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FOODIE FRIDAY! :-) I love foodie friday! Because...well I love food!

Sometimes you just get an inkling some Asian style good eats! But, as we all know, Asian style usually calls for lots of oil, lots of carbs, and generally not the healthiest thing in the world!

I don't know about you, but I never want to sacrifice my love of Asian food!

So...that's when tons of healthy substitutions and swaps come into play!

I have  recently discovered the amazing-ness that is cauliflower as rice! There's so many amazing cauliflower rice recipes - cilantro-lime, Cauliflower Rice Lettuce Wraps, and of course this new one...

Cauliflower Fried Rice! I found this recipe originally from The Recipe Critic!

As for the protein part of this week's MOTW (because I've gotta have me some protein in my life lol)...Asian Meatballs! This recipe I found on Get Fit with Nikki for Asian meatballs!

What do you need to buy?

For Cauliflower Fried Rice:

  • Head of cauliflower - $2.99
  • Mirepoix frozen vegetbale mix (Carrots, Celery, Onions) - $1.00
  • Eggs - $1.49
  • 2 bundles of Green Onions - $1.38
For Asian Meatballs:
  • 2lbs of ground turkey (I bought 4 because it was cheaper) - $8.99
Things I already had...
  • Sesame/Vegetable Oil
  • Soy Sauce
  • Powdered Ginger
  • Garlic Powder
Total budget (without counting the things I already had!) - $15.85

Directions:

For Cauliflower Rice:
  • Start with prepping the cauliflower rice
    • Cut up the cauliflower head into smaller florets
    • Place into a food processor
    • Process until the cauliflower achieves a rice-like texture and size
  • Now, the vegetables!
    • Empty the entire bag of frozen vegetables into a wok or large saucepan over medium to medium-high heat
    • Cook vegetables until softened
    • Beat 2 eggs lightly
    • Push vegetables to the side in sautee pan and add eggs
    • Scramble the eggs until fully cooked through
    • Once cooked, mix eggs and vegetables together
    • Add Cauliflower rice and soy sauce (to taste)
    • Sautee until rice begins to brown slightly

For Asian Meatballs:
  • SUPER EASY! 
    • Preheat oven to 375 degrees
    • Chop up one of the bundles of green onions
    • In a large bowl, use your hands to mix the green onions, garlic powder, powdered ginger and soy sauce into half (2 pounds) of the ground turkey
      • I'm not giving you specific amounts here because the amounts that you use will be fully dependent upon your taste and how much garlic, ginger, or soy flavor you want!
    • Once you've mixed all the ingredients in, start breaking the ground turkey into 24 meatballs...you may even be able to get 28 out of it depending upon how large you would like your meatballs to be!
    • Once you've rolled out your meatballs, place them on a greased baking sheet
    • Bake for 25 minutes

As for your 21 day fix portions...the rice is ALL veggies! So you can do as many green containers of cauliflower rice as you would like! For the meatballs, 5-6 of them should fit within your red container!  Therefore, each serving (depending on how many servings you want) will be 1-2 greens and 1 red! 

As shown, I love to pare this with a kale salad! The image on the top of the page is 1 green of kale salad, 1 green of cauliflower rice, 1 red of meatballs! Such an amazing and fulfilling dinner!

That's it! Enjoy!





There's just something about finding a recipe like this that is just delicious, and so chock full of veggies that you don't feel guilty at all when you eat it!

Paleo Phad Thai is like that.
Butternut Squash, Spring Greens Salad was like that.

I've found a lot of recipes like that lately!

This is one is a winner too! I got home one night from work and was SO hungry so I literally piled a plate SO high with this delicious mix and there really is NO feeling bad about that!

So many nutrients!

So many delicious whole foods!

What's not to LOVE?

Firstly,  I have to give credit where credit is due! This delicious recipe was originally found on the Roasted Root! I personally tweaked the recipe a little bit to simplify it, AND because I'm obsessed with sriracha I added that too to give it a little extra punch!

A lot of what I modified in this was just simplifying! You may disagree with this, but hear me out! I'm a grad student. You know this. I don't have the budget to have obscure ingredients like grapeseed oil, Portobello mushrooms (okay - not obscure, but more expensive $$), kosher salt, or cayenne pepper (see Portobello mushrooms haha)! Heck, even having fresh garlic is a bit of a stretch for me on occasion because it seems like an extravagance!

I lean heavily on spices in recipes because they LAST! They never go bad! I can get garlic or chili powder at the store and they'll last me for 6 months to a year! So that primarily how I modified this recipe.

What you'll need:

  • Medium spaghetti-squash
  • Olive oil, 2T
  • Garlic or garlic powder
  • Mushrooms (Portobello if possible) - 3 cups, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons of italian spices
  • Chicken - I used 3-5 chicken tenders
  • Kale - original recipe calls for 4 cups
    • I just cut up a bundle of kale without measuring
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • Salt, 1/4 teaspoon or to taste
  • Sriracha
Directions:
  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Use a knife to put holes in spaghetti squash and bake for 40-60 minutes. Then set aside until you're ready to use it!
  • In a medium skillet, add the oil and heat to medium. 
  • Add the garlic or a few shakes of garlic powder, and the mushrooms. Saute for 5 minutes until the mushrooms just start to soften and brown.
  • Add the chicken tenders. Cook for 1-2 minutes and then add chopped kale leaves. Add the Italian seasoning to taste!
  • Continue cooking for about 5 minutes more. Kale leaves will start to wilt and chicken should cook through.
  • Add the lemon zest (and juice if you'd like!!), and salt! Stir and cook for a minute or so longer. Remove from heat.
  • Use a fork to remove spaghetti squash from shell and place them in a serving bowl.
  • Add the chicken, mushroom, kale mixture to the serving bowl and toss everything together.
  • Before eating, top with sriracha, and ENJOY!
Though I don't know the specific measurements - I do know that this is 21 day fix approved! I would guess 2-3 greens per serving, 1 red, and maybe 1 teaspoon for the oils and the sriracha! 

I hope you all like my version! Let me know what you think!






This one is my NEW favorite salad!

I wanted to make something super easy this week that helped me use up the butternut squash that I had bought and not used the week before. And I didn't want to have to cook much of anything!

So, this is one of those super easy go-to's that you should definitely keep on the back-burner in your recipe stash!

What I like about this recipe?

  • Primarily veggies, and let's face it - you can't go wrong with that! So many recipes I share or that I commonly eat have a huge starch component! What I love about this one is that you don't really HAVE to use the starch if you don't want to!
  • Super versatile - You can add what you do and do not want to this! If you don't like squash, substitute another veggie!
  • Minimal time and minimal cooking - I store bought or already had a lot of these staples. Yes, that adds to the cost, but it also adds to the ease of prep which us graduate students LOVE!
  • No dressing required - This is one of those salads that is so tastey in and of itself that you don't need dressing! And if you're on 21 day fix, that's a MUST because we only get one of those little orange containers!
  • GOAT CHEESE - I might be a little obsessed with goat cheese! But seriously the goat cheese in this recipe, MAKES IT! I promise you! It's incredible! Definitely don't leave it out!
Before, I get started, I have to give credit where credit is due! I originally modified this recipe from this Chili-Roasted Butternut Squash post on Kelly's Kitchen!

What you'll need:
  • 1 bag of frozen butternut squash OR one fresh butternut squash
    • I prefer the fresh variety because then your squash gets a nice texture to it!
  • Chili Powder
  • Cumin
  • Spring greens
  • Quinoa 
    • I pretty much always have pre-pared quinoa in my refrigerator! That way I can cook a big batch and then just add yellow 21 day fix containers of it to whatever I'm eating that day!
    • Optional: If you're not a fan of quinoa, you can use black beans!
  • Goat Cheese
  • Roast chicken - One of those prepared ones from the grocery store!
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) for roasting the squash
Directions:
  • Finish roasting the chicken per package instructions.
  • Prepare quinoa, if not already prepared!
    • Use a 2:1 ratio of quinoa to water! Boil and then reduce heat to low, cooking until quinoa has absorbed all the water.
  • Prepare Butternut Squash
    • Preheat oven to 450 degrees!
    • If using frozen squash-no preparation needed!
    • If using fresh squash...Cut up the squash into cubes, discarding the seeds in the interior.
    • Toss prepared squash in 1 tbps EVOO, chili powder and cumin (to taste), and some kosher salt and pepper - I used about 3 tsp of both cumin and chili powder
    • Evenly distribute on a greased baking sheet
    • Bake for 20 minutes
  • Assembly
    • 1 green container of spring greens
    • Top with:
      • 1 green container of chili-roasted butternut squash
      • 1 yellow container of quinoa (or black beans if you went that route)
      • 1 red container of roasted chicken
      • 1 blue container of goat cheese
Voila!

That's it!

Super easy, delicious and 21 day fix approved! It's great for a quick-and-easy lunch as well as dinner!

21 Day Fix breakdown: 2 greens (for spring greens and butternut squash), 1 yellow (for quinoa/black beans), 1 blue (goat cheese), 1 tsp (for EVOO - or at least that's how I count the oils in this recipe because there's so little!)

ENJOY!





Self-compassion is a new concept for me! It was introduced to me by one of my challengers, now one of my coaches...and it's such an amazing concept!

It has become socially acceptable, especially in the realm of graduate school, to be self-critical. To bash ourselves! We're taught, socially that that is okay. And that that is how we improve. But that's not the case. Being unkind to yourself is the same as being unkind to someone else.

I paraphrased this quote from the podcast, "Art of Charm."

If you talked to your friends the way you talk to yourself, then you would not have any friends.

Mull that over for just a second.

We say things to ourselves like, "I suck" or "I'm so stupid." Those comments come so easily and so naturally. And it's sad.

If you say those things to yourself, even in a self-deprecating fashion, it's unkind. And those things we say to ourselves grow into things that we feel and believe about ourselves.

We need to realize that. We need to stop treating ourselves like that.

In the attached article, Margarita Tartakovsky, MS discusses 5 Strategies for Self-Compassion! In it, she says "Self-compassion has been linked to greater well-being, including diminished anxiety and depression, better emotional coping skills and compassion for others."

Okay, so self-compassion is good for you. But, what does it mean to exercise self-compassion? What IS self-compassion even?

In this article, they discuss the 3 types of self-compassion according to Kristin Neff, a PhD in human development.

  • Self-kindness, meaning exercises kindness and understanding toward yourself when you're struggling or suffering.
  • Common humanity, meaning that you realize that you're not alone and that other people are experiencing similar struggles to you. Common humanity points to the fact that we should not feel isolated or alone in our struggles, because more likely than not others are experiencing the same things we are.
  • Mindfulness, meaning that we are able to observe life without being judgmental and that we are able to suppress our thoughts and feelings and merely experience life as it happens to us!
Contrary to popular belief, it is not narcissistic or self-indulgent for you to exercise compassion with yourself! On the conrary, it will only benefit you.

I highly suggest you check out this website, http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/06/27/5-strategies-for-self-compassion/, to learn more about self-compassion and some strategies that you can use to improve the way you relate to yourself.

But here is the jist!
  1. Treat yourself the way you would treat a friend! - The other day my friend said to me, "I'm a hot mess...minus the hot part." Would you ever say that to a friend of yours? NO! So don't say it to yourself! 
  2. Watch your language - We so often say things like "you suck" or "you're stupid" or something along those lines! Watch your language! Be kind to yourself!
  3. Comfort yourself with a physical gesture! - read more about this with the associated link! But the idea is to find a gesture, either placing your hands on your arms or putting a hand over your heart, or something like that t demonstrate compassion in a physical way!
  4. Memorize something that makes you feel compassionate or powerful...or better yet develop your own power phrase! One quote I have started to tell myself often is "Compassion is the thief of joy!" I often compared myself to others, and repeating this phrase to myself helps me to overcome that.
  5. Meditate! So often our reason for not being compassionate stems from just being our own heads! It's amazing what 10 minutes of meditation or merely sitting in silence will do to shutting off the rampant thoughts that run through your head!
I challenge you to start exercising self-compassion!

I challenge you to find an area of your life that you're particularly bad in and work on getting better!

If we're not compassionate toward ourselves, how do we expect others to be compassionate to us? We need to change the way we think about ourselves or we'll never find true happiness and passion in our lives.

Until next time,




RESOURCES:
http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/06/27/5-strategies-for-self-compassion/

It's a (belated) #FoodieFriday post! Which means I gotta share something delicious and nutritious. So why not stay on the Shakeology train? Haha

A couple posts ago, I told you all about Shakeology and why I'm obsessed with it in "What is Shakeology? AND How is it different?". So, it only seems appropriate that I would do a Shakeology recipe share!

In that last post I told you all about the health benefits of shakeology and why it is beneficial to you from a health standpoint, and worth the cost you pay (which let's be real, is only the price of a latte! Prioritize!)

Today, I'm going to get into the fun part, and my favorite thing about Shakeology - the taste!

Shakeology comes in 4 different flavors - Chocolate, Vanilla, Strawberry and Greenberry! Though I definitely have my personal preferences, I've tried them all and they're ALL really tasty on their own with just some water/milk and ice!

But today, I want to share with you how we can get a little crazy with our Shakeology recipes, and have a whole lot of fun!

So let's go...flavor by flavor!

Probably my first Shakeology selfie for my challenge group! Enjoying the Supa Tropical!
Greenberry!

The absolute first Shakeology flavor I tried!! I don't know what inspired me. Maybe I just wanted to get a little crazy! Or probably because it was the flavor my coach was drinking when I signed up!

It's delicious! It tastes like a green tea frappucino in my opinion! Nom!

Greenberry definitely isn't for everyone, but I definitely have some AWESOME recipes that you should try!

Greenberry Coffee Kickstart
-1C of drip Coffee (at whatever strength you desire)-1/2 C of nut milk (I like Almond and coconut milk)-Handful of chopped spinach (You can use other greens if you wish, but I like spinach because it's softer and it blends well)-1 scoop of Greenberry Shakeology-1 tsp of PB2 powdered peanut butter-7-8 large ice cubesBlend and Enjoy!

Supa Tropical! ShakeO
-1C of almond/coconut blend
-1C of water
-1C of frozen mixed fruit (mine contained mangos, strawberries, pineapple and grapes)
-1 scoop of Greenberry Shakeology

FAVORITE! Or at least one of them! This CHAI TEA LATTE SHAKEOLOGY is a winner!
Vanilla!
Vanilla is an awesome shakeology flavor to start with! It's super versatile and really yummy! I have a ton of fun jazzing it up!

Here are some of my Vanilla absolute favorites!

**For a lot of these I make tea or some other hot drink. What I will usually do is I will heat the water and let the tea steep and then cool make down during the time that I'm working out! That way the tea is nice and strong and has cooled before I mix it into my Shakeology!**

Pumpkin Spice Latte Shakeology:
-12 oz of STRONG Pumpkin Spice tea-**Optional coffee if desired - I don't think this one needs it**-4-8 oz of almond milk-Scoop of VANILLA Shakeology
-4-8 oz of almond milk
-Scoop of VANILLA Shakeology
-Ice (as much as preferred) and blend

Chai Tea Latte Shakeology**One of my absolute favorites!!**
-12 oz of STRONG Chai Tea
-**Optional coffee if desired - I don't think this one needs it**
-4-8 oz of almond milk
-Scoop of VANILLA Shakeology
-4 ice cubes (or ice to taste)
BLEND AND ENJOY!!

Apple Pie Shakeology
-1C Apple Cider (make hot and let cool)
-1C Almond Milk
-1 scoop Vanilla Shakeology
-Couple shakes of Cinnamon
-4 ice cubes (or ice to taste)
BLEND AND ENJOY THE DELICIOUSNESS

Strawberry Cheesecake Shakeology
-1/2C  almond milk
-1C water
-1 purple 21 day fix container of frozen strawberries (or just frozen berries if you're going for Berry Cheesecake)
-1 read 21 day fix container of greek yogurt
-1 scoop Vanilla Shakeology
- Ice if desired
BLEND AND ENJOYE!

Just a little recipe collage with some of my favorite recipes!
CHOCOLATE!
Oh chocolate chocolate chocolate....yummmmmmmmm

I'm telling you right now, I might be a little bit biased on this one. I'm a chocolate girl. I spend most of my time swapping between chocolate and vanilla because I love the versatility. But in my heart, I'll always be a chocolate lover. And these recipes are SUCH amazing treats! I legitimately feel like I'm cheating on my nutrition when I have one! They're THAT GOOD!

Peppermint Mocha Shakeology: **FAVORITE**
-1C STRONG Peppermint Tea
-1C almond milk or drip coffee (cooled) or both half and half
-1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
-Ice to taste
BLEND!

Cinnamon Roll Shakeology: **FAVORITE**
-1C water
-1C Almond mlk
-1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
-A little Vanilla extract
-Couple shakes of cinnamon
-Ice to taste
BLEND!

PB&J Shakeology:
-1C Almond Milk (chocolate if you have it...if not no biggie)
-1C water
-handful of frozen berries
-2T of PB2
-1 scoop shakeology
BLEND & ENJOY!

Mocha Frappuccino ShakeO:
-0.75C Almond Milk (or Almond-Coconut Milk Blend)
-1C Brewed Coffee (refrigerated or cooled)
-1 scoop Chocolate Shakeology
-Half a frozen banana **Optional, but does add a great creaminess to your smoothie**
-1tsp of PB2 powdered peanut butter
-Ice to taste
BLEND!

Chocolate Banana ShakeO
-1-2C Almond Milk or WATER
-1 scoop chocolate shakeology
-1/2-1 whole frozen banana
-1T PB2
-Ice to taste
BLEND!

 These all are delicious!! I hope you enjoy them!



Strawberry!
Similarly to greenberry, I found this one to be less versatile but still delicious! I don't have as many recipes with this one, but that's definitely not to say it's not yummy!

Berry Delicious ShakeO:
-1.5C of almond milk
-Handful of chopped greens
-1 scoop of Strawberry Shakeology
-a handful of frozen mixed berries - add more of these for a thicker, fruitier shake
-2-3 large ice cubes
Blend and Enjoy!

Tropical Strawberry ShakeO:
-1-2C of almond milk or WATER
-1 scoop Strawberry Shakeology
-1 frozen banana
-Ice to taste
BLEND! and Enjoy the simple yumminess!




I hope you got some fun recipes out of this! I have a blast making and thinking up NEW shakeology recipes! What's your favorite? If you've got a good one that I just HAVE to try, post below! I would love to check it out!

Have an awesome day!




It's Foodie Friday! And I've got an awesome recipe for you today! But first, a little story...



I don't like cauliflower...

It's like one of those bad memories from when I was a kid.

Cooked, raw...I just don't like it. It's so BLAND!

Well, we had a challenge in one of my challenge groups about a month ago where we were supposed to find a recipe that we thought might make us want to try a food that we don't like again. And if we were really feeling bold, to try that recipe out!

Obviously, my food of "choice" was cauliflower.

Yuck.

Anyways, the recipe hunt began...

For me, I knew that I needed a recipe where the cauliflower was as disguised as possible...maybe where the cauliflower was "pretending" to be something else.

Well, fortunately I found a couple that fit the bill!

Cauliflower Rice Lettuce Cups with Sriracha Peanut Sauce from Veggie & the Beast Feast

Cauliflower Pizza Crust which I've found featured in many places, but here is the link to Give Up the Gym.

Well, I decided to tackle the Cauliflower lettuce wraps first...I've been on an Asian food kick lately, and for some reason lettuce wraps of any form remind me of P.F. Changs. Am I alone in this?

What you need:

  • Onion & Pepper frozen veggie mix - 2 packages
  • 4 ounces of shiitake mushrooms, chopped
  • 1 lime
  • Soy sauce, reduced sodium preferably
  • 1 head of cauliflower
  • Iceberg or Bibb lettuce
  • Cilantro and chopped peanuts, optional, for topping
  • Chicken tenders, cooked - optional
  • Sriracha Peanut Sauce
    • Natural peanut butter, 1/2 Cup
    • 1C almond or coconut milk (I personally think coconut is better)
    • 3 tablespoons honey
    • sea salt, 1/2 t
    • 1T Rice vinegar
    • Sriracha to taste...I added probably 1/2-2T

What to do:

  • Chop up the cauliflower head into smaller florets so that they'll fit nicely in the food processor. If you have a good food processor, this might not be a problem for you...but I kind of have a crappy small one and really had to use small cauliflower florets.
  • Process the cauliflower in the food processor until it achieves a nice, rice-like texture.
  • Sautee your veggies - for this adventure I used my favorite frozen pepper and onion mix and some fresh shiitake mushrooms
  • Once the veggies are cooked, drain off the excess liquid - that will save your filling from being soggy
  • Add in the cauliflower rice and saute until slightly golden.
    • Optional: Saute some chicken tenders to top your lettuce wraps with
  • While the veggies are cooking, combine the ingrdients for the sauce in a small saucepan and heat over medium. Sauce should start to boil, boil for about 3-5 mins, and then thicken
  • When everything is cooked, all that is left is for you to assemble as desired and then enjoy! :-)
 I personally really like to assemble mine by adding the veggie/cauliflower mixture on top of the lettuce, followed by a grilled chicken tender, then a drizzle of peanut sauce.


For 21 Day Fix: If you measure everything out right, this could count as 1-2 green containers, 1 red container, and two tablespoons for your nut butters! Be careful not to go over on peanut sauce! That's the biggest source of calories in this dish!

I hope you enjoy this one! It's a goodie!

Until next time,

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