Had to try this beautiful purple cauliflower I found at Kroger! Silly me thought I would be one BAD ASS MAMA for feeding my kiddo purple cauli....yeah no. My child actually asked me if I thought she was so stupid that she would eat this just cause it's pretty. My sweet, non-sarcastic, generally respectful of athority child copped an attitude! Grr....
I did enjoy it however! And not only is it pretty and purple, but I found that the water I steamed it in was bright green, and when I put a little italian dressing on them, they turned HOT PINK! LoL
Anyway - Im changing my way of eating for a bit. Im going to continue high protein and low carb but Im going to follow the "17 Day Diet" so I can drop about 12lbs that I've managed to put on since Christmas! Supposedly I should be able to do so, or come close in the first 17 day cycle, I might go for a little more just to give me a cushion to gain, we shall see. Looks like a solid way of eating. There are 4 phases to it but I think Ill do the first 2 and last. Accelerate, Activate and the final maintenance phase. 
Im getting back into my water aerobics and pilates now that it's a bit warmer out. It should just fall off....in theory! 
Sorry I haven't been posting that much lately but again - Im eating kind of in a rut at the moment. This will change Sunday! 

Other news: My first Hospice Patient (I volunteer) passed away on Saturday....Im a bit bummed on that front :( And we are planning to go Bay fishing in Galveston! Maybe Ill be cooking shark the following day!  That would be neat huh? 

Are there any recipes you have heard of that fit my types of eating that you would like me to do for you? Or do you have a recipe you love but want to make more healthy? If so - FB me or comment here and let me know and I will do what I can to feature your recipe with it's substitutions! 

Im going to try much harder to be more consistent on here! Im just super busy and not online as much as used to be!
 
Tonight, we used the smart steamer again (see post below) and I had my girly cook dinner! It was so simple and she got a huge kick out of it. I enjoyed taking my shower while dinner cooked in the microwave! She made Chicken Breasts injected and covered with Hawaiian Marinade, and Broccoli with lemon juice squeezed over it with a touch of Lemon Pepper. And for the aromatics, we threw a couple sprigs of rosemary into the water and a slice of lemon before steaming it! Smells like heaven and tastes like MAGIC! lol! 
These steamers are on for $69 until March 31! If you order tell them Shelley referred you! Totally worth it guys! I know it's a crazy high cost but I promise you will NOT be dissatisfied! Carries a lifetime warrenty too, and tupperware has been in business for over 80yrs! My mother just got a piece replaced after 20 yrs for FREE. Super simple! 
 
So most of you know me on facebook and likely saw the post I had going where I battled it out with a friend who is Tupperware consultant. She was hawking this horridly expensive piece of equipment and trying to convince me that it was absolutely reasonable to buy something that cost as much as an electric bill. I was explaining to her that she was batshit crazy. 
Then, she loaned me hers, and I had to EAT MY DAMN WORDS publicly and appologize because seriously, it's the best thing since toilet paper. 
It's the Tupperware Smart Steamer (as featured on Dr. Oz). It is steel encapsulated in plastic (bpa free), that when placed into the microwave, bounces the waves off and into the water below it, and then it steams your food without butter/oil/fat. Because of the hot waves too, it cooks the food quickly without losing any of the nutrients in the food. 
I cooked Peppered Salmon and Purple Fingerling Potatoes in 18 minutes. Extremely healthy meal, one container to clean, cooked without added fats. 
I then cooked Cilantro Lime Chicken Breasts, and Baby Carrots, and tossed them in with the left over potatoes and a little bit of apple cider vinegar, rosemary, parsley, garlic and they were AMAZING. The chicken was so incredibly flavorful and juicy. My daughter ate 2 breasts the first night on her own, as well as the veggies. She didn't make me threaten or bribe her to do it either (my child is insanely picky about her food). The chicken meal took only 15 minutes.
The good news is, now that I have you interested, Im going to step out of my comfort zone and give you the name/website to order your own. I shy away typically from hawking goods that my friends are selling. This is primarily because I have so many friends who have their own businesses and I worry that selling for one will mean I have to do it for the other 126. But this is worth doing so! 
This item is normally $100+, but it's on half off right now through March 31 for $69. I know that sounds high, and I honestly would NOT have bought it myself had I not had a chance to try it out first. But I promise you that it's worth it. It's healthy eating FAST which is ideal for everyone but especially those who work but want to eat right, and also for new moms etc. Cuts down on the dishes! 

Holley Richardson email is [email protected] and her website is www.holleyrichardson.com


 Im going to steam some pears and drizzle with a little raspberry sauce topped with a sprig of mint tomorrow night!
 
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*SIGH* I can't seem to get these photos in this element organized correctly so just bear with me!
Use one box of Pillsbury SUGAR FREE Devils Food or Yellow cake. You will prepare the cake as per directions on the box including baking. Then while still warm, score into chunks and dump into your stand mixer and turn on low with the beater attachement. You are looking for the consistancy shown above. Don't need to beat the hell out of it - just crumble it. 
Add in slowly, 1 can of Pillsbury Choclate or Vanilla SUGAR FREE frosting. Using your paddle attachement. You are looking for a doughy texture - you don't want it turning into a full out ball, you want it moist but not sticky.Let it rest about 10 min, then roll into balls and place on wax paper lined cookie sheet. I used a tablespoon measure to kinda keep similar sizes.Then place balls in the fridge for about 10 min to cool.Melt Wilton Candy Chips (in color of your choice) in the microwave following instructions on package. You only need a little amount to start with. This will become the glue for your sticks.Wrap a Styrofoam block in foil - you will stick your pops in this block to dry.Remove balls from fridge, and dip your sticks (found at Walmart in wedding section) into the candy melt first, then into the balls. Then place back into the fridge for another 20 min or so (this ensures hardening of the melt so that the ball will stay on the stick.).While they are cooling again - melt the rest of the candy melts.Bring balls back out and then swirl in your candy melt coating the ball all the way to the stick (this is important, you want to really glue that ball on). Tap gently to remove excess candy. If this candy spills, don't worry - it's super easy to clean up when it dries. Then if you want toppings - now is the time - before it cools, to add. I used candy stars. Just sprinkle on.Aren't they cute!? They are far from perfect but considering I am NOT a baker (not that into sweet stuff and generally can't have sugar). These roughly - by estimation - have about 6-8g sugar each!:) 
To hold your cake pops upright while drying, wrap a Styrofoam brick in foil and just stab holes in it with the sticks! 
 
Here you see a half and half mix of fresh raspberries (whirred in the Magic Bullet), and then half no sugar added apple sauce. You can get a decent dehydrator for only $60! This one I ordered about $20 more in fruit roll trays, and extra trays. I dry all in season fruits, my own jerky, and roll ups. It's much cheaper