So I'm gonna do something a little bit different today.....maybe you're like me and loathe spending money on Valentines Day. I'm gonna show you some ideas that some of them are healthy....some are crafty...and some are just plain use up what you have laying around your house! Valentines Day doesn't have to be about gorging yourself with food and chocolate. Sure....I made some chocolate chip cookies from a Cooking Light recipe I had in my box (and I made those pretzel thingys with the Hershey kisses and M&M's but somehow they only lasted 18 hours.....and I didn't get a purdy pickcha). Instead.... make it about heart healthy choices so you can be around with your loved one for many Valentines Day's to come!!!
We started our morning off with a nommy breakfast of heart shaped fruits, heart shaped eggs, and heart shaped toast (the boys got all the rest of the bacon). I made some fruit salad last night and used a mini heart shaped cookie cutter to cut my pineapple and cantaloupe into heart shapes. One of my hockey girls was having a fundraiser in the fall for the theater department so I bought a heart shaped and star shaped pancake mold from her. They have them at Walmart too! They are silicone and don't stick to anything. They can easily be used for eggs too. Both my hubby and the little guy got heart shaped eggs this morning.
But I mean lets be honest here.....who doesn't love heart shaped toast.......
At preschool on Wednesday....the local hospital came in to talk about heart health. They gave them handouts to identify the healthy foods in each segment (although our little heathen argued with me until he was blue in the face that pancakes, butter and syrup were considered healthy. I had to tell him while they may not be the healthiest....they sure are the most delicious but to be eaten in moderation!) and they taught them how important it was to workout to maintain a healthy heart. Ever since then, at every meal, he has asked for a big plate of fruit to eat first so he can be heart healthy and asks to go run laps around the house. Today while he was eating his egg, he told me the whites were the healthiest part and that's the only part he wanted to eat from now on. Hey.....I won't complain! He helped cut out the fruit last night and talked about it all night until he had it at breakfast this morning. I LOVE that our local hospital came in to teach this. They also talked about how smoking affects the heart and other organs and what foods can damage it. Kudos to his teachers for setting this up!!
For lunch, I made him a monster sammy. I did low sodium ham, reduced fat cheese, and greek yogurt. The eyes are venison hot sticks with a dab of yogurt on them (with his heart healthy strawberries of course). He also wanted to eat his valentine -- whole grain pizza fish. I swear I can't keep these things in my pantry long enough to get back to the grocery store.
For a snack throughout the day, I made Parmesan Wonton Crackers. They are SUPER easy to make. Get a pack of wontons, cut them in half. Spray a cookie sheet with EVOO Cooking Spray, place the wontons out and spray tops with the EVOO spray, sprinkle with Herbs de Provence and Grated Parmesan. Bake until golden @ 375 (about 5-10 minutes). They come out to be about 80 calories for about 8 of them. They go great with my Sabra Roasted Red Pepper Hummus obsession.....
Don't ask me what I'm making for dinner....I have no idea yet. I might just drink coffee out of my new mug (I made the hubby and I matching ones with our names on them....because you know they were a dollar and I'm cheesy like that) and eat all the cookies...... Whatever you decide to do....ENJOY IT!!!
If you want to make a mug for your lover....it's really easy. I bought my mugs at the dollar store. Wrote on them in permanent marker. Put them on a cookie sheet in the oven. Turned the oven on to 375 once the mugs were in it (otherwise the quick heat will make them crack) and baked for 40 minutes. I then turned the oven off and let them cool down in the oven. We did a similar thing for our wedding....except with a big ol serving plate. Seriously....you don't need to spend a lot of money on stuff to make it work.
Happy Valentines Day to all of you!!! Make the best of it!!!
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