals yesterday, so I ended up swapping the 5th running interval for a cool-down walk.   I definitely want to err on the side of caution as I start building myself back up to running.

I thought walking today would be good to help keep things loose.  I’m also making sure to not sit in the same position for too long while I’m working so that my knee doesn’t lock up.  I’m determined to get my knee back into running shape!

 

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Busy Bee & I miss running

Tonight has been one of those nights where I haven’t stopped moving since the moment I got off work.  Walked in the park with my sister, grocery shopping, mowed the lawn, laundry… and it’s after 9 and I’m pooped!

Tomorrow I am volunteering with the United Way of Summit County for the Day of Action.  I decided I’d try and pack some healthy snacks to take along since I know they will be providing us with some unhealthy temptations.  (I’m sure I’ll succumb to at least one 😉  )

Walking in the metro parks this afternoon really got my desire to start running churning again.  I would consider myself an active person since I’ve played soccer since elementary school, and I just generally enjoy being outside and moving around.  A few months back I decided to start running and I loved it!  I felt like I had found a new passion.  Running first thing in the morning really energized me for my day, and I felt absolutely great.  But unfortunately I injured my knee.  Still not entirely sure what happened there.  The doctor tells me “some knees just aren’t made for running.”  I’m not ready to accept that.  I hate doctors.  But that’s a different blog for a different day.

I stumbled upon this website which gives a plan for building yourself up from walking to running.  Stamina is not my issue — I can run 5K no problem (well before the knee issues began that is).  I think what I need to focus on is not stamina but strength. 

  

The Plan (3o minutes per day, 3 days per week):

Week #1: Two minutes running/four minutes walking
Week #2: Three minutes running/three minutes walking
Week #3: Four minutes running/two minutes walking
Week #4: Five minutes running/three minutes walking
Week #5: Seven minutes running/three minutes walking
Week #6: Eight minutes running/two minutes walking
Week #7: Nine minutes running/one minute walking
Week #8: Thirteen minutes running/two minutes walking
Week #9: Fourteen minutes running/one minute walking
Week #10: Run the whole time!

I guess the worst that could happen is my knee will hurt, and I’ll have to stop.  I think I’m going to give it a shot!  I’m just hoping the knee can handle it.  Also, how the heck do I keep track of my time in 2 minute intervals?  Maybe there’s an iphone app….  Haha.. of course there’s an app 😉 

As of yet, no big plans for the weekend and no new recipes scheduled for experimentation.  But I did find this little message in a treat I had earlier this week:

Now I have to do something new!  I’m really funny about messages like this, or even messages that come in fortune cookies.  I often carry them around in my wallet as a reminder to think positively and enjoy everyday.  Somtimes you just need a visual.

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