Halloweenie Fruit Tray

Halloween Spider Treats

Needed a fun treat to pass out at daycare Halloween party -- figured these were easy and perfect :)

Supplies
Suckers
Black pipe cleaners
Googly eyes

"Cheat" Week

It's our "off" week from the 21 day fix, but we are still planning on sticking to it for the most part....don't want to gain back all that hard work!!...so here is our menu for the week with some planned "cheat meals"  :)

Thursday Recipe:
Sriracha-lime-chicken.html

Sunday Recipe:

Chili

Clean Chili

This was lick your bowl clean good!!!  Ross and I both LOVED it!  and it was easy...and perfect for a nice chilly fall day!!!

Makes 6 servings (serving size 1 ½ cup) 1 Red, 1 Yellow, 1 Blue, 1 Green

Ingredients:
1lb ground turkey

½ chopped onion

1 green pepper, chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1 large can low sodium crushed tomatoes

1 can chili beans

1 can light kidney beans

1 can black beans

½ cup frozen sweet corn

1 can pureed pumpkin (not pie filling)

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon chili powder

½ teaspoon cumin

Place all in crock pot on low for 4-6 hours, serve with shredded cheddar and plain greek yogurt.

Sriracha Lime Chicken

This was spicy so we couldn't feed to the boys, but it was gooooooddddd!!!!!

Makes 4 servings 1 Red, 1 Yellow, 1 Tablespoon, 1 Orange, ½ Green

Ingredients:

4 cups cooked brown rice

2 pounds chicken breasts, cubed

1 Tbsp coconut oil

½ sweet onion, diced

⅓ cup sriracha

¼ cup fresh honey

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

½ cup chopped green onion

3 Tbsp chopped cilantro

sesame seeds for garnishing

Cook the brown rice and set aside.

Add the sweet onion and coconut oil to a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté for approx. 3 minutes. Add the chicken and cook until lightly browned and cooked thoroughly. Once cooked, discard the liquids.

While the chicken is cooking, add the sriracha, honey, and lime juice together in a small bowl.

Once the chicken is completely cooked, add the sauce mixture over top, lower the heat on the skillet to med-low, and cook for approx. 5 minutes longer. Sauce will begin to thicken.

Add the green onion, cilantro, and sesame seeds just before serving.

Serve the chicken on top of a yellow container of brown rice! 

Week 3 Menu and Recipes

Tuesday Recipes:
Pear and Walnut Salad
Curried Shrimp Kabobs

Wednesday Recipes:

Stuffed Peppers

Butterscotch Shakeology

 

Thursday Recipes:

Beef Roast and Carrots



Beef Roast and Carrot

Clean eating in the crock pot, means clean house :) 

 

This was REALLY good!!  Ross and I were both surprised -- so easy and so yummy!

 

Ingredients

2lb boneless beef chuck shoulder roast

1-2 pounds carrots, peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

one seasoning packet (We love the McCormick mesquite and chipotle seasonings) or 3 tablespoons of your favorite homemade seasoning mix

Combine all ingredients in your slow cookers.  Add lid, and cook on “low” setting for 8-10 hours until beef shreds easily with a fork.

To Freeze

Combine all ingredients in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag. Remove as much air as possible and freeze for up to three months. When ready to eat, thaw overnight in refrigerator. Cook on “low” setting for 8-12 hours, or until meat easily pulls apart with a fork. Shred meat and serve!

Turkey, Brown Rice Stuffed Peppers

This called for quinoa, but I'm not really a fan so we used brown rice.  It was really tasty!  I think we'll add even more veggies next go around -- corn for sure :)

Ingredients:

2 cups low sodium chicken broth

1 cup quinoa

1Tbs olive oil

1 pound ground turkey

3 garlic cloves, minced

¼ medium onion, minced

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp dried basil

salt and pepper to taste

½ cup low sodium tomato sauce, divided

1 cup low sodium chicken broth, divided

4 large sweet red bell peppers, washed

¼cup freshly grated mozzarella

¼ cup freshly grated parmesan

For the quinoa:

Over medium-high heat, bring the broth to a boil in a medium saucepan. As the broth is coming to boil, add the quinoa, then stir and cover. Reduce the heat to a simmer and steam the quinoa until the grains pop, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Preheat oven to 400°.

In a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat, cook the ground turkey in olive oil until no longer pink.

Add garlic, onion, basil and parsley to the pan. Cook for 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper.

Add ¼ cup of tomato sauce and ½ cup of chicken broth, mix well and simmer on low for about 5 minutes. Combine cooked quinoa and meat together.

Cut the bell peppers in half lengthwise, and remove all seeds. Place in a baking dish.Spoon the meat mixture into each pepper half and fill it with as much as you can. Place stuffed pepper halves on the baking dish and pour the remainder chicken broth and tomato sauce on the bottom of the pan. Cover tight with aluminum foil and bake for about 25 minutes. Top with cheeses and bake another 10 minutes

Curried Shrimp Kabobs

I'm not always a fan of shrimp, but this was pretty good!  Rossy loved it and I actually thought it was pretty tasty too -- the cherry tomatoes made it for me!!  We had this with brown rice and a side salad - perfect CLEAN meal!!

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

24 jumbo cooked frozen shrimp

1 tsp garlic, finely minced

1/4 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp cumin

Sea salt and pepper to taste

16-20 cherry tomatoes

2 large red onions, cut into large chunks

8 large wooden skewers (soaked in water for 10 minutes) 

Preheat table top or outdoor grill 

In a large bowl or Ziploc bag, mix curry powder, turmeric, cumin, salt, pepper and garlic. 

Add shrimp and onions to spice mixture. Coat shrimp and onions thoroughly, being careful not to break up the onion chunks. 

Thread 3 shrimp onto each skewer, alternating with tomatoes and onions. 

Spray grill with non-stick cooking spray and cook until shrimp is brown and onions are tender, about 8 minutes (flip halfway through)  

Pear and Walnut Salad

Free food at work today, so it was a good thing I had this packed for lunch or I would have totally ate that...and it wasn't healthy -- haha.  This was really good and so easy to make :)

 

Ingredients

4 oz grilled chicken

4 cups arugula

1 pear, cored and sliced

1 Tbsp walnuts

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar 

1 tsp EVOO 

21 Day Fix: Week 2 Menu

Monday Recipes:
Shakeology - Snickerdoodle
Smoked Salmon and Tomatoes
Oven Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Tuesday Recipes:

Turkey Bolognese

Thursday Recipes:
Honey Mustard Pork Tenderloin

Friday Recipes:

Turkey Roll up

Turkey Burger w/ Sweet Potato Fries

Saturday Recipes:

Veggie Egg Bake
Morning / Afternoon Snack

Sunday Recipes:

Zucchini Lasagna

Salt & Vinegar Brussels Sprouts

Um Hello Yummy Awesomeness!!  These were SO GOOD!!  I love eating stuff that's good for me, and it tastes this great!!  Rossy was obsessed too!!

2 servings (2 green)

Ingredients:
1lb Brussel sprouts (cut in half)
2 Tablespoons coconut oil (melted)
1 Tablespoons  raw apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, stir together coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, salt, and brussels.

Arrange halved side down on baking dish and roast for 25-30 minutes.

Crock Pot Turkey Bolognese Sauce

Makes 4 servings of 1 red, 1 purple, 2 green, 1 yellow

Ingredients:

1 lb of lean ground turkey

14 oz. can Crushed tomatoes

14 oz. can Diced tomatoes – not drained

6 oz can of tomato paste

1 T dried Oregano

½ tsp salt

½ tsp. pepper 

1 T minced garlic

½ cup chopped carrots or bell pepper

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

¼ tsp. salt and pepper to taste 

Whole Grain pasta

Spray a large skillet with cooking spray. Cook 1 lb. ground turkey or lean grass fed beef, ½ cup chopped onion, and 1 T. minced garlic in skillet over medium heat, breaking up the meat with a spatula as it cooks. Cook until meat is just browned (it doesn’t have to be cooked through, because it will finish cooking in the crockpot).

Transfer to 5-6 quart slow cooker. Stir in 1 (15 oz.) diced tomatoes…do not drain, 1 (15 oz.) tomato sauce, 1 (6 oz.) tomato paste, 1 T. dried oregano, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper, ½ cup chopped carrots or bell pepper, and mix well. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours, or on low for 8 hours.

Serve with your favorite whole grain pasta, spaghetti squash or spiralized zucchini noodles. 

Zucchini Lasagna

This was DELICIOUS!!  Who knew that lasagna without noodles could taste this good!!  You can substitute the beef for ground turkey and make it a little more "clean eating" :)

Ingredients: 
1 lb 93% lean beef
3 cloves garlic
1/2 onion
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
3 medium zucchini, sliced 1/8" thick
15 oz part-skim ricotta
16 oz part-skin mozzarella cheese, shredded (Sargento)
1/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
1 large egg

In a medium sauce pan, brown meat and season with salt. When cooked drain in colander to remove any fat. Add olive oil to the pan and saute garlic and onions about 2 minutes. Return the meat to the pan, add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Simmer on low for at least 30-40minutes, covered. Do not add extra water, the sauce should be thick.

Meanwhile, slice zucchini into 1/8" thick slices, add lightly salt and set aside or 10 minutes. Zucchini has a lot of water when cooked, salting it takes out a lot of moisture. After 10 minutes, blot excess moisture with a paper towel.

On a gas grill or grill pan, grill zucchini on each side, until cooked, about 1-2 minutes per side. Place on paper towels to soak any excess moisture.

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a medium bowl mix ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and egg. Stir well.

In a 9x12 casserole spread some sauce on the bottom and layer the zucchini to cover. Then place some of the ricotta cheese mixture, then top with the mozzarella cheese and repeat the process until all your ingredients are used up. Top with sauce and mozzarella and cover with foil.

Bake 45 minutes covered at 375°, then uncovered 15 minutes. Let stand about 5 - 10 minutes before serving.

Turkey Burger

This was actually really tasty too!!  AND because we didn't use a bun, we got to save the starch to go with sweet potato fries on the side!!  YUMMY!

Ingredients:
1lb lean ground turkey
1/4 cup salsa
1/2 cup romaine
1/4 medium avocado
1 medium tomato

Combine turkey and salsa in a bowl, mix well and form into patties.

Bake or grill patty -- then place lettuce on serving plate - top with patty, avocado, and tomato.

Honey Mustard Pork Tenderloin

This was SO yummy and really easy to make!!!

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:
1lb boneless lean pork tenderloin
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup mustard
1/2 cup orange juice
1T balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp minced garlic

Whisk everything together in a small bowl.  Transfer to a Ziploc bag and add tenderloin.  Let marindar for at least 30 minutes.

Choose one of the following ways to cook it:
1. Grill, medium heat, internal temp 145 degrees
2. Roast in oven, 425 bake for 25-30 minutes
3. Crock pot, first brown both sides in skillet - then transfer to crockpot, cook on high for 4 hours

Veggie Egg Bake

I didn't think I would like another egg bake as much as the Ronhovde classic...BUT this was pretty dang good.  Top this bad boy with some salsa and it's heaven!!  AND it's super yummy for you!!

Ingredients:
15 eggs
peppers
spinach
cherry tomatoes
onion
mushroom
salsa

Throw all together in 9x13 pan - cook on 350 for 45 minutes (check after 30 minutes) and top with salsa

21 Day Fix: Easy bfast or am snack!

um yummy!!  This is only 1/2 serving of protein, so if you saved up your starch/carb you could make 2 of these bad boys!!

Serving: 1/2 red, 1/2 blue, 1 yellow

 

Ingredients:
Ezckiel toast
overeasy egg
Smashed avocado

21 Day Fix: Menu Day 7

Breakfast - Shakeology (1 red, 1 purple)
AM Snack - Greek yogurt, Blueberries
Lunch - Chicken Fried Rice (1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green, 1 tsp), apple
PM Snack - Carrots, Hummus, 14 Peanuts
Dinner - Grilled Pork chops, Broccoli, sweet potato

21 Day Fix: Menu Day 6

Breakfast - Shakeology strawberry (1 red, 1 purple)
AM Snack - 2 Eggs Hardboiled, 1/2 Banana, 14 peanuts
Lunch - LO grilled chicken, veggies, Apple
PM Snack - Whole Grain waffle with PB
Dinner - Wedding (pray we eat good!)

21 Day Fix: Menu Day 5

Breakfast - Shakeology strawberry (1 red)
AM Snack - Ezekial or whole grain bread  or waffle with Nut Butter and banana sliced on top
Lunch - LO spaghetti (1 yellow, 1 red, 1/4 purple) and mixed green salad
PM Snack - Greek Yogurt and strawberries
Dinner - Grilled Chicken, Roasted Cauliflower and Asparagus

21 Day Fix: Menu Day 4

Breakfast - Shakeology Vanilla (1 red, 1 purple)
AM Snack - 2 eggs hardboiled, banana
Lunch - Turkey Roll Ups (1 red, 1 blue, 1 green) and apple
PM Snack - Cottage Cheese and carrots
Dinner - Spaghetti with meat (ground turkey, organic marinara sauce, Broce rice pasta) with Mixed green salad (3 greens), dressing  **Make extras for lunch tomorrow**

21 Day Fix: Menu Day 3

Breakfast - Shakeology Vanilla (1 red, 1 purple)
AM Snack - whole grain bread with smashed avocado, 14 peanut
Lunch - Turkey Cranberry Wrap (2 red, 1 green, 1/2 purple) and apple
PM Snack - Carrots and hummus
Dinner - Smoked chicken, Broccoli

21 Day Fix: Menu for Day 2

Breakfast - Shakeology (Chocolate PB / Banana 1 red, 1 purple)
AM Snack - Cottage Cheese
Lunch - Left over Taco Salad (1 red, 1.5 green, 1/2 purple)
PM Snack - Apple, Hardboiled egg
Dinner - Turkey Burger topped with avocado on whole grain bun  with mixed green salad (spinach, tomato, cucumber, carrot) w/dressing (3.5 green, 2T orange)

21 Day Fix: Menu for Day 1

Breakfast - oatmeal  (normally mine will be a shake but I didn't get it yet)
AM Snack - 2 hardboiled egg, 1/2 banana
Lunch - Greek Chicken Wrap (1 yellow, 1 red, 1 blue, 2 green), Carrots with hummus
PM Snack - Greek Yogurt, strawberries
Dinner - Taco Salad (1 red, 1 blue, 1.5 green, 1/4 purple)

Clean Eating - 21 Day Fix

CLEAN EATING!  I wanted something that was a lifestyle change, worked for my whole family, and wasn't uber time consuming (since we all know I don't sleep much as it is hehe).  I've talked to a lot of people who have tried lots of different things - and this felt the most "Lisa" like.  The whole concept is basically portion control and healthy eating (meaning not processed foods).  I will be honest and say I'm still a bit overwhelmed by my lack of nutrition knowledge BUT I'm very motivated to figure it out as I want to be here for my boys for a very long time...I need to understand what I'm putting into my body and what my body needs....cause apparently cheezits and diet coke are not it :)

Clean eating isn't really a "diet" you follow - but more of getting certain food groups in throughout the day based off your weight.

You use these colored handy tupperware containers (but you could totally do this on your own) to figure out how much of each group goes into each meal and plan out your whole day.  Below is the break out of size of colored containers.  Tablespoons is for oils and nut butters (no butter, no salt)

**TIPS**
-Eat your Yellow and Purple before 6pm
-NO POP (not even diet...)
-NO BEER / ALCHIE - BUT you can have 1 glass of wine if you are willing to substitute a yellow.
-You can have coffee / tea
-Drink 1/2 your body weight in water per day
-FREEBIES (listed in white above): Put as much as you want on food!

Here is our menu for the first week!!  Every time you see Shakeology - Ross just has a protein portion instead -- usually oatmeal cause it's quick and easy in the morning.

Greek Chicken Wrap

Makes 1 serving  (2 yellow, 1 red, 1/2 blue, 1.5 green)

Ingredients:
1 Ezckiel wrap (whole wheat basically) (2 yellow)
8oz Deli oven roasted chicken (1 red)
Hummus (1/2 blue)
Spinach (1 green)
Tomato (1/2 green)
Cucumber (1/2 green)

Spread wrap with hummus - then put down chicken, spinach, tomato, cucumber and roll together!

Taco Salad

Makes 1 serving  (1 red, 1 blue, 1.5 green, 1/4 purple)

Ingredients:
Ground turkey (3/4 red)
Romaine lettuce (1 green)
Tomato (1/2 green)
Avocado (1/2 blue)
Nonfat plain greek yogurt (instead of sour cream) (1/4 red)
Salsa (1/4 purple)
low fat shredded cheese (optional) (1/2 blue)

Cook ground turkey and season with chili powder, cumin, red pepper.

Serve 1 red container cooked turkey over: 1 green container of chopped romaine, 1 yellow container chopped tomato, 1/8 avocado, 2T Greek yogurt, 2T salsa, and 1/2 a blue container of shredded cheese.

Turkey Cranberry Sandwich

Makes 1 serving  (1 yellow, 1 red, 1 purple, 1 green)

Ingredients:
1 Ezckiel wrap (whole wheat basically) (1 yellow)
2 Tablespoons greek non fat plain yogurt (1/2 red)
2 tablespoons dried cranberries (1 purple)

4oz nitrate free turkey breast (1/2 red)

Spinach leaves (1 green)

In a small bowl, mix yogurt and cranberries. Spread on 1 slice of bread (or wrap). Add turkey slices, then spinach.

Chocolate Shakeology

PB and CHOC

Surprisingly this was really good.  I don't like chocolate unless it's mixed in with peanut butter...well, this was!!  So good and kept me full till my morning snack!!

Ingredients:
Chocolate shake mix
1/2 banana
1T nut butter
Ice

BUTTERFINGER

This might be my new all time favorite!  It was like drinking dessert -- I'm totally using this as an afternoon snack to fix my sweet craving!!

Ingredients:
Chocolate shake mix
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 1/2 tablespoons butterscotch pudding mix
1 1/2 Tablespoons nut butter
Ice

CINNAMON ROLL

Finding new ways to mix it up -- this was pretty yummy!!  :)  I did like the vanilla version of this better though...

Ingredients:
Chocolate shake mix
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon honey
Ice

CREAMY CANDY CANE

TIS the season!!  This was pretty good!!

Ingredients:
Chocolate shake mix
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
2 teaspoons crushed candy cane
Ice

PB OATMEAL COOKIE

This was pretty good too -- I like the regular PB one better but if you are looking for a shake without fruit, this was good!

Ingredients:
Chocolate shake mix
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
6oz water
1/4 cup oats
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons peanut butter
Ice

SMORE

This was pretty good too -- I like the regular PB one better but if you are looking for a shake without fruit, this was good!

Ingredients:
Chocolate shake mix
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 whole wheat graham cracker
Ice