Tuesday, September 13, 2011

onto week 3

Ok, so I'll admit it. This past week was not quite as stellar as the first. A cookout with some friends and his monster delicious 1/2 # burgers were more than I could resist! But one day {or week} isn't the end of the world - at least I won't let it be.

Here's what I look like this week. Notice any changes yet? I notice subtle ones. Guess I should have taken measurements, too! That's on the agenda. I was down another 1 # as of the meeting yesterday.




RECIPE TIP OF THE WEEK:

How do you "beef up" a baked spaghetti recipe and keep it healthy? Here's what I did.

I boiled up a regular size box of whole wheat pasta and spread it in a 9x13 pan.
While the pasta was boiling, I chopped up every type of veggie I had in the fridge from my garden: green peppers, jalapenos, zuchinni, tomatoes and garlic. I sauted the veggies in just cooking spray until crisp tender. I added one can of spaghetti sauce and 1 lb browned ground turkey to the veggies. Mix till combined and pour over the pasta in the pan. Top with low-fat mozzarella and bake in a 350 oven for 30-40 minutes - watching that the cheese doesn't burn.

Adding the extras to the sauce, using the ground turkey instead of red meat, and substituting the whole wheat pasta, made this meal tons healthier and guess what? Everyone loved the new recipe!
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How have you modified a recipe to make it healthier? I'd love for you to share your tips!

2 comments:

kellie said...

I love bulking up spaghetti with veggies! Since we don't buy meat (organic meat is too expensive), I add protein & bulk by putting pinto beans in my sauce. Tastes great!

Stephani said...

Love that sassy pic of you ;-) Great job on another pound down!

Like Kellie, I like to incorporate beans into my meals. I cut out part of the meat and replace it with beans. I think I've told you that I make our taco meat as 1/2# beef and then a can of black beans and season it. The kids love it. I also add tons of beans to my chili and not a lot of ground beef.

Its always nice to find healthier options that the kids don't crab about. :)