Blog Revamp

I have come to the realization that I do not have an exciting enough life to blog about it. I don't have a baby to gush about, I don't have any masterful pieces of art to post, nor do I do much of anything. I work. A lot. I go to school most Saturdays and no one on earth wants to hear about the monotony of my life. Don't get me wrong... I am blessed to the Nth degree but feel too far removed from my surroundings to blog about them.
However, there is one thing that I think about almost as much as I think about Trevor, and that my friends is food. It inspires me, it is therapeutic and by golly it's the one thing I am confident enough to talk about on the internet. I came out of the womb asking for food, no... more like screaming for food. I love trying new things and exploring the flavors within every culture. Since I am momentarily tied down to Florida, I must experience all walks of life through my cooking. The flavors I have learned to experience in my married life have been full of hits and misses. I have a lot of misses and what better instance to write about than the time I blew up my kitchen when experiencing the cast iron for the first time..eh, I am sure you have all heard that story via my status updates. Along with my love for food has come the ever reluctant weight gain. I have battled it since senior year of high school when I stopped running 9 miles a day. Hence, I have learned a healthy way of cooking for both myself and my husband. He does not eat as strictly as I do so I have learned to modify his meal to be a bit heartier. I think that I might be able to help others with my ounce of food knowledge be it cooking for two or cooking lighter. I cook an eclectic mix of South Beach and Weight Watchers. This is simply because these are the ONLY two diets that have worked for me in the past 8 years of yo-yo dieting.
Friends and family, you will now log onto my blog to experience my cooking journey as I explore new meals that are healthier and tastier than ever. With all that said, I must tell you about the most amazing recipe that I have marinating in the fridge for when Trevor gets home. It's an orzo salad that will accompany my WW chicken piccata. I will make a lemon butter and caper sauce for Trevor's and a lighter version sauce for my chicken. Instead of real butter, I will use a butter substitute like Smart Balance. Here is the recipe for the orzo salad. This recipe hails from Barefoot Contessa, I just added half the oil and substituted her feta for reduced fat goat cheese. It's also good with roasted shrimp as an entree. MMM MMM.



Orzo Salad
Ingredients

* Kosher salt
* Good olive oil
* 1/2 pound orzo pasta (rice-shaped pasta)
* 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 lemons)
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 1/2 cup minced scallions, white and green parts
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
* 1/2 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced
* 1/4 cup small-diced red onion
* 1 oz light feta cheese or goat cheese

Directions

Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and a splash of oil, and bring the water to a boil. Add the orzo and simmer for 9 to 11 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it's cooked al dente. Drain and pour into a large bowl. Whisk together the lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Pour over the hot pasta and stir well.


Add the scallions, dill, parsley, cucumber, onion, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper to the orzo. Toss well. Add the feta and stir carefully. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend, or refrigerate overnight. If refrigerated, taste again for seasonings and bring back to room temperature before serving.

Enjoy!!