Two is better than one

I saw two recipes I really wanted to try. So I decided the flavors seemed like they would go together well. I started with a recipe I saw on Pinterest, Honey Lime Chicken Skewers:
 http://www.kitchenmeetsgirl.com/uncategorized/honey-lime-chicken-skewers/

Pretty tasty looking, if I do say so myself. They are just kebabs, though. What to add that won't be blah next to these delish treats? That's where the two is better than one comes in, I decided to try a rice recipe I found on one of my favorite sites, Skinny Taste.
http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/04/fiesta-lime-rice.html

This was a perfect combination, and while neither are my own recipes, I felt I should share this delicious combo, because it's easy and healthy and tasty.

Enjoy!

Are you ready for some football? (Or just fall in general...)

Even living in Southern California, I love fall! I love the football, the crisp feel to the air, and in some areas (few and few far between here) the changing of the leaves. Oh, and the food ;-)
While it's not quite fall, it is football season and apple season should be in full bloom in the next few weeks. Simply means for me they are lower in price, and therefore one of my fruits of choice for the next few months.

So I tend to spend my Sundays this time of the year in a near hibernation-like state. The difference being that instead of stuffing myself pre-hibernation, I am stuffing myself continuously throughout the day. So I am constantly in search of healthy snacks I can make that will be quick and easy and not require much time in the kitchen away from my football game (GO BRONCOS!)
I know there are a lot of prepackaged apple dips available in the stores now, but I tend to shy away from them because I am never sure of the sugar content or preservatives. I am trying to have as much control as possible in my food choices, even my indulgences.

So here is my take on apple dip. I am sure it is a mix of things I have seen elsewhere, but something I threw together which had a very high David rating, and even ranked high on the hipster dog scale...

I just wanted an excuse to share the adorable picture of my Sera dog wearing her knit "cap". It was a knit water bottle holder that David's sister made for us that somehow ended up on Sera's head. And when she wears it I think she looks like a little "hipster" :)
So I am not looking for a Sera Dog rating, but am taking ideas to indicate a "David rating"
Please comment with any ideas.
Back to the matter at hand:

Peanut Butter Yogurt Apple Dip!

The name says it all.

2/3 cup Plain Greek Yogurt

1 Tbsp Peanut Butter

1 Tbsp Honey

1 Large Apple

Mix all ingredients except for apple together in small bowl. Stir until smooth and well mixed. Feel free to taste and add more honey and peanut butter if needed.

Cut apple into slices and serve!

I used Fat free greek yogurt, Fuji apples, and all natural peanut butter.  I probably used a little less than the serving size I used to count the calories, but this is a pretty close count. If anything, it is less.

The calorie count is: 278 calories. 

Just an example

So I'm not exactly saying this is a personal recipe, because it's not at all original or made from scratch. But let me show you an example of one of my favorite meals and how I made it a little bit healthier....

First of all, it's homemade pizza. Second of all, I bought the dough...doh! It is one of those premade pizza doughs they sell either in the freezer or deli section of most supermarkets. It is whole wheat, and I did figure it into the final calorie count at the end. Oh yeah, and I had David roll it out for me. I always seem to end up with a giant hole in the middle of my dough!
So let's check where we're at so far...switched up from regular pizza dough to whole wheat. Don't think it makes a whole bunch of difference calorie wise, but always choose whole wheat if given the option!
Next for the toppings...
I used the really finely shredded mozzarella and pepperoni. I used a fairly good amount of cheese, but probably less than a serving size from the nutritional info on the package. Good news. You don't have to eat just plain cheese pizza for the rest of your life. I used turkey pepperoni, and each slice (serving) has approximately 2 pieces. Very minimal on calories and fat :).
Then for the tomato sauce, I always have those small cans of plain tomato sauce in my cabinet. They are perfect for just this occasion. I simply pour it into a bowl and mix in the spices I want. A little garlic, oregano, red pepper, etc. I used about 2, 2.5 tablespoons for the entire pizza.
One more side note, I use a pizza stone, so there is no need to add any oil to the bottom.
I'm sure there are more places where I can still cut down calories, but not bad for a quick meal requiring very little thought and ingredients.
And the total calorie count per slice of homemade pizza: 208. Keep this in mind, Papa John's slice of pepperoni pizza: 330.
Enjoy!

Pizza stone :)

http://www.pizzacrustyeast.com/Detail.aspx?id=8abc6c42-6877-4d25-9254-99ada3ddf285I found a great dough recipe. It is pretty darn easy. And I usually just switch at least a cup of the flour for whole wheat flour.

New Blog...

Oh boy! Where to start?
So this is kind of a long time coming. I've always loved to cook, and I've always been preoccupied with my weight. Until recently, the two have not gone well together. But through many inspirations, I have been able to learn how to combine the two obsessions into something, well, quite wonderful and enjoyable.

So why am I doing this blog? Because David said, "Why don't you write a blog?" Ha ha, just kidding. I mean, he did say that, but there are numerous other reasons. One, my current profile picture shows this wonderful recipe book I found in a thrift store. It has recipes and newspaper clippings dating from the mid-sixties to seventies. Awesome! In looking through it, I kept thinking, wouldn't it be nice if I could replicate these recipes, but with a modern and healthier twist on them? So then I began searching the internet for updates to some of these recipes. Then I began recreating not only the recipes from the book, but also from these wonderful blogs and sites.
The more recipes I tried, the more excited I got. And the more often David asked, "Why don't you write a blog?" So, why not?
So here's the deal, I'm going to try to post one new recipe a week. I'll post them, good or bad, as long as you follow me along this journey. I'll also post links from some of the sites I get my inspiration from.
Some of the things I'm going to try to do:
Find the closest recipe I can to my grandmother's sour cream coffee cake and put a new "Chefster Shelly" spin on it. But that will probably have to wait until the weather cools down, as will most of my baking ventures.
I want to make the healthiest,  best tasting mac and cheese ever.
I want to make a low-carb grilled cheese.
Healthy fried chicken, anyone?
Basically, I'm going to start by revamping some of my favorite foods :)
In the mean time, please let me know if you have any requests or recipe ideas, or just any comments in general. Feedback is always welcomed and appreciated.