Banana and Strawberry Smoothie

A couple years ago my mom gave me a smoothie machine for Christmas. It is actually a blender with a fancy name but we won't tell her that. Anyway, I have never had luck with making smoothies. They just never tasted right to me.

When I began my weigh loss journey I decided to give it another try. I just happened to have milk because my niece had stayed the weekend and she drinks smoothies for breakfast so I figured I would go with that instead of the yogurt that the recipes call for that I have used in the past. Way better. Granted I have only tried one flavored smoothie but it is working for me.

I have been making a banana and strawberry smoothie a couple times a week.

It makes about two cups. I usually drink one cup in the morning and the second in the afternoon.

I am not an expert but I have learned a little about banana and strawberry smoothies.
1. Frozen strawberries make it thick. Like so thick I threw it out because I couldn't drink it.
2. It taste better with fresh strawberries.
3. It is not real cold when finished. Maybe because the banana isn't cold? I enjoy my afternoon glass better because it is cold. I have read that I should put a couple ice cubes in it but I just haven't tried it.
4. If you use small strawberries the banana flavor really comes out.

Anyway, that is all I have to say. I just thought I would tell you about my new found love for my blender smoothie machine.
Banana and Strawberry Smoothie Recipe
1 Medium Banana - 105 calories (count taken from The Calorie King book)
6 Large Strawberries - 40 calories (count taken from The Calorie King book)
1 Cup of Skim Milk - 80 calories (count taken from milk carton)
Put in blender and blend well. Pour in glass and drink.
Total Calories - 225
Do you have a great smoothie recipe?

Missy

Do you like cabbage soup?

It is freezing outside, literally. It will warm up a little but considering I was in shorts last week it is nice to have a couple days of winter weather. Of course with winter weather comes warm soup.

Shouldn't soup be spelled soop?

Anyway, I made cabbage soup yesterday and it was so good! It is a favorite around here so I thought you may like to try it too.

Cabbage Soup Ingredients
one head of cabbage, chopped into little pieces
4 stalks of celery, chopped
chicken stock (Mine was homemade but I didn't measure how much I put in. I did put enough to half way cover the veggies and sausage then I added water to completely cover them)
one link of sausage, sliced (I usually use jalapeno sausage because it adds just enough spice for us)

Bring chicken stock and water to a boil

Add cabbage, celery, and sliced sausage

Bring back to boil, then lower the heat to a simmer.

Let it simmer for about 35 minutes or until celery is tender.

Serve with crackers, cornbread or by itself!

I sometimes change it up and add green beans, onions, chicken and/or carrots. Sometimes I will use canned stewed tomatoes in place of the chicken stock and add water. It is a basic soup so you can add just about anything.

Do you eat cabbage?

Recipe-Tilapia

I have been craving fish lately, but I really haven't wanted to go out to eat. I like eating out sometimes, but I personally would rather eat at home. I know what is in the food and I don't have to deal with a noisy restaurant or a lousy server when I eat at home. Anyway, back to the fish, I have never cooked fish so I thought today would be a good day to try.

I saved a couple recipes from the internet that I had been looking forward to using. When it was time to start cooking DJ was finishing up his school work on the computer so I couldn't look up my recipes. I winged it and it turned out AWESOME! I know, you probably have cooked your fish like this a million times but I had never cooked it before. DJ even said it was OK and he doesn't even like fish. He did tell me that he doesn't like it enough to eat it everyday but he could 'tolerate' it sometimes. Michael loved it and asked if I would start cooking it on a regular basis. "Why yes dear, I will!"


I forgot to take a picture of the tilapia fillets with the ingredients.

Ingredients I Used
*2 Tilapia Fillets
*Enough Italian Dressing to cover the fish
*Parsley Flakes - to taste
*McCormick Salt Free All-Purpose Seasoning - to taste
*Extra Virgin Olive Oil Cooking Spray

1. Marinade the tilapia in the Italian dressing for 20 minutes
2. Spray a glass baking dish with the olive oil cooking spray and place the tilapia in it
3. Season the tilapia to taste with the parsley and all-purpose seasoning
4. Bake for 30 minutes or until the tilapia is flaky at 375 degrees

Recipe - Meatloaf

This semester seems to be busier than usual. I didn't realize how much we had been on the run until I did our bills last week and saw how much we ate out last month! Boy, I could have bought a lot of things with the money we spent! Oh well, I guess you pay for convenience.

Anyway, I'm back on track and thought I would share with you the recipe for the meatloaf that I made for tonight.

Meatloaf Ingredients
1 1/2 to 2 lb. lean ground beef
2 eggs
1 cup skim milk
1 onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 cup oatmeal
1 tsp. beef bouillon granules
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. mustard
1/2 c. ketchup
pepper to taste


Mix meatloaf ingredients together well
Spread in 9x13 pan
Bake for 1 hour at 390 degrees

Sauce Ingredients
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. mustard

Mix sauce ingredients together well
Spread over baked meatloaf
Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes

Sometimes I don't add the ketchup and/or the sauce and it still tastes great.