A Bunch of Food Ideas!

Good Morning!

Man, yesterday was great.  It was a good day at work and then I truly just relaxed and enjoyed the day until spin class (6:30pm--which I also loved!), and then had a lazy evening watching Modern Family and reading up.  Here were my eats:

Breakfast:  one whole batch of sourdough pancakes (check comments for a simple version), 1 T peanut butter, and 1/2 cup cottage cheese (split between waking up early and after a few sessions)
Lunch: 2 oz. beef from the crock pot and a big chopped cabbage salad (recipe follows)
Dinner: (yikes) **same thing as lunch!  (normally, I wouldn't eat the same thing twice, but after spin class, I didn't want to make anything else! Just a wee bit of beef...)
Snacks:  Apple, hard-boiled egg, another pancake and 1/2 T almond butter, chocolate mousse (recipe follows)


Here's what I love about this salad recipe:  it is not a wilt-y salad, in fact, it might even be better when the dressing juices are soaked up, so enjoy as many a left-over!

Chopped Cabbage Salad

1/3 of a red cabbage (about 2 or 3 cups chopped)
1 big carrot, sliced (so that they are rounds)
1/4 cup chopped onion, yellow
parsley or cilantro, chopped (to taste)

Dressing:
1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon maple syrup
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
olive oil to 'thin out' the flavor
         **I always approximate the amounts and it turns out really, really strong, so I just add olive oil and water until it smoothes out.  It should have a kick to it nonetheless...

Pour dressing, toss salad, and eat or return to fridge to eat later!

Chocolate Mousse

1 serving plain greek yogurt (I don't care if its non-, low-, or full-fat!)
1 Tablespoon vanilla protein powder (or to taste-the more powder, the sweeter)
1 Tablespoon cocoa powder

Mix it all up and enjoy as dessert!  It was my snack while watching Modern Family!

This morning, I decided to break out of my 'diet' (see this post) to try some oatmeal.  The weather is chilly this a.m. and it made me crave warm oatmeal.  So I tried this recipe for baked banana oatmeal.  Katheats.com also has a pumpkin version here.  I just didn't have pumpkin on hand--bummer.  Next time!

It turned out great!  The only changes I made was a sprinkle of cinnamon, unsweetened almond milk (regular milk doesn't do my stomach any good...) and no brown sugar at the end.  Bananas are sweet enough!

Before baked:

After baked (extra YUMMY!!):

And topped with almond butter and a dollop of greek yogurt.  I tell ya, the greek yogurt addition was excellent.  Very reminiscent of cool whip ;)

The recipe serves 4, so here is the nutritional facts per serving for my version:

230 kcals, 4.7 g fat, 42.2 g carbs, 6 g fiber, 8.8 g sugar (just bananas!), 8.4 g protein
      **almond butter and yogurt not included

I DO have to say that after eating this and now digesting it, my stomach is making all sorts of weird growly noises, as in it is telling me that it doesn't remember or doesn't like digesting it.  Hmmm...but it was SO TASTY!

I have a cycle class at noon at Highlands Ranch.  COME OVER!

Salads to Chili: Rollin' with the CO weather!

NEW RECIPES!

The weather has been STRANGE and I love it!  It's cool and crisp in the mornings, with a bright sunny promise.  It usually warms up to about 75-80 degrees, with a day or two of cool, rainy weather to break it up.  It has been a lovely pattern for fall!  So, that means that some days, I crave a summery salad and others, warm soups!  

This morning, I made up my pumpkin yogurt.  I just made this up this week, but didn't have much time to write about it!  Here is the recipe:

Pumpkin Yogurt:

-1 cup plain, nonfat greek yogurt (I'm partial to Fage or Chobani)

-1/2 cup pumpkin puree 

-1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder

-1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Mix and enjoy a protein filled yogurt that tastes like pumpkin pie filling!

For lunch, I enjoyed this salad with spinach, red bell pepper, poblano pepper, 2 tablespoon walnuts, and two hard-boiled eggs.  A splash of balsamic vinegar for dressing.  Yum!  (see the sunlight?)

But then it got rainy and dreary and I got hungry this afternoon, so I enjoyed a leftover cup of crockpot chili from last night.

Crockpot Sweet Potato Chili:
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans
1 can corn
1 lb ground turkey, cooked
2 shredded carrots
1 diced onion
1 small sweet potato, diced (it is my new favorite addition to chili!)
1 serrano pepper **if you like a little spice!
1 T. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
salt/pepper to taste

Mix together in crock pot and enjoy about 8 hours later!  I love chili, but just to prove this recipe is delish, the people I had over last night LOVED it.  Enjoy!

Tonight might be chicken leftover.  I've been enjoying putting things in the crock pot so that I save time to do other things (like trail run and shop!), so earlier this week I put 4 chicken breasts in a crock with almost 1 jar of salsa, diced red onion, and a serrano pepper.  It turned out amazing!

Sorry I have been a little MIA these past few days and I have no excuse except for trail running and shopping with my mom!  Shopping is ok, but when you grew up with a SUPER HELPFUL mother to shop with, it can handicap you from doing anything on your own.  I feel like I bought the store, but I haven't really purchased things that I need for months years...yikes!

Enjoy the new recipe ideas!

**to update my diet adventures:
I've been on a roll with my mainly veggie and protein diet, although there have been a few slip ups.  Saturday is always a day off...and that day landed on a birthday party which was perfect.  However, I had leftover homemade brownie (from the party) lying around, which happens to be my absolute fave, so it might have been nibbled on.  Plus, there was ice cream at the dinner last night...
The funny thing is, I am sticking to eating no fruit and no granola VERY well, which was my main downfall.  Those are both fairly healthy foods, but I may have had granola and fruit over a veggie choice too often.  This simple swap is making my veggie intake skyrocket!  I feel great, less weighed down by too many sugars (natural or not)!

New Micro Muffin Recipe!

I accidentally came up with a new spin on my favorite breakfast recipe!

Due to my new diet plans, I decided to find a new way to make the pumpkin puree and egg stick together to form the dense muffin consistency.  I came up with flax seed and a dash of vanilla protein powder.  The result wasn't the same, but it was more of a pumpkin custard-delish!  Enjoy the new flourless pumpkin recipe:

Pumpkin Breakfast Custard

1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 T flax, ground
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
1 T vanilla protein powder (feel free to omit if you don't want that flavoring...I liked the sweet vanilla!)

Add in a big mug, stir, and pop in the microwave for 3 minutes on high.  Top with almond butter!

I went to Colorado Springs (hometown, baby!) to help my family unpack their house.   On the road, I came across this Sprinter that was LOPSIDED!!!  I had to take a pic (while driving, I know...) because I couldn't believe my eyes...this is looking at it straight on, and you can see the front right wheel is TO THE LEFT of the back right wheel.  That is just not right!

After the unpacking process, lunch was a salad with bell pepper, deli turkey breast, covered in salsa.

And for a special treat, my mom and I went over to Monument to enjoy tea and treats at the Wisdom Tea House.  I ordered their 'egg bake' which included roasted poblano peppers, some cheese, and lemon peel!  It was absolutely delicious with the lemon!   I almost devoured it before I took this pic:

And that brown 'hunk' of food next to it is their Pumpkin muffin that Mom ordered and I tasted it :)

The Wisdom Tea House lets you pick the teacup you want to use.  Here is my pretty pink cup of a creamy black tea:

For dinner, I ate a salad with hard-boiled egg, spinach, peppers, avocado, and a big dollop of cottage cheese.  Dressed with balsamic, lemon olive oil, and lemon pepper from Savory Spices!  I love eating salads and avocados all the time ;)  SO tasty and I feel amazing.


Have a happy Friday!

New Diet Experiment Update

Hi All!  Happy Tuesday!

Loving my 'new' diet :)  I feel like I've just made small changes (no granola or fruit, sadly), but I actually feel even better...breakfast was two hard boiled eggs and black beans over spinach with some avocado.  Not your typical breakfast fare, but it tasted really good!

I haven't been hungry in the morning, which is odd for me, since breakfast is my favorite and I'm usually starving!  So I had to wait until the very last minute to stuff this in before work!

Also, I fudged the meal plan a touch already because I had a Zone bar for a snack...it was all nut and dried fruit, but fruit is a no so, I need to come up with a better snack idea!  I'm still keeping my protein powder in since it noticeably helps my body recover from multiple classes taught in a day.  **Although, I will say that this "perfectly simple" Zone bar is great and filling-cheap and whole ingredients!

Roasted veggies made up of red onion, sweet potatoes, beets, and purple carrots are for another snack before my next class!  Just tossed veggies with garlic cloves (in chunks) with olive oil, salt, and pepper and put it in a pan in the oven at 400 degrees until they crisp up.  Yum!

Benefits of Sourdough: The Superbread!

Good Morning!

Since it is my morning off of early mornings, I like to make myself a yummy breakfast.  And this morning was no exception.  Recently, I have been interested in having my own sourdough starter.  I was listening to Sandor Katz, author of the Art of Fermentation, on CPR (Colorado Public Radio), and how his life of disease changed when he decided to eat all fermented foods (which is more than you think!).  Bread, cheese, wine, pickles, beer, yogurt, sauerkraut, salami, tempeh, and soy sauce are among many fermentable and healthy foods!

In wheat and other grain sources, the enzyme lactic acid is a byproduct in sourdough that can break down phytic acid, which may not be easily digestible according to many studies.  We can talk more about how phytic acid is a problem in our diet, but mainly, it blocks our body's ability to uptake and utilize key nutrients like magnesium, copper, iron, zinc, and calcium.  We need those!  Most breads are very high in phytic acid. I believe this is one cause of many that are making us more fat yet hungry and begging for nutrients.  And other studies show that these nutrients (found in veggies!) help lower health risks caused by obesity.  This Harvard study says so, among many.  If this topic really interests you, I recommend the documentaries Sick, Fat, and Nearly Dead and The Beautiful Truth.

Ever since this research, I have been taking MOST breads out of my diet.  Unfortunately, I still enjoy some baked goods (especially baked with love from my mother) and the occasional bread at someone else's house.  There are none in my cupboards!  The only thing that I keep around is a frozen loaf of Ezekiel bread, which is sprouted which also may help decrease the amount of phytic acid.  (Speaking of frozen, sourdough does not go bad as quickly as regular bread, another plus!)

Another study I came across mentioned that sourdough, not only takes away most phytic acid, it also is shown to reduce the high insulin response found in *GASP* whole wheat!!!  White sourdough AND white breads are less likely to produce a high blood sugar response.  This lack of high blood sugar response in sourdough, if eaten in the morning, also lasted throughout the day, making what you eat for breakfast even MORE important!  And if you are gluten intolerant, the soaking and rising process of sourdough helps break down gluten into key amino acids, making it more easy to digest and use...

All said, here is a recipe for Sourdough pancakes.  They were SUPER tasty and fluffy, and REALLY filled me up (which is hard these days, ha!).

Sourdough Pancakes

*recipe found through this blog: gnoflglins.com (the weirdest blog name, but check it out because it stands for something cool!)

4 T. melted butter/coconut oil/olive oil (I used coconut)

1/2 tsp salt ( I really noticed the salty flavor, which I don't like, so I will be halving this next time...)

1 egg

2 T sweetener (I used maple syrup)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 T cinnamon, if desired

2 c sourdough starter

1 tsp baking soda

1T water

Directions:  

Heat up your skillet on low as you mix ingredients!  

Take oil, salt, egg, syrup, vanilla and cinnamon and whisk together.  Add starter and mix again until fully incorporated.  Next, take soda and water in a separate small cup and stir.   Set aside. 

Oil skillet!

Pour baking soda mixture into batter and mix immediately.  Pour it to make your cakes!  I didn't have anything atop my cakes, they were filling and tasty enough.  Feel free to add fruit (banana sounds great), nuts, or syrup!

This is your batter, right after pouring the soda water.  Nice and bubbly:

Here is a blog I found easy to read and has some great recipes/ideas:
http://realfoodforager.com/5-reasons-to-make-sourdough-your-only-bread/

Since my "grow" section of this blog has slowed, due to the season that we are in, I figured this is a great new way to "grow" all year round ;)

Next, lets talk HOW to keep/maintain sourdough and a bread-baking post!  Stay tuned!

C-6 and C-10: A History (and more Pancakes!)

The poll above is for a topic for me to talk about.  The 'diet fad' with the most interest will be discussed!

Real quick, here is a recipe I've used the past two days:

Protein Pancakes

1/2 banana, mashed
1 egg
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I use Apex's Supreme)
2 T. corn meal or another flour of choice
1/2 tsp. baking powder
 *add milk (almond milk!) to reach desired consistency-I used about 1/4 cup

Combine wet ingredients first and add dry to form into a batter.  As any pancake, pour on med heat skillet until it bubbles, flip, and repeat.  Serve with PB or almond butter if you dare!
**this is for one extremely filling breakfast, or two cakes for a normal stomach ;)

 I felt like adding some chia seeds in the mix, no flavor, possibly some benefit!

This breakfast was consumed after an early morning spin class (on top of the other tough classes this week) and I just couldn't get full!  Still hungry...

C-6 and C-10: A History

There is a great book out there that everyone should read, especially those of us who are gradually getting older (last time I checked, that's all of us!).  It's called, "Younger Next Year" by Crowley and Lodge.  This book explains something that is crucial to our human makeup, and something that is slowly causing us to age and get sick faster than ever before.

Let me take a step back and explain the biology behind it all.  Your body produces cytokines that regulate everything in your body.  Cytokine 6 (C6) controls decay, or inflammation, and C10 regulates growth.  This is very simplistic, obviously there is much more going on, but I want to encourage you with this...There is a steady trickle of C6, decay, that happens every second.  It takes a massive surge in C6 to trigger a response of C10 to clean up after C6's damage.  The only way to trigger that much of a response is through exercise.  You must sweat to rebuild and grow what is decaying in your body.

Many things can cause C6 to continue to release inflammation, on top of what it already releases in the body.  And unfortunately, it only increases with age.  Daily stress, apathy, and worry are huge examples of added inflammation that is caused mostly by our busy lives and jobs.  And, also unfortunately, when we are so busy and stressed out, we don't have time to fit in fitness.

Think back to our hunter/gatherer days...we would chill in the fields, waiting for prey to hunt, playing with the kids...when, all of a sudden, food is in sight.  Adrenaline (stress) rushes into our body as we attack, cook, and eat.  This is good stress--just like working out.  We need to excite that system, help it boost inflammation to produce growth, and start that process all over again, every day.  If you want to stay fit, healthy, and alive for the next few decades, you must exercise!!!

Alright, if this is interesting or exciting to you, read the book and go work out.  Get that inflammation going so that your body can clean up, rebuild, and make you stronger!

Here's lunch: A salad with tomatoes, avocado, deli turkey, red cabbage, feta, EVOO, and balsamic vinegar.  This looks small, but it was actually REALLY big.  Hopefully this will fill me up! Bye for now!

Crack Muffins!

This weekend has been a blur, with my car breaking down, hosting a housewarming party, and going to Elitch Gardens (a Denver theme park) for a GREAT friends' 25th birthday (yes, 25 and wild at heart!), I haven't done anything productive.  And sometimes that is wonderful :)

To keep things quick, one of my favorite quick breakfasts has to be the protein pumpkin muffin (in a mug).  Let's not take too much time to mention how I like everything in a mug.  Wine and cereal are best in a mug and I have no idea why.  I just like it.  So when I stumbled upon this recipe on Clean Eating Chelsea, I couldn't resist!  I changed the original quite a bit.  Here it is:

Pumpkin Mug Muffin:

1 egg
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (Chelsea says 1/4, but its good for ya and it fills me for a LONG time)
2 T. flour (buckwheat, whole wheat pastry, cornmeal are faves)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
dash cinnamon
10 chocolate chips (if you are feelin' lucky!)
**any other mix-ins like peanut butter, chia seeds, oats, raisins, nuts, flax, and bran are all welcome!

Combine all together in a big MUG of your choice (it will expand upward), cook for about 3 minutes in the microwave on high, let it cool, and devour!  *I like making this the night before and sticking it in the fridge, so that in the morning, all I have to do is put it in the microwave=brilliant!

How to Eat Breakfast

Oh, pancakes.  Oh, breakfast.  The best way to start a Sunday!

Now, breakfast may be the best meal of the day, and as health experts say, the most important meal of the day.  My logic is that breakfast is the best opportunity for healthy nutrients and tasty combinations.  Why not fully enjoy and know that tasty food is doing good in my body from the beginning :)  

For some reason I wake up hungry and ready to eat every morning.  Some people don't feel the same way and I do feel bad for them.  Maybe you get nauseous or you just simply aren't hungry in the morning, BUT...breakfast IS important!  Finding a way to sneak in some food in the morning may be a new system you need to get used to doing.  

There will be much more to say about breakfast, since it is my favorite.  I have learned for myself and from others that breakfast foods can be a challenge to make healthy.  But I love creating healthy ways to start my day and can't wait to share some of them with you.  Check out this recipe for pancakes and get cookin!

Banana Pancakes:

2 bananas, mashed
2 eggs
2 T. flour (I used buckwheat flour)
1 T. peanut or almond butter
1/2 t. baking powder
pinch of cinnamon
splash of vanilla extract

Blend all ingredients with a hand mixer, or use those muscles, and pour into pan!  Then eat some delicious and fluffy pancakes :)  Chocolate chips may be needed, and possibly a thin spread of more PB!

What are your favorite breakfast dishes?  What do you think about breakfast?