Off Road Cooking: asian turkey balls

Before leaving the house, I remembered that I bought ground turkey a few days ago, so I made sure to thaw them for dinner tonight. I am trying to diversify my proteins and add something different in my meal repertoire. I try to eat lots of protein because I like to keep my iron levels up. Protein also fills me up. I know it's good for post-workouts, but that's not my area of expertise, so I won't even go there! 

I see people making these turkey/chicken meat balls all the time in different ways, but I like to prepare them with a fresh asian twist.

I made 2 packs of ground turkey because I find it less filling than beef. I am still learning to use ground poultry and noticed that it's a lot runnier and needs a lot less seasoning (like salt) than beef.

Ingredients:

Asian Poultry Balls (we call them "chicken bo-bo balls" at our house!):

• 2 packs of ground turkey
• 2 eggs (for binding and extra protein)
• 4 scallions chopped
• bunch of chopped cilantro
• 1 inch grated fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons of garlic chilly sauce
• 1 tablespoon of soya sauce
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• sprinkle of sesame seeds
• 2 squirts of Worcestershire
• 1/3 cup of wheat germ mixed with bran instead of breadcrumbs
• Salt, pepper

Mango salsa:

• 1 cubed mango
• 1 diced tomato
• half a jalapeño chopped up in small cubes
• half an onion chopped finely
• a splash of red wine vinegar
• chopped cilantro (I didn't have any left)

Place all the ingredients in a bowl, and get your hands dirty! (or use a spoon)

Added the honey and sesame after I mixed it… got creative on the way :)

Placed little balled on a baking sheet. Baked for 20 minutes at 375C

Made a fresh mango salsa to serve with the meat balls.

Steamed broccoli to finish it off!

Victor really liked his dinner tonight. He particularly liked holding the broccoli and eating the stem. The salsa was really nice with the turkey balls, it added a nice fresh component to the meal.

What did you have for dinner tonight? Please leave your comments below, I'd love to hear from you.

Back to work, back to life...

... Back to reality! Preach it Soul II Soul! They were so wise for their time.

Well friends, today was my first official day back to work! So far, so good, but much planning and anticipation has gone through my head to make sure I start off on the right foot.

Keys to making this day a success:

1. Plan ahead- From your shower schedule (switching to nights!), to your lunch, your work outfit and dinner. Have as much ready as you can the night before. You will be so thankful the next morning.
2. Get your sleep. Or should I say, don't stay up late watching the Help until 12:00 a.m. (my bad! I love Emma)
3. Don't put too much pressure on yourself to get caught up with all your  work on the first day. Today was Inbox cleaning day and urgent request day. I am very happy with the amount of work I put in today.
4. Have a trustable person you can leave your children with. 

Instagram of my outfit that I chose last night.
Classic, comfortable and easy!

I woke up early this morning at 5:45 a.m. I got dressed, did my hair, had breakfast and made my lunch all in 1 hour. Then magically, Victor woke up as soon as Grandma came to look after him! He was happier to see her than me, and just fell into her arms. I thought to myself… THIS IS MY QUEUE! I better escape :) I wasn't insulted that he didn't want to see me, in fact, it reassured me that he was in great hands. I realize that I am extremely lucky to have my mother-in-law look after little V. But I am also not lucky to have been working during maternity leave. This is life's way of balancing itself out… a.k.a Karma.

When I got into work, I carefully sent an email to all staff to advise them that I was back! To my surprise, I had about 50 balloons dumped on me from the other side. It nearly scared the living death out of me. I rarely get surprised… well played Social Committee, well played.

It was really nice having lunch in the lunchroom today, a la yuj. A colleague asked me if I had made "the call" to check in… I was like "No?" hahaha. No news is good news! That's my motto and my way of staying relaxed. I am not the person that will check in every couple hours.

When I got home, Victor was so invigorated and happy to see me. So was I. I have to admit I got really tired when it was time to make dinner. I started prepping right away, in time for Michael to get the BBQ going (btw… the coldest day to BBQ was today!). I got a second wind after dinner, I must have been really hungry.

Me blushing after being surprised with a whole bunch of balloons dropped into my cubicle.

Me after a long day at work. So thrilled to have a parking space back
and to be going home after my long day!

Victor greeting me at the baby gate near the side door.
I was trying to capture his sweet welcome home reaction.

This is all I could get from him.

We just finished up with dinner; marinated flank steak with green beans and carrots. All planned ahead the night before and I even have some left overs for lunch tomorrow! Michael is giving Victor his bath, and I just finished cleaning up the kitchen. So far, it's 6:47 and all that's left are showers for mom and dad. I wish and pray that every day can go this smoothly!

Tomorrow, I'll be flying solo, because Michael has his night shift. It will look like a different day. No elaborate meals, more of a "fend for yourself/clean out the fridge" dinner. This is also my chance to head to the gym before work. Let's see how I do.

What makes you nervous about returning to work? Do you like work or prefer staying at home with baby. Do you have any tips to share? Please leave your comments below.

Off Road Cooking: deconstructed nachos

Cubed tomatoes, avocado and cheese, with greek yogurt and feel puree.

I made this for V tonight. He loves the cheese, avocado and tomato. Not a huge fan of the meat and yogurt, although he ate most of it.

Meat will be a challenging food to feed V until he has a few more teeth to help him chew. I'll have to find other ways to prepare it.

Any advice for a momma in need? Do all babies prefer chicken over beef? I know V does! Leave your comments below :)

Easy meals in minutes: quinoa salad

I always make a point of ensuring I plan healthy meals to stay on track for my weight loss... I don't like that word "weight loss", I hesitate using it, but you know what I mean. I don't actually care about my weight, I just want to be in shape.

I make a huge vat of quinoa salad because it keeps well, it's jammed packed with veggies and it's filling. When I don't have time to make a balanced meal for one and when my husband works late, it's the perfect meal for me!

This salad is so flexible, I just make it with what I have on hand. Here is today's version.

Ingredients:

- cooked quinoa, red quinoa and mung beans

- diced cucumber, tomato, red pepper, green onion, radish

- pumpkin seeds, dill, dried cranberries

- dressing: grape seed oil, lemon, apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper, sumac and my new obsession pomegranate molases!

I prepared the salad while V napped. It requires a bit of chopping time, like any delicious salad. But I'm really quick in the kitchen and made this in less than 15 minutes. Result= SO GOOD!

What's your go to healthy meal in minutes? Would you like to see more quick recipes? Leave your comments below!

N.B. I will be drawing prizes in my next posts for people who leave comments below ;) (so open a GD google account!!!) hahaha