Pasta with Garlic Breadcrumbs

Pasta with Garlic Breadcrumbs

Recipe: https://lasvegasfoodadventures.wordpress.com/2010/02/10/pasta-with-garlic-breadcrumbs-pasta-con-pangrattato/

I'm always looking for new ways to eat pasta, it is my number one food group after all. I stumbled upon the recipe above and though, "Oh how fancy!" and had to give it a try. Pasta with toasted bread crumbs, parmesan, and garlic? Sounds like a match made in heaven! I substituted whole wheat pasta and whole wheat panko breadcrumbs, and also used only about a tablespoon of oil. 

I took the first bite: Mmm, delicious! I could taste the garlic, parmesan, and the toasty breadcrumbs. This recipe is getting a 5/5, for sure! Then I took the next bite: Alright still pretty good! And then I took a few more: Wow my mouth is getting awfully dry, I need some water with this. A couple more: So I'm not tasting much besides bread crumb anymore. And I'm so thirsty! Aaand a few last bites: Well, I had to drink a glass of water to get through it, and the bread crumbs started getting stuck in my throat while also flying everywhere as I ate....maybe 5/5 is a little generous.

So what I thought would be a winner turned out to be a dud. The first few bites are great, but then you should just stop because all of those bread crumbs really dry you out. It's quite messy as well, and I'm not a messy eater. As you twirl your fork, those bread crumbs really fly! I think it would be better to make another type of pasta and then sprinkle some of these bread crumbs on top. The texture was nice, there was just too much of it.

Sarah's Review

Ease: 4/5

Taste: 2/5

Chocolate Chip Scones

Chocolate Chip Scones

Recipe: http://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2015/05/05/clean-chocolate-chip-scones

This morning I wanted a special treat for breakfast, so I decided to try my hand at making scones. Not just normal, fruity scones, CHOCOLATE CHIP scones. Can you tell I'm a chocoholic? I found a clean eating recipe on Pinterest and figured I'd give it a shot. They were pretty easy to make, although they were a bit smaller than I was imagining they'd turn out. The scone dough itself isn't a sweet one which provided a yummy contrast with the sweet milk chocolate. (I know, still not using dark, but I have to get rid of these chocolate chips on hand!) The only thing I'd recommend is baking these at 400 degrees instead of 425 like the recipe suggests. I baked them at 425 for 17 minutes (the shortest amount of time the recipe said) and they came out very browned and some of the chocolate chips on top had scorched. They still tasted good after I scraped off the burnt chocolate, but scones aren't meant to be as brown as they turned out so next time I'll turn down the temperature and watch them more closely. Otherwise, a tasty recipe to make!

Sarah's Review

Ease: 3/5

Taste: 4/5

Orange Garlic Salad w/ Steak and Croutons // Leftovers & Fruit Salad

Leftovers: Balsamic Chicken & Cheddar Broccoli Quinoa //  Fruit Salad, lunch

I'm posting mine first because it's super boring (but still amazingly delicious) and I don't want to follow the tough act below. =). I set aside some of last night's dinner for lunch today. I ate that with the pictured fruit. It looks like a lot, but I had planned to eat half at lunch, half later. But the raspberries were a little on the wrong side of ripe, so I had to throw those out.

Alana's Review

Ease: 5/5

Taste: 5/5

Comment: Leftovers are the best!

Orange Garlic Salad w/ Steak and Croutons 

There are only two types of salad I like: Caesar salad and dry salad. I've never been a sauce gal, I hate condiments, dressings, and everything of the like. Recently though I've been trying hard to branch out and try new sauces, like the lemon garlic aioli I made with the fish tacos. Well today I made a salad dressing. And not just any dressing, I made a vinaigrette!  (I HATE vinegar with a passion, can't stand the taste). With that in mind, this vinaigrette is lighter on the vinegar so you may need to add more than I did. 

Description: romaine salad with steak bites, croutons, and orange garlic vinaigrette. Recipe: 1/4 cup orange juice (I used fresh squeezed ), 1/4 cup olive oil, 4 tsp white wine vinegar, 1/2 tsp orange zest, 2 tsp dried parsley, 1 tsp garlic powder, pinch of salt and pepper. 

Sarah's Review

Ease: 4/5

Taste: 5/5

I thought the vinaigrette came out fantastic,  it had a light orange taste with a hint of garlic and a nice bite from the vinegar.  And you can never go wrong with steak, mine was a ribeye from my boyfriend's uncle's cattle farm, can't get fresher than that!

Successes & Failures

Some days it's easy to cook and eat healthy and then some days it's a real challenge. The best thing that we did while preparing to take on clean eating is deciding that this isn't a diet but a lifestyle change.

So, the fact that we both totally stunk it up for breakfast isn't a discouragement for the rest of the day or for tomorrow, it's just a reason to try harder on the next meal. We're still learning and are still human. Sometimes our failures are on accident and then some are delicious decisions.

However, personally, since eating clean, whenever I eat poorly I pay for it right after and feel sick until I drink a couple glasses of water. That tells me that 1. The new eating habits are making a difference & 2. That the old food MUST be pretty bad for your body!

So, just a note for those working on eating healthy: though the title suggests breakfast was a failure... it's really not, it's okay to mess up! Expecting perfection immediately is a great way to sabotage yourself!! That meal is over, on to the next!!

See you at lunch time!
Alana