this one’s a keeper

Yay for midweek!  I don’t think I get really excited for the weekend until Thursday evening when my classes for the week are over.  But, then that just means more studying and work for the weekend, boo!  But I am excited for the 3-day weekend!  Woo-hoo!  That extra day just makes all the difference.  Have any fun plans? 

Not all too much going on this week, I’m still trying to decide on a project topic for sports nutrition.  I’m very indecisive with pretty much everything.  I asked the green valley cyclists group on Yahoo! groups and they had some interesting ones too, including Quercetin, Optygen, and Hypoxico.  I’m actually interested in the altitude training, but I don’t think that would be considered a supplement?  I guess blood doping and EPO are pretty well-known in the cycling world, but of course they are illegal.  Living at high altitudes and training low has been shown to improve performance.  One must live at least 12 hours/day at a high altitude for 3-4 weeks, along with training, to see improvements.  Can you imagine sleeping in a altitude tent?  Very interesting!  I appreciated all your suggestions, it’s too hard to choose which one I’d like to do.  It’s amazing to me how many performance enhancing agents are out there, kind of scary and boy are they expensive!

In other news, Chris is still really enjoying his job so far!  This makes me happy too because there is just a different feeling in the house, and a more positive vibe.  I’m one of those people that can ‘feel’ the emotions of others.  Have you ever talked with someone that just sucks the energy right from you?  Or someone that just makes you feel calm and happy?  For some reason, I’m really in-tune with little things like that and I can almost ‘feel’ it.  Weird!   

He also started biking to work yesterday.  I think once the weather cools down here a little bit (we are still averaging 103 F days), I’m going to try my hand at it.  I could really only do it on Tuesdays or Fridays since I can’t ride to school from work.  That might be kind of fun, but I’m sure I would forget something and have to walk around work in spandex bike shorts, oh no!!  It’s only about 15 miles one way, but may be a way to sneak in some extra training/exercise.  I can’t seem to find time to get a ride in before work since I have to get ready by 5:30am.  We’ll see how it goes!

Oh the life of a Basset!  Buster is doing well too, and is as stubborn as ever.  His ears haven’t been too bad and we clean them at least 3-4x/week.  

I have an awesome recipe to share with you!  This is just one of those meals that I keep making time and time again because it’s a real keeper.  It has a bit of clean-up in the kitchen, but is really great to make the components ahead of time on the weekend and then savor the flavors during the week!

Walnut-Crusted Chicken and

Summer Squash Baked Couscous 

(adapted from CookingLight and FOOD)

For the Couscous:

• 1  (14-ounce) can less-sodium chicken broth, divided
• 3/4  cup uncooked WW couscous (you could also use quinoa)  
• 2  cups sliced yellow squash (about 3 small) – used the ones from the farmer’s market!
• 1/2  cup sliced green onions
• 2  tbsp fresh basil (1 tbsp dried)
• 1  tbsp fresh oregano (1/2 tbsp dried)
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 1/3  cup shredded fontina cheese
• 1/3  cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 1/4  cup  egg substitute (or 1 egg)
• 1/2  tsp salt
• 1/4  tsp freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400°.

Bring 1 cup chicken broth to a boil in a medium saucepan; stir in uncooked couscous. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with a fork.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with a little olive oil. Add squash, onions, basil, oregano, and garlic; sauté until slightly golden. Set aside.

Combine fontina and Parmigiano-Reggiano; set aside. Combine couscous, squash mixture, and half of cheese mixture in a large bowl; stir in remaining chicken broth, egg substitute, salt, and pepper. Spoon mixture into an 8 x 8-inch baking dish lightly coated with cooking spray. Top with remaining cheese mixture. Bake at 400° for 25-30 minutes or until golden.

For the Chicken:

In a food processor, pulse about 1 –  1 1/2 cups of toasted walnuts, 1/2 cup bread crumbs (I used TJ’s garlic ciabatta) and 1/2 cup grated parmesan  - place this mixture in a large shallow pan, like a baking dish.

In another shallow pan – combine about 3 egg whites.

Take about 1 pound of chicken breasts, make sure they aren’t too thick and pound them down first.  Place the breasts in the egg white mixture then dredge in the walnut mixture, pressing down.  Shake off excess and place in a large skillet coated with a few good glugs of olive oil.  Cook over medium-high heat until slightly firm and cooked through (about 4-5 minutes per side depending on thickness); drain them on paper towels.

 

We really enjoy this recipe and it’s great for leftovers, especially salad toppers :)  Sorry for the lack of pictures with this post!

Oh and remember when I posted about perfection a little while ago with Jessica Setnick’s take on the topic?  I would recommend you read it if you get the chance, very eye opening.  She also wanted to tell those of you who would like to work with individuals and eating disorders to check out her new site www.eatingdisorderjobs.com  The site’s re-launch includes information for students and new graduates who are interested in the field, including Advice from the Experts – stars in the field and how they got into eating disorders, and advice they would give to others interested in the field.  All this in addition to job postings and upcoming events.  Any readers are welcomed and encouraged to sign up as members at the site to access all the info!  

Hope your week is going by fast!

What’s one recipe you could make time and time again?