Category: Dinner

Memorial Day Weekend at the Gagnon’s

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Hey everyone! Who else is feeling a little bit of a let down after the long weekend? I was so happy the sun finally decided to come out yesterday, but where was it the rest of the weekend?! Thankfully, we had loads of fun inside and really didn’t notice the gross weather too much. Since my weekend in Maine was filled with so many fun things, let’s get right to recapping them!

Saturday

Danielle and I met mom in Springvale for lunch at the Springvale Publick House (clearly, we love that place). Dad dropped mom off and took Chuck home so he didn’t have to sit around in the crate for any longer than necessary. After lunch, we grabbed Dairy Queen and puttered around Ocean State Job lot and the Dollar Tree and decided to grab margarita’s at Fresco Mexican Grill. Holy Yum! I had the Pineapple Mango Sage infused margarita with dry ice- such a fun afternoon treat!

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After drinks, we came home and got going on our homemade pizza on the grill night! Dad made his homemade dough and we split it into 6 pieces so that we could have lots of mini pizzas. I made a caramalized onion, zucchini and fresh mozzarella cheese and I think it was the best out of all of them!

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We had such a fun night filled with lots of laughs, good food and wine (duh!).

Sunday

Since we were going to 11am mass, we had plenty of time to hang around and relax when we got up on Sunday. And, with rainy/gross weather, being lazy was totally ok. After church, we all went to Lowe’s and Wal-Mart to get plants and whatnot. By the time we got home, I was STARVING and couldn’t wait to dig into the left-over pizza! Late afternoon, before our BBQ, mom, Danielle and I went for a 1/2 hour walk which felt great!

Sunday night, we hosted a Memorial Day BBQ for our close family friends. There ended up being 15 adults and 2 babies! So fun!

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My mom obviously has lots of friends, but she has 2 best friends that she is always with: Jean and Jeanne, aka “The Jeans”. One cannot do something without the other two, so it is no surprise that when the Jean’s went shopping earlier in the weekend, they had to get mom a matching shirt!

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It was an extra special party because Matt and Courtney came and brought their new baby boy, Alexander! What’s really neat, is that they are letting people choose their own nickname for him: Alex, Xander, Al (although, I wouldn’t call him Al since that’s what my dad’s name is and that would be weird).

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And no Maine post is complete without a picture of one of our favorite babies… Emma Jean! She is getting SO big and is so much fun.

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Sara, as you remember, is so very pregnant at this time! She is due on Wednesday and could give at any moment. It was fun to see her with the babies and know that she will have her own so soon! Come on out, Zeke, we want to play!!

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As always, the food was delicious! Asian salad, broccoli-cauliflower salad, pasta salad, hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, steak, pork, and so many desserts!

018It was really so fun to see everyone, and even more fun that everyone was referencing Burpees to Bubbly! I love to hear people say “let’s get a pic for Burpees to Bubbly”. Music to my ears:) This pic seemed only fitting since we were most definitely drinking bubbly!

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We are so blessed to have so many wonderful friends around all the time! Never a dull moment at the Gagnon’s 😉

Memorial Day

I woke up to a bright, sunny sky and immediately decided that it would be awesome to go for a run! As I was running, I realized how quiet it was compared to the city running that I usually do. No sidewalks, no cars, no people, just my music, the pavement and a sunny sky. I really focused on being present and enjoying the moment, something I should probably do more often!

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I made my run more fun by adding in strength exercises after every mile- I’ll post it later this week!

Here are some pictures of “Shapleigh Corner”… I am from a very small town and this is the “center” of town. A whopping blinking light!

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028Yup, you’d call this Maine, small town living!

The rest of the day was filled with LOTS of planting and gardening with dad and visiting with our cousin, Karen, who is visiting from Michigan. Always nice to visit with family!

And now we are back to the grind! This week got a little busier when I agreed to sub back-to-back classes tonight (Kickboxing followed by SHRED at the South Station BSC).

Questions for you: Best part of your weekend? Did you have or go to a BBQ for Memorial Day? Are you from a big city or small town?

Friday Things! All sorts of random things…

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Hi friends! Happy Friday! and long weekend… the best kind of weekend, right?! What do you have planned this weekend?? Unfortunately, I am not going to Figawi, but now that I have seen the weekend weather, I am not as sad about that decision! I am teaching kickboxing tomorrow morning at the YMCA and then my sister, chuck (aka her cat, Charlie) and I will make the trek north. Our family always hosts the Memorial Day BBQ and our friends, the Mahoney’s, always host the 4th of July BBQ (because they have a pool and pool parties are the best!), so I am looking forward to helping my parents host a little get together!

Unfortunately, I don’t have the day off today, so let’s get right to the post so I can get back to work 😉 (I wrote this on my lunch break, so no worries!)

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On Wednesday, Danielle came to my UXF class and then we met up with Amy at Redbones for some delicious, cheap BBQ… can’t get better than that!

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I got lunch from Bee’s Knees yesterday. Bee’s Knees recently opened up a location in Fort Point directly across the street from the entrance into my building for work. I immediately fell in love with it. Literally, if I could design a store, it would be Bee’s Knees. They have all sorts of weird, quirky, “granola” type items that they sell and as a foodie and health nut, I love it! Oh, and they have a nice wine and beer selection, too- told you it was the perfect store!

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(I got this on sourdough because I learned on Sunday that if you can’t order whole wheat or Ezekiel, order sourdough since it’s much easier for our body to break down)

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I had my butt handed to me when I took a Core Fusion Cardio class at Exhale Spa. Seriously, I despise mountain climbers because I struggle so much with them (my shoulders burn!!) and we did enough for a lifetime. But still, I left that class with a smile! I even took one of the moves and brought it to UXF:

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1-legged walk out push-ups. Love!

Speaking of more moves that I have loved bringing into class this week, I learned this beauty from Celeste at the Wellness By The Water Retreat.

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Run the plank!!! so fun.

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My dad’s emails literally crack me up! What is even more funny, is that he doesn’t comment ON my blog posts, but rather, he sends me an email with his comment. So funny.

023Deep Knee Bends= the new way to refer to squats. Wadda ya think of that?! I love it.

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Speaking of Jess, she just sent out her first newsletter, featuring yours truly! As I have mentioned before, Jess and I have partnered together to create “Mommy’s Moves” which will be a series of short, but effective workouts with busy mom’s in mind. This one is just 7 minutes, including my intro, warm up and cool down, and I don’t care how busy you are, you have 7 minutes to dedicate to your health and fitness! Click on this link to check it out. If there are any new mom’s out there reading my blog that have ideas of what they would like to see in a quick workout, please shoot me an email or leave a suggestion in the comments section!

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Look what arrived on our doorstep this morning!

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My sister and I splurged and purchased Jack Rogers for the summer. I absolutely love the ones I bought, but I think they are a smidge too small:(

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This is why I don’t shop online; I like instant gratification so when I order something and it doesn’t fit, it is REALLY disappointing:(

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Try this circuit 4 times through!

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Ok, one more thing. JP sent me this from http://whatshouldwecallme.tumblr.com/post/51016946731/when-i-take-on-too-many-things-at-once. Hahaha totally me!

Phew! I think that is it? If you’re around for kickboxing tomorrow morning, please come! It will be the best way to kick off your long holiday weekend 🙂

Questions for you: What’s the best thing you’ve done or seen this week? Do you own Jack Rogers? Are you a fan of online shopping? Ever been to Bee’s Knees or Redbones?

Chicken Cordon Bleu… with a new twist!

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Hey there! Boy do I have a yummy meal for you this week. I know I say that every week, but this one was really quite delicious, probably because Chicken Cordon Bleu has always been one of my “favorite” meals that momma gag’s makes (close second or third to Chicken Parm). Last week, I stumbled across the idea of using goat cheese and turkey, instead of ham and swiss when I was reading through Fitnessista’s blog. She posted a picture of her Chicken Cordon Bleu-ish meal and I was sold!

What made this meal even more appealing was that we had bought extra chicken a few weeks ago since it was on mega sale AND I had new package of goat cheese in the fridge. Love that!

Chicken Cordon Blue… with a new twist!

  • 2 Chicken Breasts (mine were very small… TWSS… but you can use bigger ones if you want!)
  • 4 very thin slices of deli ham (stuck with ham for this meal)
  • 2-3 tbsp goat cheese (1-1.5 for each breast)
  • sea salt
  • pepper
  • paprika
  • Mrs. Dash

1. Preheat your oven to 350*. Stack 2 slices of ham together and spread the goat cheese in the middle (X2 if you’re using 2 chicken breasts). Roll the ham up just like you’d roll a wrap.

0072. Rinse your chicken and use a knife to cut the breast open in half so you can stuff your ham and goat cheese rolls in them.

3. When you stuff the chicken, use toothpicks to hold everything together. Sprinkle a nice amount of sea salt,009 pepper, Mrs. Dash and paprika on the chicken and place in the oven to cook for about 15-20 minutes (time will change depending on how big your breasts are).

012I like to make a little slice in my chicken before taking it out of the oven to make sure it’s all cooked. Once it is cooked, take it out of the oven.

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(Look at that ooey, gooey melted goat cheese!)

To accompany the chicken, Danielle made some risotto (not sure where she got the recipe from, but any risotto recipe would work) and I steamed up some broccoli. I also made a quick batch of an easy white sauce (1/2 tbsp butter, 1/2 tbsp and about 1/3 cup of skim milk) because, well, I loveeeee sauces and feel that any French meal should have a sauce (hence why French cuisine is my favorite). Nothing fancy, but the chicken was SO flavorful that simple sides were absolutely the way to go.

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There you have it! The risotto took the longest to make, so if you skipped that or substituted it for something else, the meal would probably take you less than 45 mins start to finish. I have 1/2 of my chicken breast left for tomorrow- can’t wait to eat it!

Questions for you: What is your favorite cuisine? Favorite side dish?

Weekending! Harpoon Fest, Sushi, Sonsie, Friends

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Before I get to my post scheduled for today, I wanted to take a minute to say how much Oklahoma is on my mind. Seeing the images on the news that the tornadoes caused makes me speechless. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those who have been impacted by these tornadoes. Absolutely heartbreaking.

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Hi there! How is everyone doing?! I had a super busy weekend, but it was really, really fun! My friend, JP, was in town for the weekend (he is my former coworker/BFF and is moving to Chicago at the end of the month), so it was fun to get to hang out with him, as well as some SMC ladies.

Friday

I was pretty busy with work on Friday, but I was able to make some Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Bread during my lunch break. I don’t know where I got the recipe (definitely from a blog, but no idea which one), but mmm it came out so tasty!

001I talked to my college girlfriends and realized that it was Harpoon Fest, so some of us decided to go. Although it was a little chilly on Friday evening, it was still a fun night!

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(Do you follow me on Instagram, yet?)

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Saturday definitely would have been the better day, weather wise, but I’m still glad we were able to go! Around 9pm, we all decided we were all pretty chilly and decided to head out. We joined JP and some of his friends for another drink at Dillon’s.

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Knowing that I had to teach kickboxing at 10am the next day, I kept myself in good control and even drank a plain club soda while at Dillon’s… shocking, I know! But well worth it. There are some classes I could teach while being tired and a little hung over, but kickboxing is certainly not one of those!

Saturday

Kickboxing was a blast! There were not as many people as usual, but I blame that on the weather. Saturday was absolutely beautiful and had I not been teaching, I would have gone for a nice run outside!

When I got home from kickboxing, I worked in my garden a little bit. I had a few more things I wanted to plant and my dad was nice enough to give me 3 more bags of soil, so it felt good to knock that off of my “to-do” list, while still working on my tan 😉 And, the sun went in just as I was ready to eat lunch. Perfect timing! I sautéed some broccoli and summer squash and then added in an egg, scrambled it up, topped it with goat cheese and served it as a wrap. Easy, healthy, yummy.

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Perfect fuel to clean the apartment, actually. Danielle was around to help, so we split up the different areas of the house to clean and got to work! By the time we were finished, I was exhausted, so you know what I ended up doing? NAPPING. If you know me, you know that I NEVER nap, so this was pretty crazy. I passed out for a solid 45 minutes and only woke up because I was drooling everywhere my sister told me it was time to shower. Luckily, I wasn’t groggy or anything, because that is the worst, and part of the reason why I don’t nap.

After we were ready, we headed to Joshua Tree in Somerville for a cocktail and snack before meeting up with my friend, Lauren, for sushi. Davis square was hoppin’! There was some sort of sidewalk/porch band festival thing, too, which seemed pretty cool. I love how the spring weather makes people venture out and about.  I got a Sangria, but it was awful so I didn’t finish it. Boo 😦

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For dinner, we went to Fuji in Kendall Square since I had a Groupon that was just days from expiring.

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While we perused the menu, we enjoyed some edamame and Sauvignon Blanc. $26 for the bottle. Ummm amazing.

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I ordered a Spicy Tuna Roll, which was only OK. It seemed like it had tempura mixed in and I wasn’t a fan of that. Everything else was delicious, though, especially the company and free valet parking 🙂

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After dinner, Danielle and I went to Sonsie to grab a drink with JP since it might be the last time that we see him before he moves to Chicago 😦 The city was very much alive and I loved it! Sometimes it’s nice to have a reminder of how wonderful it is to be able to live in Boston. I think I take it for granted far too often, so last night was nice to soak it all in.

All in all, it was a great weekend. I went out and had fun with friends, had some great adult bevvies, and was able to enjoy Boston. Sunday was the icing on the cake as I was totally in my element at the Wellness By The Water retreat. I’ll do a full post dedicated to my experience there later this week, but I’ll say that it was awesome.

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Did you go to Harpoon Fest? Did you go out dancing (mom, I know you did!)? Drink any fun, summer-ish cocktails?

Lemon Chive Broiled Tilapia with a Greek Yogurt, Lemon & Chive Sauce

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Hi there! Two posts in one day- you lucky ducks! I also realized it’s a little ironic that I posted a workout for you first, and then a healthy meal idea. Maybe you should try both, in that order 😉

Since I am not teaching Dynamax this session ( 😦 ), I now have Monday AND Tuesday nights off from teaching. I almost don’t know what to do with myself now that I have all this extra time! Luckily, I am very good at filling up an open schedule, so I certainly haven’t been bored yet. I had to work from home on Monday since we had plumbers coming (came back to the apartment on Sunday and realized we had no hot water- lovely), which was actually a really nice way to start the week. Saving the 1-1.5 hours in commuting is such a wonderful thing.

After I finished working, I went for a 40 minute run (4.62 miles- nothing too fast, but it felt good!) and then did about 30 minutes of strength and core when I got back to my apartment. I had gone to the grocery store during my lunch break to pick up 3 essentials for the dinner I had planned to make: fish, chives, Greek plain yogurt, so once I finished my workout and took a shower, I got right to work! This meal came together really quickly, so it is a perfect weeknight meal to make!

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Lemon Chive Broiled Tilapia w/a Greek Yogurt, Lemon & Chive Sauce

Ingredients

  • Fresh Tilapia (or any fish of your choosing)- I got a small filet since it was just for me and I didn’t want a lot of leftovers- it was about .3 lbs.
  • 1 lemon
  • Chives (side note: all weekend my dad kept reminding me to take some fresh chives from his garden, yet what was the one thing all 3 of us forgot to pack up for me? The stupid chives. It seriously pained me to have to pay $2 for a package of chives when I knew my dad had SO many for me!)
  • 2% Greek Plain Yogurt (they didn’t have 0%, but the thickness of the 2% was actually great)- I used 1/4 cup
  • 1/4-1/2 large onion
  • 1 small summer squash (this was REALLY small, but perfect for my meal!)
  • 1 box of Near East Quinoa Blend (mine was the Rosemary and Olive Oil)
  • Sea Salt
  • Pepper008

Directions

1. Cook the quinoa according to the back of the package. While that is cooking, cut up your onions and summer squash and saute those in a pan. I used a little bit of EVOO, salt and pepper (no wine since I didn’t have any- the horrors!).

2. Prepare your fish: I rubbed a small amount of EVOO on the fish, sprinkled some sea salt and pepper, topped it with 3 lemon slices & a few squirts of lemon juice that I had in the fridge, and finally, about 1-1.5 tsp chopped chives. I placed it in the oven and broiled it until it was white and flakey (about 5-7 mins).

0093. While the quinoa, veggies and fish are cooking, prepare your sauce. I used about 1/4 cup 2% Greek plain yogurt, juice from the remainder of the lemon that I took slices from for the fish, few shakes of salt & pepper, and about 1- 1.5 tsp chopped chives. I mixed it up well and let it sit.

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4. When the fish is done, remove from the oven. Your veggies and quinoa should also be done, so add the veggies right into the quinoa and mix well.

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5. Serve up some of both, top with sauce and enjoy! I also made a small side salad to go with this meal and it was perfect!

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Mind you, this was my FIRST time cooking a fish meal other than something simple like shrimp, so I was pretty nervous about how it would turn out.  No worries, though, I was pleasantly surprised with the flavor of the fish and how easy it is to cook! Normally, I get carried away in the kitchen and end up spending so much time on what I am making, but not on Monday night- I was finished before I knew it (maybe that is in part to not drinking wine while I was cooking… maybe that’s what drags out the process 😉 ). I can’t wait to use the leftover quinoa and veggie mixture to top my salads with… and maybe even use the “sauce” as my dressing?!

Don’t like fish? I think you could do the same thing, but use chicken instead! Obviously you’d have to bake the chicken and not broil it, but I think it would still be delicious!

Questions for you: Do you like fish? What is your favorite kind?