Branching out (or I tried Kale!)

So for some reason, last night I decided I wanted to try some new recipes. I bought some Kale on my last grocery trip and was inspired by Kath to try Kale Chips! Ryan was skeptical...ok we both were, but hey, for $0.98, I was willing to take a risk. I got this HuuuuuGGGEeee head? bundle? of Kale that my husband declared, "has taken over the refridgerator." I didn't even know how to wrap it up at the store. I ended up putting the gignormous green monster inside the plastic veggie sack, and then topping it with another one. It was kinda funny to see, as the whole thing was dripping water droplets on me. But back to the chips!

I followed the instructions and tore the leaves off the stems, rinsed & ran them through the salad spinner, and completely covered a baking sheet. I drizzled 2 t. of canola oil over the kale and generously sprinkled it with salt. A l.o.t. of salt. Probably too much.

I started to smell the crispy, salty aroma pretty quick and after 15 minutes, they were done. I took em out and beckoned Ryan to come in the kitchen. He was surprised! We both slowly ate a few pieces, trying to decide what we thought. Our overall verdict: "kinda good but kinda different." They did get crispy though! And I dipped them in some ketchup. I'm gonna make them again and see what else I can add Kale too. As leftovers, they were more chewy, but I managed to fit some in my lunch...

Nick's Cinnamon Cream Cheese!

Ok, this stuff is divine. It's really good! I made it using low fat cream cheese and though it took a while to stir together, once I was done, it was so worth it. The chewy sweet raisins are the best part and the walnuts give a little crunch every now and then. And of course it woudn't be the stunning spread that it is without the cinnamon! I ate it on an apple last night with some agave and on a wrap today at work.

Muesli- Stonyfield Style

I started to make my usual yogurt mix for work last night which is Stonyfield vanilla, mixed berries, and flax, when I spied a recipe on the yogurt tub. MUESLI!!! Now I'm not a huge fan of yogurt for breakfast since it doesn't seem to fill me up like oatmeal does. But this recipe combined them both! I grabbed a plastic bowl and starting throwing stuff in:

1. 1/2 cup oats


2. 1/2 cup stonyfield vanilla yogurt
   
3. 1/4 cup organic 1% milk


4. Capful of vanilla (my addition)


5. 1/2 cup strawberries


6. 1/2 cup mixed berries (blue, black, and rasp) :)


7. 1/8 cup raisins


8. 2 T. chopped walnuts


9. 2 T. wheat germ
   

I actually didn't add the walnuts till this morning. And it said to add honey but mine was plenty sweet without it. It was really good! I ate it on the way to work. (I know...but I was in a hurry) This mix kept me full too. I ate most of it this morning and the rest for a post-work snack. I was pleasantly surprised and my taste buds thanked me immensely. :> Wanna see this beauty??

Last but not least: LUNCH!

This lunch was so good. I took a Joseph's Lavash pita wrap and stuffed it with sweet & spicy tuna, cream cheese, shredded cheese, and...and...KALE! I toasted it all up in our little oven at work and man, was it yum. I see more of these babies to come. I also had an orange and later, a girl scout Samoa cookie from Bethany. Our cookies we ordered came in today. I got Lemon Chalet's for Ryan and PB do-si-do's for me...I hope they aren't being recalled? :/

Check out that KALE!