Herb Marinated Shrimp & Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

No lies, I was dreaming about this dinner for a week. After my dad had sent me an email with a recipe for orzo pasta with lemon juice & feta. I knew I did not want to do pasta, and I thought quinoa would make a perfect partner for it. I played around in the kitchen and the end result is a fabulous Mediterranean quinoa salad that has quickly made it into my favorites list. I want to serve it with grilled shrimp, but our grill was out of propane, so I needed to come up with something else. After mixing a few things together I came up with an amazing marinade, that I literally wanted to drink. It tasted almost like a mojito without the mint, which was bomb.com in my book. This marinade would work great on nearly any protein, so if you aren't a shrimp lover try it on chicken! I will be making this again soon!!

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

-1c. Cooked Quinoa
-1/2 red onion, diced
-2 ounces feta, crumbled
-1/4c. fresh dill, chopped (Don't substitute dried dill for this)
-1/4c. fresh parsley, chopped (If you don't already have this on hand, don't buy it just for this. It doesn't make or break the recipe, but I had some so its nice to add that earthy flavor if you have it)
-1 jar of roasted red peppers, drained and diced
-1 can of artichoke hearts packed in water, drained and quartered
-1/2c. grape tomatoes, halved

Dressing-
1 TBS olive oil
2 TBS lemon juice
1 garlic clove, pressed or finely minced

-In a bowl combine all of the salad ingredients.

-In a separate bowl mix together the dressing and then toss the dressing with the salad.

-Chill & Serve

Serving Size 1c.
The Skinny Per Serving-
Total Fat- 7.3 Calories- 209.6 Carbs- 27.6 Protein- 7.2

Herb Marinated Shrimp

-12 medium peeled & deveined shrimp
-3 Cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
-1/2c. fresh dill (dried can be used here, but I would only use 1-2 tbs.)
-1/4c. fresh basil
-2 TBS Dijon or whole grain mustard
-Juice of 1 lemon
-2 tsp olive oil
-1 tsp honey
Salt & Pepper to taste

-In a food processor, blend all ingredients until they are emulsified. The herbs will still be in small pieces, that is ok.

-Place marinade over your protein of choice. If marinating fish or shrimp, keep it to around an hour as the acid will start breaking down the proteins (ceviche anyone?!?)

-Broil shrimp until pink & cooked through. About 5 mins.

Serves 2
Serving Size 6 Shrimp

The Skinny per serving
Total- 7.4g Calories 121 Carbs- 0.7g Protein- 8.8g

Chicken "Tortilla" Soup

Sunday the Hubbs was feeling under the weather so I decided to whip up a tasty soup to make him feel better. It couldn't be more simple, but it was really tasty. You can pretty much put anything in it that you have on hand. I think my cooking worked because come Monday he felt fine!

The tortilla is in quotations because I didn't use any tortillas. Traditional tortilla soup uses corn tortillas to thicken the soup. You can absolutely do this, just add 4 corn tortillas (chopped) to the onion/bell peppers when they are sautéing. I did not because I try to not use much corn products, I used brown rice instead and it was fabulous. Try it both ways, no way, whatever way you like!

Chicken "Tortilla" Soup

Ok, here is the break down. You can either make your soup base from scratch or you can use a quickie version. I like Pacific Naturals Tortilla Soup Base in a pinch. If you use the prepared soup base, skip the instructions on making the base.  
Soup Base-
4c. Chicken Stock
1 can diced tomatoes
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder

Soup Ingredients-
1 Onion, diced
1 Red Bell pepper, Diced
1 Can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 c. Cooked Brown Rice (great use for leftovers!)
6 oz Chicken, in chunks (I used pre-cooked from my sunday prep, but it can be raw)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Garnish-
Fresh cilantro
Tortilla Chips
Cheddar Cheese
Sour Cream
Green Onion
Cilantro-Lime Yogurt
Avocado
Lime Juice
Salsa

-In a large pot over medium heat, sauté the onion and bell pepper until just translucent, about 3 minutes. Add in the prepared soup base or the soup base ingredients & chicken. Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring to a boil. Once the liquid has come to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer about 15mins. Add in the brown rice & black beans. Let heat through about another 3mins.

-After the black beans & brown rice have been heated through, serve the soup and top with garnish. I used fresh cilantro, green onion and cilantro-lime yogurt, but its totally up to you!

Serves 4
Serving Size 1.5c

The Skinny
Total Fat- 2.6g Calories- 258 Carbs- 37.3 Protein- 18.7

Coconut & Cashew Crusted Mahi Mahi with Mango Salsa

When the Hubbs was in college I worked at an amazing Peruvian restaurant. It was a life changing experience. I had always thought I wanted to work in the food industry, and I found out pretty quickly there that there was no way in hell I wanted that to be my career. BUT! I did learn great things there and ate amazing food. Thinking about that food, I remembered we did a coconut and macadamia nut crusted halibut (I remember this recipe well because I messed it up one time and got called out for it!). That version contained sugar in the crust mix so that when it was pan seared it created a beautiful golden brown crust. Sugar, is not in my recipe as it is unnecessary. I also bake mine to eliminate the excess oil. Give it a try. I promise, it's amazeballs.

Coconut & Cashew Crusted Mahi Mahi

Crust-
-1/2c. Unsweetened Coconut Flakes
-1/2c. Raw Cashews
-1/2tsp Cumin
-Salt & Pepper

Dredge-
-1 egg white beaten
-1/2c. Flour (whatever kind you want. I used Garbanzo flour because that's what I had)
-The blended crust mix

-4 4oz Mahi Mahi Fillets

-In a food processor add all of the crust ingredients and pulse until it becomes a fine granular mix. Don't over mix this or you will end up with cashew butter! (I know, I've done it!) Add the finished crust mix to a shallow dish (a pie pan works great for this)

-add the beaten egg white to a shallow dish and the flour to a separate shallow dish.

-Take your fish fillet and first dredge it completely in the flour (don't skip this step! The flour takes away the surface moisture of the fish so that the egg will stick, and your crust wont adhere to the fish without the egg!) then immediately dredge the fillet in the egg and then crust it with the coconut/cashew mix. Press the crust into the fillet so that it sticks. Repeat with the rest of the fillets.

-Bake the fillets on a parchment (or silpat) lined baking sheet at 400 degrees for about 15mins (give or take depending on the thickness of your fish). Top with Mango Salsa & Serve.

Servings 4
Serving Size 1 4oz Fish Fillet

The Skinny
Total Fat- 10g Calories- 330 Carbs- 4g Protein- 25g

Mango Salsa

-1 Mango, peeled & diced
-1/2 red onion diced
-1/4c. Cilantro, chopped
-1/2 Jalepeno, seeded & diced
-Juice of 1 lime, squeezed

-Mix all ingredients together

Servings 4
Serving Size 1/4c

The Skinny
Total Fat- 0.5g Calories- 86 Carb-s 22g Protein- 1g

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Ok. So if you are a pinterest addict like I am, then you have seen the recipes for Cauliflower Pizza Crust. I was totally skeptical. I mean, I love me some cauliflower, but how would it hold up? would it actually be like a crust? how would it taste? So many questions!

Then the other day, Hill text me saying that the pizza place outside of his office smelled really good. I knew then, that I had to make pizza soon.

I looked over several recipes for this cauliflower crust. Some of them included almond meal, cheese, microwaving the cauliflower, various other ingredients. Some reviews of the recipes said they were awful and they wouldn't ever try them again.

I got scared.

So I decided to look at it like I do with any recipes I create. I think about the components. 1.) It has to stick together 2.) It has to taste good 3.) It has to get crispy 4.) It has to be clean.

The end result was a crust that tasted really good! It wasn't completely free of cauliflower taste, but it wasn't all up in yo face either. It held together well, especially after it cooled. And it took less time to make than the regular pizza dough that I made for my parents who were having dinner with us that night!

Cauliflower Pizza Crust
1 medium cauliflower
1 whole egg and 1 egg white
1/3c. mozzarella cheese (this is for flavor, and the slight fat content created a crispy edge)
2 TBS fresh parsley
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder

-Coarsely chop the cauliflower into chunks. Pulse in a food processor until it has the texture of sand
-Put the ground cauliflower into a pan, with a lid and steam the cauliflower until it is cooked. This was about 5mins for me on medium heat
-After the cauliflower is cooked, put it into a tea towel or cheese cloth and squeeze out all of the water. I think I got about a cup of water out of my cauliflower.
-Return the cauliflower back to the food processor. Add the remaining ingredients and pulse to combine.

-Preheat oven to 450. Preheat your pizza stone. If you don't have a pizza stone, you can use a cookie sheet.
-On a piece of parchment paper, place your cauliflower dough. With your hands, pat it out into a circle. You don't want it to be too thick or too thin. Mine was probably about an 1/4" thick. Maybe slightly less.
-Place the parchment into your preheated oven on the pizza stone.
-Cook for about 10mins, until it is just starting to brown.
-Remove from the oven, add your toppings, and then return to the oven until it is GBD (golden, brown, delicious) and everything is melty.
-Let the pizza rest for about 2 mins after it comes out of the oven, or it wont hold like a slice of pizza (no lies, I couldn't wait, and just ate mine with a fork!)

Makes 1 Pizza
Serving size 1 slice (1/4 pizza)
The skinny Per Serving-
Total Fat- 4.5g Carbs- 3.0g Protein- 6.8g Calories- 76.6

The pizza I made was an Artichoke-Basil Pesto with Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onions, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Kalamata Olives & Balsamic Drizzle

Artichoke-Basil Pesto
1c. Fresh Basil Leaves
1 can of Artichoke Hearts packed in Water
2 TBS olive oil

-Put all ingredients into a food processor. Blend until smooth. Season with salt & pepper.

Makes about 3 1/4c. Servings
The Skinny per Serving
Total Fat- 4.5g Carbs- 2.1g Calories- 51.6 Protein .8g

Sweet 16

So just an update on my progress.

Since July 24th (when I started really counting my calories & gymin' it up) I've lost 16lbs. That's averaging a little over 2lbs a week.

This is pretty big for me considering I had my birthday smack dab in the middle, a wine party, traveling for work, and plenty of stress to boot. So I am super happy with my results so far.

Things that I am doing to prepare myself for success:
-Prepping meals ahead.
-Keeping track of my calories with the My Fitness Pal App (Even on my birthday, when I had the most fabulous dinner & drinks out with my family, I still recorded everything)
-Making a promise to myself to workout and keeping it.
-Eating clean
-Finding the fun in it. For me, that's creating new interesting recipes for dinner.
-Keeping my music selection new and fun for working out
-Downloading TV shows that I never have time to watch for long cardio sessions at the gym. (I'm currently hooked on Scandal!)

We follow these simple rules for working out:
-Never miss a Monday
-Never go more than 3 days without working out

That is really it. I wish it was something special or amazing, its just old fashioned work. But when I plan ahead, it is really so easy to follow.

Salmon & Lentils

I am always looking for new ways to have salmon as it is our favorite. The Hubbs was out for a soccer game so it gave me some time to experiment in the kitchen without the pressure of getting dinner on the table in a hurry.

I knew I wanted to use lentils and dill as I had them readily available and they sounded good. So I made this super delicious lentil salad. It has a tartness from the Dijon and lemon juice, a sweetness from the carrots and dill, and a nice play on textures.

I wanted to Salmon to work with the salad as a cohesive dish, so I thought bringing out a spicy/smokey quality would play off of the tart/sweet lentil salad. The salmon literally could not be easier. Pan seared with a dusting of cayenne pepper and finished with a smoked salt.

The end result was the 2 things I look for most in a dish:1.) Super Delicious 2.) Quick & Easy

Lentil Salad

1 TBS Dijon or Whole Grain Mustard
3 TBS Red Wine Vinegar
2 TBS Olive Oil
1 Small Garlic Clove, pressed or minced
3c. Cooked Lentils (I used the pre-cooked ones from Trader Joes. Take the help where you can get it!)
1c. Chopped Carrots
1c. Chopped Cucumber
1/2c. Diced Red Onion
1/4c. Diced Red Bell Pepper
1/4c. Chopped Fresh Dill
Salt & Pepper to Taste

-In a bowl, whisk together mustard, vinegar, olive oil & garlic. Add in remaining ingredients.

-Chill for 30 minutes.

The Skinny
Serving Size 1/2c
Total Fat- 5.5g Carbs- 25.5g Protein- 9.8g Calories- 196.8

Cayenne Pepper & Smoked Salt Salmon

-Cayenne Pepper, to taste people! I like things spicy, you might not.
-Smoked Salt, if you've never tried smoked salt. I recommend it. So good. This I the one I use: http://www.saltworks.us/alderwood-smoked-salt-salish.html#.UjIa3ZDn_VI

-Take a paper towel and dab off the excess moisture. Lightly sprinkle the surface with cayenne pepper.

-In a dry skillet over medium-high heat, cook the salmon skin side down. Typically about 4mins depending on the thickness of your salmon. Turn your salmon over onto the flesh side and finish cooking through, About 3mins.

-When the salmon is done, sprinkle the top with the smoked salt.

Busy B / Traveling B



So sorry for not posting lately. I have been one Busy B! It is a safe bet that I will never update this blog during end of the month. I work crazy hours(more-so than usual, if you can believe that) and I am under tons of stress. Add to end of the month traveling out of state for work and I just haven't had time to think! So my apologies. I will try to be better!

So, since I just got back from traveling my friend Cindy had the idea for me to do a post about clean eating on the go.

The only true way to eat clean while on the go or traveling is to plan ahead. While planning ahead is not always the most convenient it will save you from hunting through the airport looking for something decent to eat and then choosing the least evil (that lets face it, isn't a good choice either).

For my trip to California I had to get up at 3am to be ready and at the airport by 5am. My flight left at 6:40 and we got into Cali around 8. Our meeting went from 10am-2pm and then we were back at the airport by 4 to catch the plane back home. It was a long crazy day, but I made it through and ate clean!

This is what I packed in my carry-on cooler for my short trip:

• Apples & Peanut Butter
• Vegetables & Hummus (Costco sells hummus in individual cups, but I just portioned out 2 TBS in a little container)
• Protein Shake Mix w/ an Empty Blender Bottle (You can get water anywhere!)

Love these individual packets of Justin's Nut Butter

I was so glad that I had planned ahead and brought food, because the lunch served to us was anything but clean. So I skipped the lunch and ate my apples & PB and veg w/ hummus. That filled me up enough to get through the meetings, and then I had my protein shake while waiting for my flight back.

My on-the-go tips:

• Plan ahead.
• Think about your options once you get to where you are going and fill in the gaps with your own clean eats.
• Pack a cooler! Get a small cooler with reusable ice packs it will keep your food cool all day!

I use a cooler like this from Fit Fresh. It comes with the ice packs, so just freeze & jet set!

Travel Friendly Foods:

• Oatmeal- Just take your portioned out dry oatmeal and get a cup of hot water. Even Starbucks will sell you a cup of hot water! Add in a scoop of protein powder or peanut butter/almond butter for protein and you have a complete portable meal!
• Yogurt- Yogurt will stay cold in a cooler for several hours. Pack a container with fruit and/or granola to go with your yogurt and you are good to go!
• Apples & Peanut Butter- The love of my life, Apples & PB! I love the packs of individually cut & packaged apples from Costco. They make life so easy! Either get packets of PB or portion it out. This is a complete snack. Complex Carb &  Protein!
• Veggies  & Hummus- Baby carrots are amaze for travel! Just keep them cool and you are good to go. Hummus is also a great travel buddy. (For some added zip, toss your baby carrots in Mrs. Dash, then dip them in the hummus!)
• Protein Shake- I am not a huge protein shake fan. I would much rather eat my calories than drink them, but for portability factor alone, protein shake is king! It requires no refrigeration, no prep, only water!  I like the Advocare Chocolate Mocha. They are individually packaged and they have an equal amount of protein and carbs to keep you satisfied. (is it the cleanest protein powder? no. But you can't win every battle)
• Quinoa Salad- This bad boy will stay fresh in a cooler and with protein from the quinoa and complex carbs, it will keep you satisfied!
• Fruit & Nuts- Almonds are  a great on-the-go protein source. Couple them with a fruit such as  a banana and you have a complete clean snack. Trader Joe's sells almonds pre-portioned if you don't trust yourself to not over-indulge :)
• Lara Bars- If you haven't tried these, I HIGHLY suggest it. They are made with like 3 simple ingredients: Nuts, Dried Fruit & Salt. Their Peanut Butter Cookie & Peanut Butter & Jelly bar are my fav.
• Hard Boiled Eggs- A perfect on-the-go protein source! Peel them before if you know you won't have access to a sink to prep them. Eat with a complex carb and you have a complete mini meal/snack
• Mediterranean Veggie Wrap- This bad boy will hold up well in a cooler and with protein & carbs its a complete meal!
• Mini Quiche- These hold up really well in a cooler. When the Hubbs went away on business, I packed these for him and he loved them.

Don't go so long without eating that you are starved and make poor choices! If you fail to plan, all hope isn't lost. Just be smart. I always look up calories in the app My Fitness Pal BEFORE I make a choice to make sure its the right one. My usual go-to options if I forget to plan is either a Mediterranean Breakfast Wrap (yes, I eat them whenever not just at breakfast!) and Zesty Chicken & Black Bean Salad from Starbucks. They are calorie friendly, complete meals, and you can find a Starbucks ALMOST anywhere!

 

That's it loves! The secret is there is no secret. Just plan ahead and set yourself up for success!