blehhhhhh....

i have been so super lazy and gross lately. it's a good thing i keep taking pictures, because it's a great way to gauge my weight loss.. or lack thereof. my goal this week is to get up off the couch - no excuses, and write down everything i eat. wish me luck!!

i did finish a few projects this week. i copied the '4-pack' ideas on tipjunkie and made a chocolate one for my girlfriend lisa. i can't wait to send it to her. i also did a cupcake cake and cookies for a friend's daughter's first birthday. the cupcake cake didn't turn out as cute as i would have liked, but the cookies are adorable! also, i spent a lot of time making fondant flowers with my new flower-shaping tools, and decorated the outside of the cake with them. plus, they made the extra batch of store-bought cake mix cupcakes i made look uber-cute.

i should be updating my picasaweb account shortly - we got a new camera! yay!

delish dinner!

i just made a delicious dinner.. after searching on the web for something to make with stuff i have on hand right now.. had to share!


Ingredients:

4 medium boneless skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup reduced fat buttermilk
1 tsp dried thyme
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup flour
1 tbsp oil (i used canola)
1 chicken bouillon (i used the low-sodium packet from trader joe's)
i also used a bit of emeril's 'essence' as i do in a lot of my chicken recipes

1. In a bowl, mix chicken with 1/2 cup buttermilk. I let it sit and tenderize for a while. In a separate shallow bowl, mix flour, thyme, salt, and I added about a tbsp of essence. Dip chicken in mixture to coat.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Place breaded chicken in hot oil and brown on both sides. Reduce heat and cook until done (it took about 10 minutes). Remove chicken from pan and keep warm.
3. In a measuring cup, mix 1 tbsp flour, bouillon, essence and 1 cup hot water. Stir mixture into skillet over medium high heat and cook until it boils and thickens. Stir in 1/4 cup buttermilk. Serve gravy with chicken.

While the chicken cooked I mixed up a batch of biscuits from the bisquick 'heart healthy' mix and non-fat milk. Those took about 8 minutes.

I served it with some microwaved frozen green beans and poured the gravy over everything. So super good.. next time I think I'll omit the oil in the pan - it added unnecessary fat. Other than that, it was fairly healthy, especially considering a lot of the buttermilk you soak the chicken in goes unused.

Adapted from: Good Housekeeping: Chicken with Buttermilk Gravy

must... craft....

i was surfing around craftster for v-day ideas and found an ADORABLE tea bag wallet.. i think i'm going to have to make it. i've got some scraps of fabric so i'll be making a tea bag wallet with matching cup cozy.. maybe for myself.. maybe for a gift.. we shall see!

wallet tutorial

cozy tutorial

favorite DIY websites... etc...

for me, being crafty and creative has to come from somewhere.. i'm not the most innovative person in the world. so, i look to others for inspiration. i love tutorials, and fun ideas i find around the internet, in books, and in magazines (ahem.. martha stewart.. haha). i wanted to put down a list of websites i often go to for inspiration..

cookies/baking:

Clever Cookie

Elenis NY

Cookies by Design

Rolling Pin Productions

Fancy Flours

Copper Gifts

Crafts/Gifts:

Tip Junkie

Etsy

Craftster

Sewing

Craftzine

i love DIY.. i look at a lot of home sites as well (HGTV, DIY network, etc) and watch a ton of home shows.. but i'm still getting a hang of decorating in the house =)

FUN FUN!

Feeling yucky today...

I don't know WHAT I ate yesterday that made me feel this gross.. but something didn't agree with me. Regardless.. I'm at work.. pushing through.

I'm working on being frugal whilst getting food that's good for me! The best place in the world to do that - farmer's market!! This weekend it wasn't the best.. but I got some good stuff. Some baby spinach and new potatoes that looked really great. A giant bunch of parsley for $1! I think I need to make some soup. I got some carrots but no one had celery... I'll just have to get some tomorrow. I'm excited for the markets to start looking like summer.. but if it stays cold like it has been, I won't be seeing fruit anytime soon!

I have found target to be my best friend.. a lot of their stuff not on sale is a great deal.. like hostess 100 calorie packs for $3 and their archer farms products. Also, their zone bars (my breakfast of choice.. packing 15 grams of protein per bar) are only $4.50 for a 5-pack.

My food picks right now:

Freeze-dried fruit - I usually get it at Trader Joe's, but it can be kinda pricey. Costco carries Brothers All Natural, but you can also buy them online (1 point per pouch)

Yoplait Light dessert flavors - their strawberry shortcake, boston creme pie, apple turnover and pineapple upsidedown cake will kill a sweet craving for me any day (2 points each)

Zone Double Dark Chocolate bars - Sure, they're 4-5 points each, but with my coffee when I start work at night.. they're the best. The 15 grams of fiber in each bar keep me satisfied until I get my lunch break around 3am (4-5 points each)

Fuji apples - I've recently gained a newfound respect for these delicious things. They are so sweet and so juicy.. I love eating them after lunch at work.. and then I find myself not craving anything sweet. (1-2 points each)

Almond Milk - 40 calories for a cup, you can't beat it! I use it in cooking, cereal, coffee.. I'm not a milk person, so I don't drink it straight.. but I hear it's delicious! (1 point per cup)

Newton's fruit crisps - I've only had the apple cinnamon, but they are AMAZING!!! I really can't rave about these enough. I've even gotten my roommate hooked on them. They taste like.. drumroll please... McDonalds apple pies!!! It's 100 calories per package, and you get 2 of them!!! INCREDIBLE!!! (2 points per pack)

That's all folks!! I'll be back with photos of my homemade christmas gifts soon...