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.

Stuffed and baked avocado

This came out spectacular!!

Ingredients
1/2 avocado
1/4 c shredded parmesan
Squeeze if lime wedge

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350*
2. Stuff avocado with parmesan cheese and then squeeze some lime on it.
3. Bake open faced for 15-20 minutes, until cheese melts and begins to brown.
4. Allow to cool and then dig in!

Homemade Larabars

Well, I got the blogger phone app and should be able to update a little more often. With that being said, I present to you....

Homemade chocolate chip Larabars
1.25 c pitted dates
1 c almonds or walnuts
2 T cocoa powder
1 c special dark Hershey chocolate chips

1. In a food proccessr, process nuts, cocoa powder, and dates until sticky dough forms.
2. Add chocolate chips and pulse so as not to dice them up too much.
3. Empty contents into a 9x9 baking dish. Squish it all down until evenly distributed.
4. Place in fridge for 30 minutes to harden. Then cut into sections and wrap in plastic wrap.

These should hold in fridge for about a month.... That is if you don't devour them first!

It's Nomi-licious time!

Lots of food and fun this weekend!

On the menu

• Oreo Fluff
• Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese (Hungry Girl inspiration)
• Lasagna Cupcakes (Hungry Girl inspiration)
• Cheese Chicken Enchilada Casserole (Hungry Girl inspiration)

Oreo Fluff

This stuff is amazingly good and amazingly easy to make. Unfortunately, it does not top the "healthy eats" list. But, we gotta indulge every once-in-a-while!!!

Ingredients

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 package cream cheese, softened at room temperature

1 package oreos

16oz tub of cool whip

Directions

1. Mix cream cheese and condensed milk with a hand mixer (or by had with a fork, whatever works...).

2. Fold in cool whip

3. Break oreos up.

4. Fold in oreos into mixture.

5. DEVOUR!

Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

2 C Rotini pasta (or elbow macaroni), cooked al dente

8oz cooked & shredded chicken breast

1 t chopped garlic

1/4 C Hot Sauce (my favorite is Frank's RedHot original or thick)

1/2 C plain greek yogurt

2 wedges of Laughing Cow light cheese wedge

2 t yellow mustard

1 1/2 t grated parmesan

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Bring a skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Add chicken, garlic, and 3 T of hot sauce. Mix thoroughly and set aside.

3. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine greek yogurt, cheese wedges, mustard, and 1 T of hot sauce. Mix well and heat in the microwave for 30 seconds.

4. Spray an 8x8in baking pan with nonstick spray. Evenly place half of the pasta into the pan. Evenly top with the chicken mixture followed by the remaining pasta.

5. Add the greek yogurt mixture to the pan in an even layer. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

6. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly.

7. DEVOUR!

Makes 4 servings.

Nutritional Info (1 servings): 288 calories, 25g carbs, 3g fat, 18g protein, 560mg sodium, 4g sugar

Lasagna Cupcakes

I've made these before and received so many questions on the recipe. So, here ya go!

Ingredients

1 package ground turkey (the leaner, the better)

1 package of sliced mushrooms

1 14.5 C of diced tomatoes (crushed will work as well)

1 1/2 t chopped garlic

1/2 t Italian seasoning

9-10oz package of fresh baby spinach

1 1/2 C fat-free ricotta

2 egg whites

24 small square wonton wrappers (find them in the tofu section at the grocery store)

1 1/2 C shredded park-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Bring a large skilled sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat. Add turkey and season with 1/8 t salt and pepper. Cook and crumble until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

3. Add mushrooms and stir often until mushrooms are soft and turkey is cooked through, about 6 minutes.

4. Reduce heat to low. Add crushed tomatoes, 1 t garlic, and Italian seasoning to the skillet. Stirring occasionally, simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside.

5. Wilt spinach in a skillet sprayed with nonstick spray on medium heat.

6. In a bowl, combine spinach, ricotta cheese, egg whites, 1/8 t salt, and 1/2 t garlic. Mix well & set aside.

7. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray, and press wonton wrapper into each cup of the pan. 

8. Evenly distribute about half of the spinach-ricotta mixture among the cups, smoothing the surfaces with the back of a spoon.

9. Evenly distribute about half of the turkey mixture among the cups, smoothing the surfaces with the back of a spoon.

10. Top each turkey layer with 1 T mozzarella cheese.

11. Place another wonton wrapper into each cup, lightly pressing it down on the cheese layer and along the sides of the cup, letting the edges fall over the pan.

12. Repeat layering by evenly distributing remaining spinach-ricotta mixture and turkey mixture among the cups. Top each cup with 1 T mozzarella cheese.

13. Bake for about 10 minutes, until cheese has melted and edges are browned

14. Allow to cool before you DEVOUR!

Makes 24 servings.

Nutritional Info (per cupcake): 78 cals, 6g carbs, 2g fat, 9g protein, 178mg sodium, 1g sugar

Cheese Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients

6-8 oz cooked and shredded chicken breast

1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 C green enchilada sauce

1 1/2 - 2 C cooked brown rice OR quinoa (or both!!)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Spray an 8x8 baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside.

3. In a bowl, add chicken, 1/4 C cheese, and 1/2 C enchilada sauce. Mix well and set aside.

4. Evenly distribute rice in the baking pan. Top the rice layer with the chicken mixture.

5. Sprinkle 1/4 C cheddar cheese on top of the chicken mixture.

6. Bake for about 10 minutes, until cheese has melted and starting to bubble.

7. DEVOUR!

Nutritional Info: 219 cals, 19g carbs, 7g fat, 15g protein, 316mg sodium, 0g sugar

It's been a wee-bit too long!

I truly apologize, from the bottom of my heart, for the extremely long lapse in posts. I was busy studying for a very important certification relating to my career. Good news though... I passed.

Well, I don't want to bore you all too much so here's what's on the menu this week...

• Butternut Squash & Chicken Foil Pack (adapted from Hungry Girl)
• Zucchini Foil Pack  (adapted from Hungry Girl)
• Taco Tilapia/Chicken Foil Pack  (adapted from Hungry Girl)
• EASY Homemade Strawberry Jam
• Mini Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Muffins
• Pizza "loaf"

Butternut Squash & Chicken Foil Pack

Ingredients

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 C greek yogurt

1 t chopped garlic

2 C peeled and chopped butternut squash (about 1 squash)

1 C chopped onion (about 1 medium onion)

10-12oz chicken breast, diced

salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°

2. In a bowl, combine soup, greek yogurt, and garlic. Mix well. Then add squash and onion. Stir to coat.

3. Last a large piece of heavy-duty foil on a baking sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Lay veggie mixture on the foil.

4. Season chicken with salt & pepper and lay on top of the veggie mixture.

5. Place another large piece of foil on top. Fold together and seal all four edges of the 2 foil pieces, forming a well-sealed packet.

6. Bake for about 40 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

7. Mix well & serve. Season with additional salt & pepper if you would like.\

Makes 4 servings

Nutritional Stats: 340 cals; 32 carb; 6 fat; 42 Protein; 347 Sodium; 1 fiber

Zucchini Foil Pack

Ingredients

2 zucchini (one regular, one yellow)

1/2 C onion, diced

1 t light whipped butter (like Brummel & Brown... yum!)

1/8 t dried oregano

Dash of salt & pepper

1/2 t chopped garlic

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°

2. Thinly slice each zucchini lengthwise, forming wide flat strips. Cut strips in half width-wise and set aside.

3. Lay a large piece of heavy-duty foil on a baking sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Place sliced zucchini and onion int he center of the foil.

4. Top veggies with 2 evenly spaced dollops of butter. Sprinkle with oregano, salt, and pepper. Top with garlic.

5. Place another large piece of foil over the veggies. Fold together and seal all four edges of the 2 foil pieces, forming a well-sealed packet.

6. Bake for about 20 minutes, until veggies are soft.

Makes 4 servings

Nutritional Stats: 66 cals; 11 carb; 2 fat; 3 Protein; 50 Sodium; 3 fiber

Taco Tilapia/Chicken Foil Pack

Ingredients

2- 4oz tilapia fillets

2- 4oz chicken breasts

1 medium onion, chopped

2 t taco seasoning mix

4 t lime juice

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°

2. Place fish/chicken and veggies in a bowl (2 separate bowls), spray with a light mist of nonstick spray. Sprinkle with taco seasoning and lime juice. Toss to combine.

3. Lay a large piece of heavy-duty foil on a baking sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Transfer fish/chicken and veggie mix to the center of the foil pieces (you may wan to separate fish & chicken foil packs)

4. Fold together and seal the top and bottom edges of the foil, and then the side edges, to create a well-sealed packet.

5. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Makes 2 servings of tilapia  & 2 servings of chicken

Nutritional Stats: 126 cals; 3 carb; 2 fat; 23 Protein; 135 Sodium; 0 fiber

EASY Homemade Strawberry Jam

Ingredients

2 cups of strawberries

2-3 packets of truvia

2 T chia seeds

(seriously, that's it!)

Directions

1. Cut stems off of strawberries & pulse to break them up (but not puree them)

2. Place in container. Stir in truvia & chia seeds.

3. Allow to sit in fridge for at least an hour before digging in (overnight for best results)

4. Enjoy it over the mini protein muffins. mmmm.

Makes ? servings (i'll work on that this week)

Mini Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Muffins

Ingredients

3 egg whites

1/2 C canned pumpkin

8 Truvia packets

2 Scoops protein powder (preferable chocolate, but anything you have will work as well)

2 t coco powder

10 T PB2

1/2 t baking soda

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°

2. Mix eggs, canned pumpkin, and truvia together.

3. Add protein powder, coco powder, PB2, and baking soda.

4. Spoon into mini cupcake pan (you can use a regular cupcake pan as well, but the nutritional stats will be doubled)

4. Bake for 13-15 minutes.

Makes 24 mini servings

Nutritional Stats: 25 cals; 3 carb; 0 fat; 3 protein; 64 Sodium; 0 fiber

Pizza "Loaf"

Ingredients

1 can pillbury pizza crust

1/2 C pizza sauce (or more to taste)

1/2 C shredded pizza cheese (or more to taste)

2oz of mini turkey pepperoni (or toppings of choice)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to temperature stated on the can of dough.

2. Roll out dough into a rectangular shape

3. Spread pizza sauce into the middle of the dough

4. Sprinkle cheese on top of the sauce.

5. Sprinkle pepperonis (or topping of choice) on top of the cheese

6. Cut slits on the long sides of the dough (like ribbon), equal amounts on each side

7. Braid the slits down the pizza to close it at the top

8. Bake for the recommended time on the can (usually 12-15 minutes).

9. Allow 5-6 minutes to cool.

10. Cut into 6 pieces and devour!

Makes 6 servings

Nutritional Stats: 185 cals; 19 carb; 9 fat; 8 Protein; 706 Sodium; 2 fiber