Recipe Review- Chocolate Zucchini Bread from PaleOMG

This recipe is not even borderline amazing, it is just amazing…Good god I could eat the whole batch. As you know by now I have been churning out tons of zucchini in the garden and I'm quickly finding and creating new recipes to eat all of it. 

I was at work a few days ago talking about my huge problems with too many zucchini on my counter and as soon as I said it I knew the next statement was coming- I wished I could retrace my words and go back but too late- someone said, " Oh why don't you make zucchini bread"! Ugh…No offense to you zucchini bread lovers out there but there is not another food on this earth that I have more disdain for…I mean, what food has such a cult following with people swearing that it is healthy- 'Oh I made zucchini bread and ate the whole thing it was so delicious but I was just eating vegetables so no biggie". Wrong. just because you add zucchini to something doesn't make it healthier- it is still laden with fat, calories, and sugar. It's about the same thing as eating a Krispy Kreme doughnut with a carrot on top.. Anyway, off topic…I don't care for the traditional bread…ok moving on..

I follow PaleOMG (Juli) on Instagram and think she's absolutely hilarious. So, I checked out her stash of zucchini recipes and her Paleo Chocolate Zucchini Bread one is a hit- No really- smack your mama good..She made hers as a loaf but my loaf pan was occupied with the chocolate cinnamon banana bread recipe I made yesterday..So muffins it was….

Here it is and I'm putting a direct link to her website for the recipe because she deserves muchos kudos for this one!

Recipe Here

What makes something that is Paleo better for you than traditional ways of cooking? GREAT question. It depends on particularly what you are making BUT with this bread it has no flour, no oil, no refined sugar, and every ingredient is a whole food- no processed crap! More about Paleo in the future I have eating to do :)

Sunday Funday Baking- Cinnamon Chocolate Swirl Banana Bread

Cinnamon Chocolate Swirl Banana Bread

An Adventure with The Paleo Kitchen Cookbook

I am in love with the Paleo Kitchen Cookbook- as you can tell by the many bookmarks and papers I've stuffed in mine…I will say that for the average person this cookbook can initially seem obnoxious with their grass-fed butters, organic honeys, and coconut flours..BUT the recipes are wholesome, healthy, and really teach you creative ideas with food. You don't have to follow every ingredient- tweak it for how your life works. 

 Each recipe I make is better then the previous and their photos and write-ups are amazing. Great cookbook recommendation! Christmas idea maybe?! Anyway, this was my favorite thing thus far so I thought I'd share.

Ingredients:

coconut oil to grease the pan ( I used Pam spray because that's how I roll)

For the Bread:
4 Bananas
4 large Eggs
1/2 cup Butter (unsalted grass fed apparently is best- I used unsalted land-o-lakes..)
1/2 cup Almond Butter (yeah I only had peanut butter- what a travesty)
1/2 cup Coconut Flour- it's not that hard to find...click here to purchase
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt

For the Swirl:
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp ground Cinnamon
1/2 cup chocolate chips ( again, apparently vegan-type chips are best…didn't have those either)
1 Tbsp honey

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a loaf pan (can also line with parchment paper but I did not and it was fine). 

Combine bananas, eggs, butter, and almond butter in a mixer until they are creamy. 

Add the coconut flour, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, and salt. Mix until well combined. 

Pour the batter into the loaf pan and spread out evenly. 

In a double boiler (aka a bowl in a pot of boiling water) over medium low heat, mix together the swirl ingredients until all the chocolate is melted. 

Pour the chocolate mix onto the loaf and use a butter knife to make swirls. 

Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean ( Mine took closer to an hour because I was cooking other things at the same time). 

And BOOM- ENJOY! You will have no idea that this treat doesn't have oil, flour, or refined sugar in it!!! Nom Nom. 

The Best Pizza I've Ever Made

Peach Prosciutto and Goat Cheese Pizza

I picked up a few fresh peaches from Emily's produce in Cambridge MD ( great place if you haven't been). SO what to do with them? Well last year I made a great peach and prosciutto sandwich on ciabatta bread but I've been on an anti- bread kick lately so what else to make- pizza of course…Yes, its also bread but I could live the rest of my life without a sandwich ever again- However I guarantee you that I couldn't make it 1 month without pizza. This was the end result…Amazing! Good luck not eating the whole thing!

Ingredients:

Pizza Dough (store bought or homemade, I used store bought)

2-4 cloves of Garlic, crushed (depending on how much you like)

1 c. Ricotta cheese

1 large Peach, sliced

1 pkg Prosciutto, torn into 3-4 inch pieces

1/2 c. Goat Cheese crumbles

fresh Basil & Oregano (could also use Rosemary)

drizzle of Honey

Pre-heat your oven to 500. Place a pizza stone in the oven to bring up to temperature. Once hot, remove the stone and place your pizza dough on it. I use a dusting of cornmeal on the stone to prevent it from sticking. Place back in the over for 2-3 minutes just to give it a light golden color. Take it out, flip it over and drizzle with a bit of olive oil and crushed garlic- spread evenly over crust. Place back in oven for another 2-3 minutes to get this side golden as well. It'll look something  like this..

Remove again, spread ricotta over crust. Top with peach slices, prosciutto, goat cheese, and your herbs. Place back in the oven just to melt the cheese and crisp the prosciutto (4-5 minutes). Remove and drizzle with honey. BOOM -AMAZEBALLS!! 

Who needs delivery when you have peaches?

Favorite Find- PB2

Who doesn't love peanut butter? It's a great add in for protein shakes, breakfast, and also a good source of protein. It is listed in the Abs Diet as a powerfood- so we should eat it all the time right? Sadly,  no. It comes packed with fat as well as protein so you have to moderate the intake- this is a real challenge for me since I can chow down on it non stop. So I had to find an alternative and I finally did. PB2
PB2 is a peanut powder that is made from drying and grinding peanuts to a fine powder- this process allows a great majority of fat to be removed. Just add a bit of water so create a traditional peanut butter consistently and save 145 calories per serving!

PB2 comes in traditional peanut butter flavor and also a chocolate peanut butter flavor- hheelloo yum!
I found it at Target and you can also order online at Amazon here.

Add it to your shakes, top on a banana or apple, or make an old school PB&J sammich- its great all around. Give it a try!

Nutritional Comparison per 2 Tbsp Serving

 

                                      Traditional Peanut Butter                                 PB2                       
                                                 190 cal                                              45 cal                               
                                                 17g of fat                                           1.5 g of fat

Dear Ladies..Please Stop Skipping Meals

I've had quite a few people lately tell me that they are trudging to lose weight. The first questions I ask is, "Well, how often are you eating"? Five women this week have all replied, "Well that's just the thing, I'm only eating once a day"! So I figured I'd share some thoughts on this. Your body has no idea that this is 2014- your body is functioning the same way as it would have if you were born 2,000 years ago. We are very primal beings and our body has some pretty basic functions and concepts that regulate it. 

First, you have to eat within two hours of waking up. 
If you are one of many people who are not hungry in the morning, you figure you'll save the calories by skipping breakfast altogether. Actually what you are doing is telling your metabolism that you are still sleeping. You are basically saying to you body is "stay asleep, don't increase my metabolism, don't burn any calories". So that is what your body does and throughout your day you burn minimal calories. By eating first thing in the morning you say, "HEY WAKE UP and burn some calories! That initial meal jump starts everything for your whole day. 
Breakfast doesn't have to be big or well thought out. During the week I am a huge fan of hard boiled adds, oatmeal, and Greek yogurt. It can be something small- but make it something high protein. 

Second, you have to eat often. 
Skipping meals sound like a great way to save calories and be more of the productive super woman you are. However, by skipping meals your body goes back to those caveman instincts and thinks you might be starving. Your body has no idea when you will eat again and therefore it cannot afford to burn frivolous calories. SO- you body slows it's metabolism and the next time you DO eat- your body will hoard every calorie and ounce of fat! This is a basic fear concept- "I have no idea when our next meal is coming so I am going to conserve EVERYTHING so we don't die. By eating every 4-5 hours your body is assured that you are not starving, that it can freely burn calories and fat. Eat!
Now please don't take this as me saying eat a high meals every 4-5 hours- no. Ideally your meals will be around 400 calories and 1-2 snacks of 150 calories. Again, whole grains, vegetables, fruits, high protein. 

Lastly, find out what works for you.
Experiment with foods. See how long you can stay full by eating eggs for breakfast, then the next day see how long you are satisfied with oatmeal, etc, etc. You will find that your body works better and more efficiently with certain foods over others. 

Happy St Patricks Day- Irish Potatoes Makeover!

St Patrick's Day is a big day in our house. It is probably our favorite holiday next to Christmas. A favorite treat on this holiday is Irish Potatoes. Have you had them? Sweet creamy coconut goodness all wrapped up in a cinnamon sugar coating….sigh…Anyway- they are absolutely delish- but they are also gigantic calorie bombs. Having one is no biggie you tell yourself- but next thing you know 30 minutes of the Real Housewives of Atlanta is finished and so is the box of Irish potatoes. Damn. 

So what's a girl to do? Remake it.

Here is my version of Irish Potatoes without the guilt. 

P.S. this was my cooking helper on this snowy day..

Irish Potatoes

Ingredients:

3 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder ( I use muscle milk but use whatever you have)

1/4 c philadelphia whipped cream cheese

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp splenda

1/4 - 1/2 c shredded coconut depending on how much you want

1/4 - 1/2 c almond milk ( or skim milk)

A couple tablespoons of cinnamon ( just coat the bottom of a small plate/bowl)

Mix first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Add your milk in gradually to form a soft dough consistency. This varied for me from 1/4-1/2 c depending on the batch. You don't want it dry but also not wet- make sense :)??

Looks like this

Form dough into small balls, drop into the cinnamon and coat. Makes about 14 pieces. 

Nutritional info

(Per 2 pieces)

                Theirs:                           Mine:

Calories-   100                                  110

Sugar-       22 grams                          3 grams

Carbs        22 grams                          4.8 grams

Protein-     0                                       9 grams

More room for green beer!! Cheers!

Protein Pancakes

Traditional pancakes suck. There it is. They are calorie/carb bombs that do nothing to get you closer to your fitness goals. Not to mention- they're usually boring. That being said- "healthy" pancake mixes can vary greatly from tasting like chalk to more like dirt.  In my experience, making pancakes out of whole wheat flour is always a bad idea so stay away from it. 

I've made many health pancake recipes and reached high and low for a delicious tasting but healthy option and I've finally found it. The original recipe was posted by Mama Laughlin who I adore. I altered it to make a few different flavors to prevent boredom. 

Basic Recipe

Ingredients:

-1 cup oats 
-1/2 Tsp vanilla
-1 ripe banana

-2 whole eggs (or 4 egg whites)
-dash of Cinnamon
-1 scoop Chocolate Protein Powder (you can use any kind of protein powder you have, I use muscle milk, mama laughlin uses Dymatize)
-a splash of unsweetened vanilla almond milk

Take 1 cup of oats, scoop of protein powder, and cinnamon and put them in the food processor until it forms a fine powder. 

In a separate bowl mash the banana and add in eggs and vanilla. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix. Add in almond milk until it is makes a pancake batter mixture that you prefer. Looks like so..

Cook it up as usual..this part is mind-blowing I know..

So that's the basic recipe- and YUM YUM it is…

Here are the variations I did. 

Vanilla Parfait Pancakes

   Sub chocolate protein powder for vanilla, add a dash of nutmeg to the cinnamon. Mix in blueberries, strawberries, and/or raspberries. 

Choc PB Pancakes

   Add in a Tbsp of natural PB

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

   Sub vanilla powder for chocolate. Use only half of the banana called for in the original recipe. Add in a 1/4 c pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice ( if you don't have it on hand add cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove)

Time Saver- Make multiple batches of the dry ingredients and ziplock bag them individually -BAM you have pre-made pancake mix. AND DONE..Enjoy!

Sunday Funday Breakfast & A New Favorite Find

So everyone pretty much knows that Sunday Funday is a tradition in our household. Regardless of whether it is bulking season (Adam-not me) or slim down time (me- not Adam)- Sunday requires a traditional breakfast of eggs, some sort of meat, and a carb. Our fav is eggs, scrapple, and pancakes but we do many variations of this. HOWEVER, just because we are indulging we still keep it on the straight and narrow as best we can. 

This is not your grandma's breakfast that was cooked with bacon fat that sat in the crock next to the stove..am I the only one who's grandma did that?? How we didn't have heart attacks at age 9 I'm just not sure. 

For example, here is a list of "you will never find this in our fridge" breakfast items…

- full fat cream cheese
- prepackaged pancake /waffle  mix
- pork bacon
- salted butter
- white bread
- whole milk
- cooking fat
- and the latest is pork scrapple..more about this in a minute

So you're probably reading that list and saying.."well I'm sure your breakfast tastes like ass"..Well in fact nope. It's yum-licious if I say so myself. So what are the best choices?
Well there are just better choices when it comes to having a traditional breakfast and you have to be ok with that. There is no fat free traditional breakfast but there is a slimmed down version. 

Here is goes..

Eggs- 
   Usually I just scramble mine, nothing fancy here. You can sub egg whites for a better option but it's my eggs and I like the yolk. If you make a omelet you can add some skim or almond milk but leave out the heavy milk/cream/full fat cheese.

Meats- 
   Turkey bacon - you have to play around with the brands to find which ones get crispier vs not and which ones are backstabbers and have more sodium than the pork version- read your labels. 

   Turkey scrapple- YUP I SAID IT- turkey scrapple! Oh Be Still My Heart…and let me tell you- uncurl your nose because you seriously can't tell the difference between it and it's original counterpart. FA-REAL- no lies. Same flavor, gets just as crispy, just as delicious..I even tried it out on my in laws over Christmas and they had NO IDEA. And these people are serious about their breakfast meats. 
So far, I only know that Rapa makes the turkey version- other brands may make it I just haven't seen it. I bought mine at Safeway but I'm sure it is in most stores. 

Original - 120calories/ 8 grams of fat
Turkey- 80 calories/ 4 grams of fat
Get yourself some!

   Pork Roll- don't judge me. It's apparently a Pennsylvania thing ( or a NJ thing? ) not sure- Adam introduced it to me and I'll say- it is NOT a healthy option but it is quite tasty so it's a rare treat sometimes. They do not currently make a turkey roll so we stick with it :)

Carbs-
   Whole wheat toast-  sub whipped cream cheese for the full fat version and save 50 cal and 4.5g of fat.    Better yet top it with natural pb for added protein.
   Potato shreds with onions, peppers, and seasonings
   Pancakes- never out of a box- I will be posting about my favorite pancakes soon…
   Vanilla Protein Banana Bread - posting about this soon as well ( dang I've got some work to do)

That's just how we do it in our house- there are obviously a million variations, recipes, etc…like a turkey scrapple sammich :)

A New Favorite Find! The Quest Protein Bar

I recently got started on Quest Bars- have you tried them? These little babies are ahh-mazing! I mean what the??? How do they make these so good while being so good for you? Geniuses over there at QuestBar- nobel peace prize winning geniuses I tell you.

Here's the deal on the QuestBar...
180 calories
7g fat
17 grams fiber
1 g sugar- this is unheard of just sayin...
21 g protein- DANG!
3 g of Net Carbs
Gluten free

Perfect for an after workout snack or in my opinion a great dessert alternative ( and my mind always reverts back to dessert...)

They come in a plethora (just like that word) of flavors including...
Vanilla Almond Crunch
Chocolate Peanut Butter
Apple Pie
Cinnamon Roll
Chocolate Brownie
Strawberry Cheesecake
Mixed Berry
Coconut Cashew
Peanut Butter Supreme
Lemon Cream Pie
Banana Nut Muffin
Peanut Butter & Jelly
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Double Chocolate Chunk
White Chocolate Raspberry
Cookie Dough

And if that wasn't enough they even give you a recipe book with your purchase so you can make even more delicious treats with your bars.

I tried the cookies and cream bar and love it- I think my next selection will be the cinnamon roll because I can just imagine warming it up in the microwave for a few secs and tasting the goodness ;)

Click here to give them a try and let me know what you think!

My Must Haves to Save Hundreds of Calories

My Must Haves to Save Hundreds of Calories

Non Fat Greek Yogurt:

1.       Use in place of sour cream- add a tsp of taco seasoning and lime juice or hot sauce for a yummy Mexican dip

2.       Use in your breakfast smoothies for added protein

3.       For breakfast- top with berries, almonds, flax seeds, and cinnamon

4.       Use in place of mayo or to reduce the amount of mayo used in a recipe- i.e., chicken salad

5.       Use as a sandwich spread  (mix with garlic, ground olives and feta, or a dash of ground mustard and honey for various sandwich flavors)

6.       Use in place of heavy cream to make sauces or cream based soups

Salad Mixers:

My favorites are baby spinach leaves, cucumbers, carrots, tomato, onions, olives, chickpeas, Craisins, almonds, and goat or feta cheese. Always try to have these items on hand so you are never without a lunch or dinner option. On Sunday you can premix the ingredients in individual servings so you can grab lunch while walking out the door all week long. Plus- for me if I have it in the fridge and I paid for it- it kills me to watch it go bad and knowing that I wasted money.  So I am forced to eat well during the week when I otherwise might be tempted to order out. Add lunch meat, shredded chicken, or steak slices for added protein.

While we are talking salads- don’t kill yours by drenching it in a bath of creamy dressing! Let the lettuce breathe for goodness sake! Stick to vinaigrettes or even make your own! PUT DOWN the Ranch/Thousand Island/Caesar dressing and nobody gets hurt.

Guacamole or fresh Avocados:

These tasty treats are nutrient dense and a healthy power food. You can substitute guac or avocados in place of mayo on a sandwich, in place of sour cream on tacos, or use as a healthy dip with pita chips or crackers. Yes, they are high in “fat” but it is unsaturated fat which is a good fat. Avocados are  SO yummy, but more than that they’re  just so much better for you than mayonnaise or sour cream. For real.

Easy Breakfast Idea: 1 whole wheat english muffin- spread with 2tsp guac and topped with 1 fried egg, lime juice, and pepper

Easy lunch idea: 1 whole wheat pita topped with fresh sliced avocados, grilled chicken breast, sliced onion, lettuce, and a pinch of taco seasoning and/or hot sauce.

If you’ve never made homemade guacamole and need a step by step tutorial you can check out this video recipe.

High Protein Cereal:

As much as we all love cereals like captain crunch, cinnamon toast crunch, and frosted flakes- they just don’t have a place in a healthful diet. Do you just love your high sugar cereal too much to give up completely? Give yourself a dessert once a week and indulge in it but my point is that it is not something to incorporate into your daily routine. Honestly I think there are too many great other options for breakfast to eat cereal BUT let’s be honest- Monday through Friday is a crazy ass mess sometimes. Just surviving the workweek is enough to deserve a gold medal- so I get it that you want an easy cereal and milk option for breakfast (all while feeding the dog, making coffee, packing the kids lunches, and trying to get your shoes on)..Anyway, if cereal is your thing there are great options for you.

 Ideally you want a cereal with less than 120 calories, less than 10 grams of sugar, and more than 3 grams of fiber per serving.

My favs:

1.       The Special K line is great- we all know how much I love the Chocolate Almond ( if you missed it, I blogged solely about this cereal and my love for it- you can click here for the link to that blog) but all the other flavors are great as well. (Red Berries, Blueberry, Cinnamon Pecan, etc)- Sidenote- most cereals have about 2-3g of protein but the Special K Protein cereal has 10grams! Can you say full till lunch??

2.       Kashi-I specifically like the Go Lean Crunch and Go Lean Crisp cereals. The Crisp comes in a cinnamon flavor as well as a berry flavor which are equally delish.

Be careful when selecting a cereal. It may be in a box labeled high protein or healthy but if the calories and sugar contents are higher than listed above- beware!

And here’s the deal with cereal: you can doctor the crap out of it for minimal calories and make it ahh-mazing. Try adding any of the following for the yum effect:  chocolate or vanilla protein powder, berries, PB2 powder, cinnamon or nutmeg.

Frozen Vegetables:

Now before I get hate mail saying that frozen foods are not healthy-baaacckkk up for a second and hear me out. For the most part I do not endorse eating foods from the “middle of the grocery store” BUT there are crazy days where I get home from work, go to the gym, get home and it’s 8 o’clock and I haven’t even started dinner yet- On those days I need easy solutions to keep me on track and these little boxes of frozen veggies do it for me. I particularly like the sweet baby peas in butter sauce ( 80 cal/serving) and the Simply Steam garden vegetable medley (60 cal/serving). They are a easy side dish- but let’s be honest- if Adam is out of town I will eat the whole box as my entire dinner and I’m ok with that. Hey- the alternative is picking up takeout on the way home!

SO this is a quick list of what helps me out from day to day- obviously there are many more things I love that I will be blogging about in the upcoming weeks including two new favorite finds!

Be well and much love-B

Thai Butternut Squash Soup

I don't know about you but when it's cold and snowy all I crave is a hearty soup. Traditionally, when you think of "healthy" soups you think of stock based soups vs yummy thick ones. That's because most thick soups rely on flour and fats to thicken them. However, this soup does not- it only uses butternut squash. Finally you can enjoy a thick and creamy soup without any guilt! This is probably the best soup I make. I mean I REALLY love it and make it religiously. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

                                                          Thai Butternut Soup

Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine

1 tsp olive oil

1 cup chopped onion (1 small onion)

2 ½ tsp red Curry paste

1 ½ tsp minced garlic (2-3 cloves)

1 tsp minced fresh ginger

2 cups fat-free, low sodium chicken broth

2 tsp brown sugar or brown sugar splenda

2 (12 oz) packages frozen butternut squash, pureed- (can also use 4 cups of fresh chopped butternut squash)

1 (14 oz) can light coconut milk

1 ½ tsp fish sauce

1/2 tsp pepper

½ c chopped unsalted peanuts

¼ c cilantro leaves

Red pepper flakes to taste

Unsweetened coconut flakes to taste

Juice of 1 lime

1. Heat a large saucepan with olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for 3 minutes. Add curry paste, garlic, ginger and saute for 45 seconds, stirring constantly.

2.     2. Add broth and next 5 ingredients (through pepper). Cover and bring everything to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes (5-10 minutes longer if you are using fresh squash). 

3. Remove from heat. Use an immersion blender to puree everything. (If you do not have an immersion blender you can use a potato masher, or wait until the liquid cools and pour into a blender).

4. Pour into bowls and top with peanuts, cilantro, red pepper flakes, coconut flakes, and lime juice.

The original recipe included the following nutritional information. However I added a cup of chicken broth to thin out the recipe a bit, and eliminated added salt so your servings will significantly less sodium and calories per serving.

Calories 302, Fat 15/2g, Protein 9.5g, Carb 40.7, Fiber 4.9g, Chol 0, Iron 2.7mg, Sodium 591 mg, Calcium 81mg

Note: the easiest way I have found to mince garlic and ginger is over a handheld grater- much easier than dicing with a knife. Ginger keeps almost forever if you keep in in a zip lock bag in the freezer. Just use a vegetable peeler to peel off the skin for the section you plan to use.