My new challenge!

It is challenge time! I have decided it is not worth losing all the weight I have lost (currently up to 161 lbs lost) if I don't challenege myself every once in awhile. So the other day my instructor in my early morning aerobics class asked for people to join her team to raise money for the American Lung Association. I immediately started listening (which is difficult for me at 5:15am) and once she said what the event was I knew I had to do it........ and this is the challenege:

Master the Met! http://www.mrsnv.com/evt/home.jsp?id=2141

Basically it is a vertical race up 42 flights of stairs.....YEAH!! Hopefully I don't die of a heart attack half way up. I started training a few weeks ago and so far so good. It is a fund raiser so if you'd like to donate that would be great!! Just click under sponser a climber and type in my name:Nicole Salvi

If I make it I'll post pics and a description of the day. If I don't....my husband will post what funeral home to send flowers to.

Dogs and Rainbows

I've had quite a bit of time off lately, so I've had some time with the dogs and gotten to snap some cute photos of them and the wonderful rainbow we had a few weeks ago.

Vinny looking into the house:The boys playing in the backyard:

Nap time for Connor

Vinny chilling on his fave spot

And the rainbow

Christmas Dinner

So my family never has a traditional Christmas Dinner ...we always have something different. This year everyone wanted lasagna, and since I have no go to recipe I had to do some searching, and I came across this recipe on allrecipes.com.
The World's Best Lasagna
SUBMITTED BY: John Chandler
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
3/4 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon salt -i only used 1/4 of salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley -i used about 6 tablespoons
12 lasagna noodles
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
DIRECTIONS
In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.


Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Was very good, hubby had two helpings so it must have been decent....if he only has one serving it is not that great. It is probably one of the best lasagna recipes I've tried.

We also had a Pasta House salad which my husband loves...and I hate making because of the onion that have to be cut.
PASTA HOUSE SALAD

1 head red lettuce

1 jar pimentos

1/2 jar artichoke hearts, or more if desired

1/4 c. Parmesan cheese

However much Pasta House salad dressing you'd like (I bought the fat free Pasta House salad dressing)

Few slices red onion
Clean lettuce and tear apart as for regular salad. Drain pimentos and artichoke hearts, chop up. Add onion slices. Add dressing and cheese a small amount at a time, tossing well. Can be made ahead and chilled but tends to wilt down. This does not affect flavor though. Tastes just like the Pasta House Restaurant Salad.

Catching up

Well I haven't posted anything in awhile. Things got kind of busy around here. I started my master's program and we had some house stuff to work on. But I'm going to try to be better. I even had some really good things that I made but didn't take any pictures or take notes about changes. But I will try to be better and update more often.

Ummmm........doughnuts

I was sitting around the other day watching TV....and I flipped it over to Food Network. And there was Everyday Italian. Giada was making Italian Doughnuts! I love all things made with dough. But I am not very good or patient at baking bread, or anything else made with yeast. But when I saw her making these I smiled...because I could do these. So here you go......

Italian Doughnut
from Everyday Italian
I made a few minor changes

1 container/can rolled pizza dough crust(I used Pillsbury Pizza crust dough)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Olive oil for frying (I used all Olive oil)
Vegetable oil for frying
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/2-inch thickness. Using a floured 2-inch cookie cutter, cut out doughnut rounds. Using a floured 1-inch cookie cutter, cut out a hole in the center of each doughnut. Gather the dough scraps and re roll. Cut out more doughnuts.
Whisk the sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl to blend. Set the cinnamon-sugar aside.
Pour equal parts of vegetable oil and olive oil into a large frying pan to reach a depth of 2 inches. Heat the oil over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 375 degrees F. Working in batches, fry the doughnuts until they puff but are still pale, about 45 seconds per side. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the doughnuts to paper towels to drain. Cool slightly. While the doughnuts are still warm, generously coat each 2 times with the cinnamon-sugar. Serve warm.
Alternately, cool the fried doughnuts to room temperature

I also made a glaze which was just powered sugar and some milk made to the consistency you would like.
Please ignore the Santa platter the doughnuts are on.....it was all I had lying around to put them on.

A pound here, a pound there.......and poof.....

almost half of me is gone! So, two years ago I went to my gyn and she told me that she didn't want me on birth control anymore because I was morbidly obese, my blood pressure was too high, and she was worried about me stroking out on her. Well, I knew I as fat, I knew I needed to lose weight.....but I just had not previously wanted to. So driving home I really started thinking about what she said..and I realized how unhappy I was. I couldn't get the seat belt to buckle around me in my friends' cars, the last time I was on a plane I barely fit in the seat (well to be honest...I didn't fit...I was spilling over into the poor woman sitting next to me seat), and if I went up one more pant size I would not know where to shop for them (Lane Bryant doesn't make over a size 28 as far as I know). I had always been very athletic in school....but I just let myself go once I got into college. I don't really want to say that I saw the light that day driving home....I just decided I didn't want to be fat anymore. So, I changed my diet and started exercising. I waited until I lost the first 30lbs and then I joined the YMCA. I started out taking a beginner step class and wanted to DIE during that first class. But I came back the next night, and the night after that, and so forth and so on. And now two years later I have lost..............................................................


148 lbs.


My weight when I started was 334lbs. I am still losing weight, and I'd like to drop another 30 or 40lbs. I don't want to say that I love being smaller....because to me that's not what it is all about. I will say that I LOVE being active again. I take just about any class at the Y I can go to....but I love step. My beginner step instructor Beth Ann told me recently that I scared the crap out of her when I walked into class that first time. She honestly thought I was going to faint and die right there in class because I looked so bad....and was so fat.


I also love that I will try anything now....I'm not embarrassed to fall on my butt, get hurt, or humiliated. I look for new challenges every day....and I never had that drive or sense of adventure when I was bigger.


So since I figured this blog was not just about cooking, but my life and things I enjoy I knew I had to include this little fact about myself because it plays such a large role in my life now. So, I will open this little post up to any questions that anyone may have for me about my weight loss, what I have done (no I did not have surgery), or basically anything you'd like to comment on. Below you will see my husband and I at our heaviest (for his weight loss see post below).

Ding! Ding! And in this corner.........

Alright, so when my husband was volunteering as an axillary deputy at a local police department he started going to this charity event called Guns N' Hoses. It is a bunch of boxing matches that pit police officers against fire fighters. He started talking after awhile about maybe learning how to box himself. He has always wanted to try boxing, and so now after losing weight he has hit a plateau on his weight loss adventure. He has lost about 80lbs but all he does is run (usually just 2 to 3 miles a few times a week), lift weights, and the cross trainer every once in awhile. I thought he might need a different workout...but he hates going to any of the classes at the Y with me. So I spoke to my favorite aerobic instructor, Shawnta, because she had mentioned something about where she boxes at before. So we have joined The Boxing Gym. And let me tell you what......IT IS SOO MUCH FUN!!! We have been taking boxing classes with Reggie who is a former Army boxer and it is the best workout ever. I take a wide range of classes at the Y(step aerobics, kickboxing, cycling, weight classes, and some water aerobics) and this boxing really energizes me. And talk about de-stressing.....hitting that bag and then doing some combo sparing with Reggie really helps me to unwind and take out my aggression about the day. Brian LOVES IT! He will talk about it for hours after class. Although on the first day after class he couldn't lift his arms!! Will keep you updated on how things go....and who knows, maybe after enough classes we will get to spare with other people in the ring.....scares me a little.....but would be interesting!