Weight Loss Using Bob Harper's "The Skinny Rules" - Chili Lime Tilapia Recipe

I know I've only touched on weight loss here before once or twice... but it's something I have dealt with for a long time. Who hasn't, really? I think we all struggle with weight loss, even if it's 100's of pounds to lose or just a few to look better in a bikini.

Our good friends embarked on their weight loss journey together and have found success. Mr. LOC and I could not be happier for them, as we know what a struggle it can be. So MAJOR congratulations to them (if they are reading! :). Mr. LOC and I had to know how they did it, and they shared their secret weapon...

Bob Harper "The Skinny Rules" - easy to follow rules for getting skinny, it's chock full of recipes, and has a full month's worth of meal plans, along with advice and things that make you realize it maybe, could be that easy if these rules could be followed.

We decided to get a copy. Yesterday we finished our first full day, and we're past breakfast on the second day. *fistpump*.

Last night's dinner was to be fish, cauliflower, and green beans. One of the benefits of this diet/lifestyle change, which is similar to other lower calorie diets, is that you can have any kind of seasonings/herbs to jazz up your food a little. Well, if you know me, I have a tendency to spice things up by adding a little extra (maybe that's how I got in this situation... whoops), but I realized I could do this the "skinny rules" way.

He has a great recipe for Roasted Fish in his book, but it was pretty basic. Salt, pepper, olive oil, roast and eat. Frowny face. After a quick flip through the rest of the book to make sure lime juice was okay, I rounded up some herbs and seasonings. May I present...

Today, I'm going to touch on the fish, but keep your eyes peeled for a post about the cauliflower!

Let's gather our ingredients:

• Olive oil
• Lime juice
• Garlic powder
• Black pepper
• Red pepper
• Sea salt
• Parsley
• Two tilapia fillets, completely thawed (I made this for Mr. LOC and I, and we only had one fillet each... you may want more for your family.)

You'll also want:
• A roasting pan or cookie sheet
• An oven
• Tinfoil

First, preheat your oven to 475. While your oven is preheating, stick your empty cookie sheet in the oven. Obviously, this pan is going to get pretty hot, so be careful when you put your fish on it in a later step.

To avoid extra fat, we're going to coat the tilapia using the lime juice instead of coating it in olive oil.

On one side, drip a little lime juice on the tilapia, or if you want, put the lime juice in your hand and coat the tilapia that way. Remember, that lime juice will have a bit of natural sugar so don't go crazy. Extra points if you use actual limes.

Then, take your garlic powder, black pepper, red pepper flakes, parsley, and sea salt and dash a little of each on the fish. Again, don't go nuts with the sea salt as we're also avoiding a ton of sodium here too.

Flip the fish over and repeat the process. Once your oven has heated to 475, tear a piece of tinfoil and give it a little bit of olive oil. Then place the tilapia on the foil. Carefully move the foil with the tilapia on to the hot cookie sheet in the oven. You can move your oven racks out carefully to make this step easier by sliding them out and then back in.

Roast for about 13-15 minutes. Watch the time on this one, I needed about 13 minutes, but the original calls for 8-10.

Get excited, you just made low calorie chili lime tilapia! :) The key here is to keep your modifications within the rules. Herbs and spices can really take something blah and make it great!

Keep your eyes peeled here for other Skinny Rules recipes and recipe modifications. We'll be back in a few days with roasted parm cauliflower! Thanks for following along!

It's Pinspired Friday! {3-2-1 Cupcakes in a Cup}

It's time for...

I am visiting my parents this week, and Mama LOC showed me this other alternative "few ingredient dessert", similar to my pumpkin muffins. Like the pumpkin muffins, these cupcakes in a cup have only three ingredients, and even better, a simple recipe formula - 3, 2, 1.

So why is this pinspiring? Is pinspiring even remotely a word? I put this in Pinspired Friday as I have seen very similar recipes on Pinterest, but have never given them a try. I've always wondered how they would taste, and I've always thought they would be a good alternative to a whole bunch of cupcakes that I'd just have to eat. ;) Hopefully, you'll share Mama LOC's recipe on Pinterest too so that others can try out the magical 3-2-1 cupcakes in a cup! :)

Here's what you'll need:
•  A box of angel food cake mix
• A box of funfetti cake mix (or any flavor you like...we like funfetti!)
• Water

You'll also want:
• A microwave
• A mug
• A tablespoon

And... that's it! How easy, cheap and awesome is that?

First, dump your angel food cake  mix and funfetti cake mix into a resealable bowl, and mix the flavors well. You can make a LOT of cupcakes in a cup out of these two mixes so make sure you can put your lid on tight to avoid it spoiling. Now, here's where the 3-2-1 comes in.

3 - add three tablespoons of mix to your mug.
2 - add two tablespoons of water to your mug and mix.
1 - cook for 1 minute in the microwave! (Mama LOC's microwave is older - you may find that 45 seconds will be adequate but 3-2-1 sounds so much better than 3-2-45. ;)

Here is the water and mix before you mix it up...

Cook it up (told you the microwave was old! ;)

And presto! A yummy, easy and low fat treat in less than a minute. Now, if you're like me, the angel food smell threw me off when I took it out of the microwave...but the taste is AWESOME...

And it's even better with a little cream cheese on top! :)

Thanks for following along! :) Let me know how these turned out for you! :)

I'm linking up to:

It's Pinspired Friday! {Crockpot/Oven Ranch Chicken Enchiladas}

Happy Friday! I've got something pretty good for you today - crockpot/oven ranch chicken enchiladas. nom.

I was inspired when I saw this pin:

Mom's Crazy Cooking - Ranch Chicken Enchiladas

But when I clicked through, the directions weren't super clear as to how to actually make it. I've done recipes before where you put the tortilla in the crockpot and they didn't turn out so good (incredibly spongey!) so I was a bit wary as it said to "put everything in the crockpot" as the first direction. Luckily I read on and learned that you make the enchiladas in a separate baking dish. (Someone else was as confused as me in the comments apparently, lol)

So honestly, they are not a struggle, and the result is GOOD... the corn tortillas really make it, it tastes very "authentic" mexican food because of them. I'm glad I went and got the corn tortillas instead of my usual flour ones.

I modified the original recipe so that it made plenty for two. You'll need:

• 2-3 chicken breasts - I used two smallish ones and a few tiny pieces that were in the bottom of the frozen bag. You can use frozen or thawed. I used frozen.
• 1/2 packet of dry ranch dressing (1 oz)
• 1/2 packet taco seasoning (1.1 oz)
• 1 cup of chicken broth (I used bouillon to make the broth)
• 1 packet of corn tortillas (I used 6, you'll probably have some left over too.)
• 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese
• bottled ranch dressing

You'll also want:
 • A crockpot
 • A glass baking dish
 • Pam spray

Place your frozen chicken breasts in the crockpot. I'm using my smaller crockpot here and it worked great (P.S... everyone should have a small and big crockpot. It will make your life so much easier and the small one is nice to bring to parties.)

Dump your ranch seasoning and taco seasoning over the chicken. Try to get most of it on the chicken, less of it on the pot as it'll just burn to the side of the pot. :(

Dump your chicken broth around the chicken. You don't want to wash away the seasoning you just put on. :) I then set my crockpot to "high" as it was about 3 o clock in the afternoon and I realized I had forgot to start dinner earlier! It actually turned out to be the perfect amount of time though. I cooked it on high for about 2 hours.

When about 2 hours have passed, carefully remove the chicken breasts from the crockpot and place on a plate or cutting board to shred the chicken. Using forks or your preferred shredding method, shred the chicken and place it back in the crockpot for another hour. This way, all of the chicken gets to soak up the yummy broth. You could probably turn it to low for this part, I left it on high.

When three total hours have passed, we can remove the chicken once again and start assembling the enchilada. Preheat your oven to 350. Grab your glass baking dish and give it a light spray of Pam.

Layer two corn tortillas on the bottom, followed by cheese, a little chicken, and a drizzle of ranch dressing. Follow this process until you are out of chicken. I had a bottom, middle, and top for a total of 6 tortillas.

On the top, I put just a little more cheese and more ranch dressing. Your oven should be preheated to 350 now, so place the dish in and let it bake for 20-30 minutes. You don't want the tortillas to get too dried out as they're hard to eat if you let it go much longer than 30 minutes.

And there you have it! Easy, on budget and so good! Thanks for following along and have a good weekend!

Love is in the Air... and so is a Sale! Plus, my favorite shops!

Hi all and Happy Valentine's Day! Love is in the air and so is a sale at Little Oak Creations!! Announcing...

 ♥♥ Little Oak Creations' Lovely Sale❣ ♥♥

Use Coupon Code "LOVELITTLEOAK13" for 15% off your purchase of anything in the store!

Oh boy! This even includes clearance items! Use this coupon code during checkout (all caps!). I will be running this sale from today, Feb. 14th, until the end of the month, Feb. 28th, so take a look at the store today! I'll be adding new items between now and then too, so make sure to check back often!

Also, I wanted to share the spotlight with some of my favorite stores on Etsy - they both carry unique items and they are also very talented and sweet people I know outside of the internet!

The Oval Hoop

The Oval Hoop specializes in gorgeous embroidery on dinner napkins. This sunflower set is one of my favorites. :) Any of her products would make a fantastic addition to any home. Please take a moment and check out her wonderful things!

jnTiedInKnots

jnTiedInKnots specializes in crocheting just about anything you could ever think of! Her specialty is crocheted hats of all shapes and sizes. Her products make great gifts, especially in this type of weather! Please take a moment and check out her wonderful things as well! Give her newly created blog some lovin' too!

That's all I have for today! See you tomorrow for Pinspired Friday!

Deep Fried Pike

 Over the weekend, Mr. Voyage On and Mr. LOC went ice fishing for pike. They caught 4 big pike and we decided to break in our new deep fryer by frying up some pike for dinner!

So we needed a good fried fish recipe. I like this one because I like beer batter and when you combine the flour with the yeast in the beer, it crisps up really nicely without a ton of effort.

This batter would be great on other types of fish too - my guess is that perch or bluegill would be fantastic with this... then again those are my favorite! ;)

Let's gather our ingredients:
• Pike or other fish - Pike does not give a lot of meat per fish as they have Y shaped bones that get in the way. If I had to guess, we yielded about 2-3 lbs of fish, cut into strips and chunks. We used 6 pike total - 4 from this weekend, 2 from the last, but your yield may vary. Luckily, it doesn't have to be perfect as you're just making a batter for the pike - you can always make more or throw out too much.
• 16 fl oz. of beer. I used one can of Coors Light.
• 2-3 eggs. I used three large eggs.
• Up to 2 cups of flour. I believe mine is all purpose.
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1-2 tablespoons of salt. I used about a tablespoon or less and it could have used a bit more.
• Dash of oregano

You'll also want:
• Oil for frying. We used vegetable oil.
• A deep fryer, ours is a 12 cup.
• Mixing bowls, plates, a butt-ton of soap to rinse off those fishy hands ;)

 I didn't take a ton of pictures of the process, as there is not much to the process! :)

First step is of course, filet and skin your fish. Or have the mister's do it. ;) Make them into 4"-5" strips, chunks, whatever.

In a mixing bowl, mix the pepper, salt, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and oregano. Crack open and mix in your eggs, and beat with a whisk until frothy. As you batter the fish, you'll want to give it a stir every once in a while as the spices will try to settle, and the more air, the loftier your batter is.

On a separate plate, dump about a cup of flour on a plate. This is for the second part of the batter. You may decide you want more flour, depending on how much fish you're making, but for starters, use a cup.

Start heating up your oil in the deep fryer. We turned ours to 350. Take your fish pieces, dunk them in the egg mixture, and then lightly coat them in the flour. One dunk of egg mixture, and one dunk of flour made that lofty batter you see in the top picture!

Put the battered pieces on a plate as you go, and then when your oil is hot, drop them in! We cooked about 10-12 pieces at a time at 350 for 5-7 minutes. When 5-7 minutes is up, dump your basket on a paper-toweled plate and let cool for a minute or two. Times may vary!

Enjoy! :)

It's Pinspired Friday! {Apple Cinnamon Burritos}

It's...

Hey all! I've got a recipe that is to. die. for. today! My sister-in-law and I were searching for the perfect afternoon snack one day and came across this recipe for Cinnamon Apple Dessert Chimichangas. We wanted something that was easy, and that we didn't have to make a grocery run for! ;)

Enter...Apple Cinnamon Burritos!



Cinnamon Apple Dessert Chimichangas from Juanita's Cocina



We cut the recipe in half because I was low on cornstarch, which is one of those that it seems like you have forever and then poof you are suddenly without! It still made about 10 good sized burritos, which was plenty for everyone to get a taste. Or to sneak two burritos, like my SIL and I did. Ha! :)

So first, let's gather our ingredients:

For the apple pie filling:

• 3 apples, peeled and diced. We used Granny Smith apples.

• 3/4 cup of water

• 1/8 cup of cornstartch

• 3/8 cup of sugar

• 1/4 tsp. of cinnamon

• 1/8 teaspoon of salt

• 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice

For the burritos:

• 5 burrito sized tortillas, cut in half

• 1/2 cup of sugar

• 1 tablespoon of cinnamon

• Vegetable oil for frying

You're also going to want:
• A saucepan
• A fry pan
• A shallow bowl

First, let's peel and dice our apples. As you can see, a little skin was left on but not much.

Combine the water, cornstartch, sugar, cinnamon, salt and lemon juice in a saucepan and bring it to a boil. We want it super thick, almost like caramel. 

Combined... and now get your mixture to look like this:

Now, add your chopped apples to the mixture and stir them in. Reduce the mixture to a simmer and stir the apples every few minutes. We want the apples to be softened, but not gooey, so about 10-15 minutes.

While this is going down... cut up your burrito sized tortillas in half if you have not already done so. Grab your fry pan and get the oil hot. Also, combine your cinnamon and sugar in a bowl.

Once your oil is hot, and you've let your apples simmer for about 10-15 minutes, let the filling cool slightly so you don't burn yourself, but not cool enough to congeal. We don't want to be putting basically applesauce in the burritos, we want that savory caramel taste and texture. Wrap the burritos with the filling inside, and place into the oil. You'll want to wrap them pretty tightly so the insides don't escape.

Fry them until the tortilla turns brown, flipping it with a spatula or tongs until all sides are browned. We knocked off any excess oil and then threw them in the sugar/cinnamon mix as each one completed, but if you want less oil, you can transfer them to a towel lined plate to absorb any excess oil. The way we did it made the cinnamon/sugar stay on the burrito nicely, so that's what I would recommend.  

Put them all on a platter and ENJOY! These left everyone wanting more! Thanks for following along and thank you to Juanita's Cocina for the inspiration!

Final Sale on Items in the Store!

Hi all!

A few items in my Etsy store are "expiring" soon - each item in my store stays active for four months, and if there are no takers, it expires and I am not planning to relist these items, so these items are considered "last chance!"

CLEARANCE REDUCED 30 Various Sizes Bright Fun Plastic Buttons Kids Crafts Vintage - Expires Feb. 11, Final Price $2.99 + shipping

CLEARANCE REDUCED Metal Plastic Button Mix Vintage Goldtone Silvertone Great for Costumes
Expires Feb. 17, Final Price $2.99 + shipping

CLEARANCE REDUCED Beautiful Vintage Tiered "Pearl" and "Crystal" Necklace Wedding Costume Jewelry

Expires Feb. 26 - Final Price $9.99

Baby Bird Hanging Mobile OOAK Green White Monkey Unisex Gift Baby Shower

 

 

Expires Feb. 26th - Final Price $39.99

Make sure to grab these while you can! :)

Adventures in T-Shirt Quilt Making

Happy Tuesday all! Today I am going to share my adventures in T-shirt quilt making!

It all started when one of my friends from high school contacted me about making a t-shirt quilt out of her husband's high school sport shirts. I had never made a t-shirt quilt before, but she had saw my craftiness through me sharing my blog posts to Facebook, and thought that I could give it a go. I decided to give a try, we met up and exchanged the shirts and material. How hard could it be, right?

A little background: I made two quilts a few Christmases ago for some friends and when I told the lady at the quilting store that I planned making two quilts by Christmas (this was October when I bought the material), she laughed at me. Well nyeahhh lady, I did end up finishing both before Christmas (maybe one was being finished about an hour before it was supposed to be given...) but I felt a bit burnt out on quilting and said I'd never do it again. Fast forward to today... ;) I wanted to help out a friend and do it for her much cheaper than other places that we saw, so I decided to do one more. :)

I told Mama LOC that this was my last quilt... and she said that it won't be. And she's probably right. :) We'll see. ha!


Back to our adventure!

First, each shirt had to be cut out. We used a total of 12 shirts, and tried to cut as much as possible from each shirt. You can see in the top right that I was trying to figure out how a thick panel of plaid was going to look between each shirt.

My friend picked out some neat yellow and black plaid flannel to go between each shirt. Plaid is a little harder to use as it can be hard to cut straight and sew straight - a little stray sewing can be very obvious, but if you can follow the lines of the plaid, it will be easier.

I sewed each horizontal panel of shirts first and laid them in order. A quick tip - take a picture like the first picture in this blog to help you know which shirt comes next! It's an easy reference to flip back to.

The one thing you need when working on a quilt this size? Room to work! I am thankful for my craft room and my foyer for things like this - and for Mr. LOC and his patience with the quilt on his foyer floor! <3 Here I am setting each panel into the black dividing horizontal strips. Each shirt panel will get sewn to these strips to create the top!

Black strips are in place!

This pic is a little fast forward in the process - at this point, I am sewing the quilt together - I have cut down the black flannel backing, added a layer of quilt batting, and I have hand tied the quilt together in strategic spots so that the quilt back, batting and top are tied together so they don't move. I have also basted the quilt with large stitches so that as I'm sewing my binding around the quilt, nothing moves around on me. Those large stitches come out. :) This also shows how much quilt there really is as only a little part of it is under the sewing foot at this time!

Fast forward even more...

And we're done! For some reason, that bit of flannel looks really crooked in this picture, it's not crooked like that in real life (or even if it is, it is certainly not as obvious in real life!)

It measured almost as large as a twin size bed! And the flannel she chose was perfect for this sort of thing. It is a very heavy quilt and I know it'll be great for snuggling. :)

Overall, it was a fun project and a great learning experience. Thank you to my friend for coming to me with this project, I hope you enjoy your new blanket! :) Also thank you to Mama LOC for helping me cut down the shirts, figure out the measurements multiple times, and generally being my cheerleader to keep going! ;) Also thank you to our other pair of friends who gave me a fantastic rotary cutter, board and quilting ruler for Christmas! It was a life saver.

And thank you for following along! :) Hope you enjoyed reading about my little quilting adventure.