Ask Kanwal

Decadent Breakfast....

2011-04-15T06:43:00.000-07:00

So, what did you guys have for breakfast this morning? I had a deliciously decadent breakfast (please look left) of Greek yogurt, dark chocolate chips and sliced banana. Not only was this delish breakfast decadent, but it's actually pretty nutritious. Protein from the Greek yogurt, fiber from the banana, and antioxidants from the dark chocolate chips. I used 60% cacao chocolate chips.

The Black Bean Burger Mystery Recipe: Homemade Black Bean Burger

2011-04-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

Whew....glad to hear The Black Bean Burger Mystery is solved! Last thing we want on lunch plates is unhealthy meals going out to the great citizens of lunch times. Now that this mystery is solved, I think it's a great time to share the nutritiously delicious home made recipe for the black bean burger. Ingredients: One 15oz. can of reduced sodium black beans, rinsed and drained 1/4 cup of

The Black Bean Burger Mystery: The Suspects...

2011-04-14T10:48:00.000-07:00

Now that you all know the background to this mystery, lets have a looksie at our suspects.... Suspect: Homemade black bean burger. Suspect has proteins and carbs, yet claims to be filled with fiber. Accomplice 1: Side Salad The side salad, although little effort was put in, the side salad made a big impact to the fulfillment of the meal. Are cucumbers and tomatoes really to blame for

My column on TheAjnabee.com....

2011-04-12T09:47:00.000-07:00

Hello All, Please hop on over to TheAjnabee.com and check out my recipe for NO SUGAR ADDED peanut butter muffins! This is great for breakfast or a snack! As usual, healthy, nutritious and delicious!

Strawberry Almond Bowl...texturized

2011-04-12T08:14:00.000-07:00

mmm...texture Hello Hello, This morning I was craving a nice hearty bowl of delicious and nutritious...texture. Yes, sometimes you want a little texture to your meal, and not something uniformly creamy. I was thinking how I could do this with my regular cinnamon yogurt, fruit and almond bowl. Here's what I came up. Instead of fully slicing my strawberries, I cut them in half and instead

Recipe Alert: Peanut Butter and Banana Pudding w/ Chocolate Chips

2011-04-11T06:44:00.000-07:00

Good Morning All, I thought I'd start this morning off on a bit of a sweet note and post my recipe for Peanut Butter and Banana Pudding w/Chocolate Chips. So, I've been doing a lot of experimenting with agar agar, which is a sea based gelling agent. Most gelatin found in common foods such as Jello, are animal based. As I go more and more into the world of a vegetarian, I've started to find

Dinner Last Night: Steak with Blue Cheese Dressing

2011-04-07T07:44:00.000-07:00

Good Morning Everyone, Last night I made it home just in time to do a Tae Bo Cardio workout and then make myself a quick dinner. Now, I've cut out a lot of red meat and chicken in my diet. I use to have at least one serving of red meat or chicken a day, be it for lunch or dinner. Now, I probably have this once a week. Last night, I was really, really craving a steak salad with blue cheese

I have an addiction...to peanut butter!!!!

2011-04-06T12:17:00.001-07:00

to be continued...

Breakfast: Cinnamon Yogurt and Almond Cup

2011-04-06T07:25:00.000-07:00

Breakfast today was a bowl full of Greek plain Greek yogurt, a ton of my favorite cinnamon, almonds and sliced banana. A fresh, delicious, stick to your ribs kind of breakfast, to give me the energy I need to get through the day! mmm...deliciousness in a mug Question of the day: What did you have for breakfast?

Finally Met Jillian Michaels...

2011-04-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

Well, hello hello. So, last night was quite an event. Totally last minute, I decided to go to Jillian Michael's booking signing for her new book, "Unlimited". The book signing was in Borders in Columbus Circle. Jillian was there and so were a few members of The Biggest Loser, past and present. I didn't really recognize any of the present ones since I have not been watching this season. I

Doing the Tuna and Spinach...

2011-04-05T13:46:00.000-07:00

Lunch today was my delish tuna salad but instead of a side of steamed veggies, I had a spinach and cherry tomato salad, lightly dressed with Newman's Own Light Balsamic dressing. mmmm...looks good! Lunch is done and I'm already thinking about dinner. Let's see what I can come up with tonight. Question of the day: What's for dinner?

I'm Craving....

2011-04-05T08:28:00.001-07:00

A SALMON BURGER!!!!! image: prevention.com

Morning...

2011-04-05T06:54:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone, I've conquered the Monday blues and was totally on schedule yesterday! I left work right at 6:30 and was in my PJ's by 8pm, eating my dinner and watching Castle by 10pm. Yes, the downtime was awesome!! This morning I enjoyed my breakfast bowl, however, instead of adding PB to the mixture I added 14 whole almonds. This was very satisfying in both texture and taste. I can't wait for

Lunch Today...

2011-04-04T12:15:00.000-07:00

Alright Guys, We are halfway through the day and I've accomplished a lot! First off, I have been very productive at work. Secondly, I used my lunch hour to get my work out in! Oh yes, 30 minutes of pure cardio on the stair master, at level 12. Yup, that was a sweat fest. I ate lunch at my desk. Today's lunch consisted of a tuna salad on a Pepperidge Farm Deli Flats. Tuna salad was simply made

My first cooking video...

2011-04-04T06:45:00.000-07:00

Guys, Here's the link to my first cooking video.. http://yfrog.com/66ipuz This a recipe for a healthy banana pudding Comments welcome!

Breakfast time...

2011-04-04T06:38:00.001-07:00

Well, now that I let everyone know how much I hate Monday's, let's get onto more interesting things, such as what I ate for breakfast this morning! This morning I had a wonderful Greek yogurt and ricotta bowl, sprinkled with a bunch of Simply Organic Cinnamon. I mixed in one small banana, chopped and two TB of crunchy PB. These days I'm loving the PB by Peanut Butter &Co. What did you

Monday...again...

2011-04-04T06:21:00.000-07:00

Good Morning All, It's Monday...I HATE Mondays. The only thing worse than Monday's is Sunday night, when you know Monday is on its way. So, here's the plan of action for the day: Go through my work day and get as much done as possible, be productive as possible Use my lunch hour to get my workout in Leave work by 6:30pm Be home by 8:00pm Shower Eat dinner Watch Castle ( I can't help it, I like

The Cinch!...AGAIN!

2011-04-01T06:43:00.000-07:00

Today is the last day on the Cinch! fast forward. As many of you know, this is the second time I'm doing this. The first time around, I lost a considerable 8 pounds, this time, just 1. Now, after the Cinch! fast forward the first time, I have been losing about a pound a week, as I've kept up with the Cinch! puzzle since. I think I did not lose much weight this time because I'm already following

Yogurt Parfait...

2011-03-30T04:54:00.001-07:00

Hey Guys, Sorry for the lack of posting yesterday! First things first, I promised you guys the recipe for the yogurt parfait. Although I use the same ingredients, I like to eat my "parfait" bowl style vs actual parfait style. Here are the deets: 6oz. Greek yogurt 1c of raspberries 10 whole almonds (the recipe calls for 2TB of slivered, but I like the texture of whole almonds) Procedure:

Good morning...

2011-03-29T07:10:00.001-07:00

Good Morning Everyone, Monday is over with!!! Yay...I always find Monday's to be the hardest day of the week. Last night I made it back to my apartment at 8:45pm. Much later than expected. I whipped up my Cinch! Smoothie with yogurt,berries and almond butter. I also added a sprinkling of cinnamon :-) By 9:15 I was exhausted and had showered and was comfortably watching Antenna TV (All In The

So far so good...

2011-03-28T15:07:00.001-07:00

So far today has been pretty good. I have not felt really hungry and I am right on track with my meals. Although I have not been hungry I started my day off pretty tired and still am pretty tired. This is only due to the lack of sleep I got last night. I drank some tea late in the evening and I'm pretty sure this is what put me on my long night of tossing and turning! Needless to say, I have been

It's Yogurt Parfait Time...

2011-03-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

Here's a teaser for the recipe tomorrow! I had my yogurt parfait, which, I know hardly looks like a parfait, but was still delish :-) Like I said before, I think this time around will be much easier since my body is already used to smaller portions. So far I feel good and am even thinking about getting to the gym for a workout!

The Cinch!...AGAIN!

2011-03-28T06:42:00.000-07:00

Good Morning All, I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! So, last week my dear friend and coworker, Vianny asked if I would be willing to do the five day fast forward plan of The Cinch! with her. I've already tried this in February, with success and have not gained any of the weight back, as I'm doing a good job with maintaining. I decided to go ahead and do this but tweak it just a teensy

New Find: Trader Joe's Healthy 8 Chopped Veggie Mix

2011-03-25T06:57:00.001-07:00

You may have noticed that a lot of my recipes this week called for "chopped veggies". Last week when I went to Trader Joe's I noticed for $2.99 they sell a fairly decent size container of chopped veggies. The container has 8 different vegetables (broccoli, carrots, green cabbage, red cabbage, jicama, green bell pepper, radish and celery), all chopped up for you! This is extremely convenient

Recipe Alert: Whole Wheat Pasta and Veggies

2011-03-25T05:07:00.001-07:00

Yesterday for lunch I had a hearty pasta and veggies dish is a creamy sauce. The secret of the creamy sauce is Greek yogurt. This is such a wonderful trick,if you mix a tablespoon of pesto sauce into 6oz. of non fat Greek yogurt, you get a thick, rich, creamy sauce with such little fat and calories. Below is the recipe for my Whole Wheat Pasta and Veggies. Ingredients: 1TB of pesto sauce 6oz.