Wednesday, January 6, 2010

new kid on the block.

Hi.  My name is Lauren and I'm a former fat kid.


{this is me now with my husband and our dog.}



I hit my peak weight at 160 lbs. my sophomore year in college.  I did Weight Watchers (counted points, but no meetings) and lost 40 lbs in about 6 months.  Since then my weight has yo-yo'd a bit...especially after getting married and taking on the same "diet" as my husband who can eat whatever he wants.  I got my act together and lost the weight again.  


My weight has been (and probably always will be) a struggle I'll deal with for the rest of my life.  Part of me feels like I'm not qualified to guest blog here on The Skinny, but the other part of me is super excited to have a reason to be held accountable for maintaining my fitness.  Currently my goal is to lose 15 pounds.  I want to have babies one day and am hoping to get thinner now so there's less weight to lose later.  


SO...enough about me.  My posts here on The Skinny will be about healthy meals/snacks.  I will post recipes to some of my favorites that I've tried every 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month.  Before I give you this recipe, I want to note that while I don't have any picky children to worry about, I do have a picky husband.  He hates "diet food", so it's a challenge to find things that are healthy that he'll eat...especially since he's a red-meat lover through and through.  Neither of us are huge shrimp fans, but this is probably our favorite meal...I cook it at least every other week.  (*NOTE:  this is spicy, but you can leave out the garlic chili paste and it would still taste good).




Stir-Fried Shrimp with Spicy Orange Sauce (Via~Cooking Light~best cooking mag ever)






YIELD

4 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup)

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined large shrimp
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
  • 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon chile paste with garlic (such as sambal oelek)
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/3 cup chopped green onions

PREPARATION

Place shrimp in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with cornstarch; toss well to coat. Set aside.
Combine juice, soy sauce, honey, vinegar, and chile paste, stirring with a whisk; set aside.
Heat canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add minced ginger and garlic to pan; stir-fry for 15 seconds or until fragrant. Add shrimp mixture; stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add juice mixture and onions; cook 2 minutes or until sauce thickens and shrimp are done, stirring frequently. Serve immediately.
Nutritional Information


Calories:
301 (30% from fat)
Fat:
10g (sat 1.1g,mono 4.6g,poly 3.2g)
Protein:
35.3g
Carbohydrate:
16.8g
Fiber:
0.5g
Cholesterol:
259mg
Iron:
4.4mg
Sodium:
621mg
Calcium:
103mg




Here are some variations I use when making this meal:


*I only make 2 servings (note Craig eats a lot so it's more like 2 1/2 servings).


*I use 3/4 lb. of shrimp instead of 1 1/2, but I keep the sauce recipe the same...I like sauce.


*I only put in 1 tsp. of the chile paste. I really like spicy stuff and I had to learn the hard way that less is more with this recipe. I couple of times I made this meal and it was so hot we couldn't even eat it. You can also leave out the chile paste altogether if you aren't a fan of spicy cuisine.


*I use whole wheat penne instead of the suggested ondon noodles, but you can use whatever.


*I use like 5 garlic cloves...but that's just because we really like garlic too.




Looking forward to heading off on this weight loss journey with you Katie and Kathy!


P.S.  Here's a link to my favorite ab workout on exercisetv, which is a great resource for free/low cost workout videos.

10 comments:

Kathy Haynie said...

Yum! We love shrimp. We have a favorite recipe, which we use frequently, but this would be a good one to add some variety.

I'm excited for the link to free/low cost workout videos. Thanks, Lauren!

Anonymous said...

i love lauren! she is my favorite! i am so excited to see her posting on here. i think that tons of people will be able to relate to her. even myself. since getting married it is so easy to just keep eating and eating, it is especially to eat as much if not more as your husband because you are past the whole "dating" stage and it is easy to let things slide. i have to remember that men need more calories than woman and i really do need to make healthier choices! thanks all of you who write this blog for inspiring me!

i am not a huge shrimp fan, but this recipe sounds really yummy so i may have to give it a shot, or even make it with chicken! yummy!

Katie Lewis said...

That shrimp looks really good. And I watched the first little bit of that abs video. I am totally going to try it at least once before my next weekly post. Hopefully it'll get rid of this flabby tummy! Thanks Lauren!

Lauren @The Little Things We Do.... said...

ha ha! i totally call them shrimpies too!

Anonymous said...

i love shrimps, except i've been vegetarian for the last year... if that ever changes i'll be sure to give that recipe a try! i'm definitely going to try that work out though!

Unknown said...

It looks great! I'm not a huge shrimp fan, but since you aren't either + it's still one of your faves, maybe I'll give it a try :] XO.

Katie Lewis said...

Oh my gosh Lauren. No wonder you are so fit. I just tried that abs video and I couldn't even do the whole thing. I seriously had to take a little break and just stretch for like five minutes in the middle of it. Hopefully by the time I reach my target weight I'll be able to at least complete the whole thing. Also, I might be investing in a yoga mat. Our floor--"carpet"ed as it may be--is hard.

Lauren @The Little Things We Do.... said...

seriously katie...i'm struggling at the end. it's intense. it kind of tricks you into thinking it'll be easy though... starts kinda slow and then kicks your butt! with enough times doing it, you'll be a pro :).

JuliaKoponick said...

I did my first workout today at Curves. It was sad to realize that I had gained almost 15 pounds when I was sick, but at least I have lost 4 of them so far. I had also added inches, which I know is from not working out for the last 5 months.

Thanks for all the great suggestions and inspiration guys!

Post Grad Hair Cut said...

This sounds delicious. I know what its like to have the yo-yo effect with weightloss. I too did weightwatchers and I love the flexibility it provides. I'm trying now to focus more on what physically satisfies me (vs. emotionally as I am an emotional eater) and gauging how much I should eat on this. Of course I'm paying close attention to what I'm eating too. I hope that this method turns into a maintainable lifestyle. I can't count points forever.

We'd love to hear from you!

Want to write a guest post for The Skinny? E-mail Katie at kathleenann08 (at) gmail (dot) com.