Mexican Fiesta

OK, not a full blown – mariachi band, tortilla-eating, salsa dancing good time…but Mexican food none-the- less. Slightly lame Mexican food…but hey, what do you want? I’m not Mexican! Well, depending on who you ask I’m not. My mother-in-law thinks that because I am of Portuguese (<25%) decent, and Portugal is next to Spain, and in Spain they speak Spanish, and in Mexico they speak Spanish…so really, it’s the same thing. Help me Lord.

Someday I’m going to mess with her and show up at her house riding a donkey with a sombrero on my head. Or maybe the next time she comes over I’ll frame a picture of myself photo-shopped next to Juan Valdez. Shoot, he’s Colombian. Well in Columbia they speak Spanish so I’m sure she wouldn’t notice the difference.

Can you tell I’ve thought about this WAY more than necessary? Sí?

Mexican Rice

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 sprays cooking spray
• 4 cup cooked brown rice
• 1 1/4 cup salsa
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 15 oz canned fat free refried beans
• 10 oz frozen corn kernels, thawed
• 4 oz canned green chili peppers, mild, diced
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 3/4c. Black or Pinto Beans
• 3/4 cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese, divided (I like WW Shredded Mexican Cheese!)
• 2 Tbsp cilantro, fresh, chopped (optional; for garnish)

VitaMuffin Review

I have been scouring the grocery store for weeks looking for these little chocolate muffins – unsuccessfully, until last week.  My local Hannaford now stocks them in the organic freezer section near the Ezekiel bread (which I’m also dying to try).

I first heard about VitaMuffins from Hungry girl.  She just raves about them.  She even has a game on her site called “Whack-a-Snack” that give you a 5% off coupon code at Vitalicious.com.  They also receive a lot of hype on the Weight Watcher Boards due to the fact that most of varieties are only 1 point.  This is big news in the dieting world.  Guilt free, good-for-you chocolate.  Vitalicious even claims they are better for you than eating an apple!

Chart courtesy of thenibble.com

 The charts don’t lie.  50% of most of your daily vitamins!  The 2oz Deep Chocolate variety that I bought even had 6 grams of fiber!  Wow!

But how do they taste?

Mostly good.  I wouldn’t expect fireworks in your mouth, but they were pretty tasty.  The variety that I bought comes frozen.  Vitalicious.com recommends that you:

Thaw at room temperature for about 30 minutes or remove them from their package and defrost for 10-15 seconds in the microwave.

I didn’t do that the first time, so they were a little dry and well, frozen.  But the second time I allowed them to thaw for a while and they were much better. 

Would I buy them again?

Honestly, i’m not sure.  They were a great snack for 1pt, but they were also very pricey – $4.99 for a 4-pack (yikes, right?).   I may try their vitamuffin mix which is more versital.  Roni over at Weight Watchen had a contest a few months back using VitaMix.  She got some really great responses including:  Raspberry Chocolate Waffle Cups, and my favorite VitaBrownie Pizza. 

What do you think?  I want to hear your opinions on VitaMuffins!

Food Journal – Tuesday

Today started off well, but I totally derailed at the end.  Tomorrow is a new day!

Breakfast:  3

1/2 Bagel, Weight Watchers(.5pts)
1 TBSP Fat Free Strawberry Cream Cheese, Kraft(.5pts)
Fresh Strawberry slices (0pts)
6oz. Lowfat Blueberry Yogurt, Stonyfield Farm Organics(2pts)
Fresh Blueberries (0pts)
20oz. Water (0pts)

Morning Snack: 3
Light String Cheese, Frigo (1pt)
14oz. Raw almonds (2pts)

Lunch: 10
2c. Mixed Greens (0pts)
12g Walnuts (2.5pts)
20g Dried Cranberries (1.5pts)
12g. Reduced Fat Blue Cheese (1.5pts)
1/2c. 1% Cottage Cheese (1.5pts)
Fresh Blueberries (0pts)
Sugar Free Pudding Cup, Jello (1pt)
20oz. Water (0pts)
1 Brownie Bite (2pts)

Afternoon Snack: Kettle Korn – 1

Dinner: 20

1 srv. Mexican Rice (6pts) - recipe coming soon!
2 Pinto & Chicken Burritos (12pts)
Light string cheese, Frigo (1pt)
Tootsie Roll pop (1pt)

Evening Snack: 7
Wendy’sChocolate Frosty (7pts)

Total Points for the day: 44

Daily Activity Log
Nothin’