Smoked Salmon Pita Sandwiches

December 19, 2013 by Christine Skari

Want your own adorable bento box? Enter my giveaway below for the chance to win one of four lunch boxes!

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Sometimes I feel almost embarrassed to share a recipe. I usually love putting together complex recipes and enjoy spending hours in the kitchen, which eventually leads to me making a huge mess and vowing never to cook again. That, of course, lasts all of two hours before I’m back at it. It’s a viciously delicious cycle. Other times, I’m lazy. I don’t feel like cleaning anything up and even the idea of foraging through the cupboards for ingredients makes me cringe. Those days are the ones where I can usually be found absorbed into my couch with a gallon of ice cream, hanging out with my best friend 4eva Netflix. We get along just swell. Anyways, today was one of those days. I did, however, put together a tasty lunch that is, like I mentioned before, embarrassingly easy. These Smoked Salmon Pita Sandwiches are great for when you’re craving a healthy and delicious lunch that can be put together in a flash. The smoked salmon give the pita pockets a great salty flavor and the arugula adds a fantastic peppery bite! And how about these unbelievably cute bento lunch boxes? They’re the perfect size to carry with you and come in a large assortment of colors! The lovely people at Mira Designs are sending four lucky winners their own bento box in either lavender of pink! Enter my giveaway below for your chance to win! f2e067973ab717c0eaba5849a2f4e580 Want to have your own adorable bento box? I’m partnering up with Mira Design to giveaway 4 of their pink and lavender bento boxes! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hope these help fuel your lazy days as well!

Healthy Loaded Chili

December 17, 2013 by Christine Skari

Here’s a fun fact about me, I’m half Norwegian.

My father is a born-and-bred Norwegian who was raised on yup, you guessed it, a stereotypical potato farm in the rural countryside. That man can eat potatoes like no other. I kid you not when I say he would happily eat potatoes (plain potatoes) for a week straight and be as happy as a clam.

I think in his past life he was, in fact, a potato.

Anyways, I digress.

Back to my fun fact. I was born in Norway, learned Norwegian as my first language, and picked up skiing from my viking of a father. I have so many happy memories of long ski days filled with a hot drink afterwards and warm chili at restaurants at the top of mountains.

Please pin the image below if you’d like to pin the recipe! Thank you!

To me, chili is a quintessential part of any snowy day and I’m almost looking forward to delicious, meaty chili as much as our ski trip to Tahoe right after Christmas. Almost.

Until that time, I decided to satisfy my craving with a healthier (but just as delicious) lightened up version of the classic favorite!

This chili combines the best of both worlds with all the flavor and thick, chunkiness of normal chili, but with a whopping 26 grams of protein and 15 grams of fiber per serving! Hot dog!

Not only is this recipe downright delicious, it’s versatile. Vegetarian? No problem, just chop up some more veg and throw it in to the pot. Don’t like pork? Ground chicken, turkey, or lean ground beef work like magic as well.

Trust me, good things happen in that pot.

Kyle’s first impression after trying a bite was “This is so good” and my dad (the potato lovin’ fool) told me that he now likes chili thanks to this recipe.

Make a batch and have a healthy, easy to reheat lunch for the rest of the week! All the fiber and protein in the dish will keep you feeling full and energized and it’s perfect for a cozy meal by the fire.

Have some sour cream, cornbread, and shredded cheddar cheese on the side and you gave a meal made in heaven!

I’m linking up to What I Ate Wednesday to share this dish! Thanks, Jenn for hosting!

Enjoy!

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Garlic Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts

December 6, 2013 by Christine Skari

Fabulously delicious balsamic and garlic roasted brussel sprouts! They'll turn anyone into a vegetable lover!

You know how you have that one food growing up that you just can’t stand? For me, that was without a doubt, brussels sprouts. I couldn’t stand them and made a huge point to complain whenever I was forced to eat them (I know- such a brat!).

{some words of wisdom}

However, after trying them prepared with roasting technique instead of boiling them, I’ve been completely turned into a brussels sprout fanatic! They’re delicious and so easy to make!

These are really, really good and even Kyle exclaimed “Oh, WOW” after trying them. Honestly, I think that the ‘sprouts are officially now on my list of favorite vegetables and I’m definitely going to be preparing them this way in the future!

Not only are they mouthwatering, they’re also great for your body and have a mountain of nutritional value!

Here are some facts about their benefits:

Their high fiber content helps to reduce cholesterol.
They may have unique benefits in DNA protection by improving the stability of the DNA inside of our white blood cells.
They help fight and prevent cancer.
They contain a host of antioxidants.

{Source}

The garlic gives the recipe such wonderful flavor and the balsamic vinegar adds the most perfect amount of tang and zest! Trust me on this one, this recipe won’t disappoint!

If you feel like pinning this recipe, please pin the one below! Thank you!

Let me know how you like them!

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What I Ate Wednesday: Healthy Thai Sesame Patties

September 3, 2013 by Christine Skari

Why hey there all you party people!

It’s Wednesday, which means another What I Ate Wednesday post! I’ve got some great eats to show you guys as well as a tasty recipe that’s delicious and packed full of protein and flavor!

But first, my workout!

I had a great workout today thanks to my heart rate monitor. I usually am too lazy to put it on, but my workout is always fantastically sweaty when I do! I’m not sure why, but the built-in monitors on most machines don’t pick up my heart rate and it’s irritating constantly trying to get a proper reading. My heart rate monitor automatically transmits my numbers to the screen of the cardio machines and helps motivate myself to get my heart pumpin’ and not just go through the motions!

My workout consisted of 30 hard minutes on the elliptical, 10 minutes on the bike, and lots of abs! Has anyone tried a Captain’s Chair before? The one at my gym is amped up with a bosu ball back and is so hard. I definitely felt the burn!

Now, to the food!

Breakfast: oats on oats on oats!

Lunch: thai food with Kyle! We split a green papaya salad and beef pad thai.

Also, can someone please tell me why guys always get the best eyes? Boys suck. Boo.

Dinner: I whipped up those tasty thai sesame patties I mentioned before for dinner and ate them with some sautéed green beans! They have a great asian flavor and are delicious dipped in thai sweet chile sauce.

Not only do they taste pretty darn good, they’re good for ya! With 30g of lean protein per serving, they make for a filling and drool-worthy lunch or dinner. Just add some brown rice and veggies and you have yourself a power meal! I can’t wait for leftovers tomorrow!

If you’d be so kind to pin this picture below on pinterest, I’d love you five-ever (that’s more than forever!)

The rest of the evening was spent on a long beach walk with Kyle. We talked about everything, from body dysmorphia in both men and women to the size of blue whales and what we would do if a T-Rex attacked us. We obviously make a very deep and reflecting couple. Oh, and a venti pumpkin spice latte was involved!

Time to hit the hay!

xo Christine

Healthy Skillet Lasagna

August 25, 2013 by Christine Skari

Sometimes, all you need in life is a steamy plate of pasta with gooey, melty cheese bubbling on the top.

I mean, I usually prefer the flavors of asian cuisine, but I do love me a good plate of pasta- one of my favorites being lasagna. There’s something so comforting about throwing everything and the kitchen sink into a pan and letting all of those delicious ingredients meld together in a savory symphony.

There is, however, a secret ingredient in this that TOTALLY blows it away and makes all the difference in lasagna for me!

That being said, I’m usually pretty picky about exactly how I like my lasagna and have yet to taste one better than that of my Grandma’s. I actually find it pretty funny that the original recipe came from a tiny asian woman instead of an Italian cookbook! She uses this cottage cheese instead of ricotta, which makes the lasagna more savory than sweet tasting and, in my personal opinion, much tastier.

Another thing I love about this recipe is that is was so easy to lighten up, yet still stay mouthwatering!

It’s packed full of protein, has less than 400 calories per hefty serving, and you could easily add some chopped vegetables to get in an extra serving of veggies.

Fast, healthy, and delicious! This healthy skillet lasagna is my kind of dinner.

Enjoy!

This recipe contains sponsored content!

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