Time to get back to my pizza roots with a healthy, homemade, veggie pizza.

Things I learned:

1. I used a lot of evoo to sautée the onions and mushrooms. I made a later pizza with steamed broccoli and baked chicken, which eliminated all of the oil!

2. My first attempt I used the whole wheat Boboli crust on a cookie sheet. It wasn’t as crispy as I like, so the second time I used the regular thin crust directly on the oven rack and it turned out perfect!

3. One Boboli pizza crust says it serves 6. That’s a lie. It makes 3 servings.

4. Finally, your options are endless so it can be a lot of fun to experiment! Plus, it’s so much cheaper and healthier than delivery pizza that we should really all be making it ourselves all the time. Enjoy!

It’s winter. And with that comes comfort food cravings. One of my most favorite meals in this category is Macaroni and cheese. Baked M&C made with four types of cheeses with that golden brown crust is to die for. But even a box of Kraft hits the spot when the temperature drops and the winds start to blow (all topped with Ketchup, of course).

However, the calories and fat for such a meal are through the roof, which is why I was so psyched to find this super easy recipe on 360 Family Nutrition today! I don’t cook a lot, so the ease of preparation and small list of ingredients attracted my attention. Plus the great nutrition count at the end (10 g protein and only 4 g fat) compared to regular M&C. And the best part, no leftovers to go back to for second and third helpings!

I also like recipes that are easy to modify too, if you wanted to add some chopped tomatoes, or fresh herbs, or diced tofu dogs (done it, and it’s delicious) there’s a lot of room to make it your own. 

RECIPE
Ingredients:
1/2 cup elbow pasta, uncooked
1 cup water
1-2 teaspoons light buttery spread (ie. Smart Balance light buttery spread)
1 Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss Wedge
1 tablespoon low fat milk
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1.  Microwave pasta with water in covered ceramic or glass bowl (or cook pasta on stove); drain water if there is any excess  (I did not have any excess).
2.  Add remaining ingredients and microwave for one minute, stir well and continue to heat until cheese is melted.

Nutrition:

Serving size: 1 • Servings: 1 • Calories: 264.8 kcal • Protein: 10.1 g  •  Carbs: 45.0 g • Fat: 4.2 g • Fiber: 2.0 g • Sugar: 3.4 g • Sodium: 253.3 mg

“Sometimes treat”!

If you treat yourself all the time it becomes routine and thus loses the specialness it once held as a once-in-awhile present to yourself. Instead, by telling yourself you can treat yourself on Friday, for example, the anticipation builds in the preceding days, making the treat seem even more amazing than it probably is! Cookie Monster says it best…

lovefoodrecipes:

Miniature Stuffed Pizzas in Springforms

Craving a cupcake? Give this makeover version a try. Less fake stuff, but the same satisfying sweetness:

The entire country has been immersed in a cupcake bakeshop craze for the past decade or so, but we still have a soft spot for the queen bee of gas station snacks: The Hostess Cupcake. What makes them so delicious? Is it the shelf-stable soft “ganache” frosting? The light and airy milk chocolate cake? The textural contrast you get from a bite that includes cream filling, cake, ganache, and the vanilla frosting squiggle? Swoon. Or is it simply that each package comes with two? Who knows. But unfortunately, with this deliciousness comes fat, calories, and wildly artificial ingredients that we’ve too often overlooked in the heat of an intense chocolate craving. 

Read More at Bon Appetit Junk Food Makeover for the rest of the article and the recipe.

A shout out to Good Things to Eat by Kate for the link!

*Replace the sour cream with nonfat Greek yogurt. It tastes the same for less calories and and you get an added protein boost!

Never go to the grocery store without a list. I once made that mistake and came home with an onion, a pint of ice cream, and a can of tuna fish. What?! Here’s a cute and stylish way to remind yourself what you need so you can get a list together in no time. Next time, be sure you come home with what you need and not what you’re craving at the moment!

lauraseymour:

Shopping List Magnets by Harrington and Squires

Inspiration for this Sunday night and a great way to get your week off on the right foot! I love applying math to emotional issues as Miss Holwegner does so well here. Personally, I would be so proud if I could do half the things in my life well 90% of the time: matching my clothes when I get dressed for the day; remembering to take the trash out on trash day before I hear the truck coming down the street; not asking women who have already given birth when their baby is due (yes I did it and yes I feel horrible), etc. To steal a line from Jenny Craig, it’s all about progress, not perfection.