Take THAT tofu!

Meal 5(7:30 pm)- Vegetarian lasagna (recipe below) + side salad w/red wine vinegar as dressing + 1 serving EAS Betagen & 1 1/2 tsp. Glutamine

Wallah! The finished product....vegetarian lasagna....take THAT tofu!

Meal 4(5 pm)- not a big meal as I plan on having lasagna for dinner and would rather not eat much right now....broccoli, carrots, 2 tbsp. Newman's Own light vinagrette + 1 snack size Cabot 50% light cheddar

Meal 3(2 pm)- shake(Myoplex Lite vanilla packet + 1 serving EAS Betagen) + 12 unsalted whole almonds



Meal 2 (10:45 am)- Joseph's Oat Bran, Flaxseed, and Whole Wheat Lavash Bread + fresh spinach, 6 fresh asparagus spears, red peppers, red onions, yellow squash + 1/2 cup Kraft 2% reduced fat shredded mozarella + 1 tbsp. reduced fat grated parmesan


I am loving these Lavash Bread flatbreads with a whopping 10 g protein! They are huge! This whole meal was no more than 250 calories and right around 20 g protein! Note to self....definitely use fresh asparagus on flatbreads more often.

Meal 1 (7:45 am)- 3/4 cup egg beaters w/spinach,mushrooms,onions,peppers & tomatoes + 1/2 cup (dry measured) oatmeal w/stevia, drizzle of honey & apple pie spice + 1 serving EAS Betagen & 1 1/2 tsp. EAS Glutamine + multivitamin & 2 glucosamine/MSM

Today has turned out to be one of the best days! I just had a visit from our friends Dana and Luis, whom we hadn't seen in so long we couldn't even remember how long it had been. I swear when they left here, Dana left some of her energy behind, because you just can't not be in a good mood when you're around her....just very rare to find people with that kind of glow and energy, and equally as rare to find it in other couples sometimes. I just love seeing other couples that are as much in love as my hubby and me. You can just tell when you meet people that have that really really special kind of love....the kind that you know will never end in divorce for real. Alright, I'm getting gushy now I know, but I couldn't resist. I wear my heart on my sleeve, what can I say?

Back to the subject at hand...food. That is the reason I'm here writing in the first place. My ego was completely shot after last night's snaffoo attempt at the tofu, and I was determined to come back with something better than that for tonight's dinner! I don't seem to have much problem going vegetarian for breakfast or lunch, although I am thankful I am not going Vegan as of now, because I don't know if I could live without eggs AND cheese at this point with cutting out all the meat. Protein shakes have also been a bit of a saving grace, which contain milk products. My main problem with dinner has been finding foods that are high in protein while also being moderately reasonable in the carbs & fat department. It's been especially challenging, because typically I really do not even eat much dairy outside of the occasional cheese snack or sprinkle of parmesan. I've definitely been eating a bit more cheese lately in an attempt to add protein, but I'm just being as careful as I possibly can in regards to watching fat content. I will most likely cut back on the cheese tomorrow. I know I've had a few extra grams of saturated fats in meals, but I'm really trying not to get all paranoid about micro managing the nutrition contents so much so that it prevents me from trying new thing on this adventure....which brings me to tonight dinner! woo hoo! I probably shouldn't get too excited until I taste it, but I can already tell it is going to be TO DIE FOR! Here is the recipe and nutrition facts in case anyone's interested...

1lb ground beef (*I subbed 1 package Morningstar Farms Meal Starters)
3 cups (26 oz jar) spaghetti sauce (aim for 5 g sugar or less & less than 10 g carbs..I used Classico roasted garlic)
1 1/2 cups water
1 3/4 cups (15 oz container) ricotta or small curd cottage cheese (used fat free Ricotta)
2 cups
(8 oz) shredded mozzarella or Monteray Jack cheese, divided (used Kraft 2% reduced fat)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (reduced fat of course)
2 eggs (used 1/2 cup egg beaters)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp salt1/4 tsp ground black pepper
9 pieces RONZONI HEALTHY HARVEST LASAGNA, uncooked

Heat oven to 350°F. In 3-quart saucepan over medium-high heat, brown meat; drain. Add spaghetti sauce and water; simmer about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in medium bowl, stir together ricotta cheese, one-half mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, parsley, salt and pepper. 5. Pour about 1 cup sauce on bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish. Arrange 3 UNCOOKED pasta pieces lengthwise over sauce; cover with 1 cup sauce. Spread one-half cheese filling over sauce. Repeat layers of RONZONI HEALTHY HARVEST LASAGNA, sauce and cheese filling. Top with layer of RONZONI HEALTHY HARVEST LASAGNA and remaining sauce; sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil. Bake 45 minutes. Remove foil; bake additional 10 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting. Number of Servings: 12

Nutritional Info (* This nutritonal content was based on the original recipe, before I subbed vegetarian crumbles and reduced fat products, so fat is probably less than this).
Servings Per Recipe: 12
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 277.3
Total Fat: 9.7 g
Cholesterol: 75.8 mg
Sodium: 519.1 mg
Total Carbs: 25.1 g
Dietary Fiber: 3.3 g
Protein: 23.9 g

YUM! I might be able to get used to this vegetarian thing!