Holy Guacamole!

Why have I not been eating guacamole regularly? Oh yeah, that’s right… because I thought it was “too fattening”, and not good for you. What was I thinking? Avocados have so many health benefits. Yes, they do contain a good amount of fat in them, but the thing is that it’s all healthy fats. Our bodies NEED healthy fats…they actually help to burn away the bad ones.  There are so many important reasons that you should try to eat avocados when trying to live a healthy lifestyle. They taste great too!

Before really getting in to the Paleo lifestyle, I would only have some guacamole or avocado every now and then. It was usually on special occasions, or of I was eating out at a Mexican restaurant and it was on the table. Now that I’m in my third week of Paleo (not on weekends remember!) I am incorporating so many healthy fats and proteins more than ever. I came up with an awesome guacamole recipe based off of the one found on My Healthy Dish. I added my own twist. It’s perfect on top of an omelette or with some carrot chips.

Guacamole

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1 Roma tomato diced
• little less than 1/2 cup red onion diced (You don’t want it too overpowering)
• 2 limes
• salt
• black pepper
• garlic powder
• chili powder

In a mixing bowl, remove the insides of the avocado. I like to slice around the avocado, remove the core, and make square slices on the inside. Then,  you can easily scoop out the insides with a spoon. Add the tomato, onion, and juice from the two limes. All of the spices are eye balled. You all know how I feel about measuring. I go easy on the salt, but amp up the garlic and chili powder. Mash everything up all together until you reach the desired consistency. I like my guac to be a little chunkier, but some people prefer a smoother texture.

Chill for about an hour, and enjoy! Guacamole lasts is refrigerated for about a week but believe me, it’ll never make it longer than a few days. It tastes great with anything! Promise. :)

This past weekend I spent my time in West Chester. My sorority threw their annual Alumni Event at Kildare’s. It was so amazing to see all of my sisters that I haven’t seen in a while. I love catching up with people! The weather was fantastic and perfect for day drinking all day on Saturday. Everyone was out celebrating “Quatro” de Mayo, so West Chester was pretty lively. It’s such a great little college town and everyone is always down to have a good time. I know I had a blast! Being back made me realize how thankful I am that I joined Delta Phi Epsilon. It’s filled with such genuine, true women, and I really have made some best friends. Justice, Sisterhood, and Love.

Speaking of day drinking…..

JUST KIDDING… or am I

On a serious note though, working out and moving your body is so important. I absolutely hate the word “diet”. Diets don’t work, but lifestyle changes do. We are all different and have different body shapes. Some people are just naturally meant to be skinny while others have curvier bodies. It’s all about bone structure and build. For years I fought for the “perfect” body… whatever that was. I’m realizing the difference from being skinny, and being healthy and fit. I think I’ll take healthy and fit. Every body is beautiful anyway. Eat good, exercise, and be happy.

A Paleo Italian Dinner and Some Things That I Want.

I really hate only finding time to post only once a week, but better than nothing I guess. Actually, scratch that. Most nights I do have the time… I’m just way too wiped out to even pick up my computer. Can I also say how weird it is NOT having college finals anymore?! Wow, I’m feeling old.

So my paleo lifestyle has been going really well! I’ve been eating a ton of omelets, fish, avocados, fruits, and fresh veggies. I’m definitely exploring my food options, and adding healthy fats that I haven’t eaten in so long. It feels amazing to eat clean and not have all that processed garbage in my body. Health and wellness is really all about finding that right balance of the food pyramid for your body. Even though the paleo lifestyle cuts out dairy and grains… I’ve decided I’m giving myself two “cheat days”, where I just eat and cook whatever I want. That also involves alcoholic beverages. No lifestyle of mine will take away my famous whipped vodka shakes! I just want to be happy, healthy, and fit. I’m allowed some cheating here and there. 

Baked Italian Tilapia

 

(For two)

• 6 tilapia fillets
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• 2 bell peppers sliced in strips
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes cut in half
• salt
• fresh ground pepper
• onion powder
• basil
• Italian seasoning
• garlic powder
• red pepper flakes

Preheat your oven to 375. In medium baking dish, empty the can of tomatoes with juice, and evenly spread it around. Layer the pepper slices on top of the tomatoes. Lay the tilapia fillets evenly on top of the tomatoes and peppers. Since I never measure ANYTHING, add the listed spices on top of the fish. Go easy on the salt, you can always add it afterwards if you need more. I love a ton of garlic, basil, and red pepper flakes. Then, place the cut cherry tomatoes on top of the fish, and bake for about 45 minutes, or until the fish is white and flakes nicely. 

I also squeezed fresh lemon juice on top of the tilapia as soon as I took it out of the oven. It smelled amazing, and tasted as good as it looks! I served it with a simple side of sauteed asparagus with lemon and garlic. We also had a nice salad as well to go along with the meal. Andy sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on his fish, but that’s not paleo, so I skipped out. It definitely would have tasted amazing with the cheese on top, but then again, what doesn’t? I really loved the tilapia this way. Can’t wait to make this dinner again!

To end my post tonight, here’s just a few things on my “Most Wanted” list…. let me know if you have any suggestions on where to find/buy things!

Cute Summer tanks and accessories

 

Bathing Suits!!!

 

A freakin’ good Margarita!

 

New Workout Gear

 

Hair treatment for my DRY AWFUL hair.

 

Heart rate monitor watch!

 

And lastly, CRAB LEGS… All you can eat! 

 

Good luck to all of my friends that have finals this week and next week! Oh, college. Speaking of, I’ll be returning to my old stomping grounds this weekend for my sorority’s Alumni Event. Can’t wait! West Chester here I come! Hurry, Friday! 

 

 

Spreading Health and Awareness to One Blogger and Reader at a Time.

A few weeks ago I was contacted via email by a gentleman named David Haas. I did not know David and was a little confused when I opened up my Inbox. He told me about how he came across my blog and enjoyed a few of the posts he read. I was instantly flattered knowing that a complete stranger enjoyed some of my writing. I know that I can be somewhat scatter brained when it comes to my blog posts; recipes, positive body image rants, random weekend rendezvouses, or little words of wisdom and advice.

There is, however, one thing that all of my blog posts have in common; they all revolve around bettering not only myself, but spreading the word about how important it is to lead a healthy lifestyle. Health. 

I did a little research on David’s writings, and I really was interested in the articles that I came across. He is very informative, straight to the point, and can provide any reader with helpful and useful information. He specializes in spreading the the benefits of holistic health for cancer patients and is also an advocate for living a healthy lifestyle.Here is a little bit about David:

Joining the MCA in 2011, David Haas is the Director of Awareness Programs. In addition to researching much of the information available to our site’s visitors, David often blogs about programs available and campaigns underway at the Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance. David is a fitness enthusiast who frequently runs, climbs, and bikes for enjoyment. He is also very involved in outreach associated with awareness about the dangers of asbestos for many different organizations and groups of people.

 

Read more: http://www.mesothelioma.com/blog/authors/david/bio.htm#ixzz2PVMlj2OR

David has provided me with a fantastic article about holistic eating for a cancer sufferer. Cancer affects so many individuals every single day, and I guarantee that anyone who is reading this knows someone who is suffering. He talks a little bit about healthy changes that you can make in your eating habits, and staying away from chemically processed foods. Coincidentally, I recently started the Paleo diet, or “lifestyle”, just a few days ago. In a recent post of mine, New Outook, Feeling Good,  I described the general rules of the Paleo diet; eating natural, no processed dairy, healthy fats, and no grains. This definitely ties in with what David talks about in his article. 

Holistic Eating for the Cancer Sufferer: How to Change Your Lifestyle

 

Many of the foods found in grocery stores today contain things that you wouldn’t find in food just 20 years ago. Some of these things are truly harmful to the human body. Choosing a holistic lifestyle while going through cancer is something that has helped survivors of many cancers, including mesothelioma. With holistic eating, you focus on healing both the body and mind through a natural, organic diet and paying attention to the kinds of chemicals going into your system. It’s also about bringing balance back into your bloodstream, which affects your mood, energy level, strength and overall health of your digestive tract. There are a variety of ways that you can get started with holistic dieting, but often the best result is to simply add in some beneficial foods to your every day meals.

 

Make It Simple

Diets don’t work is the mantra that many health conscious nutritionists have been spreading for years. In that case, you shouldn’t consider holistic a diet but a way of life. It’s something that you desire for yourself as a way to be healthier and control what’s going into and leaving your body. By adding in some wonderful organic types of fruits and vegetables, you can really start to detox and clean out your digestive tract.

 

Eating for Detox

With detoxifying your foods, you’re getting a ton of nutrients, antioxidants and other benefits. It’s also about choosing to eat organic materials. What’s on the pretty packaging of many foods today don’t tell you about the ingredients. The low fat, non-fat, fat-free, diet world of food doesn’t really help anyone. It’s not natural. That’s why there are so many different ingredients with names that you can’t pronounce, and it’s been shown that over 80 percent of the food in grocery stores today contains some form of MSG or aspartame, two very harmful food additives. In order to eat for detox and holistic lifestyle, you need to choose natural, organic, unprocessed food.

Planning Your New Meals

The best way to start is to just add in these new ingredients to your lifestyle. Start with food that truly helps to detox the human body such as organic beets, garlic, artichokes, broccoli sprouts, cauliflower, swiss chard, kale, seaweed, quinoa, buckwheat, lemon, apple, lentils, sunflower seeds and flaxseed oil. These are just a few of many foods that are cancer-fighting antioxidants with tons of vitamins that the human body needs. These foods are also known for helping with digestion, liver health and gallbladder functions.

 

If you have been considering a holistic diet but aren’t sure exactly how to get started, many have successfully changed their diets by adding juicing into their daily routines. Juicing is a way to add all of those detox ingredients into one glass of nutrient-rich liquid, allowing for quick digestion and absorption of these essential nutrients. 

Find out more about this and other topics at:

http://www.mesothelioma.com/blog/

 

I would like to personally thank David for providing me with such a great piece of literature for my blog. It’s so important to bring awareness to these types of issues. We need to talk about them. 

Take a second to recognize anyone that you may know who has lost the battle, or is currently suffering from any type of cancer out there. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Outlook, Feeling Good.

Oh, hey! Yes, I still do exist. Anyone who follows me on Instagram/Twitter knows that I’m still alive. I feel really horrible that I’ve only been averaging about one post per week. Not okay. Anyway, here’s a few things to catch up….

 

Blue and White Weekend/DKE Formal

 

This weekend I was super consumed with Penn State’s Blue and White weekend as well as Andy’s fraternity’s formal. So many of my good friends came in to town and we just tore it up  like usual. One thing to cross off my bucket list after this weekend was ordering a bottle of champagne at a bar. I never get entire bottles. But, I was definitely on a different level starting Friday afternoon, and my hangover didn’t end until last night. Enough said. 

 

Guess what?! I’m starting something new; the Paleo diet. I’ve actually done Paleo in the past, but only for two weeks. It was way too hard to follow while still in school, and having West Chester’s cafeteria right down the street. Basically, you’re cutting out grains, processed foods, dairy, and starches. On the photo above, it shows you what to avoid on this diet, or as I like to call it, lifestyle. I will be making some exceptions every now and then, mostly because I am a pescetarian, and do not eat poultry or red meats. Luckily, I can still have eggs, so that is a big plus. Alcohol is also on the avoid list…. but come on. YOLO.

I strongly believe that following the paleo lifestyle will hep me to be a healthier person all around. After indulging this weekend, I woke up Sunday morning feeling like garbage. Yes, I was hungover, but I looked in the mirror, and just didn’t like what I saw. I do eat healthy probably around 85% of the time… but that’s all fat free, low fat, and sugar free foods. After some thinking, I realized that I didn’t want to kick start my Monday by following my usual routine of healthy meals. I need to actually FUEL my body, exercise, and get all the toxins out. I don’t want to slim down, have a cheat weekend, and then go through the same vicious cycle of feeling bad about myself again. Things are changing for me now. I plan on involving more healthy fats in to my diet like avocados, coconut oils, and almond milk. I think this is going to be a good way for me to finally find myself when it comes to me, my body, and food. I’ve been in a better place for a while now, but I want to be in the best place. 

I’ll make sure to keep you all updated. In the meantime, I’ve been throwing together some new recipes together to try out… Paleo style.

Lunch day 1: spinach, tomato, and onion omelette

Dinner: Tilapia over fresh spinach greens

We will see how long I can keep this going. It’s only day two now and I’ve been feeling really positive about it! 

Thoughts about the Paleo diet?

How was your weekend?

Feeling like you already want to hit Happy Hour tomorrow? 

Healthy Blueberry Oat Cookies

You asked, you got it!

•  Splenda brown sugar equal to 3/4 cup regular brown sugar
• 1/3 cup unsalted, unsweetened butter
• 1/3 cup suagr free applesauce
• 1 egg, or egg substitute equivalent to
• 1 1/2 cup gluten free oats
• 1 cup rice flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 cup fresh blueberries.
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp salt

In a bowl, combine the butter,applesauce,  brown sugar together . Mix in egg and vanilla. Combine oats, flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda and baking powder, then slowly add that in to the butter/Splenda/applesauce mixture. Fold in the blueberries.

Measure 1 large tablespoon for each cookie, and place about two inches apart  onto baking sheets, sprayed with Pam or any nonstick spray. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and cool.

This recipe makes about 3 dozen cookies. By cutting out half of the butter, and using the applesauce, you are saving calories, and fat. I tasted one that was still warm and it was really good! I wish I had some vanilla frozen yogurt to eat along with it. It would have tasted like a blueberry cobbler. I am a HORRIBLE baker, and this was the first thing that I feel like I didn’t mess up for once, hah! These cookies are sweet, so you are satisfied with one or two…unless you are the cookie monster.

Be the Good.

I’ve really been having a hard time actually finding the time to post on my blog every day like I used to. Hopefully things will calm down soon and I can get caught up. Work has been really hectic, and I’ve been traveling or swamped every weekend with something. As most of you might know already, I’ll be moving to Rehoboth Beach, DE this summer. Andy and I went to visit our new home this passed weekend. From State College to Rehoboth, it came to about five hours of travel time. I get so antsy just sitting in the car. Plus, I had work until 4 on Friday, so we didn’t get to our destination until after nine at night. Before we hit the road, we stopped at Wegman’s to pick up some food for alone the way. Sometimes I get stressed out when traveling and I don;t have my own kitchen with foods that I love and that I know are healthy. This is why I love Wegman’s. For dinner on the road, I made up a customized salad with fresh veggies, and an awesome quinoa salad with chickpeas. It was delicious. Wegman’s has fresh sushi that they make every day right in front of you. I saw a vegetarian skinny roll made with rice paper. It was a new item there at the sushi bar, so I gave it a shot. It ended up being really good! Inside the roll was lettuce, marinated tofu, mango, roasted red pepper, carrots, and cucumber. Add a little soy, and it was quite the meal. Healthy, too!

Rehoboth Beach is beautiful. Talk about peaceful! I will be interested to see what it’s like in the summer when the vacationers come around. But for the middle of April, it was pretty hoppin! Basically, we are renting a beach block home which is two blocks away from the main down town. It was great to get a little preview of where I was going to be living. There are so many new bars and restaurants that I need to try out. The home is amazing and almost too good to be true. It’s basically a three story beach getaway that has a lake in the backyard. There are five bedrooms, three decks, and a private roof deck which will definitely be my tanning stop. The inside is so bright and elegant too! All of the walls are a creamy light yellow color; such a great beachy color. I’m obsessed with this place, and I can’t wait to decorate and cook in the huge kitchen! So many cabinets and so much space! It will be such a transition from my apartment kitchen that’s for sure.

One place that we did get to check out while we were there this weekend was an award winning Japanese restaurant, the Cultured Pearl. What a fantastic place! We had reservations for Saturday night, and thank God we did because the place was packed! After my meal, I could see why. The atmosphere was very classy. Lights were dimmed, bamboo plants were lit with little lights, and live music was being played in the background. My dinner was amazing. I ordered the Kappa-tini (cucumber martini) and we all shared the Old Bay edamame. Why did I never think of that before? I love Old Bay, I love edamame…. together… perfect combination. For my main course; tuna roll, cucumber roll, and a new one, Maryland roll. The Maryland roll consisted of lump crab meat and scallions. Everything was so fresh and to die for! The menu was gigantic with so many options and I cannot wait to go back!

I was definitely upset thinking about leaving State College after I really got used to this place being my home, but it’s time to move on to the next adventure. Andy and I are young, and how many times are we going to have the chance to live in an awesome beach house? Not sure what type of employment we will end up getting, but I’m sure anything will do. There’s so much opportunity in that area and I know that I’ll find my fit.

Lastly, I would like to say a little something about yesterday’s tragedy at the Boston Marathon. We all start to think about all the negativity and crazy things going on in the world, but at times like these, we really need to focus on the good. Be the good. On Facebook I mentioned in my status about how important it is to spread more love and random acts of kindness to anyone and everyone you meet. Those two things together are stronger and more powerful than any form of hate in the world. We cannot let acts of terror win. Come together. Be stronger.

After everything settled yesterday, a lot of the stories on the news were about how the initial reaction of by standers was to help those who were wounded and injured. Runners who finished the race already running to the nearest hospital to donate blood. The volunteers at the race who kept on handing out water bottles and who tore there clothes to make tourniquets.   The people in the crowds who carried others to safety, away from the smoke and rubble. There is the good. Behind all evil, there is good.

Pray for Boston.

Step 1.

Everyone has those days where you wake up and feel like not getting out of bed or leaving the house to do anything. I think around the tail end of Winter, I was having one of those days pretty much every single day. There was a serious lack of motivation, I wasn’t sticking to my work out routine, and everything in my mind was super negative.

Well, hey! The sun is shining, it’s 75 degrees out, and I am feeling amazing! It’s like I’m suddenly rallying on and I have so much energy. Nicer weather really does have a positive effect on me. I really do think I have seasonal depression now. I know everyone get’s a little cabin fever every now and then… but my God, I was in a rut.

The first step to anything whether it be fitness goals, chores, a healthier life change, or larger goals such as things like careers or school, is to say, “I can do this.”. My number one mistake is automatically thinking that I can’t do something or it’s going to be too hard. In all actuality, that just makes things harder. Let’s go! Embrace life, embrace the sunshine, embrace accomplishments. I think that so many people get caught up in how long it can take to achieve personal goals, that they forget about how far they’ve already come. I find myself in that scenario a lot. Don’t give up on anything. We all make mistakes, mess up, and sometimes even go backwards in progress  but that doesn’t mean that you can’t move forward again.

Veggie Quinoa Salad

For the Quinoa;

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

For the veggies;

• 1 zucchini cubed or sliced
• 2 medium bell peppers diced
• 1 small squash cubed
• 1/2 red onion diced
• 1 cup grape tomatoes
• salt and pepper

Dressing;

• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbs. garlic
• 1 tbs dried basil
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to around 450 degrees.

Layer all of the veggies, except the grape tomatoes, on a baking pan lined with a baking sheet, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Some people might want to add some Olive oil on to the veggies first before baking, but I would prefer nonstick baking spray. Roast about 30 minutes, flipping veggies over about halfway through.

Bring the quinoa and stock to a boil for about 20 minutes. Turn off and let it sit for 5 minutes. Then, fluff the quinoa with a fork. Add extra stock if needed.

In a bowl, combine the dressing ingredients. Add the quinoa, roasted vegetables, fresh grape tomatoes, and toss together until everything is mixed well. Salt and pepper to taste. This can be served either hot or cold. I think that the fresh grape tomatoes give the salad a little something extra, but they can also be roasted too. Yum! This is definitely a healthy, gluten free side dish, or main meal.

Clothing alert! So Andy’s formal is coming up in two weeks and I needed something to strut my stuff in. I thought that maybe I would recycle a dress that I’ve worn before, but I wanted to look around first in case I found any great deals. Well, I found the greatest buys of all time. This dress was from Kohl’s and came to $15 on sale. I didn’t even bother looking at the original price because I quite frankly did not care. I love the style of the dress and the lace details. It’s definitely my style and is something that I can wear comfortably. I need to be able to dance! Look at those shoes! Target strikes once again with these wedges that were on sale for $21.00. I was actually looking for fun heels, but let’s be honest, you can only wear formal heels so many places. I feel like I can wear these wedges all throughout Summer. They have a look that can go from fraternity formal, to night at the bars, to a lunch date. Yay for bargain shopping!

I just thought I’d share this photo because I thought it was adorable. Tomorrow is Andy’s 23rd birthday, so I guess I just have romance on my mind, <3

How do you focus on achieving your goals?

Did you set goals for yourself this month or over the next few months?

Are you a fan of quinoa?

Best bargain stores?

Thirsty Thursday Smoothie Style

A smoothie a day keeps the doctor away.

Mean Green Peach Machine

• handful of ice
• 1/2 cup nonfat peach or vanilla Greek yogurt
• 1 peach skinned and sliced
• 2 handfuls fresh spinach

Blend up until everything is a smooth consistency. You might need to add a little more yogurt if the consistency is a little too think. Sometimes I even add a little skim milk to smooth out the mixture.

I love how whenever I make a green smoothie with either spinach or kale, the sweetness of the fruits outplay the leafy greens every time. This is such a great way to sneak in a serving or two of veggies in to your day. That’s never a problem for me though. I love my veggies.

Also, who ever said that girls can’t lift? The other day at the gym I lifted over 8,000 pounds in about 20 minutes. Feeling stronger and toned is such an amazing payoff to all the hard work. I think more and more women are realizing the importance of strength verse being skinny. I’d much rather be able to beat someone up than be stick thin. I’m totally kidding, but really, I want muscle, not bones.

Summer is approaching and I cannot wait to start up my cardio routine outdoors. I love morning runs as the sun is coming up. Hopefully when I move to Rehoboth, I can hit the beach for a walk or run as the sun is rising every day.

Great dessert or snack idea! It’s a no brainer though….

Try mixing your favorite Greek yogurt with flavored granola. This granola was a sample that I got from Trader Joe’s; Gluten free French vanilla granola. It was amazing! I really need to get back there to buy the entire bag. I haven’t check out the price of it yet, so hopefully it’s reasonable. Gluten free products can get a little pricey sometimes. Anyway, I mixed it in to Light and Fit’s raspberry Greek yogurt. I like to let it sit for a bit before I eat it so that the granola softens just a little. Yum. Perfect, light snack.

Here’s a piece of advice. Lately I’ve been feeling like such a failure with several different things. I start to think, “Wow, is it really me?”. Then, I start thinking about how my life sucks and blah blah blah. Who am I kidding? There’s nothing about my life that sucks. Sometimes when something goes wrong or not exactly as planned, you just need to brush it off and keep moving forward. Just like this photo says,

It’s just a bad day. Not a bad Life.

Stop complaining. Stop feeling bad for yourself. Stop comparing yourself to others. Don’t think about what others have and what you don’t.

Focus on yourself, the people around you that you love, and how lucky you really are. That’s all that ever matters anyway.

Happy Thursday!

Do you have any favorite smoothie recipes?

What do you mix in yogurt?

Indoor vs outdoor workouts?

Thoughts?

Hello April.

 

Finally feels like Spring!

Wow…. I feel like every single post lately starts off with saying how busy I’ve been, but this past weekend was insane. It was probably the best weekend I’ve had in a while. I can’t even begin to explain everything that I did, mainly because I was just all over the place. I wasn’t even at one location longer than 24 hours!

As much as I want to get in to my weekend review, I need to share a recipe…. naturally.

Blueberry Banana Smoothie

 

• Ice
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1 medium banana
• 1/2 cup nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt
• mint leaves (optional garnish)

Blend all the ingredients together… garnish with a mint leaf, and boom! You’re about to taste the most delicious smoothie. I made this last Friday after my morning workout and it was super refreshing.

Now in to the fun stuff. After my workout on Friday, it was time to head to West Chester with Andy. It was in fact Easter weekend, and we had a ton of traveling to do. I was really excited. Not only was I traveling back to my Alma Mater, but I was going to see my Little from my sorority, and I was going to be seeing a ton of my other old friends. I couldn’t wait to see everyone and go to some of my favorite places in West Chester. As soon as we arrived, 3 hours later, I was starving. Thank you Mas’ Mexicali Cantina for satisfying my food and drink craving. I loved this place when I lived in West Chester. They have a great drink and food menu with fun cocktails and classic Tex Mex fare. My dinner consisted of grilled Mahi Mahi tacos, beans, rice, and a few skinny margaritas.

 

After dinner, three things were my main priority…bars, dancing, and the best friends a girl could ask for.

 

 

Saturday morning came way too fast. The next destination was Philadelphia to see the Flyer’s play. Can you believe that hockey has been my favorite sport for years, and this was my first NHL hockey game ever? I know, me either. But, it was so amazing and I loved every second of it. Our seats were way up on top, but I didn’t care at all. Besides, I don’t think there is a bad seat in the house! Hockey, beer, friends… what more could you ask for on a Saturday afternoon?

 

My Fly Guys beat the Bruins 3-1 by the way.

After the game, we hit up Xfinity Live to have a few drinks and let traffic die down. We had to drive back to our hometown, Hazleton, to get back in time for Easter festivities. Andy’s aunt had people over her house Saturday night, and we got back just in time. I think by that time I was just so tired from everything that once it was finally Easter, I didn’t get to actually take any of that in. Easter is at my parents’ house every year, so I had to help my mom set up everything Sunday morning. My family always goes above and beyond when it comes to get togethers and any occasion when food is involved, which is pretty much all of the time. I had such a great time catching up with friends and family. But as always, weekends are way way wayyyyy too short.

I still haven’t caught up on sleep.

Good night!

I Freakin Love Fish.

So five years ago when I decided that I wanted to become a vegetarian, I thought, “Well what about sushi?”. Then I thought about Phillip’s seafood buffet and endless crab legs. Sorry all vegans and vegetarians out there… I just can’t give up seafood. No way.

I’m happy that they have a term for the particular diet that I follow; Pescetarian. Apparently it’s been used for a while… but I haven’t heard of it since last year. Fish and all kinds of seafood have so many health benefits; low carb, healthy fats/oils, protein… you name it.

Last nights dinner was awesome! I love baking tilapia with different seasonings and flavors. I used a Chipotle spiced seasoning and baked it. So good, and super fresh.

Baked Chipotle Tilapia

 

• 6 Tilapia or any white fish fillets
• 1 bag of mixed frozen pepper strips
• Olivio butter spray
• 1 lemon
• 1 lime

For the seasoning:

• Cayenne pepper
• chili powder
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• cumin
• basil
• salt 
• fresh cilantro

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lay the frozen peppers on the bottom of the baking dish. Spray with the Olivio. Line the tilapia fillets on top of the peppers. Add an even amount of all the spices on top of the fish. Go easy on the salt… always on of my main rules. Take the lemon, and squeeze the juice on top of the fillets. 

Bake about 40 minutes, or until the fish is white and flakey. Once the fish is fully cooked, top it off with some fresh basil and juice from the lime. I also like to garnish with the lime wedges as well! I served my fillets on a fresh bed of a salad mix with tomatoes, onion, and peppers. I made sure to get come of the cooked peppers that baked too. They have a ton of flavor. The fish will create a natural sauce as well, so try and scoop that over your fish. With any spicy Mexican or Spanish dish, I need sour cream. I topped the plate off with fresh salsa and a dollop of fat free sour cream. Andy had some Spanish rice on the side with his dinner. It was so delicious! I was super full by the end because I kept eating more, but no guilt here! Everything was fresh, healthy, and good for you. Yay for healthy foods! 

 

How true is that quote right there? If you have fattening and highly processed foods in your kitchen, then you’re probably going to eat them. Fill you cabinets and fridge with foods that taste good, and are good for you…. they do exist, I promise. Andy has started to stay away from his unhealthy snacks, and now loves veggies with hummus, cereal, smoothies, and popcorn, and more

. Everyone knows what it’s like when you get home from the bars…. drunk munch! Well, again, if you don’t have the unhealthy foods that will make you feel guilty in morning there…. you won’t eat them! For a while I was hating myself after a night out. Now, I just look at it as a healthy snack before bed. It’s no surprise that I like to enjoy a few alcoholic beverages… all while staying fit too. If that doesn’t exist… it does now.

Oh heyyyyyyyyy D PHI E…. miss you!