Warm Weather Meals

To me, nothing beats coming home from work, opening all the windows, going for a nice jog outside, and eating a light dinner composed of fresh food.  Ahhh...spring is here!

Last week, Mr. PT and I enjoyed two delicious meals al fresco.  I know these meals may seem scant, but this is something you might want to try.  Eat a big breakfast, eat two small meals during the day (small lunch, snack after work) and finish with a light dinner.  Most people do not engage in a lot of activity after 6pm, so really, it is unnecessary to stuff yourself.  You might find that you wake up hungrier, hence, the big breakfast!  If you are not a breakfast eater, turn your breakfast into two small meals as well.  One of the ways I keep my eating in check is to have a high awareness of my hunger.  If I'm hungry, I eat!  If I'm not hungry, I do not eat!  Sounds simple, but this can be one of the hardest lessons to learn. 

I'm not perfect, I still tend to munch on a bag of jellybeans every once in a while, and going out for dinner with friends can complicate things.  But I would say that if you follow this rule 85% of the time, you should be good to go.

Anyway...here are the two yummy meals we enjoyed on the porch this past week.  The first hardly requires a recipe:

 Fresh fruit (strawberries, apples, pears) with mozzarella cheese or dipped in peanut butter-yogurt or yogurt with cinnamon

The second recipe I like to call "dirty guacamole."  This means I made typical guacamole and spiced it up with whatever I had in the cupboard!

You will need:

-2 avocados, ripe

-2 tbs lime juice

-guacamole seasoning, or some mix of Mexican spices

-1/4 cup sour cream (optional)

-1/2 can corn, rinsed

-1/2 can black beans, rinsed

-1/2-1 cup of brown rice, cooked (I just had this leftover!)

-1/8 cup red onion

-1/2 tomato, chopped

-1/8 cup cilantro

To be honest, I did not measure out these ingredients, but this is my best guess on the ratios.  Feel free to add or take away any ingredient.  But this is the fun part about cooking! Get creative!  This could have been just regular guacamole, but I figured since it was going to be dinner, I would make it a little heartier.

Try the lighter dinner idea, you might be pleasantly surprised how much more energy you have in your day!