21 Day Fix Approved Enchilada Soup

I've been making a new soup each week. This one was right up my alley as I love anything with a Mexican twist. This can be served over a quinoa or brown rice if you would like...I'm sure that would make it just as tasty!


What You Need –
4 Large Chicken Breast
1 Green Bell Pepper diced
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder
2 Tablespoons Mrs Dash Fiesta Lime Salt Free seasoning
1/2 Cup Salsa (no sugar added)
3 cups Organic low sodium Chicken broth
14 oz Diced Tomatoes
8 oz tomato sauce (no sugar added )
1 cup of spinach
1 tablespoons chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoons cumin
2 tablespoons chopped oregano leaves
1 teaspoon chopped rosemary leaves
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
shredded cheese sprinkled on top
plain greek yogurt, or avacado you could add to top of soup
Instructions –
Add all ingredients to Crock Pot
cook on low for 4-6 hours

Meal Planning~ week of January 24th

Good afternoon from a sunny Columbus! There's a little snow on the ground...but nothing too exciting as the rest of the country is getting a TON of snow!!!
Still sticking to my goals with the hammer and chisel nutrition plan! This week we have planned:
Sunday~ grilled chicken, roasted broccoli, and sweet potato
Monday~ Greek chicken in whole wheat pitas
Tuesday~ Taco Tuesday
Wednesday~ carne asade
Thursday~ 21 day fix chicken enchilada soup over quinoa
Friday~ Flat out pizzas

Just some ideas for you all as you are setting up your menu plans!
Have a great one!Stay warm!

Meal Planning~ week of January 17th

Hey all!! Hope that you are having a nice long weekend. The boys have had a four day weekend with tons of activities planned so I am now just finally getting around to sharing what's on the menu at our house this week. I am trying to stick to the hammer and chisel meal plan as best as I can. This girl is really sticking to her goals! :)

This week we are having:
Sunday~ Grilled chicken, sweet potato, roasted broccoli and red onion
Monday~ 21 day fix chili (fixate cookbook)
Tuesday~ Taco Tuesday
Wednesday~ Steak fajitas (from the fixate cookbook)
Thursday~ Having a moms night out at a local pub this week so might have a cheat night :)
Friday~ Chicken noodle soup (also from the fixate cookbook)

Tonight's dinner was delicious and added some hot sauce for extra spice.
Any questions? Dont hesitate on asking.
Enjoy your week!

Product Review: Flat Outs Pizza Crust

How loves pizza??? This girl right here does...LOL!!!
I wanted to find an alternative that would be considered "healthy" and make some at home.
From my research, it seemed like flat outs was going to be answer!! I was so excited and ran to WalMart to pick some up.
We tried them out yesterday night and I cannot wait to have another one. I bought the rosermary and olive oil ones. That added such a nice touch of flavor. I topped our pizza with pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, and pepperoni. I added red onion to mine. I cooked them up in about 10 minutes and they were PERFECT. If you are a fan of thin crust, this is definitely for you!! It was nice and crispy. If you don't mind cooking up your own pizza be sure to check these out!

No...I was not paid for this...just wanted to share this with you all :)

Citrus Chicken Tacos

It's been way tooo long since a post. With my husband being out of town I didnt cook anything exciting or I've been cooking up foods that I have already posted about! But tonight I have new one and it was delicious! Perfect for a hot summer night! Citrus tacos are now being served!!!

1 T mrs dash fiesta lime seasoning Juice from 1/2 grapefruit
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
pinch cayenne pepper
2 minced garlic cloves
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 thawed chicken breasts
1/2 lime

I mixed the first 8 ingredients in a bowl. Placed the chicken in the slow cooker and then topped with the mixture. I cooked on low for about 6.5 hours. I shredded the chicken. I served with tortilla, cheese, onions, pica de gallo, and lettuce. Super yummy!

Mango Black Bean Quinoa Salad

I am loving the mangoes right now at the grocery store!!! They are so ripe and juicy!!! Best part thing of this meal is so much of it can be prepped ahead. And also let's face it..the weather is sooo HOT that it's nice not have the stove on for a long time.

Does this not look delicious?

It was super easy to make.
Ingredients:
1 cup quinoa
2 chicken breast
1 can black beans
3 limes
1 onion (I forgot to grab a red onion at the store..but I used a sweet onion)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 mango
jalepenos (amount depends on your spicy likeness)
2 tsps cumin
1 tsp chili powder
Olive oil

Obviously some steps just depends on how you want to prepare it but this is what I did:
First I put my chicken in the slow cooker in the morning. I added the 1 tsp of chili powder and 1 of the tsps of cumin. I cooked for about 7 hours.
When it got closer to dinner I made my quinoa. I added the 1 cup of quinoa, 2 cups of water, and the last tsp of cumin and cooked for the 15 minutes.
While it was simmering, I shredded my chicken and added to the big bowl. I also rinsed my beans,  cut my red pepper and onion, mango, and jalepeno and added to the bowl. Once the quinoa was done I added it to the bowl. I drizzled olive oil and squeezed the juice from the 3 limes. Toss to coat...and serve. It was soo good :)

Greek Chicken Pitas

I don't know about you all, but where I live (south Florida) it is super HOT!!! With my meal planning, I am trying to find things that are A). easy to cook B). Light C). and not hot (like soup hot...spicy hot I LOVE). This recipe meets all the requirements for my summer cooking!
I did my chicken in the slow cooker. It's just easier for me to throw my chicken breast in there. I am not a big fan of those chicken strips sold at stores in the Ziploc bags and I could get the chicken from the deli section...but I just prefer this method.

this meal was super easy to prep since the slow cooker took care of the cooking part. Just cut up some veggies...add some lemon and chives. Cut the pitas in half and you have yourself a fabulous dinner!

Each serving has 380 calories.

 

Total Time: 10 min.
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cooking Time: None
Yield: 1 serving
Ingredients:
1 (6½-inch) whole wheat pita, cut in half to make pockets
3 oz cooked chicken breast, boneless, skinless, cut into 1-inch cubes
¼ medium tomato, chopped
¼ cup chopped cucumber
1 Tbsp. chopped red onion (optional)
¼ tsp. dried oregano
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
¼ cup shredded romaine lettuce
2 Tbsp. crumbled feta cheese (about ½ oz)
Preparation:
1. Fill pita halves evenly with chicken, tomato, cucumber, onion (if desired), oregano, lemon juice, romaine, and cheese.

Avacado Chicken Salad

The boys and I had spent all of yesterday in the van. I will be the first to admit we didn't make the wisest food choices on the way home. We stopped at Mickey D's, had tortilla chips in the car, Zaxby's chicken..you get the point. We also are just coming off a week vacation in TN where we ate at Paula Deen's restaurant and a few other yummy places (although we did a good job on dinners with our crock pot). This is our first day home and I knew I wanted to make something light...and yummy!
What you are going to need:
2 cups shredded chicken
1 avocado
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tsp lime juice
1 tsp fresh cilantro
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup plain Greek Yogurt

Easy to make:

 Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 20-30 minutes to let all those yummy flavors blend together.


Serve on your favorite bread, crackers, pita pocket or on a bed of lettuce.

Chocoate Peanut Butter Protein Balls

It's been awhile since I last blogged. My family and I spent a week in Gatlinburg. What a fun trip we all had. I will probably blog about our various adventures.
My post today is chocolate peanut butter protein balls. I had made a batch of these for our van ride up (we drove from FL to TN). I made these so we wouldn't have to stop a lot for snacks and also, I wanted to make sure we made wise choices on the road.
These are super simple to make. All you will need are:
1 cup oats
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (can be shakeology or whey powder)

Super simple to do:
Combine ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Roll into balls. Enjoy. Will last about 5 days refrigerated.

Clean Eating: Raspberry Oatmeal Cookies

Last night I was craving a sweet. I really wanted a DQ blizzard...but I am really trying to stay disciplined in my diet (and obviously that DQ blizzard isn't a part of it). So when I got up this morning I knew I was going to need something to curb those sweet attacks! Luckily we went to Costco and bought a big ol' container of raspberries so this fit the bill. They are light...full of flavor..and super easy to make.

Ingredients:

1 c instant (quick-cook) oats 

¾ c whole wheat flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

2 tbsp coconut oil, melted

1 egg, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ c honey

6 tbsp fresh raspberries, diced

Steps:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg, and vanilla. Stir in the honey until thoroughly incorporated. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Fold in the raspberries. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.
3. Drop the cookie dough into 15 rounded scoops on the baking sheet. Bake at 325°F for 13-15 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet.

Now let me tell they do not look at all appetizing when in the fridge chilling:

 

But once they are cooked and cooled they were beautiful delicious cookies!!!

My husband enjoyed as did our 15 month old!! This will more than likely become a summer time favorite sweet!

 

 

Clean Grillin' summer

Is anyone as excited as I am that summer is right around the corner? While I do live in Florida, we are getting super close to the end of the school..which totally symbolizes SUMMER for this kindergarten teacher.
As a beachbody coach I always try to think of fun and exciting ways to keep my friends engaged and wanted to extend this to you all. I have started a Facebook group that will feature various recipes to make sure you keep on track nutrition wise while grillin' out.
Here is a link to my summer grillin' clean group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1471286679828517/members/

Hope to see you there!! Starts on May 23rd!
If you are having any problems contact me directly!

Hello Fresh Review: Pork

On Sunday we had our first of our three Hello Fresh meals: The pork one.
I loved how they provided easy to read recipe cards:

The front side showed everything that you are going to need to prepare the meal. The backside provided all the nutritional information as well the steps to prepare the meal.

I went into the fridge to get the correct bag that matched my recipe:

I loved how everything was laid out and ready to. They measured the spices for you as well. The little jar of orange jam was a nice touch as well for this recipe. Obviously you still have to cut all your veggies and cook the meat...but hey you didn't have to go shopping nor really measure anything out.
I found the ease of the recipe to be easy. I didn't feel like it took long...30 minutes tops. I didn't feel overwhelmed or anything.
This meal also came with a side of basmati rice.
Here is the complete meal:

In my opinion: VERY tasty. It was  meal that I don't think I would have really prepped on my own if it weren't for the box. I usually don't cook with yellow peppers...or even with the orange jelly that made a topping...(which by mistake put on top of the rice and not the pork...but still tasty).
So far very satisfied.
Ready to try yours??? Head to hellofresh.com and use this code:                              5FWX7S to get a great discount on your first box.

Smores Shakeology

This past weekend I was really craving a treat. But I didn't want to give into a complete temptation. I hopped onto Pintereset and found the perfect shake recipe that would help me through a craving.
There is nothing tastier than a smore...and I LOVE my shake so it made perfect sense :)

Ingredients needed:
~ 1 scoop chocolate shakeology
~ 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (I didn't want to add too many calories so only put 1/4 cup)
~ 1/2 cup water (I used 8 oz)
~ 1/2 graham cracker`
~ 1/4 tsp cinnamon
~ Dash of vanilla

Place all the above mentioned ingredients into the blender. Blend until it's the right consistency for you to enjoy!

Shakeology Cleanse

This past Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday I completed the Shaekology cleanse. I felt like I needed to get over a hump I had hit with my goals. It wasn't as bad as I had imagined. the only day that was really rough was day one. The other three day I seemed fine.
Basic run down:
Started my morning with one cup of green tea
Had a shake(ology) for breakfast. This one I would put one purple container of fruit (no bananas though).
Had another cup of tea mid morning with my snack which was usually an orange.
Then at lunch again I'd have another shake...this time though with NO fruit.
Dinner was my favorite part of the day...LOL! I ate a salad (romaine lettuce, onion, and tomato) with chicken.
Then I'd have another shake (again with no fruit).
I felt like I had good results on the shakeology cleanse. I lost about 4 lbs on this and thus far have maintained it. I also noticed more definition in the abs and was really happy when a pair of short I put on fit better (I bought them as a motivation...fit but just fit prior to this...LOL).
I'd recommend this to someone looking to break a time period where you feel like you have lost little to no weight.
I still did insanity max 30 while on the cleanse.
Before the cleanse:

After the cleanse:

My liquid diet :):

Healthy Banana Pancaes!

First off, Happy Mother's Day! Today I got to plan out my day and what we were all going to do and eat!
I usually start my da off with shakeology...but thought I'd switch it up for the day! Searched around and thought that banana pancakes sounded like the perfect way to start my day!

 

These were seriously delicious and easy to make.

All you need is:
2 eggs
1 banana
1/2 cup oats...
1/4 cup apple sauce (I always use the unsweetened)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Put all ingredients into the blender and pulse for about 30 seconds. Warm up your griddle or pan and light spray. Cook just like a regular pancake.
You can add fresh fruit to them to sweeten them (or dark chocolate chips). I ate mine just as is and enjoyed them!

It's a great addition to our morning breakfast ideas!

 

 

I want to try shakeology......but am scared? The price is high......what if I don't like it? I get it....

Summer is coming quicker than I can imagine!! Am I excited? Heck ya! Two months of my boys (which yes can be exhausting), no real schedules (other than a few playdates), and visiting new places (this year Gatlinburg and Tybee Island). Right now I am in the zone....focusing on keeping my goals and getting summer ready!! Well, more than just summer..but having bikini season here helps me stay focused. LOL!

Are you in the zone of getting ready for summer? Do you need the motivation to make life changes?

Well that is why I am here to help out!! I know it's not easy. I spent 4 months after Camden (the youngest of my 3) complaining about how I looked and how I felt (both mentally and physically). I was definitely at the lowest point image wise. I was exhausted and instead of getting back into my skinny jeans I was the proud of way too many maxi skirts.

I would see post of the 21 Day Fix and replacing a meal with shake. Was I skeptical? Heck yes. But a chance brought me to where I am today. I have lost over 30 lbs. I have a healthier cleaner diet. I try to eat as clean as I can. We hardly have any carbs in our house. Pasta was a main staple in our house. Now we fuel our bodies with greens!

Our change in diets also meant a huge change for me. Including a shake...a protein drink into my diet. I had never done anything like that before. I was always a Special K cereal kind of girl. Now I had to drink a meal.

At first the price tag scared me...I knew I would never find it Bogo at our local Publix (LOL). But I was willing to find out if it would work for me or not.

Now here I am 10 months later...and cant stop smiling!

So what has shakeology done for ME?
~ I know it one meal taken care of for the day. And a healthy one at that. I know when you fist start eating healthy it's hard enough to change. This is one meal taken care of and totally healthy.
~ I have noticed my energy levels have improved. I can get so much more accomplished a day b/c I no longer feel sluggish!
~ It keeps me full for 2 1/2 to 3 hours!
~ It actually tastes really good (and I can get creative with my mixings and really feel like I am having a treat!)
~I found that I haven't been sick, which I attribute to the boost of nutrients and vitamins that my body was lacking previously.
~ It helped to curb my sweet tooth and kept me on track with my goals.
~ The convenience is the best! I can throw this in the blender while finishing dinner. Put it in the fridge and it's ready for the morning.
~ I have stronger hair and nails.
~ My complexion has cleared up.

So what does this all mean for you? I know you want to see what this can do for you...but the question of cost comes into your mind....the doubt.
I get it but Beachbody is here to help you through all that doubt.
They currently are offering a sampler pack.You can get 6 flavors all for $29.95. That's totally doable!

So what do you have to do? You must have me as your assigned coach on teambeachbody. I will help you determine which meal you should replace with your shakeology. I do breakfast because the mornings are just so crazy here. I can grab and go. I will also provide you with a 7 day clean eating menu to help you get the most of your shakeology days!

If you give it your all, you might even find yourself down a pant size in a week!!!

Who is ready to give it a try?

Listed below are the ingredients:

Mexican chicken

Yes another Mexican dinner....but this time chicken style. Sorry we love Mexican here. It just tastes so fresh to me and I don't feel bad for eating it!
This is one of my husband's favorite meals. I found it on Pinterest and must be served at a restaurant as it was called Qudoba chicken.

 

Ingredients start off simple: Package of chicken, a can of broth, and a package of taco seasoning.
Take these three ingredients and place into your slow cooker. I cooked mine at low for 8 hours.
Smells so good when you walk in the door after work.

Now you can get creative. I get a circular serving dish and first layer down lettuce. I had a cup of jasmine rice. On top of that I put cheese, onions, black beans, the chicken from the slow cooker, a little bit of tomato, and some spicy guacamole.

Took the pic after I start devouring it. LOL!!
One of our favorites and on our menu at least once a month!!

Mexican: Carne Asade

Seriously I could eat Mexican every night of the week!! There is just something so fresh about Mexican food!!!! Soo good!!

You will need:
1 small onion
6 limes (squeeze juice into the crock pot)
Cumin
Chili powder
Jalapeño (the amount you put in just totally depends on your taste buds. I have a jar of sliced ones in our fridge, I added about 10).
Beef bottom roast

Add all of the above ingredients to your crock pot. I cook mine for 12 hours.
Add whatever toppings you wish: cheese, lettuce, tomato, guacamole, tortilla, etc.

Enjoy!

Honey Sriracha Chicken

If you have read enough of my posts, you know I go for simple. One day I was looing in the pantry and fridge to make a new combo for chicken. We eat chicken at least once a week over here. So variation of it is key to not get bored!! I have no measurements on what I used. I just kind of kept mixing it until the spice was just right.
I used:
~ honey
~ soy sauce
~ minced garlic
~ sriracha sauce
~ red pepper flakes
~ package of chicken

I mixed the first five ingredients until I liked the taste. Threw the chicken in the crock pot...poured the mixture over it. Cooked it on low for about 8 hours. I served over jasmine rice. It was yummy!

I

Banana Split Shakeology

Today I am going to share a new shakeology recipe that I tried out this morning and I loved it!!

I used:

~ one packet of chocolate shakeology

~ 2 slices of pineapple

~ 2 strawberries

~ 1/2 banana

~ 8 oz. water

~ I blended in the blender. Poured in my shaker cup...and enjoyed!!!

Definitely a yummy shake! One that will have to go into my rotation!