Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Pudding Popa

I had a really good day today. I woke up this morning feeling awfully creative, when I decided to hit up Instaturd for a few recipe ideas. I follow this nice young lady named get fit_feel sexy (no user name judgement at all) that posts super good ideas. Sometimes, they're a little meh (zucchini scones) and sometimes I freak out at how awesome they are. So today, she made a variation of this wonderful fro yo recipe she has. As you all may or may not know, I love sweets. I'm nutty for any sort of almond, peanut, or cashew butter; I could eat an entire cheesecake to myself; chocolate cannot be kept in my house; small delicious little pastries are my... you get the point. Anyways, these fro yo pops are awesome. She made a variation that included cinnamon. Although I do love me some spicy cinnamon, I was feeling chocolatey today, so I mixed it up. Ah, the beauty of cooking.

You'll need: 

1. Popsicle containers. Bed Bath and Beyond sells them for $5. Score.

2. 1 cup of Greek yogurt

3. 2 scoops of peanut butter protein

4. 8 sweetner packets

5. 1 tbsp. of coffee

6. 4 tbsp. of chocolate almond milk

7. 2 tbsp. chia seeds (optional)

8. 2 tbsp. Walden Farm zero calorie chocolate syrup

How to?

1. Mix everything together, separate recipe into each pop container, and freeze it. Easy. Awesome. Super yummy. 

This recipe can be used to make protein pudding as well. Exact same ingredients, but chia seeds are mandatory and you'll need 3 tablespoons, not 2. Also a really great treat for those tough nights.

For the pops, each pop is about 120 calories and 23 grams of protein. WHAT?! Yep.

SM

Jamie Eason Pumpkin Protein bars

Holyshitthisrecipeisamazing. If you don't make this amazingness of amazing, you may gone through the rest of your life a sad person because you never ate an awesome piece of awesome. So Jamie Eason is a spokesperson for bodybuilding.com and also a fitness writer/model/competitor. Whatev. She's awesome. And she makes bomb food. Check this out.

You'll need:

1. 1/2 cup of brown sugar Splenda. (Yes Splenda. Sue me.)

2. 4 oz. of apple sauce

3. 2 tsp. of cinnamon

4. 1.5 tsp. of ginger

5. 1/2 tsp. clove

6. 1 tsp. baking powder

7. 1 tsp. baking soda

8. 1/2 tsp. salt

9. 2 tsp. vanilla extract

10. 4 large egg whites

11. 15 oz. can of pumpkin

12. 2 c. oat flour (If you can find gluten free, do itttt.)

13. 2 cups of vanilla protein

14. 1/2 c. coconut milk

How to:

1. Preheat the oven to 350.

2. Mix all your wet ingredients together.

3. Mix all of your dry ingredients together and incorporate with the wet (ha) slowly. 

4. Spray a pyrex pan with cooking spray.

5. Pour everything into the pan and pop it in the oven for 30 minutes. 

Enjoy.

This makes 24 squares. Each square is 47 calories and roughly 4 grams of protein. Noms. I like it with my coffee in the mornings, or just as a little snacky snack mid-afternoon. Yes please.

Eat clean. Live clean. 

SM

Egg Souffle Nom Noms

I found a super yummy and super easy recipes that's great for making ahead for the week. Lots of protein and nearly no carbs. Oh, and it tastes amazing. WHAT?!

You'll need:

1. 30 (yes 30) egg whites. (Buy the super big pack at Costco)

2. 1 package of 90/10 turkey sausage. We used Jennie-O

3. 2 cups of spinach

4. 2 large bell peppers

5. Half of a white onion, diced

6. Salt and pepper to taste

So what do you do?

1. Preheat the oven to 400.

2. Cook all of your sausages. I just put them in a pan with cooking spray. They need to be cooked through. Raw sausage...not kosher. 

3. Dice your onion and peppers. Cut your spinach so it's easier to work with. 

4. Cut your sausages into smaller pieces. 

5. Mix all of your ingredients in a giant bowl.

6. Spray a pyrex pan with cooking spray and pop it in the oven for 40 minutes. 

I cut it into 8 servings. Each is roughly 160 calories with 23 grams of protein. Put salsa on it. Put Chalula on it. Noms. 

Enjoy. 

Smooshy Protein Pie

Yesterday, I went to town on cooking for the week. Mom and I did turkey loaf, which I may or may not have posted already, baked veggies, broccoli, quinoa, hard boiled eggs, Jamie Eason pumpkin protein bread, blueberry scones (needs some work), chicken, spaghetti squash, and... that's all. We were crazy! All of these recipes are fantastic, don't get me wrong. And I'll post all of them eventually if I haven't already. I started following instafitness, or something of the like on Instagram, and they just have the most creative ideas! It's kind of D-bagish, I'm not going to lie. But I had to jump on the cool kid wagon! These ideas are awesome! Originally the recipe called for vanilla whey and blueberries. Well I didn't have no stinkin' blueberries, nor did we have vanilla whey. But I did have chocolate whey and bananas. My recipe is bomb. Check it.

Need:

1. 3 cups of oats

2. 6 scoops of chocolate why

3. cinnamon to taste

4. 2 egg whites

5. 3.5 cups of coconut milk

6. 8 packets of artificial sweetener

7. 1.5 medium bananas

8. 2 tbsp. natural peanut butter (None of that Jiffy crap. That shit will kill you.) Next time we make it, I'm going to sub out the peanut butter with PB2 to cut that fat content. 

9. 1 teaspoon of baking powder

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375. 

2. Mash the crap out of the bananas. Add whites, coconut milk, and peanut butter (if your not using PB2). If you are using peanut butter, let it come to room temperature before you add it in. Makes the next step a teensy bit easier. 

3. Beat your wet ingredients. Slowly add your oats, whey, cinnamon, sweetener, and baking powder. Continue beating until you achieve a smooth consistency. 

4. Using Pam or your favorite nonstick spray, spray a pan and add the batter. This is where it gets tricky. The consistency of this wonderfulness isn't really pie like. It's more bread like. Really you should you a 12X8 pan. I didn't have a 12X8 pan. I had a ginormous Costco size pie pan though. Viola...my bread became a pie. If you have a ginormous Costco size pie pan, use that. If your a normal person and you don't, use a 12X8. That will be just fine.

5. Bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes. Enjoy.

Serves 8 if your a man, and 16 if you're a lady.

This is awesome in the morning to get a good dose of carbs before a morning workout. I hope you guys like it.

SM

Spaghetti Squash

I love spaghetti squash. It can be a pain in the ass to cook, but my mom and I have figured it out. Since then, it's saved me during pasta cravings. I'm not big on savory foods: I'd take a big bowl of Ben & Jerry's over a steak any day. But I do love Italian. It's a glutenous little indulgence that I like to savor in every now and then. Here's a recipe that Mama Moff and I have made time and time again. Loaded with veggies, it will fill you up fast and keep you going for several hours. To give credit where credit is due, this is definitely not my recipe. It's from a wonderful cyber chef out there in the blog world, though I cannot remember the name of the nice young lady who created it. To the chef out there who put this together, thank you.

You'll need:

1. 1 large spaghetti squash. The meat will make about 3 1/2 cups of squash.

2. 2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil. I do love coconut oil, but EVOO is better for this one.

3. 2 cloves of garlic, minced

4. 1/2 cup chopped red onion

5. 3/4 cup chopped button mushrooms

6. 1 large carrot, chopped

7. 1/2 chopped bell pepper. Any color is fine. Red and orange work best.

8. 2 cups spinach

9. 1/2 cup diced tomatoes

10. 1/4 cup Panko

11. 1 cup low-sugar marinara. If you can make it yourself, do it. If not, try Traditional Prego, Light Smart. It's aight.

12. Basil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste

13. 1/4-1/2 cup shredded cheese. Be careful with this because some cheese can pack in a shit load of fat. I use Vegan cheese, but whatever is good for you.

14. Nutritional yeast for topping. It's just like Parmesan cheese. If you can't find it, Parmesan is fine. Again, just be gentle. 

Note: I add more veggies than this usually to cut calorie and add bulk.

1. Preheat the oven to 375. 

2. Slice the spaghetti squash in half. There are a couple of ways to soften the meat. You can either place it on a cookie sheet and bake it for roughly 40 minutes. This sounds nice and all, but it takes too long. Another way is to cut it in half, place the squash facing up in a microwave safe dish. Fill the dish with water until it hits the middle of the squash. Place a piece of plastic wrap over the dish and microwave for 10-12minutes on high. Makes things go faster. Trust.

3. While the squash is cooking, chop all your ingredients. In a very large pan, almost wok size if you have it, sauté garlic and onion with your olive oil. Add carrots, mushrooms, and pepper, followed by tomatoes and spinach. There really isn't a wrong way to do this. Just do the spinach last or it will get gross.

4. Once the squash is done cooking and it's cooled for a few minutes, scrape it all into a large bowl. Keep the shells. You'll need them.

5. Add sautéed veggies, Panko, 3/4 cup of marinara, 1/4 cup of cheese, and spices and mix it all up into a big mess. 

6. Once mixed, divide it into the two shells. Top with the remaining marinara and nutritional yeast. If you want to add cheese on top too, knock yourself out.

 7. Bake for 10 minutes and enjoy.

I love this for dinner with added chicken. My recipe is a bit cleaner than the original, so I can tell you that it's super low in calorie and high in fiber. This one is a little more work, but totally worth it.

SM

Pumpkin Protein Muffins

It's only July, and most would say it's too early for pumpkin. I, however, am a huge fan of all things pumpkin. Try these little noms for a morning booster or paired with Greek yogurt. To die for.

1. One cup canned pumpkin

2. Half cup applesauce

3. Half cup Fage

4. Three egg whites

5. One cup coconut flour 

6. One cup sweetener of your choice. I use Splenda, but if you use a stevia option, cut it down to a half cup.

7. One scoop vanilla whey

8. One teaspoon baking soda

9. Two teaspoons baking powder

10. 1/4 teaspon salt

11. Cinnamon, clove, and all spice until you think it will taste good

1.  Preheat your oven to 350. 

2. Mix all your dry ingredients in a large bowl.

3. Mix all your wet ingredients and combine. 

4. Scoop mixture evenly into 12 individual muffin tins.

5. Bake for 26-28 minutes. 

Enjoy. 

I'm so happy I found/created this guy. Perfect for a sweet tooth fix. 

SM

Strong is the new Skinny

Do you track your food? I can tell you that I have records of what I've eaten nearly everyday for the last   six years or so. Obsessive? Maybe. When I look back at how my eating has changed, I'm blown away. In high school, I struggled with my weight. The majority of my friends were petite and super adorable, and I was this awkward, kinda hefty, gigantically tall person with big knockers. It made me sad. Even my best friends made fun of me. (You know who you are hoe. Ha. Love you chick.) When I turned 16, I decided I didn't like being that way anymore, so I sought other methods (most dangerous and unhealthy) to lose weight. By 18, a lot of it had come off. But 20, it was right back on.

I met my first trainer was 21. He introduced me to clean, simple eating and working out. Over the last few years, I've changed my outlook on what I think is beautiful. I now value my health more than a size zero tag on a pair of expensive jeans. I personally think that muscle and shape is far sexier than a walking stick. I eat the way I do and work out the way I do because I enjoy it. I don't need to explain it to anyone, nor justify my reasons for ordering my chicken grilled dry. This is me; this is what I am and who I want to be.

I've set five goals for myself in the next five years. 

1. Graduate. Numero uno. 

2. Move out. Baby bird needs to fly.

3. Get a job. A real job. Maybe one that offers benefits and a retirement? (The hair on my neck just stood up.)

4. Compete in an NPC show

5. The fifth goal is personal. But it's awesome too.

I think these are reasonable. And I'm going to do all of this while tracking my food, working out five to six days a week, and working. Boom.

Summer 2011

Summer 2012

Track yourself. 

SM