Tailgate Snacks

Hello, hello! How are you guys doing? I hope you're finishing off a wonderful week. It's hard for my week to be anything but wonderful when you get a day off in the middle of it. I think I'm going to start a petition for that to be an actual thing. I can't even begin to tell you how much I enjoyed my fall holiday. Casually waking up, a slow morning, new recipes, lots of time spent in the sunshine, hours of baking, and a whole lot of downtime. If that didn't revive me for a full school day, I don't know what would. Plus, I got to be the fall treats fairy for the English department on Thursday, and you guys know how much I love baking for other people. I was told that I'm going to make a good wife one day. The operative phrase being one day.

It's fall, so that means lots and lots of pumpkin. Or does that make me a basic white girl?

But we're going to switch gears a little bit. I mentioned in yesterday's post that I welcome the start of fall because it means football season. I can spend hours just sitting on the couch watching football. If it's not Texas breaking my heart, it's the Texans. Or the Eagles. Or the Colts. So while it would be easy to drown my football sorrows in comfort food, I'll feel better if I make smart snacking choices. Because let's be honest - snacking is part of football season. My dad has been known to order Philadelphia Cheesesteaks FROM PHILADELPHIA to eat while watching an Eagles game. That may not be the healthiest choice, but hey, we're allowed an indulgence or two every now and again. But just because we find ourselves glued to the television screen on game day, doesn't mean we have to succumb to wearing our stretchy pants. The Texans may fumble the ball more than I would care to admit, but over at Nuts.com, they believe that game day food choices don't have to be a fumble.

And Texas football is a fumble no more! Hopefully, anyway.

But while everyone else is enjoying nachos, seven-layer dips, and other delicious appetizers, you don't want to be the one who is over there munching on the raw broccoli. And lucky for you, healthy eating doesn't have to be boring. There are ample crowd-pleasing game-time snacks that won't pack on the pounds. And you'll find some of my favorites below.

Fajitas
Mexican food and football go together like the words Hook'em and Horns. Especially down here in Texas. But Mexican food is not always the healthiest choice. Chips and cheese and sour cream all taste good, but I think we can all agree that they leave you feeling less than your best. I am not sure that I would have come up with the idea of fajitas on my own, but I came home one day to my parents cooking up a bunch of fajita meat before an Eagles game one Sunday. All you need is some lean chicken and/or beef, bell peppers, onions, guacamole, maybe a little bit of cheese, and corn tortillas. As well as any spices that you may desire. Throw the meat and veggies into a pan, stick it it into the oven, scoop them into the tortillas, and garnish them as you wish. Healthy and delicious.

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Quinoa Pizza Bites
Pizza is another game-day go-to. Sure, it may be easier to call up Domino's or Pizza Hut and have the pizza delivered right to your door, but I guarantee you won't regret making these quinoa pizza bites. Quinoa is all the rage these days anyway, so this is perfect if you happen to find yourself with some leftover quinoa. These pizza bites are easy, customizable, kid-friendly, and there's just no way you can feel guilty after popping one (or two or three or four) into your mouth.

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Buffalo Cauliflower Bites
Hot wings are another classic game-day snack. They're spicy, they're messy, they're tasty, and let's just be honest. We've all found ourselves licking our fingers with 10 clean bones on the plate below us. It can be hard to stop sometimes! But with these buffalo cauliflower bites, you don't have to feel guilty. And I'll be the first one to say that I am not a huge fan of cauliflower. I'll eat it, but it's not my first choice. But these cauliflower bites are delicious. If you're not dairy-intolerant, you can certainly use regular butter in place of vegan margarine, but I will recommend that you don't cut these pieces too small. You want a nice big "wing" to bite into. And hey, let yourself indulge a little bit and dip these into your favorite ranch dressing.

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Healthified Mozzarella Sticks
Who doesn't love a good mozzarella stick? I have never cared much for Sonic, but I used to salivate over their mozzarella sticks. And it doesn't take a genius to know that fried cheese is not the best choice. But the good news is that there are ways to make them healthier. This recipe bakes instead of fries, uses no butter, and calls for store-bought cheese sticks. Doesn't get much better than that!

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Black Bean Corn and Avocado Dip
Chips and dip is a serious part of game-day. It's something you eat so mindlessly that you don't even realize that your pants are suddenly fitting a little bit tighter. And you'd be hard pressed to find someone who doesn't enjoy a good seven-layer dip. Well, this dip might not be seven layers, but it is one that will have you fighting your neighbor for the last few scoops. This black bean corn and avocado dip is all the taste, without the guilt. And if you choose pita chips over Tostitos, you're really rocking and rolling.

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Chocolate Covered Strawberries
What is football without dessert? My favorite part of going to sports games as a kid was definitely the soft serve ice cream. And who doesn't love curling up with a bowl of Blue Bell while cheering your team onto victory? While that's all good and nostalgic, these chocolate covered strawberries will not only please the waistline and palette, but that will be sure to impress your guests. Dipped in chocolate and decorated with white icing, the only fumble you'll make is not giving one of these a try.

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I hope this post gets you guys ready for this weekend's games. I'm hoping I can cheer the Texans onto their first win, but I'm not holding onto too much hope. Before you call me a pessimist, you have to understand that I grew up in Houston. And I know that our teams are more than capable of imploding at the last minute. Cough, Astros, cough. Not pessimistic; just realistic. Anyway, I want to give a special shout out to Nuts.com for giving me the opportunity to talk about my favorite healthy game-day snacks. And if you're looking for even more healthy snacks, please check out their Healthy Snacks page. Because they're absolutely right - healthy snacking is one of the keys to diet success. And healthy eating doesn't have to be bland or boring. You just have to get creative. And I hope this helped get your creative juices flowing. Because with these recipes, you can have your cake and eat it, too.

Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Waffle Recipe

Happy Wednesday, and happy first day of fall! Or Autumn - whichever you prefer. Fall is my absolute favorite time of year, because it means football, yoga pants, sweaters, boots, perfect running weather, and all things pumpkin. Which is what brings me here today. I've got a most delicious - and healthy! - pumpkin waffle recipe to share with you guys. I can't take any of the credit, as I found this recipe while hardcore perusing Pinterest, but I knew that today would be the perfect day for it. Why? Because today the students and employees of the Houston Independent School District were gifted a fall holiday. Sure, it's on a Wednesday, and I have to go back to work tomorrow instead of enjoying a three-day weekend like I did last year, but this holiday could not have come at a more perfect time. It seemed as though every teacher was walking with a little extra pep in his or her step yesterday, brimming with talk of how the fall holiday was going to be spent. I would be lying if I said I didn't join in, and what I came up with was sleeping in until 8:00am, enjoying the cooler weather with a crisp morning bike ride, and indulging in a delicious fall-themed breakfast while catching up with Kelly and Michael.

Ingredients:

• 1½ cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1½ teaspoons cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
• ¼ cup honey
• 1 egg
• ½ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
• ⅓ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• ½ cup dairy-free chocolate chips + extra

*This recipe makes about 2-3 large waffles.

Directions:
1. Combine flour, baking soda, chia seeds, cinnamon, and nutmeg into a medium bowl and set aside.
2. In a separate large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, honey, egg, yogurt, and almond milk.
3. Add flour mixture to the wet mixture, taking care not to over-stir.
4. Gently add in the chocolate chips, again, taking care not to over-mix.
5. Heat up your waffle iron, and spray down with cooking spray.
6. Spoon about 1 cup of mix onto the waffle iron, spreading it evenly throughout the iron. Add a little more if needed.
7. Cook according to your iron's directions - my waffle iron took about 5-7 minutes per waffle, but it depends on the waffle iron being used.
8. Gently remove from the waffle iron, let cool, and enjoy! I added blueberries to mine, but I think strawberries would also taste fantastic. The chocolate was enough added sweetener for my taste, but if you're a fan of syrup, I have no doubt that would be another delicious addition. If you're looking for a real indulgence, a sprinkle of powdered sugar would really take the cake.

The perfect breakfast to start off a slow fall morning. It's delicious, yet chock full of good-for-you ingredients. Not something I would eat every morning, but a fun way to mix it up every once in a while. And with that, I'm off to do a little bit more baking. I have to get it in while I have the time!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

In case you were curious, exhaustion due to cooking and baking is definitely a thing. I cooked and baked for approximately three hours last night, because that's what you do when you have a free Friday night, apparently, and by the end of it, I was worn out, and feeling pretty overheated. Along with two batches of my banana-oatmeal-almond butter muffins, a pan of my chicken and vegetable pineapple dish, a pan of my pork and vegetable pineapple dish, and a batch of Reese's-stuffed cookies, I also came up with a brand new recipe that really fits into the fall theme - peanut butter chocolate pumpkin bread, as you could probably guess from the title of this post. I love all things pumpkin, and I really love all things peanut butter and chocolate, so you know this is going to be a good one. I was perusing my Pinterest boards, as per usual, and I came across this recipe for the bread, and I decided to modify it to make it just a little bit healthier, though it was already pretty healthy to begin with.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup nonfat greek yogurt [plain]
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree, from the can
• 4 egg whites
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1 banana
• 1 1/2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice [or a combination of cinnamon and nutmeg]
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/3 cup coconut flakes
• 1/4 cup flax seeds
• 1 cup [dairy-free] chocolate chips, divided

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Combine greek yogurt, pumpkin puree, egg whites, and peanut butter in a bowl, and whisk until free of lumps

3. Add in banana, stirring until smooth

4. Sift in flour, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice, stirring until combined

5. Add coconut flakes and flax seeds, or any mix-ins of your choice [raisins, walnuts, pecans are all good options]

6. Pour in 3/4 cup chocolate stops and stir until combined

7. Put the mixture in a pre-sprayed pan and sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips on top

8. Cook for 35 minutes and enjoy the delicious pumpkin-y smell invading your kitchen

*This was supposed to be posted this morning before I left to go to San Antonio for the day, but some Internet malfunctions did not allow me to post it until my return just now. The positive side of that is that I got to actually taste the bread, and not to brag on my own baking skills, but it was delicious. I hope your Saturday was a great one!

Phightin' Phils

Happy October! I love October because it really starts to feel like fall to me, and luckily, the weather here in Austin agreed with me! It was a beautiful 65 degrees when I woke up this morning, and never got above 88 degrees! I have had the windows open all day while enjoying a wonderful Saturday!

My dorm also enjoys the fall season because we are all decorated for the occasion! Such a happy place!

I went to bed last night with the intent that I would wake up early and get a nice run in while the weather was cool, but I woke up this morning (after TEN hours of sleep! I must have been tired), and decided I was not really feeling a run, so I went down and got some breakfast (my usual, yogurt!), and began working on the pile of homework that I have to do - does it ever end?! I was really excited for today because one - it starts the beginning of the Philadelphia Phillies World Series Run and two - TEXAS FOOTBALL! We are currently beating Iowa State with a score of 34-0! Hook'em!

Anyway, today I did homework for a majority of the day, but I took a break to head over to Gregory Gym to swim some laps while the temperature was at it's peak. Upon my trip over there, I discovered that I evidently popped one of the tires on my bike while on a bike ride around Austin yesterday. It was the perfect afternoon for a long bike ride, and I couldn't resist snapping a few pictures along the way. I become more and more convinced every day that I live in the best city in the world!

These cows are seen all over Austin! I want to "catch 'em all!"

On a bridge at Town Lake!

People enjoying  the beautiful weather while kayaking! So much fun!

While at Gregory, I swam a little over a mile before heading back home to watch the PHILLIES dominate in their first playoff game 11-6 against the St. Louis Cardinals. Ryan Howard, you are my hero! He was the one who really got the momentum going in the sixth inning for the Phils. It was strange rooting against my (old - he was traded away much to my dismay) hometown favorite, Lance Berkman, but it has to be done. I still love him as a player, but I will love him even more once we beat his team!

It is such a beautiful night as I sit here with the window open that I am considering going for a late night run to the capitol once my shift at the desk is over. What a fabulous way to end a wonderful Saturday!