Stuffed Peppers + Nutrition Seminar

After work today I headed to my gym… but not for a workout.

I saw a sign on the whiteboard near the front desk this morning informing members about a free nutrition seminar with a registered dietitian today at 5:30 p.m.

Sign me up!

The seminar was called “To Eat or Not to Eat” and was essentially an “Eat This, Not That” lecture that compared two dining options. Class participants were then asked to choose the healthier option.

I guessed correctly on almost all of the comparisons except for the one comparing the sugar content between one Pop-Tart and a small cup of original apple sauce.

      vs.    

The cup of apple sauce (original, not natural or unsweetened) had 22 – 23 grams of sugar, while one Pop-Tart had 20 grams. Yikes!

During the seminar, the dietitian answered a lot of different questions, including how to drink more water throughout the day, as many of us in attendance struggle to consume the recommended eight glasses a day. Her suggestions included:

• Add citrus fruits to cold water, like orange or lemon wedges for added flavor
• Add cucumber slices to water for a refreshing taste
• Try sparkling water, as it can satisfy carbonation desires that many soda-lovers crave
• Buy a 16 oz. water bottle and make it a point to fill it up and drink the whole thing four times daily

I recently began buying sparkling water and must agree that it helps me down more water daily. I get sick of sipping plain water and find that a little extra fizz can make it easier to drink adequate amounts.

Dinner

Once the seminar was over, I headed home and hung out with Ryan and his cousin for a bit while preparing dinner.

On the menu this evening was stuffed peppers!

I’ve never made stuffed peppers before and after seeing a recipe for stoplight stuffed peppers on Janetha’s blog, I knew I had to give ‘em a go!

I followed her recipe for the most part, but omitted some ingredients and changed the amounts of others.

Luckily with all of my changes they still turned out delicious!

Though the stuffed peppers looked all fancy sitting up straight, I cut into mine before digging in to make sure the chicken filling was cooked all the way through. It was a good thing I did because the meat wasn’t fully cooked.

After another 8 minutes in the oven, the peppers were ready for eatin’.

The end result was really, really tasty!

Plus, we have lots of chicken filling that I cooked in a loaf pan along with the peppers leftover to enjoy in the upcoming days.

And now it’s time to enjoy the lovely company of Ryan and Sadie for the rest of the evening.

See ya in the morning. Let’s hope tomorrow starts off a little chilly again!

Chicken ‘n’ Veggie Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground chicken
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 c chopped mushrooms
• 1 packet Knorr vegetable soup mix
• 1/2 c. marinara sauce
• 3 egg whites
• 3/4 c. salsa
• 2 – 4 large bell peppers

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Mix chicken through salsa in a bowl
• Cut off tops of peppers and remove the insides
• Fill peppers with chicken mixture and bake for 40 minutes to an hour, until chicken mixture is fully cooked
• Enjoy as is, or top with ketchup or hot sauce

*Note: You may cook any leftover chicken filling in a loaf pan and enjoy it as a chicken meatloaf.