Pancake Perfection

Lemon Blueberry Pancakes

I tried a little kitchen experiment today.  I added lemon zest and blueberries to my favorite whole wheat Kodiak Cakes pancake mix.  It was divine.  I didn't even want to add my usual honey on top 'cause it was already sweetened with delicious flavor!

My perfect combination:

2 cups mix

2 cups water

1 Tbsp. lemon zest

a few handfulls blueberries

Happy Sunday!

What do you fink?

We love cracking peanuts together...yummy protein-packed snack and lots of laughs!

Owen created a waterbottle shelling technique today. 

"Wook, Mom!  I found a way to crack seeds!  You should try it wif your waterbottle and see what you fink!"

He smashes them with his heavy waterbottle and they pop right open (and spray pieces everywhere)!  This child of mine is constantly entertaining!

Honey Mustard Chicken

I love easy crockpot recipes. It is so nice to toss it in, forget about it while busy life continues, then return to find dinner hot and ready!

Honey Mustard Chicken

Ingredients:

1 C honey

10 oz Grey Poupon Dijon mustard

1 tsp lemon juice

2 tsp vegetable oil

Paprika, salt and pepper

20 chicken tenderloins

Mushrooms, chopped and sautéed in 1 ½ T butter and lightly salted

1 ½ oz jar Hormel real bacon pieces

Colby Jack cheese, shredded

Directions: 

Blend honey, mustard and lemon juice with a mixer for 1 minute. Sprinkle chicken with paprika, salt and pepper, and brown in pan on high heat. Put chicken in the crockpot and pour honey mustard marinade over chicken. Cook on low for 4 hours. Scoop out chicken and place in a baking dish (discard marinade). Sprinkle chicken with sautéed mushrooms, Hormel bacon pieces and Colby Jack cheese. Cook 2-3 minutes at 350 or until cheese is melted. 

One serving is 2 pieces of chicken = 212 calories, 3g fat, 29g carbohydrates, 14g protein

Fruit on-the-go

These are the best sugar-free fruit snacks

We love these dried mangoes from Costco! This brand does not use any added sugar--the only ingredient is organic mangoes.

1/2 C = 140 calories, 0g fat, 34g carbohydrate, 1g protein

My kids think freeze-dried fruit is candy! These are sold at Wal-Mart and / or Macey's grocery stores. 

Stretch Island Fruit Leather

Buy a large box of assorted flavors at Costco or purchase individually at Winco. I grew up with my mom drying peach fruit leather on trays in an old parked car - we called it "The Green Granny." So my childhood and life-long favorite leather is peach, or in Stretch Island, my closest favorite to what I grew up on is apricot. 

One apricot leather = 45 calories, 0g fat, 11g carbohydrate, 0g protein

Eating WELL on the TRAIL

Ready for a Spring Break hike?

Here are two of my favorite trail mix packs:

Left: Triple Berry Nut from Sam's Club (no sodium)

DARK CHOCOLATE HEAVEN

1/4 C = 150 calories, 10g fat, 14g carbs, 3g protein

Right: Nuts and Berries from Costco

The dried blueberries are TO. DIE. FOR!

1/4 C = 150 calories, 8g fat, 14g carbs, 4g protein, 15 mg sodium

Happy trails to you!

Kids are the BEST

I love my exercise buddies! Today I giggled while doing my abs exercises because Owen laid next to me, flailing his arms and legs, and between loud purposeful exhales said, "I'm gunna do DEAD BUG"! Of course, this bug-loving boy claims this particular exercise as his favorite (likely due to its name!) I also love the kisses he randomly splats on my cheeks in between sets! He left the room for a few short minutes, and then returned telling me that he had just cut his own tags off of the shirt he was wearing 'cause they were bothering him. Nothing beats an independent 3-year-old... alone... with scissors! He actually did a good job - no holes in his shirt and no more itchy tag!

Olivia loves to hop on the treadmill right next to me. She took 4th in the summer run last year, and she often asks if I think she will take a top 3 spot this year, which will earn her a trophy! I love that my kids like to spend time exercising with me, and that it helps them to set these fun goals! Every mother's wish is for a happy, healthy family!

Hospital Mixed Berry Smoothie

My kids and I tried a sample of this while spending the day in the hospital with my mom. We loved it so much that we bought one almost every day thereafter. It's super easy to whip up for breakfast or a meal on-the-go. This recipe serves 2.

½ C frozen mixed berry blend

½ ripe banana, frozen

3 oz Greek God’s strawberry yogurt

½ C 100% orange juice

Add all ingredients into a blender and mix until smooth

*To make it green, just add a few leaves of fresh spinach

Aunt June's Wheat Banana Bread

I love my Great-Aunt June! I inherited this recipe as a teenager while visiting her beautiful, sunny, California home.

  

Ingredients:

2 ½ C whole wheat flour

3 ½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 C honey

3 T olive oil

1 C bananas (2-3)

½ C milk

1 egg

Directions:

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in large mixing bowl. Combine remaining ingredients in separate bowl. Then, combine the two. Pour into bread pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes.

When Thou Art Converted, Strengthen Thy Brethren

It's NOT about you or your life looking perfect. It IS about feeling good and cheering others on to practice healthy behaviors, beginning with the individual. The individual, in turn, has a greater capacity to serve his / her family, friends, community, religious organization, corporation, etc. You can help us do this, beginning with taking good care of YOU!

Happy Sabbath everyone! :-)

Love Your Body

Your New Best Friend

Have you ever wondered the nutrient content and calorie count of your favorite home-cooked meal?

I'm about to introduce you to your new best friend!

From here on out, you won't have to look up each ingredient individually and spend precious time trying to calculate it.

Sign up for your FREE My Fitness Pal account by clicking here. Type in the recipe ingredients and number of servings and TA-DA!!!...the numbers are calculated in an instant! Now you can see if your faves fit in to your healthy eating lifestyle, or swap out ingredients to make it work and still eat what you love! It's always nice to have a bestie that keeps you on track and healthy!

Examples of Easy Trade Ingredients:

White Flour = Almond Flour or Whole Wheat flour

1 C Sugar = 3/4 C + 1 T honey

Original Sour Cream = Fat Free Sour Cream or Non-fat Plain Greek Yogurt
Mayonnaise = 1-2 avocados + 1 C Plain Greek Yogurt (mixed well with pastry cutter)

Dinner Deliciousness

Blackened Tilapia

I tried this new (to me) recipe tonight that was recommended by a friend, and my family gobbled it up!

This is also a fair exchange for dinner/meal 5 on the meal plan. Eat 1.5 servings of fish with veggies on the side, to equate to the same calories and nutrients. You could even choose to eat some earlier in the day, and then again at dinner...you decide! Another option would be to not eat your wheat toast in the morning and instead use this fish, a corn tortilla, cole slaw, and some lime dressing to make a mouth-watering taco!

Click HERE for the recipe!

Green as the Grass

In terms of nutrition, I don't eat as green as the grass. However, I am a self-proclaimed healthy eater (mostly), which is realistic for me. Too green, and I fail miserably! I'm human. In fact, today I single-handedly downed an entire Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate and Hazelnut Bar (without sharing it with my husband!) When he got home from work, he hunted the kitchen for it. I blamed it on Essie.

With that, I share with you this mouthwatering (and mostly healthy)...

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 lb diced and cooked chicken 

(we use Trader Joe's frozen Just Grilled Chicken Strips)

1/2 C canned corn

1/2 C frozen shelled edamame

1/2 C diced carrots

1/2 C diced celery

1 carton Trader Joe's Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

(this is a seasonal item, so stock up...or find a good substitute)

1 C chicken broth

1 Trader Joe's Pie Crust (frozen), both crusts defrosted

1-2 T olive oil for sautéing

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place one pie crust in the bottom of a pie dish and par-bake until lightly golden (about 10-12 min). Set aside. In a medium-sized bowl, mix condensed mushroom soup and 1 cup broth. Set aside. In a large pan over medium heat, add oil. When heated, add corn, edamame, carrots, and celery and sauté until fragrant (about 3 min). Add soup mixture and chicken to pan and cook, stirring often, until filling is heated through and begins to simmer. Remove from heat. Pour filling into pre-baked bottom crust, then cover with remaining unbaked crust. Cut slits in the top crust to allow venting. Place pie in center rack of oven and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 min until crust turns golden brown. Let cool slightly before serving.

This recipe is a family fave!