Cocoa Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

I am always on the lookout for quick, healthy snacks... and the ones that I can bring with me "on the go" get bonus points! I don't consider my diet "clean" although I do try to eat as clean as possible when I can. Where am I going with this? Well I kept seeing these amazingly delicious looking cocoa almonds all over Instagram. All these health/fitness buffs were finding the huge canisters of them at Sam's Club and honestly, I think they are hoarding them because I can't find them there =( I did find the regular sized cans and 100 calorie packs at Target (my home away from home!). I snagged them the second I saw them...They taste like heaven. I figured if all of these health nuts on Instagram were hoarding them, they couldn't be too bad for me. To my surprise (because of how delicious they are) they had hardly any sodium or sugar which is AWESOME... but I decided I wanted to try to make my own.

I bought the cocoa and the cinnamon versions and both were REALLY good... but I thought a cocoa AND cinnamon version would be amazing... so that's what I made.

Cocoa Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

5-6 Cups RAW almonds
1-2 Tbsp coconut oil (just to coat almonds for coating to stick)
1/4 Cups unsweetened cocoa (I used Hersheys and I "eyeballed" it)
Cinnamon to taste (I was generous and used probably a couple teaspoons... I like cinnamon!)
1 tsp sugar

In a large mixing bowl I combined the almonds and coconut oil until the almonds were coated evenly. Add cocoa and cinnamon and mix well coating all of the almonds evenly. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes

This is another recipe you could have many variations of. Have fun with it!

Chicken Meatballs

As you know, I have been on a meal prepping mission any Sunday that I have the time. It gets really hard to come up with new things that will stay fresh since I prep for the week. Regular old chicken breasts are getting a little old, so this week I decided to try meatballs with ground chicken and I am definitely goign to do them again! They are delish!

Ground Chicken Meatballs

1lb ground chicken
1 cup fresh baby spinach
1/4 small red onion
1 egg
2 tbsp BBQ Sauce (I went light, but next time I will probably add a little more)

Mixed all ingredients in a mixing bowl and made into 6 equal sized meatballs. Baked at 400 degrees for about 20-25 minutes.

They don't look that appetizing in this picture, but I ate them with boiled broccoli and cauliflower and a little bbq sauce over the top and they were MMM MMM good! Totally making them again, I might try ground turkey next time!

My "famous" salsa

I call my salsa recipe "famous" because people LOVE it... I mean LOVE... its like crack salsa. People are always asking me to bring it to parties and raving about it. I am a salsa FREAK and I love it, but it makes me happy that other people love it too!

The original recipe is a "copy cat" of a Chili's salsa recipe I found online... I just added a couple of ingredients, so I feel like its my OWN!

http://www.copykat.com/2009/03/27/chilis-salsa/

"Famous" Salsa Recipe

1 handful of cilantro
1 jalepeno
1/2 white onion
2 tbsp lime juice (give or take, I am not really sure how much, I just squeeze a few times around the bowl)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis and mexican seasoning
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp sugar

Blend jalepeno, cilantro, onion, lime and all of the spices in the food processor, add both cans of tomatoes, blend more and VIOLA... the best salsa ever!

Healthy fudge!

I've been on a roll today... I have many past recipes I want to post, but everything from today way quick, easy and healthy! my baby girl was sick and slept a lot, so I went for it!

Paleo Peanut Butter Fudge

1/2 coconut oil
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 natural peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp vanilla

Melt coconut oil, add peanut butter, cocoa, honey and vanilla to melted coconut oil. Mix well and distribute into ice cube tray. Chill in fridge 30 min and move to the freezer for another 10 min.

Recipe Credit

I'll be keeping the rest in the freezer for quick chocolate fixes!

Baked Apple Chips

The worlds easiest, most delicious, HEALTHY snack...

Baked Apple Chips

Ingredients...

Apples

That's it.

You could season them up with cinnamon and even some brown sugar if you wanted, but these babies are delicious just baked on their own.

I sliced them on the thinnest setting on my mandolin and baked them on a cooling rack on a baking sheet at 250 degrees for 50 minutes... perfect!

Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip "Muffins"

I have to start off by saying these are the healthiest muffins I have come acrossed... they are basically a bowl of oatmeal baked in a muffin tin and they are DELICIOUS!!!!

I got the recipe from Pinterest (seriously an addiction... but that's a whole other post!)

Here's the link to the website w/ the recipe itself.

Banana Chocolate Chip Baked Oatmeal Cups

3 cups Old Fashioned Oats (I used quick cooking)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 egg whites
1 whole egg
1 1/4 cup milk
2 mashed bananas
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips (you could also use raisins, dried cranberries, etc)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a muffin tin with cooking spray.
2. Combine oats, brown sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and stir until mixed well.
3. In a seperate bowl, whisk together egg whites, egg, mashed banana, milk and vanilla. Add mixture to dry ingredients and stir until blended together. Mix in chocolate chips.
4. Use measuring cup to pour mixture evenly into muffin tin. Bake 18-22 minutes or until oatmeal is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

These things are freaking DELICOUS! I definitely want to try different variations... apple cinnamon comes to mind =)

It's been awhile.......

To say the least!

I know, I know... I have been gone WAY too long. I really miss blogging, its been SO hard to make the time to sit down and take the time to write posts and take/upload pictures of what's going on... but I really want to get back into the swing of things. I am sure there is a lot of technology out there making blogging easier, I am going to look into it!

So... what's going on?

SO MUCH! Busy life, as usual... being a working mommy, fitting in workouts, getting into food prep, studying for my NASM CPT Test............. Never a dull moment around here!

I am happy to report I have scheduled my CPT test for MAY!!! YIKES!!!!!!! I can't believe I actually have a date. I am studying every night, I bring flash cards and printouts to work to study on breaks, I bring the iPad to the gym to study while I do cardio a few days a week. I am DEFINITELY serious about this and it makes me happy knowing I am taking the steps I need to, to make this dream come true. It might not seem like much to some, but health, fitness and nutrition have been a part of my life for YEARS... it's absolutely a passion of mine. I feel happy and motivated to make this happen for myself... even if I don't have much time to put it to use right away, I am going to put myself out there and really TRY. It scares me and makes me smile at the same time. It's going to be much more work than I have going on right now and it's not deterring me at all. I know this is what I need to feel complete in my professional life. I want to help others feel good about themselves and live happy, healthy lifestyles. I also want to teach my daughter that type of lifestyle is "normal" and I want it to come naturally for her by following my example.

Lately I have had close friends tell me I "inspire" them. I inspire them to get eat healthy, prep food so they aren't left running through the drive thru when they are starving, to workout and love themselves. There is NO greater compliment I could recieve than knowing I am an inpsiration to anyone, ESPECIALLY my friends and family and I am a part of the reason they are making these positive changes in their lives. I am 100% here for them if and when they need me and I love it!

In the future, I hope to take some nutrition classes as being a personal trainer doesn't give me the "ok" to create diets for people... but the least I can do is NOW is become more knowledgable to give advice in that area and maybe one day persue a Registered Dietician degree. One step at a time, we will see!

For now, I am happy to say I feel HAPPY with the direction I am heading! It feels good and I am so motivated.

Two words - Spaghetti Squash

I am loving this stuff! I haven't done anything exceptional with it, usually I just season it up with olive oil, salt and pepper, roast it in the oven for about 30-45 minutes, break up with a fork and/or tongs and viola!

I'm the only one that will eat it in our house, so there's always tons leftover. I like to sauté onions, bell pepper, baby spinach and a chicken sausage and throw it on top... Sometimes I add spaghetti sauce or feta cheese too. So good and good for you.

I've been seeing some recipes for spaghetti squash on Pinterest that I'd like to try as well... Spaghetti squash and zucchini bake... Yes please! That recipe includes pasta sauce and mozzarella! So versatile!

Here are some of my recent "creations"...

Pumpkin Oatmeal

As promised, here's my Pumpkin Oatmeal "recipe"

1/2 C quick cooking oats
1/2 tsp brown sugar
1/4tsp cinnamon (that's just a guess... use your best judgement here, I like a lot!)
2 tbsp pumpkin puree
1 C water

Mix ingredients and microwave for 1 1/2 - 2 minutes.

Fall in a bowl!

You can even add goodies like chocolate chips, almonds, pecans, etc.

Mexican Pizza

Tonight I wanted to make something delicious, but still healthy! Especially since I didn't work out.

I was stalking Pinterest looking for something good and I stumbled on a "Copy Cat Mexican Pizza", I knew it was something I could easily lighten up, so it was a winner!

Ingredients:
1lb lean ground beef
Taco seasoning (I just threw my own spices in with the meat, way less sodium that way. I used cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, salt and red pepper flakes)
Whole grain tortillas (I used one for mine)
Vegetarian refried beans (just a thin layer spread over the tortilla)
La Victoria salsa in a jar
Grated cheese
Lettuce (all I had was iceburg, but romaine would have been my first choice!)
Tomato (I was out of fresh tomato)

For fun I threw thinly sliced red bell pepper, red onion and avocado on mine.

Preheat the oven to 425.

Brown the ground beef
Layer the beans, salsa, meat, cheese, onions and peppers on the tortilla and bake for 8-10 minutes or until the tortilla is crisp around the edges.
Add lettuce, tomato, avacado and salsa and VIOLA!

A delicious, easy weeknight meal!

Healthy Brown Rice Salad

Hi there! I guess I better start posting over here, huh?

Over the weekend we had a little impromtu Labor Day BBQ with some friends. My hubby was dying to make bacon wrapped chicken breasts smothered in bbq sauce on the grill. I wanted to make something healthy to go with the chicken, but something other than a green salad, which we almost always have.

I thought a cold brown rice salad sounded absolutely perfect. I wasn't quite sure how it was going to turn out, but to my surprise, it was delicious!

Ingredients:
2 cups brown rice
1 chicken bullion cube
1 green bell pepper
1/2 medium red onion
1 can of black beans
1 can of corn
1/4 cup of fresh squeezed lime juice
1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil
salt and cracked black pepper to taste

I cooked the rice per the instructions on the bag. I threw the bullion cube in once the water came to a boil, covered with foil and the lid and let simmer for 50 minutes. I let the rice cool before adding the dressing and veggies.

Definitely making this again!