Merry Christmas

Good Morning World! It's Christmas Morning. You would think it would be a zoo in here but it is absolutely silent. It is 7:00 and all my family is still sleeping away. I was the one up and felt like I slept in but that's ok. They all in one way or another have been feeling a little off with colds and flus and general just over doing it. My poor hubby and Emma Grace have been sharing a cold and Alex' tummy has been off from not eating well and Alicea went on a marathon of finals and a trip to Disneyland then drove all the way home. So I guess we all needed some sleep. So I am sitting here waiting for them all and reflecting on our wonderful year together. My wish to all of you is to enjoy your family not just today but every day of the year. Have a wonderful and Merry Christmas! 

Pushing through Struggles

Many of us struggle this time of year to workout and may have many reasons. One I hear often is being stiff or in pain. It's also one I used to use I have had 4 knee surgeries in my life, starting at 18 years old. I was an athlete and ballet dancer for the majority of my life. This last couple of weeks it's been extremely cold and my knees have been killing me, once my knees start to hurt it spreads throughout my lower body and lower back making it difficult to walk.  

I've struggled to get 3 workouts a week in when my norm is 4-5. As I started to feel myself slipping in to the abyss of self loathing I remembered the reason I started Beachbody last April to begin with. It was to build strength so I could stop being in pain and missing out on activities that I loved. So this morning with my house at 60 degrees and me limping around I got on the treadmill and walked. I have to tell you at first it hurt and I considered stopping but pushed on and ended up feeling great and starting my day off great. 

So I challenge you, I encourage you all with old injuries acting up, joints that are swelling, conditions that worsen in the cold to get out there, don't quit. Maybe you can't do a full workout right now but you can walk you can stretch. Stream a low impact workout on your Beachbody On Demand, try Plyo Fix on 21 Day Fix, try a Yoga  workout. It will make you feel so good I promise. 

Transformation in Progress

So many of us get in our own way of being successful whether it be in our jobs, our family or our health. I did it too, I made excuses for my lack of motivation. For me, it was always I'm too busy, I'm in too much pain. But hopefully one day a spark, a moment of clarity will prompt you to make a change. Mine was 4 years ago. 4 years ago I was 40 lbs heavier, exhausted and in pain. I lived on triple mochas, iced tea, coca cola, CAFFEINE.....I had to have it to keep going. I was like most of the woman my age searching for the newest fad diet, Atkins, The Suzzane Summers Diet, Weight Watchers, whatever I could do with the littlest amount of effort. I kept wondering why it didn't make a difference and my bosses wife would laugh at us girls in the office and she would say, "When you are serious I can help you." And then my day came, it was in the winter and I could barely walk down the stairs. I have had 4 knee surgeries and without continued strength training I would be in constant pain. So exhausted and in pain I came to her and said, "I'm ready". I began to meet with her once a week. We talked about diet, exercise and personal well being. After 4 months I began to understand clean eating, proper diet and exercise. I lost 34 lbs. in 4 months just by changing my eating habits and have continued clean eating and my nutrition. But the one thing I still couldn't make work no matter how I tried was getting my workouts in. I would constantly cancel or leave the gym because of work and she kept telling me to check out Tony Horton 10 min Trainer. It took me almost 3 years to finally check it out and near the same time I was asked to be part of a Challenge Group which took all the things I had learned from her with a workout I could do from home. I was so excited. A program that had all the things I had learned with a low impact workout I could actually do! So I started my first group and love of Chalene Johnson with PiYo. I have new goals now, to continue to work hard with my own health and fitness and to help as many others to live a healthy lifestyle.I have found a company, Beachbody that has the same beliefs and long term help in lifestyle to help me achieve my goals.  From that point on I have made the decision to never go back. I will always strive to be healthy, happy and teach my children and others how they can do it too.   

I have become so passionate about helping others and my family is the people I want to help the most. My sister Erin has an amazing story and I am in awe of the strength she has shown me. 

Erin's Story:

I am a mother of 2 ages 14 and 9. I have been with their father for 16 years this month. I have been overweight from teenage years to Adult. I have struggled with self esteem and insecurities most of my life as well. My problem with weight loss is I lack motivation and assurance that it is possible for me to do it by myself. I look for people who motivate me to reach this goal of weight loss. I have dieted for a long time which has resulted in weight loss and then getting stuck and loosing the will to continue. Its so easy to give up when things don't happen right away or stop at a certain point. I had a good success in 2009 I was going to the gym on a regular basis and then couldn't afford it so stopped going and doing the healthy things altogether. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia 9 years ago. It causes joint stiffness to the point I can barely get out of bed or walk some days. I'm tired very easy, my back aches, along with many other things. When I workout im down for a day or two sometimes more depending how my body decides to react that day. I try to push through most days and keep telling myself I can do this. As far as eating goes, im not much of a sweet eating person my worst habit is salty foods like chips. Also my portion control is not so great. Some days I eat little some days I feel like I'm starving so eat a lot more. When I decided to get on track was when I had a weird and alarming medical episode happen in November of 2014. I noticed one day my legs were starting to get numb. I thought maybe I had a pinched nerve making my legs feel that way so I decided to wait and see if it would go away in a few days. I thought it was odd that I didn't have any back pain like a pinched nerve would give me. Then it went from numb from feet up to my chest. Then I freaked out. This was on week 2. I decided it was time to go in. I dragged my daughter to the ER with me thinking it would be something minor and I was freaking myself out. As they Triaged me they looked puzzled but alarmed at the same time. They called a Neurologist Specialist right away stating they thought maybe it was MS. I was so nervous and scared to death that it could be MS. The Specialist came and did a brain MRI and some routine tests and decided a Lumbar Puncture the next day so they admitted me. After 3-4 days in the hospital they determined it was Transverse Myelitis. 

(Transverse myelitis is an inflammation of the spinal cord, which often targets insulating material covering nerve cell fibers (myelin). Transverse myelitis may result in injury across the spinal cord, affecting sensation below the injury. The disrupted transmission of nerve signals due to transverse myelitis can cause pain or other sensory problems, weakness or paralysis of muscles, or bladder and bowel dysfunction. Several factors can cause transverse myelitis, including infections and immune system disorders that attack the body's tissues. It may also occur because of other myelin disorders, such as multiple sclerosis.) 

After this scare I decided I need to get my health under control.When I decided to loose weight I was at my highest weight ever almost 300 lbs. At that time I was drinking 7-8 cans of soda a day and sometimes more of it with absolutely no water intake at all. I decided to quit completely and only drink water mainly. I didn't really notice a difference in weight but it did take a huge toll on my teeth for all those years of excessive drinking of it. Shortly after I decided I would try to loose weight and exercise. I started working with my sister and Coach online, Sherri Degraffenreid. I lack motivation, self esteem and willpower to go through with it. Sherri gives me determination, motivation, accountability and so much more. Sometimes exercising is more painful then it should be on my joints. Sherri helps me push through with her great encouraging words, nutrition and recipes even though she is 4+ hours away from where I live. I have been struggling with weight loss almost my entire life. Since February of this year I have lost 33 lbs. I just started doing Cize from Beachbody and love it so far. I'm hoping with my awesome Coach, my shakes and workouts I can achieve my 1st goal of loosing 7 more lbs by the 1st of the year. I would highly recommend my Coach, she is very resourceful, encouraging and gives you the motivation I need. Speaking from someone who is overweight and lacks any type of motivation it can be done. It takes time and dedication and we are all worth it.

-Erin Pardue 

Revive Your Leftovers

Believe it or not I have not been in my office in 5 whole days! And WOW! What a lot have I accomplished. On one of my non-productive days I binged watched Chopped on the Food Network and found inspiration. Chopped Judges Leftover Challenge to be exact became such an inspiration. 

Here it is the end of the month and days after Thanksgiving. Many of us have nothing left in the fridge or in the pantry by this time and honestly I was thankful for the leftovers from my in laws to help carry us through on meals. 

Now there are only so many turkey sandwiches and reheated stuffing that even my husband let alone my children will eat. So today on my food prep Sunday I headed to my kitchen leftovers in hand and my inspiration from Chopped. How do you make turkey, stuffing, quinoa salad, corn casserole and roasted sweet potatoes new again. 

Here is what I made: 

Quinoa Salad Vegetable Frittata 

Sweet Potato Turkey Hash

Stuffing Waffle Sticks

Creamy Turkey Noodle Soup

Just a few ingredients from my pantry recreated all these items for dinner tonight and breakfast tomorrow. I even invited my in laws over for dinner tonight since they had past on all these items to me and they could not believe it was all made from leftovers. 

For the frittata I just added the leftover salad to the egg mixture and topped with Parmesan cheese. 

For the hash I just added onions, garlic and fresh herbs to the leftover sweet potatoes and chopped turkey. I served the hash with a sunny side up egg and chives for a finishing touch. 

For the waffle I did not add anything I just heated up the waffle iron and it did all the work. It made a crisp waffle stick which I served with the soup. 

The soup was the longest project of the day. I started by making my own stock with the turkey carcass, onions, garlic, thyme, rosemary and lemons. After it simmered for hours and I strained it I added in carrots and let them soften. Once the carrots were softened I added the corn casserole simmered for and hour or so. I then blended with my stick blender. Finally I added the chunked turkey and a handful of edamame noodles. The noodles cook fairly quickly and I served with fresh herbs on top. 

My family was completely impressed by this meal and I am so thankful for the leftovers and a little inspiration. 

Holiday Season Business

Take a look around you and take a step back to think about what really is the importance of the season. 

What do you want your children to learn from you. You want them to learn the importance of season. The meaning of Christmas....Christ, family, love, friendship, giving....

Find projects that involve the family as a whole whether it be the reading of the Christmas Story or visiting elderly relatives, volunteering at your Church or going through snapshots of family photos.  
All of us have multiple events to attend. I would welcome you to step back and look at all these events and decide which ones are truly needed or which ones you are "just showing up to." Prioritizing events will take the stress off parents and give our children a chance to enjoy the time spent with the family instead of being rushed from place to place. 

So this Holiday Season as I watch my schedule get more and more cluttered I am going to take a step back and think, "Is this what makes my family happy?" "Am I just showing up, or is this really important." 

What I Love About Coaching

Fall in Mt. Shasta. Snow falling, wood stove burning, such a peacefulness surrounds us. I sit in my chair, hot coffee, notepads and laptop to begin my research for the week. I have a smile on my face thinking about everyone in my life that is effected by what I research. 

I go through each of my challengers each one has touched my heart in some way. 
For as long as I can remember I have been called Coach-Teacher. Whether it was when I was still in high school teaching 4 and 5 year olds to walk on tip toes in ballet to high school cheerleaders or little baseball players still learning to alligator close the ball and now the many busy moms, grandmas, dads and young adults starting out their health and fitness journey. 

Coaching has always been a part of my life. 

I absolutely love helping people. Coaching is the most rewarding job.


I can remember just last year coaching with my new assistant coach and the day our team perfectly did a skill she had been responsible for teaching them. She looked at me beaming and asked "Is this why you do it?" I nodded. "It is." That moment when everything comes together and you walk in to the school and a girl runs at you almost tackling you screaming "I got straight A's! Thank you for pushing me so hard." When you receive a screen shot of the scale that says "I am down 7lbs and I feel amazing, I kept hearing you in the back of my head pushing me to finish my work out, I did it!" 

I feel so fortunate the God has blessed me with the opportunity to help others and He continues to teach me new ways to help others.

 

Fall Cooking on a Budget

I have been working on my food prep for the week and budgeting our meals. We typically go major grocery shopping once a month and then on Sundays if I am missing anything I will pick it up. This last monthly trip I got 2 whole Foster Farms chicken for $12 and during my food prep I am trying to keep track of how many meals a family of four can get from them. It got me thinking that during food prep after a Costco and Trader Joes run that I can get several meals out of many of the items I purchase and maybe with a little prep that eating healthy isn't as expensive as you think. Below are a couple of items that I have worked on for my Fall Clean Eating Group using whole chickens.

2 Foster Farms Whole Chickens:
Family of 4 Week One: One Chicken
Baked Chicken for Sunday Night Dinner
Sliced Remaining Breast Meat for Lunch Meat for 2 days of school lunches of 2 kids
Chicken Quinoa Soup with  Veggies made with homemade chicken broth from the carcass which served dinner and lunch the following day

Family of 4 Week Two: One Chicken
BBQ Chicken Dinner with the legs, wings, back
Pulled all extra meat off and shredded for tacos and salad in the crock pot
Made Chicken stock with Carcass
Used both organ packets from chicken and made pate for snacking with veggies

If you do the math each meal the protein cost less than $2.00 for a family of 4. That is pretty good cost and good for you!

Fall Cooking

It's the day after Halloween and I am sitting here cleaning up the candy wrappers and trying to get the kids calmed down after two days of Halloween activities. Today is Sunday prep day and I start to build my menu for the week and map out what needs to be prepped. This week is the first week of rain and snow in the forecast so I have decided on some warm and homey recipes. I am baking a chicken to prepare homemade lunch meat and use the carcass for soup later in the week. I got some butternut squash a Trader Joe's so before I run over to choir practice it is my main goal to get done. I like my soups to be savory instead of sweet and this one has a little kick to it. Please enjoy!

Butternut Squash Soup:

Ingredients:
1-Butternut Squash, peeled and cubed
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp red pepper chile flakes
1T Mrs. Dash Original Seasoning Blend
.5 red onion, diced
1 clove of garlic minced
1 Container of Low Sodium Organic Chicken Broth
2T Unsweetened Canned Coconut Milk
1T butter
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat Oven to 450 degrees. Toss cubed butternut squash in olive oil, ginger, chile flakes and Mrs. Dash. Roast in high heat oven for 30 mins. until squash is golden brown. In a medium pot sauté your onions and garlic in the additional tsp of oil. Cook until translucent. Add roasted butternut squash and chicken stock to the pot. Turn heat down to low and let simmer another 30 mins. Take off heat, using your stick blender puree to creamy consistency. Place back on low heat add, salt and pepper, coconut milk and finish with the butter. Let simmer 5-10 more mins and soup is ready to serve.

Priorities vs. Schedule

As I sit here on a Monday morning looking at the things I didn't get done on my usual Sunday Prep Day I feel strangely relaxed. Why? Well this last week was packed full of emotionally draining tasks for our family but this weekend was all about our family coming together as one and so instead of stressing that food prep and kid prep tasks aren't done I am calm and happy. Happy that our family came first. Visits to the Pumpkin Patch with cousins and supporting our oldest daughter in her college activities are what are more important. Everyone may be slow to get up and we were 5 mins late to school but that's ok. We have important memories from this weekend. Daddy hugging his oldest daughter and telling her how much his loves her and is so proud of her brings me to tears just glancing back at that memory. Cousins holding hands running through the corn maze laughing brings a smile to my face. So I sit here thanking God for the wonderful weekend and memories he has given me and decide that cooking and cleaning can be done a different day!

"How Do You Do It All" Priorities

I often have people in my life who ask me how I do it all. I work, I play, I am involved with everything. I would like to say that a few years ago while conducting a meeting for my daughter's 8th grade trip I had a moment of clarity about "doing it all". It's all about priorities. Priorities.....
When people say to you "I don't have time" "I can't volunteer" " I can't coach" " I can't chaperone" Really what they are saying is it isn't a priority. Yes a Priority. In my life I have lots priorities and my husband, my kids, my family, my church, my career, my team are all priorities. In order for all of them to feel like a priority and to get everything done that surrounds that priority I do a few very important things.
First I identify my priorities. And even within them there are some that rank higher than others. My husband and my kids rank above all others and keep me the busiest. In order to keep a house that runs smoothly and doesn't stress out others I run a pretty tight ship. Any one of my children can tell you what is done on a certain day and especially on Sundays. My children have been well trained and are used to a schedule since birth. From early childhood, scheduled mealtimes and naps to now with chores and homework.

So Secondly as you can see I am a scheduler. I schedule everything out including my meals. I grocery shop for the month with all my menu planning. Next I start gathering all those little pieces of paper all us mothers receive. The kids place them on a corkboard in the dining room for all the world to see. I then make a monthly calendar. All sports, dad's fishing trips, mom's work trips, minimum days, class trips etc. are placed on our calendar. It's distributed out to anyone who may need to see it and one copy replaces all those little papers on the clipboard. This calendar gets adjusted weekly as we all know plans may change and something happens, almost always more gets added.

Next, the schedule, the meal planning and the set up goes from monthly to weekly. I have a very important day once a week. SUNDAY-PREP DAY. Sundays in my house are the key to the success to my week. I am an early riser I get up do some online coaching work, we go to church, have lunch and then we clean house, laundry and food prep. While food prepping I always like to prepare a big Sunday Dinner. Something that may take a long time to prepare like short ribs or baked chicken. With my helpers we get all of our house set up. Its nice and clean to start the week, laundry done, pantry and fridge set up and finally the Little Kids pick out their clothes for their ENTIRE week. No more arguments in the morning with this time saver! Especially with little Princess girls. Probably the biggest tip I can give. We end our day with a big dinner and a family movie.

Once you have you prep done in all aspects of your life, Family, Work, Personal it really can make all the difference and your days will run so much smoother.

Lastly, as I said I am an early riser before anyone in the house is up I could have accomplished 5 or 6 things. I get up early, have my coffee in complete silence and make my "Have to List" and my "Wish List". Your have to list is the things that must get done and the wish list is the things you hope you can get to but the world won't stop if you don't. After I have made my list a schedule reminders in my phone to keep me on track. I have very set times for social media never getting on during working hours, no aimless scrolling until my list and day are complete.

It really does make a huge difference in our lives when you have a few minutes to relax because you have set yourself up for success by planning ahead and prioritizing. I have found that the more I can be organized and stick to my schedule I actually have more time and less stress. Your family can feel it too. Whether you have a family and need to organize their days a little better or you run a business and need to get more done. Planning and priorities are the key to success.

Amazing and Healthy Fish Tacos

A favorite and very healthy food in our household is fish so I am always looking for ways to create another great meal. Now that summer is fast approaching and the activities do not seem to slow down and we have had a lot of fish. Both because my hubby went on a fishing trip and brought home several pounds and because it is quick, easy and a light meal when running around to the next sport. Last nights fish tacos had no mayo-based dressing just a light lime vinaigrette and a grilled striper.  I have done similar recipes with the original beer battered cod, encrusted tilapia or grilled white fish. All are amazing.

Grilled Striper Fish Tacos:

• 1 lb Striper ( any fish will work)
• Corn tortillas
• Cole slaw mix
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 2-3 limes
• red pepper paste
• 1T red wine vinegar
• avocado
• salt and pepper to taste

Season your fish with salt and pepper. In a non-stick pan sprayed with coconut oil grill your fish. Make sure you do not over cook your fish. It should be translucent in the center. This only take 8-10 mins tops depending on how thick your fish is. My striper was pretty thick.

While fish is cooking, in a small bowl combine oil, lime juice, red pepper paste and vinegar to make a vinaigrette. Take a couple handfuls of cole slaw mix and combine with the vinaigrette.

In a small non stick pan heat up your corn tortillas, then start assembling. Tortilla, cole slaw, fish and avocado.

For me 1 taco and a salad is  enough. My family likes to have black beans with theirs.

Hope you enjoy.

Ground Elk Jerky

This Weekend is Memorial Day weekend and I got so many texts and messages from my challengers on their concerns of blowing their healthy eating habits at campouts and BBQ's. On Friday I spent my day doing food prep of my own and helping a fellow challenger get her snacks together as well. I made two batches of jerky and "wheat thins", cut up fruit and veggies for snacking. Below you will see the newest version of jerky, a ground Elk version. My family particularly liked this version as it has a softer consistency and "doesn't get stuck in my teeth."

Ground Elk Jerky:

• 1 lb. ground elk
• Fresh herb mix (mine was, thyme, rosemary and chives)
• red pepper flakes
• sea salt

Mix ground elk in mixing bowl with herbs, sea salt and red pepper flakes with your hands until well combined. Using the plastic solid rack of your food dehydrator spread the mixture evenly. Place in dehydrator for 5 1/2-6 hrs. on 160 degrees. If you do not have a dehydrator spread thinly on baking sheet. Place in oven at 150 degrees for 6 hrs. When finished drying in either dehydrator or oven use pizza cutter to slice in to strips. Store in airtight container.

Turkey Meatball "Stroganoff"

Good Morning,
Last night for Dinner I made one of my husband's favorite meals but made it completely clean. It does has a bit of dairy in the way of a hard cheese in the meatballs, but not much. This meal was packed full of flavor and he even took the leftovers on the boat this morning, fishing with the guys.

Meatballs:

• 1 lb. ground turkey
• 1/2 red onion, diced
• 2 gloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup almond flour
• 3 sprigs Fresh Rosemary chopped
• 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
• Himalayan Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup Chicken Broth

Pre-heat oven 375 degrees. Saute the onions, garlic and rosemary in the coconut oil until translucent. Set aside to cool. In a bowl mix the meat, egg, flour, cheese, cooled onion mixture and salt and pepper. Mix with your hands and form meatballs. In a non-stick skillet add meatballs, brown on all sides. Add chicken broth to pan. Place in your pre-heated oven. Finish cooking about 15 mins.

Mushroom Sauce:

• 5-6 mushrooms
• 1T of butter
•  1/4 red onion, diced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 cup of Chicken Broth
• 1/4 cup of coconut milk
• 1 sprig of rosemary
• 1 tsp of fresh thyme
• Himalayan Salt and Pepper to taste

Saute onions and garlic in butter until translucent. Add mushrooms. Cook until browned. Do not salt and pepper mushrooms until they have browned. Add chicken broth and let simmer 5-6 mins. Finish with the coconut milk to give a creamy consistency.

Serve mushrooms and meatballs over ancient grains such as quinoa.

Fresh Fruit Posicles

On Mother's Day Alicea made me a beautiful healthy meal and dessert. Below is the beautiful dessert she made for me. We have mixed berry popsicles. It was the perfect sweet to the end of our meal.

 

Popsicles

• Popsicle Molds
• or use paper cups and popsicle sticks

Ingredients

• Fresh or Frozen Fruit
• Coconut Water

Directions

Fill popsicle molds (or cups if using) 3/4 way full of fruit of choice. Pour coconut water into molds and fill the rest of the way. Place molds in freezer. Allow popsicles to freeze completely before serving, about 5-8 hours. Once your popsicles are ready to serve, run the bottom of the popsicle molds under warm water to help release them from the molds.

 

You can use any variety of fruit. The process is really the recipe. Enjoy!

 

Mother's Day Brunch

Good Morning All,

I am getting ready to go out of town a few days on business. I have my bags packed, my snacks portioned and my shakeology packets and shaker cups so I am ready for success. I wanted to share before I left a beautiful brunch that my daughter made for me yesterday. Not only did she make me brunch so I wouldn't have to cook on Mother's Day but she used all my healthy recipes. Now this is quite a success as it is a standing joke in my household how my oldest daughter can burn anything and has no interest in cooking and it has been a huge goal of mine the last few months to get her used to continuing her healthy lifestyle without mom's help. Well she proved that she can not only cook and she has been listening to me and cooked a beautiful healthy yummy meal.

Crustless Broccoli Bacon Quiche

• 1 cup egg whites
• 3 pieces bacon chopped
• 1 1/2 cups cooked broccoli, chopped finely
• salt, pepper to taste

Cook bacon until crisp and chop in to small pieces. Use leftover broccoli (on any veggies) cooked and chopped finely. Spray and casserole dish with coconut oil. Take whipped egg whites, bacon and broccoli and place in dish. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees until eggs are set and are a golden brown, approximately 30-40 mins.

You can always add cheese to this. She just didn't as she knows mom doesn't do dairy.

Watermelon and Cucumber Mint Salad

• Half a small seedless watermelon, balled
• 1 English Cucumber sliced thin
• mint leaves chopped
• Drizzle of basalmic vinegar
• 1/4 cup Fresh lime juice

Mix all ingredients together. Salad is best after it has been allowed to marinate together a couple of hours.

Hope you enjoy this brunch as much as I did.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

One of my families favorite meals is to have homemade Chinese. In Mt. Shasta we know longer have our favorite place so I have gone to making it for us. Below is a Chinese Chicken Lettuce Wrap that I often entertain with.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

4-5 chicken thighs-chopped
3T Coconut Aminos
1 tsp coconut oil
1 red onion
1 garlic-minced
1 zucchini diced
4-6 mushrooms diced
1 handful broccoli slaw mix
1 tsp ginger-minced
1 tsp sesame oil
1 cup chicken broth

1 head butter lettuce

Saute ginger, onion and garlic in coconut oil.   Add chicken cook thoroughly. Add veggies and cook until tender. Add chicken broth, coconut aminos and sesame oil. Reduce by half to make thick sauce. Serve the chicken mixture in lettuce leaves.

Shakeology Ice Cream

I have been extremely fortunate that I do not have much of a sweet tooth but every once in a while it does happen where I want something sweet. Usually I have a dark chocolate bar sitting in the freezer and I will take a square off and I am all good. But as I searched through my house for my stash, realizing some one had taken my last square I thought I would just have to go without and started actually contemplating the kids bucket of leftover Halloween candy. Luckily I saw the packet of chocolate Shakeology and took to Pinterest.

Chocolate Shakeology Ice Cream! What a lifesaver. This stuff is great and so easy to make.

Chocolate Shakeology Ice Cream:

• 1 packet Chocolate Shakeology (mine is vegan)
• 1 cup of ice
• Unsweetened Coconut Milk

Put all ingredients in to your blender.  Blend together until creamy and smooth. Place in freezer for an hour. Enjoy!!!

For me this was way more than I could indulge in one sitting so SCORE! I have more for next time.

Busy Busy Time of Year-Homemade Chinese Healthy Take Out

I have been silent a few days due to busy time of year and being in the kitchen non stop. I was in the process of prepping for my senior's very last prom. The last two years I have catered the event. Since I was busy making wontons a request the seniors asked for as I made them last year I treated my family to a homemade healthier version of Chinese take out this week as well.


Chinese Take Out Dinner:

Almond Chicken:

• 1 T coconut oil
• 3 Cloves Garlic-minced
• 1/2 onion-diced
• 1 T Ginger-minced
• 2 lbs. Chicken Thighs - cubed
• 2 cups broccoli-chopped
• 1/2 cup raw almonds
• 2 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• 1 T Almond Butter
• 1/4 cup Coconut Aminos  

Heat oil over medium heat in a large deep skillet or wok. Add onion, garlic and ginger. Saute together. Add chicken and cook through. Add almonds combine together. Add the broth, coconut aminos and almond. Cook for a couple minute to create sauce. Lastly add the broccoli. Do not overcook. Keep broccoli bright in color and crisp. Serve either as one of your sides or over rice.

Cauliflower Fried Rice:

• 1 head Caulifower
• 2 T Coconut Oil
• 1/4 cup Onion
• 1 clove garlic-minced
• 1/2 tsp Fish Sauce
• 2 T Coconut Aminos
• Sea Salt and Pepper to Taste
• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Shredded Carrots
• 1/4 cup Green Onion-chopped

Cut your cauliflower in to small enough chunks to fit in your food processer. In the food processor grind your cauliflower in to "rice".
In the large skillet or wok on medium high heat place your half your oil, onion, garlic and ginger and sauté. Add your shredded carrots for 2-3 mins. Take out of skillet. Add your eggs to pan and scramble your eggs. Add your eggs to your vegetable mix on the side. Add the other half of your oil and your riced cauliflower salt and pepper. Crisp up your cauliflower in the hot pan. Add your vegetable and egg mix back to the pan. Toss together. Add your aminos and your fish sauce and combine. Serve with your Almond Chicken.

Baked Wontons:

• 1/2 lb. ground turkey
• 1 T Coconut Oil
• 1/4 c red onion- diced, small
• 1 clove garlic- minced
• 1 tsp crushed ginger
• 1/2 small package broccoli slaw
• 1 T Coconut Aminos
• 1 package wonton wrappers
• small amount of water (in dish)

Filling:
In large skillet heat oil and sauté onion, garlic and ginger. Add ground turkey. Mash your ground turkey down with a potato masher to break up all small pieces. Add aminos and cook turkey all the way through on medium heat 15-20 mins. To finish the filling add the broccoli slaw. Do not over cook. Just wilt. Let the filling cool. (I often make way ahead)

Wonton: Pre-Heat Oven 350 degrees
Set up your station. Wontons, water, filling, baking sheet.
On the back of the wonton package you can see how to fold in to triangle or you can make "purses" by squeezing them together.

Place your filling in the center of each wonton and either squeeze in to purses or fold in to triangles. Use the water to seal the wontons.

Place whole baking sheet of finished wontons in oven. Bake instead of frying until browned approximately 20-25 mins. Enjoy with your Almond Chicken and Rice.

Breakfast for Dinner

Good Evening:

In the busy baseball season and Spring time excitement it is great to have a "go to" meal which is both quick and healthy. Today I had an extremely long day working and hour away from home and kids had their busy Spring schedules. Drama rehearsal, baseball and a husband working nights. I strive to have dinner by 5:30-6:00 but tonight it was closer to 7:00 as Miss Emma Grace had a game.
So I quickly whipped together a Frittata. Now the process is more the recipe than the ingredients itself. Once you learn the process anything goes!

Frittata:

Ingredients:

• 6 eggs, whipped
• 4 pieces, bacon chopped
• 1/2 lb ground country sausage
• 1/4 cup shredded cheese
• 1/4 onion
• 1 clove garlic
• salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Using big skillet on medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until translucent. Add chopped bacon and ground sausage. Cook thoroughly. Drain meats. In a bowl beat eggs, salt and pepper. Place meats, onion and garlic back in large skillet then pour eggs over top. Slowly incorporate eggs. Sprinkle cheese over entire skillet. Place entire skillet in to the oven and finish cooking in oven approximately 15 mins.

I have made this several different ways. It works to cover only half in cheese as well for the family members not wanting cheese or make it with all veggies.

This is fast and loved by all family members.



I

Back on Track

Good Morning All:

So sorry I have been silent the last two days. I have been struggling with an allergic reaction and my hubby was out of town so I've been a single mama. But I am feeling much better today and wanted to get back on track. Today I will be doing a lot of cooking in between conference calls and tons of work. I will be food prepping for both my family and the high school's prom on Sat. This is the second year they have asked me to cater prom and it is a fun experience that I really enjoy and appreciate that the kids think so highly of me and my cooking. This year's theme is Rustic Romance. So I am making "romantic food". I keep asking them what that exactly means but they aren't quite sure. To me it means one bite foods, non messy and not garlicy. LOL! They did specifically ask for these wontons I make so I did promise those, on top of pinwheels, mini fruit kabobs, loaded mashed potato bites, mini lemon tarts, mini cupcakes and cookies. But as for as the family goes I have food prep to get us prepared for the end of our crazy baseball, prom filled week.

Yesterday I went to Trader Joes and found some amazing finds for my family. Did you know that Trader Joes has pizza dough already made for you? Lately it has been a bit of a quest for me to find alternatives to the frozen Schwans pizza or the pizza from Papa Murphys, and our local pizza place. Pizza is the one food even my very healthy son cannot resist and it upsets his acid reflux and tummy problems nine times out of ten. So yesterday at Trader Joes I saw the pizza dough and thought I would try it.

They had two flavors-1 regular and 1 Herb inspired. I got all my fresh ingredients for toppers. Heirloom tomatoes, turkey meatballs, crushed tomatoes, basil, parmesan cheese.

This recipe was great with the kids as well. We made 3 pizzas. Emma Grace made a thick crust with crushed tomato sauce, cheese and turkey meatballs. Alex made a thin crust, crushed tomato, light cheese, pepperoni, and turkey meatball pizza. I made thin herb crust pizza sticks, that were just drizzled with a little olive oil and basil.

The littles and dad had their pizza, Alicea and I had salad with turkey meatballs and fat free balsamic dressing and our herb bread stick. I don't eat white flour very often but this was a little treat and quick and easy and still pretty healthy for a pizza night. One I would definitely recommend and would do again.

Day 9: Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies-Paleo

I myself do not have a huge sweet tooth but these cookies are amazing. I make a batch and put them in the freezer to take one every once in a while if I am craving chocolate. I have prepared several different recipes and variations but I think this variation is the best. The key is the pure vanilla. (I get mine from Costco) and the real butter. which I use in all my cooking.
 
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies 
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips
• 3 1/4 cups almond flour
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 (cube) real butter (unsalted)

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
3. Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, stirring with a spoon or whisk to integrate the ingredients and break up any chunks.
4. Whisk wet ingredients together in a medium bowl.
5. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until all ingredients are combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
6. Scoop onto parchment paper about 1 inch apart and bake for 8-10 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Watch carefully so that the bottoms don't burn. (When baking with honey finished product has a brown look.)

Tip: When you bake with all natural ingredients, shelf life is considerably shorter. Keep your items in Ziplock bags in refrigerator or freezer to get longest life.

Day 8: Pizza

Good Morning:

I recently started looking for a good pizza crust recipe. Both little kids and my husband love pizza but the side effects of acid reflux, IBS and bloating seem to always follow with most members of my family, including myself. So after church this Sunday I made pizza skins for the various members to top themselves and it was a great success and no bad side effects after. I will also add I have never been much of a pizza fan myself and would definitely take this pizza over the one at our local pizza parlor any day. My pizza was grain free and dairy free. This recipe is more of a flatbread consistency than a chewy crust.


Grain Free Pizza Crust: Makes 4 individual Pizzas

Turkey Caramelized Onions, Kale Mix and Apple Pizza

• 1 1/2  cups of almond flour
• 1/4 tsp. of sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1T Olive Oil
• 1 egg

Preheat oven 350. Place all ingredients in a bowl. Mix until it forms a ball. Lay out I sheet of parchment paper. Split dough in to four servings. Roll out each dough ball between two pieces of parchment paper. Place pizza skin in oven on a sheet pan. Bake for 15 mins.

Top your pizza with your favorite ingredients. Place back in oven to melt cheese if using cheese. (I didn't).

Day 7: Shakelogy

The last few days I have been working on very little sleep. Allergy season is in full bloom here in beautiful Mt. Shasta. My son, my allergic child has been doing quite well with just a few meltdowns from itchy eyes, hives and over exhaustion that from the run down that allergies do to your body. It's been my youngest Miss Emma Grace who this year is having a tough time. The poor kid has a nagging cough from post nasal drip at night time that is keeping her and myself up all night. So my post is a little late.

A few months ago a friend from church invited me to try a Beachbody challenge group. She knew of my love of healthy eating and fitness but my struggle with time. I had been looking for a way to get back on track with fitness so I joined. With joining she suggested a challenge pack and a great workout, which I have come to love more than anything and Shakeology. Now I tell you I was sold on the Shakeology and thought I eat healthy enough so why a shake. But we talked about all its great add vitamins and clean label. There is even Vegan labeled ones for me. Since I am diary intolerant. I have been drinking a Shakeology ever since. I don't have to remember to take my vitamins because it is all right there for me. Also, I had a horrible caffeine addiction that was completely out of control and I am happy to report that I now only drink my morning coffee, which not only is great on the pocketbook because I am not drinking $6.00 almond milk mochas but when I am ready to go to sleep I can actually relax and turn off my brain for a few hours. I would like to share one of my favorite Shakelogy recipes that replaces my favorite Mexican Mocha.

Mexi-Shakeoloy

• Chocolate Vegan Shakeology Packet
• Leftover Morning Coffee
• Dash of Cinnamon
• Dash of Nutmeg
• Ice

Place all your ingredients in your blender-I use a Magic Bullet. Blend up and take on the road with you!

Day 6: Mustard Chicken and Squash-Sketti

Mustard Chicken with Squash Sketti



New recipe today. I was looking at my husband's digestive health cookbook and found this mustard chicken recipe and decided to pair it with one of my favorite sides. I got a Vegetti- a spiral vegetable cutter. Tonight I used both summer squash and zucchini.

Mustard Chicken:

2lbs. chicken thighs
1TB honey
3T brown mustard
1 clove garlic
1T butter
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven 350. Take a 9x13 Pyrex dish and place the butter and garlic in dish. Put the dish in the oven and let the garlic and butter melt in the dish. While it is in the oven take a small bowl and combine the brown mustard and honey. Take the Pyrex dish out of the oven and arrange the chicken in one layer. Slather the chicken with the mustard sauce. Salt and Pepper and place in oven. Cook chicken in the oven 45min to an hr.


Squash-sketti:
3 Medium Summer Squash
3 Medium Zucchini
1tsp garlic
1tsp olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Take your Vegetti and make spaghetti like spirals of squash. (You could also just cut small disks.) In a small non-stick pan place oil and garlic. Sautee for just a couple mins. then add your squash. Toss with tongs for a couple of minutes do not over cook. You want squash to be crisp not soggy.

The vegetti is great for making pasta substitute. I have made "spaghetti" and meatballs and it is great.

Day 5: Food Prep

Happy Sunday!

Sundays in my household run pretty much the same every Sunday. This day can make or break my week because it sets up my entire week. We first start with going to Sunday school and church. After church it's food prepping time and clean house time. The kids will actually get upset with me if I ask them to clean house any other day. LOL! They say "Mom, it's not Sunday!" But my oldest probably has the best description on Sunday in the group. She loves to tell anyone who will listen that God rested on the 7th day but her mother can't! So to set up your week I highly recommend food prepping. This is the key to keep to a clean lifestyle.

Sunday Food Prep:

1. Pre-Cook meats for grab and go protein

• chicken
• beef (jerky)

I use the chicken for salads, pizza toppings, quesadillas, tacos all throughout the week.
Cook roasts in a Dutch oven or crock pot. Later in the week pull apart the roasts and use for tacos and quesadillas. Also cook up roasts in to beef jerky for snack time.

2. Prep Meats

• Pork Loin

Right now the price of a pork loin at Costco is probably the cheapest meat around per lb. I get the huge Costco loin and I don't cook it ahead due to it's low fat content but I do prep it to impart flavor and for one last step after work. With one Costco Pork Loin I can prep 4 meals for my family of 5. I usually keep 1-1.5-2 lb piece to cook slowly in the oven on a day I work from home. I usually cut 6 thick cut pork chops and lastly cut thin pork chops which I pound out. I will keep one set will nothing on them and prep one set of thin cut "battered" pork chops. By dipping them in seasoned almond flour. I keep half of the prepped pork loin in the fridge and the other half in the freezer. One loin lasts about two weeks worth of dinners.

3. Fruit Leather-Dried Fruits and Vegetables

• Fruit Leather (refer to Fruit Leather recipe)
• Dried Fruit or vegetable slices

Here a food dehydrator is so helpful. But you can slice your fruits and veggies in thin slices and place on low heat in your oven. Kale chips, sweet potato chips and zucchini chips are all ones I have done in the oven with just a touch of sea salt sprinkled on them.

I recommend doing all or some of these once a week and package up ready to go in Ziplock bags on Tupperware containers. I rotate recipes on Sundays. I do the big meat preps after our monthly grocery shopping and the rest of the month do veggies, fruit and baked healthy snack such as crackers, bagels and muffins.

Hope this helps you with organizing your week and helping you stay on task.

Day 4: One pot Short Ribs-Paleo

Good Evening,

Starting two years ago I made a lifestyle change. I decided to quit the yoyo dieting and really do something to lose weight and feel better. I met with an amazing Nutritionist and Life Coach Michelle. http://www.perfectbalancehealthcoach.com/ .She helped me find the perfect nutrition plan. For me the choice was Paleo. Paleo: to eat like a caveman, no dairy, no grains, no legumes, no processed foods or sugars. Natural. For me it was a life changer. So the recipes I traditionally will share with you fit under the Paleo lifestyle. The one I share tonight is one of my favorites, one I prepare often on Sundays after church. I have several variations, so if you learn the process you can change up the flavor profile. I hope you like it.

Braised-One Pot short Ribs:
Ingredients:

• 3-4 lbs. of beef short ribs
• 3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1 tsp of sea salt
• 2 tsp of coconut oil
• 1 med. onion, chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• 2T balsamic vinegar
• 1 c of red wine
• 4 cups of homemade beef broth or organic low-sodium beef broth
• 2 portabella mushrooms

*Tip: to have meat brown nicely remove it to room temperature and pat dry

Pre-heat over to 325. In a large stock pot-dutch oven place oil, onion and garlic. Sautee until translucent. Remove from pot add meat. (you may need to do in batches). Brown the meat on all sides. Remove the meat and deglaze the pot with your wine and vinegar. Add the broth and your herbs, salt and pepper. Let come to a boil. Place your meat, onions and garlic back in pot. Cover completely with your mushrooms. Place lid on the pot and put in oven. Let cook approximately 3-4 hrs., checking every once in a while to check liquid level. If needed you can add more broth. Cook until the ribs are fork tender. Remove from heat serve with nice cauliflower mash and veggies.

You will love this one pot wonder.

Day 3: Green Smoothie

Good Evening:

So I was about to share my blog post on my facebook when I realized I messed up and didn't push publish on my most recent post.......DARN! Well now it's after 9:00 pm and I am so exhausted but I wanted to share a recipe first.

So a great way to get hidden veggies in to your kids (and your hubby's) diet is smoothies. I have so many smoothie recipes and almost anything will work in them. Here is a non dairy high fiber one to start off with.

Green Smoothie:

• a handful of spinach
• 1/2 avocado or banana
• frozen no-sugar added mixed berries
• unsweetened coconut milk

Place all ingredients in your blender or individual blender (I have a magic bullet) Blend until smooth. I myself enjoy the avocado versus the banana. Honestly I am not a fan of bananas. The avocado makes my smoothie creamy and silky. Hope you enjoy!