In search of a winning Desset....

Hello friends!

I have some good news and a little bad.  Since my good news is much more exciting than the bad, I'll tell the bad first.

Bad news:  I never did get in my workout tonight like I was hoping.  This isn't all that surprising since statistically if I don't get my workout in first thing in the morning there is a 90% chance it won't happen all day.  I can attribute this to a couple of things.
1) I am usually a bit drained of energy when I get home from work and like to melt into the couch (although one of the bonus' of living the South Beach way is I shooouuld have more energy soon - once my blood sugar levels out).
2) We live in a tiny tiny apartment with juuust enough space to workout in the living room comfortably (i.e. I can kick and lunge and move all over without hitting anything/walls), but if I workout after work Jon usually has some game on in the living room that he is super invested in, which means I am relegated to the bedroom for my workout.  The less than fortunate part about that is that working out in the bedroom means I have about a six by four foot space to get all "fitnessy".
3) I found a great recipe that I wanted to whip up for tonight, so as soon as I left work I made a bee line for our grocery store and once I got home I just couldn't bring myself to put off cooking in favor of a workout --- crazy for someone who has always claimed they don't like to cook.

Good News:  I ate lots of yummy stuff today, and haven't even gotten to dessert (which I'm hoping will be a vast improvement from last nights failure).  I intially was planning on making a eggplant lasagna, sans noodles, but turns out the area where my store gets their eggplants from is flooded so they are "nearly impossible to come by" - according to my produce guy at Fred Meyer.  Plan B was a chili.  I was planning to make the chili anyway for tomorrow's lunch, so I just decided to make enough to have for dinner tonight and leftovers for lunch tomorrow.  I made a SBD "Turkey and White Bean Chili" with a couple variations.  I topped it off with cilantro, fresh cut tomatoes, and a dollop of ricotta cheese (that made it uber creamy).  It was a HUGE success according to myself (who is not at all biased;)) and Jon.  His only comment was that the turkey was a bit chewy (a tell tale sign of an unexperienced chef like myself), but that it felt like he was eating steak so he gave it a thumbs up!  I'll chalk this up as a VIC. TOR.Y!

I'm such a frantic cook... I try to prep but I always find myself scrambling to get things in the pot "in time".

Chili getting all cooked up!

Topped with Ricotta, tomatoes, and cilantro.

All stirred up and ready for me to inhale!

I also whipped up a ricotta/strawberry jello mix for dessert that I found on a great SBD go to site, Kayln's Kithcen.  It was super simple to make.  While boiling water for the Jello, stir up the ricotta to smooth it out.  Then combine the water, Jello and ricotta and pop it in the fridge.  The hardest part is waiting for it to "jell".  Stay tuned for a report on that manana... <----still clinging to my Mexican vacation :)

Dessert "jelled" and ready to dish!

His and hers plates, topped with a small dollop of Non-Fat Reddi Whip!

Here are the recipes:

Turkey and White Bean Chili

2 (1 1/4-cup) Servings

Description
This yummy chili can be made many different ways, if you want to experiment. Try using chicken instead of turkey or navy, black, or pinto beans in place of the white ones. Top it with a tablespoon or two of shredded low-fat cheddar or jack cheese, sliced scallions, or chopped cilantro. You can even use chipotle chili powder for a smoky taste, in place of regular.
 
Prep time: 10 minutes 
Start to finish: 30minutes 

Ingredients (I doubled all ingredients)
1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 
1/2 medium onion, roughly chopped 
1 garlic clove, minced 
1/2 pound turkey cutlets, cut into 1/2" pieces 
1/2 tablespoon chili powder 
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 
1/2 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained (I used a can of black and a can of chili beans - pinto beans dressed in a chili marinade)
1/2 (14.5-ounce) can Mexican diced tomatoes 
1/2 cup lower-sodium chicken broth 
Salt and freshly ground black pepper (omitted this on accident, but it still tasted great)


Instructions
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.

Add turkey, chili powder, and cumin; cook, stirring often, until turkey is no longer pink inside, about 5 minutes. 

Add beans, tomatoes with juice, and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until flavors blend, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve. 

Nutritional Information:

260 calories
5 total fat (0.5 g sat)
21 g carbohydrate
34 g protein
6 g fiber
500 mg sodium

Jelled Ricotta Pudding 
Makes 4 servings

1 pkg sugar-free Jello, any flavor that appeals to you
(this recipe is for 4-serving size package, double it for larger box of Jello.)
1 cup boiling water
2/3 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup cold water

Put ricotta cheese into bowl and stir with fork or whisk until it's slightly softened. Have four glass dishes (slightly over 1/2 cup each) ready on counter to pour the hot Jello mixture into.

Put powdered Jello from package into large glass measuring cup, pour in boiling water and whisk for 1-2 minutes, until all Jello is dissolved in the water. Stir in ricotta, then cold water and mix together. Pour into glass bowls and place in refrigerator to set. I waited about 2 hours until the mixture was partly firm, then covered it with cling wrap.

Serve cold, from individual dishes.