Easy Crock Pot Beef

Tonight’s dinner was easy… just the way I like it!

Before I left for work I placed chunks of beef (sold pre-sliced for beef stew) in the crock pot with one can of cream of mushroom soup and a half of a can of water.

Cream of Mushroom soup

I let the meat cook on low for approximately eight hours (though I’m sure six would be plenty).

By the time we were hungry for dinner, the beef was moist and delicious. After steaming broccoli, cauliflower and carrots and sauteing spinach we were ready to eat.

My Plate

Aren’t effortless dinners the best?

What’s your favorite crock pot recipe?

Two of my favorites include the easiest pulled pork ever and slow cooker chicken tacos.

I think I’d love just about any crock pot meal. 😀

Fettuccine Broc-fredo

The pasta bowl I had for lunch really reminded me of fettuccine Alfredo… only with less butter and more veggies!

Pasta, Cheese and Broccoli Please!

Creating meals that taste indulgent but are actually quite healthy is one of my favorite challenges.

Today my lunch included:

• Carba Nada egg fettuccine noodles
• Parmesan cheese
• One Laughing Cow light French onion cheese wedge
• Broccoli florets

Get in Mah Belly!

A year ago if you would’ve told me I’d enjoy broccoli, I’d think you were crazy. Now my love for the green florets is flourishing. I wonder what foods I will learn to love in 2010. Catfish? No. Never.

Have I ever tried catfish? No. Would I ever try catfish? No. It creeps me out! A fish with whiskers? C’mon!

My extreme aversion to catfish stems from my high school days when I would go tubing on a lake with friends. One time my friend Michaela and I fell off the tube and our friend who was driving the boat did not pick us up right away.

Instead he circled us with the boat and he and our friends told us about a giant catfish in the lake. I pictured myself being engulfed by a big beady-eyed catfish.

Giant Catfish

Creepy, right!?

Ever since then catfish give me the heebie jeebies. Then Ryan told me catfish grunt and that officially sealed the deal. No catfish for this girl.

What foods have you previously disliked  that you now love?

This list is comprised of only vegetables for me:

• Broccoli
• Mushrooms
• Sweet potatoes
• Asparagus

Brrr Baby

Holy cold day outside!

According to my car’s thermometer, it’s in the 30s in Orlando today… Um, this is Florida. It’s not supposed to be this cold!

How cold is it where you are today?

36 Degrees!

On my morning walk with Sadie I looked like someone wearing every piece of clothing they own. My outfit included:

• Sports bra
• Work out top
• Hoodie
• Fleece coat
• Jacket
• Underwear
• Sweatpants
• Socks
• Ugg boots
• Scarf
• Hat
• Mittens

Thank goodness I still kept this stuff from when I used to live in Illinois!

New Year’s Resolutions Begin

I knew today was going to be a crowded day at the gym today since everyone is very enthusiastic about their health or weight loss-related New Year’s resolutions. (Click here for ideas for healthy New Year’s resolutions that may be easier to maintain in the long run.) I made sure to wake up five minutes earlier than usual to be sure to get a good spot in BodyPump since I had a feeling the class would be packed.

I was right! I like a full class because I feel like everyone feeds off each other’s energy. What I don’t like is when someone takes “my spot.” Is it weird that I prefer the same spot every time I take a BodyPump class? I’m a creature of habit, I guess.

After BodyPump, I rounded out my workout with 20 minutes of light cardio on the elliptical before taking Sadie on her freezing walk.

Breakfast

Breakfast was fit for a peanut butter lover like me!

Creamy PB

I made a peanut butter sandwich on a whole wheat sandwich thin with a sliced pear on the side. I already ate the majority of the pear by the time I snapped a picture. I’m a hungry gal!

Monday's Breakfast

Last Night

Our Christmas decorations remain. We didn’t get around to taking them all down for no other reason than we were feeling lazy and I was watching episode after episode of Gossip Girl.

I felt better when I saw that the holiday decorations throughout the city of Orlando still remain in tact as well.

Orlando Decorations

Despite our general laziness yesterday evening, we did manage to make it to the grocery store and cook up a yummy dinner of roasted cauliflower with sweet Italian chicken sausage and garlic toast.

Sunday Night Dinner

Deeelish

This dinner came together in a flash and was devoured in even less time.

For those of you back to work for the first time since the holidays, enjoy your return to the workforce. For those of you not working today, consider yourself lucky and me jealous! 😀