Vitamix is in!

(source: qvc.com)

Meet our newest member of the family, The Vitamix. 

I have been wanting a Vitamix for a long time. Every time I see the demonstrations at Costco, I am in awe at what this machine can do. You want a delicious Roma tomato, celery, spinach, carrot smoothie? Coming right up… I wouldn’t have concocted that combination in my wildest dreams, but somehow watching the Vitamix blend it all up makes it look ah-mazing. 

It’s a very hot item in the blogging community. I have quite the list of things I want to try that I have seen on the fitnessista.com. However, I think my first recipe will be my favorite combination of pb+chocolate. 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

2 cups chocolate milk
3 bananas, frozen
2 tablespoon peanut butter (or half cup unsalted, dry roasted peanuts)

1 tablespoon protein powder

Put everything into the Vitamix and blend on high until smooth (around 1 minute). Pour into serving glasses and enjoy!

Makes 3 servings. Approximately 250 calories per serving.

My diet was a little bit off today. I went to visit family and ate at Pluckers in San Marcos for lunch.  I had about 4 boneless buffalo wings, tossed in Buffalo Hot sauce plus some fries and some appetizer of potato chips and melted blue cheese.  It's been a while since I have eaten there, but it was as good as I remember. I have officially lost 5 pounds since I started P90X, so this will be a minor bump in the road... I hope!

Mmmm, meatloaf

Today marks Day 34 of my P90X journey…

I woke up and ate the 2 eggs and 1 serving of Breakfast Potatoes that was on the menu. I drank my daily Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks and came home and I pushed myself through Kenpo, despite the major side stitches I would get during the Breaks. I blame myself, as I skipped my Legs and Back workout yesterday and to make that another off day. Sometimes you just have to listen to your body. And I did, while my husband worked out, I went on a cupcake run and ate a Pumpkin Spice cupcake. It was so good.

We opted to eat Subway for lunch, instead of the White Bean and Tuna salad. The whole family went on this trip; meet our dog, Lola.

I love to eat. I am always thinking about food, hence my blog name: Nguyen is Dinner. I want to share my dinners with others on a journey to lose weight so I will be posting my dinners regularly.

Tonight we had another delicious P90X meal, Italian Meatloaf. We used whole wheat breadcrumbs instead of sourdough breadcrumbs because we couldn't find it in the grocery store. We read online that sourdough absorbs into the system slower, so that is a benefit of using it.

Italian Meatloaf
Ingredients:
½ cup onions, diced

2 tbsp fat-free chicken broth, low sodium

2 tbsp minced garlic

1½ pounds ground turkey breast

½ cup sourdough breadcrumbs
½ cup  + 2 tbsp low sodium, low fat marinara sauce
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
2 tbsp Italian parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Sauté the onions in the chicken broth until lightly browned

Add the garlic and cook 5 minutes more. Remove from heat and cook slightly

In a large mixing bowl, combine the onion mixture with the ground turkey, breadcrumbs, ½ cup marinara sauce, basil and parsley.

Form mixture into a loaf. Shape and place in an ungreased loaf pan

Brush with the remaining 2 tbsp marinara sauce and bake until cooked through, 30 to 45 minutes.

Drain off fat and let cool 20 minutes before cutting into 8 slices.

Source: Adapted from the P90x cookbook

P90X dieting - Green Apple Salsa

My husband and I are in Phase 2, week 1 of P90x. This week was especially hard for me, as I was feeling ill most of the week.
The menu for Phase 2 is full of carbs and lots of food. I hope I can keep up with the grueling workouts. But the food, so far, has not been disappointing.
I loved the Green Apple Salsa on Day 4 and it was served on top of 6 oz of baked salmon. However, it also tasted delicious on top of a tortilla chip. Not that I would know, because that is not part of the diet plan  ☺
It was so good so I wanted to share it with you...


Green Apple Salsa
Ingredients:
3 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 cup Granny Smith apples, chopped
½ cup cucumber, chopped
½ cup corn kernels, chopped
½ cup red bell pepper, chopped
¼ cup green onions, chopped
¼ cup red onion, chopped
2½ tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1½ tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp jalapeno, chopped (seeded, if you prefer)
1 tbsp balsalmic venegar
1½ tsp sugar

¾ tsp salt

½ tsp ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients, stirring well. Serve at room temperature or chilled

Source: P90x cookbook