Mondays Libations and other food related words.

Monday it rained. AGAIN. So on the menu was CHILI!

We used a Chili Kit, which was against my judgment and protest.



Carroll Shelby's Chili Kit comes with Corn Masa Flour (for thickening), "Chili Seasonings" (which is basically garlic, onion, pepper, cayenne, cumin and everything else you can google when asking what seasons are in chili), cayenne pepper, and salt. It seasons 2lbs of beef, and pretty much all you have to do it add onions, garlic and some beans, and VOILA! Chili.

While that crock potted, I had this for lunch.



"Someone" ate all my Trader Joe's flat bread and "replaced" it with this crappy whole wheat generic kind that had twice as many calories a slice. I used half of one, added a tbsp of spicy hummus, and a 1/4 of a chicken breast. On the side, edamame, and 1/2 a cucumber; sliced, with the juice of half a lemon.

The rainy day had got to me a bit so I went down to The Living Room near SDSU for coffee with my friend.



I had a small (yes thats a SMALL) Skinny Mint Mocha, and it was really to die for. I used to go to The Living Room a lot in college, and I would always get this. I am currently reading a very outdated Photoshop book that Brian gave me for a refresher, and Into The Wild, as I would like to see the movie eventually.

When I got home the chili was ready to be nommed on.



I had 1/4 an avocado (for my MUFAs) a bowl of chili, and ONE corn muffin, with spray butter.

Homemade Granola!

One of my AB FAB Favorite clients and I were exchanging recipes (as we often do) and she told me about her new favorite snack. GRANOLA!! Well I am all for new recipes and I am all for granola, it just gets SO DARN expensive. So thanks to Jennifer for this yummy recipe, cuz it literally costs PENNIES to make!!

This is the recipe Jen gave me; but me being me I tweaked it a bit.

1.5 cups oats
1/4 cup unsalted almonds, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup unsalted walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup pecans,  coarsely chopped
3 Tbsp. maple syrup
1 Tbsp. honey
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 300 and spray a large baking sheet with cooking oil.
In a bowl, combine all the ingredients, mixing well to  be sure everything is coated with the syrup and honey. Spread the mixture onto the prepared sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden  brown. Let cool completely before storing.

Berta's Tweaked version;



I started off with 1 cup oats, and 1/2 a cup steel cut oats, maple syrup, clover honey, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and a nut mix I picked up in the bulk section of the market (it includes peanuts, pecans, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews ect ect...) I also added a handful of sunflower seeds, and a handful of pumpkin seeds.

It's my MEGA MUFA MIX!



Then basically, throw everything in a bowl and stir it until its well mixed.



Spread it out on a cookie sheet and bake at 300 for about 25-30 mins, stirring it around to make sure it doesn't burn every 5-10 minutes.



The great thing about granola is that as long as you add Dry (oats), and Wet (honey), you can mix ANYTHING into it and make lots of different flavors.

I even made a batch with brown sugar and maple syrup only for cereal in the morning.



As the granola cools it will harden. Store it in an airtight container for up to 10 days, if it lasts that long.

For a great to go snack, add some chocolate chips, raisins, cranberries, whatever and put it in a sandwich bag and throw it in your purse/bag/backpack if you get hungry in the middle of the day!

The good fats you might not be eating...

So my mom gave me this book today. Flat Belly Diet. It's by the editors of Prevention, and it's got some awesome advice. My favorite part of the book so far is where it talks about MUFAs. MUFAs (MOO-fah)are Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acids and they are heart-healthy and fight disease, and you're most likely already eating a few of them everyday.

MUFAs are found in foods like nuts, healthy oils, nut butters, avocados and even chocolate chips! Mmmm. Seriously, all those things, when eaten in the CORRECT serving size are super awesome for you.

The book says you should eat "A MUFA at every meal" and because I love you all so very very much, I'm going to post a few MUFA options and servings below.

Soybeans (edamame) --- 1 cup; 298 cal
Semisweet Chocolate chips --- 1/4 cup; 207 cal
Nut Butters such as Peanut, Almond, Sunflower Seed, Cashew --- 2 tbsp; 188-200 cal
Tahini (sesame seed paste) --- 2 tbsp; 178 cal
Healthy oils such as canola, flaxseed, safflower, sesame, soybean, peanut,olive, or walnut --- 1 tbsp; 119-124 cal
Healthy Nuts such as peanuts, cashews, walnuts, brazil, hazelnuts, almonds, pecans pine nuts, pistachios, sunflower seeds --- 2 tbsp; 82-113 cal
Avocados (California Haas) --- 1/4 cup; 96 cal
Pesto --- 1 tbsp; 80 cal
Olives (green or black) --- 10 large olives; 50 cal

Happy MUFAing!