I didn’t make any official New Year’s resolutions this year, either for myself nor for the blog but one thing I would like to do is share more lifestyle posts since I consider this a “lifestyle blog.” My first lifestyle post for this year is food-related. I am terrible at coming up with my own recipes but I’m great at following instructions and putting my personal spin on existing recipes – much like I do with my fashion. For example, I often make this Charred Chile Relleno recipe by Rachael Ray but I add chorizo and skip the green rice.

I’m a big fan of Gina at Skinnytaste.com so I try her recipes regularly. I can honestly say that I’ve never been disappointed by anything I’ve tried from her site, and she’s really good with cooking directions. The other night, Nick and I decided to try her Bangin’ Good Chicken Salad recipe. It definitely lives up to the name. It’s extremely easy and simple and I’ll definitely be making it again. But, of course, I put my own spin on it. More on that below.

It starts with romaine lettuce and red cabbage. Look at those beautiful colors: green and purple, my wedding colors! 😉

For the chicken, simply cut up a chicken breast (or some chicken tenders, which is what we used) into bite-sized pieces, coat them in a little olive oil, cover them in breadcrumbs, and bake for 8-12 minutes. Baking the chicken doesn’t give it quite the crunch that frying would, but it still turned out really yummy.

My personal spin is that I decided not to make the skinny bang bang sauce as specified in the recipe. Instead, I found a bang bang sauce that has become my go-to so I used it instead. The recipe I use is fromThat’s So Michelle and can be found on her blog here. (I haven’t tried that actual recipe yet but I have used that recipe with shrimp instead of cauliflower and it actually turned out to be amazing)

So, with the greens, chicken, and bang bang sauce, this recipe was a hit. The ONLY thing I would change for next time would be to add more vegetables to the salad since we ate it as our main course without any sides, so maybe some red bell peppers, carrots, snap peas, cauliflower, and/or edamame.

I hope you enjoyed this post and  don’t mind seeing more like them. What do you think, would you try this recipe? Do you come up with your own meals or put your own spin on other recipes?

We’re almost through February 2012 and I have to say that this year has been really good for me so far.

I started out strong with my health and fitness motivation where Nick and I regularly visited the gym several times a week for a whole month in preparation of our upcoming 5K race. We’ve slacked off the last few weeks but our motivation is still strong so I’m confident we’ll be back in the swing of things in no time.

I’ve also been following through with my New Year’s resolution. The first new thing that I tried (twice, actually) was a pole fitness class which was so much fun that I’d love to do it again and again. I’m sure I’d be a great pole dancer! Another first, that I probably wouldn’t have done without setting my resolution, was to cook dinner for a co-worker who just had a baby and her family.

Today is Thanksgiving, which is my second favorite holiday ever  (my first favorite is Halloween). I love the emphasis on family and good, two things I love dearly! So I have a lot to be thankful for today. I’m thankful that we were able to successfully host our first Thanksgiving meal and that we get to spend this day with my parents, with Nick’s mom, Laura, who is equally as awesome as my parents, and with our little doggies. It was a really great day.

Our First Thanksgiving Spread

I’ve only recently been introduced to Thai food. Pad Thai is my favorite… I would never pass it up!  My latest quick and easy go-to recipe is Thai Beef Lettuce Wraps from Women’s Health magazine. They’re very similar to the appetizers you get at P.F. Changs restaurant (or any Asian restaurant, really) and they’re very delicious.  Here’s a quick overview of how to make them: