In keeping with my goal of eating clean again after the holidays, we've been staying away from takeout and sweets and doing a bunch of cooking the last few days. Friday nights are always tough because neither Matt or I feel like cooking after a long work week, and pretty much always want to order dinner out and curl up on the couch. But I had some lox and arugula in the fridge I'd picked up for my favorite Norwegian Eggs Benedict, and who says you can't have breakfast for dinner?
I skipped the hollandaise sauce but served up whole wheat Vermont Organic English muffins topped with a spread of Organic Valley cream cheese, a pile of arugula, wild caught smoked salmon and a fried egg. I seriously never get sick of this. I could eat lox every single day.
Saturday morning started with Greek yogurt & berry bowls with dried fruits and walnuts on top.
I'm still on the lookout for a good organic Greek yogurt...I don't really like Cabot or Stonyfield Farms, and much prefer the texture of Fage or Chobani, which I've had to grudgingly ditch because of their GMO practices. If you have an organic Greek that you like, please share!
I had high hopes of going to Saturday morning yoga, but felt a little under the weather and my body was telling me to stay home and rest instead. So rest, I did. And then made some fantastic sandwiches for lunch.
I filled some whole wheat pita pockets with artichoke & kalamata olive hummus, carrots, cucumbers and wild caught salmon. I seared the salmon in my cast iron skillet and then flaked it up and squeezed on some fresh lemon. The warm salmon and cold, crunchy veggies were a great combo.
It was also really filling. Matt had to help me eat my second half. Protein power!
Saturday afternoon included a couple errands and some kitchen time, all to prep for the big Pats game last night.
It's playoffs baby! We had a few friends over last night to watch the games with us, and fun snacks must be had when watching important football games with friends.
For the 4:00 game we nibbled on some canapes our friend Forrest brought over, along with a batch of my buffalo blue cheese pierogies. I stowed a bag of them in the freezer the last time I made them, so yesterday I only had to cook them up and toss them with hot sauce and blue cheese. Yum. A little carb-heavy, I know, but they were completely scratch made (dough and all), so, you know - it's all good.
Next up was making pizza dough for a pizza bar dinner. I adore making homemade dough; there's just nothing like the smell of yeast and the process of mixing and kneading by hand. I didn't realize my dough recipe actually made two pies, so I accidentally made enough dough for 7 pizzas. Whoooops. At least we have plenty of dough in the freezer for Superbowl. ;)
Other snacks included a homemade hot spinach mascarpone dip, and an all-organic 7 layer dip made by Heather. Her dip was so, so good and got completely devoured.
When the 8:00 game came on, it was pizza time!
We made a plain one for the kids, a mushroom one, a green olive one, and then a specialty pie with paleo crust, goat cheese, Brussels sprouts and balsamic drizzle. That last one was a gamble but came out tasting really good. Recipe coming soon!
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This morning thankfully Riker let us sleep in until 8 am, which I was praying he would do since I stayed up late watching the game last night. It's a sad, sad day when you consider 11:30 "late." Oy.
To kick off the day I made us breakfast plates of Nature's Path waffles with peanut butter, bananas and Vermont maple syrup. On the side I had two slices of Lightlife non-GMO soy "bacon." This is the first time I've bought the bacon and I'm really not a fan. It's just too much of a stretch for me.
Next up on the list was switching gyms. This has been on my to-do list for a long time. Matt and I actually hate our current (now old) gym; it feels dark and dingy and half the machines are always broken. We finally did something about it today and canceled the dungeon gym in favor of another spot, which is much bigger, cleaner and brighter. While there I got in a treadmill + light weights workout and can already tell I'll like this place much better. And hopefully that means I'll go more often too.
When we got home, Riker went down for a nap and Matt and I got to work on making lunch. I made big salads while Matt made a homemade Caesar dressing from my Eat Clean cookbook. It's made with yogurt, dijon mustard, real anchovies (which, if I'm being honest is the reason I made Matt make the dressing - I like the taste of anchovies, but definitely not the look of them) and a bunch of seasonings.
It was so good! We made a triple batch so we have it in the fridge for the week. I ate my salad with a leftover piece of olive pizza on the side. Perfect little Sunday lunch.
And with that, Riker just woke up so we're going to head out for a family walk and take advantage of the warm weather today. Then it's back for the Broncos game (rooting for the Chargers here...not really feeling a Broncos vs. Pats Championship next weekend...), and putting together a seafood gratin for dinner.
How's your weekend going? Hope you enjoy the last few hours of it!
