Smoked Salmon

I LOVE Applebee’s savory smoked chicken, so I decided to make up my own copy cat recipe. It was still missing something- like perhaps a marinade? Nonetheless, it was still really good. I ways love an extra lemon wedge with my fish :)
I made my smoke chips “bowl” first. I soaked a hand full of hickory smoked wood chips and a cedar plank for 30 minutes. Using foil as my bowl, I folded them all up in the foil and poked holes for the smoke to escape.
For the salmon, I sprinkled garlic powder, salt and pepper on my filets then placed them diagonally on my cedar board. I put the salmon on the unlit side of the grill and the foil pack on the lit side. I grilled them, rotating half way through, for 30 minutes. It seemed as thought they took forever to cook.
Try it out! Smoked salmon is very very good!!

Meal Prep – Chicken Breasts, Leeks & Zucchini

I can’t express how important meal prep is in order to keep me an my family on track. It doesn’t take long, and makes my lunches or dinners a breeze. In case you haven’t noticed, when I meal prep I always keep everything BASIC and practically raw. That way I can easily change it up, all while keeping my meals healthy and tasty!

This week I prepped grilled chicken breasts with leeks and zucchini plus broccoli and hard boil eggs.

 

How much chicken do you need? Well I only wanted 5 meals and each meal needed 4 oz. That meant 20 oz was all I needed. I ended up grilling all the chicken I had and froze what what left over.

Grill the chicken – I drizzled a little extra virgin olive oil over all my chicken breasts. Then I lightly sprinkled some fresh cracked pepper, a little salt and some garlic powder on each breast then flipped them over and did the same thing. I grilled them on each side for about 6 minutes each side. My breasts were cut perfectly – not to thick or too thin. Make sure you cook your chicken all the way aka WELL DONE.

While the chicken was on the grill, I washed and cut up 3 leeks, and 5 small zucchini. I divided them up equally and put into tupperware containers. It was basically 1 cup of zucchini and 1 cup of leeks in each container. Then I weighed out 4 oz of chicken breasts for each container.

The snacks I wanted this week were so simple. Just a boiled egg and some raw chopped broccoli. I chopped three small heads of broccoli and divided them into 5 containers; roughly 1/2 cup of broccoli went into each container.

How to boil eggs – It’s so simple! Put your eggs in a pot. Fill the pot with water until the water completely covers the eggs but 1/2 an inch. Bring the pot of eggs and water to a boil. Once the pot comes to a rolling boil, turn the heat off and let it sit for 10-20 minutes. It makes perfect eggs every time!

Here are some of the meals I made with my basic meal prep this week:

Bacon & Mini Bell Pepper Saute

Cut up one piece of raw bacon into little bits. Cook in a saute pan on med-high heat until just crispy. Add one mini bell pepper, cook for a minute and then add your meal prep. After everything is reduced and almost done, add a slice of tomato or some small cherry tomatoes for juices. Heat for one minute then serve it hot. Enjoy!

Cheddar & Onions Fajitas

I was really craving a fajita with some sour cream! After I made my fajita, I went to grab the sour cream and it was GONE!  Oh, well.

Heat your skillet on medium-high. Slice a mini bell pepper and 1/4 of a yellow onion into strips. Add a teaspoon of canola oil to the pan and saute the onions and peppers for a couple minutes till translucent. Add your meal prep and a dash or two of cumin, coriander, and chili powder. Serve on whole wheat tortilla(s) and some extra sharp cheddar!

Side of Bacon Spinach

This side is so easy. If you aren’t wanting a salad try this side instead.

Cut up one piece of bacon into small bits. Fry in a pan until golden brown. Drain most of the fat. Add spinach and toss until wilted. In another pan saute your meal prep.

Garlic Parmesan Meal Prep

Saute your meal prep on medium/high heat. Add 1/2 tsp garlic powder and a handful of spinach. Serve with fresh Parmesan cheese on top.

Four Ingredient Banana, Peanut Butter, and Protein Pancakes

Valentines Day is full of sweets and if we aren’t careful, thousands of calories! Instead of splurging this year, I have a great solution for all of us! Skinny protein pancakes that use only four ingredients and literally take seconds to make.

These pancakes are peanut butter packed goodness and loaded with a lot of protein. They are very sweet so you might not even want syrup.

First, gather your ingredients: banana, pb2, vanilla protein powder, and egg whites. That’s right only four ingredients are necessary! Additionally, you will want maple syrup for eating and some cooking spray or grapeseed oil for cooking.

In a bowl, add your protein powder.

Then add your banana – in slices so that mixing and mashing is easier.

Separate your egg whites from the yolk & add to your bananas and protein powder.

PB2 is one of my favorite foods out there, or rather flavors out there. I add it to everything to smoothies, yogurt, pancakes, cream cheese, etc. It is amazing stuff. It has 80% less fat than regular peanut butter!

Mash and mix the four ingredients together. There! It was that easy.

Heat up a pan with 1/2 tablespoon grapeseed oil or other oil/cooking spray on Low/Medium heat. I got this heart pancake cast iron skillet at Target last on clearance after Valentine’s Day passed. It is a very simple way to turn ordinary pancakes into special love pancakes.

Scoop about two tablespoons of batter for one pancake. As like all pancakes, they burn quickly & easily, so always cook on low temperatures. Flip after a minute.

Serve with maple syrup or sweetener of your choice.

Valentines Day Heart Pancakes

Four Ingredient Pancakes
439 calories
Maple syrup and cooking oil included in calorie count
1 medium ripe banana, mashed
1 serving vanilla protein powder, I used Herbalife French Vanilla for these
2 egg whites
1 serving pb2, 12 grams

1/2 tablespoon grapeseed oil
1/8 cup organic maple syrup

Double the recipe for two <3
Mash your banana, mix in the egg white, protein powder, & pb2. Heat a pan on medium heat. Fry your pancakes in a teaspoon of grapeseed oil or use nonstick cooking spray. To measure the batter, I used about two tablespoons for each heart. Flip after one minute. Serve hot with maple syrup, agave, or any other sweetener you prefer.
I did not double my recipe and it made seven heart pancakes.

 

Southwestern Chicken Meal Prep

Fail to plan – plan to fail!

I live by that phrase.
When I don’t’ meal prep, my family just grabs food and gobbles it down. Order and structure is a must in my home. One of my favorite meal prep solutions is to cook a huge batch of chicken. Each week I prep a different flavor chicken or other meat.
This week my chicken is southwestern chicken bites.

Southwest Chicken
3 lb chicken
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp coriander
2 tbsp chili powder
Salt/Pepper optional
1 large onion
1 red bell pepper
2 jalapeños, seeds included

I take 3 lbs of raw chicken breasts and dice them into little 1″x1″ cubes. I put them in a bowl, add cumin, coriander, and chili powder then toss it all coating well.
In a sauté pan, I heat up 1 tbsp of olive oil on medium/high heat then sauté onion, bell peppers, and jalapeños until half way cooked. When half way cooked, I add the chicken and cook 5-7 minutes until chicken is cooked completely. Make sure you cook your chicken all the way!
Let the chicken and veggies cool, then refrigerate!
Toss on salads, make a cheesy southwestern pasta bake, or just eat it with some steamed veggies and rice! The possibilities are endless!

Peanut Butter Jar Oatmeal

What is the best part about an empty peanut butter jar?

There is not one?

OH BUT LOOK!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal!

1/2 cup quick oats

1 tsp brown sugar

empty pb jar

1+ cup boiling water

I never waste anything ;)

Fennel Sicilian Salad

Ever see a fennel bulb and think, oh my what the heck is that?

I had never seen on until recently. I knew of its flavor – but that was it, in fact I only knew vaguely of the flavor.
So, when I received one in my Bountiful Basket, I thought, “Hey, this is going to be the first thing I use.”

Now a traditional Sicilian Salad obviously changes from cook to cook. In its most basic form, it consists of blood oranges, fennel, extra virgin olive oil and some sea salt. My version includes some salty kalamata olives to pair with the extra sweet blood orange, along with some freshly cracked pepper. This side dish is a perfect palate cleanser when paired with a heavy red meat. It is also a tasty salad served at brunch. It will always impress.

There are only four ingredients, but never skimp on their quality. This simple recipe takes only minutes to prepare.

Blood oranges are my obsession at the moment. They are a little bit sweeter than a regular orange, and also have more of a berry flavor. Like any orange, cut away the bitter skin and slice into segments. The red juice of dark red oranges will stain so be careful to wear an apron.

Fennel like most other vegetables should be firm, stiff and crisp. The feathery fronds ought to be bright green and soft. Fat bulbs are sweeter, tastier and much more fibrous that skinny bulbs.

Use excellent olives, as they are a 1/3 of the salad’s flavor.

With cooking, I always choose a rich, fragrant extra virgin olive oil. They can be pricey, so buy small bottles until you find your perfect match. Remember EVOO can go rancid, so you never want to buy too large of a bottle at one time.

This salad is a great lunch meal too. Eating both servings puts you at around 300 calories! Add a piece of grilled chicken and you have a meal!

Fennel and Blood Orange Salad

Serves 2; 148 calories each serving

• 1 fennel bulb, sliced thinnly
• 1 & 1/2 blood oranges, peeled & sliced thinly
• kalamata olives, cut in half
• 1 tablespoon EVOO
• Freshly cracked black pepper and salt

Combine fennel, EVOO, the juice of 1/2 a blood orange juice, salt and pepper and olives.

Toss coating well. Place on a serving tray, top with oranges and a few feathery fronds. Enjoy!

Egg in a Hole

Egg in a hole – sounds like a children’s story book, doesn’t it? It’s not though – instead it is one of the best breakfasts ever invented. I grew up on it! I remember watching Mary Jane’s Pa as a kid and thinking what the heck, now I must have one when Guy Kibbee makes it. Even both Fraiser and Friends sitcoms feature egg in a hole being prepared. It’s gotta be popular if it’s been on Friends right?

If you have never had egg in a hole, I don’t think we can be friends.

Get off my site and go make one right now!

Toad in a hole, egg in a hole, egg in a basket, frog in a hole, bird’s nest egg, blind eyes, private eyes, egg toast, chicken in a basket, seriously I don’t care what you want to call it! All that matters is it is so good you have to at least try it. It’s one of my go to breakfasts because of its simplicity and you can whip them out in a snap.

Start with a piece of bread. using a jar, cup, cookie or biscuit cutter, whatever you have on hand as I do not even own a circle cookie or biscuit cutter (shapes would be fun for holidays or children’s breakfast!) simply remove the center of your bread. I love while wheat bread with grains – flax, seeds, oats, anything to make it hearty. I’m very practical. I likehomemade bread, but it goes so quick! You can use any kind of bread. I grew up on potato bread! White, sour dough, brioche, or honey whole wheat works just fine. (Your taste in bread says nothing about your financial status.)

In a skillet, melt 1/2 a tablespoon of butter on MED/LOW heat. Butter is good for you I don’t care what anyone tells you. Chart to open your eyes:

Chart is from Roman Fitness Systems
http://www.romanfitnesssystems.com/assets/images/userPics/tinymce/fatchart.jpg

Red bars are saturated fats… Saturated fats (aka solid fats at room temperature) are DIRECTLY related to bad cholesterol levels. It’s basic science. Mono and  poly unsaturated fats (aka the oils that are liquid even when cold) too take part in cholesterol levels, I’m talking about both LDL’s and HDL’s. Mono is good – it helps remove the cholesterol build up in your arteries, takes it back to your liver for bile use. Bile is what emulsifies fat you eat so it can actually be broken down into glucose, and metabolized for energy. See the circle of life? Now, although saturated fats are directly related to bad cholesterol levels, they get a bad reputation. Any study can be swayed to a desired result. In the study that was done to show sat. fats were bad, none of the subjects were healthy. they were probably over eating everything – healthy or bad foods. As for cholesterol levels, the good cholesterol’s (healthy fats and oils) remove the toxins and bad fats in your blood. You also need cholesterol to produce certain hormones like estrogen and testosterone because they are direct derivatives from it! Obviously too much of a good thing is a bad things so limit saturated fats, but don’t be afraid of them. You need them for your body to function properly.

Back to your toad. Place your bread in the center and crack your egg right down in the hole. Add salt and pepper if you like. Let the egg set for 20-40 seconds, then swirl the toast around to soak up all of the browned butter. Don’t work, the butter shouldn’t burn at that low of temperature. Your egg should only be brown from your brown butter, not from overcooking it. Flip after a minute when the whites are half way set. Swirl again, then remove from your skillet when your whites are completely cooked, but the yolk is still soft and gooey.

Serve immediately!

Have an amazing day!

How do you get ready for summer?

Lemonade, bikinis, sunscreen, green grass, fireworks, BBQ’s… OH MY! What are we doing to get ready? Well I know I need some motivation and THINspiration!

I got out a swim suit from last year and hung it up in my bathroom. It’s one of those things that I’m super excited for, but at the same time dreading the hard workouts that are going to one with it.All I know is that no matter what I look like by March (because here in the desert in January it is already 55 degrees Fahrenheit!) I am going to be confident in the muscles I’m in (not skin I’m in because WHO want just skin? I want muscles!) because I am healthy and I am fit.Just over the past months I’ve a huge difference in my families eating habits. My kids love raw fruits and veggies, whole grains and healthy fats. Now I’m not raising my kids as vegetarian or any other limiting diet. Children need certain nutrients to grow and develop correctly. My kids don’t have food allergies or sensitives (yet) so I make sure they eat clean 80% of the time. No matter how you feed you children, make sure they are intaking vital nutrients, vitamins & minerals. Check amino acid analysis record on plant foods if they are vegetarian/vegan. Quinoa is only so great…

Now I don’t know about you, but Thursday’s are the busiest day of the week for me! Is that so, for you, too? I feel like everything is thrown at us the last day before the weekend, but, hey, we can conquer the world!
I usually have my smoothies at lunch, but I had to have mine on the go to class for dinner. Remember to follow me on myfitnesspal! I use it everyday, even if it is just to check out how many calories are in a serving & what exactly is a serving. It’s great for people who aren’t trying to lose weight too. It tells you how much of each nutrient, vitamin, and mineral you need for that day.

It was nice to have an egg for breakfast! Open-faced egg & avocado sandwich.

I love eggs & avocado combo.

Open-faced Egg & Avocado Sandwich

Recipe:
237 calories – 1 serving

1 egg
1/2 avocado
1 piece of whole wheat bread, toasted. I used Sarah Lee
Cook the egg how you prefer.
Layer your sandwich toast, avocado, egg. Simple as that.
I like my yolk to drip all over my sandwich before I eat it.

Today I worked on a new pancake recipe you guys are going to die for!!! Seriously, I am drooling thinking about them… Too bad I’m out of bananas or else I would probably push save and make some more! My daughter and I ate two bananas (each) today. The recipe is soon to come!

Do you like peppermint tea? Ever tried spearmint? I recently had Tazo’s Zen at a Starbucks and it was so good. It’s a spearmint green tea blend. It’s very mild, but it does have caffeine – which as perfect to keep me into class and later ready for my late night work out.

I have never used hair bands before I had my kids. I never had fly aways in my face. After I had my kids, I lost a lot of my hair and it’s still re-growing. I’m not so sure it was the most comfortable thing ever, but I pined them in place with some bobby pins. It stayed in place for my whole workout!

 

Comfort vs being stylish – Comfort for sure!

Now just to show off my daughter a little bit – she LOVES to take photos like I do. She took this just before I left for class. I’m telling you she is amazing.

Warning: Vampires, this meat sauce is not for you!

We love spaghetti! I love my sauce meatless while my husband has to have a little bit of sauce with his meat. One thing we agree on is LOTS of garlic! Garlic is so good for our bodies. It is packed with antioxidants that support your immune system which means it keeps colds and viruses away. It helps increase your metabolism to stay lean, and it even decreases bloat and swelling. You can physically rub it on swollen areas like cold sores or rashes and the anti viral, bacterial, and fungal properties will help heal the boo-boo.
We are not very fond of store bought canned spaghetti sauce because it’s loaded with sugar and salt. Plus, it just doesn’t taste as fresh as homemade.
During the summer months we can batches of diced tomatoes so that throughout the winter months we are able to indulge in the sweet, red, hearty flavors of our tomatoes.
Try not to be afraid of homemade sauces. They don’t necessarily need to take hours to simmer.

This is my go to recipe for quick spaghetti dinners. It’s healthy & easy!
Can you tell I chop away on that cutting board? I’m pretty sure it’s a couple chops away from becoming two boards..

Basic Meat Sauce

Serves 4; 250 calories each

1 tbsp EVOO
6 garlic cloves
1/2 an onion
1/2 pkg mushrooms – I like baby bella
1 32 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 lb lean ground turkey
1/4 tsp dried marjoram
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1 dried bay leaf
Salt to taste

Heat up a large sauce pan with 1 tablespoon EVOO on medium/medium-high heat. Add the meat and completely cook the ground turkey. Sauté garlic, onions, and mushrooms with the meat until onions are translucent.
For the canned tomatoes: my husband likes smooth sauces; I like chunky ones. So, we compromise. I purée half the tomatoes. You could even purée the mushrooms if your family are extreme picky eaters. I just chop mine up small so they think it’s meat!
Add tomatoes, tomato paste, and spices, then let it simmer on low for as long as you like. I usually start the pasta or spaghetti squash that way the sauce simmers while it’s cooking. Add salt, sparingly, till your taste buds are smilling.
Serve it on your favorite pasta!
I love mine with spaghetti squash. Spaghetti squash is so easy to cook, but most people so not realized it. Plus, there are multiple ways to cook it. I always go for the quickest and easiest way. I cut it in half, gut it, then nuke it for 7-10 minutes depending on how big it is. Fork out the “spaghetti” & serve!

Try your on spaghetti squash next time! That way you can actually have that garlic bread lol!

Avocado Banana Green Monster Smoothie

I love green smoothies! I know today’s lunch was supposed to be an avocado kale smoothie, but I didn’t buy enough kale because it disappeared…
I had spinach so it was a simple replacement. When I put spinach into my smoothies, I always add a stronger flavor in addition to it. I usually do bananas or sometimes even peanut butter.
I always have halves of bananas in my freezer. When my bananas go black, I peel them and freeze them. I love the flavor or over-ripe bananas. I always have frozen avocado slices too. I never eat a whole avocado at a time so I freeze the rest. Adding frozen ingredients make your smoothie thick, and the avocado & Greek yogurt make it rich and creamy – but still healthy! Remember the protein & liquid can be swapped for your favorites.
My daughter calls this smoothie green monster ice cream. We ate it together for lunch before our walk to the park today.

Avocado Banana Smoothie

•1/4 of an avocado
•1/2 a medium banana, frozen
•1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
•1/2 cup spinach
•1 cup ice
•1 cup milk
•Drizzle of agave nectar

Blend & serve with a spoon.