Happy Valentines Day!

Happy Valentines Day!

Ive been working on a chocolate cake (PaleoNONPaleo) and today I created something pretty close to what id consider successful! The whipped cream topping was amazing! Im still trying to get the flavor right but Ill be sure to post it as soon as I get it perfect...Heres a sneak peak!

Paleo Cream Sauce

This recipe can now be found at:

Italian Squash

This recipe can now be found by clicking:

Paleo Tuna Burgers

Paleo tuna Burgers

Makes 5 Patties

1 Large can of tuna

2 Eggs

3 Tbs Almond Flour

3tsp Old bay

1tsp garlic powder

 Dressing

2 Tbs mustard

splash of evoo

splash of balsamic vinegar

Drain can of tuna in sink.

Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until well blended.

Heat a pan and use coconut oil to grease (or spray pan).

Spoon mixture into pan and pat down to make patties.

Cook on med/low until browned and flip. About 5 min per side.

Mix dressing items and top burgers.

* The seasonings can be anything you want them to be! Garlic, pepper, oregano, smoke...Whatever you like!

Orange smorange

Breakfast! 

Orange Julius anyone?

1C Almond milk

1/2C Egg whites

splashvanilla 

2 oranges 

ice

Chicken Cutlet Parmesan

In our house, Sundays are all about Italian food. My husband spends hours (not exaggerating) in the kitchen cooking some amazing, classic italian dishes! Eggplant parmesan, meatballs, sauce, bread... and my all time favorite- chicken cutlet parmesan! I LOVE it and could eat it all day....erry day.
Today I decided to keep it as clean as possible. I was hoping for Paleo but that will take some more time to figure out. This is seriously the easiest recipe ever.
*We make so much sauce, we use it all week. In the recipe below Im adding a shortened version of our family recipe (cant give any secrets away!)

Chicken Cutlet Parmesan

2 Servings

4 Chicken breast fillets- defrosted
1C Almond flour
2 C Sauce (homemade or store bought)
Grated Parmesan

Sauce
1Tomato sauce (no high fructose corn syrup)
2Tomato paste (no HFCS)
1C water
1 clove garlic chopped
Basil and oregano to cover
Extra virgin olive oil

Sauce: Sauté Garlic in oil until soft. Add tomato cans and water. Add seasoning to cover sauce. Stir and simmer for 10 min.

Preheat oven to 350.
Coat chicken in almond flour
Bake 15 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Cover with sauce
Sprinkle with a bit of Parm.
Bake for 10 minutes.
Enjoy!

Get your food on

YOU CAN REPROGRAM your taste buds!! By replacing your old junky foods with healthier ones you can change the way your brain processes tastes in 1-2 weeks! ALSO, just because you hated something as a child or even last year does not mean you will hate it today! Try new things and try them often! We are setting good examples for our families, spouses, children and friends! 

Keep it up! Healthier changes are being made everyday! Stick with it!

Monday Mommy Transformation

This week Im featuring Jessica's journey! Ive been following her on facebook for quite a while so when I heard she was a Sweat Pink Ambassador I jumped at the chance to share her story! Enjoy!!

What was your life like before you started your journey to better health? 

Before I started my journey to health & fitness I was depressed. I had no self esteem, self worth or confidence in myself. I didn't know anything about being healthy or how to eat clean. I always thought "eat less, weigh less" and I tried ever diet pill, extreme diet etc you can think of! I would lose weight a lot of the time but gain it right back & usually double.

What motivated you to make a change? Well, I started my journey in September 2010 for the first time at the weight of 181 ...and I admit back then it was for the wrong reasons..I just wanted to get skinny then. I didn't even consider fit. By December 2010 I was down 29 lbs but in January 2011 found out I was pregnant with twins. While pregnant I changed my whole outlook. I researched fitness & healthy eating..I was very motivated to get it right this time. After I had my twins August 19th, 2011 I walked out of the hospital at 183. I was motivated bigger than life!! I had 6 weeks of C-section recovery time and it was HARD to keep myself recovering! Haha. Having my daughters changed everything for me. I wanted to get healthy for them..I wanted to set an example for them. I never wanted to be too out of shape to keep up with them! So..this time..I did it for the right reasons..my daughters!

How do you involve your family in your journey? I have a jogging stroller & on the weekends I will take the girls out on a run with me. Or my husband, me & the kids will take long walks on this gorgeous trail we have where we live. Also, I love doing races so my family is always on the sidelines cheering me on :) 

What is your biggest accomplishment so far? This one if tough for me because everything I have accomplished so far is far beyond my wildest expectations!! But, I used to hate running so knowing I found a passion in that..is a great accomplishment in my eyes. 

Who inspires you? My daughters mostly! And other moms who set aside excuses & make it happen!

When your in a slump what do you do to shake it? Remind myself where I started. I never want to be that unhealthy person again so giving up is not an option!

-What future goals do you have for yourself? I have SO many! I love strength training so really challenging myself in the weight room is one. Also, I  have been training for a marathon that I will take on in 2013. In a few years when my daughters are older I really want to train & compete in a bikini competition..my reason for waiting on that is my daughters. They are only babies once & I do not want to miss one minute of them growing up!! But, I WILL do it someday!! For now, my goals are just to keep up in the gym 5 days a week, get my long runs in on Sundays and be healthy, happy, eat clean & train mean!

How did you do it? No excuses!!! I don't always have the time to workout or eat clean, I mean my whole journey has been while my daughters were infants...but it's important to me so I do it!! I get up at 4 am before my husband or the babies are up and I get my butt in the gym. I prep my food daily and journal everything. I don't let myself have excuses because when I do that's when things crumble!

What is one of your favorite recipes? Jamie Eason's turkey muffins...I'm obsessed :)

Click HERE to check her out on Facebook!
Instagram: jessicansmith12 

Roasted Veggies

Today for lunch I wanted something quick and easy and was craving eggplant...did you know you can still crave items while breastfeeding? Who knew! I've never roasted anything before so I was praying I wouldn't ruin all the fresh vegetables Id just cut up. This was so satisfying! I kept thinking how amazing it was that I was eating all vegetables and they were so good!

1 Eggplan
1 Golden Zucchini
1 tomato
1Tbs Coconut oil
Seasoning (I used Mrs. Dash tomato basil)

Preheat oven to 425. Slice and place all vegetables in a bowl. Add coconut oil and seasonings, stir to coat. Lay in a single layer on pan. Cook for 30-40 minutes. turning half way through.

Paleo Chicken Curry

I've realized I dont really like following recipes...kind of makes my brain hurt! lol I mean I'm sure there are hardly any real original recipes anymore but I like to think I can come up with some good ones on my own! Tonight was one of those times! I had chicken defrosted and wanted something comforting to eat. I had curry and coconut milk...thats all it took.

3 Chicken breasts cut up
3Tbs Curry powder
1 Large onion
1C Mushrooms chopped
1C Carrots chopped
1C Cauliflower
1Tbs Coconut oil
1C chicken stock
1 Can coconut milk

Place oil in pan and add onions and carrots, saute until soft. Add chicken. Cover and cook through. Add stock, cauliflower and mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes. Add Coconut milk and let cook on low for 10 minutes.

I put some cauliflower in the food processor and blended to make "rice" but didnt cook it..not the best idea. My son and I did not care for it! I may cook it a bit next time!

I did cook up an acorn squash in the microwave (cut in half, in a dish with 1/4c water covered for 10 min) and the curry tasted great over that!

Stuffed Cabbage

                 If there is one food I absolutely love its cabbage! Last year I was trying out some recipes with cabbage and I made stuffed cabbage one night. It was really good! This year I went to make it again and could not find the recipe! Don't you hate when that happens? It finally dawned on me that I used turkey just last week for stuffed peppers, why not use that recipe?

I used pretty much the same recipe and it tasted great! I cooked everything and boiled the cabbage. Did I mention I love cabbage?

Stuffed Cabbage

• 1lb Ground Turkey
• 1 Onion
• 4 cloves Garlic 
• 1 Head Cabbage
• 1 can Tomato paste
• 1 cup Kale 
• 1 cup Tomato Puree
• 1Tbs Worchestire sauce
• 2tbs Apple cider vinegar (optional)

Boil entire head of cabbage for 40 minutes. 

Pre heat oven to 400

Saute diced garlic and onion,a dd Turkey and brown. 

Add worchestire sauce. Mix in 1/2 can of paste and chopped kale. Stir until combined. 

Let cool.

Once cabbage is finished separate leaves and lay flat. 

Scoop turkey mixture onto each leaf and roll, tucking in the sides like a burrito. 

Pour puree into bottom of baking dish. Add cabbage rolls. "Butter" the tops of each roll with remaining tomato paste. pour apple cider vinegar over rolls (optional).

Bake for 30 minutes.

Challenge

I've decided that it would be fun to take part in a clean eating / Paleo challenge. I've been eating clean for the last year now and I love that I'm actually one of those people that can say its a lifestyle. It just comes naturally and I don't really put much thought into it anymore!

Going Paleo...that's a whole new world for me. I would need to eliminate my grains: brown rice and oats ( I eat both daily), Dairy: yogurt(I don't eat often) and cottage cheese. I'm still looking into it and learning the spa and fonts but I think to just try it would be good. I love doing this so I can speak to an experience and have my own opinion and understanding. It starts Monday so hopefully by then I'll have everything in order!

In the group of girls doing this challenge I will be checking in daily with workouts, eating and how things are going. Along with being held accountable It'll be nice to see what everyone else is up to and how they are doing! I look forward to swapping recipes and tips! 
Here are some helpful sites to get more information.  

*What is the Paleo Diet?
*What is Clean Eating?
*Breastfeeding and Paleo

Source

Monday Mommy Transformation

What was your life like before you started your journey to better health?  

Well... I have been over weight my whole life, pretty much beginning when puberty struck. I was always "big boned" But my weight really ballooned when I got married. I really never realized how miserable I was...even at the beginning when we were "happy". 

I was obese, my highest weight being 236lbs..not pregnant!  I went up and down many times, never getting lower than 190lbs.  Well, long story short, after a decade of being in a difficult marriage, struggling with infertility, financial problems, etc (everyone has their struggles, mine are no worse) I separated from my husband in July 2009. That was a rude awakening for me. I struggled badly with my new life as a single mother.  

How do you involve your family in your journey?  

Well, I enlist family support to give me time to run while training for a half marathon.  I couldn't do it without my "village".  My kids are a part of  the everyday..they go to weight watchers meetings with me, help me prepare healthy meals and snacks, etc.  Their current favorite thing: roasted veggies!

What is your biggest accomplishment so far?  

    In general:  Being  a good,healthy example/role model for my two children (ages 5 and 9) is by far my biggest accomplishment.  I am showing them how to take care of themselves by taking care of myself.  They are happier because I am happier!

   Health related:  I reached my goal weight this fall and am maintaining under my goal.  I weigh less than I did in jr high now at 147lbs.  I exercise regularly and I am training for a half marathon (completing this will be a huge accomplishment.  I can't wait!).

Who inspires you? 

 I have a friend (Hi Tracey!) who I met along my way in this weight loss/health journey.  She is around my age.  She suffered a stroke recently and since has taken charge of her health and has lost over 100 lbs so far.  I would post online about my runs..and she would post about her walks from one end her driveway to the other.  I know if she could run, she would put me to shame daily.  She gives maximum effort all the time despite her health challenges.  She is kicking butt!

What future goals do you have for yourself?

Fitness related...My very short term goal is to run my first half marathon on Oct 21.  After that, continue to maintain my weight loss and my running for my second half on my 39th birthday in February.  

Simply put, how did you do it? 

 Weight watchers, couch to 5k running program were the two main things.  I have gone past the 5k distance now, but if it were not for that program I would not be able to run more than 60 seconds at a time!  Those two programs have changed my life!

What is one of your favorite recipes?

Slowcooker lentil polenta stew

1.5 cups brown lentils (rinsed and picked over)

2 onions sliced

1 large green pepper, diced

4 garlic cloves, sliced

1 can plum tomatoes with juice

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1.5 cups vegetable broth

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 cup quick cooking Polenta

Layer lentils, onions, green programs garlic in slow cooker. Halve tomatoes and add to cooker with juice. Sprinkle with oregano, pepper flakes, and salt. Pour in broth and vinegar. Cover and cook on low for seven hours or until lentils are tender. Serve over Polenta (I stirred it in!)

Serves 6. Per serving... 300 calories, 1 gram fat, 57 gram carb, 15 gram fiber, 16 gram protein

Click HERE to check her out of Facebook!

Stuffed Peppaaas

Whenever I have ground turkey I am always so conflicted with what to make! I have so many ideas and recipes that I want to try that sometimes its hard picking one. Then I remembered I got bell peppers on sale and should probably use them (I bought more than my fare share). These turned out so well! I was quite impressed with my "winging it skills" so I wanted to share!

Stuffed Peppers

• 1Tbs coconut oil
• 4 Bell peppers
• 1lb Ground turkey (any meat will do)
• Onion-chopped
• 4 Garlic cloves-choppped
• 1C chicken stock
• cumin
• worchestire sauce
• 1/2C tomato paste
• 1C Cooked Brown Rice (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put coconut oil in pan. Add garlic and onion and turkey. Cook through. add 1/2 cup of stock and tomato paste. Cook for 5 minutes. sprinkle some cumin and a splash or two of worchestire sauce. Stire

Wash then slice peppers in half long ways (so you have 2 boats). Clean out and fill with turkey mixture.

Line pan with tin foil and pour remaining broth in pan. Place filled peppers in pan cover tightly with foil (I fold up the sides of the bottom foil to keep the stock around the peppers and crimp it to the piece of foil on top)

Bake for 35 minutes and top with cheese (I broiled the cheese) ...and you can leave the cheese off and top with more tomato paste if you'd like to keep it clean!

Chocolate Peanut butter bite

Usually in the evenings I crave sweets! Im sure Im not the only one so I wanted to come up with something that was easy to make but tasted great!  Heres what happened last night!

PB Bites!

Mix a scoop of casein with almond milk or water till you get a paste almost like pudding.
Spread on wax paper.
Freeze for 10 min.

Mix 2tbs Pb2 with 1tbs water and spread over casein.
Freeze for 30 min-1hr
Slice and eat!
Great with a cup of tea!

Winner winner...guess whats for dinner!

This past weekend I headed to the grocery store for some sweet potatoes for meal prep. Well, I ended up buying everything BUT sweet potatoes! I was so irritated but it was rainy and late in the day so I decided to make do with the 2 that I had.
I have seen people posting about making fries with them so I hopped on Pinterest and looked up a Paleo recipe! I found a couple but the one that seemed easy enough was from Paleo Diet Lifestyle.

I dont really care for french fries in general so when I wanted to make some of my own I had mixed feelings about it. After trying these sweet potato fries- I am in LOVE! These are so delicious and its a nice snack to have and because one sweet potato makes so many fries it feels like you're eating a lot!

• Oven @ 425 F. 
• Coat sweet potato slices with coconut oil, salt, pepper, and herbs (I used a chipotle seasoning I had)

• Put on a tray in one layer evenly
• Roast for 30 minutes
• For crispier fries cook for another 5-10 minutes and test again

Salsa Chicken

When I was putting together meal prep for the week I decided to do something a but easier and change up the grilled taste a bit! I wanted to do a crock pot dish that makes zero mess and I could just put it in and forget about it! Heres the recipe!

Click photo to enlarge

Breakfast Smoothie Round Up

You would think waking up at 530 every morning would allow me plenty of time to get things done before actually starting my day...I WISH!

Walking & feeding both dogs, getting clothes ready, breakfast for 3 and actually finishing a cup of coffee is hard to squeeze in before my husband is off to work and we head to the gym. This week I've been trying to fix our breakfast so its quick and frees up more time for us to sit and relax...plus its less clean up!

As we go thru the week Ill add the rest we try out!
(Click to enlarge!)

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Food Prep

*UPDATE: I have added to my food preparation tips HERE!

TE

Its Sunday! Today we get our food prepped for the rest of the week. 

This is just some of the chicken and all the veg I cut up so we could just grab and saute or throw in a salad! A couple weeks ago ago I got a great deal on a 50lb bag of onions so I chopped them up and froze them in gallon ziplocks. On Friday they had chicken on sale so we bought almost 20 packs! We filleted and marinated them before grilling (marinade recipe is below). I also have the brown rice cooking for the week! 

Makes life and meal time so easy!

Change what you see

You can spend your days busting your butt in the gym but if your making changes in the kitchen you wont get anywhere. You have to fuel your body in order to shed the fat! If you are crash dieting and letting your "cheat meal" turn into cheat days then you are sabotaging all the hard work you just put in at the gym. Do yourself a favor and take a look at what your putting in your mouth before you even step in the gym!
 Abs are made in the kitchen!