April « 2010 « AmyCz.com

April 13, 2010

Out with Easter candy, in with fresh vegetable platter

Filed under: Diet, Vegetables, Weight loss — Tags: broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, Easter, jicama, red pepper — Amy Czerniec @ 12:39 pm

Lately I have been making up a platter of veggies for us to snack on throughout the day. I really need to make sure that I keep this up.

The past week has been very challenging for me. I happen to have a huge sweet tooth, and this time of year is always very difficult. Candy is one of my bad habits that has been hardest to quit.

First of all, April is the month of my birthday and usually the Easter holiday. For some reason I have such nostalgic memories from my youth that I associate with Easter candy.

Forget about all the fatty things associated with Easter brunch or dinner (ham, cheesy broccoli or potatoes, any of the various egg casseroles) give me a basket with Brach’s speckled malted eggs, some Brach’s spiced jelly beans, Dove chocolate foiled eggs, Reese’s peanut butter eggs, and any Easter cake with butter cream frosting, and I am happy. I truly don’t even get sick from all of that junk. I just see the fat deposit around my middle, and all the hard work that I did in my daily workouts in weeks prior go right down the drain.

Even before the Easter week, I found myself cutting up veggies to have just lying around so Mark and I could turn to them to fill ourselves up.

I was in Kenosha yesterday and stopped at Kenosha Fresh Market on my way home. I really wish we had a wonderful store here in Racine. Years ago we had the fabulous Parkside Produce and Racine Produce, but now both no longer exist.

I came home yesterday with such a beautiful assortment of vegetables that I had to share a photo before Mark and I devoured it. On this platter I have broccoli, cauliflower, cucumber, carrots, red pepper, celery and jicama. Some days it may just be carrots and celery. I don’t even need a dip for my veggies. If I do have one, it may be one of the dressings that I make, or a bean dip that I would whip up. I would just as well eat them naked, seeing how the calories can really add up with any dip that you use.

So as I try to detox myself from the great amount of sugar that I have consumed over the past week, this is what will be taking its place.

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April 8, 2010

Healthy Salad Dressings

Filed under: Recipes — Tags: balamic vinegar, blue cheese, fat reducer, garlic, safflower oil, salads, Women's Health — Amy Czerniec @ 1:09 pm

It has been way too long since my last post, so I thought I would share with you some great recipes that have become a staple in our house. I came across these “Dressing for Success” recipes last year in my Women’s Health magazine.

All three dressings are made with safflower oil. The article boasts that adding one tablespoon of safflower oil to your diet per day may shrink your belly and increase lean muscle mass, according to a study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. I am not sure how true it is, I just know that we both think they taste great.

I first mixed these dressings for Christmas dinner, and have been making them ever since. I have never cared for buying bottled salad dressings, not always knowing what exactly is in them. These safflower oil recipes have helped us eat more salads; we usually have a salad with our dinner every night now. They’re tasty, easy, and keep in the refrigerator for a week or so.

I have made a few alterations. For the blue cheese balsamic vinaigrette, I roast a couple large cloves of garlic instead of putting them in raw. The first time I made it as the magazine called for, I used too much garlic. I happen to love garlic and always feel more is better , but that’s not so true with raw garlic. Roasting mellows the garlic so it isn’t as harsh.

For the Asian recipe, I add some freshly grated ginger root and it tastes wonderful. I found myself using it as a dip last night for some raw cauliflower, and it was fabulous.

I try using just a tablespoon to dress my salad. Mark, on the other hand, likes his salad with a little more dressing.

Now that I have safflower oil on hand, from time to time I also whip up a quick honey-Dijon dressing, consisting of a tablespoon each of Dijon or grainy mustard, honey, and rice wine vinegar, which has received rave reviews as well.

I hope you enjoy, and happy eating!

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