What a (Pregnant) Woman Wants...

With my second trimester has come hunger, extreme hunger.  I'm a little concerned that I might be eating more than is truly necessary for the little life inside of me.  I think I have to assume that with my amazing return of energy and the growth of my baby, comes an equally amazing need for more calories to burn, but still...  To be on the safe side, I'm going to ask my doctor on Monday.  Because although I've got my energy back, I haven't exactly taken to the gym every morning OR evening for the last two weeks.
While I have immense respect for the women who gain 60 pounds while pregnant, then shed it with a bootcamp combo of no-carbs and 2-a-day workouts post-birth... I don't really want to be one of them.  I'd prefer to gain a modest 20 to 30 pounds and then shed them with a normal diet, yoga and walks with my brand-new baby in the fall!

This week has really marked the beginning of my Hunger Strike.  I've been trying to come up with creative, filling, somewhat healthful meals, especially for lunch, since I'm lucky enough to be able to stop work for an hour to eat and relax at home each day.

So here it is... a look at What This Pregnant Woman Wants*.  Be prepared.  These are no light lunches for a tidy, girly appetite.  This is, after all, a Hunger Strike we're talking about.

 An amaaaazing omelet - eggs with milk, shredded sharp cheddar and feta.  With two slices of bread.  Note the lack of veggies though.  I'm working on that...

These are Tostitos Hint of Lime chips... yum...

My amazing toasted sandwich, with pickle slices and lettuce.  Took it to the next level!

Leftover Potato-Leek pizza and steamed green beans.  But that wasn't all I had...

Yes, a little strawberry shortcake!

Another piece of Potato-Leek pizza.  Very filling, very satisfying.  And take a look at that salad!

This is a little salad trick of mine.  I like to put low-fat cottage cheese on my salad.  It lends creaminess and plenty of flavor so you don't have to use as much dressing!  And of course, sunflower seeds for a little omega-3 boost.

Well, I hope you've enjoyed this little peek into my lunch life.

*"Wants."  These meals are not completely honest representations of my "wants."  If they were, they would include a lot more ice cream and chips.  However, since these are not things I indulge in every day when I'm not pregnant, I didn't think now was any time to be starting.  I don't want my child to come into this world with a born-in love for Doritos and Cookies n' Cream!

Strawberry Shortcakes

The Strawberry Shortcake.  A taste of spring.  Even when using Reddi Whip and a Hostess Shortcake.

Embrace your version of the strawberry shortcake today.

Steakhouse Dinner

It may look like we're livin' large at Ruth Chris or Hereford House... but no, we just dined it up in style at home.

A couple things I love about having a steak dinner at home...

I can wear my yoga pants, a tee shirt stained with dirt from a little yard work, and no shoes.

I can eat fresh green beans, completely unspoiled by butter or oil or anything else.  You just can't get a truly plain vegetable at a steak house.  And really, why would you try?  The onion fries or the sauteed mushrooms are just so delicious.
Point two kind of got lost there.  I meant to say something more like "I know exactly how my food is prepared, so I'm not consuming a lot of unnecessary fat or sodium."

To prepare the T-bones, we rubbed a little olive oil on them and then rubbed on about 2 teaspoons steak rub per steak.  My grandma gave this to us for Christmas.  It's so flavorful - too flavorful for our tastes on these excellent pieces of meat.  I rubbed most of the rub off my steak once it made it to my plate, and the amazing thing was that the flavor had just melted into the meat.  Ideal!  Next time we'll probably use this as a marinade instead of a rub.

Orange Breakfast Crescents

In honor of the Royal Wedding (After maintaining weeks of aloof disinterest, I finally got sucked in yesterday...), we had Orange Breakfast Crescents for a little light, late breakfast this morning.

These are light, airy, sweet, and delicately flavored with orange.  The perfect treat to take to brunch with the girls... or make for Mom on Mother's Day... or for your little girl's tea party.  Even my husband liked them!

And they're easy.  Have I mentioned that yet?  That's a prerequisite for any dish to make it to my "Breakfast Dishes I Might Actually Make" list.  See, I'm not a morning person, so I don't like to do much first thing in the morning.  I spread the cream cheese filling on the rolls and rolled them up the night before, so in the morning all I had to do was pop them in the oven and whip up the frosting.

Orange Breakfast Crescents
1 pkg 8-count refrigerated crescent rolls
3 oz cream cheese
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/4 tsp almond extract
Preheat oven to 350.  Blend last four ingredients.  Separate rolls into their triangles.  Divide cream cheese mixture evently among triangles and spread, leaving a 1/4" border.  Roll each into a crescent, starting at the long edge.  Place on a baking sheet (lightly spray with cooking spray if it's not nonstick) and bake for 15 minutes or until browned.

Frosting:
1/2 c powdered sugar
1 Tbsp orange juice
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/8 tsp almond extract
Combine all frosting ingredients while rolls are baking.  Spread over hot crescent rolls as soon as you remove them from the oven.  Serve immediately.

Note: You can substitute vanilla extract if you don't have almond extract!

The Rare Pear

A good pear is hard to beat.  My parents get the Harry and David pears at Christmastime, and I adore and cherish those bites of melt-in-your-mouth peardom.  But rarely am I patient enough to buy those hard pears at the grocery store and then wait for them to ripen.  Sometimes, if I do actually buy them and put them in a dark corner of our cupboard to ripen, I forget about them and find them two weeks later at a stage way past ripe.

Not these pears.  I bought them.  I stored them.  They ripened.  I shared one slice with my dear hubby and then I ate the rest of them.  Better luck next time, baby.

Chocolate-Nut Cookie Pie

This pie is delicious served warm, with a glass of milk on the side.  It's got a slightly crispy top, a rich gooey center (no doubt courtesy of the butter), and a decadent layer of chocolate and nuts at the bottom.

And it's easy.

Reason enought to make it tonight, no?
 

Just in time for shorts and swimsuit season, from my kitchen to yours...

Chocolate-Nut Cookie Pie
2 eggs
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c firmly packed brown sugar
1 c butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 c semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 c chopped walnuts and/or pecans
1 9" baked pie crust
Preheat oven to 325.  In a large bowl, beat eggs until foamy.  Add flour, sugar and brown sugar; beat until well blended.  Blend in melted butter.  Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Pour into pie shell.  Bake for 1 hour.