Soups On!

I know someone who recently admitted on Facebook to having eaten a can of condensed soup for lunch. "But, Katherine," you ask, "what could possibly be wrong with soup?" Well, I answer, it was really the fact that he didn't add water. He ate it condensed. Yuck.

So, this is for you "Michael F." (See? I'm protecting you anonymity.)

This is my recipe for Mexican Winter Bean Soup. (Thanks here to my sister for coming up with the name.) It is really easy to make, good for you and delicious.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb low fat ground turkey
• 1 small onion chopped (if you're really lazy there's chopped onion in the frozen food section)
• 1 clove garlic minced (use the jarred kind, see if I care)
• 1 can corn
• 2 cans pinto beans (any color)
• 1 can RO*TEL (I can usually only find Original here but any variety will work)
• 1 can fat free low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 1 package ranch dressing seasoning

 In a large pot brown the turkey with the onion and garlic. You'll want the turkey crumbles as small as you can get them. Add all cans without draining. Add seasoning packages. When it's hot, it's done.

If you omit the can of broth it's more like chili and works great over a baked potato.

I'd also like to give a slightly advanced version for those who are interested.

Rather than using the seasoning packages upgrade to Penzeys. I get most all of my spices from them. The closest store is about an hour away from me but the prices are great and the quality is absolutely amazing. Four tablespoons each of their taco and ranch seasonings gives the same amount of flavor without as much sodium and no msg.

I also break the pinto beans before adding them. It makes for a thicker soup and the beans don't all float to the top. Empty the cans into a large bowl and take the back of a fork to them.

For the truly advanced you can divide the taco and ranch seasonings, add half to the ground turkey then make little meatballs like in Italian wedding soup. I've done this twice. Both times I've come close to killing myself. I never want to make tiny meatballs again. You can feel free, though.

Hope you enjoy this! And, Michael, if I ever hear of you eating condensed soup again, you're fired.

My October Birchbox!

I recently subscribed to this brilliant service, Birchbox. For $10 a month they send you out this precious little box with four or five, mostly high end, beauty samples. It's a brilliant idea. It allows you, as the consumer, to try out a product you may not have otherwise purchased.

I just got my first box and, since I had a friend already tease me gently about my previous beauty blog, I'm going to review the products.  I hope that you'll find this helpful. If you're interested in trying out Birchbox, please message me for an invite. You don't need an invite, but they give me credit towards future purchases.

The sample sizes were all pretty significant. You have at least a weeks worth of any of the these products. Probably more.

I'm just going to list the products off and follow it with a review. The product links that I'm using are to the manufacturers but you can get all of these products through Birchbox. (Or, heck, froogle it and get the lowest price. I got nothing on the line here.)

Befine Lip Exfoliator - I may never wear lipstick again! I don't need to. When I choose to it wears so much better, though. My lips are soft and the natural color really shows. After using it once I was hooked. This was a big win for Birchbox.




blinc Mascara - This is the craziest stuff! It's not like regular mascara, it's "tubing." When you put it on it coats your lashes in a colored polymer that doesn't flake or run. It doesn't create a lot of length or volume but it wears beautifully so it's perfect for daily wear. It comes in colors, too. I'm thinking about getting a tube in dark purple.

Pagea Organics Facial Scrub - It's a really good quality facial scrub. It exfoliates and feels nice but I'm not sure it really stood out for me. I'm not saying that I would never buy this. I just wouldn't go out of my way.

Redken Shine Flash 02 - I have shiny, fine, straight hair so I wasn't sure what this could do for me. I'm game, though. You just need a light spraying and those weird little fly-aways settle in with the rest of your hair. There's no hold, since it's not hair spray. If anything it's closer to a leave in conditioner, but that kind of overstates it. Shine Flash is unlike any product I've tried previously so it's hard to describe. It doesn't impact style, just leaves your hair shiny and soft.

 Tea Forté Minteas -  Ok, I have no idea why they included these. They're good and not at all like the average mints you can pick up at the 7-eleven but it's not really a beauty item. Eh, it's a $3 value so it'll work. Plus, they're mojito flavor. Who can say no to that?




All in all, I think this worked out wonderfully. When you add up the value, ounce for ounce, I received over $25 in great products. I'm certainly going to be buying the lip exfoliator in the future and am considering purchasing both the mascara and the Shine Flash.

A Detour From Mouth to Hands

I usually talk food. Well, I don't know if I can say usually, since I blog so irregularly. The point, though, is that for the past few weeks I have been totally obsessed with my nails and have been dying to talk about them.

I should begin by explaining that for most of my life I was the worst nail biter. After I was in a terrible car accident I stopped. Just stopped. Ok, so maybe that's overstating it. They tied my hands down so I would stop yanking out my IV and that was what really stopped it. But I digress.

I have thin weak nails, so even after I stopped biting them I had to learn a lot of tricks just to keep them decent looking. The big thing I learned was that nail salons make almost no money on a regular manicure so they do a rush job on it. If you're lucky enough to find a place that does a decent job tip well and tell your friends.

I've spoken to women, occasionally at the table next to me in the salon, who get they're nails shaped and prepped by a professional and then paint them at home. I've not tried that but I like the idea.

I have a short product list that I'm really happy with. It's mostly higher end stuff, but nothing you can't find a good drug store.

A glass nail file - I was shocked at how inexpensive this was and how much of a difference it made in overall nail strength. I'm not even sure why that would be, since it doesn't seem to make sense.

Orly Bonder - This is great stuff. For a while I was just painting on anything labeled "base coat". You can do that if all you want is to keep the color from staining your nails but this changes the ball game. A great buy at twice the price.


Any higher end polish - OPI, Essie, Orly (I like the minis to save money) or even the higher end Sally Hansen. Sure, you can buy a bottle of cheap polish for a third the cost, but it won't give a long lasting manicure. I'd really recommend staying away from the drugstore makeup brands. Those polishes aren't cheap and they don't last. Paint on two nice, thick coats of the good stuff.

Top Coat - I use Sally Hansen Insta-Dri when I don't have a lot of time but have found it chips a little easier than Sally Hansen Super Shine Nail Finish.

Give each coat a minute or two to dry before starting the next. That's it. My manicures last five days minimum and I'm super tough on my nails

Settling Into Routine

My aunt makes grape jelly from grapes that, get this, she grows herself. It's so delicious, too. So, this week for breakfast I've been having a light english muffin with a little of her grape jelly. I know I said that I was going to start the morning with fresh squeezed grapefruit juice but the grapefruits I got just weren't producing enough juice. I'm not going to forget about my juicer though. Citrus season is coming soon.

Lunches for me are a bit more complicated. I don't get time for a real lunch break most days so it's best for me to put together a bunch of low cal snacks to nibble on in the car. My favorite this week has been these completely awesome single serving packages of Popchips. I do like the single serving packages. Very convenient. I try to always get a baggy of carrots or grapes but sometimes get forgetful.

As I'm thinking about it, I've become really good at putting together my little lunch bag. I'm going to go ahead and list some really great foods that work in the car or when when stopping for a meal just can't happen.

• 100 Calorie Snack Packs - Yes, it's obvious and you can't rely on them but they are probably the most convenient.
• Low Fat String Cheese - I sometimes will wrap them in a nice deli meat but mostly it's just about the cheese.
• 100 Calorie Almond Packs - So good it needs to be listed on it's own. We all know nuts are good. I don't need to sing the praises of a small serving of nuts. 
• V8 - Shoulda had a V8? Yeah. Just make sure you have an insulated lunch bag with an ice pack in it.
• Fiber One 90 Calorie Bars - Make sure they're the 90 calorie kind. Brilliant! They're filling but sweet and almost candy bar like. Well, if you haven't had a candy bar in a while.
• Tuna Cups - Like the kind by Chicken of the Sea. I don't eat as much of these but they're shelf stable so I can actually leave on in the car for emergencies. (With a fork. These are much less useful without a fork.)
• Fruit Cups - I like the cups of pineapple in juice, pears in light syrup or mandarin oranges.

I used to eat sandwiches, but I get bored with that pretty quick. The problem with boredom is that, like forgetfulness, it leads to fast food.  At least in my world it does. In fact, when I find myself slipping or struggling with my weight it usually goes hand in hand with not packing my lunch.

Chinese Food Surprise

I woke up to some delicious, fresh popovers this morning. If you've never had one, I can't really describe them. You know, other than yummy. They're not really terrible for you either, so I felt confident it was a good start to my food day.

I wasn't really hungry at lunch time and was planning on a late afternoon meal from the this great little sushi place down the street from me. Unfortunately, that place was closed. So, I got decent Chinese take-out from around the corner for vegetable dumplings and some wonton soup. I didn't even finish it but am so unbelievably full that I'm uncomfortable. I'm not even sure how to feel about that.

I mean, I guess it's good to be unable to overeat but I enjoy food and turning enjoyment into discomfort is not fun. While I only had a little I'm going to have to learn to enjoy even less than that and let my membership in the clean plate club lapse.

I think that as a jumping off place for a diet, the Master Cleanse worked really well for me. As a cleanse, I just didn't give it enough time.

Broke

Ok, ok, I broke down. I just couldn't do it. There was nothing I wanted less in the world than to have another glass of that lemonade. I think I'm going to take something from the cleanse into my diet and start my mornings with some fresh squeezed juice (grapefruit) and limit my coffee seriously.

So, today I went to the store and picked up some fresh fruits and veggies. I was really disappointed to find they didn't have the pre-cut butternut squash. Butternut squash is difficult to peel, but it's so delicious. I was planning on making a version of Hungry Girl's Squash-tastic Shepherd's Pie. It's a real favorite of mine.

• 1lb extra lean ground turkey
• 3 1/2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash (about half a squash)
• 1 1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
• 1/2 large onion chopped
• 3/4 cup mushroom gravy (a bottle of the Heinz brand is perfect)
• 1 Tbsp light butter
• 1 clove garlic minced

You'll be mashing the squash so set that up like you would potatoes for mashing. For most of us that means putting it in a pot of water on the stove, but I won't judge if you involve the microwave or something.

In a medium pan, brown the turkey with the onion and garlic. Remove from heat, add the mixed vegetables (I sometimes like to add some chopped mushrooms as well) and the gravy.  Move to casserole dish or deep pie pan.

When the squash is soft drain off the water and mash with the butter. You can add salt and pepper to taste or whip it up with a hand blender if you'd like.  Layer the squash on top of the turkey and veggie mixture and bake for 20 to 25 minutes in an oven that's been pre-heated to 400 degrees.

It makes about 4 servings, reheats wonderfully and allows for some playing with. Hungry Girl recommends a fat free gravy and using extra garlic and onion powder so you can go in that direction if you like.



Hope you enjoy this as much as I do!

Day Two of the Master Cleanse

I woke up today feeling good. No hunger, no headache, no problems, umm, eliminating toxins. Today was really easy. I'm really tired after a short day, though.

I didn't drink much lemonade during the day, so that may have something to do with it. Every time I looked at the bottle it was in, I thought, "Ugh. I don't want that." I wasn't hungry either. Just didn't want anything. I don't feel sick. More like I've been eating pencil top erasers all day. (Yeah, I was that kid in school.)

I finally picked up some grade B maple syrup. Which is good, since I was almost out of the small bottle of grade A I had. I'm still going to drive up to Salinger's Orchard tomorrow, though. I'm hopeful the prices will be better than they were at the health food store. The store at the orchard will be very tempting. They'll have fresh apple cider donuts this time of year. The rest of the bakery doesn't worry me as much. Just the donuts.

I'm going to have a couple cups of tea, some lemonade and head off to bed crazy early.

Day One of the Master Cleanse

I feel bad that I'm only starting to write about this now, since I've been planning it for about a week. Now that I'm actually doing it I feel like I should talk about it to keep my momentum up. I'm kind of excited for this, though. I feel like I'm really prepared.

Before I started I reread the original Master Cleanse by Stanley Burroughs.  I'll admit it's kind of hippie-dippy and full of pseudo-science but there's also some real information in there. I'm going to take a moment here and assume that you're familiar with the Master Cleanse. It's the "diet" that consists of a drinking lemon juice, maple syrup, cayenne pepper and water.  It sounds crazy but works really well as a cleanse and can be used as a jumping off place for a diet.

The first day involves missing food and headaches. I haven't been hungry (you get about 1200 calories just with the lemonade) but I am definitely missing food. The headaches can be for a few reasons. I get mostly caffeine headaches since I'm going without coffee or Diet Coke.

I've found out a few things this time. The first, which I found reading Master Cleanse Secrets, is that I can drink any caffeine free herbal teas and even mix them with the lemonade for flavor.  The original book by Stanley Burroughs only mentions that you can drink peppermint tea. I got a few different teas but am thinking of picking up the peppermint since it can act as an appetite suppressant.

The second thing I've learned is that it's a better bet to buy a few lemons every day than to buy a bag.  I found that the lemons in the bag are smaller and you don't get as much of a chance to judge them. About half the bag I bought yesterday were unusable.

I'm not really enjoying the last 10 or so ounces of the batch I made this morning. Well, actually, I'm not drinking it. Just looking at it and thinking it doesn't look very appetizing.