Carmen's Kitchen

Tuesday

Healthy Tuna Salad

i looove tuna salad. especially on white bread, but since white bread and i dont get along right now, im going to have it on a bed of salad. mmm, so i did a bunch of healthy shopping at Trader Joes and i was debating if mayonnaise was a good choice for me at the moment. then i made a discovery ... Reduced Fat Mayonnaise - Unsweetened, Low Sodium, Eggless, Cholestorol/Dairy Free. iiiii meaaaaan, that cannot be bad for you at all! so i got it ($2.99, um bargain!), mixed 3 tablespoons of it with 2 cans of albacore tuna in water ($1.49 ea), finely chopped up some celery hearts ($1.69), added about 2 tablespoons of sweet relish and a tablespoon of dijon. easy! i cant even taste the mayo difference! Go Trader Joes! thanks for taking my march madness off to a great start, yay.

March Madness

There comes a time where you feel like you've let yourself go. you know the feeling: eating everything in sight, claiming its "my birthday", "its christmas", "i can't let it go to waste .." YUP, and then it all starts to creep up on you and you say, ugh, i shouldn't have eaten those 19 taquitos.

Well that time is now for me and i feel as if it always happens around March because its the perfect 3 months after Christmas and a perfect 3 months before summer. SO, i declare March Madness eating good clean food month. No sugar, no simple carbs, no fried food, no alcohol. YES, i said it. NO AlCOHOL :) i believe all these foods are things that you can over-do it real easy so im just going to cut them out. if i say im allowed 1 cookie, im just going to eat 3. but who sits around an eats 3 chicken breasts? so, here it is. March Madness.

(i was going to upload pics of what i gorged on in the past month .. but blogger is being mean so i'll do it next time)

Sunday

Eh?

Teriyaki chips sound kinda funky let alone teriyaki chex mix, but u find the darndest things during road trips!
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Monday

Superbowl Sunday!

We had a few people over to watch the game and it really was more about the food than the game, although im soooooo happy for the Saints!! they deserved it! great season and a great way to end it! We celebrated Drew Brees & Co by having many a beer and yummy finger foods :) i used my fail proof Giada recipes, cause on game days failure is not an option!

Who knew Wal-Mart was so festive?

($2)

Meatball sliders! Used Giada's recipe but tweaked it and added some bbq sauce too

Twice Baked Potatoes

(also Giada)

my cousins yummy spam musubi rolls

some spread: my friend Maries super yum corn dip

Farmers Market Veggies from Cuzzie

i made color coordinating cupcakes for each team and even though we weren't

rooting for the Colts, these cupcakes were a big hit!

(Blueberries & Cream, Martha Stewart's Cupcakes)

... and the Saints Cupcakes come marching in!

WHO DAT?!?

(Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cupcakes, Martha Stewart's Cupcakes)

Friday

Spicy tuna on Crispy Rice!

Jason won't let me say where it is cause its his "secret place" haha! Soo yummy

Monday

Menu planning for Superbowl Sunday Funday!

(click to enlarge)

Soooo excited to cook for my friends!! Its gonna be yummy!

Saturday

New York City!

oh, we had such a fun time!! we hit up most of the places on the "to-eat list" but im still sad we didnt get the potato pizza! oh well, next time! theres a slew of pics, so im gonna let the photos do the talkin ;)

@Lombardis! soo yummy. perfect thin crust, yummy sauce and fresh mozzerella.

($15.50)

FYI it was the first pizzeria ever in NYC, pretty crazy!

me & margie

@Cafe Habana. our FAVORITEST place ever, we went there twice. in four days.

Cafe con Leche ($2.95) for margie, Bloody Mary ($5.95) for me

the best corn ive ever had in my life.

(Mexican Corn $3.95)

Huevos con Chorizo

(6.75)

@macbar a very very cute place that we passed by, its super close to Cafe Habana,

so we went there twice too :)

Mac S'hroom. yum.

(around $7. i also highly recommend the Carbonara!)

@the burger joint. a hidden little gem! its inside le meridian hotel. right past the lobby theres a velvet curtain to the left and a completely tacky neon hamburger sign directs you to the happenin spot. i loved the fact that it was literally a wooden shack housed inside of the le meridian. genius!

DELICIOUS BURGER!

($5-10?)