Peanut Butter Protein Overnight Oats

I'm a big fan of overnight oats.  I mean it's served in a mason jar.  What's not to love?

It's a great make ahead and it's super filling, particularly this recipe. 

There are many different variations of overnight oats out there, but I love adding Greek yogurt to mine.  It ups the protein and I love the creamy, thick texture it adds.  I use 2%, because I'm trying to steer away from fat free stuff and more toward reduced or full fat more natural products, but it would be just as delicious with fat free if that is your choice!

I also added a scoop of Quest Peanut Butter protein powder.  I'm a BIG fan of the Quest powders, I find they taste really really good, not at all "protein-y".  And they are soy free, which is a big score. 

Peanut Butter Protein Overnight Oats
1 serving - 6 Smartpoints

1/3 cup oats
1/3 cup 2% plain Greek yogurt
2/3 cup unsweetened vanilla almond cashew milk
1 banana
1 scoop Quest Peanut Butter protein powder

Mash banana in a separate bowl.  Combine all ingredients in mason jar until combined.  Chill overnight.

I topped mine with 1 Smartpoint worth of pumpkin flax granola for crunch! 

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

Yes, it's yet more pumpkin.  But I can't help it.  I'm addicted.

This is a delicious and healthy smoothie that's like fall in a cup.   It also features one of my favorite tricks - using half a frozen banana instead of ice.  Makes the smoothie super thick and creamy.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie
(serves 1)

1 1/2 cups milk of choice (I used unsweetened almond cashew)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 scoop vanilla protein powder of choice

Blend and enjoy!

Fabulous Find: Think Thin Oatmeal

Another healthy find from 7-11!  (And other places I'm sure but this is where I found it).

I was running late one morning and didn't have time to make my normal protein smoothie, so I figured I'd pick something up when I stopped to get my coffee.  Found this and it's an new favorite!

This particular flavor is Farmer's Market Berry Crumble and it's absolutely delicious.  Takes about a minute in the microwave, but then I let it sit a few more minutes.  The fruit plumps up and it's definitely a filling breakfast coupled with some fruit or I actually had a hard boiled egg along with it for some extra protein.

Nice stats:  10g protein, 5g fiver and 190 calories for the cup.

Also, 100% non GMO!

I actually really love their protein bars too (the pumpkin spice and dark chocolate peppermint are seasonal flavors that are to die for!).  Link below to the website!

Think Thin Products

Avocado Chicken Salad

Straight up?  I hate mayonnaise.  Like really hate it.

So basically I've never liked chicken salad or egg salad.

Until I found a genius idea, of course, on Pinterest.

Avocado.

Because avocados?  I LOVE.

This chicken salad has zero mayo.  Instead, I use a combination of Greek yogurt and avocado and it is creamy and delicious, and added in some dried cherries for a burst of chewy sweetness.  I used a good amount of Greek yogurt (2% because it's less tart), you certainly could adjust the amount down if you would like!

Also, I used Trader Joe's pre-grilled chicken breast.  Because it was that kind of day.  And it was also delicious.

Avocado Chicken Salad

(3 servings - 1/2 cup each: 188 calories per serving per MyFitnessPal Recipe Builder)

1 medium ripe avocado
1 lime
1/2 cup 2% Greek yogurt
6 oz. chopped up or shredded chicken breast
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 cup dried cherries

Scoop the avocado out of it's skin and into bowl.  Juice the lime over the avocado and mash with a fork until creamy.  Add in the greek yogurt, chicken, salt, pepper, and dried cherries and stir until well combined.

(Side note - it does make three servings, and even with the lime juice, the avocado still turns a bit brown in the fridge however it still tastes delicious!)

Serve on a wrap with some lettuce or just on a bed of lettuce, would even be delicious with pita or pita crips!

Meal Planning: What I'm Eating This Week!

So, after week 1 of meal planning, I'd say it was a rousing success.  Getting lunches together for work and having a plan for my late tutoring nights was a huge help!

So let's get to week 2!

I still have quite a few waffles in the freezer from last week's batch, so I'm planning on using those for breakfasts, along with an egg sandwich on alternating days (side note - I have to do a post on my breakfast sandwich maker because it is literally the best thing ever!)

I'm doing my Protein Packed Mason Jar salad twice this week, just changing it up a tad.  I ran out of quinoa and I'm in no mood to brave the grocery store the day before an ice storm, so I'm subbing an extra 1/4 cup of chickpeas for the quinoa.  Other lunches will be leftovers!

And as for those leftovers, my two recipes I'm trying out this week:

Italian Escarole and White Bean Soup from the Skinnytaste cookbook (I'm actually using baby kale instead of escarole)
Skinny Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo from Celebrations

I also stocked up on some berries, pineapple, and sugar snap peas for snacks, as well as some more greek yogurt and granola, and some Vermont 10 grain bread for mini banana / peanut butter paninis.  I also have some Vegan Chocolate Shakeology that I'm using as snacks!

What are you planning for this week?

Protein Packed Mason Jar Salad

Confession.  I don't love salads.

I mean, I love salads at restaurants.  But of course, those aren't always the healthiest.

When I eat a salad, I want it to have a lot of different "stuff".  Not just lettuce and veggies. 

I have been watching YouTube videos for some healthy eating ideas and one that kept popping up was the salad in a mason jar.  The pluses include that they could be prepped 3-4 days in advance and stay fresh, easy grab and go, and you could really put anything them you want.

So in an effort to continue with the healthy start to the new year, I decided to give it a go.  I got 2 liter size mason jars at Michael's (those are the good size, it's a great size for a 'meal' salad), and I bought a nice big container at The Container Store to dump it into.  You can eat it right from the mason jar, however it's difficult to mix so you'd likely only get 1-2 ingredients at a time.

Then, I assembled the ingredients.  Side note - you can put your dressing right in the jar at the bottom (usually with the 'sturdiest' ingredients) but I had also bought tiny dressing containers at The Container Store so I decided to leave mine on the side.

I prepped 2 of these on Sunday and had them Monday and Wednesday.  The Wednesday one was fresh and delicious!

I started with about 2 oz. of chopped precooked roasted turkey breast from Trader Joe's.  Only turkey, salt and pepper so nice ingredient list, and precooked to save some time!

Then I threw in a 1/4 cup of rinsed and drained chickpeas.

After that, about a 1/2 cup of the steamed broccoli and cauliflower I had done for my meal prep.

Then a 1/4 cup of quinoa.

Then 1 chopped up hard boiled egg.

Then I basically stuffed it with baby arugula.  I really packed it in so that all of the ingredients would have a nice "bed" to fall out on.

And I topped it off with some sea salt pumpkin seeds for crunch!

I had mine with 1 tablespoon or Asian Sesame Ginger Dressing from Trader Joe's.

And here was the result!  I had this and some fresh pineapple and was totally satisfied!

I really love this concept and am looking forward to trying some different varieties!

Weekly Meal Prep - Week 1

In the same vein as the menu planning, I'm going to attempt to start regularly meal prepping on Sundays. 

Here's the thing, between work, working out, and tutoring, there are nights during the week when I roll into my apartment at about 7:00, and by that time am so hungry and in no mood to cook. Cue unhealthy choice here.

So I thought doing some hardcore meal prepping on Sunday might help.  I'm not prepping every meal, I plan to cook a couple of nights (the nights I'm not tutoring).  But I feel like this will also help me with snacks and lunches on the go, which I also sorely need.

I started about 10:15 Sunday morning and was finished at about noon.  Not terrible!

First up, though, is to be prepared.

Look, you are going to be working, so make it a pleasant experience!  Made myself a cup of coffee, lit my Twisted Peppermint candle, and turned on iTunes radio.

First up, a little breakfast prep. 

I decided to break in my waffle maker using this recipe for Banana Oat Waffles.  It made about 8, so I had one for breakfast, along with some sunflower butter and raspberries.  Then I cooked up the rest and let them cool, before storing them in freezer bags separated by wax paper.  That way during the week, I can always pop one out and heat it up in the oven while I'm getting ready for work!

Next, sweet potatoes! 

I plan to use these as a side dish during the week.  I had 2 sweet potatoes which I just roughly chopped up.  I preheated my oven to 425 and sprayed with coconut oil spray.  After spreading the potatoes out, I sprayed them lightly again with the coconut spray and dusted them lightly with salt and pepper.  I didn't add any extra seasoning because I may want to get creative later in the week.  This is basically a time saver, get them cooked through and then I can prepare them any number of ways during the week. 

I put them in the oven for about 13 minutes, flippped them, gave them another quick spray, and then put them back in the oven for about another 10 minutes.  They came out crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside, so perfect!

And now it was time for the rice cooker!

First up, steaming veggies!

I did this first because you need the steamer basket.  Basically I just took a bag of broccoli and cauliflower I had picked up at Trader Joe's and steamed with about 3/4 cup of water for about 5 minutes.  Now it's perfect for a quick snack, side dish, or to throw in a salad!

Then, a batch of quinoa.

I used 1 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of organic chicken broth.  Again, perfect for side dishes or adding to salads during the upcoming week!

While the quinoa was cooking, I cut up some Persian cucumbers and started portioning them out to use as a snack with some hummus.

Then I got out my lettuce and washed and spun it out :)

I also rinsed and drained some chickpeas and cut up some roasted turkey breast because once everything cooled, it was salad in a jar time!

I ended up with a protein packed turkey salad - recipe will be up later in the week!

So all in all, it didn't take as much time as I thought and I feel really set for the week!

21 Day Fix - Peanut Butter and "Jelly" Overnight Oats

I love me some oatmeal.  Especially in the fall.

A few years ago I discovered overnight oats, and became an instant fan.  As I was mulling over recipes to try and "makeover" for 21 day fix, this one came to me and it's perfect.

This is just one of many variations you could do.  Overnight oats are basically whatever you want them to be.  To make them 21 day fix friendly, I simply swapped out the milk for water, and honestly you couldn't even tell the difference.

This is a great for a quick lunch on the go (especially if you have mason jars around, perfect container for it!), and it's really easy and fast to make.

Of course, there isn't really jelly, but I always loved peanut butter and strawberry jelly, so this is my little twist on that.

Not to mention, delicious and filling!

Peanut Butter and "Jelly" Overnight Oats

1/2 yellow of oats, uncooked (I do end up counting this as a full yellow though because of the way oats are measured on 21 day fix!)
1 red of greek yogurt
1 purple of chopped strawberries
1/2 cup water
2 tsp. natural creamy peanut butter
Stevia to taste (or a tsp. of vanilla extract)

Combine all ingredients in mason jar, close and shake!  That's it!  Put it in the fridge overnight and enjoy the next morning!

Chili Roasted Butternut Squash Salad - 21 Day Fix

Butternut squash.  Mmmmmm.

However, this time of year, not the easiest to find.  What's an aspiring healthy cook to do?

Improvise!

Frozen butternut squash chunks it is.

Basically, 1 bag of frozen butternut squash (keep it frozen!), 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 2 tsp. of chili powder and 2 tsp. of cumin, a little kosher salt and black pepper.

Preheated the oven to about 450 and bake for about 20 minutes (I kept an eye on it, that seemed to do it).

Now, the downside of the frozen variety is that it isn't going to get as crispy.  However, it tastes delicious!

And now to put it all together.

So basically:

2 Green: 1 filled with baby arugula and 1 filled with the roasted butternut squash
1 yellow:  black beans
1/2 blue: crumbled goat cheese
1 tsp.  - extra virgin olive oil (the butternut squash as a whole made 3 servings so I'm counting 1 tsp. per serving).


A quick and healthy lunch to go!  Rounding it out with a purple filled with mixed berries (blueberries and blackberries).

Crockpot Buffalo Chicken - 21 Day Fix Style!

I mean, because who doesn't love buffalo chicken?  Except for the fact that it's not exactly calorie friendly.  But yeah, still good.

So I challenged myself to lighten it up.  Ended up with about a pound of boneless, skinless chicken breast, 1 red container of 2% greek yogurt, and a small bottle of tabasco.  Threw it all in a crockpot and cooked it on low for about 3 and a half hours.  After about three hours, I went in and shredded it and let it sit for a bit longer.

Not going to lie, I didn't even miss the ranch dressing or the cream cheese / sour cream.

When I went to use it in my lunch, I didn't fill the red container the entire way with chicken, allowing some "room" for the greek yogurt I used.  I would say that the entire recipe made at least 7 servings in a "red" container, so the greek yogurt in each serving is probably minimal.

So to make a healthy lunch for the week, check it out below!

1 red - crockpot buffalo chicken
1 green - steamed mixed veggies
1 yellow - quinoa
1/2 blue  - crumbled goat cheese

Delicious and filling!

21 Day Fix Meal Idea - Avocado Egg "Salad" Wraps

I love avocado.  Like, I could eat it everyday at every meal and be completely happy.

Alas.

However, this is a great, easy way to get it into a meal.  And bonus, for those (like me) who don't like mayonnaise, you can make a great egg "salad" lunch with avocado as a healthy substitute!

So, here's the breakdown:

1 yellow: 2 corn tortillas
1 red: 2 hard boiled eggs
1 blue: mashed avocado
1 green: baby spinach leaves

Just mash the avocado and mix into chopped up eggs.  I also added a spritz of fresh lime juice!  Lay the spinach on the tortillas (which I warmed first - corn tortillas can be a bit tough to work with), and divide the egg salad evenly between the two tortillas.

To round out the lunch, I also added a mix of strawberries and blackberries for 1 purple.

Delicious and filling!