1 lb. of chicken (I used Trader Joe’s prepared chicken)
Trader Joe’s jalapeño lime almond dip
Salt & pepper
Chili powder of choice
Instructions:
Chop sweet potatoes into small squares and add 2 tbs. ghee in a pan. Add salt and pepper. Stir occasionally until tender (about 45 min.)
Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add quinoa
While the quinoa boils, sate 2 tbs. ghee onion and garlic in a saucepan with salt and pepper. Once garlic and onions are bland, add into boiling quinoa and stir. Wait until quinoa is almost dry, reduce heat to lowest setting and let sit for 10 min.
Sate red peppers with salt pepper and chili powder to taste.
Warm up already prepared chicken and place all ingredients into a bowl!
Lately we’ve been eating lots of salads around here! We’re getting ready for a trip to Vegas to celebrate a dear friend’s birthday and Cabo San Lucas to celebrate life! We eat healthy but we also eat hearty during the winter…so we’ve leaned out our recipes so we can lean out our bodies a little.
Ingredients:
1 Spinach and Kale mix container
1 cup Cooked white quinoa
1.5 lbs. Ahi tuna (cubed and cooked with salt and pepper)
Trek mix (mixed nuts and cranberries)
15 Strawberries (sliced)
1 Mango (diced)
Dressing:
Raspberry vinegar
Olive oil
Directions:
In a separate container, mix equal parts of olive oil and raspberry vinegar for dressing.
Chill ahi tuna and quinoa. Once the ahi tuna and quinoa has cooled, Mix all of the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Dress as desired, and serve.
Amazing beet salad! This salad was inspired by a heavenly salad we had on a recent trip to an amazing restaurant in Lake Tahoe. I’m actually not a huge fan of salads. And neither is my boyfriend. We mostly bake, steam or stir fry lots of veggies throughout the week! So when we eat salads, they have to have lots of goodies like this one! This was so amazing!
To keep this recipe extra simple go to Trader Joe’s and grab these ready to go!
Recipe:
-Sorrento salad mix
-Steamed and peeled baby beets
-Trek Mix (Walnuts, pistachios, almonds and cranberries)
Recently the fitness and diet industries have put out a feeling that carbohydrates are “bad” for you. And they should be consumed in minuscule quantities. No thanks! I like to eat! And I also like to be healthy. As active people, we need carbohydrates to fuel us with energy for our day and to fuel our brain function. It becomes a matter of knowing which carbohydrates to choose, in what quantities and when to have them! Just like anything, if we work a little smarter, we can have a little more flexibility with our resources. Here I break down how to choose the right carbohydrates!
Which carbohydrates are the best ones to choose?
Our bodies have specific digestive enzymes that break up each of the carbohydrates that introduced into the digestive system according to an author and presenter for IDEA health and fitness association: Steven Hertzler, PhD, RD. We could overload a specific pathway with a recurring carbohydrate making it harder for us to digest the carbohydrate. So variety is key.
Having a variety of carbohydrates that grow from the Earth will ensure that you’re getting good nutrition. These include things like:
Varieties of squash, fruit, potatoes, oats, rice, root vegetables such as carrots, a variety of grains such as amaranth, quinoa, and beans. Those carbohydrates that contain higher levels of protein and fiber, will digest slower than some of their counterparts; beans are a great example of these. Choosing carbohydrates that digest slowly are wiser choices because they don’t elevate blood glucose levels as quickly and are also good for heart health. You can also combine carbohydrates with the right portions of the other nutrients, specifically protein, to reduce the amount of insulin production in the body.
How much should I have?
It’s important to have moderate portions because of the speed of the delivery of this macronutrient. An adequate portion per meal is the size of one cupped palm for women and 2 cupped palms for men. Since palm size is proportionate to the body size of each individual, there’s no need to count how many grams or calories per serving there are. This is a simple, manageable way to gage portion control for a healthy lifestyle.
How do we bio-hack the body?
Did you know that you can trick your body into thinking it’s having less carbs than you’re actually having? A study published in 2002 in the Journal of Nutrition indicated that having 10g of fructose 30-60 minutes before eating a meal that’s high in carbohydrates lowered the blood sugar level of subjects by 20-25%! This includes that of diabetics. So if you have an apple 30 minutes before you eat, your liver has been primed and it responds to the way it processes the rest of the food to come.
What about gluten?
When talking about carbohydrates, the topic of gluten often comes up. There are many people that are sensitive to gluten because of their metabolic type. Some studies have shown that gluten causes inflammation in the body. When there’s inflammation in the body, it is more susceptible to disease. Dr. Perlmutter talks about the importance staying off of gluten for better brain function as well. When we increase inflammation in the body, the protein beta-amyloid is increased in the brain, specifically in the hippocampus or the memory center. There is 3 times more beta-amylase in altzhimers patients for a reference of how this protein acts in the brain. Being watchful of gluten in the diet, reduces our chances of turning on inflammation in the body, having a healthier immune system and better brain function. Foods with gluten include: Bran, rye, some oats, and wheat.
I love getting creative in the kitchen and putting my own spin on recipes. I’d say 80% to 90% of the my meals are home made, and made up recipes. This makes it so I know I’m using ingredients that will nourish my body (and that of the people I love including my clients when I share recipes with them). However, sometimes I run into really great recipes that I have to try! Here’s one of them that I found on WilliamsSonoma.com.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (4 fl. oz./125 ml) almond milk
1/2 cup (4 oz./125 g) Greek yogurt
1/2 cup (4 fl. oz./125 ml) coconut milk
1 very ripe banana, peeled and frozen
1/2 cup (2 oz./60 g) frozen mixed berries
1 Tbs. honey, plus more to taste
1 plum, pitted and sliced
1/4 cup (1 oz./30 g) fresh blueberries
2 Tbs. pomegranate seeds
1 Tbs. chia seeds
Directions:
In a blender, combine the almond milk, Greek yogurt, coconut milk, banana, berries and honey until the mixture forms a smooth puree. Taste and add more honey if desired.
Pour the mixture into a bowl. Arrange the plum, blueberries and pomegranate seeds on top. Sprinkle with the chia seeds and serve immediately. Serves 1.
I wanted a hearty yet healthy breakfast recipe that would keep me feeling full until lunch time…so I created this decadent breakfast that tastes more like a treat!
Ingredients:
2.5 cups almond meal
1 cup oats
1 tbsp baking powder
3 eggs
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup agave
2 large extra ripe bananas
Raspberries
Blueberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°
Mix all dry ingredients in one bowl
Mash bananas and mix in all wet ingredients.
Combine together
Coat ramekins with coconut oil or grapeseed oil. Lay about 5-7 raspberries in each Ramekin and fill each one with mix. Top off with blueberries.
The more variety we have in our diet, the better nourished our bodies are! This recipe has some unconventional seasonings but the flavor of this dish is incredible! Permanent weight loss comes with the right nutrition program. “Diet” redefined.
Ingredients
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
1/2 red onion, diced
3 cloves fresh garlic (minced)
1 bag pre-cubed butternut squash (about 2 cups)
1 medium gala apple, cored and diced
1 lb. ground turkey or chicken
1 tsp. fresh sage (minced)
¼ tsp. dried thyme
¼ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. sea salt
3 cups baby kale
Directions
Heat oil over medium heat in a large skillet and add butternut squash, onion and garlic. Allow to cook for 10 min. or until squash is soft.
Add ground turkey or chicken, sage and all seasonings. Stir occasionally until mostly cooked (about 5 min.) and add diced apple. Cook for another 10 min.
Turn stove off and add baby kale and cover. Let sit for 5 min. and serve!
I’ve heard of other people making stuffed peppers that are battered, fried and full of cheese in order to make them taste good. But what if you can have a stuffed pepper that’s amazing AND healthy? Well here it is!
Ingredients:
4-5 Pasilla peppers
For the stuffing:
1lb ground turkey (or ground chicken)
3 cloves of garlic (minced)
1/2 red bell pepper (cubed)
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbs paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
3 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp pepper
1 small russet potato (cubed)
1/2 tbs ghee
1/2 white onion (minced)
Directions:
1. Place ghee in a pan and add small cubes of potato. Cook, stirring occasionally and add red bell pepper and onion until tender (about 10 min.)
2. Mix turkey in with potatoes and add all of the ingredients (except pasilla peppers which you’ll begins to roast). Stir mix occasionally until fully cooked.
3. Roast peppers over an open flame on your stovetop. Place hot peppers in a bpa free tupperware and allow them to steam for 10 min. Remove from tupperware and peel skin using a dry paper towel.
4. Remove the stem cutting from the top of the pepper off along with seeds and ribs. Stuff the mixture into the peppers and enjoy!
I love using squash in my recipes in the fall. I tried experimenting with butternut squash to make a great soup and I couldn’t nail it! I then simplified the ingredients and added celery (which I’m not a fan of but saw others were adding it to their soup so I gave it a go) and this is the finalized, decadent and soul satisfying recipe!
Ingredients:
2 bags of Trader Joe’s Butternut Squash
2 Russet potatoes
2 large carrots or 16 baby carrots
1 onion
2 celery sticks
12 oz. precooked apple chicken sausage
3 tbsp. ghee
32 oz. chicken broth
Directions:
Brown all ingredients except the sausage for 10 min. on medium heat. Stir frequently.
Add broth to mixture and let simmer for 30 minutes.
Add soup to blender and puree with salt and pepper.
Pour soup back into pot, add sausage and simmer for another 10 min.
