6th and last week of the 2013 challenge
6th and last week! Next Monday all of our accomplishments will be posted. Oh, I hope I lost at least 6 lbs. Gulp. Okay here we go for our last two recipes.
Annie Adams recipe:
Quinoa Salad Recipe with Roasted Beets, Chick Peas, Baby Spinach and Orange
This is a totally vegan quinoa salad recipe, but if you enjoy a little goat cheese now and then, I think this salad would be delightful with a crumble of fresh, organic goat cheese. I've also served this quinoa salad with a sprinkle of toasted slivered almonds.
Ingredients:
3 cups cooked quinoa
2 beets, trimmed and quartered
Olive oil
Sea salt
1/4 cup fruity olive oil
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2 teaspoons organic gluten-free tamari sauce
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar or rice vinegar
1 tablespoon organic raw agave nectar or local honey
1 cup drained rinsed chick peas
2 big handfuls of baby spinach leaves
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
1 fresh orange, peeled, trimmed, cut into bite sized pieces
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
Here's how to cook quinoa in a rice cooker. While the quinoa is cooking, roast the beets in a medium size roasting pan, by combining the beets with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle of sea salt. Place the pan in the center of the oven and roast until the beets are tender (roughly 45 minutes). Remove the beets from the hot pan and set them aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, rub off the skin. Cut the beets into bite sized pieces.
To make the dressing, combine the olive oil, orange juice, GF tamari, vinegar, and agave in a glass measuring cup and whisk. Set aside.
Combine the warm, cooked quinoa in a mixing bowl with the chick peas and baby spinach leaves. Pour in the salad dressing and toss lightly. Season with sea salt and pepper, to taste.
Gently add in the cut up roasted beets and fresh orange pieces. Do not over mix or your entire salad will turn beet red. I think it's more attractive to keep the staining to a minimum.
Serve with a sprinkle of fresh goat cheese, or slivered almonds, if desired. Serves 4.
And a recipe from Melissa Mayhue
ITALIAN CHICKEN STRIPS
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breast meat, cut into 1-inch strips
1 large clove garlic, pressed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup diced onion
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add chicken; season with garlic, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper. Stir-fry until chicken is browned on all sides. Add onion and sauté until chicken is cooked through.
Makes 2 servings, approximately 240 calories per serving.
Author Spotlight
Melissa Mayhue
My name is Melissa Mayhue and while I sometimes love to cook, I always love to eat! I began writing in 2005 and my first book, THIRTY NIGHTS WITH A HIGHLAND HUSBAND, hit shelves in July 2007. Though I've always struggled with my weight, spending my days sitting at a computer has made that struggle even more pronounced. I've continued to add pounds because when I'm running short on time, the few good eating habits I've worked to build go right out the window and I grab whatever is fast and easy -- often high fat/high calorie/high carbohydrate foods and drinks.
I've often joked that it took an entire pint of Godiva Dark Chocolate ice cream to get me through writing my first sex scene... but the pounds I've added from exactly that sort of writing behavior is no joke.
I know from experience that in order to drop pounds, my diet needs to be higher in protein and lower in carbs. The dietary plan I'll be following for the course of the challenge will provide exactly that mix. http://www.melissamayhue.com/
Warrior Reborn Buy Links: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Simon and Schuster
Everyone's weekly accomplishments
Melissa Mayhue: One pound for me. So far, with the down and up and down again, I've managed a total of 4 pounds down. Sheesh. It didn't used to be this hard to get pounds off!!!!! Two days of walking. I need to increase that this week.
Annie Adams: I ate lots and lots of calories on superbowl Sunday and for the rest of the week, really. I increased my exercise by double though, so I'm holding steady. No weight lost or gained again. It will be tough to get the exercise in this week due to the holiday, but I will get at least 3 days of cardio in, and I will do my push ups and sit ups each day.
Marie Sterbenz: Once again it's just a half pound, at this rate it will take me 12 weeks to lose 6 pounds. However I'll take. A loss is a loss.
Stanalie Flecther: I stayed even, no loss, no gain this. But I was able to get back in to my walking routine for at 10 mins a day.
Judy Baker: I completed all my work outs this week and for the first time looked forward to stretching the kinks out and actually sweating.
Mary Martinez: I was food challenged this week and I'm proud to say I didn't gain! I stayed the same. I'll take it. I walked my 10 minutes each weekday, and yet again I forgot to do my hand weights. Maybe someone needs to bop me on the head with them.
Monday February 18, 2013, final check in! Drop by and see what our final results for the six weeks are!
Annie Adams recipe:
This is a totally vegan quinoa salad recipe, but if you enjoy a little goat cheese now and then, I think this salad would be delightful with a crumble of fresh, organic goat cheese. I've also served this quinoa salad with a sprinkle of toasted slivered almonds.
Ingredients:
3 cups cooked quinoa
2 beets, trimmed and quartered
Olive oil
Sea salt
1/4 cup fruity olive oil
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
2 teaspoons organic gluten-free tamari sauce
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar or rice vinegar
1 tablespoon organic raw agave nectar or local honey
1 cup drained rinsed chick peas
2 big handfuls of baby spinach leaves
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
1 fresh orange, peeled, trimmed, cut into bite sized pieces
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
Here's how to cook quinoa in a rice cooker. While the quinoa is cooking, roast the beets in a medium size roasting pan, by combining the beets with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle of sea salt. Place the pan in the center of the oven and roast until the beets are tender (roughly 45 minutes). Remove the beets from the hot pan and set them aside to cool. When cool enough to handle, rub off the skin. Cut the beets into bite sized pieces.
To make the dressing, combine the olive oil, orange juice, GF tamari, vinegar, and agave in a glass measuring cup and whisk. Set aside.
Combine the warm, cooked quinoa in a mixing bowl with the chick peas and baby spinach leaves. Pour in the salad dressing and toss lightly. Season with sea salt and pepper, to taste.
Gently add in the cut up roasted beets and fresh orange pieces. Do not over mix or your entire salad will turn beet red. I think it's more attractive to keep the staining to a minimum.
Serve with a sprinkle of fresh goat cheese, or slivered almonds, if desired. Serves 4.
ITALIAN CHICKEN STRIPS
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breast meat, cut into 1-inch strips
1 large clove garlic, pressed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup diced onion
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add chicken; season with garlic, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper. Stir-fry until chicken is browned on all sides. Add onion and sauté until chicken is cooked through.
Makes 2 servings, approximately 240 calories per serving.
My name is Melissa Mayhue and while I sometimes love to cook, I always love to eat! I began writing in 2005 and my first book, THIRTY NIGHTS WITH A HIGHLAND HUSBAND, hit shelves in July 2007. Though I've always struggled with my weight, spending my days sitting at a computer has made that struggle even more pronounced. I've continued to add pounds because when I'm running short on time, the few good eating habits I've worked to build go right out the window and I grab whatever is fast and easy -- often high fat/high calorie/high carbohydrate foods and drinks.
I've often joked that it took an entire pint of Godiva Dark Chocolate ice cream to get me through writing my first sex scene... but the pounds I've added from exactly that sort of writing behavior is no joke.
I know from experience that in order to drop pounds, my diet needs to be higher in protein and lower in carbs. The dietary plan I'll be following for the course of the challenge will provide exactly that mix. http://www.melissamayhue.com/
Warrior Reborn Buy Links: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Simon and Schuster
Everyone's weekly accomplishments
Melissa Mayhue: One pound for me. So far, with the down and up and down again, I've managed a total of 4 pounds down. Sheesh. It didn't used to be this hard to get pounds off!!!!! Two days of walking. I need to increase that this week.
Annie Adams: I ate lots and lots of calories on superbowl Sunday and for the rest of the week, really. I increased my exercise by double though, so I'm holding steady. No weight lost or gained again. It will be tough to get the exercise in this week due to the holiday, but I will get at least 3 days of cardio in, and I will do my push ups and sit ups each day.
Marie Sterbenz: Once again it's just a half pound, at this rate it will take me 12 weeks to lose 6 pounds. However I'll take. A loss is a loss.
Stanalie Flecther: I stayed even, no loss, no gain this. But I was able to get back in to my walking routine for at 10 mins a day.
Judy Baker: I completed all my work outs this week and for the first time looked forward to stretching the kinks out and actually sweating.
Mary Martinez: I was food challenged this week and I'm proud to say I didn't gain! I stayed the same. I'll take it. I walked my 10 minutes each weekday, and yet again I forgot to do my hand weights. Maybe someone needs to bop me on the head with them.
Monday February 18, 2013, final check in! Drop by and see what our final results for the six weeks are!
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