A Low-Cal Day Can be a Filling Day!

I've mentioned it before, but it's worth mentioning again. Sometimes, when people lose weight, and you ask them how they did it, they answer very vaguely. You've heard these lines, right?

"Oh, you know. I just worked out and stuff." ~ "Well, I just eat healthier. That's all." ~ Or my favorite, "I don't know. I'm just losing. Isn't it great?"

I am all about sharing. Sharing info, sharing successes, even sharing failures! You can learn from all of it. That said, I want to get into details. I've said that I limit my food intake to 1200 - 1500 calories per day. If you've never counted calories, this can be difficult. I had never counted calories before I started my Healthy Lifestyle journey. And while you're definitely eating less food, it doesn't mean you have to starve. Here is a detailed food log of what I ate the other day. I want to point out that I do eat meat, and it's absolutely possible to have your steak and eat it too, however this particular day, I was very veggie heavy.

Breakfast ~ A Veggie Breakfast Burrito ~ Total - 246 calories
1 La Tortilla Factory Low Carb/Low Fat tortilla - 50 calories
1 Laughing Cow Light Cheese wedge - 35 calories
2 Boca Burger Original patties - 140 calories
1 plum tomato - 11 calories
2 tbsp salsa - 10 calories
Cook burger patties in the oven. Spread cheese wedge onto tortilla. Lightly warm or toast tortilla. Chop burger patties into strips or chunks and place onto tortilla. Add sliced plum tomato, and spread salsa on top. Wrap up the tortilla and chow down.

Snack ~ 2 Mandarin Oranges (the Cuties) ~ Total - 80 calories

Lunch ~ Mushroom Risotto with Veggies and Tempeh ~ Total - 405 calories
1 cup Mushroom Risotto (from Trader Joe's) - 150 calories
2 oz tempeh - 110 calories
1/4 cup unsweetened soymilk - 20 calories
2/3 cup frozen mixed veggies - 90 calories
1 Laughing Cow Light Cheese wedge - 35 calories
Chop or grate tempeh and combine with all other ingredients in a skillet. Simmer, stirring frequently, until liquid has reduced and risotto is thick and creamy. Serve it up warm and enjoy.

Snack ~ Chips Ahoy 100 Calorie Pack, 1 bottle Vitamin Water ~ Total - 225 calories

Dinner ~ Shrimp & Angel Hair Pasta ~ Total - 295 calories
1 pkg Lean Cuisine Shrimp & Angel Hair Pasta in creamy seafood sauce - 220 calories
1 pkg House Foods Tofu Shirataki Angel Hair noodles - 40 calories
1 Laughing Cow Light Cheese wedge - 35 calories
Drain and rinse noodles very well in hot water, or boil noodles and drain well. Prepare Lean Cuisine entree according to package directions. Place Lean Cuisine contents and tofu noodles into a microwave safe bowl. Add cheese wedge, toss, and microwave for 30 - 60 seconds. Toss again to mix thoroughly and enjoy.

Dessert ~ 1 Vitabrownie, 1 bottle Guinness draught ~ Total - 230 calories


TOTAL FOR THE DAY - 1,481 calories
Pretty cool, huh?

Foodie View: Hina's Top Three Cupcakeries!

One of the things I love best about cupcakes is that they eliminate the guilt of not sharing. It's a very personal dessert, and regardless of the size, nobody hears the word "cupcake" and expects you to split it. How can you? It's a cupcake! Two bites, and you could be done. And if you did offer to share, what would have to give? "Sure, I'll share! Here, extract the maximum amount of flavor from this tiny mound of cupcake crumbs, and try to feel satisfied with that." You might as well save your cupcake for yourself, and point the other person in the direction of the platter.

That's the other wonderful thing about cupcakes. They rarely travel alone. A cupcake starts it's life in a tray with 5 or more siblings. They bake together, cool together, they even get iced and frosted together! Then it's usually onto a tray or platter, or into a box. Cupcakes like to hang out together, and that makes it so much easier to satisfy your craving.

And nobody satisfies a cupcake craving like these places! Here are my Top Three Cupcakeries in Southern California

Dots Cupcakes
400 S. Arroyo Parkway, Pasadena, CA 91105
(626) 568-DOTS

This place is terrific! It's right off of S. Arroyo, very close to the end of the 110 Freeway, and there's free parking located underground. Stop in at the cute little boutique-shop for a cup of good coffee, and grab your favorite flavor. If you go on a Friday or Saturday, you can try my favorites, all made with Valrhona chocolate: Chocolate Chocolate, German Chocolate, and Chocolate Cheesecake. My friend swears by the Strawberry Shortcake, but I thought it was just ok. I also recommend the Apple Pie. It's such a cute one, and very tasty!

Sprinkles
9635 Little Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90210
(310) 274-8765
and
in Corona Del Mar Plaza
944 Avocado Ave., Newport Beach, CA 92660
(949) 760-0003

I must say that Sprinkles takes cupcakes to a whole new level. The cupcakes come in over 20 fabulous flavors, and they always look so perfect and trendy with their decorative dots or sugar toppings. My favorite flavor here, surprisingly with no chocolate, is the Pumpkin cupcake. It's really good spiced pumpkin cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. The flavors go so well together, and the frosting isn't too heavy. I also tried the Mocha cupcake, which is a Belgian dark chocolate cake (mmmmm...) with mocha frosting. The cake was terrific, but I think I was looking for a more coffee-rich flavor. Of course, if I had had it with a cup of coffee, it would have been perfect. I have also heard that the Red Velvet cupcake is one of the absolute best, a light chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. I will definitely be trying that one soon!

Yummy Cupcakes
2918 W. Magnolia Blvd., Burbank, CA 91505
(818) 558-1080
and
313 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 393-8283

No list is complete without Yummy Cupcakes. I have never been to the Burbank location, but the Santa Monica store has free parking in the 4th Street parking lot. Yummy Cupcakes has over 100 different cupcake flavors. This is the current King of the Cupcakeries! Since they have so many fabulous flavors, they have a rotating Daily Menu with 18 flavor combinations available, and the menus are available on their website. Of course, you can always place an order for any specific flavor. A few of my favorites are: Carrot Cream Cheese (the carrot cake has raisins and pineapple), Mudslide (a coffee infused chocolate cupcake, baked with a "shot" of Irish Cream), and the Chocolate Truffle (a chocolate cupcake with a chocolate ganache center AND topping). I love the fact that they have an entire "Cocktail" flavor line of cupcakes, such as the Lemon Pinot Grigio, Blue Hawaiian, or Pina Colada cupcakes. It's something I've never seen anywhere else. And check out their upcoming menu of St. Patrick's Day cupcakes. I am heading straight for the Guiness Extra Stout cupcake with cocoa whipped cream and green edible glitter! Also worthy of note, although I haven't tried them yet, are the Cupcake Biscotti and the Cupcake-in-a-Jar. Real cupcakes, sliced and baked to a crunch, and your favorite cupcakes layered in a jar with the toppings (whipped cream, chocolate sprinkles, etc...), ready to eat with a spoon. It's decadence gone wild!

I have to note that I have not found a decent cupcakery in San Diego. Not that San Diego doesn't have terrific desserts, just no cupcakeries worthy of mention. There may be a store with cupcakes just waiting to be devoured. If so, clue me in! I am always on the hunt for Great Food!

My Baby Loves ... Music!

My baby is growing up and becoming a person with clear likes and dislikes. I find this extraordinarily fascinating, and I'm sure other parents out there can relate. There's just a happy wonderment that fills you up when you realize, "Oh, the baby is enjoying this!" It's such a progressive step from the time when your child sits around and stares, to the time when they focus on something, recognize it, and look forward to their next contact with it.

My 17 month old Mr. Baby currently likes musical amusements. I am very happy about this, as studies have found that playing music can be good for your brain, and can help with language development. (Check out these articles from MedicalNewsToday.com and SFGate.com.) Getting my boy interested in music, rhythm, and musical instruments is a great start. I can't wait for him to get a little older so he can take music lessons.

This is a list, in no particular order, of his Top 3 current music related entertainments.

1. The Backyardigans
Ahhhh... The exploits of five animal friends who have fabulous singing and dancing adventures in the backyard. I can honestly say that I really enjoy watching this with my son. A few of his favorite episodes include: Mission to Mars (which guest stars Alicia Keys), Into the Deep, and Cave Party, and he just really enjoys the great music.

2. Putumayo Kids Presents: African Playground
This is a very fun and energetic collection of music. One of my favorites is Mbube, which most people will recognize as The Lion Sleeps Tonight, by The Mahotella Queens. I put this on about an hour after breakfast and we dance around the living room. I'm excited because I can see my boy is developing great rhythm!

3. Melissa and Doug: Deluxe Band Set
This great set of musical instruments includes a recorder, harmonica, xylophone, rhythm sticks, castanets, kazoo, and triangle. Mr. Baby has figured out the harmonica, and it is currently his favorite, with the xylophone being a close second.

Music captures my boy like nothing else, and I love to see him dancing around, or just bobbing to a rhythm. If your babies are into music, please share! I'm always on the lookout for more fun and educational stimulation for Mr. Baby!

Foodie View: Vietnamese food in Chula Vista

I know people on the East Coast probably don't believe me, but winter does hit Southern California. No, we're not neck-deep in snow, but for us, the need for a sweater means it's freezing! You know when it's cold outside, and you're feeling chilly on the inside, and all you want is some good food to warm you up? That's where I was about a week or so ago, so we went to Pho Hiep and Grill, a Vietnamese restaurant.

Pho Hiep and Grill
543 Telegraph Canyon Road
Chula Vista, CA 91910
(619) 482-8883
www.PhoHiepGrill.com

If you've never tried Vietnamese food, you're missing out on some great eats. Pho Hiep and Grill is a decent place for your first taste of Vietnamese cuisine. It's located in a shopping center on Telegraph Canyon Road, just off the 805 Freeway, and there's ample parking. Unlike many other pho restaurants which appear a little run down, this establishment is very clean and nicely decorated. Another plus, you have to request chopsticks as they are not kept out on the table. Much more sanitary! I don't mind asking for my chopsticks. I'm just happy a few hundred other people haven't touched, licked, and sneezed on them before I got there.

The food was fresh and tasty. Although we originally went to try the pho, we decided to order less soupy entrees so that we could easily share with our baby. We ordered Goi Cuon (spring rolls), Bun Thit Nuon Cha Gio (grilled pork and egg rolls over vermicelli rice noodles), and the Com Tam Hiep (Hiep's house special combo with rice, with a pork chop, chicken, shrimp, shredded pork, and Vietnamese-style steamed meatloaf). The spring rolls are large, you get two pieces cut in halves, served with peanut sauce. Ours were quite fresh, filled shrimp, pork, noodles, bean sprouts, and mint. A vegetarian option is also available. The bun (vermicelli noodle dish) and the com (rice dish) were enormous entrees, very flavorful and satisfying. Our 17 month old baby really enjoyed the steamed meatloaf and chicken with rice, although I found the very tender shredded pork to be the best part of the dish. The bun was such a large serving of noodles, meat, and vegetables, that we couldn't finish it. However, the grilled pork was excellent. It's marinated in a honey sauce and grilled over an open flame, and it comes out tender and savory. A perfect flavor complement to the noodles and sauce. For dessert, we ordered Che Hiep (Hiep's house special dessert), a sweet red bean mixture with shaved ice, coconut milk and tapioca, topped with crushed peanuts. Much like a red bean version of halo halo. It was delicious with a sweet/salty flavor, and the coconut milk adds the perfect creamy, tropical taste.

While the food is very good, and the location is easily accessible, I have to gripe a little about the service. The staff are very polite, but they seem disorganized, and one or two seemed to have some difficulty communicating in English. When we came in, we were seated promptly, and they brought us menus and a high chair for Mr. Baby. We had just started looking at the menus when two servers started placing food on our table. It took about four minutes for us to explain that we hadn't ordered anything yet, and this was not our food. Then we had to wait nearly 10 minutes for someone to show up to take our order. We also ordered iced Vietnamese coffee to go, but had to ask for it three times (no exaggeration). It seems our order was lost or forgotten the first two times, but it may have been simply due to confusion between the three different waiters who came to our table over the course of the evening. We also had to ask for our check more than once, and by the time we got it, we were more than ready to leave.

All things considered, it was still a good restaurant. They haven't been open long (since December '07 or January '08), which may account for the disorganization. However, it seems to have built a nice reputation fairly quickly. We arrived early in the evening, around 6pm, and tables were available. When we left, there was a lineup of customers out the door. The food is good and the portions are big. The menu is a good size with six appetizers, and 44 items for bun (vermicelli noodle), pho (noodle soup), and com (rice) entrees. The prices are reasonable; our dinner of 1 appetizer, 2 entrees, 2 desserts, and 3 iced coffees totaled around $40.

We had a good foodie experience, and it's a place we can go with our baby. I would definitely go back, and I while it's not the best Vietnamese food I've ever had, I would still recommend it as good eats. But you know me! I'm always on the hunt for Great Food. Any tips on really, truly Great Vietnamese Food hot spots?

The New Miracle Toddler Diet

Hahaha!! I love this!! I got this in my email, and it is one of the most truthful diets around. I couldn't find any author information online, but it's a great read. I hope you enjoy it, and start your week off with a smile!




Each new year brings an onslaught of new diets. The trouble is, most people don't get enough to eat when dieting (the starvation diet), or not enough variety (the liquid diet), or they go for broke (the all meat diet). As a result, people either "cheat" or quit dieting after a few days. Is there nothing one can do but blame their body size on a gland problem? Well, now there is the "New Miracle Toddler Diet.

I've noticed that most two-year-olds are trim. It came to me over a cup of black coffee and a carrot that perhaps it's what they eat. So after talking with pediatricians, x-ray technicians, and distraught moms, I was able to formulate this diet for adults. It's inexpensive and provides lots of variety.

Before embarking on this diet, however, please check with your doctor. Otherwise, you may have to see him/her afterwards.

Day One

Breakfast:
One scrambled egg, one piece of toast with grape jelly. Eat 2 bites of egg and dump the rest on the floor. Take bite of toast and smear the jelly on face and clothes.

Lunch:
Peanut butter and banana sandwich, glass of milk. Spit out several bites of sandwich. Pour glass of milk on table and slurp up.

Snack:
Two pennies and a nickel, 3 sips of stale soda found in family room.

Dinner:
Mashed potatoes, chicken fingers and carrot coins, glass of milk. Pour milk on mashed potatoes and finger paint table top. Eat half of chicken and toss rest at brother. Stick carrot coins wherever possible.

Day 2

Breakfast:
Pancakes with lots of syrup, glass of milk. Eat pancake with fingers, rub in hair. Stuff pancake in glass of milk.

Lunch:
Two crayons (non-toxic), any color, picked up from floor. Nibble on dog biscuit spilled from box in cupboard.

Snack:
Lick all-day sucker until sticky; take outside. Drop in dirt; retrieve and lick clean. Bring inside and drop on rug.

Dinner:
Macaroni and cheese. Eat half with hands; feed rest to dog. Pull off that stale gum stuck under the table and enjoy for dessert.

Day 3

Breakfast:
Quarter tube of toothpaste (fluoridated), bit of soap and bite of Kleenex. Pour glass of milk on cornflakes, add sugar and mix. When soggy, refuse to eat.

Lunch:
Two matches (unlit), half a tube of "pulsating pink" lipstick, half a cup of strawberry yogurt; leave lots on face.

Snack:
Find that sucker and lick off the fuzz. Stick to the cushion of your best chair.

Dinner:
Spaghetti and meatballs, eaten strand by strand. Roll meatball across plate many times; cut in quarters and leave on plate. Nibble on stick of mascara for dessert.