Dinner Party Recipe Wrap-Up and 9 for ‘09!

Hey everyone!

As promised I am going to do a quick re-cap of Sunday night’s Dinner Party Menu:

Up first:

My Aunt’s Spinach Dip

I have been using my Aunt’s recipe for years. It is fabulous:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup and 1/3 cup frozen, thawed, chopped, and drained spinach (or one 10 oz. package frozen spinach)
• 1 Cup Mayonaise
• 1 Cup sour cream
• 3 Green onions chopped
• 1 Package of dry vegetable Soup Mix

Directions: Mix everything together and chill for 2 hours! Serve with Pumpernickle bread and/or veggies.

How I would make this recipe healthier:

• Use low-fat mayo and sour cream
• Use a reduced sodium vegetable soup mix

Up second:

Cheryl’s Spinach Cheesy Pasta Casserole

I didn’t put cheese on my half since I don’t eat dairy much anymore:

Pure deliciousness.

This pasta was really good, even without ANY cheese!

How I would make this recipe healthier next time:

• Use whole wheat or Spelt pasta
• Reduce the Olive Oil to 1/8th cup (1/4 c. was unnecessary)
• Reduce or eliminate cheese
• Double the spinach (I loved the spinach in this recipe and found myself wishing there was more of it!)

Up next:

Sweet Dinner Rolls

Ok, I admit I really messed up this recipe! Since I was in a rush, I just threw all the ingredients into my KitchenAid Mixer with the dough blade on and mixed. Do not do this! As we all know with making bread, it requires a careful attention to the order of ingredients and the mixing. Instead of fluffy rolls, I got dense biscuits. It was nothing a little butter couldn’t fit though. :) I guess it could have been worse for my first (rushed) attempt at making rolls! Next!

Burgundy Pork Temderloin

This Pork was amazing. I used Yellow Tail Shiraz and marinated it in the fridge overnight.

Instead of cooking it for 45 mins in the oven, I slow cooked it in my slow cooker for 6 hours on low. The meat was so juicy! It has a wonderful Shiraz flavour infused taste. I used green onions instead of a regular onion and it was a nice touch. I also skipped the celery (didn’t have any) and I used frozen thawed garlic instead of garlic powder.

And last but certainly not least, the Show Stopper:

Carrot Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

This cake was a show stopper for sure. I heard ‘Martha Stewart’ uttered several times. :) I used about 1/2 cup of raisins, but I would double that next time. I also used about 3/4 cup walnuts in the cake and sprinkled the top with more.

How I would try to make this cake healthier:

• Reduce the sugar from 2 cups to 1-1.5 cups??
• Recude oil to 1/2 to 3/4 cup, substitute with either applesauce and/or pumpkin??
• Reduce the eggs from 4 to 3??

Next time I am going to experiment with this recipe a bit to see if I can make it healthier while still tasting amazing.

Although, maybe it is better left untouched. It is sheer delight.

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Did anyone catch Oprah today?

On it she was talking all about her weight gain and falling off the wagon, yet again. She talked about her pain and embarassment of wanting to hide her body from the world this past year.

She was offering her ‘new plan’ for shedding the weight.

Nothing she said was ground breaking or new. It was basically the same stuff she has said in past years:

1. Make yourself a priority, schedule yourself in
2. You have to plan your meals
3. Exercise!! Cardio and Strength train

Oprah says that the main reason she fell off the wagon was due to not making herself a priority. Her assistant talked abot her 14 hour days and that Oprah simply wasn’t fitting into the busy schedule. Oprah also claims she has a thyroid problem and has trouble sleeping at night. All of this contributed to her reaching over 200 pounds.

What is her game plan?

‘Penciling in’ herself into her daily calendar (when she will exercise), as well as writing down her meal plans. She has every meal written on a calendar so she knows what she will be having long in advance. She also says that no matter how much she hates exercise, she realizes that she will never ever be able to maintain her weight without doing it. She has cut back on her cardio and has increased strangth training.

She also said she will be following Bob Green’s diet plan.

This is where I kind of sigh. I am not knocking Bob’s diet plan, in fact I know nothing about it. I just don’t like diets in general. I find that diets don’t allow people to truly learn what healthy eating is all about long-term. Following a set prescripted diet will not ensure that you learn how to eat right for life, it simply allows you to follow a ‘no-brainer’ schedule for a certain amount of time until you fall off the wagon again.

Do you think Oprah truly gets it? Do you think this time will be any different from the last?

I hope she gets her health back, whatever she does. I could relate to her pain of her weight gain. We all know that it is a horrible way to live when you feel uncomfortable in your own skin.

She said, “No matter how famous or rich you are, if you can’t fit into your clothes you have nothing.”

Do you agree with this?

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I was reading about this awesome 9 in ‘09 challenge started by Jess from Model Behaviour

She says:

I’m going to introduce a new segment to ModelBehavior that goes right along side my new year’s resolutions. In the year 2009 I want to do 9 things I have never done before!! The 9 new experiences have to be something brand new and memorable, i.e. going to a new restaurant doesn’t count, but trying a completely new type of food (like Moroccan, I’ve always wanted to try Moroccan food!) would count. I have 2 things already on my list, my trip to Vegas in March and my half marathon. I need to come up with 7 more!

Care to join my 9 in 09′ challenge? Let me know what you have in mind for your 9 new things!!!!

Things I have never done but want to in ‘09

• RACE! [my first half marathon (May 10th 2009); my first 5k (March 29th)...etc]
• Run 1,000 miles in 2009
• Visit a new country (we are thinking Ireland this year)
• Start an online bakery
• Raise over $2,500 for Cancer research
• Renovate our new house (e.g., learn how to install hardwood, do basic repairs, etc)
• Start working on my first cookbook
• Secure a BIG ($$$) contest giveaway on Oh She Glows

Ok, so that is 8…I need one more!

What are your 9 in ‘09 challenges?

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I am so excited to have tomorrow and Wednesday off or work! One of my big goals is to get my recipes organized finally.

I have lots in store for the blog over the next couple of days…stay tuned for an upcoming video!

Have a great night everyone!

Check out my new RUN page where I log all my runs of 2009!

“The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy. It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed.”~Jacqueline Gareau

“Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”
Abraham Lincoln