Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice

(image source because I didn't get a 

chance to take the picture on my own)

Anyone who knows me knows that I DESPISE cauliflower. My parents thought they could force me to eat cauliflower when I was young, but little did they know that I would hide it in the trash as soon as they turned around (Sorry mom!) But, something in my head today thought "hey, what if I was the one who cooked it the way that I think would be tasty?" in hopes that I make something tasty out of cauliflower... Lo' and behold... something that I was able to swallow... AND ENJOY!

Ingredients
I head of cauliflower
1/2 a bunch of cilantro, chopped
1/4-1/2 teaspoon of lime juice
2-4 tablespoons of coconut oil or ghee (or butter)

Directions
1. Shred cauliflower either on a grater or pulse in a food processor to make "rice"
2. Melt coconut oil in a large pan
3 Add cauliflower and sautee for about 5 minutes until it softens up (you  may have to work in batches depending on how big of a pan you have and how much cauliflower you grate)
4. Place cauliflower in a bowl. Once it's all done, mix in the cilantro and lime juice
5. Enjoy!

How I meal prep for the week

This special dedicated post goes out to my BFF, Katya. She asked me what I do to meal prep, and this week happened to be a great variety week to share, so here we go...

I start by prepping my snacks first. They're the easiest to pack up. Above are Archer Farms nut mix, unsalted. Find it at Target. 

I also love Quest bars, Bear Naked energy bars (for those extreme cardio nights), Greek yogurt (also good as a "dessert" for after lunch), and some energy drinks. 

I'll also chop up some cucumber and portion out baby carrots to grab and go for me and the husband. 

Next is figuring out what my proteins are going to be. I wanted to finish off my giant pack of turkey burgers, so that's for some of my meals. 

I also had some chicken sausage, so that was used for some others. I bought a 2-pack of salmon patties at the grocery store today, so I had one for dinner and one I'll have for lunch tomorrow. The husband decided on grabbing some chicken meatballs. Once it gets a little cooler outside, I'll make my own.... It's just running the oven for longer than a hour makes the house unbearably hot. 

Next I worked on my veggies. Green beans were on sale, so I popped them into the steamer and worked on chopping the other veggie portions....

Yellow and zucchini squash, also on sale. Seasoned with some salt and herbs de provedance. These ended up going on the grill to help with over heating the house. 

The final step is the starch/carbs. First we quartered potatoes, sprinkled with extra virgin olive oil, and seasoned with seasoning salt. Pop in the oven at 375* for one hour, flipping halfway through. 

The other starch I went with was whole wheat rotini. Boil 2 cups until done. Then stir in 2 laughing cow cheese wedges while it's still hot and add some Walden Farms sauce (or sauce of choice. A bag of frozen cheesy broccoli works well, too). Sorry I don't have the final picture of this. 

The final product.  5 days of lunches and dinners for me, and 5 days of lunches for the husband.

Hope this gives you some ideas for meal prep. It doesn't have to be complicated. 

Avo-Cobb-O salad

One of my favorites!

Ingredients

Salad mix of choice

Tomatoes

Crumbled cheese (I used feta, but goat cheese or blue cheese would be good alternatives)

Sliced red onion

Sliced olives

1/4 diced avocado

Hard boiled egg whites

Crumbled bacon (regular or turkey)

Grilled chicken, seasoned to taste

Ranch for dressing (Walden Farms has awesome 0 calorie ones that actually taste good!!)

Greek Salad

Well, it's been a while folks. Different shifts in priorities. All sorts of life events. Anywho... I've been on a recent salad kick and figured I'd share some of the salad ideas I have per week. 

This week is a Greek inspired salad. 

Ingredients:

Spring salad mix with kale

Cucumber

Mini tomatoes

Crumbled feta

Red onion

Grilled chicken

Greek hummus dressing

Dressing:

1/2 c hummus of choice

1/4 c lemon juice

2 T olive oil

1/4 t paprika

Dressing Makes about 6 servings.

Enjoy!

Also, on the menu:

Greek yogurt

Quest protein bars

Baby carrots with babaganoush

Cherries

Lemon Glazed Blueberry Baked Donuts

Ingredients

1 1/4 C whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup fresh blueberries

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Donuts

1. Preheat oven to 375*

2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside. 

3. With a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. 

4. Add the egg, buttermilk, and vanilla and combine. 

5. Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture and mix until just combined. 

6. Gently fold in the berries. 

7. Spoon into a greased and floured donut pan, filling 3/4 full. 

8. Bake for 14 minutes, or until the tops spring back when lightly pressed. 

9. Cool before glazing. 

Glaze

1. Stir together all glaze ingredients until smooth. 

2. Dip cooked donuts in glaze. Allow glaze to harden before serving. 

3. Donuts are best served fresh, but if you need to store them, be sure to cover them loosely in a container. 

Slow Cooker Turkey Meatballs in Tomato-Spinach Sauce

Mmm, this one is a keeper! Can work well as a soup or by omitting the water, can make a great sauce topping on zucchini noodles.

Ingredients
Cooking spray
2 lb ground turkey
1 white onion, finely diced
1 lb chopped spinach (that's the equivalent of a large clam shell)
1 can diced or crushed tomatoes, no salt added
1 can diced or crushed tomatoes, garlic
1 T sea salt
1 t garlic powder
1 t onion powder
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t paprika
1 t oregano
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1/2 C water (optional)

Instructions
1. Heat cooking spray in a large pan. Form the turkey balls and try them on all sides until they are browned but the middles are still raw. Don't overcrowd the pan, but rather work in batches. Remove the meatballs from the pan and place into the slow cooker.
2. Add a bit more cooking spray and add the diced onions. Remove from pan and place into slow cooker.
3. Saute the chopped spinach in the pan until it begins to wilt.k Remove from pan and place into slow cooker. You may have to work in batches as well.
4. Pour the cans of tomatoes into the slow cooker and add the spices and water. Stir the mixture gently, being careful not to break the meatballs.
5. Cook on low for 6 hours. Serve hot over zucchini pasta.

Slow Cooker Bacon Ranch Chicken

Ingredients
3 strips of turkey bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 t minced garlic
1 (1oz) packet of dry ranch dressing mix
1 (10.75oz) can cream of chicken or mushroom soup
1 (8oz) container fat free sour cream
1 lb chicken breast
8oz of your favorite pasta, cooked

Directions
1. Spray slow cooker with non-stick spray and place chicken in the crock pot.
2. Mix the bacon, garlic, ranch dressing mix, soup, and sour cream together and pour over the top of the chicken.
3. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6 hours. Shred chicken with 2 forks.
4. Cook pasta as directed on package and serve chicken over pasta.

Slow cooker whole chicken and sweet potato

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken

4 t salt

2 t paprika

1 t cayenne pepper

1 t onion powder

1 t thyme

1 t white pepper

1/2 t garlic powder

1/2 t black pepper

1 large sweet potato

1 1/2 T butter (I like Brummell & Brown yogurt based butter)

Directions:

1. Combine all dry seasonings in a small bowl and rub all over chicken. 

2. Place chicken in a ziplock container overnight. 

3. Dice sweet potato and place in a foil pack. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top and scoop out the butter.

4. Seal foil and place in bottom of slow cooker. 

5. Remove chicken from container and place on top of the foil pack. 

6. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. The chicken will be so tender once it's done that it'll fall off the bone. 

7. And now to make some slow cooker stock!! Discard all bones and skin into the slow cooker with any of the sweet potato juices. Pour 8-12 cups of water into the slow cooker and set on low for 12 hours. Strain the stock and discard the chunky pieces. 

Clean Chocolate Granola

Ingredients

2 1/2 C oatmeal

1 C chopped raw almonds

1/4 C sesame seeds

1/2 C shredded coconut

1/2 C honey

3 packs stevia

2 T unsweetened cocoa

1 scoop protein powder (chocolate)

1 T chia seeds

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F

2. Mix all ingredients together

3. Spread out on cooking pan

4. Bake for 30-40minutes, stirring every 10 minutes (for the first 20 or so minutes), and then every 5 minutes until done. Watch carefully to make sure it doesn't burn.

Twice Baked Spaghetti Squash w/Ground Turkey

Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash
1can reduced fat cream of mushroom soup
1/2 T chopped garlic
1/2 T dried minced onion
1 t Italian seasoning
1/2 t black pepper
3 wedges laughing cow cheese wedge
9 oz bag baby spinach, sauteed and wilted (or 10oz frozen spinach, thawed and dried)
7 oz canned sliced mushroom
3/4 C shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1.2 lb ground turkey

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375°
2. Microwave squash for 3-4 minutes, until soft enough to cut. Halve lengthwise; scoop out and discard seeds.
3. Fill a 9x13 baking pan with 1/2in of water and place squash halves in the pan, cut side down. Bake until tender, about 40 minutes.
4. Brown ground turkey.
5. Remove pan but leave oven on. Use a fork to scrape squash strands. Place strands in a strainer to drain excess moisture. Pat dry, if needed. Transfer to a large bowl and cover to keep warm.
6. Drain water from the baking pan and place the hallow squash halves back in the pain.
7. In a medium bowl, thoroughly mix soup, garlic, minced onion, Italian seasoning, pepper, and cheese wedges, breaking the wedges into pieces as you add them.
8. Add soup mixture to spaghetti squash strands. Add spinach, mushrooms, and turkey, and thoroughly mix.
9. Evenly divide mixture between the hallow squash halves. Sprinkle with mozzarella.
10. Bake until filling is hot and cheese has melted, 15-20 minutes.

Makes 4 servings.

Ground Turkey and Eggplant Lasagna

Ingredients
2 Small/medium eggplants, sliced length wise
1 container (approx. 1.25lbs) of ground, lean turkey
4-5 chicken sausages, wrapping removed and ground up in processor
3 carrots, grated
1 zucchini, grated
1 onion, diced
14oz can tomato sauce
14oz can diced tomatoes
1 T italian seasoning
8oz mushrooms
1 T (or less) of minced garlic
Coconut oil
Salt & pepper to taste
2 C Soy shredded "cheese" (or regular cheese if you prefer)
(I know the ingredients list looks scary, but it's SO easy!)

Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F.

Lay eggplant slices in a single layer on 2 pan sheets. Brush both sides with melted coconut oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10 minutes. Cut away the eggplant skin.

Lower the oven temperature to 350°.

Saute the mushrooms in a teaspoon of coconut oil until all of the liquid is evaporated and they begin to slightly brown, about 7 minutes. Season with a little bit of salt & pepper. Right before you're about done with the mushrooms, add the garlic and saute for a few more minutes. Place into large bowl.

Mix the turkey, sausage, carrots, zucchini, and onion. Brown in a skillet.

In the same large bowl that you placed the mushrooms in, mix the turkey mixture with tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.

Grease a square baking dish. The first layer will be the turkey mixture. Then add the cheese. Followed by the eggplant. Continue this cycle until you're done and all you have left is cheese to sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 minutes, or until cheese begins to bubble and brown.

Makes 8 servings
Cals: 298; Carbs: 19; Fat: 13; Protein: 29; Sodium: 842 (you can reduce this by using low sodium canned products and/or freshly diced tomatoes); Sugar: 8

Bacon Wrapped Chicken Thighs

Ingredients
4 chicken thighs
8 slices of bacon
1/2 T chipotle powder
1/2 T smoked paprika
1/2 T salt
2 t black pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 375*F

Mix the spices together.

Sprinkle the thighs with half of the spice blend.

Wrap each thigh with 2 slices of bacon.

Sprinkle the remaining spice blend.

Bake for about 45 minutes or until juices run clear.

Nutrition
Cals: 186 (per thigh); Carbs: 0; Fat: 12; Protein: 19; Sodium: 357

Turkey Bacon Breakfast Rolls

Turkey Bacon Breakfast Rolls
Ingredients
1 can Pillsbury crescent seamless dough 
5 slices cooked turkey bacon, crumbled
1/2 t dried thyme

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Line a baking sheet with foil & spray with nonstick cooking spray.
3. Place the dough on a cutting board and unroll into a rectangle.
4. Place the bacon strips on the dough them sprinkle the thyme.
5. Roll the dough back into its original shape.
6. Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices and place on baking sheet.
7. Bake for 15 minutes or until just golden in color.

Makes 12 rolls.

Nutritional Info
Calories: 74.6; Fat: 3.5g; Sodium: 255mg; Carbs: 8g; Fiber: 0g; Protein: 1.8g

Buttery Garlic Spaghetti Squash & Turkey Meatballs in Red Sauce

Buttery Garlic Spaghetti Squash
Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash
1/4 C Brummel & Brown butter
2 t garlic powder
Salt to taste

Directions
1. Roast spaghetti squash in the oven & then use fork to "strand" it. (Cut spaghetti squash in half. Scoop out seeds. Bake in 400° oven for 40-60 minutes, depending on how large your squash is. Look for it to turn soft or brown a little on the edges. Use a fork to "scoop out" the innards. It will become strands.)
2. Mix butter, garlic powder, and salt in a bowl with the squash until butter is melted.

My spaghetti squash yielded 6 1-cup servings.

Nutritional Info
Calories: 81.1; Fat: 3.8g; Carbs: 12g; Protein: 1.5g ; Sodium: 864mg; Fiber: 2.4g

Turkey Meatballs
Ingredients
12 oz lean ground turkey
2 eggs
1 t oregano
1 t thyme
1 t dried parsley
1 t minced garlic
1 t salt
1 slice of bread, crumbled

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Line a baking sheet with foil & spray with nonstick cooking oil.
3. Mix all ingredients together.
4. Form into little balls & place on cooking sheet.
5. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until meatballs begin to brown.

Makes approximately 32 meatballs.

Nutritional Info (for each meatball)
Calories: 22; Fat: 1g; Sodium: 89mg; Carbs: 1g; Fiber: 0g; Protein: 2.6g

Red Sauce
Ingredients
1/2 C onion
1 t minced garlic
15oz can tomato sauce
14.5oz can diced tomatoes
2 T tomato paste
1/4 C fresh basil, chopped
2 t Italian seasoning

Directions
1. In a sauce pan, cook onion until soft. Then add minced garlic and cook until aromatic.
2. Add tomato sauce, dicedt omatoes, tomato paste, basil, and Italian seasoning. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Add meatballs to sauce and allow them to simmer for 8-10 minutes before serving.

Makes approximately 6 1/3 C servings.

Nutritional Info
Calories: 53; Fat: 0.3g; Sodium: 623mg; Carbs: 12.3g; Protein: 2.2g; Fiber: 3.1g

Stuffed Turkey Burger & Breaded Yam Fries

Stuffed Turkey Burger
Ingredients
6oz ground lean turkey
2 laughing cow cheese wedges
1 egg
1 t thyme
1 t oregano
1 t dried parsley
1 t minced garlic
1 slice of bread, crumbled

Directions
1. Mix all ingredients, except cheese wedges, together.
2. Form into 2 patties.
3. Squish each cheese wedge into a coin shape. Place on top of the patties.
4. Cover the cheese wedge with the excess turkey meat from the patties.
5. Grill. Enjoy.

Makes 2 patties.

Nutritional Info
Calories: 267;  Fat: 15.1g; Sodium: 1635mg; Carbs: 10.5; Fiber: 1.7g; Protein: 24.4g

Breaded Yam (or sweet potato) Fries
Ingredients
3 small yams
3/4 C bread crumbs
1 large egg
2 egg whites

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Peel yams & then cut them into fry strips.
3. Mix the egg and egg whites together in one bowl. Have a separate bowl for the breadcrumbs.
4.  Cover a baking sheet with foil & spray with nonstick cooking spray.
5. Dip yams in the egg mixture, then in the breadcrumbs, and then lay them on the cooking sheet.
6. Once all yams have been dipped, bake them in the oven for 30 minutes on one side. Take them out, flip them, and then bake for another 30 minutes.

Makes approximately 4-5 servings.

Nutritional Info
Calories: 149; Fat: 2.4g; Sodium: 414mg; Carbs: 24.3 g; Fiber: 2.2g; Protein: 7.5g

Butternut Squash Mac 'N Cheese

Ingredients
1 small butternut squash (about 1 pound), peeled, seeded, and diced (about 3 cups)
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 1/2 cups unsweetned original almond milk
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
12oz Brown Rice Pasta
1 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon olive oil
Olive-oil cooking spray, for baking pan

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
3. Combine squash, stock, and milk in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until squash is tender when pierced with a fork, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Add noodles to boiling water; cook according to package instructions, about 8 minutes.
5. Mash contents of saucepan; stir in nutmeg, cayenne, and salt, and season with black pepper. Stir to combine.
6. Drain pasta, and transfer to a large bowl; stir in squash mixture, cheddar, ricotta, and 2 tablespoons Parmesan.
7. Coat a 9x9 inch baking dish with olive oil spray and pour in the noodle mixture.
8. In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs, remaining parmesan, and oil; sprinkle evenly over noodles.
9. Cover with foil, and bake 20 minutes.
10. Remove foil, and continue baking until lightly browned and crisp on top, 20 to 40 minutes more. Serve immediately.

Serves 8.

Calories		178.1
Total Fat		4.7 g
	Saturated Fat	1.9 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.2 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	1.3 g
Cholesterol		9.5 mg
Sodium		349.3 mg
Potassium		324.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate		25.3 g
	Dietary Fiber	3.0 g
	Sugars	0.4 g
Protein		9.0 g

Energy Cookies

Ingredients
 2 whole ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 C nut butter
2/3 C unsweetened applesauce
1 scoop whey protein powder (vanilla & chocolate are the best)
1 t Vanilla extract
1 t butter extract (optional)
1 1/2 C oatmeal, uncooked
1/4 C dark chocolate chips

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°
2.  In a large bowl, mix mashed banana and peanut butter until completely combined. Then add in the applesauce, vanilla protein powder and vanilla and butter extracts. Mix again until completely combined.
3.  Add in the oatmeal and chocolate chips to the mixture and combine.
4. Let dough rest for 10 minutes.
5. Drop cookie dough, by spoonfuls, onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and flatten cookies into circles. 
6. Bake cookies approximately 30 minutes, or until golden brown and done. Remove from oven and let rest on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then move to cooling rack.
7. When cookies are completely cool, store in a covered container.  

Protein Balls

You see that plate of little chocolate balls?  Yeah, they're delicious and the perfect preworkout or just plain snack item. I tend to munch on 2 of those with an apple as a morning snack.

Adapted from Fitnessista.
Ingredients
2 T protein powder
2 T creamy nut butter (i prefer almond)
2 T shredded coconut (if you're not a coconut fan, like me, I can assure you that you can barely taste it!)
1 T agave
1 packet of stevia
Pinch of sea salt
1 T dark chocolate chips (look for the Hersheys' Special Dark in the baking section)

Directions
1. In a small food processor, pulse protein powder, nut butter, and coconut until thoroughly combined.
2. Add agave, stevia, and salt and continue to process until a dough forms.
3. Add in chocolate chips and pulse to chop them up and mix them in.
4. Roll into balls. I use a small scooper and then I'll pack them and roll them in my hand.

1 ball = 1 serving
70 calories, 6g carbs, 4 g fat, 3 g protein, 18mg sodium, 5g sugar.

Easy-peasy slowcooker meal

Don't you just love it when an experiment goes right? Yeah, me, too!!
Ingredients
1lb chicken breast (about 4 thin breasts)
13.25oz package of noodles (I used whole wheat linguine)
1 jar of pasta sauce (I had butternut squash pasta sauce)
2 cups chicken broth

Directions
1. Mix pasta sauce with broth. Pour into slow cooker.
2. Place noodles into slow cooker. Break up if needed.
3. Layer chicken on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
4. Cook on low for 3-4 hours.

*almost*healthy EZ chicken dinner

4-6 chicken breast, diced
1-2 lbs green beans
2-3 lbs new potatoes
1 stick butter, melted
1 packet Italian seasoning dressing

1. Preheat oven to 350*
2. Put chicken, green beans, and potatoes into a 9x13 baking dish.
3. Pour butter on dish. Sprinkle Italian seasoning on top. Mix a little to cover all foods.
4. Cover dish with foil.
5. Bake for 1 hour.