A TASTE OF HONI: April 2009

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Middle of the Week

Boy it has been a rocky road this last week, Steves brother went in the hospital but is doing better and is home now.. Steve went from a meeting in Panama City last Thursday to Ft Lauderdale on Friday .. to be with his brother all via motorcycle and originally just packed for a one day trip .. ( to Panama City from our home).. He got home last night no worse for wear thank God.. I am so glad that his brother is doing better Yay...
Got some really good recipes to share..
Spinach chicken skillet
Carribbean chicken
Banana bread
Well keeping small today..
All is well..
Got a busy few weekends coming up.. Steve's youngest daughter Sara graduates from college next weekend, the following weekend, we have a party to go too. and the weekend after that our neice Hannah graduates from high School. May is pretty booked up.. So any vacation planning I am thinking of doing will have to be put off until June I guess.. (sigh)..
Until next time...

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Don't stop Believing (as the song goes)

Well Monday was a bust.. so I am so not going to mention a start date or anything remotely similiar... things are status quo for me.. a bit annoyed, a bit irritated , generally happy....
Got a recipe that wowed Steve this weekend...
Here is what I did..
Another me Creation:

Teriyaki Chicken (Honi style)
At first Steve did not like how I was doing things in the prep.. He likes his veggies chunky and bigger pieces I think they cook better and stretch out more when they are chopped not super small but Chopped.. ya know..( after eating dinner he agreed with me on the veggie chopping )
but when he ate dinner .. lets just say.. he would be eating it right now if we had some left..
Boneless Skinless breast.. we did 3 ( adjust to how much you want)
carrots
celery
Zuchini,
sweet onion
RED pepper ( don't cheap out and use green Use RED, ORANGE OR YELLOW ..to me RED is best)
baby bella mushrooms
(and any veggie you want to add ~FRESH WORKS BEST)
First chop chicken up.. next time we are going to use smaller pieces of chicken instead of chunks.. marinate in Lachoy Teriyaki sauce for 30 minutes at least..
We used basmati rice , Start rice by directions on bag or box..
Chop veggies up.. ( we did not have water chestnuts but now for next time we do)
First stir fry chicken with a little canola oil until cooked through, set chicken aside, if rice is cooked by now set that aside too..
Rinse out stir fry pan
recoat with a little canola oil..
heat pan back up.. add veggies , add more Lachoys Teriyaki sauce ( I say lachoys because that is what we used) cook veggies , stiring every so often.. *add water chestnuts now* add chicken stir.. taste if it tastes well blended do not add anymore sauce if it does not .. add a little more sauce and continue stir frying veggies and chicken.. I like my veggies tender but CRUNCHY..
Place rice on plate add Chix Teriyaki.. and enjoy... WE had left overs we enjoyed for a couple days after... Steve is still talking about that meal..
I would do the exact same recipe as above.. but I would also do a recipe using an assortment of veggies... everything from Zuchini to spinach , to asparagus.. have fun with it..
Also I am going to make a Veggie pie tonight
with Zuchini (sliced and halved)
baby bella mushrooms (sliced)
celery (chopped tiny)
carrots (chopped tiny)
onion (chopped tiny)
red pepper (chopped chunky)
I will be using the Heart Healthy Bisquick
and a couple eggs and canola oil.. I think I use parmesean cheese for this recipe too.
Its a variation on Zuchini pie .. I figured why not veg it out.. ya know.. this way I will have a nice veggie dinner and lunch for Thurs and Friday too.
Well that wraps it up for today
Until next time..

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Seems I am posting roughly once a week..

I will try and improve on that...
So last night I go and get my face waxed.. ( have been doing it for years removes unsightly hair growth and dead skin)... I love where I am going now.. never had a problem until last night.. I had a allergic reaction.... the young lady that takes care of me felt bad and gave me a soothing hydrating facial to try and help however it burned my skin worse.. when I got home my face was swollen in spots and blotchy with blisters... we tried a "sensitive skin wax" and I do much better on the hard wax alone... I have ultra super sensitive skin.. I looked the elephant man for a while.. I puttyed on the make up today but my face still looks rough.. I used a lot of carrot oil this morning for healing and it was the only thing that did not sting the shit out of my face... I only get my face done about every 3 months .. next time I will not let her try that other wax.. and stick with the old hard wax... she puts that on and peels the actual wax off with out using the material... for some reason the hard wax does better on my skin ... ohh well live and learn ....
Knowing full well I need to get a grip..and get myself pointed in the right direction.. ( I have not been to far off the path but still.. not doing what I should).. I am targeting Monday April 20th as my start date.. Yeah I know I know.. why do I do that... for me .. I have to have a plan sometimes it works.. sometimes I fail.. hopefully I am ready to make it work...
IT was nine months ago yesterday that I lost my mom... and her words still ring in my ears.. Please take care of your heart... I am doing a lousy job of it right now.. I know... but I have not given up.. I just need to make the commitment again... I watch.. my husband's son and he is so commited to his body... I mean he does the Power Man dualothon , he did an Iron man.. he has done marathons .. he works out and is the trimmist leanest thing.. almost too trim.. but he is so devoted with out being obsessive unless its race or competition time... He almost lives to train.. I admire that .. I admire that devotion .. I wish it were bottled in an elixir and I could drink it.. and poof I would have that .. minus and distraction in my life...
I do not use mom's death as an excuse for over eating.. there is no excuse .. it is just something I am doing now.. eating wrong.. I know these things with no excuse I know them.. they are there..
and it is totally up to me.. no excuses.. to change .. to make a commitment to self...
This I know to be true and self evident of me... its like the saying goes.. IF you do what you have always done you will get what you have always got... its time .. for something big to happen.. before something "BIG" (read: BAD) does happen..
Am thinking of doing the combo plan a little Eating Well.. and Weight watchers.. it would really be the new WW that they have out... have had success with WW online in the past and am considering going back to it...
opinions are appreciated...
Until next time...
THIS looks really good to me...

Friday, April 10, 2009

Honi's Veggie Mac and Cheese

Last night I was bored.. very bored.. so I decided to make something...
I had had this idea brewing for sometime but decided to experiment a bit...
I bought the barella plus mac cooked as directed and set aside

I took the light Velveta cheese, 2 cups skim milk, 1 egg, salt and pepper and simmered stove top .
I used about 3/4ths of the 16 oz container of Velveta and then I added 2 % shredded cheese about a cup or so.. and let that simmer on a low heat,
Meanwhile I chopped up 1/2 a sweet onion, 1/2 a container of baby bella mushrooms, 2 medium zuchinis , 1 vine ripe tomato (removed seeds and pulp) sauted with a little olive oil stove top..
I sprayed a pyrex with olive oil spray and set aside
I preheated the oven to 350
I turned up the heat just a bit on the cheese sauce and stirred consistantly until completely smooth and a good smooth taste... after everything was cooked I poured the drained mac into a big bowl added the cheese sauce and veggies.. combined well.. and then poured all into the pyrex dish .. I sprinkled a handful of 2% shredded sharp cheddar on the top of the mac mixture and baked for about 1 hour a@ 350... Delicous...
I will be ammending the recipe over time, less cheese more veggies, I might even move t0 whole wheat mac although for this recipe I tend to find the flavor profile to be too heavy.. I prefer the Barilla plus pastas...
I am starting to get my will back finally.. I dont know where it will go but I do know that if I continue on the destructive path I am on right now.. for whatever excuse I am using at the second.. well. I know all I am doing is hurting myself.. I am not solving anything.. .
So I am beginning to seize the day..
Until next time..

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Happy Passover and Happy Easter

What is it with some parents, ?? As I was leaving Walmart.. I hear this mother who was right behind me so it was an obvious hear... yell to her daughter.. HEY if you don't stop that, the Easter Bunny won't come for you!... I just shook my head... thinking how sad it was that we are so absorbed by the comercialization of holidays now .. we threaten our kids with no visits from the Easter Bunny.. I guess she does the same thing with Santa too.. and I guess a lot of parents think it helps keep their children in control.. All the kid was doing was heading for the candy.. yeah.. the stores know how to place it .. the most tempting delicacies at eye level for a 4 year old.. leaving parents to barter with holiday figures. Though I am not a parent.. I probably would opt for the very simple word.. no.. as in No! it is 730 in the morning and you may not have any candy right now.... simple .. direct.. and the truth.. oh well.. Candy.. Candy Candy Candy.. I think Easter is the worst holiday for Candy.. You can find Candy anything, candy carrots, candy blueberries, chocolate in every rabbit shape known to man.. you can find blue bunnys, pink bunnys, orange bunnys, lavender bunnys.. all claiming to a be some variation of Chocolate.. not mention chocolate easter eggs, and now edible straw that you put in the basket.. well.. where the heck is the edible basket.. I am sure .. there is one out there somewhere... So after the kids eat their candy grass, chocolate eggs, jelly beans.. and so forth.. I wonder if we ever stop and think.. uhmm how about a change up on this holiday.. how about if we decandify ( yes its a word I invented it) the holiday.. talk about the religious aspects a bit.. celebrate spring.. with some healthier choices.. ( You don' t have totally decandify it ... just mostly) Some spring fruits and veggies... talk about nature.. talk about how the bees are pollinating the flowers so the flowers on some plants can bear fruit for us to eat... talk about spring time and the beginning of new life.. Plant a garden for heavens sake.. teach the kids about growing their own veggies and fruits.. nothing complicated mind you... keep it simple .. but not only does your child not eat candy.. he gets to watch , nuture and grow.. something.. and eventually he gets to harvest his labors and enjoy the fruit or veggies it bears... sounds like a good idea to me... I know I know.. whats Easter with out Candy.. whats spring time with out Peeps... just a thought ...
On the eating front.. I have been worse than terrible.. I pretty much figured you know that.. because I have kept quiet about the weight.. I still have not gotten myself together enough to make the leap.. I am almost there .. I know.. I just keep feeling trapped.. For a while I kept telling myself once the house sold.. I would start fresh.. Once the estate was settled I would start fresh.. but For heavens sake HONI God alone knows how long that will take... so why am i such a big time waster... ? the answer.. either I am really lazy .. or I really do not care... or maybe I am just tired of starting with a blast and giving up fast... everything... really is a ribboned excuse .. I know I feel better when I eat better.. I know I feel stronger when I exercise.. I know my heart is in the right place.. but my desire goes back and forth.. I have been a victim of my own choosing and I know that.. I am not being hard on myself.. I am just being... welll... myself... so.. the truth is.. I have to be the one to decide.. if not right now.. When? when I do I get a get grip.. I hope soon... I will keep you posted.. in the mean time I will continue to share great recipes.. and good wishes and good health for us all.. we can do this.. I know that.. but it sure takes a lot more discipline than I have right now.. I am pooped.. and not just because of the puppy.. who by the way succeeded in seriously using the shock factor this morning... she woofed down her food.. and went into the dining room.. I hear her making the same sound Baz makes before he tosses his cookies.. so I lead her out the front door... and she promptly runs to the side of the house.. tosses her complete meal back up.. undigested .. and promptly reinhales it. and goes running off.. happy as can be.. My husband informed me that is simply one of the many joys of a lab puppy... or a lab period.. lol... oh well.. how did you like that pooped puppy seque... back to what I was saying..
Discipline .. I lack it right now.. I working to find it.. I promise..
Best to you all.. in the mean time here are a few recipes...
HEALTHIFIED MONKEY BREAD
GARDEN BAKE
ITALIAN BAKE
CHOCOLATE BANNA BREAD
TURKEY AND SPINACH MANICOTTI
UNTIL NEXT TIME..