Preppin' Weapon

It's been a while since I've posted, and I promise to stay up to date from now on with my recipes, tips & advice! =-) 

One thing I've learned is that prepping is key! Especially with my busy lifestyle (as most do) and the unhealthy foods offered at my work. I only eat the devil foods when I have nothing else around. Most of the snacks I bring I can't wait to gobble them down (when I have them). Instead of grabbing that cake in the coffee room at work, how about Greek yogurt? 

Also, it's important to feel good about yourself when you choose a healthy snack over unhealthy. For example, I know string cheese is not THE best snack I can have, but it beats the free potato chips at work. I try not to eat a ton of processed foods but dry cereal, wheat tortillas, and oatmeal are not a bad thing when choosing over junk food. I used to get mad at myself for not eating straight paleo or organic veggies, but now I've realized I'm still making good choices. 

Here's a few snacks I threw together in my lunchbox for work 

-String cheese

-Turkey pepperoni

-Greek yogurt

-Pear

-Tuna w mixed veggies 

-Whole wheat low carb tortilla 

-Trail mix w dark chocolate 

-Cantaloupe and grapes 

Not a bad day for snacking :-) this created sustainable energy to last me all day. 

Remember pride yourselves over the good choices because it could always be worse! Celebrate success and prep, prep, prep!

Pecan paleo waffles

I must warn you, waffles are a little dry but still delicious! They are gluten free paleo waffles so don't expect them to be really moist!

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1/4 cup coconut flour
Handful of pecans
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp Pure Maple syrup
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
Chia seeds 1 tbsp

Mix all ingredients with a hand mixer until smooth minus the pecans.

Heat waffle iron with non stick spray & coconut oil.

Pour ingredients into waffle iron for 4-5 min

Serve with pour maple syrup, pecans and bananas :)

Happy Saturday!

Honey-Pecan Cinnamon Date breakfast cookie

So this was a delicious surprise that turned out to be a perfect pair with my coffee! Yum, yum, yum!

The original plan was to make a paleo cinnamon roll, but after I realized I didn't have parchment paper and this seemed a bit more complicated than I wanted to make.. I stuck to a breakfast cookie. This is so delicious warm and I highly suggest serving with coconut milk or coffee like I did.

Ingredients:
3 tbsp coconut flour
2 tbsp coconut milk
1 egg
2 tbsp of coconut oil
Cinnamon!
1- 2 tbsp of fig jam
Chopped pecans
6-7 chopped dates
Agave nectar
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Serving size: one giant breakfast cookie

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Instructions: mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, & nutmeg in a medium bowl.

Make a center hole and add in milk, coconut oil, egg, agave nectar (or honey) & vanilla extract and stir with a fork combining oil evenly in mixture.

Then I put in 1-2 tbsp of fig jam (Fischer& Wieser is my brand) and I added in chopped dates and sprinkled in lots and lots of fresh cinnamon! I mixed in my chopped pecans as well. I think I used about 1 handful of pecans. I wanted my cookie to resemble a snicker doodle so I wanted that cinnamon taste.

I then greased a pan and made a circle in the center of the pan ( a giant cookie) and it bakes for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

I topped the cookie with a few more chopped pecans & agave nectar and enjoyed with egg whites, turkey bacon & coffee.

This one is a must make! ;-)

Dark Almond Chocolate Chip Muffins

This was the easiest recipe ever. I tried a new brand of almond butter (to use as a treat- dessert). This almond butter is not technically paleo, so I wouldn't eat it in large amounts. This is more of a treat when you need a dessert. A guilt-free treat :)

Recipe-
Serving Size: 5-6 muffins (this is what I love best - it makes the perfect amount)

1 cup dark chocolate almond butter
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp honey
Chia seeds (add in extra nutrition)
2 tps vanilla
Dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine together In a bowl and scoop into greased cupcake paper inside a cupcake pan. Add extra dark chips as desired.

Bake for 10-12 minutes.

Paleo Crab Cakes

My husband and I decided that his favorite to date is my turkey lettuce wraps w/ sriracha and my favorite is the paleo crab cakes with avocado cream.

I was on my way home from work and I was thinking to myself, "what am I going to make for dinner?". I had a long week, so I was craving a healthy delicious fulfilling extra special dinner that I normally wouldn't make on a daily basis. I knew either way I had to head to the grocery store to pick up what I needed. It came to mind that I could make crab cakes, they are fast, easy and delicious. I'm a big seafood lover, so I am always ready to eat seafood.

I think I was in & out of the grocery store in 15 minutes & I made the meal in 15. I would say it was a success.

Recipe
1 container of FRESH premium crab meat (you could use canned but fresh to me tastes 100x better)
1 cup almond meal
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 tbsp of green onion
1 egg
1 lime
Cilantro
Coconut oil for frying

Combine everything in a bowl, adding in more almond flour if you like more crabby- crab cakes or more cake like (if that makes sense).

I used coconut oil for frying, putting in the skillet 2 tbsp and making crab cake mixture into balls & throwing into the skillet. I cooked each side about 4-5 minutes.

In a small food processor- combine avocado, salt, pepper, cilantro, lime, 1 tbsp of coconut milk and process until smooth.

Place a Dollop of avocado on each crab cake and enjoy. I served it with blackbeans and sautéed veggies. I could eat these every night! Yummy

Enjoy! Xoxo

Turkey lettuce wraps

This is my hubby's new favorite! Turkey lettuce wraps! We had the turkey in the fridge already & decided to create turkey lettuce wraps. We both have been craving spicy lately - so sriracha was on the grocery list to get!

Recipe

1 package EXTRA lean ground turkey meat
2-4 tbsp of Green onions
4 tbsp of onion
2 cloves of garlic
Romaine lettuce (I found romaine works best)
Red bell pepper (enough for a handful)
Low sodium soy sauce
Sriracha hot chili sauce
Optional: chopped cashews

First we spiced up the turkey meat and cooked in a skillet. We used Mrs. Dash fiesta lime, garlic powder, smoked paprika, & cayenne pepper.

In a separate skillet, combine veggies and sauté together to make sure the onion cooks down.

Then after turkey meat is cooked all the way put in a large bowl. Throw in sautéed veggies in the bowl & add in about 1 tbsp of soy & sriracha sauce. (Add more or less to taste) then we threw cilantro in there (we like a lot so we threw in a big handful)

Also throw in chopped cashews for crunch- this was a big hit.

Make your lettuce wraps and ta-daa. So spicy & yummy and definitely hit the spot.

Pumpkin cake with almond butter whip!

I used a friend's recipe yesterday and made some tweaks! I had paleo pancake batter in my fridge and I figured I had the base of a good batter. Let me try to recreate this recipe

1/4 Cup coconut flour
1/2 cup almond milk
2 whole eggs
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 container of unsweetened apple sauce
2 trivia packets
2 tbsp of honey
2 tbsp of vanilla extract
1 can of pumpkin
1 tbsp of flax seed

& mix all together & I ended up baking for 45 min at 350.

The consistency still came out like sweet potato, but it was good warm! Then I used my maple spice butter and put almond butter on top (with a little whip - this is not paleo) and ta-daa! It was great warm & you could taste the healthy!