Energy Energy Energy

Good afternoon everyone.

I found this recipe for energy balls. I have been eyeballing (see what I did there) this recipe for awhile now and FINALLY decided to make them. My husband thanked me for this. I can have 2 of these for breakfast and feel satisfied. I also enjoy eating a couple of them 30 minutes before going to the gym. Also, for my 31DFixers, it's difficult to count these. If you're only eating 1-2 a day, I wouldn't bother. You'd have to count 1/20th of a red and yellow, it would just get messy. I hope you enjoy these as much as we do! 

RECIPE: 

1 scoop chocolate shakeology

1 c. steel cut oats

1/2 c. organic peanut butter

1/3 c. pure honey 

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract 

1 c. shredded coconut 

Directions: 

Mix all ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Let it chill in the refrigerator for about 20-30 minutes. Remove the bowl and make the energy balls! 

(I don't use pb2 or store bought organic peanut butter. I actually make my own  peanut butter in the food processor. Do whatever works best for you!) 

It's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change!

Good evening friends!

Tonight I wanted to touch base on a couple of things. 1. I've had a lot of people talk about the new "diet" I'm on and 2. I made a new recipe! 

First off, the diet question. The 21 day fix isn't something that we plan on stopping. This is a commitment that we've made to a different lifestyle. It's clean/healthy eating, portion control, and a regular exercise regimen. It's what we SHOULD be doing anyway. It isn't some crazy pill or strict food plan. It's actually very simple. If you have ANY questions, please feel free to email me! My email is located in the about me section. 

2. I made a delicious dinner tonight. I cooked a beef roast in the crockpot ALL night on low. I seasoned it lightly because who are we kidding, the natural flavor is amazing! (sea salt and pepper of course) I then put it in a bowl and cooked some potatoes in the juices all day. Talk about delicious! The potatoes count for yellows and the meat counts for reds. Easy as pie! I also had a side of cottage cheese (red) with a little lemon pepper seasoning. If you've never tried that, I highly recommend it. There really wasn't a special recipe for this, but it's a comfort food that's simple. We also bought a bbq sauce that's organic and sugar free. I bought it in the organic section at Hyvee. I've found a recipe for homemade bbq sauce, but I wasn't able to make it today. I will be making it for a future blog post! 

Have a great night! 

Applesauce Chicken

Applesauce chicken? Yes, you read that right. I wanted to find a new way to make shredded chicken and add a "little bit more" to it. 

I added one jar of organic/unsweetened applesauce to the bottom of the crockpot. I seasoned 6 chicken breast with sea salt, pepper, minced onion and sweet basil. I put the chicken in the crockpot on top of the applesauce. Cooked on low for about 7 hours until the chicken fell apart. I can't even tell you how DELICIOUS this was! Absolutely great for tacos. Of course it's 21 day fix friendly too. Hope you enjoy!

Grilled Fish Tostadas

It is FINALLY spring time! That means we get to start up the grill. Here's a grilled recipe that follows the 21 day fix!

INGREDIENTS: 

(2) Tilapia fillets (2 red)

Salsa (1 purple) 

(2) corn tortillas (1 yellow) 

(1)avocado (1 blue) 

Romaine lettuce chopped (1 green)

DIRECTIONS: 

Put fish fillets in foil. Pour salsa over the fillets and put another piece of foil over it. Put on grill for about 10 minutes. Give or take some minutes depending on the thickness of your fillet. Cook your corn tortillas in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10-13 minutes. You can either have the avocado chopped or put it in a food processor and purée it. Place avocado on the tortillas. Put fish and salsa on top of avocado. Put chopped lettuce on top. Add whatever other toppings you would like. I added a pinch of cheese to each and a splash of hot sauce. Enjoy! 

Simple Dinner

There are times when I get home from work and I need to have a quick dinner, yet still stay within my guidelines of the 21 day fix. My first tip: check your local grocery store ads to get good deals on your meats. Buying bulk chicken, pork, or turkey can save you a lot of time. It's also important to watch ads for deals on vegetables and fruits. Sometimes stores have over stock and sell perfectly good produce for cheap. This dinner was made from different sales my local Hyvee had.

RECIPE: 

(2) Pork loin (2 red) 

(1) Red pepper (1 green)

(1) green container mushrooms 

(1) yellow container sweet potatoes 

DIRECTIONS: 

Cook the pork loin, peppers, and mushrooms in the skillet. (Now that it's nice, you could grill the pork!) Dice your sweet potatoes thin and put them on a cooking sheet. Roast in oven set at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. I always season mine with a little sea salt and pepper. If you want a sweeter touch, you could add cinnamon. I season the pork with sweet basil and garlic. Simple and delicious. Enjoy! 

Healthy Shrimp Recipe

Good evening my fellow foodies. Tonight's recipe is inspired by the 21 day fix. This is my go-to lunch recipe because it's quick, simple and absolutely delicious.

INGREDIENTS:

Small shrimp 

Red pepper 

Avocado 

Mozzarella cheese 

Herbs (which ever you prefer)

Sea salt 

Pepper 

DIRECTIONS: 

Sauté your shrimp in the skillet for about 2 minutes. If you like, add 1-2 tsp. of extra virgin olive oil. Add your chopped red peppers and let cook until peppers are in the middle of soft and crunchy. I add a little sweet basil and minced dried onion also. Set to the side. Cut your avocado into square pieces and put into your bowl. Top with shrimp and red pepper. Add a little bit of mozzarella cheese to the top for the final touch. 

21 Day Fix Journey

Good morning all. I thought I would take the time to write a bit about my 21 day fix journey. I am currently on day 13 of the 21 days. I plan on this being a lifestyle change, so the days don't really matter as much. My journey started when my husband and I sat down one day and realized that the life we were living wasn't healthy. We do go to the gym, but we don't eat how we should. We would go out often because we were bored, and we had changed so much from what we used to be when we first started living together. I met my coach, Lori, and she started us with the process. I can't even begin to tell you how much better I feel personally after starting this. I'm sleeping better, my coordination is better, I'm stronger, everything. Everything is so much better. Not to mention I'm on day 13 and I've lost 9 lbs. already. Now my friends make fun and say that I can't even anything "good" anymore, but that's not true. I eat a lot of really great foods, and the best thing of all is that they are CLEAN! I would love to start sharing some of my 21 day fix recipes. If you want any more information on the 21 day fix, my email is over in my about me section. 

It's NEVER too late to change your life. 

Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins

Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins

A muffin a day keeps the doctor away! Or.. wait, is that right? Here's a yummy recipe to surely make YOUR day! 

RECIPE:

1 cup milk

1/4 cup vinegar

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 larges eggs

1 tbsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups miniature chocolate chips

optional: sanding sugar for sprinkling on top

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 425ºF. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray.

In a small bowl, pour the milk and vinegar. Let sit while preparing the remaining ingredients.

In a larger bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Add the butter, eggs, vanilla, and the milk + vinegar mixture. Stir JUST until a batter with lumps forms.

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Fill each cup in the muffin tin to be completely full (about a heaping 1/4 cup).

Bake at 425ºF for 5 minutes. Then decrease the heat to 375ºF and bake for another 13 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before removing from the tin and serving.

Delicious fresh and next day. Freezes well.

I made these muffins and took them to work for my coworkers to try. They were a big hit! They were moist and fluffy. This was a Pinterest SUCCESS!

What does food mean to you?

Food... yum. There's so many different things we can do with it, right? Whether it be making a comfort meal from your childhood, or eating a 5 star meal at a fancy restaurant, food is a great thing. Growing up, I have always loved to cook. My dad has been a chef since I was about 2, so I guess you can say it runs in my genes. Recently I've started doing the 21 day fix which consists of portion control and clean eating. I don't get to use everything I used to, but I'm still able to do a lot of different things with my ingredients. My next recipe consists of bakery style chocolate chip muffins. My neighbors will be very luckily when they receive them. Stay tuned!