Beans, Beans, the Magical Fruit...

By and far the best beans I've ever eaten came out of the recipe I made for dinner last night.

Tuscan Chicken


The chicken was good, but the Italian style beans made this dish a total winner and it will be in my culinary line up from now on. It's basically cannellini beans, petite diced tomatoes, fresh rosemary, fresh spinach, bacon, onion, and fresh garlic with some salt and pepper. To. Die. For. And once you get all the prep done (which involved massacring a whole chicken with my dull knives) it's really easy to throw together. The hardest part was cutting up the bird and really, if I weren't so cheap, I'd have just bought one already cut up!

I got the base of the recipe from the October Issue of Cooking Light and then jazzed it up from there and made it more my family friendly. It was a huge success and both the husband and 3ft inhaled their food. And just so there is no confusion, you read it right, it has BACON! I love bacon. Mmmmm *drooling*. Oh, sorry. Got lost there for a second in bacony goodness.

I love trying new foods and new recipes. It helps me avoid food boredom. And that is something I've learned can be very detrimental to a healthy lifestyle. To be honest it wasn't only getting pregnant with the Grumpybutt that helped me gain nearly half the weight I lost he was the excuse I used to eat the foods I was missing in mass quantities. I've found with all the new things I'm trying, I'm not bored and not craving empty calories and junk food which, let me tell you, makes it easier to control the portions when I do eat something less than stellar for me. Plus I'd never have known how delicious quinoa is or cannellini beans.

I've upped my push ups and crunches again. I'm now up to 80 push ups (40 twice a day) and 350 crunches (175 twice a day). And then I've been throwing in the "plank" (which I hate more than push ups) and some scissor kicks and whatnot for my lower abdomen (which I hate more than the "plank"). The things I do to maintain my healthy lifestyle.

--Previous Day Tracking --

Exercise - 30 minute power walk, 350 crunches, and 80 push ups

Healthy Lifestyle - Day 140

Only Water - Day 134

Total Pounds Lost - 52.9

Meals:
Breakfast - FiberOne Raisin Bran Clusters w/ homemade almond milk
Morning Snack - FiberOne Granola Bar
Lunch - Roast beef sandwich and grapes
Mid-Afternoon Snack - 1/2 peanut butter and banana sandwich
Dinner -Tuscan Chicken