Saturday, January 19, 2013
Recipes You Need to Try
Cheesy Chicken, Bacon, Broccoli and Rice from Kevin and Amanda.
I
left out the chicken because I didn’t have any, so I added more turkey
bacon instead. It tasted great and was faster to put together that way
too. I love one-pot meals that you can make entirely on the stove-top,
and this is a great one! It was quick and delicious. The boys found it a
little spicy, so next time I may use regular diced tomatoes without
green chilies and just add a little chili powder and cumin to it
instead. I’m not sure what Tony thought of it because he ate dinner
later than us, but it looked like he ate a lot of it! I liked it and I
plan on making it again. You can’t go wrong with cheese, bacon and
broccoli.
Skinny Broccoli and Chicken Alfredo from Celebrations.
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| Photo from Celebrations.com |
I think the roasted broccoli is what makes this dish special. It gives the broccoli such a rich flavour. I just tossed them with olive oil and a little salt, then spread them onto a baking pan and put them in the oven a 425F for about 10-15 minutes. I put the chicken in the oven too to cook while I was preparing the sauce and pasta. I used bow-tie pasta instead of fettuccine (at Bennett’s request) and that worked really well. You can use whatever kind of pasta you want. I actually finished this meal a little earlier than I expected, so I put it in a baking dish and sprinkled it with more mozzarella and baked it at 350F for about 15 minutes until Tony was home from work. It was a big hit with all of us, besides Cole. Bennett ate two helpings, and I lost track how many helpings Tony had. Cole wasn’t as enthusiastic as the rest of us, but he did eat most of it, just not the pasta. Apparently the bow-tie shape was unacceptable to him. Next time I’ll try a different shape and see how that goes over.
Spinach Artichoke Chicken from Add a Pinch
Oh my! This was hands-down my favourite recipe out of the ones I tried this week. It’s chicken smothered with what is basically a spinach and artichoke dip. Why have I not thought of this before?? Best of all, it’s so easy to make. Tony mentioned several times that it was really good. We both couldn’t get enough of the stuff. The boys weren’t as thrilled as we were. Bennett was reluctant to try it because he was suspicious of the artichokes, but once he actually took a bite, he ate it all up. Cole just ate the chicken but not the rest of it. I think he’s crazy because that’s the best part!
Saturday, January 12, 2013
No-Noodle Zucchini Lasagna
I'm approaching my final month of pregnancy, which will also be my final month dealing with gestational diabetes. I've been blogging about it at GD Diaries if you're interested in reading more about my experiences as a gestational diabetic. I've had it with all three of my pregnancies, and although it goes away after the baby is born, I will always be at risk for developing diabetes later in life. I may grumble a lot about having to prick my fingers, count carbs, test for ketones, and pass up sugary treats and drinks, but the truth is that gestational diabetes has been a blessing in disguise for me. If everyone ate the way that diabetics have to eat, we would all be a lot healthier. Basically I have to limit the amount of carbohydrates I eat at each meal and snack, and pair them with protein and fiber to slow down their absorption into the bloodstream. It's best to eat complex carbohydrates (whole grains), while avoiding refined sugars. I eat small amounts often (3 meals and at least 3 snacks a day) to keep my blood sugar steady. I also try to get my body moving after I eat (a brisk walk or quick workout on my elliptical) in order to burn off the sugar in my blood. With this diet and exercise, it's actually hard to put on weight! My baby is growing, but I'm shrinking a little. I look like a stick with a beach ball out front. The plus side is that I'm able to bounce back to my pre-pregnancy weight fairly quickly afterwards. If I didn't have gestational diabetes, I'm sure I would have gained a lot more weight and taken much longer to shed it. The healthy habits I've learned as a gestational diabetic are great ones to carry on after the baby is born.
That was rather long-winded, but basically I wanted to share with you a little background for this recipe. It's a low-carb lasagna made with zucchini in place of the noodles. It's perfect for me right now, because it has a lot of protein and fiber with not a lot of carbs. I can eat a lot of it and even have a little whole wheat bread on the side, and my blood sugar won't spike. I don't feel like I'm missing out at all, because it has all the flavour of regular lasagna. I made it one night when we had friends over for dinner. I made a regular lasagna too and the kids and men stuck with that, but us women enjoyed this zucchini lasagna a lot. I was surprised, because I've always hated zucchini, but I think I'm warming up to it now.
My kids like to whine, especially when it comes to the food they eat, but that doesn’t stop me from trying to make tasty and healthy meals for them. Follow along as I share family-friendly recipes and reviews from my picky family members, who I lovingly call “The Whine Critics.” 
