Spiced peanut and sweet potato soup

This is the not only the prettiest, but also the yummiest soup that I have made since I started with the clean eating. Anything with peanut butter is good, plus I usually have lots of leftovers to bring for school lunches:)

Spiced Peanut and Sweet Potato Soup

1.5 tsp olive oil

1 large onion chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp fresh grated ginger (I use the kind from a tube)

2 peeled and diced sweet potatoes

4 cups low sodium veg or chix stock

4 cups diced tomatoes, low sodium

Half cup natural peanut butter

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

pinch salt

pinch pepper

pinch cinnamon

6 cups chopped Swiss chard

In large Dutch oven, heat oil on med/hi heat. Add onion, garlic, and ginger. Cook 3 min.

Stir in potatoes, a cup water, PB, spices, broth, tomatoes. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer 12 min.

Stir in Swiss chard. Simmer until wilted.

Enjoy! Garnish with cilantro or crushed peanuts.

Green Goddess Pasta Salad with Chicken

This Green Goddess pasta salad is divine;) 

It's easy, delicious, and great to bring to a party. Of course I do make a few changes to the recipe. Ha ha! I use double the asparagus and half of the pasta. I also blanch the asparagus with the pasta as it cooks; just throw it in for the last minute to save time. And I was lazy and used dried herbs instead of fresh, but it's still quite good with plenty of leftovers for lunches this week. Plus Trevor likes to eat the pasta, not the chicken or asparagus... yet! 

The complete recipe is at http://www.cleaneatingmag.com/recipes/classics-made-clean/green-goddess-pasta-salad-with-chicken/

Prepped to enjoy my vacation

It's true. I did find an amazing workout space here at the beach, but I confess today was my first workout since we arrived on Saturday. Though I have been setting myself up for success in other ways. First of all, it's important to enjoy your vacation, so Saturday was pizza and frozen custard night. No guilt. Yesterday I had a double shake day- breakfast and lunch. I wasn't feeling my best, so a double on the shakes always helps with that. We went out for dinner at Bethany Blues, and I was happy with my grilled salmon and baby spinach salad hold the dressing. I was able to get to the farmers market in the morning and grocery store later in the day to stock up on my staples: fruits, veggies, eggs, chicken sausage, parmesan cheese, seltzer water, goat cheese, spinach and a rotisserie chicken for salads. I'm feeling pretty well equipped to eat clean when I want, and also ready to enjoy what the beach has to offer:)

Lemon water for breakfast?

You often hear me and others talking about the benefits of drinking water, but did you also know that you can jump start your metabolism each day by starting off with a warm lemon water? It's great in theory, but who has time on the morning to deal with cutting and juicing a lemon? Not me, so I make it easy by juicing a whole bag of lemons at once, pour the juice into an ice cube tray, then stick it in the freezer. All I do each morning is pop out a juice cube and fill my cup with warm water. My reward for finishing it is I get to drink my shake;)

Pizza Spaghetti Pie

I just found my new favorite dinner, and it's super easy!! It takes a while to bake, but other than that it's quick. You know me, I had to change a few things from the recipes, so I cooked my spaghetti squash in the microwave for 14 minutes instead of baking it. I used ground turkey and added lots of Italian seasoning instead of sausage, added clean tomato basil spaghetti sauce (also more than 1 cup) instead of pizza sauce. Of course I had to top it off with a little parmesan cheese. How can they call it a pizza with no cheese? I loved it; Bill loved it, and Trevor wouldn't get near it. (Maybe because I let him snack on a zucchini muffin.) Ha ha! You can find the recipe at http://paleomg.com/almost-5-ingredient-pizza-spaghetti-pie/

Three day refresh results

     Ta da! Here I am... three days later and 10 pounds lighter. (I know that's crazy, right! I got on the scale three times because I couldn't believe it either! It's a cheap bathroom scale, so might not be completely accurate, but it's what I used on day one and after.) Also, I lost two inches from my waist and two inches from my hips, no doubt about that. 

    OK, so the numbers are pretty impressive. But how am I feeling? I feel great, and refreshed. Ha ha! Good name for the product, right? The whole experience was a positive one for me. I'm happy with my results, and feeling like I can take the driver seat back with my food choices without going overboard while at the beach next week.

     Would I do it again? Yes, but not anytime soon. I'm not really about quick fixes and shortcuts. My goal is to lead a healthy lifestyle that is sustainable long term. So why did I do it in the first place? I was curious, and I really wanted to see what would happen for me after seeing results from my other friends. I've been wanting to have JLo abs for a while, but not really sure what's required to get them and probably not willing to make that much sacrifice. They say that abs are made in the kitchen, so I decided to find out if this would give me the definition that I desire. I've also been enjoying a few more cheats than usual since I've been on vacation. It's nice to get myself back on track, and I will think twice about those extra treats now that I am so much closer to my goals. Plus I will think back to the challenge of following the 3 day refresh; that should help me to keep myself in check;)

Last day of three day refresh

Thank goodness this is almost over! I was really fine with everything until this afternoon at about 4:00pm. Bill and I had spent a few hours at a friend's pool, and I was good about bringing my lunch and snacks. It was the first time this summer that I was actually able to sit by water and relax, close my eyes, and even fall asleep for a while. Every other time Trevor has been with us, and there is no relaxing when he's near, especially when water is involved. Something about being out in the sun all that time just made me tired and hungry. I wanted to comfort myself with food. The good news is that I was craving healthy stuff, like this spaghetti squash pizza casserole that I'm making tomorrow. But the bad news is that all I had left in my plan for the day was a shake and some asparagus with walnuts. My solution was to drink a couple cans of seltzer water and take a shower. That did help me out, but honestly I will be happy to go to bed tonight so that I can wake up to a day full of healthy eating. Plus I am excited to see my results;)

Day two of three day refresh

Day two was pretty much the same as day one. I had the same four drinks, but used more ice this time with the Vanilla Fresh to make it thicker. And I had the same meals. Hey, if it worked once why not just repeat? Tomorrow I'm going to mix it up with some blueberries in my kale salad and asparagus for dinner. It's gonna get wild around here! Still no "digestion issues" to report, thankfully.

Was I hungry? No more than yesterday, so I drank tons of water to feel more full. Also, I really just manage to put it out of my mind. I realize that one of my "habits of thought" is looking ahead at what I have to look forward to in a day, and it's often food related. So once I take that away from myself, then I focus my attention on other rewards and projects. I was actually super productive today, including exercising and teaching myself to make a video collage to post on instagram and fb.

My motivation today was similar to day one, with the addition of some inspiration from Deidra Penrose, one of my coach mentors. She posted this picture of her transformation that I have always admired. I have seen it before, but today when I saw it I appreciated how much closer I am to reaching my own goals. I wonder when she imagines herself in her mind, does she still see the heavier version of herself like I do? How long does it take for us to really accept the changes and start seeing ourselves in our minds with our more fit bodies? Until then I will have to settle for seeing my reflection in the mirror:)

What is clean eating?

Clean Eating 101

• The main principle of clean eating is to eat foods in their most natural state, and avoid processed foods including white flour, sugar, frozen meals, artificial sweeteners, and anything with words that you can't pronounce on the ingredient list. 

• Eat every 3 hours. This means breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, and another snack only if you feel you need it. 

• For each meal or snack, always "partner" protein and complex carbohydrate. This keeps your metabolism working at its most efficient level all day long. Choose lean proteins and avoid pre-packaged meat products like lunch meats or  hot dogs. Rely on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains for your carbohydrates. 

•  Your body needs fat! Eat  3-4 servings healthy fats each day, like avocado, raw nuts, seeds, hummus, feta, and goat cheese.

• Drink lots of water. Calculate half of your weight in pounds, and that's the number of ounces of water you should aim to drink each day. 

• Become a label reader. Generally speaking the fewer ingredients in the list the better. Don't be fooled by breads that say whole wheat, often they do have whole wheat, but they also include many other ingredients, such as white flour and sugar. Ezekiel sprouted grain breads are one of my favorites that can be found in the freezer section in the grocery store. 

• No one is perfect, and this lifestyle is only sustainable for me because I do indulge in one cheat meal each week. This means one meal of anything that I want with no guilt. However it's not a cheat day or an all you can eat extravaganza. Keep your portion size in check as you enjoy your food:)
  

Day one of three day refresh

Day one was a success! I had my four drinks, I'd like to call them shakes, but the only one that's really a shake was the morning Shakeology. The fiber sweep was more like drinking what I imagine Metamucil to be like. Not bad tasting, but drink it quick because it gets thicker as it sets. Vanilla Fresh was also easy on the palate, and I used the Magic Bullet to blend it, but it didn't get thick like the usual shakes do. I did miss the almond milk that I usually mix with my shakes, so for my second Vanilla Fresh I added a little cinnamon and nutmeg for some excitement. Ha ha!

My lunch was a spinach and peach salad that I topped with some olive oil and white balsamic vinegar. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. That's also true for the tomato slices with humus that I had for snack and the lemony green beans for supper. It's amazing how you learn to appreciate the actual flavors of real food when you cut out all the junk.

It's now 9:00pm, and I feel fine. So far no gas or other GI issues. I did my PiYo sculpt workout this morning, walked the dog, did some yard work, and walked to pick up Trevor from daycare this afternoon. My point is that I had a fairly active day without feeling like I was going to faint or pass out. Did I feel hungry? Yes. I was hungry before each meal, then not so much afterwards. Did I want to eat the cheddar cheese cubes that Trevor left on his plate from his dinner? Yes. I also wanted to chew a piece of my Pur Gum this afternoon, but I resisted. Whenever I was faced with these temptations and choices, I had a few thoughts that pushed me through:
1. I can do anything for three days.
2. I spent my money on this program and am only cheating myself if I don't stick to it.
3. I want to see real change in my after photos.
4. If I can't make it through the first day, then I am in trouble!

I've still got a few things to do tonight, but hope to get to bed before hunger strikes. I'm really looking forward to my chocolate morning shake tomorrow:)

Aunt Holly can we make brownies?

I love when my nieces come to visit! As they get older and have lives of their own, it's something that happens less and less frequently. One of our traditions has always been to get something cooking, however in the past it was usually something not so healthy. Of course I didn't want to disappoint when they asked if we could make brownies, so I pulled up the recipe for my favorite healthier double chocolate cookies. The kids didn't really care what we were making, so long as everyone got a turn! Seems like they might be bringing more than just fun memories home this time, maybe a recipe for some yummy treats will go too!

Here's my answer to that age old question... What to do with the leftover brown rice from Chinese take out? I chopped up a zucchini, red bell pepper, and onion and sautéed it in a bit of butter (I know it's not completely healthy, but a little goes a long way). Then added some frozen shrimp that needed using followed by the brown rice and a little sauce that I whipped up with low sodium soy sauce, garlic paste, and chili paste. In the end I topped it with some fresh lemon juice. This dish was a real winner! And guess who decided that he loves shrimp? ;)

Spaghetti is good?

Spaghetti Squash is good, and I can't believe it took me so long to give this a try!  It's so super fast and easy, and totally allows me to fulfill my pasta cravings. OK, I admit, I'm really more into the sauce anyway. But still, this is great. Just cut the squash in half, dig out the seeds, or have your helper dig out the seeds, and put it in the microwave for 14 minutes. After that be careful cause it's hot, and use a fork to scrape out the "spaghetti" and top with whatever sauce you like. Tonight I used a clean tomato basil spaghetti sauce with a little parmesan. Everything is good with parmesan cheese. Bill was hesitant to give it a try, but he honestly did like it, and so did Trevor. So excited to have another vegetable that he will eat. Since I didn't make any meatballs or protein to go with dinner, we had a little Greek yogurt with peaches for dessert. Well maybe some of us had a few chocolate chips in our yogurt, but hey, whatever it takes;)

For the person who has everything...

    What do you bring when visiting a family who has everything? Homemade healthier cookies! I know I have mentioned these before, but I just love them so much, I can't resist doing a blog post about them. What makes them healthier? They are considered "clean" because the ingredients are mostly unprocessed, except for the half cup of chocolate chips. Instead of sugar, flour, and butter, they are made with coconut sugar (less processed than regular sugar), cocoa powder, and almond butter. I would never claim that they are low fat, but they are better for you than many other treats. Good warm or even refrigerated the next day, if they can last that long. Making them requires a bit of an arm workout because of the stirring, and the recipe only makes about a dozen (probably a good thing). However they are totally worth the effort. You can find the complete recipe at http://paleomg.com/soft-chewy-double-chocolate-cookies/

Yes... More Kale please!

Here I go getting creative in the kitchen for my mid-morning snack! In my efforts to embrace Kale and get lots of good protein into my diet, I had a little fun with sautéed kale, pine nuts, and raisins later mixed with eggs and a little parmesan cheese. This checks off lots of boxes for me, and is totally yummy:)