Thursday, February 3, 2011

All (Spotted) Dogs Go To Heaven



Nearly seven years ago, after several days of searching, I found Chloe online at a shelter. I hopped in the car with my parents and we made the hour drive to bring her home. We walked in and asked where the Dalmatian we had seen on the site was and they pointed us right to her. The minute I saw her, I knew she was the one. Mom and dad asked if I wanted to look around, but I said no. I knew she’d be coming home with me. We told the inmate (side note: if I were in prison, I’d definitely want the job of working at the animal shelter!) and he went to get her. She was scared and shaking as she scooted to the back of the cage. In her nervous state, she also managed to pee all over him when he picked her up. She had been attacked the night before by a Chow and her neck was swollen with visible dog bites. She needed to be treated for heartworms. And it was clear she had been abused by her previous owner. None of that mattered to us. Mom and I stayed in to fill out papers while dad took her outside and when he did, she pulled him straight to his truck. Out of all the cars in that parking lot (and it was PACKED), she went straight to his. It was meant to be.




Over the last seven years, she has been nothing but a joy. And a month ago, we had to put her to sleep after months of suffering bone spurs in her back. I had been avoiding the situation for as long as I could, but when I woke up that morning and she couldn't walk at all, I knew I had to make the decision; the hardest decision I've ever had to make.

I’m going to miss that lethal tail of hers. You could just look at her and that tail would start wagging, but man did it hurt if it hit you. I’m going to miss the way she used to hop around the yard like a deer. She didn't run, she hopped and it was the funniest thing ever. I’m going to miss the way she slept; all four legs sticking straight out with one ear pointed up. I’m going to miss tucking her in at night because she wouldn’t go to sleep until she was covered up. I’m going to miss taking her for rides in the car and the way she’d ride shotgun, facing me, with her head leaned back on the seat. I’m going to miss seeing her running to the door to greet me when I get home. And those dainty little feet that she would prance around on, gah I’m going to miss those.


The thing I’m going to miss the most is my shadow. She was my shadow. She followed me everywhere. I used to walk around the circle that makes up our living room, dining room, and kitchen just to see how long it’d take before she gave up. I was always the one to give up. Even on her last day when she could barely walk and I’d have to pick her up off the floor, she’d still try to follow me as I begged her just to stay there long enough for me to go to the bathroom. She wouldn’t. So I’d pick her up and let her follow me. Because I knew that I soon wouldn’t be hearing those prancing feet following me down the hall.


My Chloe, my Bear, my Spotted Dog, I’ll miss you terribly and love you always.

xoxo

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Hungry Girl

I like to pretend I can cook.

Well, I guess I can but I hardly ever do. And really, it's usually because I don't have a reason to. The nights that I do actually have to provide dinner for myself, I don't get off work until 8pm (at least) and I HATE eating that late, but I kind of have to. Otherwise, I would be dead by morning. Ok, not really, but you get the point.


Anyway, when I do eat dinner that late, I like to keep it to as few calories as possible while still being satisfying. In comes a cookbook I've been wanting to get for a very long time and finally broke down and ordered. 




Hungry Girl has some really awesome recipes for some favorites that are a fraction of the calories! She has several cookbooks out right now, but I opted for the 200 under 200. Tonight I tried the first recipe, not actually from this cookbook, haha, but from the website.

"Chicken on the Barbie" is a knock-off of California Pizza Kitchen's Barbeque Chicken Pizza.


Ingredients:
1 stick light string cheese
3 oz. cooked boneless skinless lean chicken breast, chopped
2 tbsp. your favorite BBQ sauce with about 45 calories per 2-tbsp. serving, divided
1 high-fiber or whole-wheat pita (I used Arnold's whole wheat sandwich thin at only 100 calories!)
1 1/2 tbsp. finely chopped red onion
1 tsp. chopped cilantro (yeah, I skipped that part, ew!) 


Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Break string cheese into thirds, and place in a food processor or blender -- blend at high speed until cheese takes on a shredded or grated consistency. (Or just tear string cheese into pieces and roughly chop.) Set aside.

In a small dish, toss chopped chicken with 1 tbsp. BBQ sauce. Set aside.

Place pita on a baking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray. Spread remaining 1 tbsp. BBQ sauce onto the exposed side of the pita, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge.

Sprinkle evenly with shredded/grated cheese. Scatter saucy chicken over the layer of cheese, and then sprinkle with onion.

Bake in the oven for 10 - 12 minutes, until pizza is hot. Top with cilantro, slice into quarters, and enjoy. YUMMMM!

MAKES 1 SERVING


I was quite surprised with the outcome. It was absolutely delicious and very filling! In fact, I probably could've gone without the last few bites, but I did because it was so good. And just to compare, CPK's barbeque chicken pizza has 1,136 calories and 39 grams of fat. That's all the calories I eat in a single day!! HG's version only has 340 calories and 5 grams of fat. And I can promise you, it's just as good! 

This is definitely something I will be making again. In fact, with lots of leftover chicken that's already cooked, I just might have it for dinner again tomorrow night ;) 

Have you tried any of HG's recipes? Or do you have any other favorite low-calorie meals?