Thursday, September 17, 2015

Thai Iced Coffee Shakeo!

Swap your morning cuppa joe for this luxurious Thai iced coffee drink made with Chocolate Shakeology. I haven't had a regular cup of coffee in as long as I can remember! 
Thai Iced Coffee Shakeology
Swap your morning cuppa joe for this luxurious Thai iced coffee drink made with Chocolate Shakeology.
Total Time:10 min.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cooking Time: None
Yield: 1 serving
Ingredients:
1 cup strongly brewed coffee, chilled
1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
½ tsp. ground cardamom
½ tsp. pure almond extract
1 cup ice
Preparation:
1. Place coffee, Shakeology, cardamom, extract, and ice in blender; 
Calories in Thai Iced Coffee Shakeology

Sunday, September 13, 2015

Meal Prep Monday: My Typical Go To Snacks & Meals

Meal prep...most people hear the words and pretend they didn't! They automatically think time consuming, too expensive, not worth it, I'd rather pay someone to do it for me! Well, it doesn't HAVE to be that difficult!  There are ways to make it easier AND you don't have to do it all at once. Do a few days at a time and do one meal and snacks to start with. It's DEFINITELY worth it. And the minute you try it and realize how much easier your life is when you do it, you'll be glad you did. Here's how my meal prep works each week. It's not always perfect, not always the same but I don't deviate much!

SNACKS
For my snacks, I separate them into serving size baggies or containers and put them in the fridge or pantry so they're easy to grab!  These are the snacks I prepare most weeks. I try and switch them up so I don't have the same thing each week and try to have veggies, healthy fats, carbs, fruits and proteins throughout the day and week. I love things like string cheese or a piece of fruit because I can just grab them and go and don't have to worry about peeling, slicing, prepping, etc!

You don't need a ton of the 21 Day Fix Containers. Having 1 or 2 sets is enough! Buy some of these or something similar in any color and use them to take your yogurt, cottage cheese, hummus, etc with you! 

Shakeology
First and foremost, I DO NOT miss a day with this stuff. I have it every morning and it sets the tone for the rest of my day. I fill up my blender the night before with my liquid (water or cold coffee), spinach, some yogurt, Shakeology & anything else I'm adding) and put the blender jar in the fridge. Then in the morning, I just put it on the blender and go. IF I know I won't have much time, I even make it the night before and put it in the fridge. It stays pretty thick and I just shake it and go in the morning. IF you leave early for work and don't want to wake up the family, this is a good idea! I take it with me every day on errands, to mommy n me class, soccer games, day trips etc because I sip it throughout the morning.

Slice & place in single serve containers or baggies
--baby carrots
--grape tomatoes
--sliced bell peppers
--sliced cucumbers

Separate & place in single serve containers or baggies
--cottage cheese
--hummus
--peanut butter
--yogurt


Place in single serve containers or baggies
--berries
--almonds
--crackers
--popcorn (fave is skinny pop from Costco)
--roasted peas
--gluten free crackers

Just grab & go 
--string cheese
--apples
--hard boiled eggs
--baked sweet potato (pop it in the microwave & it's done)
--protein bar (Quest, Detour, Think Thin, Pure Protein)
--protein egg muffins (just throw egg whites, any veggies you like & even some turkey or lean protein you want into a muffin tin, bake, remove and keep in the fridge!) Easy, low carb, low cal & grab & go!

MEALS
I prep most of my dinners the day I eat them because I mostly work from home and I just make extra so I can have some for lunch the next 2 or 3 days. That takes care of my lunch prep.  What I do to make dinner prep easier though is do some prepping in advance on the weekends or at night the night before after everyone has gone to bed.  It's the only quiet time I get.  I marinate my chicken, fish, steak, etc the night before and leave it in the fridge ready to grab.  I slice up my veggies and put them in the fridge in marinade too if necessary so they're all set as well. That makes it much easier to just throw stuff in the oven and make a quick dinner. I NEVER fry anything so most of my meals are either in the oven or on the grill outside.  Here are some of the foods I prep and make for dinner

Mason jar salads
These are some of the easiest things to make and have ready to grab & go. You can add anything you want to them, put them in the fridge and grab them when you're hungry or heading out! If you don't have mason jars, get them or use a larger tupperware.


Marinade in balsamic, lemon juice & no salt seasoning then keep in fridge til you bake or grill it. You can also make it lightly breaded.
--chicken breast
--fish

Ground turkey or chicken I tend to make in advance on the weekends or at night while family sleeps and keep it in the fridge for pasta sauce, to make stuffed peppers, add to salad to make a taco salad, eat it with lettuce as lettuce wraps, etc. 
--ground white meat chicken
--ground extra lean turkey

Side dishes vary for us but not much. These are my go to dishes and how/when I prep them!

Make ahead and leave in the fridge for the week so I can have it at lunch or for dinner & it reheats well.
--quinoa
--rice
--couscous
--spaghetti squash
--pasta

Slice it up the night before or the morning of and have it ready to bake in the oven for dinner.
--zucchini squash
--acorn squash
--bell peppers
--portobello mushrooms
--onions
--sweet potato fries

Open the can, squeeze some lemon in it and eat! You can eat it by itself or in lettuce leaves!
--canned salmon
--canned tuna

These foods are ones I have ready to go in the freezer or fridge and make it easy to eat healthy when meal prep hasn't gone as planned! 
--Romaine lettuce (just slice and make a salad with tomatoes & feta)
--spinach (easy to add to a salad)
--salmon burgers (Costco-just heat them up and eat)
--Normandy Vegetables (Costco-frozen broccoli, carrots, squash & cauliflower. I steam a lot of it and keep it in the fridge to eat for lunch, dinner or a snack)
--Sliced turkey from the deli (Costco has nitrate free low sodium varieties)
--Panko chicken breasts (Costco-easy to bake and eat for lunch or dinner)
--Grilled pre-cooked frozen chicken breasts (Costco-easy to reheat)
--Egg whites and eggs (make a quick omelet with anything you have in the fridge or scrambled eggs)

Thursday, September 10, 2015

Dinnes is Served! Panko Crusted Tilapia, Sweet Potato Fries & Acorn Squash!

One of mine and my family's favorite meals. Easy to make, very little prep and cooks while you help kids with homework, clean up the house or just RELAX! :) The recipe I made serves a family of 4 so adjust accordingly or make extra to have on hand for lunch the next day!

Ingredients
4 tilapia, swai or other fish fillets.  Any type will work so choose your fave!
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
2 large sweet potatoes
1 large acorn squash
2 heads of romaine lettuce
2 large tomatoes
Feta cheese
Olive oil spray (or olive oil & brush)
Balsamic vinegar
Lemon juice or fresh lem
ons to squeeze
Parmesan cheese (shredded or grated)
No salt seasoning of choice (Kirkland brand, Mrs. Dash or Flavor God are my faves)

Directions

  1. Marinate fish it in balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and seasoning and, if you can, leave in the refrigerator marinating. I leave it overnight but you don't have to.  
  2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  3. Pour panko breadcrumbs into a shallow dish. Cover both sides of the fish and place each piece on a rack sprayed with olive oil spray or non stick baking spray to prevent it from sticking.
  4. Slice up sweet potato fries to your desired thickness. The thicker they are, the longer they take to cook so I cut them as thin as possible. Try to picture a regular french fry and I go for that thickness. That way everything cooks in the same amount of time. 
  5. Spray them or LIGHTLY drizzle with olive oil, toss in seasoning and place on a pan or rack. 
  6. Slice up acorn squash into ½ inch thick slices, remove the seeds inside and place on a non stick baking sheet. Spray lightly with olive oil spray or brush it on lightly, sprinkle some no salt seasoning & some parmesan if you'd like.
  7. Place the fish, squash and sweet potatoes into the oven and bake for about 20 minutes.  The potatoes take the longest so check everything before you remove it. It should all be ready within 20-35 minutes.  
  8. While it's baking, make your salad. Chop up your romaine lettuce, tomato and olives. Toss in a bowl and sprinkle with feta cheese (a little goes a long way!) Toss in balsamic vinegar with a sprinkle of lemon juice and serve.

Friday, September 4, 2015

2 Ingredient Banana Cookies!

Don't know what to do with those overripe bananas you have around?
If you don't wanna freeze them to make ice cream or shakes, try this super simple 2 to 4 ingredient recipe!
Takes 15 minutes and only 2 ingredients if you skip the peanut butter & 🍓strawberries🍓
They aren't super sweet but you can drizzle some honey over them if you like the sweeter variety. Remember though, no honey before baby is one year old!

RECIPE
Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
1/2 c. rolled oats
1 ripe banana
1 tbs peanut (or almond) butter
Strawberries (optional)

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. In a bowl, mash ripe banana
3. Add rolled oats and peanut butter and mix until well incorporated. It should be like wet cookie dough
4. Grease baking sheet with cooking spray. Bake for about 15 minutes
5. Top with sliced strawberries.
Tip: You can also add 🍫chocolate chips, blueberries or🍇 raisins. Just don’t add too much, because the dough won’t stick together

21 Day Fix Containers 
1 yellow (oats)
1 purple (banana)
1 orange (peanut butter)

Thursday, September 3, 2015

Baked Acorn Squash


These are SO yummy, SO easy amd SO cute!!! Love acorn squash! 

Looks like a flower already and the kids just think it's the coolest ever! Not to mention it's a healthy treat! 


Slice it it up and remove the inside like you would a pumpkin.  Don't slice it thicker than 1/2 inch thick at most, preferably 1/4 to 1/2 inch.  Then lightly drizzle or spray with oil or coconut oil, sprinkle with seasoning (and parmesan if you would like), and bake at 375 degrees convection or 400 degrees standard baking! I bake mine for about 40 minutes because I like them very well done. On the bottom in this picture, you can't see it but they're much darker than this.  

21 Day Fix Breakdown 
1 green = squash
1 yellow = (because of the carbs, I count squash as a partial yellow too because of the carbs in them)
1 partial blue (cheese & oil)


Chicken Salad Stuffed Bell Peppers


Such an easy, clean, yummy idea for lunch, dinner or a snack! Make chicken salad and fill your fave color bell pepper with it! Remember, the red ones are the sweetest! 

🐔🐔For my chicken salad, I use:🐔🐔
✔ rotisserie chicken or canned chicken breast from Costco if I can't pick up a rotisserie
✔plain Greek yogurt 
✔No salt seasoning such as Mrs. Dash, @FlavorGod or Costco Organic no salt seasoning
✔pepper to taste
✔almond slices
✔chopped celery

Blend together & add to the bell peppers!
It's light, low carb, clean and delish! 

Zucchini "Noodles" with Shrimp!

Clean, low carb, easy to make & SO FREAKIN good! I make a LOT because I make for dinner then like to have leftovers for the next few day's lunch (aka meal prepping) so use the quantity you'll need for you and/or your family. If you don't have a spiralizer or vegetti to make the noodles, get one. Worth every penny! Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Bed Bath & Bayond, they all carry them!


Ingredients
Peeled shrimp
Onion
Bell pepper (red is my fave)
Shredded carrots
Minced garlic
Zucchinni
No salt seasoning 


Just sauté onion, pepper, carrot, zucchini and season with your fave no salt seasoning. If you use salt, choose sea salt and black pepper to taste. Then sauté the shrimp with garlic, black peper and some red pepper flakes (if you want to add some kick to it & kids won't be having it. My kids eat whatever we eat so dad adds the pepper flakes to his AFTER it's served).  Serve veggies then top them up with the shrimpies! So delicious and very filling for a low carb meal. 


21 Day Fix Breakdown
1 red = shrimp 
1 green = zucchinni
1 gray = oil for sauteeing 

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Meal Prep Monday: My Favorite Grocery Shopping 21 Day Fix Food Picks

A little late but better late than never!  I get asked a LOT about my meal prep, what I buy, what I always have on hand, etc.  So here it is. These are items I typically shop for and have on hand in the fridge. I try an shop no more than twice a month and sometimes it's only once. I buy enough to last and have an extra fridge in the garage along with a pretty big pantry :). I only go to certain places to shop and I do it as cost effectively as possible. Most of my groceries come from Costco, a local produce market and believe it or not....the 99 cent store! If you have any questions, feel free to ask away! Here's a handy little form you can use to plan out your weekly menu and snacks and add the items to your list below. It's one of the tools I share in my 21 Day Fix Boot Camps and helps with meal planning for 21 Day Fix too! I typically plan my lunches to be leftovers from dinners the night before. Cuts my meal prep in half and saves me $$$ too!

Veggies
Baby carrots
Bell peppers (sliced) 
Cucumbers (sliced)
Sweet mini peppers
Grape or cherry tomatoes
Spaghetti squash
Zucchini squash
Acorn squash
Normandy Veggie blend (frozen from Costco)

Fruits
Bananas
Strawberries (fresh & frozen for my shakes)
Bluberries (fresh & frozen for my shakes)
Apples
Plums
Peaches
Grapes
Watermelon

Dairy & Healthy Fats
String cheese
Greek yogurt
Cottage cheese
Sliced cheese
Milk (for recipes & coffee as creamer)
Carbmaster yogurt (Ralph's brand low carb, low sugar yogurt that helps with my sweet cravings. I usually blend these with regular non-flavored Greek yogurt
Almonds
Peanuts
Pistachios
Avocado
Hummus

Protein
Shakeology (duhhhh!! Every day! Breakfast for the WHOLE family)
Chicken breast
Tilapia
Extra lean ground turkey
Panko chicken breasts (Costco)
Turkey breast deli meat (for turkey, cheese, lettuce wraps)
Salmon burgers
Sirloin burgers
Canned tuna or salmon
Hard boiled eggs


Carbs
Sweet potato
Quinoa
Rice (brown & white)
Couscous
Rice cakes
Skinny pop popcorn
Low carb tortillas
Pita bread


Nuts, Seeds & Dressings 
Almond butter
Peanut butter
Sunflower