Fun in the kitchen with Cherry

So as I was getting ready to eat my lunch and cooking my spinach I couldn't help but thinking of spinach dip.....I looove that stuff to no end.....so I decided to make a weird variation....I didn't use the Knorr veggie dip, but I do plan on trying that in the furute for sure....I thought "hmmm....spinach dip has mayo in it....and spices.....hmmmm I could mix everything together and make some kind of tuna/spinach dip salad."...and that's what I did.


Spinach Tuna salad on Oopsie Roll (with extra spinach on side).

1/2 can of tuna drained
1/2 c. chopped spinach, cooked, drained and cooled
1 tbsp. mayo
garlic powder
onion flakes

mix together like tuna salad and put on top of a warm oopsie roll...put 1/2 c. hot spinach around edges sprinkle with garlic powder and butter buds.

this was waaay tasty.

Progress

I figured that since this was the holiday weekend that it was perfect time to do comparison pics....so here is my back/glute progress from one summer holiday to the other....







This one is from when I posted back on 7-22-08 about seriously starting to focus on my posterior chain.....it is totally paying off.

Goofiness is rampant on a Tuesday afternoon..

So I was bored yesterday and decided to play dress up like any normal little girl....okay, so I've outgrown the little girl part...but I still had fun playing dress up and taking pics....I'm sure I'll do more of it.

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My bf is a Mets fan so I thought with the orange bottoms and hat he'd get a kick out of it...but I was missing a blue tank top that looked good.




















and the "TUDE" face for those who think chicks shouldn't or worse, can't, lift heavy.

15 weeks with Spark People DONE!!!!

Thought that now that I've beat my personal record for consistent training and dieting I'd post the 15 wk before and after.

pic #1- when I got disgusted and decided to do something about it

pic #2- results of 15 weeks of hard work and good eating...I'm a different chick now.

The past two days...

So yesterday was experimenting with food and fun in the kitchen and today I got my new supplement Se7en and took some before/progress pics ....I also went to the gym and did...

hack squats, ez bar curls, push-ups, lat pull-downs, tricep extensions, lateral raises, calf raises

SOOOO....the progress pics...the latest ones came out too dark and grainy 'cause I hit a button and screwed up my settings...but you can still see the progress since the one before it....I have been working very hard on my whole posterior chain and it's all starting to show...WHOO HOO

My hair looks totally off lol but my legs are totally starting to come together and my arms are really starting to look like I lift with intention.....I am totally happy....even a couple of days before my TOM and I'm not beating myself up....that's a step in the right direction.















the comparison


















my front comparison....coming along


















comparison before and after


















putting this one in simply to watch my calf....you can see that my left one is more developed than my right....that's from atrophy of all of my muscles in my right leg a few years ago....things are catching up but not totally yet.....i intend to really start focusing some attention on my calves.














the last one...i just want to really keep an eye out for the progress of my obliques.

















Okay....now for the experiments in the kitchen.

I am most likely going to try to do the Anabolic Diet for a few weeks to see what it will do to my body....so now I am trying to play around with possible low carb options to use to keep me on track....

the first one I am calling 'Hardcore Protein Pancakes'' 'cause they are unnecessary unless you are trying to go totally hardcore....you really most likely wouldn't want to eat them unless you are trying to go hardcore....keep the oats if you can....but if you are trying to take out some carbs this is an option.

1/2 c. egg beaters
1 scoop chocolate protein

cook like a pancake..batter is thin.....wait until bubbles appear before flipping.

2 tsp. natural almond butter
2 tsp. Smucker's sugar free hot fudge....and if you are really hardcore use Walden Farms chocolate dip or syrup.

these are pretty dry so have some water or something to drink near by.

I do actually like these but they are definitely not your Mama's pancakes. (unless your mom is into low carb or a figure competitor lol )

I got this recipe from a link from the figureathlete.com message boards.....and there are alot of different ways to make these....check out the creator's site if you want to know more.

OOPSIE ROLLS


Go check out the site for the recipe and stuff....so many options for these....I've used them as a bun for a burger and as bread for a tunafish sandwich....less than a carb a piece.

they do seem like you are chewing on air...but moist and just very unusual..but good.

Blue Berry Banana Protein Pancakes

Samantha this is for you :) A "How to" of the blueberry banana protein pancakes I make....as you will see, what you had is most likely not too different from what I get....so don't lose heart :)




"Blue Berry/Banana Oatmeal Pancakes"
3/4 c. egg beaters
1/2 c. Old Fashioned Oats
1/4 c. of microwave thawed, frozen wild blueberries (1/8 c in mix and 1/8 c. on top)
1/4 med banana
cinnamon to taste
maple or vanilla extract

On top- the extra berries, 2 paks Splenda mixed w/ cinnamon and Butter Buds. (sugar free syrup can be used as well....and umm..yeah Natural PB rocks on these too. :)

Mix all ingredients together except for the banana (you will add that to the wet tops of the pancakes in the pan if you choose to use banana)....You can let it sit so the egg beaters soak into the oats or, like I did here, just go straight to a HOT pan sprayed with Pam.

As you can see here, the egg beaters do run around a bit with a mind of their own....But, they mind their manners after heating for a few moments and you can push them back into place....you can also spread the oats out a bit if you want with the back of a spoon or spatula.







Here you can see where I've pushed them back into place and separated them from being siamese-conjoined cakes into separate entities.

I've also sprinkled cinnamon on top of them... F.Y.I. cinnamon is great for regulating blood sugar and that is very important in weight loss and good health.





You can see here when I flipped the first one that some splattered out....that's typical....and they sometimes fold under themselves and stuff...Hey, they aren't IHOP pancakes, they aren't pretty and perfect but they are pretty tasty and perfectly healthy for you :)

You may also notice, and I should've taken a pic of it (next time I make them I''ll add it) but when you press your spatula on them some liquid will ooze out, underneath, sometimes on top....that is also typical and those parts just need to cook more still....but it doesn't mean that you've done anything wrong.


Now both of them have been flipped....I usually let this side (under) cook a bit to set it and then flip them a couple of more times to make sure all is cooked and nothing is oozing or wet still.









I prefer mine to be pretty well cooked with golden and brown coloring...I use my best judgement to know when they're done.










When they're done I take the remaining blueberries, and banana if there is some left and put them on top....then I sprinkle with the mix of Splenda, cinnamon and butter buds....You can use Sugar free syrup if you want....I have been trying to train some of my extra carbs out of my diet so I've been eating them like this....you may enjoy them with the syrup more, espeically when adjusting to something as different as this is.


Hope this helps and is clear....if not, please let me know :)