How About a Month of Daily Phase One Recipes to Start the New Year!

It's time for Phase One Recipes like these Asian Lettuce Wraps with Spicy Ground Turkey Filling!

When the calendar flips to a new year, lots of us take stock of our lives and decide what needs to change.  I don't talk much about my personal goals on the blog, but pretty much every January they include a return to Phase One of the South Beach Diet for a few weeks.  Every year I post only Phase One recipes during January to help with that.  This year I'm taking it a step farther by making a commitment to feature a tasty Phase One Recipe on Kalyn's Kitchen every day for the month of January.  And I feel like I should talk about one of the reasons I decided to do that. I say "should talk about" because this post is not something I wanted to write.  When you have a blog that helps other people lose weight, it's hard write a post saying you have gained weight yourself.

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The Top Ten Recipes of 2011 from Kalyn's Kitchen (plus Ten Honorable Mentions)

Here are my top ten recipes of the year, plus ten more equally delicious honorable mentions!

I love the "best recipe" lists that pop up on food blogs this time of year, even though every year I have a hard time narrowing down my own list!  I never post any recipe unless I really like it, so this year when I went through the monthly archives saving links for potential favorites I ended up with a list of 32 recipes!  Then I reluctantly eliminated some of those favorites until I narrowed it down to just 20.  Even harder was picking which of those 20 recipes made it into the top ten!  

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Recipe for Comforting Ground Beef and Barley Soup (and Happy Birthday to Rand!)

This Ground Beef and Barley Soup is warm and comforting if you're tired of rich holiday food.

I love this time of year when one year is winding down and another is beckoning with possibilities.  If you're one of the many people thinking about losing a few pounds in 2012, the days between Christmas and New Years may be kind of a planning phase.  By now you've likely had enough rich holiday food, and you could be thinking about getting started on the South Beach Diet or even looking ahead to Phase One, but you're not be quite ready to take that step yet!  I'll be talking more about Phase One in the next few days, but in the meantime I recommend this warm and comforting soup as way to get you thinking about healthier food choices again as you contemplate the new year. 

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Five Fun Things on Friday, and Happy Holidays Everyone! (12-23-11)

No matter how you celebrate, the holidays are about giving.

There are so many things to love about this time of year, but for me the holidays are all about giving, and it's buying presents for the people I care about that really gets me excited during the holidays.  I've had fun getting a few surprises lined up this year, and most of my holiday preparations are done except for a little last-minute cooking.  I'm going to sign off for the next four or five days and spend time with my family, but before I go I wanted to share some fun Christmas/Hannukah/Kwanza things I've spotted around the interwebs this week.  Hopefully at least one of these things will bring you a little holiday joy.

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Recipe for Roasted Red Curry Carrots with Ginger and Garlic (Christmas Carrots)

If you're having a Christmas or New Year's Dinner, this is a lovely side dish idea.

The season of craziness is upon us.  The last few days I've been in a frenzy of shopping, working on my massive Christmas card list, and sending out invitations for the annual soup party I always have on New Year's Day.   Luckily I do have plenty of ideas for South Beach friendly holiday treats and homemade food gifts on the index page for Christmas Recipes, because while other food bloggers are giving you lovely holiday desserts and crafty fun ideas for presents, here I am with nothing to share but roasted carrots.  

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Recipe for Cranberry Salsa Cream Cheese Holiday Appetizer with Baked Whole Wheat Pita Chips

How about a meatless holiday appetizer for Meatless Monday?

I'm not sure if people will consider this Cranberry Salsa Cream Cheese Holiday Appetizer to be a proper Meatless Monday post, but things are about to get hectic around here and I wanted to be sure to get it posted during the holidays.  Someone suggested this idea in a comment on Trina's Low-Sugar Fresh Cranberry Salsa with Cilantro, Lime, and Jalapeno, and then I saw a slightly different version of it at BlogHer.com.  The cranberry salsa recipe has gotten nothing but raves, and if you're looking for a fun holiday appetizer that's meatless and relatively South Beach Diet friendly, I highly recommend this recipe.  I ate it with baked pita chips that I made with Joseph's Reduced Carb Lavash, but you could also serve it with whole wheat crackers, celery sticks, jicama slices, or even tortilla chips.

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Friday Favorites: Ten Favorite Phase One Soups to Help You Get Through December!

Tasty soups in the freezer can help temper indulgent December eating!

We are now officially past the half-way mark of December, and some of you may have been overdoing it a tiny bit on the holiday eating, right?  This post with ten of my favorite Phase One soup recipes is a Public Service Announcement for anyone who's hoping to make it through the rest of the holidays without pants that are uncomfortably tight.  Healthy soups like these are warm and comforting when it's cold outside, and they're all delicious.  Let's start with the Chicken, Black Bean, and Cilantro Soup pictured above, something I'd happily eat for lunch or dinner most any day. 

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Two-Ingredient Sugar-Free Raspberry Yogurt Pie Recipe for a Phase One Dessert

This Ridiculously Easy Yogurt Pie is a Phase One Dessert.

If you're someone who's busy these days baking holiday treats or making candy let me say right up front that this Sugar-Free Raspberry Yogurt Pie is probably not going to excite you.  This recipe is for those people who write to me begging for a Phase One Dessert option, or anyone who needs to severely limit their intake of sugar at this time of year.  The recipe was sent to me by a reader named Kate, who shared it on Facebook.  Kate used lemon sugar-free jello, which sounded great but I never did find it in any of the stores by me.  Instead I used raspberry flavor, which I thought made it look slightly Christmassy, if you use your imagination.  I thought the yogurt pie was pretty good, but I liked it best layered into a parfait with whipped topping (which admittedly probably makes it less Phase One Friendly.) 

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Kalyn's Kitchen Picks: Triscuits 100% Whole Wheat Crackers for Holiday Parties

These whole-wheat crackers with only 3 ingredients are a healthier holiday nibble.

The season of over-indulgence is upon us, and this year more than ever I'm hoping to enjoy some holiday foods without completely overdoing it on sweets and other treats I'd prefer to avoid.  (I'm guessing lots of you are with me on this, right?)   One way I make things easier on myself during the holidays is by having on hand "diet-legal" foods that are still something of a treat.  I don't normally eat a lot of crackers, but Triscuits crackers made with 100% whole wheat are something that I'd happily munch on at a holiday gathering.

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Friday Night Photos: Look What I Ordered Online!

I'm thrilled that I can now order Joseph's Baker products online!

In the summer of 2005 I visited some friends in Rhode Island, and while I was there I discovered Joseph's Oat Bran and Whole Wheat Flour Pita Bread and wrote about it on my then brand-new food blog.   Then several years later I connected online with Lydia from The Perfect Pantry, and she happened to live in Rhode Island.  When Lydia mentioned in a post that she liked the products from Joseph's Bakery I left a comment saying how much I liked them too, and she generously offered to send me some.  When those arrived in the mail, I made Joseph's Flax, Oat Bran, and Whole Wheat Pitas and Tortillas into an official Kalyn's Kitchen Pick.

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Recipe for Deconstructed Stuffed Cabbage Casserole

This is my kicked-up version of Dolores' Un-Stuffed Cabbage Casserole; thanks Dolores!

Today's my birthday, and even though this is not a milestone birthday I still like to get as much birthday mileage out of the day as I can, so I'm in San Francisco where I'll be attending the BlogHer Holiday Meet-Up and visiting my stepsisters Karyn and Bobbi.  Having a birthday that's close to the end of the year means a double-dose of reflecting on life every December.  One thing I've been thinking for a while now is how ironically it seemed easier to eat healthy meals when I went off to work every day.   In those days I had to take a lunch, and when I got home I had to work on the blog, so there wasn't much time to go out to eat.  Being forced to plan ahead for meals meant I always made diet-friendly casseroles or soups on the weekend to make sure my freezer was well-stocked to get me through the week.  That's a habit I'm going to work on cultivating again, so over the weekend I made this amazing Deconstructed Stuffed Cabbage Casserole and I have six servings of it in the freezer waiting for me at home!

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Recipe for Greek Egg-Lemon-Rice Soup with Thyme (Avgolemono Soup)

My version of this traditional Greek Soup has a little thyme and parsley added to the broth.

(Updated with new photos and slightly easier instructions and added to Recipe Favorites, December 2011)   For years Avgolemono Soup has been one of my favorite things to order in a Greek restaurant so in 2006 I tried making it for my New Year's Day Soup Party and posted it on the blog.  This year for Thanksgiving I had the idea of trying this soup with leftover turkey instead of chicken, but I ran out of turkey before that idea could come to pass.  I couldn't get the thought of Egg-Lemon-Rice Soup out of my mind though, so I made my original recipe again and took some greatly improved photos.  My version of this soup has a little dried parsley and dried thyme added to the stock, plus a little lemon zest in the Avgolemono sauce, which isn't always used in authentically Greek versions.  I love this recipe which produces a flavorful soup that stayed good in the fridge for about five days, with me eating some nearly every day for lunch.

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CrockPot Recipe for Make-Ahead Apple Pie Oatmeal

CrockPot Make-Ahead Apple Pie Oatmeal is a tasty breakfast for Meatless Monday.

I'm still sticking to my promise to post a meatless recipe every Sunday so people who are committing to Meatless Mondays can find an idea for the next day, and this week I'm sharing a very flavorful meatless breakfast option.  This CrockPot recipe for Make-Ahead Apple Pie Oatmeal is something you make in the crockpot in the evening, and the next morning you warm it up in the microwave (or in a pan on the stove.)  I'm a fan of Peanut Butter Oatmeal for breakfast, but I loved this idea for a new oatmeal option that's quick and delicious.  And who doesn't like apple pie?

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Low-Sugar and Whole Wheat Brownies with Walnuts (Grandma Willey's Brownie Recipe)

These tasty brownies are only one thing we'll remember about Grandma Willey.

When you see my stack of darkly chocolate brownies with walnuts, you may think I'm posting them as a sweet treat for the holidays, but there's actually a much more heart-warming story behind this stack of brownies.   Just over two weeks ago my sister Pam's mother-in-law passed away.  When I went to the viewing for Grandma Willey there was a table of momentos of her life, along with a stack of printed recipe cards and a little sign that said "Dorothy's favorite recipe, please take one."  On the card was the recipe for Dot's Brownies. 

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Five Things on Friday (12-2-11)

Cooking dried beans in a CrockPot is a good idea for many reasons!

Sometimes on Fridays I like to share news or fun links I've found around the interwebs, and a couple of interesting things caught my attention this week.   Keep reading to see what I found, and if you came across anything fun this week in your travels around the web, please share those links in the comments!

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South Beach Diet Phase One Recipes Round-Up for November 2011 (Low-Glycemic Recipes)

Kalyn's favorite Phase One Recipe for November 2011 would have to be these amazing-tasting Roasted Green Beans and Red Bell Pepper with Garlic and Ginger.

November has been quite a month, with changes on the blog, and some good changes for me personally as well.  It's been a month of reflection, and I've been contemplating the monthly Phase One Recipe Round-ups and how they might work better.  Earlier this year I announced that I'm now focusing on new Phase One Recipe ideas that haven't been featured before, and I think that's been a good change.  But I'm thinking of more changes, and it has to do with how blogging has changed since 2008 when I first started writing these round-ups.   While I loved to follow hundreds of blogs back then, lately scrolling through my feed reader was feeling like a huge infomercial, with sponsored posts, product reviews, and lots of recipes where the blogger was compensated to use a certain ingredient.  I respect the right of everyone to blog in the way that suits their needs, but I don't want to feature commercialized posts like that in my round-ups, and a few weeks ago I did a huge clean-out of my Google Reader account, removing literally hundreds of blogs that are no longer interesting to me. 

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