Thin Mint Shakeology

Y'all, it takes a lot to shake this mama out of a routine--you know I love meal planning, but some meals aren't worth the extra time to think about to me. Breakfast and snacks fall into that category. And since I first gave 21 Day Fix a shot nearly a year ago (I lost 8 lbs--the last of the baby weight--with that first round!!), I have typically stuck with a five "meal" a day pattern. Thank goodness for Shakeology--taking the thinking completely out of one of those meals!!

Avoiding treats in the teacher's lounge...like a boss.

Well, when you are 21 Day Fix-ing when Girl Scout cookies get delivered, you seriously find yourself asking "What container do Thin Mints go in?" and that's when your daily, super-food delisciousness saves the day yet again :)

Thin Mint Shakeology
Ingredients:
1 scoop chocolate Shakeology
1-1 & 1/2 cups almond milk or water
1/4 tspn peppermint extract
1/2 banana
Ice to taste

Preparation:
Blend...and enjoy knowing you're still on track to be bikini ready for Spring Break ;)

Spaghetti *Squash* and Meatballs

Lately, our girl has been in an eating funk. I'm telling myself it's just a stage, but her "favorites" (read: MAC AND CHEESE) are getting shot down the same gusto as, I dunno, green beans? I'm fairly certain Saturday she subsided on nothing but Trader Joe's cereal bars, applesauce packets, manadarin oranges, and bananas (although, her new fave game is "You better give me that whole banana and not banana slices. Slices get fed to the dog."). Oye, If this is a preview of thirteen, we're going to need a major intervention.

Anywho, being a mom with a few tricks up my sleeve, I decided to whip up one of her faves--and mine too! This was the first meal that she actually had the EXACT same thing as the hubs and I for dinner. Huge victory over here for the Fit Foodie Fam! I could see the light at the end of the "I-cook-two-dinners" tunnel!

I adore the flavor the meatballs take on while cooking all day in a bath of yummy spaghetti sauce. But I equally adore that the whole meal comes together in the crock pot...even the spaghetti squash! But I MOST adore that this is definitely 21 Day Fix approved! I count the meal as one red (meatballs), 1-2 green (this may be a little off, but squash, sauce, and then bell pepper/onion in the meatballs. I filled my green container with shredded squash first, then loaded on a red container with the meat sauce combo), and a blue for parmesan cheese ;)

Enjoy!!

Everyone gets nestled in there real tight!

Spaghetti *Squash* and Meatballs

Final result is kiddo AND mama approved!

Ingredients:

1 M/L spaghetti squash, halved with seeds removed  (TIP!! Pop your squash in the microwave for five minutes before you try and cut it in half. Much less likely to make a trip to the ER that way!)
1 lb ground turkey or beef (your choice! Nitrate free/Grass fed/Organic)

½ yellow onion, finely diced

½ bell pepper, finely diced

2/3 cup oat flour (just put rolled or steel cut oats in the blender and grind into flour!)

1 egg

1 tspn garlic powder

1 tspn basil, dried

1 tspn oregano, dried

1 tspn rosemary, dried

½ tspn thyme, dried

1 tsp salt

1 jar tomato spaghetti sauce (sugar free! I found a brand called “Mom’s” that was DELISH!)

Parmesan cheese (for topping)

Preparation:

Spray crock pot with cooking spray, or use a crock pot liner (aka my BFFs). Mix all ingredients from meat thru salt together (you will want to use your hands for this) and form into golf-ball-sized balls.  Drop balls in bottom of crock pot. Cover meatballs with spaghetti sauce. Place spaghetti squash cut side down on top of meatballs (in my crock pot, one piece lay flat, the other was layered a bit; I've also had to cut the squash into quarters to make it fit). Cook on low for 6.5 hours (my crock pot stayed on the “warm” setting for an additional 4 hours and turned out just fine--although the meatballs lost their shape a bit)

21 Day Fix Approved: Balsamic Beef Stew

I've hosted several 21 Day Fix groups in the last year as a Beachbody coach. They're always fun. They're always full of great women that keep me motivated. But this month's group has seriously blown me away. Not only are their results ASTOUNDING--

 "I just had my second baby three months ago--and I can't WAIT for bikini season! ...I'm blown away by how my body has changed from day one. I am so beyond excited and pumped about round two. At this point, I have 0 cravings for junk food and NO desire to have a cheat meal; my only craving now is to see more and more results!"

 "I got into a smaller pair of jeans today! Woohoo!!"

"I'm so glad I did this for myself. You have made this process SO easy to follow!"

 Y'all. My cup runneth over. These are real people. Mamas with kiddos. Mamas with full time jobs. Mamas making their health a priority. When I started this journey almost a year ago, it was to get myself back in shape after having our daughter. My "WHY" was selfish--not a bad reason, but totally just about me. Now, each and every day I make sure I get a workout in; I make sure I plan and prepare quick, healthy meals for my family; and I "treat" myself to a super foods milkshake to get in all the nutrients I need as a busy working mama...but it's not about me any more. It's about making it a priority so other's can see that it is possible. I want to help other people reach goals, get well, and be proud of themselves for the changes they've made. And, I want it to be realistic for the average, crazy-busy mamas like me. Small goal--next year I plan to help TWICE as many people as I had the opportunity to this year. What are you waiting for??

Sappy soapbox aside, this week my gals enjoyed a DELISH balsamic beef stew that simmered away low and slow in the crock pots. It took me just 10 minutes before the little one and I loaded up to head out for our day to get this goodness ready. And...it's a totally new twist on "21 Day Fix Approved"--when you break it down, a serving counts as one RED (the beef), one GREEN (the carrots, celery, and onion), and one YELLOW (the sweet potatoes). I made a point to pull out each item and load up my containers to see if I would still get as generous a helping as I wanted, lol. And dang, y'all. It made for a LARGE serving! Enjoy!

21 Day Fix APPROVED: Balsamic Beef Stew 
Ingredients: 
2 lbs stew beef or venison (organic/grass fed if you can!)
2 cups beef or vegetable stock (low sodium preferred)
1 TBS balsamic vinegar
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, roughly chopped
3 large carrots, peeled and chopped
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
 2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tspn basil
1 tspn rosemary
1 tspn thyme

 Preparation:*This part is so easy I'm almost embarrassed to type it...* 

Place meat in crockpot. Add liquids, then add all other ingredients and stir to combine. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

Spaghetti Squash with Sausage and Kale

My spaghetti squash obsession has escalated to full scale crazy. Italian style with meatballs? Duh. Tex-mex inspired that packs some heat and hides leftover pulled pork? Absolutely. Comforting gooey lasagna boats? Well, sure! So when a friend shared this recipe from Love and Lemons, I knew I A) had to try it ASAP but that B) hubby would scoff at sun-dried tomatoes and an absence of "meat." So to the "test kitchen" I ran :)

Result was divine. Heat from the sausage, sweetness from the squash, crunch from the pine nuts...it was alllll good by me.

I've cook spaghetti squash before using my crock pot while I'm at work, and it turns out just fine. I didn't mind the oven time with this recipe, though, as it gave me a chance to get the filling ready. I can't be the only one that knows a spaghetti squash is going to be my reason for a dinner time visit to the ER. I pop the squash in the microwave for about five minutes, and then it seems to be a little easier to cut in half.

Spaghetti Squash with Sausage and Kale

Ingredients:
1 M/L spaghetti squash
1-2 tbsp EVOO
1 lb turkey italian sausage (we used HOT! But regular or sweet would be fine), casings removed
3/4 cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Pinch of red pepper flakes
2 packed cups kale, chopped and stems removed
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup pine nuts
Grated parmsean for topping.

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice squash in half and scoop out seeds. Place squash cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet. Although optional, I liked to add water to the bottom of the pan--just enough to cover the pan. Bake for 30-45 minutes; until flesh is tender enough to pierce and "noodles" form easily with the scrape of a fork.

While squash roasts, first toast pine nuts over medium heat in the skillet you intend to cook the turkey mixture in. Watch nuts carefully, as they tend to burn if left too long (or is that only in my kitchen??)
Remove pine nuts and set aside, and heat the EVOO in the pan. Add sausage to pan, crumbling while cooking. When sausage is cooked through, toss in chickpeas, red pepper flakes, and kale, stirring to combine. Add chicken stock and cook till wilted. Stir shredded squash in with mixture. Serve topped with pine nuts and sprinkled with parmesan!

Crispy Shrimp with Cannellini Beans (aka romantic and healthy aren't mutually exclusive!)

I've had the same valentine for 15 years. A little crazy for a 31 year old, right? We tried to recount how we celebrated each Valentine's Day this past weekend, but we could only dig up a few highlights. This year definitely took the title of best Valentine's Day ever....we took our girl to the zoo, enjoyed lunch out as a fam (complete with balloons for the little lady), took a glorious two hour nap, enjoyed the sunshine at the park, and mama and daddy got to enjoy a little romantic dinner in.

My valentines checking out the elephants!

Originally, I had planned to make a salmon dish that I do every so often; it's sort of "fancy" but nothing too out of the ordinary--but hubs voiced his opinion, and given he's been a trooper with me as I'm working through 21 Day Fix again, I thought I'd honor his request when he picked a recipe out of one of my cookbooks. Naturally though, I had to "Allie" it up a bit. While it wouldn't be an entirely perfect 21 day fix meal, I counted it as a yellow (beans and breading), red (shrimp), green (kale and tomatoes), and gray (EVOO). Some days you just have to give yourself a little flex room!

Crispy Shrimp with Cannellini Beans

Ingredients:

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

5 tbsp EVOO

Salt and pepper

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

2 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 small shallot, sliced thinly

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed

2-3 cups kale, chopped

1/4 cup chicken stock

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss tomatoes with 1 tbsp EVOO and some salt and pepper on a foil lined baking sheet (makes clean up a breeze!). I like to make sure tomatoes are cut side up; I just prefer when they roast that way. Roast in oven for 10-15  minutes while you prepare everything else.

In a medium bowl, combine breads crumbs, rosemary, thyme, and 2 tbsp of EVOO. Toss shrimp in with bread crumb mixture to coat each shrimp. Spread shrimp on a foil-lined baking sheet. Remove tomatoes from oven and add shrimp, baking for 10-12 minutes until shrimp is cooked through and breadcrumbs are crispy.

While shrimp cooks, add remaining EVOO to a skillet and warm over medium heat. Add shallots, and cook for 2-3 minutes till softened. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in cannellini beans and kale, sauteing for a few minutes before adding chicken stock to help wilt the kale. Just before pulling the shrimp from the oven, I stirred in the roasted tomatoes. 

Serve shrimp over bean mixture....ideally with a delicious glass of wine, some candles, and a sweet valentine :)

21 Day Fix Approved: Ginger Lime Beef Stir Fry

Hello long lost friends of the interweb :) It's been a painfully long time since I posted anything. Forgive me?? I guess the ghost of self-doubt crept in my head and said "No one actually looks at these recipes"...but he was wrong!! It's been SO FUN to have some of you reach out to me via email or FB (fb.com/fitfoodiefam) and share with me how much you've enjoyed these recipes.

So here's a quick one for you that is JAM PACKED with flavor. You could totally sub in other veggies--it's kind of a "clean out the veggie drawer" sort of stir fry!

For you 21-Day-Fixers, I would count this meal as 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 green, and one spoon :) You could double-down on some containers and enjoy a large portion too!

Ginger Lime Beef Stir Fry

Ingredients

Juice of 2 limes
2 tbsp white or rice wine vinegar
2 tsp raw honey
2 tsp reduced-sodium soy sauce, divided
1   tbsp sesame oil, divided
1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper, divided
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, diced (remove ribs and seeds)
1 package green onions, diced and divided
2 tspn minced fresh ginger, divided (optional, but worth it! Dried ginger would work too!)
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
16 oz beef, cut into 2 1/2-inch strips (I found an organic strip steak cheap, and used that. Pick a cut of meat you like!)
2 cups brown rice, prepared (follow box directions for 4 servings—want some for leftovers! Can add 1 tsp of ginger and lime zest to cooking liquid for extra flavor
2 tspn minced fresh ginger, divided (optional, but worth it! Dried ginger would work too!)
1 small zucchini, sliced in half moons
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 head bok choy, chopped

Preparation:

 In a large bowl, whisk 1/2 cup lime juice, vinegar, honey, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper and 1 tbsp water. Stir in 2 cloves minced garlic, minced ginger,  jalapeno, ½ green onions and cilantro. Add beef, toss to coat and set aside to marinate for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet on medium-high, heating 1 tbsp of oil (I used coconut). Add beef and  marinade and sauté, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add bell pepper, remaining green onion and zucchini and sauté for 5 more minutes. Add bok choy and sauté until tender, about 2 minutes.

Divide rice among serving plates and top with beef mixture.