Summer Deliciousness

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

The recipe calls for:

sweet potato

cooking spray

sugar substitute

cinnamon

brown sugar

-- Peel the sweet potato and and slice it into circles or wedges, whichever you prefer.

-- Spray each side of the potato slice with cooking spray then sprinkle them with the sugar substitute and cinnamon.

-- Place the potato slices on a grill pan, top with a little bit of brown sugar and grill.

-- Keep the potatoes on the grill until they look caramelized and they have softened.

Broccoli Slaw Salad

The recipe calls for:

1 bag of broccoli slaw

3 tbs light mayo

6 tbs cider vinegar

raisins

1/2 tbs sugar substitute

salt/pepper

-- Whisk the mayo, vinegar and sugar substitute.  Mix the sauce with the slaw.  Add the raisins then salt and pepper to taste.

Motivation In Full Gear

So I haven't updated lately, been pretty busy but I have been eating very good and started at a gym about three weeks ago.  My exercise motivation is back!  Eating healthy is easier for me than working out, but once I started at the gym I couldn't stop.  I have been feeling really good about myself and even better I can notice a different in my body and so can others.

I hope you all are keeping up with your healthy living!  I will have some new recipes posted soon!

• Baked/Grilled Sweet Potatoes
• Broccoli Slaw Salad
• And many more!

Keep focused.  Make smart choices.  You got this!

Are You A Dessert Lover?

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Just a few ingredients and about only 170 calories depending on how much fat-free cool whip you add to it.  To me it was just as satisfying as a restaurant dessert, but about 1,000 calories less.  I freeze the cool whip so it's kind of like ice cream which is something I crave very often especially with the warmer weather now.

 

Heat the fiber brownie (any flavor you like) in the microwave for about 15 seconds, scoop on some fat-free cool whip and indulge in this healthy dessert option!

 

 

 

Coconut Almond Bread

The recipe calls for:

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup stevia

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

2 cups flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup milk

3/4 cup shredded coconut

sugar to sprinkle

-- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

-- In a large bowl mix together the butter and sugar until it is creamy.  Beat in the egg and extracts.

-- Combine the flour, baking powder and salt.  Add the mixed ingredients and milk slowly to the creamy mixture.  Mix well.

-- Fold in the shredded coconut.

-- Pour the batter into a greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.  Sprinkle with sugar.

-- Bake for 50 minutes.

I used some lighter alternatives to make this recipe a little healthier.  Instead of butter I used I Can't Believe It's Not Butter and I used 1% milk.  You could also use fat-free milk, but I just used what I had.  I used Stevia in the mixture, but I prefer regular sugar for sprinkling.  I liked it warmed up a little, but it's just as good served at room temperature.

Mother's Day Cupcakes

Sometimes you have to indulge, what better day then on Mother's Day!  My mom is a huge Nutella fan so I wanted to make the dessert for our family dinner and I found the perfect recipe for her.  :)

Nutella Icing

   

The recipe calls for:
2/3 cup nutella
2 cups confectioner's sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbs heavy whipping cream
a dash of salt

-- In a big mixing bowl, use a hand mixer and combine the nutella (I used Shoprite brand), sugar and butter.  Beat for about 2 minutes on low.
-- Add the remaining ingredients and mix on medium for about 1 minute or until the icing is smooth.

Susan G. Komen, Race for a Cure

My whole family and some friends did the 5k on May 5th to support the Breast Cancer Fundraiser, Susan G. Komen Race for a Cure.  It was a beautiful day surrounded by beautiful inspiring people.  I made some homemade trailmix for everyone with raisens, cinnamon almonds, unsalted cashews/peanuts, dark chocolate covered pomegranate pieces and pink m&m's.  I had a semi bad food weekend so it was nice to eat a healthy breakfast and get some exercise (3.2 miles) to burn some calories.

  

Our team Fit for Tits raised more than last time, so that was amazing!  For anyone who wants to donate to this cause at any point go to their website here.  My mom is a survivor so this cause is very close to my heart, every dollar counts!  I hope a cure is found in my lifetime.

Calling All Coffee Lovers

Starbucks is having their Happy Hour for Frappuccino's once again!!!

 

May 3rd to 12th

from 3-5pm

 

There are two new frappuccino's, Hazelnut and Carmel Ribbon Crunch!  I have yet to try them, but I think 50% off during happy hour will be a perfect time to.  Click here for more flavors.

 

And remember there are lighter options for them all!  So enjoy this happy hour with no guilt!  Enjoy!

Oatmeal Bars

Need a fast breakfast for the work week coming up?  Here you go!

I am going to cut them into bars, put them in baggies and have an easy on the go breakfast for every day this week and some leftover for snacks.  The recipe is very easy and you will probably have almost everything in your pantry already!  If you don't have applesauce you can use a mashed banana instead.

The recipe calls for:
1 1/2 cups oats
1 egg
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1/3 cup dark chocolate, chopped
a dash of salt

-- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
-- Mix all the ingredients together in a medium bowl.
-- Spray a pie pan with cooking oil and pour the mixture in.
-- Bake for 20 minutes.
-- Store in the fridge.

In Honor of Earth Day

A 6 mile hike on a beautiful Sunday morning...

    

  

Best Part of Warm Weather: Grillin'

Shoprite got their first corn of the season!  They were on the smaller side though.  I should've took a trip to the farm, it would've been local and probably bigger.  Oh well, next time for sure!  The farmers market by me opens on June 23rd so I can also go too.  I can't wait for it to open!  That will be a nice Sunday tradition when I need good produce.

Decided last night was a good day for grilling.  We always grill burgers and that type of stuff, but I wanted to grill some fish this time.  We put a spice of our choice on the flounder, I picked cajun seasoning and grilled them up.  The corn was also cooked on the grill and I made a little salad to top my flounder.The salad just has chopped tomato, garlic and basil and the grilled corn.  I also added a little olive oil, salt and pepper.  I really wanted to add avocado to the salad but unfortunately I couldn't find a ripe one.

Zucchini Cakes Turned to Hash

The recipe calls for:
2 eggs
3 zucchini, shredded
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
4 tbs flour
7 green onions, chopped
1 tsp baking powder
pepper, to taste
cooking spray oil

-- Drain the shredded zucchini of the excess water it contains the best you can.
-- Mix the eggs, zucchini, cheese, flour, onions, baking powder and pepper in a large bowl.
-- Spray a large non-stick pan with cooking oil.
-- Place the zucchini mixture in the pan and cook for about 10 minutes.  Mix while cooking so all the zucchini gets browned up a little.

The reason I think this recipe didn't turn into the cakes I wanted is because I didn't fry them up in butter and oil like the original recipe said to.  I wanted to make it healthier.  If you wanted to you could make the mixture into patties and fry them up in more then just cooking spray oil.  You could also add a little more flour to make them into more of a cake as well.  The hash was just as tasty though, the mounds of oil and butter isn't necessary.  I also think if the shredded zucchini was drained a little more of the water it holds it could've worked better too.  You always learn something while cooking!

Leftovers Inspiration: Buffalo Pizza

Homemade pizza dinner instead of ordering in!  Much quicker then delivery, much healthier and without the guilt the next day...

Use what you have!  I had leftover homemade buffalo hummus, the 5 grain flax flatbread leftover and was craving pizza so I added the hummus to the flatbread, sprinkled some part-skim mozzarella cheese and a few dashes of buffalo hot sauce.  YUM!

It's so weird, years ago I didn't even like pizza, now I am pizza obsessed!  At least there are healthy alternatives.

Cut Costs & Cut Calories, Coffee Style

In today's economy I think most people are trying to find more and more ways to cut every day expenses.  With doing this we still want to be able to enjoy things that we love though.  We can't give up everything or life wouldn't be as enjoyable.  For me my favorite cost is Starbucks coffee.  It's something that immediately brightens my day.  As much as I know I could do without and I do do without it when it just can't fit it into my budget on certain tight months/weeks, sometimes you just need to have it.

"Coffee makes it possible to get out of bed, but chocolate makes it worthwhile."

My usual drink is a Grande Non-Fat Mocha (only one pump, no whip), this is the basic mixture of espresso and chocolate, two of my favorite things.  The normal grande size has four pumps of mocha (all flavored espresso drinks have four pumps at a grande size), but to cut calories I only get one because it's just enough to taste the mocha without it being overbearing.  Sometimes too much chocolate is too much, believe it or not.  You can do without all the pumps in all of their drinks if your thinking about your waistline.

A way to cut calories and also cost is to make your own espresso drink, but still with the taste of Starbucks signature espresso.  If you have a espresso machine, like I do, just purchase Starbucks espresso beans, but even with having a maker I rarely actually make it myself.  It's just easier and for me faster to just stop in the Starbucks I pass daily.  But I more recently found something for the Keurig that you can put in your own espresso beans, grounded already.  It's called a reuseable filter, check your local Kitchen product stores.  This is much easier and faster then using an espresso machine.  So purchase your favorite espresso beans, whether it's Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts or wherever and enjoy brewed espresso from your home!

Today I decided to save some cash and instead of ordering my normal hot drink at Starbucks I made a hot chocolate k-cup at home with my Keurig.  This is made with water obviously so the lack of milk will save quite a bit of calories.  This is my substitute for the chocolate flavor.  Then I made an espresso k-cup with my Keurig, mixed them together, added a little cinnammon and creamer.  It was my very own Mocha.  Granted it's not completely the same and I will still enjoy my normal drink from Starbucks when I can, but it's good to know of other options.

Grande Mocha - $4.33

2 K-Cups & Creamer - About $1.60

That is $2.73 of savings per day!

Also, at the coffee shops they have great smelling fresh baked goods that may be hard to pass up.  By not being around them you could possibly save on unneeded calories!  Make something or grab a healthy breakfast bar from home.

My Very First Homemade Hummus

And it surely won't be my last!

Quick, easy, delicious homemade Buffalo Hummus.

I am never buying hummus again!  I will forever make it from now on.  Making hummus homemade helps you skip from consuming all the added preservatives that is in store bought.  It's fresh and you know what your eating without any questions.  All homemade hummus will have one main ingredient, CHICKPEAS!  Chickpeas are high in protein, fiber and other good nutrients.

This recipe was just a few ingredients.  It is made up of 1 can of chickpeas, about 3 tablespoons of buffalo hot sauce, 3 garlic cloves, a few dashes of cumin, some garlic powder, a couple splashes of olive oil and a little bit of water.  Blend them all together in a food processor and you have hummus!

Hummus is something you can easily make in a lot of different flavors.  Always use a can of chickpeas, some sort of liquid and whatever else you like!  You can make it your own and it tastes much better than store bought.

Healthy Sun-Day

Weekends make it tough sometimes to stay active and eat healthy especially for me, but since I have started to really make it a part of my lifestyle it's much easier.  I seem to have better control too.  I went grocery shopping last night and got a lot of healthy and clean eating items.  It's weird but I actually crave healthier foods now instead of the fattening foods filled with nothing good for your body.  At Wegman's last night I was surrounded by bagels, donuts and very sugary muffins, but I choose a multi-grain carrot and apple muffin.  Eating that and a cup of skim milk was a great way to start my Sunday.

I also bought some flatbreads at Wegman's which I have never seen before at Shoprite.  The brand is "Flatout".  They are only 90 calories, 5 grain flax, great source of fiber and 53% fewer net carbs.  They are small flatbreads that are a good shape so they can also be folded in half for sandwiches or panini making.  I highly recommend them.

After relaxing at home for a bit I decided to venture out, get some coffee and drive around looking at new hiking places.  I ended up stopping at the local farm to pick up a tomato so I could use it for my lunch.  Local produce is fresher, less likely to be contaminated, tastes better and helps support your local farmers.  Having farms close by is a huge plus, not only because of the fresh food, but also it's a great atmosphere.  I got to get some sun and see some animals that brightened my day...

The duck and roaster were both very vocal and cute.  The roaster was actually waking everybody up in this picture haha.  I also saw lots of goats, bunnies and an adorable pig.

The tomato I got at the farm was perfect for my flatbread pizza I made for lunch.  I put little bit of olive oil on the bread, added slices of fresh tomato instead of tomato sauce and then sprinkled some dried basil and part skim mozzarella cheese.  Delic!  Notice the shape I was talking about...

I headed to Shoprite after the farm because I forgot to get water last night.  I got a mini work out in by carrying the water to the car and up two flights of stairs.  Every little bit counts!  :) 

Have a happy healthy Sunday everyone!