My cousin has gone on a date and was taken here recently. She comes back and says hey there’s this place we have to go to! It’s wayyyy better than She’ll Shack (another crab restaurant). I’m like ok cool I’m down to go. I’m always in favor of good seafood. So a few days later we decided to have a girls day and go.

We get there and the waitress tells us they are understaffed and the wait would be about ten minutes. Cool no problem. My cousin says this isn’t the location she’d gone to😞. There’s another in The Colony. However we waited our ten minutes (which seemed fast) and were seated. I had noticed some things that were a bit different than I was expecting. SNOW CRAB was $25/lb. I am used to paying about $20/lb (haha) sorry. Anywho, we got our menus and I tried to piece together what I’d wanted. I knew I wanted fries instead of potatoes, but they had no broccoli to add to my bag. That was a bit disappointing.

I also was concerned that the waitress said there was no corn 😳🤬. Then there was corn but it wasn’t thawed out. So we weren’t able to order any. I mean corn is s big part of this meal. That’s like saying there’s no cheese for my cheese burger. The waiter didn’t put the bib around our necks, guess it was our own job to do. I ordered a pound of snow crab, Cajun fries, sausage, and a lemonade. The flavor was Flame Thrower. It was supposed to be hot like the one before their TKO hot flavor. Needless to say I was expecting my nose to run.

The taste was very satisfying but it was not hot. The crab legs given were a few more than I expected and they were bigger. Now seeing why they probably charged a little extra for them. I had no corn, they charged $2 for this small piece of sausage, and no extra to add to my bag. I’m a bit confused on this place with my review. I’m stuck on the things I didn’t like but they also had some things I did like. At the end when it was time to pay, things got a bit challenging. The staff charged my cousin for more than what she got and it seemed to be something they didn’t want to handle. I will say I will not let this experience be my last. Well for this location yes, but I will go to a different one the next time. You learn and you move on.

A trip to Nigeria? Heck yeah, I was so hyped about going. This trip was definitely one off the bucket list. I wasn’t so excited about the flight time being seventeen hours. However, I was on my way to Nigeria.

I was in Nigeria for three weeks. So i had a chance to visit a few great spots. Luckily I went with someone whom I knew. This made blending in without looking like a tourist easy. I had insight on what was actually going on there and really experience the culture. A few things to be mindful of when traveling here. Many areas do not have 24 hr electricity. Many families use generators for lights at night and the sun during the day. If you’re not fortunate to have a generator, you’ll have to use candles. I mean you could be watching tv enjoying the A/C and all of a sudden the generator goes out. As an American I was not use to this at all. The cost of living coming from America is very cheap. Also food, clothes, getting hair done and more.

I did have the pleasure to eat out a few times. This was so fun and the people were super friendly. One of my favorite things to eat while there was the BBQ fish. Oh my God how good. The flavors from the seasoning over the fire blends very well for an experienced palate.

The catfish was so big that 5 people could eat off of one and be full. Five adult people at that. This is definitely one meal you wouldn’t want to miss out on. I had many dishes there. Another favorite was Spaghetti with Chicken. This was a home cooked meal I was able to enjoy by one of the family member who I was visiting. This spaghetti was very similar to how Americans cook it except it was spicy. I love spicy but was not expecting it that’s for sure. However I enjoyed it nonetheless. This seem to be a easy cheap meal to prepare. All of the food was prepared fresh. You could taste it with every bite.

All fresh fruits and veggies can be purchased from the local village market. Those are fun with so much to see. You may see a mother working with her child on her back. Everyone in Nigeria has some type of work they do. This could even be selling peanuts, cold water, fruit , watches, purses or more on the streets. Each states villages were packed with people. There was never a dull moment here.

I named this blog the spoiled American because I didn’t realize how much we or I took for granted. Life in any state is different but life in a whole different country is a big experience. The houses there was amazing and someone would stand in front to guard your home 24hours a day. The best part is you didn’t have to be “rich” to appreciate this service.

There were so many pictures taken and some I’ve left out. Didn’t want to bore you all my readers. A few things I will say is although at first I felt uneasy with adjusting to this culture , I will say it is one I will go back to. Travel with friends and have a travel guide. A very big place that’s easy to find and cheap food is Mega Chicken. It’s like a freaking McDonald’s to them. It’s literally on every corner. You may be tired if it after a while but it’s local. Don’t be afraid to try new things. Fresh is fresh for this country. I watched a village slaughter a cow to feed their family. Enjoy the night life in Lagos. They serve some of the best BBQ Fish in these places. Also be prepared for a different taste in your soda. The sugar isn’t the same, it’s sugar cane in most cases. The most important part is enjoy yourself and stay safe.

Kitchen Talk Recipe:

Noodles – I used 1/2c and 1c in these two pictures

Baby tomatoes

Spinach

Italian seasoning

Nature’s Seasoning

Chicken Breast

Olive oil

PROTIENS are like “Bob the Builder” for our body’s. They are used to build and repair tissues. They also can help with fighting off an infection. ————————————————-
CARBOHYDRATES can be a supply of fiber as well as my option (rice) is fat free and sugar free. As some may see no benefits to white rice, you can actually get 0.6g of fiber from the serving eaten.———————————————-
FIBER-The American heart association recommends between 25 and 38g of fiber a day. You can easily obtain this by eating at least five servings of fruits and veggies everyday. Fiber will reduce the risk of heart disease, help regulate your digestion, help you to feel fuller, and many more improvements to help the body. ———————————————
Take a look at your daily intake. What improvements could you make?———————

If you’re reading this it means you’ve thought about ways to eat better. To be honest the whole idea itself can be depressing. To think, the food you’ve eaten for twenty years plus gone in a snap. It’s challenging for sure. This is why I suggest to take it slow. It takes 21 days to form a habit. If you can hang in there then you’ve made it through the beginning.

This whole losing weight crap puts enough pressure on you and I’m sure you have other day to day concerns. I don’t even look at this challenge in that way. Call it a craving challenge, a healthier eating challenge, kick ass challenge, whatever you want. Just change your mindset of what you’re eating and why. You can still enjoy great food and it still be healthy. Few years ago I was dead set that I wasn’t going to eat rice cakes. Well one day I tried the caramel flavor, blew my mind (haha).

A few things I take note of are:

If the food is homemade or cooked from scratch, if there are natural sugars, locally raised meats (you can ask the butcher where the meat products are purchased from), and what my liquid intake is. So that I won’t tape my child to the chair (jk-seriously) I still will enjoy a glass or two of wine. You can even have a skinny margarita or beer but just in moderation.

Types of food I try to avoid are:

Fast food, deep fried foods, artificial sweeteners, white flour, and the hardest thing for me to avoid… chips and candy. I hardly ever drink sodas so that doesn’t bother me.

“THE CHALLENGE “is to trade in 5 bad foods you normally would have and replace it with a healthier option. I’ve made note of some options you could use to trade in and base your selection off that or more of what your taste buds can handle. Start to walk more. This can be right in your home. So if you have to clean more often or vacuum just do more to get steps in. The last thing is to increase your water intake. Don’t try to overdue it, I don’t want you out here looking like a light pole (smile). Enjoy yourself and let’s get this started!

As a mother who’s child is very active in after school programs and as an entrepreneur, I found it difficult to make good home cooked meals. I use to think there’s no time at all to cook when I had to help with homework, clean the house, make sure my child got into the bath tub, cook for clients, and cook for the house. First sign of it being a lot to do on my home duty list I would grab fast food. However I’ve found that you can still manage to eat nutritious home cooked meals while having a lot to do. I’ll be going over some of my top 5 meals that my daughter loves to eat for dinner, which is quick and easy.

The first is this Rosemary Chicken Salad with bacon. I just love me a good salad. So much you can do with a salad. I like to add different veggies and cheeses to my salad. Since I have family in the country I often eat like them. So I like to put pickles on my salad. It gives it this crunch and adds salt so you don’t have to. Some of my other faves to add to a salad are:

•Cilantro

•Tomatoes

•Broccoli

•Pepperoncinis

•Bleu Cheese crumbles

•Dried Fruits and non dried

•Pecans

My favorite go to meal would have to be my Chicken and shrimp bow tie pasta. Yummy, right? I boil the pasta with a little oil to keep the noodle from sticking. If you want a bit of flavor to them use bacon grease. The chicken and shrimp does not take too long to cook either. Maybe 15 minutes for them. Now I don’t use bottle Alfredo sauce. I like to use whipping cream to make my roux sauce. To make it a little thick just add a bit of flour but not too much. You can also add broccoli or spinach to this dish as well.

Homemade chicken teriyaki is one dish anyone can make. The two main ingredients are chicken and broccoli. Not too expensive huh? I would say you can make this meal with $10-$15. That’s what I like most is that it’s cheap. Kids love soy sauce just as well as they like teriyaki sauce. So getting them to eat the broccoli in this dish shouldn’t be hard AT ALL.

If it’s hard to tell by now, I LOVE ME SOME BROCCOLI. This dish can totally be made with no bacon if you’re not a pork eater. I also try to make sure my child gets enough fiber. After all health is wealth right? Or at least that’s what they say. This meal can be prepared and thrown in the oven. This will give you time to do other things like clean up, make dessert, prepare the table, or catch your favorite show on TV. I used Alegro marinade on my meat with this dish. Check them out on social sites like Instagram to see a list of their marinades.

Ok last one! This one is one of my clients favorite for whom I do meal preps for. Yet still quick and easy to make. Boiling pasta and cooking chicken can’t be too hard. For the sauce on this dish I used grilled tomatoes and chopped them up, then cooked it over the stove to make the sauce. Normally you would see chicken paired with this pasta dish, since this was a meal prep I decided to keep it on the healthy side with turkey. It’s a win with chicken or turkey. Be sure not to overcook the turkey as it can dry out just as chicken. Another thing I’ve noticed was turkey takes a bit more seasoning to actually catch the flavor in it. For this I use my own or Nature’s seasoning since they’re both MSG FREE!

Tadaaa! Put a fork in that thang because this cake is DONE. My simple four layer Strawberry Shortcake 🍰🤤 Grab some ice cream and let’s dig in**

This cake was fun to make. The icing is a simple white buttercream frosting that’s rich and creamy. My frosting can be used for both cakes and cupcakes. My child loves licking the bowl after I make a batch. I can’t blame her. It makes me feel like a kid again when I do it. ****

BUTTERCREAM FROSTING RECIPE
——————————————————————
1/2c unsalted butter, softened
3 1/4c powdered sugar
1/4tsp lemon juice
1tsp vanilla extract
3tbsp milk
———————————————
DIRECTIONS
Best butter with hand held mixers medium speed until creamy. Slowly beat in sugar until it’s smooth. Best lemon juice, vanilla, and milk. Add extra milk if necessary for the texture of the frosting.

I hope you all try this recipe and come back to leave a comment regarding your mix.

We all have wanted to “eat better” at some point in life. For me eating better use to mean boring dry food. YUCK! I love food way too much for that. As I started to do my research I took notice that I can eat good food that I didn’t consider as boring. My goal was to get healthy so I can stick around for years to come without sacrificing my enjoyment of food. I got in the kitchen and started whipping things up.

When you say eating better that can mean a lot. Just as how you portion your meals. For me eating better was to not eat out as much. I cook so often, I love to feel catered to sometimes. Who wouldn’t want to let their hair down after work and enjoy a nice meal with a cocktail? I wanted to cut down on my salt intake, and watch my portion so I wouldn’t over eat. Portion control can keep calories down. You can have a plate with your meat, veggie, and carbs but too much can tip the calorie scale. I created my own all purpose seasoning where I focused on herbs and spices more than I did salts. I wanted to eat good food so I wouldn’t have “ the itis “ after eating. You know, when you get sleepy after eating a meal. All I knew was I wanted change and it was up to me to make that happen.

I previously had done lunch box meals for different groups of people so making meal preps I figured should be a easy peasy.

My goal was to come up with 9 tasty meals that would be tasty and fulfilling yet still nutritional . My protein choice was chicken and turkey. In my opinion they’re liked most and highly picked when asked a person of their choice when eating healthy. I LOVE pasta, so instead of normal noodles I opted for zucchini noodles that I prepared. My vegetables are all fresh never frozen or canned. Quick tip, when buying meat go to the meat counter normally located in the back off the store. You can ask the staff where the meat products are purchased. Most time it’s labeled on the signs sticker down in the ice. You would want to ask to be sure of any bio-chemical or man made food. We’ve all heard the stories. I’ve learned that while out to eat , restaurants aren’t responsible to tell you about their meat selection where are the grocery stores the information of the meats origination has to be labeled and the staff have to tell you. I also selected brown rice for some of my dishes. The benefits from rice served with a meal can be beneficial. First thing is rice helps to make you feel full faster, lower cholesterol, and controls blood sugar levels.

I also chose to include fruit cups with the meal preps. Eating fruit is a great way to curve those snacking times for junk food. Fruit is low in calories and provide a natural sugar. Another benefit is that it’s low in fat. Whoohoo!! Nobody’s looking to have snack time and gain weight at the same time. I would do a mixed fruit cup or just a single fruit.

The “trick” in all of this is learning the correct serving size. You can usually find information under The Department of health and Human services and other government sites. A few ways serving the correct portions are:

• Use portion control dish ware. These can be purchased at your local dollar stores, Walmart,Target, Ross, online etc.

•Portion our your food prior to cooking it. This makes it easy for you to stay on track and make single serving meals easily.

•Control portions when eating out. Everyone is allowed a “cheat day”. Don’t lie to yourself or punish yourself. We all have those days where we accidentally slip up or intentionally, AND THAT IS OKAY. No one is perfect. Just remember to portion your food out. Take control over what you eat. If you can avoid falling victim to over eating during this time , it will leave you in full control

•Add Vegetables and fruit. There are many benefits to both. I mean God put this here for me and you, take advantage man, take advantage. Seriously though incorporate fruits and vegetables and take out some of those less healthier options.

•Listen to your rumbling tummy. Make sure you are eating when you feel hungry and stopping when you feel full. Your body will always tell you when to get up off your tail and get some food just as when you know all to well if you have to unbutton your pants, this means you’re full. Don’t over do it!

I hope this helps you to figure out your path to eating better. Go get started and be great!