Busy Day, New Recipe, New Favorite Snack!

Hey you guys!!! Thanks for your comments on Aggie's yummy recipe, and for your chicken salad ideas. YUM!! I love the idea of walnuts, craisins and almonds... yum!! So last night I stayed up “late” to watch Lost. OMG. SO good – I’m so happy it’s back but of course am more confused than I was during last season’s finale. Sigh. Every answer comes with 3 questions. I ended last night at 1,751 calories, 184 carbs, 64 fat grams and 116 protein grams. Here’s what I ate.

Today was crazy. Too much work, not enough time. I did have a variation of a breakfast oldie – potato and egg tacos with green onion.



Stayed busy. Worked through lunch. Blah. I did have a new YUMMY afternoon snack thanks to Stacy – Carr’s Crackers with Laughing Cow Wedges. I had no idea they had flavors other than Swiss, I LOVE Garlic and Herb – thanks, Stacy!



Then after work I headed straight home – I was SO hungry! I got home and made another batch of yesterday’s recipe success – hummus chicken wraps – then I made a new recipe for dinner from For the Love of Cooking – Mexican Rice Casserole. I didn’t stray from her recipe much at all – here it is for four servings:



1 1/2 cups of white rice, prepared per instructions
1 tsp of olive oil
1 lb 96/4 ground beef
1/3 cup sweet yellow onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can of tomato sauce
50 grams fresh mozzarella cheese, grated
1 large slicer tomato, sliced thickly
4 tbsp Fat Free Sour cream, divided
4 tbsp Salsa, divided



Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare rice per instructions. While rice is cooking, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the skillet is hot, add ground beef, making sure to break it up into crumbles. Cook beef for 3-4 minutes, then add the onion and all seasonings. Stir until well combined and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Add minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly for an additional 60 seconds. Add cooked rice, drained and rinsed black beans and tomato sauce to the beef and onion mixture. Mix ingredients thoroughly. Coat a large baking dish with cooking spray and pour mixture into the dish, spreading it evenly. Place tomato slices on top, then top with cheese. Spray a piece of tin foil with cooking spray (so the cheese won't stick) and cover the baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes then remove the tin foil. Bake for an additional 7 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing into 4 servings. Top each serving with one tbsp of salsa and one tbsp of sour cream. Nutritional Information: 448 calories, 59 carbs, 8 fat grams and 33 protein grams.


We LOVED it. Very good and flavorful! We even talked about taking the servings to 6 or 8 and stuffing the mix into tacos make burritos, or getting a bowl lined with lettuce and making a burrito bowl. I think I’ll take Pam’s advice and use spicy tomato sauce next time, but honestly, with ‘regular’ it was still fab!

After dinner me and Austin watched a few Castle episodes, then we hung out with Reuben and plan to turn in early – yay! I am definitely done eating – ending up at 1,714 calories, 219 carbs, 49 fat grams and 100 protein grams. Here’s what I ate.

So any fun weekend plans? Looks like we’re leaving town Friday morning – I’ll tell ya more about it tomorrow!