Spaghetti Inside Garlic Bread

Doesn't that just look so yummy?!?!?!

This was inspired by this picture: http://pinterest.com/pin/464152305316350079/
There was no recipe attached to the picture, so i just figured out something out to do myself and this is what came of it.

Since there was no recipe attached, i wasn't sure on what bread they used, could of been home made. I probably could of found something to make, but i ended up just going with pizza crust for the bread. I saw something else that was a similar idea to this, just different filling, and they used croissants for the breading(the kind from the tubes). The pizza crust worked out fine for a bread, was fairly easy to use since i used the tube kind so i didn't have to roll it out, just had to unroll it lol.

Since there's not a recipe with the picture, i'll write a small step by step that i did for this, i will have 3 pictures to post afterwards.

I had my oven at 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
1. Place foil over baking sheet. (makes for easier clean up)
2. Spray the foil with cooking spray. (just in case it tried to stick)
3. Open and unroll the pizza crust.
4. Brush melted butter along the middle section, where the spaghetti will go. Then sprinkle with garlic salt. (garlic bread sprinkle should work too, i did this to help give it more garlic bread flavor)
5. Place the spaghetti along the center and top with your choice of cheese. (check out picture link provided above for example, or picture of mine below)
6. cut the extra sides of the dough into strips. (i might of mind mine a little too thin, but just meant more than if they were thicker)
7. fold over each strip over the spaghetti, trying to make sure as much of the spaghetti is covered. (larger strips mean less folds)
8. Once all folded, brush the top with melted butter and sprinkle with garlic salt. (or whatever garlic you used)
9. Put it in the oven

Now i ended up cooking mine for 14 minutes. That's what the tube said to cook thick crust pizza. After i took mine out, i should of cooked it for less. Then after eating it, parts were still just slightly doughy, wasn't too bad, i think was mostly just a few parts that the cheese was at. So i suggest either lower temp for longer or if you don't care about the possible doughy, then just cook it for a little less than 14 minutes, making sure you check to make sure it's not getting over cooked.

I plan on making this again, to try and find the best way of making it, temp and time, pizza crust or croissants, all that type of stuff. I will keep updating on what i do for it.

Here's the pictures i said i was going to post.

 This shows how the spaghetti should be placed and example of how to fold it over

 how it looked before cooking

and this is why i found out 14 minutes was too long. the edges were getting burnt. the middle bottom was still alright. It was almost over cooked but wasn't burnt.

I think last thing would mostly be the taste. What i made was good. I've had a lot of garlic(mostly garlic salt) while growing up, so i have a harder time tasting garlic than the rest of my family, so i felt there wasn't enough garlic taste, but my mom was just fine with how much was there. I also used day old spaghetti because that was at my mom's request because she prefers day old spaghetti because the noddles get to soak up the sauce some. For the cheese, i used cheddar cheese.
Taste really all matters on how you prepare it. It will taste different with different ways the spaghetti gets made, depending on what breading you use, what cheese you use, how much garlic and all that. Just will need to experiment with what you want :)

My brother isn't a spaghetti fan so he never tried this, but he suggested that he would if i made it with Alfredo,  so that will be another variation i will try and make in the future.


I hope this post is helpful. It's kinda annoying to find something on pinterest that you want to make and not find a recipe or step by step type thing. That was partly why i wanted to write more than just the taste on here :)

Nature's Harvest Dry Roasted Edamame, with Sea Salt

I enjoy edamame, so when i saw this, i thought i'd try it. I've mostly just had the kind that steams in the pod and then you pop them out of the pods. So this was something new to try.

On the package, can't really be seen in the picture, it says: "0g trans fat & a cholesterol free food" "excellent source of fiber & protein" and "good source of iron"
I found this page with the nutrition facts since i didn't take a picture: http://www.fooducate.com/app#page=product&id=9C324C02-0F87-11E1-8977-1231380C180E
As you can see, just 1/4 cup of these, you get 5g of fiber and 11g of protein.
I think if you compare a cups worth of this to a cups worth of peanuts, these turn out to be better. Aside from the sodium and carbs. if you go based on weight watcher's point plus system, the edamames are 15 points for a cup(4 points for a 1/4 cup serving) and the peanuts are 24 points for a cups worth. I'd say points wise, these are good for a replacement. I do feel it has a nutty taste/feel to it when you eat these. Whether just eating these or putting them on a salad, not sure yet what else you could put them on lol. i don't know how well they'd cook in things.

Edamames are also good for you. i found this page to explain why: http://www.livestrong.com/article/409591-the-health-benefits-of-edamame/

I am finding myself having a hard time not popping these into my mouth as i'm writing this lol. Though they are salty, i don't think it's like how peanuts are to where you feel like your mouth is drying out from eating a handful. The texture is different from peanuts, i feel it's more of a crumble like texture once you start to chew them.

For those who are dieting, i say this might be worth you trying out to see if you like it. I'm not sure how much i'll keep this on hand since i don't seem to stick to a good diet. But i would buy this again in general.

Lastly, i wanted to share a picture of what a serving size looks like

Apple Cinnamon Water

I'll admit it...I'm one of those people who wants those quick fix in weight loss. So when something talks about bring up metabolism and such, i want to try them. My downfall.....I don't stick with them. Drinking water is my biggest downfall, i just don't really drink it. Main part of that for me is that i don't like the taste and it's so boring for me. While browsing Pinterest, i did come across this drink, Day Spa Apple Cinnamon Water- 0 calories.

It mostly talks about how to make it rather than the why it works. Personally for me, i haven't tried it long enough with drinking it enough to notice what difference it makes. So i'll go into a small bit on that.

I think i had heard about cinnamon helping, but didn't really know why. so i just did a quick search and this webpage seems to give a good explaining to why. http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/fitness/weight-loss/how-a-scoop-of-cinnamon-a-day-can-help-you-lose-weight.html#b
For the apples, I already knew that apples were a good fruit to eat to help get a wake up boost, so just kinda figuring that along helps with metabolism. Did a quick search and found this page that seems to give a short thing about apples. Just not sure about on this since you are not eating the apples. http://www.livestrong.com/article/233137-do-apples-help-you-lose-weight/
Last thing is the ice. You might be like "Say what? Ice makes you lose weight?" Yes it does, well the ice water. I've read on this one before, it's because it's cooling your body down when you drink it, so it has to work harder to warm itself back up. Along with you getting the water you need. I went ahead and found an article for you to read if you want more information on it. http://health.howstuffworks.com/wellness/diet-fitness/weight-loss/question447.htm

I'm not a nutritionist or anything, or even really that healthy. But it is something i read up on for when i finally get my butt moving on the right track. So that's why i wanted to provide the articles as to why. Feel free to share better articles if you know of any.

Now back to the drink itself.

For prepping, it really isn't that hard. Just cut the apples, put in the sticks, add the ice, fill with water, then put in the fridge.
For taste, this mostly matters on what apples you use. I either used honey crisp or fugi. Been awhile since i made this so i don't remember. Would be interesting to try with green apples since they'd have a tarter taste. For what i did use, this was good. The cinnamon did give it an almost burning like feel for me when drinking it, if i'm remember right.

I will be making this again at some point to try and see what difference happens if i actually drink a gallon of it a day. Will be a little experiment for myself. Just probably won't be at least until my daughter starts sleeping at slightly better times.

I hope this post helps those who read it.

A Banana + 2 Eggs = Pancakes?

Now i dont have a pretty picture of a nice stack of these....I eat while i cook pancakes, only time i have a stack is after i get full lol. This picture though is of one of the pancakes i made. Here's a good page to use to follow how to make them, http://www.blogilates.com/recipe-index/100-natural-pancakes-recipe-gluten-free-flourless-low-calorie

I've tried this before where you just use a fork and mash the banana and 2 eggs together to get a smoother texture. I don't remember really how those turned out. For this one, i did a double batch of 1 bananas and 4 eggs and i used my food processor to mix them together. might of gave it a thinner texture, but seemed okay.
Here's some pictures from me processing it...

I ended up trying to cook on stove top and on an electric griddle....i think both are fairly a bust if you try and rush this. because it's thin and only eggs and bananas, cooking it on a high temp just doesn't really seem to work. Lower and little longer seems to work better. Also, if you are not using a non stick pan, be sure to spray or it will be even harder to flip. It's hard to flip it on it's own. In a few comments on the link i provided above, there was comments about adding coconut flour to thicken it a little to make it easier to flip. You can use normal flour, just would defeat the flourless part of this. I've read that coconut flour is good for you, and it's gluten free. Could maybe also use almond flour, just almond flour is something to watch because it's made purely from nuts (easy enough to google more info if you are interested). I wouldn't mind trying this again with using the almond flour or coconut flour to thicken it.

There was also a comment about about using this for crepes(might of been a comment on part of the pinterest post i found it through). i liked the idea of the crepes, just i didn't have any whip type topping and the pan i was using wouldn't be very good for making crepes. I did managed to make a slightly thinner one and just put some of my greek cream cheese on it then rolled it.

Tasted pretty close to a cream cheese filled crepe.

As for the taste alone, it has a banana taste to it...i'd be surprised if it didn't. I'd say it's almost like a banana muffin type taste? i ate one while it was cold and when cold it did taste a good bit like banana bread. For not having flour in it, it did still have a slight bread/pancake feel for it

For me, i find this just a pretty simple something to make if i just want to make something quick to eat and have bananas and eggs. it's an alright way to use up almost gone bad bananas. Which both reasons were why i made these when i did.

Green Mountain Farms Greek Cream Cheese

In other posts i've mentioned a greek yogurt cream cheese that i've used. This is the product i have been talking about.

With my hopes for actually dieting, healthier alternatives, such as the greek yogurts, tend to catch my eye. I love cream cheese. The idea of it being made with greek yogurt did give me a bit of a "uhhhh i'm not sure on this" type feeling. But i was pleasantly surprised on the taste. It's not exactly like normal cream cheese, but has a good taste to it. I've only tried the whipped version so far, i got the brick version for when i get a recipe that needs cream cheese. Even the texture is a cream cheese one still. I really could just eat a spoonful. Which i seem to be trying to do while writing this.

When searching the name of this product, i found their website http://www.franklinfoods.com/greek-cream-cheese

That should be able to give better info on the actual product. As it says on the site, it can be bought at walmart, which is where i found it. I think it would be fun to do a taste test of regular cream cheese with this one to see what real taste difference there is, maybe i will some day. For now, this is the cream cheese i will be using unless i want flavored ones, though i'm sure i could figure out how to just flavor this on my own.

Here's the nutrition facts for the whipped one. (found on the website i provided)

8oz. Whipped Tub

Serving Size - 2 Tbsp (22g)

Amount per Serving

Calories 45 Calories from Fat 20

% Daily Value

Total Fat             2.5g      4%

Saturated Fat    1.5g      8%

Trans Fat              0g

Cholesterol      10mg    4%

Sodium             65mg    3%

Total Carb         2g         1%

Fiber                   0g

Sugars               2g

Protein               3g 

Based on that, if you go to figure out the weight watches points plus for it, it's only 1 point for 2 tbs!!!! that's a lot better than other ones. I was checking out the points on other creams cheeses that are listed on the weight watcher's website. There are other 0-2 point ones that are for like the fat free and even regular, but those were for just 1 tbs. For point wise, i think this one might actually be one of the better ones, without that "healthy" taste. 

I do think the taste will differ for each person, but i like it and do recommend people try it.

Genesis Today Skinny Coffee Vanilla Latte

I think what caught my attention to try this was seeing the word "skinny". I like trying all sort of new things(even if it scares me lol) and i like seeing what healthy items actually taste good. It being a coffee drink also caught my attention. I sometimes get a little picky on coffee drinks because i don't like it too strong.

Looking at the package, just look at all that stuff that makes it look so healthy. "50% fewer calories", "skinny", "supports: energy, Healthy weight" "green coffee beverage".
Here's a page about green coffee if you aren't sure on what it is. [Link]

For taste, i find that this taste very close to this drink

Probably not exactly, but it's been awhile since i've had a java monster. But i always liked Mean Bean the best, so since it tastes close to that, i really like this skinny coffee drink. There was another flavor that i'll have to try.

here's the section of the container that gives info on it. sorry if a little hard to read in the picture.


I plan on buying more of these for my coffee for the summer. It's refreshing and does seem to give me a perk, unlike normal coffee, so will be good for hot mornings.

JELL-O LiveActive Milk Chocolate Pudding Snacks

I decided to try this after i saw it because i do have a bit of digestive problems. I've tried the Activia yogurts, but i'm not a big yogurt fan. So i figured if this actually works and taste alright, then it'd be easier for me to eat.

I don't remember the price, and the site doesn't tell you, but i got this at walmart. Here's the link to it on the walmart website [Link]

For it being sugar free, it is sweetened with Splenda. This does taste like normal chocolate pudding to me, but i do think it has a bit of a Splenda after taste to it. I don't mind that since the pudding is tastier than the yogurts i've tried.

I've only ate one so far, but i'll probably try to test this better when i can go buy some more of it. To get the real feel on how well it works, would need to eat one a day for a few weeks. In the description on the walmart's website, it says "Research suggests eating as little as eight grams of this prebiotic fiber per day can help promote the growth of the good bacteria already in your body." With that, that means you could eat the whole pack a day....that's kinda a lot of pudding. As long as you also have other fiber in your diet, that should help also so that you don't need to eat all the pudding in one day. I'm not a doctor though, so that's just my opinion that is based on what my doctor sorta told me when i've talked to her about my problem. She mostly just said "more fiber"

Over all. I think this is a good product taste wise. As for if it works, i'm not sure yet.