Brussels Sprouts, Spinach, and Flowers

I won't lie, I was scared of Brussels sprouts. Because they smell terrible, look like tiny brains, and are the stuff of horrible food legend. Mom made them a lot when I was younger, but she was the only one who ate them in the house, and we all just smelled them and were sadder for it. Chris wanted us to have them because he likes them and I decided to give it a shot because I want to try new healthy foods, so we roasted them today, using this recipe. If you don't want to click the link, the gist is that you cut the sprouts in half, coat with a bit of olive oil, add salt and paper, and then roast them until they start getting brownish.

Guess what? They were delicious! They were done about 10 minutes sooner than I expected from the recipe, but they were really amazing. Chris thinks that Brussels sprouts have a similar taste to spinach, but I think it's sweeter and nuttier than the leafy greens. Speaking of, today we had some homemade spaghetti sauce on rotini pasta. Chris's mom always gives us chili and spaghetti sauce with either sausage or meatballs, and it's such an easy meal. It's also not too bad for you when you consider it's made with Catelli Smart pasta, which has similar calories but over twice the fiber of regular pasta. But I wanted more veggies, so I chopped up some spinach and tossed it into the sauce as it simmered on the stove. After about 15 minutes, the spaghetti wilted and became a great addition to the food. You don't taste an overwhelming spinachy flavor, it's just more nutrients and more texture and best of all, more food overall. 'Cause I love to eat. I imagine this would also work with white sauce, soups, and stews. We always have lots of spinach for salads and sides, so this is another way to work such an awesome, nutrient-rich food into your meals.

With that said, I have a workout to do with EASA2. As much as I'd love to think that today's great multitasking -dancing, washing dishes, and listening to Lady Gaga- constitutes sufficient calories burned, I wore my heart rate monitor and know I only burned 150 calories. But hey, it's a start! While I get changed into my workout clothes and get to sweating, I'll leave you with this video of my windowsill garden.