Guest Post: 3 Habits Of Healthy Eaters

Welcome to a guest post from my numero dos partner-in-crime, Amanda, about her favorite things in live: veggies and fiber. Without further ado...

Poor Without Pizza Rolls 

Going through college I've witnessed a lot of my friends and classmates fully immerse themselves into the college culture. 24-hour dining halls, multiple parties every weekend, all nighters resulting in that fourth meal, and now really grocery shopping for themselves for the first time. All of these combined made us all realize that the freshman fifteen is a real thing, and that groceries are way more expensive than you ever thought possible. 

Although we're still young, we are getting old enough to where our metabolisms aren't quite the same as they were when we were 16, and mom's not making sure we eat our veggies every day. Diets of pizza rolls and zebra cakes will keep us in shape, but it will be a round shape. 

Now, I'm not one who sticks to a diet or lifestyle easily. No matter how appealing a diet or workout plan is on the internet, it almost never is as fun in real life. That, or I've found that being "healthy" can be really expensive! Thankfully, I had really cheap, healthy habits instilled in me growing up. I have strayed away from time to time, but they have generally kept my health in check while in school and my shape not-so-round. 

1.) Eat Fiber

If you don't take anything from this blog post, the few of you who will read it, remember to eat your fiber. Fiber is something my mom harped on, and still does non-stop when it comes to food, though I never truly understood what difference it made. 

It turns out, besides making you "regular," fiber is beneficial in heart health and can even aid in weight loss. Dr. Oz explains all about it here if you want to know more. 

But you may be saying to yourself, "yeah, but it's so much more expensive than the processed stuff." And you're partially correct. Many high-fiber marketed foods are often a little more pricey than the sugary processed stuff. But there's one big thing that you need to remember- it makes you eat less. High-fiber foods fill you up and prevent you from consuming as many calories. Eat your fiber and you can say goodbye to making that mid-morning stop to the vending machine or that midnight look in the refrigerator, and say hello to more savings in your pocket. 

Additionally, many high fiber items such as pasta and beans are non perishable, so it's easy to stock up when they're on sale. 

Here are a few easy ways to incorporate higher fiber into your lifestyle:

• Breakfast- This is really important for me because my stomach is very vocal when I don't get enough- or anything- to eat in the mornings. I've sat in meetings and classes too many times where I swear my stomach is trying to be louder than the person speaking. 
• Look at the nutrition labels: I like to get at least 15-20% of my fiber out of my breads, oatmeal, cereals, and granola bars. 
• Caution: Ease into it. If you don't eat a lot of fiber now, your body might not react so well at first. 
• Use whole wheat flour- or at least half whole wheat and half white- in your waffle and pancake recipes. 
• This goes for anything for that matter, pizza crusts, chicken pot pies- you name it. 

• Lunches and Suppers
• Whole wheat pasta is often the same price as normal and goes on sale quite a bit. If you don't care for the taste and texture of it, there are other options such as Smart Taste pasta from Ronzoni that seem like ordinary pasta. 
• Beans are a great option to add to nearly any meal. They're cheap in a can and even cheaper if you want to take the extra time to soak them. 

2.) Don't Drink Your Calories 
It sounds like an inspirational quote from Pinterest, doesn't it? But it's so true. It is so easy for us to get into the habit of drinking things high in calories when we have dining halls and fast food restaurants with unlimited fountain drink machines. This is adding empty calories to our diets and the sugar is rotting our teeth. 

Your body only needs a certain number of calories a day, don't waste any of them. Cherry Coke is my kryptonite, but the longer I stay away from it, the better I feel. Besides, staying away from all of those sugary drinks can save a ton of money in the long run. Things like coffee and tea are easy ways to get that flavor fix without pouring your money down the drain. 

3.) Buy Non Perishables 
I can't count the number of times I've tried to get on a "healthy kick" and let half of what I buy go to waste. Let's face it, things come up and you can't always follow your weekly meal plan. Some recipes will have you eating leftovers for the next three nights, sometimes there's free pizza in the student center, so don't pass up those opportunities when they're there. 

I'm not saying it's not good to buy fresh produce, but I'm cautioning that it may not be a great idea to plan a bunch of meals with fresh produce or meat for a short amount of time. Instead, you might want to try stocking up on canned and frozen foods that won't go bad in a week. I'm talking beans, pasta, veggies, and meat you can freeze. I wouldn't recommend the super processed stuff like dollar frozen pizzas and fish sticks. 

Let's face it, we're young and tight on cash, so we will eat Ramen and Pizza Rolls. However, making healthy habits now will carry us into making healthy choices in the long run and possibly help us a little in the short run as well. 

By Amanda Foster 

About Me

A big thanks to Katie for allowing me be a guest blogger on here. I'm an Industrial Design Student at Georgia Tech. If you haven't heard of Industrial Design before, look it up, you'll wish you had chosen it for your career! I have one child, Zelda (pictured with me on left). If you want to read more from me, you can follow my new design blog at amandaleedesign.wordpress.com. 

The Messy Cook: Low Calorie Roasted Tomato Dill Bisque

Sophomore year of college, I started working at a bar that specialized in making the servers fat. The healthiest thing on the menu was a salad that consisted of iceberg lettuce, bacon, and cheese. 

Night after night, all I ate was fried cheese sticks, tater tots with cheese, and baked strizzata (umm, heaven on a plate). That, and my new acquired taste for alcohol, led to a just as newly acquired 30lbs. 

Over the past year, I've dieted off and on, and worked out regularly. I dropped 10lbs and then gained it all back once things got stressful and busy.

I can work out all I want, but sadly I've learned that all of the inspirational posts on Pinterest are right: weight loss is mainly done in the kitchen. 

And that is why I joined Weight Watchers. 

I've tried counting macros in the past, but I just don't have the discipline to do it myself right now. And IIFYM has too many variables for me right now and it becomes a pain to track. 

Long story slightly less long, I'm trying out new Weight Watchers friendly recipes. First one on the list? Tomato Dill Bisque!

If there is anything that feels like comfort food to me, it's tomato soup and grilled cheese. This soup felt like home to me.

Being the terrible blogger that I am, I got caught up in cooking (and cleaning my kitchen and watching Psych and messaging people) to take pictures of the process. I even had my camera sitting in front of me the whole time. 

This soup is yummy, and it wasn't that hard to make. It took about an hour for me to cook (including prep time), and it makes about 6 (1 1/2 cup) servings. Each serving is worth 4 WW points.

You'll need a baking sheet, aluminum foil, soup pot, and a blender.

Ingredients

• 4 sprays cooking spray (I used olive oil)
• 56 oz canned diced tomatoes, drained
• 4 medium uncooked carrots, thinly sliced (I sliced up a handful of baby carrots.)
• 1 large uncooked onion, diced
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper (I didn't have any, so I just put a dash of cayenne.)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 tbsp fino sherry (I didn't have, so I skipped this.)
• 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
• 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup plain low far Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup dill, fresh (I used Dill paste as a substitute because the WallMart didn't have fresh dill.)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degree F, Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, toss together diced tomatoes, carrots, onion, salt, pepper, and sugar; spread on prepared baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes.
3. In a large nonstick soup pot, heat butter over medium heat.
4. Add garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir.
5. Add cooking sherry. (Or add a little water like I did.) Cook and stir.
6. Add roasted vegetables, crushed tomatoes, and broth. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and let simmer (uncovered) for 10 minutes, so that the flavors can blend.
7. Stir in the yogurt.
8. Remove from heat and puree soup in a blender. Stir in dill, and served garnished with chives.

I suggest halfing it if you are solo like I am. Six servings is a LOT of soup. But it's the perfect size for a family. The whole time I ate this soup, I was wanting a grilled cheese.

Today, I was in a very rare mood. Yes, I was in a cleaning mood. While the soup was simmering, I did a couple loads of dishes, so I don't have the full mess. But I do have a picture of the last load. This was for sure a messy one.

Because I forgot the mess pictures, here's a picture of my Baby Boy. Also, I got a new purple knife from WalMart. Oooh, fancy!

Enjoy!

The Messy Cook: World's Easiest (and Maybe Cheesiest) Shepherd's Pie

So that's a lie. It's probably not the cheesiest, but it's for sure the easiest.

Also, I've been informed that it's only shepherd's pie if it's made from lamb, and what I made was "cottage pie". But fuck the police. I do what I want. And I want to call it Shepherd's pie. So there.

I classify this recipe under the "from scratch" category with an emphasis on the quotation marks. This is the biggest cheater meal I have ever created. And to every non-cook out there, you're welcome.

Sorry for the poor quality Instagram picture. I was not prepared to blog about this.

This recipe takes 15 minutes to prep and 20 minutes to cook. Feeds 6 people (or you can eat 5 servings yourself like I did.)

All you will need for this delicacy is:

• 1 lb Ground Beef
• 2 cups INSTANT Garlic Mashed Potatoes (You can make them from scratch if you're dedicated)
• 60 gram brick of Cream Cheese (It pisses me off that this switches to metric too. Don't ask why)
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 4 cups Mixed Vegetables (canned or frozen. I used canned.)
• 1 cup Beef Gravy (I got this out of a jar. You can also buy the packets and make it that way.)

Directions:

1. Pre-make instant potatoes (and the gravy if you bought the packet).
2. Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. Brown meat in large skillet and drain
4. Mix potatoes, cream cheese, and 1/2 cup shredded cheese until well blended.
5. Combine meat, vegetables, and gravy. 
6. Spoon into 9-inch square baking dish.
7. Cover with potato mixture and the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese.
8. Bake for 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted.

That's all it takes. 

Boyfriend wants me to include a segment in which I show how messy I leave his kitchen after I make things (hey, there's no room for cleanliness AND creativity.), but due to lack of photos of this adventure, I'll have to refer you to the one above where you can only see a smidgen of my mess.

Enjoy.

NV Sokol Blosser Evolution 16th Edition White Blend

Origin: Dundee Hills, Oregon | Year: 2012 | Rating: balling | Price: $12 | ABV: 12%

This is my first foray into a white blend. Once again, I picked this because of the label. Also because the top of the cork was cool. 

This lovely vino was paired with spaghetti. To switch things up from the spaghetti that I've had every night for the past two weeks, I went with Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic pasta sauce. (Yum.)

At first when I poured the wine, it looked almost clear to me, but it appeared slightly darker when there was more in the glass.

I did some research on this wine, as I always do, and I learned that it is made with Muller-Thurgau, White Riesling, Semillon, Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer, Muscat Canelli, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and Sylvaner grapes. Holy shit, that's a lot of variety. A blend, indeed.  That's fine with me. I appreciate well-rounded things.

The first thing that I thought when I tasted this wine was, "Oh my god, peaches!" Partially because I love peaches, and partially because I was happy that I had a thought other than, "So this tastes like wine."

This is a delicious summer wine. It is so yummy. So warming, but so cooling. Yum yum yum.

I apologize for this semi-incoherent entry. Blame it on the fact that I've worked for seven days straight. 

If any of my Georgia homies want to try this wine, sucks for you! I bought this one on a recent trip to Asheville. My goal was to buy local wine, but I couldn't find anything but Biltmore wine, so I bought this instead because I love Oregon.

One thing that I've learned so far about buying wine that is >$10 is that there isn't nearly as much burn. It doesn't half as much going down as cheap wine does. That may seem like a super obvious observation, but it's so true. It's so much easier to drink. I can almost chug it. 

Not that I would ever chug something that I paid almost $20 for.

It's a beautiful thing. I'm loving this adventure.

Matchbook Cabernet Sauvignon

Origin: Lake County California |  Year: 2012 | Rating: I like it a lot! | Price: $14| ABV:13.9%

This wine was an adventure of mine. I'm such a white wine snob. I've always been a picky eater. I try something once or twice and I declare for the rest of eternity that I hate it. I did it with eggs. I did it with bacon. And I did it with red wines. 

On the advice of my good friend Katherine, I decided to take a leap of faith and buy a cabernet sauvignon. In the past, I've had cheap reds, and I've choked them down. 

This is different. This is tasty. It's just a hint of sweet without the strong alcohol taste. I just so happened to pair it with spaghetti which, according to the internet, is the perfect pairing. [I totally planned that and am not eating spaghetti for the rest of the month until I get paid.]

In big people language, websites say that it has dark fruits with hints of cedar and tobacco. I'll be honest with you. These decrepit taste buds of mine don't sense any of that. I just think it's yummy and I don't taste all of the complexities.

BUT if you're willing to fork over $14 dollars for a bottle of wine and you wanna drink big girl wine for a change, this is a good one to go for. 

I didn't read any reviews before I bought it. I did the grown up thing and bought the wine because I like the label, as I always do. I can't argue with science. Everyone knows that you can judge a book by it's cover.

It's tasty, the label looks nice, and it makes me feel like an adult when I drink it.

Win, win, win.

Fancy Pants Pinot Grigio

Origin: Napa Valley, California | Year: 2012 | Rating: 9.25 out of 10 | Price: FREE (for me) | ABV: 13.15%

This one goes out to Amanda, the financier of this particular bottle of wine. I am watching her baby child, aka her dog Zelda who is a wine lover in her own right, as shown in the picture. I found it along with a note that said "Fancy Pants wine for your fancy pants wine blog!" Thank you for that!

Now, I've had pinot grigios before, but this is by far my favorite. Keep in mind that the other ones I've bought were <$9 not on sale because my cheap ass self decided that it was better to try a cheap one and see if I like the style first. Those of you with decent taste buds may scoff at that, but those of you with bargin bin taste buds like myself may fall into the same line of though. 

But yes. It's ridiculous. Obviously you are going to think that you don't like a style when you try the cheap nasty ones. Everyone hates the cheap nasty ones, especially people who like the style. It's not very indicative of the style when it has an acetote after taste.

Up until now, I did not know if I liked this style, but man, this is tasty. It's so light and fresh, and for a drink with 13% alcohol, this isn't boozy at all. 

It's not like my normal overly sweet go-tos, but I'm okay with that. Truely! It's not overly sparkling either, making it a good wine to pair with food. The internet says it's good with chicken, cheese, and fish. And as we all know, if the internet says it, it's true.

I'll admit that I read through other reviews of wines to see what they are tasting in the wine because my palate just says, "Me Katie. Me likey." and that's as in depth as it gets. So whether this is placebo or not, I'm not sure, but in a couple of reviews, I read that the tasters smelled citrus notes on it and tasted peaches or mangos slightly in the middle. And you know what? I can totally see what they are talking about with the peaches. There is just a light hint of fruitiness right there in the middle. 

I really am enjoying this. Pinot grigios are right there in the middle as far as dry or sweet wines go. It's a happy medium between both sides, and I dig that. As you can see from the picture, it's really like in color, which is cool to me. It's a lot lighter than the sparkling moscato that I just had. That surprised me. 

Overall, this wine makes me feel like more of a grown up, honestly. I'm not a badass who drinks chardonnay yet, but I do feel like this is a step in the right direction for me!

Pizzolato Moscato Dulce

Origin: Italy | Year: 2011 | Rating : 9 out of 10 | Price: $14 | ABV: 5.5%

To start with, I'm going to go ahead and warn you that I am no expert taster. My taste buds have long been numb. I blame it on a childhood full of frozen dinners and my family's cooking. My taste buds nobly sacrificed themselves to prevent future trauma.

I (errr....my boyfriend) bought this wine at a Whole Foods in Charleston, SC on vacation. I selectively chose this wine the most educated way that you can: I liked the label. 

I'm a huge fan of this wine. As I've made clear, I am a moscato junky. And while I may be trying to expand my horizons to include more than moscato, cut me some slack. I'm taking this one step at a time! No moscato cold turkey for this girl!

Alright, down to business. This wine smells crisp and light. Not the same sickly sweet that you get from cheap moscatos. It almost smells like a cider. 

As far as the taste goes, this wine is a great summer wine! Just like the smell, it is light and crisp. It's very much an easy drinker. It's lightly sweet, but in a fruity way, not a syrupy way. I'm sipping on this wine while I work on projects/quizzes/finals studying. I'm having to focus on not gulping it down. Thankfully, it is only 5.5%, so even if I finish the whole thing, I'm not going to be smashed. 

This wine is pretty bubbly. From what I've read, this wine is just a little bit shy of being classified as a sparkling wine. Because of that, it is classified as a moscato, but it is one of the more bubbly moscatos that I've ever had.

Word of warning: have a wine bottle topper, a friend to share with you, or the motivation to finish the whole bottle because this wine has a bottle cap instead of a cork or twist off.

All in all, this is a win for me. While it is twice as expensive as the cheapo brands of yore, it isn't going to break your bank, and it is super yummy.