Week @ A Glance: What I've Got Cooking & What I'm Buying

Yesterday was grocery day for me. We just returned from an amazing week-long vacation to Disney World (my FAVE place on earth) and had nothing to eat in our house. So, I thought it might be helpful to some to show you, my beloved blog audience, how I plan out my grocery trips & what I buy.

How I Start
To plan out my grocery list, I take a quick inventory of my pantry and figure out what necessities are missing and what we already have on stock. I have this fun checklist I use every time I do this. I am a little obsessed with it. I think someone got it for me as a gag but didn't realize that it would become my kitchen sidekick.

My Typical Staple Items:
Oats
Onions & Garlic (they're in the same family, did you know that? So logically, I can't bear to separate them)
Italian Seasoning
Kosher Salt
Jars of pasta sauce
1-2 varieties of frozen veggies
Milk & Eggs (obvious)
Rice (I mix 1/2 brown and 1/2 as a marital compromise)
Salsa
Smart Balance
Limes & Lemons (I season food with these a LOT)
Light Olive Oil (not EVOO because it has a low smoke point - I use this for low temp cooking)
Canola Oil (I use this for baking and sautéing since it has a higher smoke point)


Once I do an inventory of my staple items and decide what I need to stock up on, I move to the second step of my shopping list prep...




Meal Planning
I begin this process in a somewhat unorganized way... I just decide what I'm in the mood for. Sometimes I will have seen something on TV or been inspired in another way to cook something in particular. Regardless of what it is, I try to find a recipe and modify it (if necessary) to make it healthy. Also, I usually see something in produce or in the meats on sale and plan recipes around it. When I buy produce or meat for one recipe, I try to make another dish using the leftovers of that produce to reduce waste. Especially if it's a B1G1 item. So here's my meal plan for this week:

Breakfast
1 box cereal
Yogurt (typically the large tub of fat-free vanilla)
Fruit (whatever is on sale)
Oatmeal
Boiled egg
Bagels & cream cheese (always 1/3rd less fat)

Lunch (M,T,W,Thr,F)
We are so busy that we usually will bring leftovers from dinner OR pack sandwiches & healthy sides. With this in mind, I planned on getting some sandwich making stuff (meat, cheese, lettuce, tomato, a bread) and some sides (fruit cups, fresh fruit, pretzels, peanut butter, fresh veggies, granola bars, etc).

Dinner
This is the fun part! Here are my meals for the week (and links to the recipes)...
Monday ~ Mozzarella Stuffed Turkey Meatballs with marinara over whole grain pasta
Tuesday ~ Chicken & Spinach Quesadillas with Refried Beans
Wednesday ~ Pulled Pork BBQ Sandwiches on Whole Grain Rolls, Grilled Corn on the Cob, & vegetarian baked beans **Happy 4th of July!**
Thursday ~ Eggplant & Spinach Curry with Indian-style rice
Friday ~ Out of town (eating out)
Saturday ~ Out of town 
Sunday ~ Grilled Eggplant and Squash Casserole



This Weeks Grocery List:

1 lb. ground turkey
2 (1 lb). packages BSC (my abbreviation for boneless, skinless chicken breast... get used to it, y'all.)
1 package deli turkey breast
2 packages pre-seasoned pork shoulders (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie)
5 ears of corn (it's in season and cheap!!)
1 block mozzarella cheese
1 block sharp cheddar cheese
1 large eggplant
1 bunch cilantro
3 limes
1 bag lemons
2 cans chopped tomatoes
1 can fat-free refried beans
1 package whole grain tortillas
1 package whole grain pita bread
2 packages sabra hummus (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie!)
3 small cans sliced black olives
1 gallon milk
1 box PB corn puffs (I shopped hungry... oops! Splurge item!)
1 carton large eggs
1 bags spinach (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie)
1 Frescheta frozen pizza - Canadian Bacon & Pineapple (we ALL have those nights, people.)
2 packages Dole pear chunks, packed in water (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie)
2 packages sugar-free instant oatmeal (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie)
2 jars of pasta sauce (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie)
2 packages bagels (B1G1 @ Winn Dixie)


As you can see, I really utilize the whole B1G1 thing and it saves me a lot of money! I'll just freeze whatever I'm no going to use for later (like meats, breads, & produce). With my meals I planned, you probably noticed that I planned out recipes that would use up my produce because that's usually the food that gets shoved to the back of the fridge and ends up rotting. Less waste = $$ saved!!


Quick Label Reading
Last thing I thought I should share is my label reading process for quickly judging if a food is worth the purchase. This applies mainly to packaged foods/drinks, cereal, and bread. I don't like to spend forever reading labels but realize it's importance. I won't go into elaborate detail on these, I'll save that for another post. So here are the main things I look for (in order):

1) Serving size & servings per container - this piece of info helps you interpret the whole nutrition label. This label says 1 cup, but there are two in the whole container... so if you are likely to eat the whole thing, interpret the rest of the label x2. Get it?

2) Fat profile (total, saturated, trans, & others) - I go in order of the fats on the label and I follow a simple rule based on the AHA guidelines... 5-3-0. This means:

• Total < 5 grams per serving
• Saturated < 3 grams per serving
• Trans = 0 grams per serving (I do NOT buy things containing trans fats, period.)

3) Calories - I am not a fan of calorie counting, which is why I really don't look too hard at calories. However, I do have some basic guidelines when looking at a label:

• For a snack food, between 100-200 calories.
• For a cereal, between 100-200 calories.
• For a drink, between 0-10 calories.

4) Sodium - This one is important and I follow pretty tight guidelines on it:

• Great = <150 mg per serving
• Good = < 300 mg per serving
• Acceptable = < 450 mg per serving
• A big fat NO = > 500 mg per serving

5) Ingredients List - Looking at this next helps me to decide if I need to look any further at the other content on the label. A good rule of thumb is to look at the first 3-4 ingredients to know if the product is worth the purchase. This is because the ingredients list is in order based on how much of each ingredient is in the product. For example, if I see that the 3rd ingredient is brown sugar I will then look at the sugar in the label to see if it's high or not (it likely is). I try to always make sure that the first 3 ingredients are NOT a form of sugar, high fructose corn syrup, salt, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils, or something else that is obviously unhealthy. 

After those 5 things, I will keep reading the label if I'm still not convinced about a product. But chances are that I won't buy it if it doesn't make it past the first two items in my list. As you can see, the sample label above wouldn't make it past #2 (the fats... hence the trans fats and high saturated fat. YUCK.)

Why I Believe in Meal Planning

1) It saves $$$$!

2) Diversity - you'll likely have more meal choices and learn to cook new things.

3) It helps you shop wisely - you won't be prone to buy tons of unhealthy things if you have a plan.

How do you plan your shopping list? Do you have any different methods?Do you read labels? 

Foodie Alert: General Tsao's Kiwano Chicken

Ready for a KILLER recipe? Using a fruit that looks like a torture device?

I bet you have seen a Horned Melon in the grocery store andthought, “What the heck is that?” One weekend, my husband and I were groceryshopping and looking through the produce aisle. As I am meandering through the crowdat Whole Foods, I hear him ask at a distance from behind me, “Can we buy this?”I turn around to see him holding this spiky, radical looking…thing. I wasn’tsure if it was a fruit or vegetable, but I’m always up for trying new things.So, in the cart it went and I started researching.

Then, I came across this video on how to make a version of General Tsao’schicken using this melon. (My apologies for the bada** comment and annoying noises...)

For those that know my husband and I, you alreadyknow of our affinity for anything Asian. This one was a no brainer... had to make it.

However, I found that this could be modified to make ithealthier without compromising taste. Although I baked my chicken instead offrying it, I found a trick to really getting a crunchy coating… and I can’twait to share it! I’d go as far to say that this might be the best recipe I’veever made. So run to the store right now and grab one of these horned melons! 

Grab it gently… they are really spiky, after all.

General Tsao’s Kiwano Chicken (modified)

Number of Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1 Horned Melon

1 T. cornstarch 

1/8^th cup of water

2 T fish sauce

1/4^th cup chicken broth

1 inch piece chopped ginger

½ cup agave nectar

1 tsp. peanut oil.

1 Package boneless, skinless chicken breast

1/2 cup fat-free milk

1 cup panko bread crumbs

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Rice Noodles

Cilantro (optional)

Sriracha (optional)

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.


2.     To cut open the horned melon, wash the skin and place on a cutting board. Using a chef's knife, cut lengthwise. You will be pretty surprised by the inside of this weird melon...

Next, squeeze out the fruit and seeds into a finestrainer over a small mixing bowl. I recommend using a knife to carve off the spikes before you start squeezing this thing, unless you enjoy pain.

Use a spoon, spatula, or your hands to mashthe fruit until the jelly and juices are strained leaving the seeds behind.

3.    Make a slurry using 1 T. cornstarch and 1/8^thcup of water. Mix into melon juice with 2 T fish sauce, 1/4^th cupchicken broth, 1 inch piece chopped ginger, ½ cup agave nectar,  and a splash of peanut oil. Mix well.

4.    Cut some boneless chicken breast into cubes. And here comes my trick to getting a crunchy coat on your baked chicken... first, soak the chicken in 1/2 cup fat-free milk for 10 minutes. Next, toss chicken in a separate bowl with 1 cup panko bread crumbs, 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper, and 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes. Return the chicken to the milk gently. You may have to add more milk in this step, which is fine. Try to not remove the bread crumb coating when you add the liquid. Toss the chicken a second time in the panko bread crumbs. The trick is the bread the chicken pieces twice. However... this will NOT work well if the bread crumb mixture gets too wet. Make sure that you're careful not to transfer too much milk when you remove the chicken. Once you've got the chicken breaded, place on a pan coated with cooking spray and bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Flip chicken pieces and bake longer if not fully cooked. Set aside.

5.      Cook melon mixture until it starts to bubble all over.Will begin to reduce and become clear. Once it is clear, add chicken andcompletely coat.

6.     Cook about 1/2 package of rice noodles according to directions. No need to add seasonings to this, although you could toss the noodles in 1-2 tsp. peanut oil for a little extra flavor. I found that the sauce from the chicken seasoned the noodles perfectly and provided my tongue a little break from all the spice! 

Make a bed of 1/2 cup of rice noodles in the bowl and place chicken on top with a heaping spoon of sauce. Top with some fresh chopped cilantro and sriracha sauce (if it's not already spicy enough for you). This is very impressive and super easy to make!



The Nutritionals (per serving):
343 calories
43 gm carbohydrate
8 gm fat
30 gm protein



This dish is high in protein, low in saturated fat, and VERY filling! With less than 400 calories per bowl, this is an Asian dish that will not affect your waistline. Make sure you stick to your serving sizes though! So to all my foodie friends, try this out and let me know what you think!