Protein Waffles

This post is for my Nutrisystem friends, Those on Nutrisystem, Those wanting to be on Nutrisystem, or those that want to steal a Nutrisystem shake from someone. 🙋.

I have been on Nutrisystem now over two years. I love it that much. Its changed my life for the good. 

I have reached my desired weight and now use Nutrisystem to maintain my weight while I add in some of my own meals. (AKA flex meals). The flex meal is a meal you do on your own while maintaining healthy portions and guidelines of the diet plan.

I have some of the Nutrisystem Protein Turbo shakes tucked away in my pantry. I will enjoy one every now and again between meals. I never really enjoy them as a meal. Something about drinking a meal I just cant do.

But that's fixing to change because I have figured out a new way to devour them.

So, Grab your waffle iron. I'm fixing to show you how to turn a shake into waffles! 

You need only five simple ingredients:

 

Ready? It's super simple and delicious.

Protein Waffles 

1 pack (or 3 scoops)- Nutrisystem Shake (I used Chocolate).

1/2 Cup Almond Milk.

1/2 Cup unsweetened Apple Sauce.

1/2 Cup (8 tablespoons) Liquid Egg Whites.

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Mix all together and pour into a heated waffle iron. Don't forget to spray it with cooking spray.

Cook for 3 or 4 minutes depending on the quality of iron. 

 

There you have it. (OK, mine are pretty ugly but you get the idea)

They are great the next day, reheated in the toaster oven. 

I top mine with spray butter (zero calories) and Sugar Free Syrup.

Waffles not your thing? Pour them into a heated skillet or pan and make ya some pancakes!

This recipe makes 6 waffles (2 servings). 

Each serving counts as 1 meal + 1pf + 1 sc (I think).

Serving size  = 3 waffles
138 calories
15 grams protein

These little things kept me feeling satisfied till lunch time.

NOTE: This recipe is for those that have been on the plan a few weeks. It is not recommend for those currently starting out on the Turbo week. 
Continue following the plan as recommended.

ENJOY  😋

My Nutrisystem journey can be found HERE

Beet Hummus

Today started off with a glitch in my morning routine. As usual, I walked into the kitchen ready to smell the aroma of black silk Folgers dark roast coffee brewing. Instead of seeing the black gold dripping into the pot and hearing the sound of the bubbling perk, I saw only an empty coffee stained pot. I started to go into panic mode and rush out to Walmart for a new one. Then I realized no outlets were working on one side of the kitchen. I knew at that moment it was only a tripped breaker, so I plugged the coffee pot in another corner of the kitchen and, wah lah, we had coffee. That later led to a trip to the hardware store for a new receptacle as well.

Before we headed out to do some running around, I decided to make this delicous beet hummus to enjoy for lunch. Nick will usually add beets to his salad as they are full of nutrients and health benefits our bodies need. This is what gave me the idea to make this little flavo.

 

This was a new taste to me. I have only tasted a beet once when I was younger. It was pickled and I hated it! Never ate one again. Until today. But these were not pickled, they were roasted. Well, ok they were actually from a can, but they were NOT pickled. 

This dip/spread is perfect for dipping veggies or chips. We chose to use it as a spread on toasted whole wheat rounds topped with a slimcado. 

 

See what I did there? Not an avacado, but a slimcado. You may have seen these in the grocery store before and not even realize what they were. They are grown in Florida and have 35% less fat than an avacado. They are bigger with a bigger seed as well. One great thing about a slimcado is that they do not turn black on the outside and the inside does not darken when cut like the avacado. I wrote about them once. You can find that post HERE. 

This is definitely something I will make again. It was so savory and tasted like Summer. Did I mention this spread is full of healthy ingredience? Can't go wrong here.

 

BEET HUMMUS

1 can - Beets 

1 can- Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans)

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 - Tablespoon Olive Oil

1/2 - Teaspoon Paparika

1/2 - Teaspoon Cumin

1/2 - Tablespoon Garlic Powder

1/2 - Teaspoon salt

2 - Tablespoons Water

Combine all ingredients in food processor.

blend/puree to right texture.

Ready to eat. 

Use for dip or spread.

Perfect on veggies, sandwiches, pita chips, toast or crackers.

Refrigerate leftovers.

I still haven't tried a beet alone. 

Is It Really Winter?

We are at the end of February but it feels like May. I'm thinking the ground hog messed up.

We had a little snow day in January. We also had a couple days that dipped below 35 degrees. I don't even have a coat. However, February has been rather warm. I have been itching to start my afternoon walks again and the weather is perfect.

The past two weeks, I have been able to start those walks again since the days are giving us more daylight now and its warming up. I get home from work around 5:30 each day and my husband usually has my dinner ready. Though I eat Nutrisystem meals most of the time, he will still have me a side of veggies to go along with it. Its always a surprise and I can usually smell the aroma as soon as I park the car.

He will be standing there at the door with a smile on his face welcoming me home (bet you didn't think old married couples still do that did ya?), We embrace, I lay my work bag down, wash up and head to the dinner table. After dinner we will change into our walking gear and head out to the street. We will walk about 2 or 3 miles depending on how much water I drank throughout the day. Ha.

The weather has been in the 70s almost every day this month. Is it really still Winter? I really hope Mother nature does not decide to throw us a cold snap until December. The flowers are budding, the trees are blooming and the birds are getting a head start on nesting. We plan to visit our beach place in a couple weeks. I can hardly wait!

How is the weather where you are?

Are You A Donor?

Its been five years since I have renewed my license. I have until May to do it but I decided to get it out of the way and made the dreaded appointment to the license bureau . I could have easily just went online and renewed it to save me the trouble but I wanted a new photo. A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do.

I had an apppointment for 8:30 am. When I pulled into the parking lot I noticed there was no line.
I parked and went inside. I walked down the hall and to the left. The waiting room was empty. I was the only one in there. I had a look of confusion on my face as I looked inside the testing room.
"Can I help you?" ask officer Drab. "Yes, I have an appointment for a renewal" I replied. "Step on in here and we can go ahead and get started" he said.

All I had to do was varify may information. Then I had to step over to the camera. They gave me three seconds to make another five year photo impression. I got one chance! "Smile".
Next I had to read the top line of the eye chart. Because of the way the eye rest was tilted, I read the bottom line by accident. "You read the wrong line. Now read the top line this time" said officer Smartypants".
Now, think a minute. Wouldn't you think the bottom line which is smaller would have been acceptable?

Then the question..."Are you still a donor?" She asked. "Yes Maam, I am", I said with no hesitation.
I was all done and back to work in no time. It took all of 10 minutes to get my license renewed. Thats a first!!! I also think that was quicker than If I had done it online.

My new licnese came in the mail with in a week. As my husband examined them, we get into this little argument over being a donor. "So, your still a donor?!?!" He asked. As he saw the little red heart next to my photo. I replied, " Yes! I have always been a donor and im proud of it".

This is something we disagree on. He does not like the idea of being a donor and chooses never to be one. He has this idea that if im in serious condition in the hospital and the person down the hall needs my heart, the doctors will let me die if the money is right. I have often thought about this but I would think my family would fight to the end to make sure the doctors do all they can to save me first.

I love the idea that the death of me might save another. That way I can live on. My soul will be in heaven but my body parts will be free game to the ones that need it. How selfish it would be to put it all in the ground and not share life.

Being a donor is something Im sure of. Something im proud of. If my husband is right, so be it. I would probably even sign off on it.

Are you a donor? Do you feel like my husband does about this issue? Just curious. It will not change my mind though.

3-2-1 Cake

No you don't have Déjà vu. I actually have blogged about this about 50 lbs ago. Its so good, I'm sharing it again. So grab your tongue and hang on to your sweet tooth, this might hurt.

Years ago, my friend Anne told me about this cake recipe she makes up for her kids. She should have never done that! I could not contain myself and I got hooked on this stuff! It was just too easy!!!!

When ever you feel the urge to eat something sweet but do not want to make a whole cake or wipe out a bakery, you can just make on single serve cake in the microwave for one minute.

Yep, "just a minute".

All you need is a box of Angel food cake mix and a box of regular cake mix of your choice. One cake mix has to be Angel food cake mix because it has the egg whites you need already in it.
Pour them both in an air tight container or Ziploc bag and mix the two together. No need to refrigerate, just keep on a shelf and when you are ready for a piece of cake, grab a small dessert bowl or coffee mug and follow this simple recipe.

321 Cake

Mix

3 Tablespoons of cake mix.

2 Tablespoons of water.

cook 1 Minute in the microwave

Top with whip topping, fruit, ice cream, frosting, etc.

I squeezed a little chocolate frosting on mine around the edges while it was still warm and let it melt into the cake and it was delicious!!!!

This would be perfect for your college student. Also It would make a great gift for a neighbor or friend. Just put some mix in a cute little container with the directions printed on it.

If your allergic to egg whites. Do not eat this.

Approx 160 calories per serving.

For the record: Though the calories are not bad, I stay clear of this recipe now that Im a weightloss winner because I could easily eat this every day. 

Flourless Pancakes

Breakfast is my favorite meal. I'm a true believer that its the most important meal of the day. I never let my daughter leave the house in the mornings without a complete breakfast in all of her living at home life. Even when shes home, I'm up with the sunshine and in the kitchen preparing something for breakfast. It may be just muffins or it could be biscuits and gravy.  I love cooking breakfast.
(for the record, its been over a year since I had good ole biscuits and gravy).

If you know me, then you know I have been trying to keep my meals healthy. After two years I have finally given up the Nutrisystem breakfasts and doing my own thing. I still eat Nutrisystem for lunch and dinner but I throw in a lot of my own meals now. Ive learned how to control my calorie and carb intakes though I will probably always have Nutrisystem meals in my reach.

Back to breakfast.

This morning I noticed a very ripe banana sitting on the counter and instead of throwing it away, I decided to make some flourless pancakes with it. These look more like crepes actually.

 

You may have seen this healthy alternative to pancakes all over the internet. These are pretty good but they are no comparison to the delicious Aunt Jemima Pancakes that I love, But, hey, I didn't want the banana to go to waste.

Flourless Pancakes

1- Ripe Banana
1- Teaspoon baking powder
2- Eggs (I used egg beaters)
Pinch of cinnamon
Drop of vanilla

Mix together and pour batter into pan.
Flip when you see the tops begin to bubble.

I topped mine with spray butter (zero calories) and sugar free syrup.

Makes three.
Approx 160 calories.
(OK the Aunt Jamima Pancakes actually have less calories but this flourless option is probably more healthy).

 

Little facts to mention:

Pancakes:  Made from eggs, buttermilk and flour. Usually thin. topping on top.

Flapjacks: Made from sugar, butter and oats. Usually thicker and sweeter. toppings on top.

Crepes: Made from milk and eggs and wheat flour. Usually made very thin and rolled around toppings.


My Nutrisystem journey can be found here.

Camper Fever

I've been wanting a little retro vintage style camper of my own. I think about how fun it would be to have one in the back corner of my yard. A little "she shed".
It would have lights around the owning and a cute outdoor set up to sit under and relax during the summer evenings. It would be fun to camp out in it with my husband or take an afternoon nap.

 

Sadly, my neighbors would have a fit seeing a camper in the yard. Its not the style they want to see when they look out of the windows or when people visit the neighborhood. 

Maybe one day I will live in an area where I can have one to play with, who knows.

I think it would be fun to piddle and decorate one.   

While I like the vintage colors on the insides 

 

I also like the beach cottage feel with lots of rustic whites.

This is my inspiration.

 

It would be fun to take one around to camping shows too. But there are other things in life we could use instead. This will be put off for a long time.

The tiny houses???? I won't get started on that. I love those too!!!

Wake me up!!!

Meanwhile, I have a lot of scrap yarn and didnt know what to make with it. I was just about ready to throw it away when I got the idea to make some cute little camper key chains. Im gonna put them in my shop and see how it goes. They are fun to make and I smiled at each one I finish.

 

Are they not just the cutest thing ever? If you would like one of these little cuties, just swing on over to my Etsy shop and purchase one. I will have some more colors available soon. Spring is on its way so I will not be making many toboggans and blankets for a while.

Valentines Day

Its Valentines Day!!

This whole weekend has been full of love and sweets for Valentines Day.

I started off making this adorable little cotton crochet heart just for fun. 

Pattern HERE

Its the perfect mug rug for my coffee.

 

My daughter came home for the weekend. We all had appointments to get our taxes done Saturday so we made it a family outing which also included some shopping and Mexican food.

She came in carrying a surprise box of gourmet donuts. There is a little donut shop near her apartment called Duck Donuts. She was able to pick and created a mix of donuts any way she wanted too so they were not only rings of sweetness, they were actually her own creations.
Looks like she put a lot of thought in creating the perfect blend of sugar for Nick and I.

Website HERE

My favorite was the maple glaze with bacon sprinkles and caramel drizzle. Another favorite was the chocolate glazed with chocolate sprinkles and raspberry drizzle. We ate them all.

Of course I had her a Valentine basket waiting also

. 

 

 

It was a basket full of sweet treats, a mug, baking essentials, brownie mix, a gift card and more. 

She was tickled.

This morning I put out a special valentine treat for my sweetie. I wrote him a love note attached to a gift bag of healthy snacks and little gifts. He will be up soon and will see it when he gets his coffee.

Tonight we will end the evening with a nice dinner. Not sure whats up his sleeve, but I'm sure we will either go out or he will have something nice cooked when I get home from work. Either way, he's my Valentine every day of the year as we always show our love for each other. We don't make it a one day thing but this one day is always fun to celebrate. 

Speaking of sweet. My daughter and I also made some cherry bread which was a complete fail.

It was suppose to look like this....

Recipe HERE

 But this is what we ended up with. 

 

First, It fell apart, then we applied the glaze while it was still warm and it ran right off the bread onto the place, and well, it turned into the the ugliest mess.
However, we did eat it.......All! 

 

Don't let the looks fool ya,  It was delicious! 

Happy Valentines Day!

Antique Browsing

This past weekend, Nick and I thought it would be nice to go look around some antique shops. We actually have a couple antique Malls around here.
It was cold all day Saturday and we didn't have anything to do so we decided to get out a little while.

When I go into the antique shops I just get all giddy inside. I see things I want, but no where to put them. Then I think past where I am now and into the future of having a little beach cottage and so I see things that would look great in one but I don't have that luxury yet.

Mostly what I enjoy when I visit these vintage shops is looking at things I remember Mom or Grandma having in there homes. I reminisce back to when I was young. I'm constantly saying "oh look , I remember these". or "Mom still has this at her house!". Nick is ten years older than me so he gives me some little history lessons on quite a few things we see too.

This little sign made me laugh (though its not vintage).
I remember my brother always called me this.

Now its dangerous for a blogger to walk into a antique store. I wanted to take a picture of everything. It would have killed my battery and taken all my storage. There was so many pretty and unique things. So I left my camera in my pocket book the best I could. I would bring it out every now and again.

I saw this Stallion sitting in a corner of the back of the store. I asked Nick to take a picture of me with it before anyone walked up. So he did.



I remember having many of these and rode plenty of miles on one too. I had the hat, gun holster and boots to complete the fun.

Kids now days wouldn't understand.

We were looking at some of the furniture too. We need a bed, and a couple side tables. We probably wouldn't buy a bed from an antique store unless it was at a good buy and exactly what were looking for but we enjoy getting some ideas. I really want Nick to build me one using a couple vintage doors from our old home place.

I look around and get a lot ideas on how to turn junk into cool things.

I seen this table and immediately thought about mom. 

 

It was rustic, which I liked, but Im pretty sure it was not her taste. She needs a table this size for family get togethers. We have 12 to 14 at each gathering and this 10.5 foot table with 6 legs would work perfect for us all to sit around. It even had small drawers on the other side.

I didnt buy anything today though I almost bought an Ice Cream bowl for my Daddy that read
"Paw Paws Ice Cream" and I probably would have if I could have found a matching one for Mawmaw.

Simple Chicken Pot Pie

I have always wanted to make a chicken pot pie. I grew up eating a lot of the Banquet pot pies. They are my favorite! Well, Sunday night  I made my first one.

 

Isn't it pretty?

Until just a few years ago, I always called them "pop pies". Never noticed I was saying it wrong. I still say pop pies unless im ordering off the menu (or blogging). Ha.

The reason I've never attempted to make one of these pies before now is because my Husband is not a fan of anything with that creamy mixture inside and my daughter hates peas. So I never made one. Until today. 

My husband told me to go ahead and make one if I wanted to. I told him I'd hate to make one and have to eat it all by myself. He agreed to have some. We had just finished our afternoon walk and wanted to get relaxed to watch the Superbowl. Man, wasnt that a game? 

Now let me share this recipe with you. 

This was a simple and easy recipe. I know the ones you make with cooked chicken and homemade creamy insides using fresh broth are better but I wanted something quick and less messy. 

This recipe is so easy your kids can make it so grab your kids and a pie plate and lets get started.

Simple Chicken Pop Pie

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix together:

• 1 large 2.5oz can chicken ( or 1 1/2 cups of chopped chicken).
• 12oz bag mix vegestables. 
• 1 can cream of chicken soup.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Pour mixture into a 9 inch pie plate.

 

Mix together:

• 1 cup Original Bisquick mix.
• 1/2 cup of milk 
• 1 egg

Pour on top of vegestable mixture.

 

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. 

 

Thats it! See? Easy.

It got a shoulder shrug and I think a thumbs up from the husband.

Ive shared this at:
wined-down-wednesday

Memories- TVs

I was just reading shiplogs latest post HERE. He was talking about the time he lived aboard the Navel Base, GITMO. He mentioned the TV he had there with rabbit ears......then he lost me. My mind drifted back to the 70's. 

 

I know that connection between rabbit ears and aluminum foil. I also remember how we all had a certain place to sit while we watched TV.. If one of us got out of place it would cause a static interference on the screen. Between watching Captain Kangaroo in the mornings and The Muppet Show at night, it was often a struggle. 

And TV dinners were really TV dinners. 

 

I also remember we had four channels. 3, 9, 18 and 36. 

Technology quickly progressed into the 80's. We eventually got a channel box, and so on. 

My dad was always on top of the new gagets so we knew we would have something better as soon as it came out.

I remember my big brother calling daddy from his girlfriends house one evening to say he would be late getting home because she had HBO! Dad thought it was a disease. He quickly learned it was a movie channel.

It was not long until the neighbor got a cable line and had all the cool channels and HBO too. My brother and some other neighbors figured out how to steal from their cable line and get it in our house for free. That didn't last long. The cable company caught on to what everyone was doing and came up with private policies. Needless to say, Dad bought into getting us legal HBO. 

 

Now look at us. About 35 years later, we have TVs that luminate on a wall and can watch channels from all over the world if we wanted to. TVs now will even tell you whos calling or knocking on your door. 

I accidently learned yesterday how to change the TV channels using my iPad from the other room. Yea, I had Nick going there for awhile. It was fun while it lasted. 

With all that said. We only have a 47 inch TV and basic cable. We don't care about all that fancy stuff. Though It would be nice to have a larger TV on the wall, we are saving for a new mattress and a new washer and dryer first. We can save for a TV later. 

And about Dad, he still has the good stuff. Surround sound included!

Those Protesters!

I don't know about you but I'm getting sick and tired of seeing protest and whining every dern time I turn on the TV or log into social media.

I always wonder if it solves anything. 

I feel like rather than it being free speech or whatever, I think its more as threatening. 

"If your going to do that, then we will do this" kind of thing.

I see no problem when people walk around with their signs letting the world know their opinion, but when protesters start blocking traffic or burning down the town, that's just plain out rioting which I feel should be illegal.

 

I could really protest some things myself......

Why can't these protesters just write a simple letter to express their concern or arrange a meeting? Whats the point in making yourself out to look like an idiot?

I admit, I was sort of nervous about the groundhog's decision yesterday. I mean, I was pretty upset too about his decision that there will be 6 more weeks of Winter. But you know what? Look at your calander. There is 6 more weeks til the first day of spring anyway, so I think he was right on this one. 

Not everyone is going to agree with everything. That would just be weird but to act like they are acting? And to find every reason to protest? It seems like its all a game to them and a reason to act out. It's not solving anything.

I have never seen so many people upset over the President. He needs our prayers. He needs to be given a chance to do what he thinks is best for America. The angry people in this world are just fueling the fire. I see many people degradeing America. 

Please don't do that. 

We need peace. We need love, but for heaven sake! You sure ain't showing any!