Crockpots: A Moms Hero

So, as I tossed my chicken and potatoes in the crockpot, I realized how much I love crockpots. I am the proud owner of three - and hopefully more in the future! When I am not in the mood to cook, there it is. I think every household should have one - whether your a stay at home mom, working mother, single mother, grandmother - whatever. I love the cookbooks for crock pot cooking. They tend to have a variation of different recipes consisting of different types and cuts of meats, deserts, soups, breakfasts, etc. If you have no time then this is a key to a successful night of not slaving over the stove! If you have a crock pot, go buy a crock pot cooking book or head to the local library. If you do not have a crock pot, then you are completely missing out on how easy it is to get things cooked!

Hungry Girl

So, speaking of diets which is always on my mind lately, have you ever heard of hungry girl? I personally do not own any of the books but do have the recipe flash cards and they are amazing. Plus, the website is full of recipes and tricks to get what you crave without all of the calories along with it. You can check out the website at  http://www.hungry-girl.com/. There are just tons and tons of recipes. For example, there is a recipe for an immitation of Arby's Roast Burgers. She uses a lot of vegetarian immitation meats, which personally I love and have a freezer full (I won't be able to chow on that stuff until after my low carb diet is OVER!).

But, take a look and I am sure you will find something that you love with less calories!

Good luck!

Dekota♥

Tuna Salad

I love tuna salad and could probably eat it daily. I use white chunk tuna packed in water. I have noticed that the tuna seems to be a bit more dryer than the tuna packed in oil. So, just use what you like. Here is my recipe for it.

White Chunk Tuna packed in water
Claussen Pickles, diced
Onions, diced
T. pickle juice
Low Fat Mayo
Salt and Pepper

Mix the diced pickles, onions, pickle juice, mayo, salt and pepper until dressing is blended. Add the tuna and mix thoroughly. Be sure to break down those chunks. If you don't want to add pickle juice you can always add a bit of lemon juice. This takes away the "sea food" taste intensity that some tuna fish has. If you decide to use a different type of tuna and it is already water you may want to add just a squeeze of lemon instead of pickle juice because it may become too watery. I don't give a measure of ingredients because your palette may not be like my palette so just judge by what you think you would like.

Dekota♥

Roast Beef and Blue Cheese

I love this recipe, great for a snack or quick and simple lunch.

Deli Roast Beef
Blue Cheese
Pepper
tsp. oil

Heat a pan with the tsp. oil, add the roast beef in the pan in either scrunched circles or fold in half. Heat one side, then flip. Add blue cheese, allow to melt.

You can add this on top of salads, maybe with a bit of blue cheese dressing and hot sauce. Or, if you are not look at your carbs add it to a sandwhich with some mayo, letter, tomato, maybe a dash of hot sauce and..... yum... you'll love it!

Gyro Burgers with Cucumber Sauce

This recipes is tastey and healthy and super simple. Just go with what you like for toppings. I list my favorite toppings for this particular meal. I am in love with all things greek food. So, I never measure anything but I will try to give you a ballpark.

•Cucumber Sauce
1 cup plain yogurt
3 tbsp sour cream
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 tsp dry ranch seasoning
1 cucumber, seeded, grated
salt and pepper

(with the cucumber sauce you can get a cheese cloth and put it in a strainer over a bowl and spoon your yogurt into that, allowing it to sit to seep out all of its liquids. This makes the sauce much creamier. Although, I never do it!)

Mix all of those ingredients and put in the fridge for an hour or more. The longer it sits the better it is.

•Burgers
1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 packet ranch seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
pepper
1 tsp plain yogurt
Pita bread
lettuce
tomato
red onion
feta cheese (optional)

Mix all of these ingredients together. You can either form each one into a patty and put on a baking sheet to put in the over, grill them, whatever you like. I pack it into a loaf pan and let it cook. When I take it out, I let it cool and cut it into slices. It is much easier to place in the pita bread this way.

ttfn.