Portabello Steaks and Lemon Herb Potatoes

Over the last few years I have totally fallen in love with mushrooms, I could eat them for every meal! However, while David likes mushrooms he isn’t quite as crazy about them as I am. That is until I found this recipe. David and I love to grill so we decided to marinate and grill a Portobella mushroom and see how it compared to our steaks. Well it was even better than our steaks! For real, we are now obsessed :)

PORTOBELLO STEAKS

• 4 portobello mushroom caps
• 1 tbsp EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce (use tamari for gluten-free)
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 1 clove of garlic finely minced, or grated

1. In large ziplock bag, combine EVOO, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, oregano, and garlic. Add mushrooms. 
2. Let marinate for 30 min – 1 hour. Tossing and turning the mushrooms a few times.
3. Heat grill to medium heat.
4. Grill mushrooms 8-10 minutes, on each side, until tender. Grill time will depend on size and thickness of mushroom.
5. Serve immediately and enjoy!

6. As a side we made lemon herb potatoes. We used red potatoes and they were perfect. I would have never thought to add lemon to my potatoes but it was delicious. Especially combined with the flavor of the mushroom.

LEMON HERB POTATOES

•  2.5 pounds of potatoes to roast – I prefer red potatoes, or purple if you can find them!
• 6 tbsp EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 3 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, zested
• Salt & Pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces.
3. Toss with 2 tbsp EVOO and about 2 tsp of salt and 1 tsp pepper.
4. Roast in oven for 45 minutes, until golden brown and tender.
5. While potatoes are roasting, prepare the lemon herb dressing.
6. Wisk together 4 tbsp EVOO, fresh lemon juice, parsley, and lemon zest. Set aside.
7. Once potatoes are done, place in serving bowl and drizzle lemon herb dressing over the top, toss gently to coat, and serve.

This is going to be one of our go to grilling meals this summer! I can’t believe I now prefer a vegetable over a steak!

10 Tips to Survive Eating Out - Clean Eating

One of the most difficult times of the week for staying on track with clean eating is the weekend. So I wanted to provide you all with my top 10 tips for eating out over the weekend!

1. Plan Ahead: Before I go to a restaurant I always pull up the menu online and know exactly what I will order. This keeps me from being influenced by what other people order, swayed by some of the less healthy options when I am hungry, and ensures I know that healthy options exist before entering the restaurant.
2. Remember that you don’t have to eat it all! Restaurant portions are often double what we should be eating. David and I usually share a meal when we go out but if your husband wants to eat his own meal don’t be afraid to request half your meal be boxed prior to them serving you your meal.
3. Start small and green. Start all your meals with a salad and make sure that it is topped with a low calorie dressing, use a spritz of lemon or balsamic vinegar.
4. Broth is Best: When there is no salad try a broth based soup to start your meal with. Avoid any soups with heavy creams!
5. No bread please. Remember that this is a filler and will only hurt your weight loss goal. Save your calories for the more satisfying items.
6. Clean Cooking techniques rock! Look for entree options featuring steamed or raw veggies and grilled, baked or roasted meats or fish. If they aren’t listed, ask the server to prepare it that way.
7. Zero Tolerance. You want to avoid alcohol because sugar can derail you in the most powerful way. Have sparkling water with lemon or lime slices.
8. No Desserts: Think of your plan to shed those pounds, if you can’t resist something sweet ask for a dish of fresh fruit.
9. Pre-Eat: If you doubt your ability to resist restaurant offerings then pre-eat! Then when you go to a restaurant or social event you don’t have to worry about what’s on the menu and you can focus on socializing and eating your salad or small appetizer.
10. Surrond Yourself with your Supporters: Surround yourself with family and friends that support what you are doing and are not sabotaging your efforts. They will most likely order healthier with you and support your positive decisions!

I know that it isn’t easy but it is worth it. When I am doing more strict eating plans such as the 21 day fix I stay away from restaurants and focus on inviting people to my house for dinners, hiking with friends, or going to a yoga class. There are lots of ways to stay social on the weekends without going to a restaurant!

Chunky Monkey Ice Cream 21 Day Fix Approved

David and I started a new round of the 21 Day Fix on Monday and we are loving trying out the new Fixate cookbook. Of course David was craving some desserts so one of the first recipes we tried was for Chunky Monkey Ice Cream. It took all of 5 minutes to make and definitely curbed our sweet tooth.

Ingredients: 

• 3 frozen bananas
• 1.5 tsp peanut butter
• Splash of Almond Milk (if needed)
• Almonds and Dark Chocolate to garnish

Directions

1. Combine frozen bananas, peanut butter, and almond milk if needed. Blend!
2. Top with almonds and some dark chocolate.

I don’t even like bananas and I loved this quick dessert. I loved the crunch from the almonds and it was just so easy that I have a feeling we will be making this a lot. We split this bowl but the recipe actually calls for double the amount to serve more. So keep in mind your 3 bananas aren’t going to serve a family of four :)

Crockpot BBQ Chicken 21 Day Fix Approved

Ok guys, so I don’t know if I can even call this a recipe but what I will tell you is that when you combine these 2 ingredients in a crockpot you get delicious BBQ chicken! Who said clean eating is hard?! Seriously, sometimes I am just tired and need a fast meal. So I decided to try to recreate my favorite NC BBQ with some chicken! One delicious jar of NC BBQ sauce and some chicken and you have an incredible treat!

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts (we started with 2 but there was plenty of sauce for 4)
• 1 jar of ‘clean’ BBQ sauce

Directions

1. Combine everything in crockpot and cook for 6 hours on low

Yep, that is it! So easy! Here is a close up of the ingredients in the sauce that we used. It had a good vinegar taste and was spicy!

I told you it wasn’t much of a recipe! I ate it on top of 1/2 an Ezekiel english muffin and it fit perfectly into the 21 Day Fix meal plan! Enjoy!

Grilled Flank Steak 21 Day Fix Approved

It has become a Mother’s Day tradition to spend the weekend at David’s lake house with our Mom’s. Each year the kids are responsible for fixing the meals for the Mom’s and this year we decided to grill almost the entire meal. I mean who wouldn’t want to be outside cooking with that view? We grilled artichokes, our favorite portobello mushrooms, and David’s family recipe for grilled flank steak – 21 Day Fix approved with one little swap so I thought I would share it with you all.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup cooking sherry
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 1 clove of garlic (minced)
• 1 small ginger root (grated)
• 1 Tbsp. brown sugar

If you are following the 21 Day Fix just leave out the brown sugar or replace it with honey

Directions

Cut diagonal slices into steak about 1/8″ deep. Marinate for 8 hours and then grill.

21 Day Fix Meal Prep Tips

I previously talked about how I prepped my meals ahead of time here and so many of you asked for more tips that I decided to take some pictures of my weekend meal prep this past weekend. I just started the 21 Day Fix meal plan again on Monday so I prepped all my meals using the portioned containers. I purchased the colored ziplock baggies at Target so I could portion from my colored containers directly into them. That way I am ready to grab a few ziplock bags each morning and it is off to work, fast and easy!

For this week here is what my meals look like with the 21 Day Fix Containers:

My breakfast is super easy with Shakeology and I love not having to think about cooking something! I just add some cold brew coffee and it is like a frappuccino for less than the cost of Starbucks.

• Chocolate Vegan Shakeology with cold brew coffee (1 Red Container)

For my lunch, I picked up a rotisserie chicken for $5 and portioned that out for my salads along with some spinach. So with my $5 chicken and $4 organic spinach I had all my lunches for the week for under $10 and didn’t have to cook! David grilled us a steak and we cut it up and portioned that out as well. I like to mix up between chicken and steak for my salads.

• Spinach with either chicken or steak and a balsamic dressing (1 Green Container, 1 Red Container, 1/2 orange container)

For my dinner prep, I was super excited to find already diced sweet potatoes at my grocery store. When I got home I threw them on a baking sheet, sprinkled them with a little cinnamon, and then put them in the oven for 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Then I let them cool and portioned them into my yellow containers and baggies. Now I just have to heat them up as a quick side with my dinner. I don’t mind having the same sides for dinner but I like to mix up my proteins for my main course.  David is out of town this week so having most of my meal prepped is great since cooking by  myself just isn’t as much fun.

• Main (1 Red): chicken, steak, salmon, tilapia, turkey meatballs
• Sides: sweet potatoes (1 yellow), spinach salad (1 green, 1/2 orange)

My snacks are super easy. I tend to stick to whatever fruits are in season and some nuts. I have been having a piece of fruit as my mid-morning snack and then nuts as my afternoon snack. Yes, I eat 5-6 times a day and lose weight. This plan keeps you eating throughout the day and really helps to stabilize my blood sugar which is huge since I tend to pass out. Side story, I totally passed out at work when trying to do the ‘low carb’ diet, yeah those trend diets are not for me!

• Peaches (1 purple)
• Grapes (1 purple)
• Peanuts (1 blue)

And that is it! It is pretty basic but measuring out all my food ahead of time makes it really easy for me to grab my lunch and head to work quickly. I know that my working Mom’s also find this super helpful since their mornings tend to get crazy!

If you are interested in trying the 21 Day Fix for yourself and want more meal planning tips, recipes, and tools then you should join my upcoming challenge group starting on July 20th. There are limited spots so fill out your application below to be considered for a spot.

21 Day Fix Approved Chocolate Chip Cookies

While I love to indulge during the holidays, I also love a good healthy swap. These chocolate chip cookies will make you feel like you are eating the real thing and allow you to indulge guilt free in other favorite desserts. These are from the 21 Day Fix Cookbook, Fixate, and I am in love.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups almond flour
• 1 teaspoon gluten free baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 cup organic coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 cup raw maple syrup
• 1 large egg
• 2 large egg whites (1/4 cup)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup semi sweet or dark chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. 
2. Combine almond flour, baking soda and salt in medium bowl, mix well, set aside.
3. Beat oil and maple syrup in large mixer bowl until creamy, 4-5 minutes.
4. Add egg, egg whites and extract and beat for 2 more minutes.
5. Add almond flour mixture to egg mixture and mix until blended. Add chocolate chips. 
6. Drop rounded teaspoons onto parchment paper and bake 14-16 minutes. Enjoy! 

21 Day Fix Container Equivalent: 1 cookie is equal to 1.5 yellow containers

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas week and enjoy all the treats ahead of you! If you are interested in participating in my next 21 day fix accountability group you can fill out the application below. We will start on Monday, January 4th! Just in time to take back control of your eating after all the holiday indulgences!

French Toast - 21 Dax Fix Approved

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David and I use to cook a big breakfast every Saturday morning. Then Shakeology entered our lives and we just got in the habit of having our delicious chocolate breakfast every morning and our fun tradition fell to the wayside. Well with the recent crisp cool fall weekends we decided we wanted a big hot breakfast but also wanted to keep it healthy. So David and I made French Toast from the Fixate Cookbook.

Ingredients

• 2 Large Eggs
• 2 Tbsp Unsweetened Almond Milk
• 2 tsp Pure Maple Syrup
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 2 slices Low-sodium Sprouted Whole-grain Bread (we use Ezekiel)
• 1 tsp Extra-virgin Organic Coconut Oil
• 1 cup Fresh Sliced Strawberries

Directions

1. Combine eggs, almond milk, 1 tsp maple syrup, and cinnamon in a shallow pan; whisk to blend.
2. Soak each slice of bread in egg mixture for 5 minutes, turning halfway.

3. Heat oil in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat.

4. Add bread, cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown.

5. Top each slice evenly with strawberries and remaining 1 tsp maple syrup.

Serve and enjoy!

Crockpot Shredded Chicken Tacos

Since I had my amazing friends in town last weekend I was not able to plan my meals for the week like I usually do. So Thursday night came and I was scrambling to think of a clean home cooked meal that would keep me away from the temptation of eating out. Like usual, I was craving Mexican, so I went to Pinterest and found a bunch of recipes for shredded chicken tacos. And before I knew it, I had pulled out my crockpot, some frozen chicken breasts, salsa, and a little taco seasoning. That was it, and they were so delicious we ate them on both Thursday and Friday night!

Ingredients:

• 2 large chicken breasts
• 1 15 oz jar salsa (we used salsa verde)
• 1/2 packet taco seasoning (look out for additives in the ingredients when you purchase)

Directions:

1. Place large chicken breasts (defrosted) in crockpot.
2. Cover with your taco seasoning and then salsa.
3. Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.
4. Shred with a fork and serve with corn tortillas, fresh lime, and fresh cilantro.

That is it! I am telling you that these are heaven! Plus they are clean, require really no cooking on your part, and are easy to clean up. If you are completing the 21 Day Fix diet these also fit right in your meal plan, 1 red container for your chicken and 1 yellow container for your corn tortilla. Let me know how you all like it!