I may be a little crazy...

but I think I am actually going to try to lose weight this holiday seasona opposed to the "traditional" weight gain. I did it last year, but I was fresh off my big weight loss and I was definitely more motivated.

Lately, I've been getting a little too lax with my eating habits, and I definitely don't want to gain those 25 pounds back that I lost almost two years ago, so to hold myself accountable, I enrolled in a program at my gym to commit to 45 workouts in 11 weeks. I'm also competing with my friend to see who can workout the most in December. The winner gets a Sephora gift certificate paid for by the loser.

Wish me luck!

Mexican Egg Casserole

INGREDIENTS

• 6 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Shredded Cheese
• 6 La Tortilla Factory Hand Made Style White Corn Tortillas
• 4 links of Chorizo
• 4 oz can of Fire-Roasted Diced Green Chilies
• 1/2 cup Diced Red Onions
• 1/4 cup Chopped Cilantro
• 1/2 cup Tomatoes
• Mexican Seasoning (I used McCormick Garlic and Onion Grill Medley and organic Chipotle Adobo blend I bought from Whole Foods)

DIRECTIONS

1. Remove chorizo from casing and sautee until brown with diced onion.
2. Layer 9x13 casserole dish (treated with non-stick spray) with green chile, meat, tortilla, cheese. Continue layering in that order ending with cheese.
3. Pour whipped eggs (seasoning, cilantro, hot sauce, water) over layers. Let sit for at least six hours or overnight
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes es or until cheese begins to brown

The casserole was delicious; however, next time I would not let the cheese brown because as I reheat it during the week, the cheese gets rubbery. This is definitely not low fat or sodium, but it is filling and high in protein. If you want to make it lowfat, you can take out the chorizo and add MorningStar Scrambles and use lowfat cheese.

NUTRITION FACTS
Serving Size: 1 square / 6 squares total

Amount per Serving - 239 Calories / 103.7 Calories from Fat

Total Fat 11.52g
Saturated Fat 4.34g
Sodium 484.14mg
Total Carbohydrate 17.27g
Dietary Fiber 1.24g
Sugars 0.56g
Protein 15g
Est. Percent of Calories from:
Fat - 43% / Carbs - 28% / Protein - 25%

Eating Healthy on a Budget

I’ve been trying to save money in order to pay down some bills and go on two vacations this year. Today, I decided to buy the Sunday paper and clip some coupons. My total bill ended up being $58.93 and I saved $13.00 due coupons in part due to Shopper’s Food Warehouse double coupon policy. Go me J The best part is that I was able to use my ingredients to make four different meals. For more information on saving money with coupons, check out Bicycle Girl: One Girl, One Bike, One Life.

On the menu for this week:

• Mexican Egg Casserole (300 calories)
• Mexican Salad (cucumbers, tomato, corn, onion, avocado, lime, olive oil, minced garlic) (with 1/4 of the avocado and and 2 tsp of olive oil, it is less than 200 calories)
• Polenta Chili with a dollop of Greek nonfat yogurt and tortilla chips (450 calories)
• Turkey Pastrami Sandwiches & Chips (350 calories)

So here is my bounty (items with an asterisk were on sale or had coupons)

Produce

3 roma tomatoes

*1 Avocado

1 bunch of cilantro

1 cucumber

1 onion

*1 baby romaine organic salad

3 oranges

Bread / Dairy

*1 container plain greek yogurt

*Eggland’s brown cage free eggs

*1 package Mexican cheese blend

*Arnold’s Multi-Grain Sandwich Thins

Canned Goods

1 can garbanzo beans

1 can corn

1 can fire roasted green chiles

Meat

Uncle Logan’s Salvodorean style chorizo

Turkey Pastrami

Misc.

*Zone Bar

*Luna Bar

*4-Pack 100 calorie muscle milk

*Skinny cow ice cream cup

Ciao Bella gelato cup

*Nature’s Valley dark chocolate graham thins

*Yoplait Delights 100 chocolate raspberry parfait

*Truvia (all natural zero calorie sweetener)

Ruffles Light

*Lotion, *deodorant, *toothpaste

Van’s gluten-free cinnamon French toast sticks

Not bad huh? Recipes and pics tomorrow.

Any tips for eating healthy on a budget?