Good Food Lately

Matt and I have made some great things lately and I wanted to share them with you!

First, this quinoa casserole is so good. It may not be the prettiest food in the world, but we both LOVED it!

Cheddar Chicken & Quinoa Bake 

Image and Recipe from Running To The Kitchen

We added zucchini and used 2% cheddar (not white cheddar).

I recently made my own homemade gluten free granola. It was so easy! And much less expensive than the fancy gluten free granola brands at Whole Foods.

Gluten Free Granola

Picture & Recipe adapted from Wheat Free Mom

I used the recipe (linked above) as a guide to make my own granola. I sort of threw it together, but here were my steps:

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl: 3 cups GF Oats, two large handfuls of mixed nuts, a large handful of unsweetened coconut, a couple generous dashes of cinnamon, a dash of ginger, salt. 

Heat wet ingredients on the stove top together: 1/3 cup coconut oil, 1/3 cup honey, 1/3 cup agave syrup. 

Then mix the wet ingredients into the dry. Spread on a cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil and bake at 325 for 20 minutes. Let cook, and mix in craisins and raisins (amount to your liking). 

Very simple! You don't have to be exact with it, just add in what you like :) I like to eat it with plain 0% Fage greek yogurt (no sugar added) and half a banana.

Accidental Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Made from this pin, but the end result will not look like the picture below!

This "recipe" is sort of a funny story. I had pinned this "healthy Wendy's Frosty", and the caption read: "skinny shake that tastes like wendy's frosty ¦ 3/4 cup almond milk, about 15 ice cubes, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1-2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/3 of a banana."

Well, the caption left off a couple key ingredients that were in the recipe when you clicked through, like vanilla protein powder (what makes the shake in the picture above creamy and Wendy's Frosty like).

When I realized what had happened, I threw in the rest of the banana and also a handful of coconut to give it bit more flavor. So the total mix of ingredients used were: 3/4 cup almond milk (I had unsweetened on hand), about 15 ice cubes, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1-2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (I did one heaping spoonful), one banana, handful of unsweetened coconut. 

Although the end result was a mistake, it ended up being a really good and really refreshing low calorie/healthy afternoon pick me up.

Protein Packed Peanut Butter Popcorn

Eating healthy and clean has become a big part of our (my husband and I) lives, and I know there are many of you out there who follow the same lifestyle. And because of this, I've decided to start sharing with you some of our favorite meals and snacks.

Since the beginning of the year, I've been eating mostly gluten free but recently decided to go all the way GF and stick with it. One big staple in my GF diet is popcorn.. I love it! I've also started going to evening workouts that are 5:30 and 6:30, so I have had the need for a protein filled snack in the afternoon. So this is how I came up with my peanut butter popcorn!

You can very easily make your own popcorn at home, but this popcorn is my go to. It's perfectly seasoned and easy :) One serving is 4 cups, but for this snack I just used 2 cups since I added other elements. Here is my rough "recipe":

Protein Packed Peanut Butter Popcorn

2 cups of popcorn

1 tbsp of peanut butter (I used creamy organic, no sugar added)

Drizzle of Honey

Small handful of trail mix

Heat up the 1 tbsp of peanut butter in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.. you want it to be good and melty. Stir in a drizzle of honey into the melted peanut butter, and then pour over the popcorn. Mix with your hands (it's okay to get messy!) Then sprinkle in a small handful of trail mix. 

EASY! And so good. It will definitely help fuel an early evening cardio session :)

Shrimp & Spinach Enchiladas with Cilantra Jalapeno Cream Sauce

I don't often post recipes, but as you know yesterday was Cinco De Mayo and what better way to celebrate than with Mexican food (my favorite)?

I originally found this recipe via Pinterest from Damn Delicious:

image via Damn Delicious

It looked amazing, but I'm not a huge fan of cooked carrots or cabbage, so I simplified things and just did spinach and shrimp.

Roasted Shrimp Enchiladas with Jalapeño Cream Sauce (adapted from Damn Delicious):

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 - 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (I used 1/2 lb)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 4-5 cups baby spinach, lightly chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped chipotle pepper, in adobo sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 12 (6-inch) corn tortillas, warmed
• 2 cups white cheddar cheese (I used sharp)

For the jalapeño cream sauce:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (my GF friends could use cornstarch or GF flour)
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tbsp whipped cream cheese (I had this on hand, I love cream cheese, so I threw it in to make the sauce extra creamy. This can be omitted.)
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and minced
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.

Place the shrimp onto the prepared baking sheet. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper, to taste, and gently toss to combine.

Place into oven and roast just until pink, firm and cooked through, about 6-8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool before dicing into bite-size pieces.

Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9x13 baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions become translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the spinach, chipotle pepper, oregano and cayenne. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the spinach just begins to wilt, about 1-2 minutes. Add the shrimp and gently toss to combine.

To make the sauce, melt the butter in a large saucepan. Whisk in the flour until lightly browned, about 1-2 minutes. Gradually whisk in the chicken stock and cook, whisking constantly, until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in the sour cream and cream cheese. Add the jalapeños and garlic powder and simmer unitl the sauce has thickened, about 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Remove from heat and stir in the cilantro.

Heat the tortillas one by one on a skillet (this prevents them from cracking).

To assemble the enchiladas, lay the tortilla on a flat surface and spoon 1/3 cup of the shrimp mixture in the center; sprinkle with cheese. Roll the tortilla and place seam side down onto prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas and shrimp mixture.

Pour half of the jalapeño cream sauce evenly over the top. Place into oven and bake, covered, until lightly golden and bubbly, about 20 minutes.

Serve immediately with remaining jalapeño cream sauce, garnished with cilantro.

 

I ate my yummy enchiladas with a side of mango and a cold beer.. Happy Cinco De Mayo to me!

Back At It

I'm home! I got home Wednesday night and it feels good to be home :) I had an amazing time in San Francisco and Denver and I will tell you all about it on Monday! Since being back, I've been playing major catch up (isn't that always fun?!)

I don't know about you, but when I'm traveling, and especially in airports, it's as if whatever I eat doesn't "count".  I find myself in the "News" stores buying extremely overpriced bags of gummy bears and chocolate covered raisins (sooo not "clean" eating, I know!)

While sitting in the airport eating my Raisinets, I kept thinking how easy it would be to make my own. So I did some googling and found this great recipe:

3 Ingredient Chocolate Covered Raisins by Oh She Glows

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup organic dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
• Approx 1.5 cups raisins

Directions: Place chocolate chips and coconut oil in a medium sized bowl and heat for approx. 1 minute on high in the microwave. Stir very well until all clumps are gone. Now take the raisins, 1/2 cup at a time and stir into the chocolate. Pour raisin mixture onto a large plate lined with parchment paper and spread into a thin layer. Place in freezer to firm for about 5-10 minutes. Break apart the raisins with fingers and serve! Keep leftovers in the fridge.

Recipe and image above from Oh She Glows! Click here to read more about it.

I can't wait to try these, but I'm going to wait a bit considering how much I overindulged while away ;)

I'll be back on Monday to tell you all about my trip!!

Food "Pinsperation"

Let's talk about food.. my husband and I have been eating "clean" for about a year now and we're never looking back. It's really terrifying how many chemicals people in this country eat and consider it "food". I won't start preaching about this issue, but think about this: long ago, "organic" food didn't exist, because all food was organic. Now, we have to have different sections, even different stores (Whole Foods, Earth Fare), just to find real food. It's really sad if you think about it.

ANYWAY, I'm not posting to preach.. but to share some of our favorite recent recipes! All of these recipes came from Pinterest, but sometimes you don't know what will end up being good or not until you make it. So I "taste tested" these for you, and they are awesome!

Skillet Lasagna

Our Healthy/Clean Eating Modifications:
- Quinoa pasta instead of lasagna noodles (we only eat quinoa pasta now). Usually we use Rotelle or Elbows.
- Ground Turkey instead of Ground Beef

Baked Tacos

Our Healthy/Clean Eating Modifications:
- Ground Chicken instead of Ground Beef
- Organic Shells
- We don't use packets of seasonings, but what we have in the pantry (chili powder, cumin, etc)

Whole Wheat Waffles

This recipe is very "real", so we followed it exactly. I topped it with a little cream cheese and (all natural/no refined sugar) fruit preserves. Here is a note about sugar... it's added to EVERYTHING. If you are used to Eggos and such, you'll think these waffles are incredibly bland. But that's one big problem with how our country eats today... I try to eat as little sugar as I can (unless it's in fruit... which I eat a TON of!)


Also I have to note that my husband does ALL the cooking in our house. He is sooo so so good at it and he loves it. Ever since we've started eating healthy, he has gotten even better since he's had to get creative. I've actually started thinking about posting some of the recipes he makes on my blog. We'll see!

If you want to learn more about clean eating, check this site.. it's a great start! 

Sirloin & Blue Cheese Salad

It's been a while since I've posted any cooking posts, but I have one for you tonight! Today was beautiful... it was warm with a cool breeze, and Matt and I laid by the pool. Then for dinner we had this great warm weather meal:



My husband, the chef in the family, did an amazing job on this recipe from Cooking Light:

SIRLOIN & BLUE CHEESE SALAD

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 1 pound lean sirloin steak, trimmed
• Cooking spray
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 cups torn Bibb lettuce
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced peeled cucumber
• 1 cup red bell pepper strips
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
• 1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled blue cheese

Preparation

1. Combine chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper; rub evenly over both sides of steak.

2. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add steak to pan; cook 5 minutes. Turn steak over; cook 4 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Place steak on a cutting board; let stand 5 minutes. Cut across grain into thin slices.

3. Combine vinegar, mustard, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon black pepper in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Gradually add oil, stirring with a whisk. Combine lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper, and shallots in a large bowl. Drizzle vinaigrette over salad; toss gently to coat. Top salad with steak and cheese.

The homemade dressing was amazing and even though the salad and steak are plated separately in the above photo, I ate mine together and it was soooo good.