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…infinite life fitness recipe: Protein Fudge…

protein_fudge

Working towards your health and fitness goals do not require you to completely sacrifice sweet treats.  Lets be honest…who doesn’t get a sweet tooth every now and then? And yes it can be hard to ignore those sweet cravings! So what do you do?

Instead of driving yourself crazy and trying to ignore the sweet cravings you should come up with healthy AND tasty alternatives for you have when you are needing something a little sweet.  Here is a treat that I personally love to make and usually keep in my freezer just in case I need to grab something sweet.

What you will need:

  • ¾ cup peanut butter (I use Skippy natural chocolate peanut butter)
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • ¼ cup melted coconut oil
  • 3 scoops vanilla protein powder ( I chose to use 1st Phorm Vanilla Whey. Depending on the brand of protein you may need to use less or more! You will have to adjust your recipe)

What you will do:

  • heat up coconut oil and measure out 1/4 cup
  • Place all of the above ingredients into a mixing bowl
  • mix ingredients until batter is thick and sticky (I added small amounts of almond milk to get the mixture to mix and blend. I literally just added a few tablespoons)
  • Once the batter is mixed place in a freezer safe container
  • spread batter evenly into container
  • place container in freezer and allow to freeze
  • once the batter is frozen cut into even squares and enjoy!

NOTE: I stored my protein fudge in the freezer.  If thawed out it will just become runny and not thick.  Keeping it in the freezer allows it to stay in the fudge chunks.  Even though it is frozen, the fudge is very easy to bite into and chew.  It is slightly chewy and VERY yummy!

You can get creative and toss in nuts, chocolate chips, or anything else that you would like.  But remember, adding those things increase the calorie, carbs, and fat macro nutrient content in this treat.  So you want to try to limit what you add to make sure to keep it as healthy as possible.

Like I stated before, this is a great treat to keep around the house to help subdue those sweet cravings you may get. This snack is packed with an amazing taste and is high in protein.

Mix. Freeze. and Enjoy! Let me know how YOUR version of this recipe turns out!

 

…Infinite Life Fitness Recipe: Protein Bread…

protein bread

 

If any of you are like me…you may LOVE to eat bread and bread like products.  Bread is my one weakness so once you find out the nutritional value (or the lack of nutrition) that is found in your favorite bread, it makes you cringe just thinking about indulging in more than one service size.   I had to find an alternative to help satisfy my bread craving as well as fit into my macronutrients.

What you will need:

  • 1 pack of baking bread yeast (NOT the quick rise yeast, just the regular yeast)
  • 2 cups of wheat flour
  • 1 cup (84 g) of vanilla Protein (I used 1st Phorms Vanilla Ice Cream Protein.  You can use other brands but i have found this brand to work the best for me when it comes to baking and cooking with it)
  • 1 tablespoon of wheat gluten
  • 1 tablespoon of dry milk
  • dash of salt
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon of honey (you can also use maple syrup, agave nectar, or sugar.  YOU NEED regular sugar to help feed the yeast.  It is NOT advised that you use artificial sweetener for this recipe)
  • 1 1/2 cup of water
  • Bread making machine or bread pan

What you will do:

  • the type of bread machine that I have and use  is an Oyster 2lb express bread maker 
  • Add all of the wet ingredients first!!
  • You will then add together all of the dry ingredients
  • You will make a small well in the middle of the mixture and then add the yeast (look at picture 1)proteinbread_1
  • For my settings i chose: 1.5 lb loaf & light crust.
  • I pressed the start button and just let it sit!
  • My bread maker kneaded the dough and baked it.  Once the bread was ready the machine cut off automatically.
  • I let the bread cool and then removed it from the pan and cut it up into my desired sizes.

You are more than welcome to play around with this recipe.  This is just how i learned how to make mine and it seems to work very well.  My bread is very dense yet flaky.  It is very filling for me and a great snack to grab when you are on the go!

proteinbread_2

 

 

…Infinite Life Fitness Recipe: Peanut Butter Protein Fudge…

2014-04-23 21.34.40

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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! 😉  )