Posts

…Infinite Life Fitness Recipe: Bell Pepper Nacho Bites…

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Who does NOT love nachos?

OK… if you do not love nachos there is no way we can be friends. The savoy mixture of seasoned meat with cheese and fresh veggies…It is making my mouth water to just think about it!

I decided to create a simple, healthy, and cost effective alternative to one of my favorite dishes.

This would be a great dish to have as a finger food when you have people coming over OR it can be a great snack/meal.

Ingredients:

  • 1 package ground lean meat (turkey, chick, lean beef)
  • Assortment of Bell Peppers (red, orange or green and I made 4-6 “bites” per bell pepper)
  • 1 cup low fat Cheese
  • 1/4 cup Salsa
  • 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
Directions:

1. Cook meat thoroughly, add desired seasoning if desired

2. Drain meat and mix salsa/tomato paste to coat meat for flavor

3. Scoop out seeds from peppers and cut into boats (each pepper = 4-6 pepper boats/bites)

4. Scoop meat into pepper boats and sprinkle cheese on top of the meat

5. Either heat up in microwave for 2-3 minutes or stick bell pepper boats onto a non stick baking sheet in the oven at 300 degrees for 15-20 minutes (or until all of the cheese is melted)

6. Remove boats from oven (or microwave) and top with your choice of vegetable (such as minced onions, lettuce, etc.)

You can also top these bits with low fat sour cream or plain Greek yogurt.

By substituting the chips for the bell peppers you are able to cut out a huge overload of carbs without sacrificing the quality or flavor of this dish.

By using lean meat, this will also allow you to cut the amount of fat that is traditionally in this dish.  You can get creative and add diced tomatoes, olives, and other things that you will traditionally find in nachos.  Please be mindful when you add more items.  That can compromise the healthy nutritional value of this meal.

Bon Appétit

…Infinite Life Fitness Recipe: Peanut Butter Protein Fudge…

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Just because you want to eat healthy and lose weight does not mean that you have to cut out ALL things that are yummy! Reaching your goals is all about a balance.  You have to figure out when the proper time is to have the items that you crave and love.  And the other battle is figuring out foods you can add to your diet to help take the place of unhealthy treats that you would usually have.  And in all honesty, some of these healthy recipes taste just as good (or BETTER) than the unhealthy version!

Today I would like to share with you a recipe that was made by my close  friend Melissa. When I tasted these they were MOUTH WATERING! So it was an easy choice for me to try to make them and have them stored in my freezer as a quick and healthy sweet treat.

What you will need:

  • ¾ cup peanut butter (preferably all natural peanut butter) 
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • ¼ cup melted coconut oil
  • 3 scoops vanilla protein powder (you can even possibly use peanut butter protein powder or possibly chocolate!)

What you will do:

  • get a small Tupperware container (or a glass or regular baking pan.  Use something that you can easily mix all of the items together and also place it in the freezer)
  • Mix all of the above ingredients into the same container
  • After mixing them together very well make sure to spread it out evenly throughout the container.
  • Place container in the freezer and allow it to get HARD (the time will this will vary!! The best way to monitor this is by sticking a tooth pick in the corner or middle.  If the tooth pick easily slides in, the fudge is not ready.  But if the tooth pick does not go in easily your fudge is done!)
  • After it is frozen, cut the fudge into desirable pieces.
  • It is advised to keep them stored in the fridge or freezer! If not they will become room temperature and somewhat melt.  Keeping them in the fridge or freezer also extends it shelf life and allows you to keep the fudge for a longer period of time.

*** You can also add other things to this fudge if you like.  This can include things like nuts, chocolate chips, pretzel pieces, or any other types of goodies.  BUT remember to not add too much because the more you add, the more you risk making this healthy alternative into an unhealthy sweet treat. But it is fun to get creative and just have fun when making this recipe.

This is a perfect treat to grab when you have a sweet tooth and want to grab something small.  This treat will guarantee to satisfy! You can even get your family member to enjoy it (and they will not even know that it is healthy! 😉  )

…Infinite Life Fitness Recipe: Protein Pancakes…

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One of my staple food items are my protein pancakes!  They are great to eat at breakfast time, but I will also make a batch of them and have them to eat when I am traveling or to have as a snack.  The great thing about these pancakes it that they are low carb, high in protein, and they TASTE AMAZING!  You can also play around with them and make your own flavors.  You can get creative and play around with the recipe to make them just how you like them!

Here is how I make my protein pancakes:

  • 1 large egg
  • 22 grams of your favorite protein powder
  • 5 grams of coconut flour
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract (if you use chocolate protein powder try using chocolate extract)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • water (add until you want it as thin/thick as you would like)
  • Optional:  You can use almond milk instead of water
  • Optional:  Fresh fruit like berries or mashed bananas
  • Optional: PB2 peanut butter powder OR chocolate PB2

You mix all of the above ingredients into a bowl or cup.  You then pour the batter into a skillet, waffle iron, or any other kind of pan that you would like.  You can make the mixture think or thick depending on how you like it.  You can make the batter thinner to make more pancakes.  Cook them like you would cook “regular” pancakes.

I use Walden’s Farm fat-free (sugar-free, calorie free, and carb free) syrup on my pancakes.  IT TASTE AMAZING!  It tastes just like regular syrup to me but without all of the calories and added macros.

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You can play around with what kind of protein powder you like to use.  I have tried several different brands but a brand such as Body Fortress or Cellucor will work fine.  The fun part is finding a brand that offers a variety of flavors and just trying them out.  Different protein powders have different consistencies so you may have to add more or less to get the right mixture for your pancakes.

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When I do my weekly meal prep, I will make several batches of these and freeze them.  This will allow me to make a bunch of them and save them to heat up and eat later.  This also helps them to stay good for longer than a week.  I do this because breakfast is usually one of my busiest times of the day.  At night i will take out a few pancakes from the freezer and put them in fridge.  Usually in the morning they are not frozen any more and I can heat them up with my syrup.

Please feel free to try these out and let me know if you have any questions OR if you have an alternate way to make these!

ENJOY!

…Knowing what you eat: Counting Calories…

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Do you know exactly what you are putting into your body?  Do you even know how much food you are consuming each day?  It is said that most people consume as little as TWICE as many calories than they actually need each day.

One of the most important things you need to do to help you reach your goals is to figure out what you are eating and how much you are eating!! There are DOZENS of applications you can download onto your smart devices and they are also accessible on your computer.

You can find an easily accessible and FREE calorie counter site at: http://www.nutracheck.co.uk/

Once you get singed up with these programs feel free to play around with it!! You need to get use to how the program works so you will become efficient as being able to navigate and use the program properly.

Using these types of programs will allow you the change to closely monitor HOW much food you are eating and what kind of foods you are eating.

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I suggest a few things:

– when you decide you want to make a healthier change, sign up for one of these programs and track what types of food you eat for a FULL week

– when the week is over go back and look at what you eat a lot of and what you need to eat more of.  You will be surprised to see that you consume too much salt, sugar, or another type of food.  You will also be able to see that you do not eat enough veggies, fruits, or protein.  This will allow you the change to actually see what areas you need to improve on.  

– next find some healthy recipes and go shopping! You have to find recipes that will be fitting to your needs!  Usually breakfast will be around 300-400 calories  snacks will be around 200-300 calories, and lunch and dinner should also be around 300-400 calories!  The goal is to spread your meals out throughout the day so you do not feel like you are going hungry!  YOU DO NOT WANT TO SKIP MEALS!! THIS CAN HINDER YOUR WEIGHT LOSS!  You want to try to stick to a regular eating schedule.  I would suggest eating about every 2-3 hours.  have breakfast, and then a small snack, lunch, another snack, dinner, and if you are still hungry in the evening have another SMALL snack.  You want to try to stop eating about 2-3 hours BEFORE you go to bed.  But you do not want to go hungry and you should try NOT to skip any meals

-keep track of what you eat in these applications.  They will let you decide if you have the right serving size or more than the suggested serving size.  If you stick to the proper serving sizes, a steady workout routine, and drink water you should start to see results in about a month!

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Reaching your goals will take TIME! You will have to be patient! You can not eat healthy for a week and expect 15-30 pounds to just vanish!  Yes that would be nice but it is not realistic.  You have to stay consistent with eating right AND working out.  Eating right is the MAIN priority.  If you are not feeding your body the right foods it will hinder the results you want to see!! You can spend all the time you want in the gym, but if you eat junk food all of that hard work will go to waste.  So this is why it is SO important to get your diet under control so you are able to reach the results you want.

And there you have it! I just gave you the tools you need to help you jump-start your new health and fitness journey!

Any day is a great day to start living healthier…why not start today!?

…Weekend Meal Time…

Weekend Meal Options

As promised here are some new recipes that you can try!

What I personally like to do is to cook a few different things over the weekend or over the duration of the week.  Then I will have several different left over meals to choose from when it is time to eat.  I like this method because it allows me to cook and try out new things as well as cook food for the week.  I know that sometimes my schedule gets kinda hectic, so it is nice to have the meals already made and waiting on me in the fridge so I can go home and grab it and go.  This method allowed me to better plan my menus and to plan a variety of food options for me.  I gave up fast food several years ago!  Yes…its true…I have not eaten any kinda if fast food in over two years and i did made the goal at first to force myself to make better meal options and to help me budget and save more money.  I calculated it and I saved over $600 a year by cutting out fast food and setting up my menus and grocery budget.

Here are some great Lunch and Dinner recipes.  I included photos that I took when I cooked these items to help you get an idea of what it looks like.  You can alter and add/take away ingredients that you do not like.  But I will have to say, these meals are very delicious!

Black Bean Soup
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes

1/2 c chopped red onion
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
3/4 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp cumin
1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
2 c chicken broth
1 Tbsp feta cheese

1. In a large saucepan, combine onion, oil,
garlic, oregano, cumin, and salt to taste. Cook,
stirring, over medium heat until softened, about
3 minutes. Stir in beans and broth. Reduce heat
to medium-low.
2. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
Mash some beans against side of pan. Serve
sprinkled with feta and cilantro (optional).

Per serving: 205 calories, 7 g fat (2 g saturated),
447 mg
sodium, 27 g carbs, 9 g fiber, 12 g protein

Cheese & Kale Quesadillas

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes

1/2 c fine-sliced kale leaves
1 Tbsp water
2 9-inch whole-wheat tortillas
3 Tbsp crumbled feta cheese
**I also added green peppers

1. Place kale and water in a microwavable dish.
Cover with microwave-safe plastic wrap and
cook in microwave on high until wilted, about 90
seconds. Remove plastic carefully. Drain kale and
pat dry with paper towel.
2. Heat a heavy 9-inch skillet over medium-high
heat. Place 1 tortilla in pan. Top tortilla evenly
with cheese, kale, and second tortilla. Cook,
flipping occasionally, until tortilla is toasted
and cheese melts, about 4 minutes. Cut into
4 wedges.

Per serving: 119 calories, 4 g fat (2 g saturated),
336 g mg
sodium, 22 g carbs, 2 g fiber, 5 g protein
***NOTE***  I combined the above to recipes for one meal! Here is the picture.


Tilapia Tacos
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 0 minutes

1 c coarse-crumbled leftover cooked tilapia
fillets (recipe 40)
1/4 c red onion slivers
1/4 c thinly sliced kale
1/4 c canned diced tomatoes, drained
2 Tbsp crumbled feta cheese
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp lime juice
1/8 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
2 9-inch whole-wheat tortillas, warmed

In a mixing bowl, combine tilapia, onion, kale,
tomatoes, feta, oil, lime juice, cumin, pepper
flakes, and salt to taste. Toss. Spoon onto
tortillas. Fold tortillas in half. Cut each half into
two pieces.
 Per serving: 291 calories, 14 g fat (3 g saturated), 571 mg
sodium, 25 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 18 g protein

Stuffed Chicken Parmesan

prep time:20 min
start to finish:55 min
makes:6 servings
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 5 oz each)
1 box (10 oz) Cascadian Farm® frozen organic cut spinach, thawed, well drained
2 oz 1/3-less-fat cream cheese (Neufchâtel), softened
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup fat-free egg product
12 stone-ground wheat crackers, crushed (about 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup Muir Glen® organic Italian herb pasta sauce
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (1 oz)
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 13×9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. Between pieces of plastic wrap or waxed paper, place each chicken breast smooth side down; gently pound with flat side of meat mallet or rolling-pin until about 1/4 inch thick. (I did not have a rolling pin, so I found something else to use)
2. In medium bowl, mix spinach, cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, 1/2 teaspoon basil and the garlic until blended. Spread about 1 tablespoon spinach mixture over each chicken breast; roll up tightly. If necessary, secure with toothpicks.
3. In small shallow bowl, place egg product. In another small shallow bowl, mix cracker crumbs, 1 teaspoon basil and the pepper. Dip each chicken breast into egg product; coat with crumb mixture. Place seam side down in baking dish.
4. Bake uncovered 20 minutes. Pour pasta sauce over chicken; sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake 10 to 15 minutes longer or until thermometer inserted in center of chicken reads 165°F. Remove toothpicks from chicken before eating.
1 Serving: Calories 290 (Calories from Fat 100); Total Fat 11g (Saturated Fat 4 1/2g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol100mg; Sodium 450mg; Total Carbohydrate 10g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 3g); Protein 38g
Hope you enjoy trying out these recipes.  Keep looking for more and have a great weekend.

…Meatball Monday: Quick Dinner Idea!…

Time is a great issue with everyone!
Time is what allows us to decide if we will be able to work out today…of if you are able to cook the right kind of food.

The key is to MAKE time to fit in your workouts…

MAKE time to create quick and healthy meal options for you (and possibly your family!)

Today I would like to share another quick meal option with you…

Ground Turkey/beef/chicken/Meat Balls

Time: 15-20 Minutes

Oven Temperature: 400 Degrees

What you will need:

  • The meat of your choice (Ground turkey, beef, or chicken.  All should be available at your local grocery store.  The key is to get the LEAN package of meat.  The HIGHER the number is the leaner the meat it.

Example: 94/6 Beef = 94% lean beef 4% fat.  This is the best lean option for beef.  Your store may not have this lean of meat, so try to find the HIGHEST number you can.

Turkey:  99% lean is the best (and the same goes for chicken as well)

Yes it may be a little more expensive BUT these are the healthiest options.  You can even consider the less lean meats but try not to get the most fatty meat)

  • Chopped up veggies (like onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, zucchini, etc.  You want to make sure that they are chopped into small cubes and that the pieces will fit nicely in the muffin pan holes.

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Instructions: 

***These instructions are made to follow if you use ONE pound of meat.  If you use two I would just double the recipe****

Set your oven to 400 Degrees

First get your package(s) of meat and put them in a big mixing bowl 

Add whatever seasonings you would like to the meat 

Add your chopped up veggies(I usually put onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms on my meatballs.  I will put 1/2 cup of each veggie in a bowl with 1 pound of meat)

Add 1/2 egg whites OR 2 full eggs(I found that this helps to keep the meat ball together so it does not fall apart)

Add 1/2 cup Quaker plain oats(you can also use bread crumbs or any other kind of bread product.  I use this because it adds to the meatball allowing it to stick together as well as adding to the taste of the meatballs) **You can also skip this step. You do not have to add a bread product if you like***

Make Sure to mix all of the contents in the bowl very well to allow for the best distribution of the veggies, spices, and anything else that you put in the bowl

Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray

use 1/4 or 1/3 measuring cup (depending on how much meat/veggie mix will fit in each muffin tin hole)

Measure your meat into the 1/4 cup or 1/3 measuring cups and fill each muffin tin hole

Once all holes are filled

Place muffin tin in the oven

It will take 15-20 minutes for them to cook.

Just watch them and allow them to somewhat harden and turn brown on the outside.

You can break open one meatball to ensure it is all the way cooked before you completely take them out of the oven.

Allow to cool…serve…and ENJOY!

 

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These are great because you can make a batch and keep them in the fridge and grab them when you are in a hurry! You can eat these with pasta, veggie mix, or with anything else you like!

These also allow you to eat the right portion size!
I usually will have two meatballs, a side of veggies, and something else small (like pasta or rice) with this meatball meal.

Hope that you try these out sometime!

…Infinite Life Fitness Recipe: Flourless Protein Peanut Butter Cookies…

Here is another healthier indulgence!

I have found that it is very easy for me to stick with my diet plan…if  i know that i can treat myself randomly with a HEALTHIER version of some of my favorite treats

Today i am going to share with you how I made flourless peanut butter protein cookies!

FIRST: I MADE MY OWN PEANUT BUTTER!!! 

Yes i made my own pure peanut butter

This was done by:

~1 1/4 cup UNSALTED Raw Peanuts

~1 Tablespoon Canola Oil

I got my BLENDER  and put in 1 1/4 cup of peanuts.  I then put in the 1 Tablespoon of canola oil.

THIS WAS THE TRICKY PART….I had to play around with the settings on my blender to get it to start to turn to “butter”

  • at first I chopped up the peanuts (there was a “chop” option on my blender)
  • I then “Whipped” the peanuts (with the “whip” option on my blender)
  • This took a little time because I would Whip the peanuts for about 15-20 seconds and then have to take the lid off and mix the peanut chunks up with the whipped butter that was developing on the bottom of the canister.  This was the part that took the longest (about 10 minutes)

After the peanut butter was the consistency of peanut butter I added ANOTHER 1/4 cup of the raw peanuts (I LOVE crunchy peanut butter….if you do not want crunchy peanut butter than I would just add 1 1/2 cups of peanuts when you first start!) I just blended this for another 15-20 seconds just to chop up the new big peanuts and to get it mixed in with the butter

 

Directions for making the cookies:

I wanted to try to make peanut butter for these cookies to use up some peanuts that I had gotten and needed to use. so you can use store-bought NATURAL peanut butter (look on the back of the label at the store! The only ingredients should be peanuts and salt and possibly oil)

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup Natural peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup Protein Powder (I used a chocolate peanut butter protein powder I picked up from Wal-Mart)
  • 1/4 cup liquid egg whites (or seperate the egg whites from 4 regular eggs)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

Directions:

  • Heat your over to 220 degrees
  • mix all of the ingredients into a bowl
  • I used a table-spoon measuring spoon and scooped out table-spoon size balls and placed them on a cookie sheet

I let the peanut balls cook for about 10 minutes.  i took them out and then flattened them with a fork (to give them “texture” on top and to allow them to “flatten” like regular cookies.  You can leave them as balls but it may take a little more time for them to cook.

I put them back into the over and let them cook for another 10 minutes (until they turned slightly browner in the over)

I took them out and let them cool off for about 10 minutes.

and Whhhaaa-Laaaaa! You have HEALTHIER peanut butter cookies!

Nutritional Information:

My batch made 10 cookies!  I made the batter and split it up in tablespoon size cookies.  You can make yours smaller/bigger but you will have to recalculate this information if you make them a different size!

Nutrition Per Cookie (made 10)

  • Calories: 145
  • Total Fat: 11 grams
  • Sodium: 20 grams
  • Carbs: 5 grams
  • Sugars: 1 gram
  • Protein: 9 grams

Nutrition for the WHOLE batch:

  • Calories: 1454
  • Total Fat: 111 grams
  • Sodium: 198 grams
  • Carbs: 54 grams
  • Sugars: 11 grams
  • Protein: 85 grams

IF you try these out please let me know how they turned out!! I would love to know!
I hope that you guys enjoy these HEALTHIER forms of treats that you can hopefully start to incorporate into your life!

For more meal options, suggestions, recipes, or other food tips please feel free to follow me on Instagram as I upload things daily!

…Try Out This Recipe!…

Here is a great Low Calorie high protein meal option that you can have!

This is one of my FAVORITE meals to make and it is simple, quick, and full of flavor!

 

Infinite Life Fitness: Stuffed Bell Pepper

 What you need:

  • Ground Turkey (TRY TO FIND THE 99% Fat Free option! The other options carry more fat which increase the calorie count!) or you can use ground chicken or even ground beef! You can pick which you like the most
  • Bell Pepper
  • onions, chopped bell peppers
  • OPTIONAL: Tomato Paste or Low fat Swiss Cheese Laughing Cow cheese wedge

What I do it I will cook the whole package of ground turkey.  I will season it with Ms. Dash seasoning (They have a TON of flavors you can choose from.  I usually pick the original with a little garlic but you can try what you want)

BEFORE I start to cook the meat I turn on the oven to 350 degrees

After the meat is cooked I portion it out.  I separate the turkey into 3.5 ounces (and placing them in Tupperware containers or you can use zip lock bags.  The suggested serving size is 4 ounces but I have found that 4 ounces is too much to put in most bell peppers)

I will cut up about 1/4 cup of onions/chopped bell peppers and combine it with the ground turkey.

OPTION:  You can at this stage add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste (tomato paste is very thick.  it allows the turkey to have more flavor and it keeps everything kinda stuck together.)  Or you can mix into your onion/bell peppers 1 wedge of laughing cow cheese.

I will put all of that inside the largest bell pepper I can find at the store.  I will pop it I the over for about 15 minutes ( I usually just wait until the meat and bell pepper are heated up…you can leave it in for longer but it starts to make the bell pepper shrivel and dry out. So you will have to watch it!

 

I also like to add a side salad…or some other side to this dish just to fill me up (because the pepper alone usually is pretty filling but sometimes I need more!

This stuffed bell pepper (if you use lean ground turkey, onions, and bell pepper) is around 200 calories.  That is also why I suggest adding something else with this pepper to make a more filling meal.