Super Bowl Ideas

Happy Monday!! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. And now, we're back to the grind…this week’s going to be a long one and a cold one =( But, no complaints - we had such a BEAUTIFUL weekend…the sunshine and 50 degree weather certainly was quite an unexpected treat in New England (especially it being the end of January!!)
There is, of course, something very exciting coming up next weekend which is helping me to get through the cold week ahead…Super Bowl Sunday!! Having most of my family rooting for the Giants and most of my friends rooting for the Pats, this Super Bowl will be especially exciting for the Raspa’s =)

And so, the countdown begins…6 days until Kick Off. Some of us get excited, because we genuinely love the game and the rest of us get excited because Super Bowl is a great excuse for a party =) Regardless of why you're looking forward to next Sunday, all of us get pumped thinking about the food and booze that come with the game. YUM! Keeping our eating & drinking semi-healthy is important & it’s really not that hard. Don’t deprive yourself!! You can stick to all of your traditional favorites...but this year, prepare them differently; prepare them in a way in which you won’t feel guilty about having had them the next morning. I'll help you! Every day this week I will provide a new 'revised recipe'of a variety of classic, super bowl favorites. They're all easy to make AND the best part about them, in my opinion, is that they WON'T hurt your body OR your wallet =)

Today’s Recipe: My favorite Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Ingredients: 1 bag of fresh spinach, ½ small onion, 2-3 cloves of garlic, 1 container of marinated artichokes (found in the Goya section of food store), 1 package of frozen creamed spinach, salt & pepper to season, 1 cup of reduced fat shredded cheese (choose your favorite kind)
Directions:
1)Preheat oven to 350
2)Sauté onion, garlic and fresh spinach with a drizzle of olive oil. Add salt & pepper for flavor.
3)While that’s sautéing, cut up artichokes into small pieces & add to sauté mix
4)Stir in packages of frozen chopped & frozen creamed spinach. Mix ingredients.
5) Transfer mixture to a casserole dish. Stir in cheese & place in the oven to bake for 20 – 30 minutes.

Voila! Delicious, perfectly healthy spinach artichoke dip =) … a great alternative snack to pick at on Super Bowl Sunday!