Healthy Cajun Jambalaya Recipe
Happy Fat Tuesday! Satisfy your craving for a Fat Tuesday favorite!
Ingredients:
- 1 pound shrimp (medium sized, peeled and deveined
- 1 pound raw chicken/turkey sausage
- 1 cup brown rice
- 2 cup chicken broth
- 1 large onion
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 green bell pepper
- 2 cups celery
- 2 cups chopped tomatoes (or 1 can diced tomatoes in a pinch)
- 1 can tomato sauce
- 6-10 cloves of garlic
- 2 tablespoons avocado or refined coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons no sodium creole seasoning
- 3-5 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 tablespoon pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1/2 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 bunch green onions (garnish)
Instructions:
- Heat dutch oven over medium heat. While the pan heats up, chop chicken/turkey sausage. Add oil and chopped sausage, cook approx. for 5 minutes until sausage starts to brown, stir occasionally.
- Chop onions and bell peppers into a dice. Saute onions and bell peppers until they soften, about 5 minutes.
- Chop garlic into fine dice and add to dutch oven. Chop celery and add to dutch oven.
- Add chopped tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken broth, bay leaves, and spices; bring to a boil.
- Rinse and drain rice, once the dutch oven is boiling, add in rice.
- Cook for 15-20 minutes until most the liquid has been absorbed. Add the shrimp and cook until shrimp turns whitish pink and starts to curl, about 2-5 minutes.
- Remove from heat, remove bay leaves. Let rest 5-10 minutes and chop green onions.
- Taste and add salt/pepper or hot sauce if needed.
- Serve and garnish with green onions, then enjoy!
Happy 303 Day!
Happy 303 Day! Today is a day to celebrate Colorado!
Here are some self care tips of fun things to do in Colorado:
1. Hike Red Rocks or Garden of the Gods
2. Drive up the flatirons in Boulder to lookout point and enjoy the beautiful view!
3. Check out Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Denver Museum of Nature & Science, or the Denver Art Museum
4. Check out the newest exhibit at the Denver Botanic Gardens
5. Visit Rocky Mountain National Park and eat lunch in Estes Park
6. Hike your favorite local trail
7. Try rock climbing at a local rock climbing gym
8. Drive up Mount Evans Scenic Byway
9. Visit one of the many hot springs in Colorado
10. Go skiing or snowboarding
11. Play Frisbee golf
12 Hang out in a local park
(Extra points if you bring a dog or wear flip flops and shorts in the winter)
Healthy Meatloaf Recipe
I’m really good at finding a way to put a healthy spin on comfort foods!! My favorite comfort food is meatloaf, and I’ve found a way to make it extra healthy!
By substituting ground turkey for some of the beef to reduce the amount of fat, using oatmeal instead of bread to improve the amount of fiber, and using spicy tomato juice instead of ketchup to reduce the amount of sugar!
(Serves 4)
Ingredients:
- 1/2 pound ground beef (96/4 or 90/10)
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 1/4 cup spicy tomato juice (or regular tomato juice and add 1-2 tbsp hot sauce)
- 3/4 cup oatmeal
- 1 egg
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 1/2 tablespoon garlic salt
- 1 tablespoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon worchester sauce
- 1 tablespoon Garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- Cooking spray
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Finely chop onions and garlic, add to large mixing bowl.
- Add the rest of the ingredients to bowl and mix thoroughly.
- Spray loaf pan with cooking spray and add meatloaf mixture.
- Bake for approx. 1 hour or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
Peanut butter Chocolate Banana Protein Pancakes
It’s important to fuel up with the right nutrition before and after a workout. Try this delicious peanut butter chocolate banana protein pancake recipe for a great way to start your day!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup instant oats
- 1 ripe banana
- 3 eggs
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter or 3 – 4 tablespoons PB fit protein powder
- 1/4 cup chocolate protein powder
- 2 tablespoons dutch cocoa
- 2 tablespoons flax seed meal or almond flour
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or butter
Instructions:
Blend all ingredients (except coconut oil / butter) until smooth. Heat frying pan on medium high heat and melt coconut oil / butter. Pour 1/3 cup batter into hot frying pan and cook for 2-4 minutes until edges firm. Flip pancake and cook another 2-3 minutes. Top with banana slices.
Turkey Avocado Grilled Cheese
Many different surveys have reported that grilled cheese is in the top 10 most common comfort foods in the US. Here’s a healthy twist on this classic comfort food – Turkey Avocado Grilled Cheese!!
Ingredients:
- 2 slices ezekiel bread
- 3 ultra thin slices of cheddar cheese
- 5 oz sliced turkey
- 1/2 avocado
- 3 slices on tomato
- 2-3 pats butter
Instructions:
- Butter both sides of the bread and put 1 piece of the bread into the frying pan (before turning the heat on) to assemble sandwich.
- On one side of the bread, put down 1 slice of cheese, then half of the turkey, avocado, tomato, and 1 slice of cheese.
- Then add the rest of the turkey, last cheese slice, and second piece of bread (again with both sides buttered).
- Turn on frying pan to medium high heat and cook until the the bottom cheese slice starts to melt.
- Flip to other side and cook until golden brown and all the cheese is melted.
Tips for Mindful Eating
Mindful eating is key to starting healthy eating habits! It helps you focus your attention on your food and the experience of eating, and being more present while you eat will add more joy to your life. Here are some tips on mindful eating:
- Eat slowly, this will allow your stomach to signal your brain that it’s full
- Savor each bite, really enjoy the smells, tastes, textures, and sight of your food
- Chew thoroughly, chewing your food 25+ times allows you to absorb more nutrients
- Sit down to eat at a table, do not eat at a desk or on the couch
- Focus on eating, do not multitask while eating
Start practicing mindful eating today by really savoring the first 2 bites or sips of each meal and drink!
Rosemary Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Cauliflower
Ingredients:
- 2 lb yellow potatoes
- 1 large head cauliflower (about 4-5 cups)
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 4+ cloves garlic
- 3/4 cup whole or 2% milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Pepper to taste
Gravy Ingredients:
- 1 large onion
- 8 oz button mushrooms
- 1/2 cup chopped parsley
- 2 cups broth (chicken, beef, or vegetable)
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
Instructions:
- Wash and peel the potatoes. Cut into 1 inch pieces.
- Cut the cauliflower into small florets.
- Place cauliflower, potatoes, chicken broth, rosemary, and salt into large pot with 2 cups water. Bring to a boil and let cook 10 – 15 minutes.
- Add garlic and continue to cook for another 5 – 10 minutes or until the cauliflower and potatoes are tender.
- Chop onions, mushrooms, and parsley into a fine dice.
- Saute onions, mushrooms, parsley, and 1.5 cups broth until veggies are tender.
- Drain the potatoes and cauliflower and return to the large pot. Discard rosemary.
- Combine 1/2 cup broth, pepper, and cornstarch in a small jar. Shake vigorously until well combined, add to the sauteing vegetables.
- Bring gravy to a boil and stir occasionally, about 2 minutes
- Add butter, milk, and pepper to the potato cauliflower mixture. Mash to desired consistency. Garnish with chopped parsley.
Optimize Your Post Workout Recovery
Working out is great, but it uses a lot of your energy. In order to have optimum post workout recovery, you should eat the following foods 15 – 30 minutes after your workout:
- WATER
- Banana
- Dark chocolate (70%+ cacao)
- Greek yogurt or cottage cheese
- Eggs
- Tuna or salmon
- Quinoa
- Sweet potatoes
- Lean protein
Pork Fat is Healthy!
A recent research study analyzed and ranked 1,000 foods for nutritional content to rank the top health foods. Surprisingly, PORK FAT RANKED #8 HEALTHIEST FOOD, right after swiss chard and before beet greens!!! This is full of heart healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals!
