lentil chili with cumin, corn and green onions
Andrea
I'm a sleepy girl again tonight, and trying my best to be in bed at 11pm. Thanks for all of your feedback on how much sleep you all get...it sounds like none of us are getting enough! Its sad that the things that are good for us - sleeping, working out, cooking - are typically the first things to slack on when we get busy with life. But that is why there are food blogs out there, to show us all that it IS possible to lead a busy, HEALTHY lifestyle. I'm still working on mine...! :) I skipped out on my run this morning in favor of sleeping for an extra 45 minutes...these late nights are really screwing with my exercise plans! By the time I get home from work I'm too tired for anything other than yoga, so if I want to keep my running on track I've got to modify my schedule. See?!? Busy = slacking on my good-for-me tasks.
Did I tell you all that I'm signed up for a 5K this weekend?!? I don't think I did! My hubb and I are running the Amnesty Valentine's Day 5K, in the neighboring town of Crozet. I'm super-excited...this will be my first 5k!!! I've run the Charlottesville Women's 4-miler twice, but never a 5K before. And, this race will be with my hubb, who has NEVER run a race before! So fun. Don't worry, I'll be telling you guys all about it on Saturday! :)
On to some eats...I'm going to try keep it quick.
I loved my breakfast this morning, it was so simple and hearty and delicious. And it stuck with me for a full 4 hours. Have I mentioned how much I love the Ezekiel sprouted wheat english muffins? Because I do, I love them SO much and could easily eat one every single day.
Breakfast: a toasted ezekiel muffin, 1/2 with TJ's crunchy PB and 1/2 with sour cherry preserves. Also, 1 cup of red grapes.
[440 cal]
Lunch: leftover potato leek soup with kale, and a hearty oat biscuit.
[437 cal]
Afternoon Snack: 6oz 0% Fage and one AMAZING Murcott Mandarin Orange...it was like eating an orange creamsicle dessert!
[130 cal]
I planned to go for a run after work, so had my a pre-run snack at my usual 5pm time. But, I wound up staying late at the office and got home too late for a run...I was just too beat. And THAT is why I need to get to bed earlier...so that I can get my bootie out of bed for my morning run! Its just so hard to stay motivated to work out at the end of the day, I'd much rather come home and get dinner going so we can start winding down.
Afternoon Snack #2: Clif chocolate chip ZBar...my fave. I love these little guys!
[130 cal]
Dinner tonight was quick, simple and DELICIOUS. I found a recipe for Lentil Chili with Cumin and Green Onions in the February 2008 issue of Bon Appetit. I planned to follow it exactly, but found that we were out of a couple of key ingredients, Chili Powder and Tomato Puree. So instead I modified it slightly, substituting Ancho Chili Pepper, tomato sauce and tomato paste. I also added frozen corn at the last minute and am so glad that I did. The corn cut the heat of the chili with a lovely, mild sweetness, really increasing the depth of flavors.
Lentil Chili with Cumin, Corn and Green Onions [adapted from Bon Appetit, February 2008]
made 2 dinner servings and 1 small lunch serving
362 calories, 7.6g fat, 1.4g sat fat, 58g carbs, 18g fiber, 19g protein
Ingredients:
Method:
We also had sauteed kale, prepared using my favorite method.
Chop kale into large bite-size pieces. Rinse well. Saute' 2 garlic cloves in 2 tsp olive oil on medium heat for 1 minute. Add drained kale, with water still clinging to leaves. Stir, allowing the kale to wilt slightly. Cover the saucepan and let kale steam for 2-3 minutes. Remove lid and stir, tossing kale for about a minute. Squeeze 1/4 of one lemon on kale, and sprinkle with sea salt. SO GOOD.
Dinner: lentil chili, sauteed kale and a hearty oat biscuit.
[630 cal - eek! a little high tonight, especially since I didn't get my planned run in...]
Alrighty, I'm off to bed, with 8 minutes to spare! WooHoo!!! I hope you all have a great night...get some sleep!!! :)
Did I tell you all that I'm signed up for a 5K this weekend?!? I don't think I did! My hubb and I are running the Amnesty Valentine's Day 5K, in the neighboring town of Crozet. I'm super-excited...this will be my first 5k!!! I've run the Charlottesville Women's 4-miler twice, but never a 5K before. And, this race will be with my hubb, who has NEVER run a race before! So fun. Don't worry, I'll be telling you guys all about it on Saturday! :)
On to some eats...I'm going to try keep it quick.
I loved my breakfast this morning, it was so simple and hearty and delicious. And it stuck with me for a full 4 hours. Have I mentioned how much I love the Ezekiel sprouted wheat english muffins? Because I do, I love them SO much and could easily eat one every single day.
Breakfast: a toasted ezekiel muffin, 1/2 with TJ's crunchy PB and 1/2 with sour cherry preserves. Also, 1 cup of red grapes.
[440 cal]
Lunch: leftover potato leek soup with kale, and a hearty oat biscuit.
[437 cal]
Afternoon Snack: 6oz 0% Fage and one AMAZING Murcott Mandarin Orange...it was like eating an orange creamsicle dessert!
[130 cal]
I planned to go for a run after work, so had my a pre-run snack at my usual 5pm time. But, I wound up staying late at the office and got home too late for a run...I was just too beat. And THAT is why I need to get to bed earlier...so that I can get my bootie out of bed for my morning run! Its just so hard to stay motivated to work out at the end of the day, I'd much rather come home and get dinner going so we can start winding down.
Afternoon Snack #2: Clif chocolate chip ZBar...my fave. I love these little guys!
[130 cal]
Dinner tonight was quick, simple and DELICIOUS. I found a recipe for Lentil Chili with Cumin and Green Onions in the February 2008 issue of Bon Appetit. I planned to follow it exactly, but found that we were out of a couple of key ingredients, Chili Powder and Tomato Puree. So instead I modified it slightly, substituting Ancho Chili Pepper, tomato sauce and tomato paste. I also added frozen corn at the last minute and am so glad that I did. The corn cut the heat of the chili with a lovely, mild sweetness, really increasing the depth of flavors.
Lentil Chili with Cumin, Corn and Green Onions [adapted from Bon Appetit, February 2008]
made 2 dinner servings and 1 small lunch serving
362 calories, 7.6g fat, 1.4g sat fat, 58g carbs, 18g fiber, 19g protein
Ingredients:
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp ancho chili pepper
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 4 cups water, plus extra
- 1 cup dried green lentils
- 8oz tomato sauce
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 3/4 cup frozen corn
- 1/2 cup green onions, chopped
Method:
- Heat oil in large sauce pan on medium. Add onion and saute' for 2 minutes. Add garlic, saute' for 30 seconds. Add ancho chili pepper, cumin, cayenne, and oregano, stir for 30 seconds.
- Add water, lentils, tomato sauce and tomato paste. Bring mixture to a boil and drop heat to medium-low. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes. Add water as necessary by 1/4 cup at a time. [I added about 1 cup total].
- Add frozen corn, and continue to simmer for an additional 10 minutes, until lentils are soft.
- Stir in scallions, reserving a few for garnish. Season to taste with salt + pepper.
We also had sauteed kale, prepared using my favorite method.
Chop kale into large bite-size pieces. Rinse well. Saute' 2 garlic cloves in 2 tsp olive oil on medium heat for 1 minute. Add drained kale, with water still clinging to leaves. Stir, allowing the kale to wilt slightly. Cover the saucepan and let kale steam for 2-3 minutes. Remove lid and stir, tossing kale for about a minute. Squeeze 1/4 of one lemon on kale, and sprinkle with sea salt. SO GOOD.
Dinner: lentil chili, sauteed kale and a hearty oat biscuit.
[630 cal - eek! a little high tonight, especially since I didn't get my planned run in...]
Alrighty, I'm off to bed, with 8 minutes to spare! WooHoo!!! I hope you all have a great night...get some sleep!!! :)