Can we discuss the jump rope? I just rediscovered it. I was a fan in elementary school, but as soon as double dutch became the norm I decided I was more suited for hopscotch. On my own time, I started making time with the Skip It, the higher tech version of the rope. Nearly 20 years later, I saw one of my co-workers using a jump rope to do cardio at the gym. I took a breath, grabbed a hot pink rope, and started skipping. It’s now become my favorite supplementary cardio! I get my lengthy cardio in on the treadmill, bike or stair stepper, but then I’ll jump for like 3-5 minutes. It’s so damn whimsical.
On the spicy side, I made this delicious brunch for myself last week:
Ingredients:
poached egg over greens
1 egg, poached
1 c brussel sprouts, sliced
1 c spinach
1 shallot, sliced
1 tbsp Parmesan cheese
olive oil cooking spray
salt
pepper
It’s nothing revolutionary, and in fact mimics most of my weekend meals, but I thought the picture came out purty so I had to share.
I started by bringing a pot of water to a simmer for my poached egg. Once the water simmered, I dropped the egg in with a splash of vinegar. It takes like 2-3 minutes to form, and after I scooped it out to dry on a paper towel. Meanwhile, I heated cooking spray and the sliced shallots in a skillet. Once the shallots started to brown, I added the sliced brussel sprouts. I cooked those for about 5-7 minutes, and eventually they began to brown up also. I then added the spinach, cooked until wilted, and seasoned with salt and pepper. I added Parmesan to the top, and topped the whole mix with the egg. So. Damn. Good. Highly recommended.
I also made this salad last week of which I was particularly proud
salmon salad
Ingredients:
Wild Coho Salmon fillet, frozen, thawed
1 tbsp cannellini beans
1 c grape tomatoes, sliced
1 pear, diced
2 c mixed greens
1 tsp olive oil, olive oil spray
1 lemon, juiced
1 tsp smoke flavored seasoning
Salt
Pepper
I started by seasoning the thawed salmon with lemon juice, smoke seasoning, salt and pepper, and then put it on the Panini press. Although the fillet was relatively thick, the salmon cooked all the way through in about 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile I grilled the diced pears and cannellini beans, since ice-cold beans always terrify me. I assembled all ingredients on a plate, drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper, and ate.
I ate that all last week. It’s so filling, since the salmon is all fatty and whatnot. And yet the veggies keep it healthy. Delightful.
I’ve been watching the waistline, but it hasn’t stripped me of all creativity. I made these awesome sliders a couple of weeks back that I evolved from an Ina Garten recipe. See below for the ingredients, separated by burger and toppings:
Burger:
Ina Garten
1 lb ground beef, 80% lean
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
¾ tsp herbs de Provence
½ tbsp whole grain mustard
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
Toppings/sides:
1 vidalia onion
2 c spinach, ¼ c wilted
1 gala apple, sliced
1 tsp Vidalia onion vinagrette with gorgonzola
5 oz polenta, sliced into fries
1 tsp cumin
olive oil cooking spray
whole wheat slider bun
You start by mixing together the burger ingredients in a large bowl. Mix evenly with a fork, taking care not to break up the ingredients. I then formed them into approx 15 golf ball sized patties. Pinch the middle, since the burgers puff up when they grill. I then cooked on the Panini press, which I sprayed down with the cooking spray. I grilled for about 4 minutes on one side, and then flipped to do the equivalent on the other.
Meanwhile, I heated a skillet with cooking spray and began to carmelize the onions. For those of you who have yet to carmelize, it basically just means cook for about half an hour on medium-low heat until the sugar starts to come out. It’s delightful.
While that was happening, I cooked the polenta fries in a skillet in a baby amount of oil. Once they were somewhat crispy, I topped them with the cumin and salt. Perfetto.
I then sautéed ¼ c of spinach in the skillet for the burger, and I left the rest raw for my salad. I assembled the spinach, apples, and onion as a salad, and topped with a little Vidalia onion vinagrette. I then assembled the sliders with onion and spinach on top, and I then drizzled them with the vinagrette also. They came out SO GOOD. Seriously. Consider this horn tooted. How easy is that? Ha! That’s Ina’s catch phrase. See below:
slider topped with carmelized onions and spinach, alongside polenta fries and spinach salad
Sweat and Spicy 
