American Heart Month

February is American Heart Month.  According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the #1 killer of Americans.  They offer seven areas that we can improve to reduce our risk of heart disease:

1. Get Active
2. Control Cholesterol
3. Eat Better
4. Manage Blood Pressure
5. Lose Weight
6. Reduce Blood Sugar
7. Stop Smoking

I think that everyone who is reading this is a non-smoker, so one down, six to go! :)   I'll be updating with more information in each area throughout the month.

For more information now, you can visit this link:
http://mylifecheck.heart.org/Multitab.aspx?NavID=8&CultureCode=en-US

If you browse their site you can find even more information on ways to keep your heart healthy: http://www.americanheart.org

Tuesday Night Blackened Tilapia

In an effort to lose some extra pounds, Erik and I are eating smaller portions and healthier meals.

Tonight we went with whatever we had in the freezer and pantry - frozen broccoli, tilapia, and basmati rice.

I steamed the broccoli with some cajun seasoning, and somewhat followed a recipe for herbed rice. The tilapia was pan fried following a Food Network recipe.

Herbed Basmati Rice Recipe
Big Daddy's Blackened Tilapia Recipe


The tilapia turned out very good - the smoked paprika made it a bit too smoky for my liking, but Erik loved it. We found a really great recipe to make our own cajun seasoning, which I used on the broccoli and would have been good on the tilapia too. I can share the recipe if anyone is interested.

It's our third week of cutting back our "American-sized" portions, and since the holidays I know I have lost a few pounds. It has been a challenge, but we are going to keep it up!

To kick start this new site, Chad created a pancake recipe that we had for breakfast this morning:

1 cup Flax Seed Meal
1 cup Whole Grain Pastry Flour
1/4 cup Corn Meal
1tsp Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Evaporated Cane Juice (cane sugar- unrefined)
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 Large Egg
1 cup Skim Milk
2 tbsp Canola Oil
1/2 cup Water

These are heartier than normal pancakes - so don't expect the normal Bisquick flavor. You don't need as many to feel full, and the fullness lasts much longer.

Healthful Hint: Use real butter and real maple syrup. They taste better and your body can process them better than margarine and extra sugary syrup. Plus, the syrup has fewer calories!