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Simple Healthy Ramen

Quick second blog post today cause I shared my lunch on Facebook and lots of peopleĀ wanted the recipe. This seemed easier than privately messaging everyone who asked for it.

Remember back in college when we were dirt poor and didn’t know how to cook?!

Ramen to the rescue!

This isn’t the ramen we made in college…

But it’s become my new obsession! I’ve made this at least three times in the last week.

I buy millet and brown rice ramen at Costco (no sodium packets included). And then I use my own broth and fixins to make it deelish! This took me about 10 minutes start to finish! Less than 300 calories and 8 grams of protein in the noodles alone.

 

My Health Ramen Lunch

*serves 2 (or 1 if you you’re hungry and/or don’t like sharing)

 

 

 

Ingredients:

 

  • 1 t. sesame oil (or your fave oil)
  • 2 cloves garlic – minced
  • 1/4 tsp ginger (I used powder. Fresh is always nice.)
  • 2 cups broth (chicken, veggie, whatever)
  • 1/4 cup sliced mushrooms (fave variety)
  • 1 T. reduced sodium soy sauce or liquid aminos
  • 1 ramen cake (I use Lotus Foods millet and brown rice)
  • 1 cup leafy greens (spinach, kale, etc)
  • 1 carrot – grated
  • 2 green onions – sliced
  • 1 hardboiled egg (or lean protein of your choice, or skip it!) šŸ˜‰

 

Directions:

  1. Heat oil in sauce pan over medium heat. Add garlic and ginger. Saute, stirring frequently, untilfragrant (1-2 minutes).
  2. StirĀ in broth, soy sauce and add mushrooms.Ā Bring to a boil.
  3. Add ramen cake. Reduce heat and cook for 2-3 minutes until loosened. (Follow the directions on the package.)
  4. Add greens, carrot and onions. Stir until greens begin to wilt (1-2 more minutes).
  5. Serve and enjoy! (Careful! It’s blazing hot! Just like when you tried to eat ramen in college and it almost burned your face off!) šŸ˜‰ 

    fun little ramen cake

Just for fun…let’s compare the nutrition labels! Pay specific attention to the ingredients! And sodium! OMG!

College:

More ingredients than I can count or pronounce! And 830 mg of sodium!!!??? In HALF of a serving! And everyone knows if you’re making a package of ramen, you’re eating the whole thing! That’s 1660 mg of sodium!Ā The American Heart Association recommendsĀ an ideal limit of no more than 1,500 mg per day (no more than 2,300 milligrams (mgs) a day).

 

Not College:

2 Ingredients: organic brown rice flour and organic millet. Sodium: ZERO mg. Ummm…ya…no brainer here. And here’s the thing, it tastes amazing!

If you try it, leave a comment below and let me know what you think. šŸ™‚

 

What’a on SALE this month?

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What’s for Lunch?

tuna_sandI’m packing up a lunch for today. I will not be tempted by the snack bar, or the fast food restaurants on the way to my destination. Even if the kids are whining in the back, “Please Mom”, they’ll say. “Heck no”, I’ll say. I’ve got tuna salad today. I made it and packed it myself.

I haven’t always been a ‘packer’. The last year has changed the way I look at a road trip, or a day away from home. I used to say,”ah, we’ll just stop and eat someplace along the way”. Nothing good ever comes of that! I have not eaten from a drive-thru in almost a year! I work too hard on my health and fitness to sabotage all of that with grease and sodium! Plus, I have a fridge and pantry all stocked with very edible and pack-able foods. It might take an extra 10 minutes before we leave, but it’s worth it. Not to mention, when we DID hit the drive-thrus, I was ALWAYS the car that had to pull ahead and wait for our food. So those 10 minutes would’ve been spent waiting for our pink slime and leftover chicken bits anyway! *I do occasionally give in to the kids pleas…sometimes they just gotta have their hockey pucks and fat sticks. Blech!

So on to the tuna…I’ve made this tuna, and even posted about it on Facebook about a zillion times! It’s a stand-by lunch for me. It’s really simple and a great way to make it without the mayo!

Tuna Salad (makes 2 servings)

Ingredients:tuna-fish-sandwich-funny-someecard

  • 1 can very low sodium albacore tuna
  • 2 T non-fat Greek yogurt
  • 1/4 avocado (mashed)
  • 1 t. dijon mustard

Mix-ins:

  • diced onions
  • diced celery
  • diced pickle

*Whatever crunchy bits you like!

I like to eat mine either like an open-faced sandwich. Sometimes I’ll just scoop it into romaine lettuce leaves. Or I like to have it in an Ezekiel tortilla.

Nutitional info: 1 serving (just the tuna salad) is about 150 calories, 3 g. fat, 20 g. protein, 8 g. carbs

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Chicken, Veggie, Berry Workout Salad

chicken_workout_salad

Do you like salads? Are you a multi-tasker? You simply HAVE to try this recipe! It’s so good, AND good for you! In just a few simple steps, you’ll have a beautiful and delicious salad that you can feel GOOD about eating! The ingredients are flexible, use what you like, don’t use what you don’t like, get it!? But the steps are absolutely a MUST! Non-negotiable! The salad won’t turn out right if you don’t do it right!

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 chicken breasts (or more, depending on how many people you’re feeding, and how chicken-y you like your salads)
  • 1 lemon
  • garlic salt
  • ground black pepper
  • olive oil
  • lettuce of your choice
  • veggies of your choice, but might I suggest the following: tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet bell peppers, green onions, avocado, celery…
  • berries of your choice: Strawberries and/or raspberries are deelish!
  • nuts or crunchy bits of your choice: I prefer slivered almonds.
  • reduced fat feta cheese (or not, up to you)

For the dressing:

  • olive oil (extra-virginy, of course)
  • balsamic vinegar (a goon one!)
  • Dijon mustard
  • s&p, or Spike, or Mrs. Dash…whatever you prefer

Equipment

  • meat pounder or rolling-pin
  • gallon-size Ziploc bags
  • gym shoes/clothes
  • wrist watch/clock/timing device

STEPS TO TAKE (a.k.a. Instructions)

  1. Put your chicken breasts into a Ziploc bag. Add freshly squeezed lemon juice (or the bottle kind will do in a pinch), a little drizzle of olive oil (maybe 1-2 teaspoons) a dash of garlic salt and some ground black pepper (to taste). *I don’t often measure when I cook…so that’s the best I can do.Ā pounded_chicken
  2. POUND out your frustrations until your breasts (correction: the CHICKEN breasts) are the same thickness throughout, about 1/2″-3/4″
  3. Place chicken in the refrigerator.
  4. Lace up your gym shoes.
  5. Get dressed in the appropriate workout attire.
  6. CRITICAL STEP! Workout for at least 45 minutes! No less! (More is acceptable, as long as it’s not overnight) Feel free to choose whatever exercise method you like. Might I suggest: a jog/run/walk outside if it’s nice weather, pop in your favorite workout DVD (Insanity, Chalean Extreme, Turbo Fire, Les Mills Pump, P90X…etc…), a yoga class, pump some iron! You get the idea!Ā lacing_up
  7. When your time is up, place chicken breasts on a pre-heated grill and cook for about 5 minutes on each side.
  8. Chop up lettuce and veggies.Ā *Don’t forget to flip those chicken boobs after 5 minutes!
  9. Whisk approximately 1 part olive oil to 2 parts balsamic vinegar + 1/2 part Dijon , minced garlic + seasonings in a small bowl.
  10. Toss the dressing with lettuce.
  11. Top with chopped veggies.
  12. Retrieve chicken from the grill, slice into strips and place desired amount on top of individually portioned salads.
  13. Don’t forget the nuts and berries!
  14. Enjoy!
  15. Shower!

have-a-nice-day