Strawberry Balsamic Margaritas
PIN IT!It’s Monday, and that calls specifically for a cocktail. Especially because this Monday is technically considered a holiday. Thanks Presidents, you guys rock! I desperately needed that extra hour of sleep this morning, let me tell you. I started my new part time job yesterday and it’s only 504804854096048x busier than the one I previously had. I had to have walked at least 4 miles yesterday just by working behind the bar. Even though I loved it, one of these strawberry balsamic margaritas was calling my name when I got home yesterday.
If you’re an absolutely balsamic addict like me, the thought of drinking it isn’t strange at all. In fact, it’s probably a typical Tuesday night. I mean, I don’t actually drink this stuff, but I might as well with how much I use it in like everything I eat. Salad for dinner? Add a cup of balsmaic to dress. Boring chicken on the menu? Marinade it in another cup of balsamic. Making some panna cotta? Add a…well, you get the picture.
Even though I had a frozen margarita every day in Mexico, I still craved the sweet, frozen deliciousness when I got home. Except, something a little less…sugar coma inducing and a little more tangy. Plus, I wanted them to be a bit fresher with no weird ingredients or juices. The addition of the balsamic was a bit of a fluke, but oh my lord did it completely change my life. After one sip I wondered why no one had ever done this before and how this drink can become a permanent fixture to my mouth.
If you really want to bend the rules a bit, add some basil like I did in this other strange yet delicious margarita I made over the summer. You may get weird looks from friends and bystanders, but trust me, it’ll be worth it. And everyone will think they are too weird to try so you’ll be left with the whole pitcher. No sharing required, hii-yah!
Low-sugar Strawberry Balsamic Margaritas
Click here for the printable version of this recipe!
Serves about 4 – 5 (ours served 4 1/2). Margarita adapted from Rachael Ray.
Prep time: >5 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 pints fresh strawberries, hulled
- About 5 tablespoons sugar
- 12 ounces premium tequila
- 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
- 3 tablespoons margarita mix (we used Drink Skinny original lime)*
- 3 – 5 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- About 3 cups of ice
*Sub in more orange juice or fresh lime juice if you don’t have that.
Directions:
- Pour the ice into a blender. Add strawberries, sugar, tequila, margarita mix, fresh orange juice and balsamic vinegar (start with 3 tablespoons). Blend on low until smooth. Add additional sugar and balsamic vinegar to taste (I added about 4 tablespoons of vinegar to my batch).
- Dip the tops of your margarita glasses (or mason jars) in water and then roll in crushed sugar or salt. Pour the mixture into the rimmed glasses and enjoy!
Nutritional information per margarita:
Calories: 312
Fat: >1 gram
Carbohydrates: 37 grams
Fiber: 0 grams
Protein: 1.3 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 4
Parmesan Rosemary Biscuits
Today is going to be a day that I wear pj’s until I have to leave to pick up E, at 4:30 pm. I can just feel it in the air. Jet-lag and travel exhaustion usually doesn’t hit me until a few days after I get home, which is SUPER convenient. Plus, it only seems to hit when I have a full plate of work and a busy weekend ahead. Does this ever happen to anyone else? To deal with this crazed schedule and a strong desire for comfort food (one can only eat too many shrimps), I’m sharing (and dreaming of) these Parmesan rosemary biscuits.
I made these last week and I’ve never, in my life, seen a recipe go so fast. Because I cook so much, we’re often munching on leftovers the rest of the week. But these? These flaky, fluffy biscuits lasted a mere 4 hours. And since two of those hours saw just one person (and a furry companion) eating them, it’s rather shameful. Good thing that happened during “Mardi Gras” week, so it’s totally normal to indulge on 45,000 biscuits. At least each biscuit only has 2.6 grams of fat and less than 150 calories. That counts, right?
I swear my husband has a “carb-bread” radar. As soon as he walked in the house, he went straight for the COVERED plate of biscuits. This was before I instagrammed them or even mentioned the word bread. He walked up to the plate, took off the cover and gobbled about 3 down in lightning speed. It’s really an art-form how he can eat SO MUCH BREAD and not gain an ounce. After my biscuit binge I’m fairly certain I broke two chairs and had the buttons fly off all my jeans.
I’m seriously YEARNING for a biscuit but I’m far too tired & exhausted to cook anything not on my list today. And yes, I know how utterly and completely lazy that sounds.
For the ingredients and directions on how to make these biscuits, check out the recipe on Chef Mom!
Nutritional information per biscuit:
Calories: 129
Fat: 2.6 grams
Carbohydrates: 12.5 grams
Fiber: >1 gram
Protein: 5.3 grams
Weight Watchers Points: 2
This post contains affiliate links.
Claire
Tags:biscuit recipes, bisquick recipes, heart healthy recipes, rosemary recipes
Scallops with Tri-Color Couscous
Even though the sun is shining bright and I’m finally home with mi amore, there is a dark, somber cloud hanging over my Valentine’s Day. I’m not sure how many of you know, but my husband lost his dog on Saturday night. It was very unexpected so to say that he is completely heart broken is an understatement. For as long as I’ve known E, Lily has been by his side. It’s hard being home knowing she isn’t here and it’s even harder to see how much pain my husband is in. I can’t imagine. It breaks my heart in many, many ways. Because it’s really too hard to talk about, I’m going to switch subjects to something far brighter and happier; scallops over tri-color couscous.
This is one of the easiest, healthiest and frankly, most delicious meals out there. If you’re looking for a light meal to make at home for Valentine’s Day, this should be it. The entire serving has less than *310 calories, so you can enjoy an extra slice of cake or a few more glasses of champagne without any guilt. Plus, it’s so light and has a “beachy” vibe to it, thanks to the fresh scallops and lemon zest.
Is there really anything more delicious than a seared scallop? Where the inside is so soft and buttery you could melt? I used to be very intimiated by scallops but now, I make them whenever I can. These plump, juicy fishies (crustaceans? shellfishies?) have given shrimp, my first love, a run for its money. But, given how much shrimp I ate in Mexico, I’m okay to blow them off for a date with scallops instead.
Seriously, if you’re cooking at home tonight for your special someone, consider this dish. It takes less than 30 minutes to prepare and is probably better than most of those overpriced dishes you get out at those “fancy” restaurants. Plus, it costs about $15 to make. Which sure beats the $85 you’d pay if you went out!
CLICK HERE FOR THE EASY, LOW-FAT SCALLOPS WITH TRI COLOR COUSCOUS RECIPE!
Nutritional information per serving (3 scallops and 1/3 cup couscous):
Calories: 305
Fat: 7 grams
Carbohydrates: 48 grams
Fiber: 1.5 grams
Protein: 6 grams
Weight Watchers points: 7
*Serving size is 2 scallops per person to keep the calorie count under 300. Another scallop will add another 45 calories and 2 grams of fat to the dish.
Claire
Tags:healthy recipes, low fat Valentine's Day recipe, scallops recipe, Valentine's day
Low-fat Chocolate Pudding with Blueberries
Can you all believe that Valentine’s day is in two days? And that February is halfway over? I certainly can’t. Although I’m sort of ready for warmer weather. As you know, I’m currently in Mexico and a gal could get used to this view everyday, I tell you. It’s going to be hard going back to sub zero temperatures.
Don’t even get me started on the food, it’s amazing. So much fresh seafood, seviches and chips and salsa. I’m in HEAVEN. But, if I don’t leave this heaven I’m going to eventually weigh 100000 pounds. Which is why this low-fat chocolate pudding with blueberries is going to be on my Valentine’s Day menu. I want a dessert but also don’t want a muffin top.
Who doesn’t love chocolate pudding? It’s one of those all-American desserts you grow up with. Except it’s usually served in a tiny plastic jar and contains about 14,000 preservatives. I like my pudding like I like my men, free of crap and nice and smooth. (Oh I went there).
Not only is this dessert perfect for Valentine’s Day because it’s guilt free, it’s really pretty too! If you wanted, you could sub in raspberries or strawberries to make it more Valentiney. I just had blueberries in the fridge and we all know how much I love them. I’d put them on every meal I ever eat and never get sick of them. They pair so perfectly with the rich, luscious chocolate pudding and the whipped cream.
I could talk about how much I love this jar of tall, dark and sexy pudding, but the wifi here is REALLY spotty so I’m just going to grab a margarita and lay by the beach instead 🙂 Hope you all have an amazing Monday!
CLICK HERE FOR THE DELICIOUS LOW-FAT CHOCOLATE PUDDING RECIPE!
Nutritional information per parfait (1/2 cup pudding, 1/3 cup fat-free whipped cream and 1/3 cup blueberries)
Calories: 226
Fat: 5.2 grams
Carbohydrates: 32 grams
Fiber: >1 gram
Protein: 6 grams
Weight Watchers points: 5
Claire
Tags:healthy recipes, low fat chocolate recipes, Valentine's Day recipes
Cheddar Jalapeño Crackers
As you read this, I’m currently headed to Mexico for 6 days! I’m going on a press trip to Mazatlan and I couldn’t be more excited! To keep things running smoothy over here, one of my favorite bloggers in the world, Carolyn! Carolyn blogs at All Day I Dream About Food and shares the most delicious looking low-carb and gluten-free recipes. Not to mention, she’s one of the nicest people on the web. After you read this amazing recipe, be sure to say hi to her on her blog, Facebook and Twitter!
Hi everyone! I’m here to share a recipe for some amazing cheddar jalapeño crackers while Claire is away. I’m a cracker girl, and I always have been. I can easily make a meal of crackers, cheese and veggies, and I often do. My husband and I call these antipasti meals…lots of great cheeses, some salami, some prosciutto, and some crackers to pile it all on. And a little wine to wash it all down. It’s my idea of heaven. But some crackers have enough flavor to stand on their own, no cheeses or salami needed. And I love those too, because they make the perfect quick, grab-and-go snack. I saw a delicious-looking recipe on Oh My Veggies the other day for Jalapeño Cheddar Crackers.
Crackers with the cheese already baked in, how perfect is that? And it never hurts to kick up the flavor with a few hot peppers. Mind you, I couldn’t make her recipe exactly as it is written, because hers were made with flour and I am low carb and gluten-free. But I knew her lovely recipe would be easy to adjust for my own particular tastes. I have a great almond flour cracker base recipe and it was easy to work in the same flavors to get a similar end result. I went with two full jalapenos, because I like spicy things, but you can adjust these to suit your own tastes.
And can I just say that these are the best crackers I have ever made? This time, I rolled the dough super-extra thin, which I think made a difference. I also made sure to let them cool fully, as gluten-free recipes tend to crisp up as they cool. And finally, I made sure to store them out in the open air, so they remained as crispy after several days. I often have crackers for lunch, sometimes even for dinner. These were so good that I found myself eating them for breakfast!
Cheddar Jalapeño Crackers
Yields 1 baking sheet of crackers. Recipe inspired by Oh My Veggies.
Ingredients:
- 1½ cups almond flour
- ½ cup flax seed meal
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup plus 2 tbsp grated cheddar cheese, divided
- 1 to 2 jalapeños, minced
- 2 tbsp melted butter
- 1 large egg
- ½ tsp kosher salt
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 300F.
- In a medium bowl, combine almond flour, flax seed meal, baking powder, onion powder and salt. Stir in ½ cup cheese and minced jalapenos.
- Add in butter and egg and stir until a cohesive dough forms.
- On a large cookie sheet, roll out very thinly into a rough rectangle between sheets of parchment paper. Try to make sure it is of an even thickness so your edges don’t cook faster than the middle.
- Remove top layer of parchment. With a sharp knife, score into desired size of cracker. I made mine about 2 inches by 2 inches.
- Sprinkle with remaining 2 tbsp of cheese and kosher salt.
- Bake until firm and edges are browned and crispy, about 45 minutes. Cook time will depend on how thin you rolled the dough.
- Remove from oven and let cool completely (they won’t be crisp until completely cooled).
- Store uncovered on your counter.
