I attempted this a few weeks ago and it was a total disaster.  THIS time, I got it right and it was delicious!!  The dough recipe is from www.eatingwell.com.

Dough Ingredients

• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup white flour
• 2 1/4 tsp rapid rise yeast
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 to 2/3 cup of warm water

Toppings

• 1 cup organic marinara sauce
• 1 1/2 cup 2% mozzarella or provolone cheese
• your choice of veggies (I used red peppers and mushrooms)
• 2 servings of turkey pepperoni slices

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a mixer (I love my Kitchenaid!).  Combine the water and olive oil in a measuring cup, and gradually add into the flour mixture while the mixer is still running.  Once it’s mixed up, remove it from the bowl and kneed into a ball.

Place the ball of dough on a floured surface, sprinkle some flour on top, and place plastic wrap over.  Let sit for 10-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat your oven to 500 degrees.  Spray a pizza pan with cooking spray or olive oil.  Cut your veggies.

Once the oven is heated, roll the dough out.  Put your sauce, cheese, veggies and pepperoni on.  Put in the oven for about 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven, slice into 4 large pieces, and put back in the oven for 3-4 more minutes.  This makes it pretty crispy, so feel free to cook to your preference :-)

This makes 4 servings.  It’s 7 weight watchers pointsplus points per serving.  It’s 320 calories per serving.

Normally I have my Shakeology for breakfast.  I woke up this morning DYING for some blueberry pancakes!  Not wanting to blow my healthy eating, I made this, and it was sooooo good!!  I just had my shake for lunch instead!

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup sugar free Maple Farms pancake mix
• 1 egg white
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/3 cup of blueberries

With a whisk, mix everything but the blueberries until smooth.  Once smooth, add in the blueberries.  Then cook on a skillet either as one big pancake (a “mancake” as my husband calls it!), or as 2-3 small pancakes.

I put 1/4 cup of sugar free syrup on it and it was DELICIOUS!  Very low calorie!  This was only 4 Weight Watchers plus points, INCLUDING the syrup :-)

*Note: Bisquick heart healthy pancake mix works well too.  With that instead of the Maple Farms, it’d be 5 points plus points.

Last chicken tortilla soup I posted is delicious, but it’s cream soup based.  This is one I found in a crockpot recipe book, but I cut down the beans to make it a little less filled with carbs :-)  It’s cooking right now and smells awesome!!

Ingredients

• 1 lb of skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 2 - 14.5 oz cans of rotel canned diced tomatoes (1 can drained, 1 can undrained)
• 1 - 14.5 oz can of black beans, slightly drained
• 1 - 4 oz can of green chiles
• 1 cup of salsa
• 1 - 14.5 oz can of tomato sauce
• 1 cup of low sodium chicken broth
• 2% shredded cheddar (optional)
• tortilla chips (optional)

Combine all ingredients, except for the cheese and tortilla chips, in a crockpot.  Cook for 8 hours.  Before serving, take out the chicken and chop it and mix back into the soup. 

Serve with tortilla chips and 2% cheddar, if desired.

Makes 4 servings.  About 260 calories without the chips and cheese.  This is also 7 WW PointsPlus points.

With 1/2 serving of chips and 1/8 cup of 2% cheddar cheese, it’s an additional 100 calories and addditional 2 WW PointsPlus points. 

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

These are really good, and fairly low carb and low calorie.  YUM! You’re more than welcome to use lean ground beef.  I’m just on a kick where I’m trying to eat as little red meat as possible :-)

Ingredients

• 1 lb of ground turkey breast
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 2 - 8 oz cans of no salt added tomato sauce
• 1 1/3 cup of cooked brown rice
• 2 tsp italian seasoning (more or less to taste)
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• dash of red pepper flakes (if you like some zest)
• 4 green bell peppers
• 1/4 cup 2% mozzarella cheese, shredded (optional)

In a skillet pan, cook the onions in the olive oil until soft, then add the ground turkey breast and cook until no longer pink.  Once cooked, combine in a bowl all remaining ingredients except for 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, and the peppers.  Mix thoroughly.

Spray a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Preheat the oven to 350.

Rinse the peppers thoroughly, then dry off.  Slice the top of the pepper off and empty the seeds and stuff from the inside of the pepper.  Place the peppers rightside up in the baking dish (it helps if the dish is small so the peppers are crowded in and can’t fall over).  Scoop the mixture evenly into the 4 peppers.   Pour the remaining tomato sauce on top of the peppers.

Cover with foil, and bake for 50 minutes.  If you want to add the mozzarella, remove the pan, sprinkle the cheese on and return to the oven for an additional 15 minutes. If you don’t want cheese, just remove the foil and throw back in for 15 more minutes.

Makes 4 servings.  

For my weight watchers friends, with cheese, it’s 8 points a pepper, 295 calories.  Without cheese, it’s 7 points a pepper, 280 calories.

Okay, this is just delicous.  I’ve made it before, but just threw the sausage in the sauce right before serving.  This time, I put the sauce and the sausage in a crockpot and let it cook all day on low and it made it SO much better!  It’s super easy too.

Ingredients

• 1 lbs of Sweet (or Hot if you dare lol) Turkey Italian Sausage - I used Honeysuckle White brand
• 1 jar of organic marinara sauce - try to keep it to around 45-50 calories per 1/2 cup
• 1 green pepper, chopped or sliced
• whole wheat or multigrain spaghetti

First, grill the sausage, or cook it in a skillet.  I prefer the foreman grill because it drains all of the grease and cooks it up a bit quicker.  Once it’s cooked and cooled down a bit, slice it into small pieces.

Add the jar of marinara to a small crockpot, and throw in the sausage & peppers in as well.  Cook on low for 6 hours or so.

When it’s time to eat, you can serve it with 1/2 or 3/4 cup of whole wheat or multigrain cooked spaghetti.  This was SOOO good!! 

It makes 4 servings.

1 serving and 1/2 cup of whole wheat pasta is 340 calories.  For my Weight Watchers friends, it’s 9 Points Plus Points.  ENJOY!!

Garlic Basil Parmesan Chicken

This was a really quick, easy recipe with a lot of taste!

Ingredients

• 4 - 4 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• ¼ cup of parmesan cheese
• 1 tbsp of melted butter (I use smart balance with flax oil)
• 2 garlic cloves (or minced garlic – equates to 1 tsp of minced garlic)
• 2 tsp of basil
• 2 tbsp of lemon juice
• 1 tbsp of melted butter

Preheat your oven to 350. Spray a glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

For the chicken, I use frozen chicken breasts, and before I made this, I just boiled them so they were thawed and cooked the whole way through. Then I took the chicken and butterflied them.

In a bowl, combine the parmesan cheese, 1 tbsp of the melted butter, garlic & basil. Once mixed, take ¼ of the cheese mixture and stuff it inside of each of the 4 butterflied chicken breasts. Place the chicken in the baking dish.

Then mix the 2 tbsp of lemon juice and 1 tbsp of melted butter together, and pour over the chicken.

Bake the chicken for about 20-30 minutes, and voila! I served this with ½ cup of brown rice, and 2 cups of broccoli florets. When you mix it all together, it is fabulous!

4 Servings

With no rice: 190 calories & 5 Weight Watchers PointsPlus Points

With rice: 340 calories & 8 Weight Watchers PointsPlus Points

So I think I do a pretty good job of eating healthy and not stressing out about it too much.  It is very difficult with our busy lives to always eat healthy and cook healthy.  If it weren’t easy, well, then everyone would look pretty good right?  Anyway, these are some things that I do, that I have learned throughout the last few years, that make it pretty easy for me to eat healthy.

First off, I am busy!  I work a full-time job, I teach a group fitness class once a week in the evening, I have my own health & fitness business, and go to school part-time!  So I have a lot of excuses for not having time to eat healthy, but I choose to NOT take the easy way out.  Here are some things that I have gotten in the habit of doing, and I really hope that they help you too!

• Plan your meals on a weekly basis.  On Sunday mornings, I sit down with my weekly planner and I write down what I’m going to make throughout the week for dinner.  Then, you can easily make you grocery list because you know what you’re gonna need to make dinners!
• When you cook dinner, cook a double batch, so that you’re only cooking every other day!  It’s just me and my husband, so I can make 4 servings of something and save 2 of those servings for the next night.  It’s so convenient!
• Do as much prep as possible the night before for making dinner the next night.  For example, if I am making Mexican lasagna, I cook everything the night before, put the lasagna together and throw it in the fridge. When I get home the next night, I just have to throw it in the oven, and it cooks while I am working out!  So easy!
• Pack your lunch the night before.  You know what happens if you don’t plan – you end up STARVING at work the next day and you run to the cafeteria and you have little control over your lunch.  So pack it ahead of time!  I even go as far as making big batches of things like quinoa, so I can easily bring a serving of that to work throughout the week.  If you plan ahead, you won’t be scrambling for fast food the next day!! 
• Grocery shop on a weekly basis.  You wanna eat less processed foods, which means that you need to have fresh ingredients on hand.  I LOVE my grocery store and like making my weekly trip!!  Have fun with it!
• Have your favorite healthy snacks on hand all the time.  One of my favorite afternoon snacks is greek yogurt with protein cereal & blueberries.  I make sure I always have greek yogurt in my fridge.  Have fresh fruit on hand to put in your lunch for the next day.  Boil some hardboiled eggs, they make good snacks!!  1% cottage cheese with some pineapple is another great snack.  Baby carrots, red pepper slices with some hummus is a great replacement for chips!! 
• Have frozen chicken, ground turkey breast, veggie burgers, etc on hand so that if you are running low on time, you can easily make something with what you have.  Also, keep frozen veggies on hand.  I should buy stock in birds eye for as much frozen veggies we eat!! 
• If you’re going out to eat with friends/family, if you have time to plan ahead, go on the restaurant’s website and look at their menu. You can easily plan before you go out what you’re going to order, so you’re not roped into something unhealthy because you’re not prepared!  Also, specialty order!  You can order veggies without butter, or a salad with dressing on the side and no cheese, etc.  If you plan appropriately, you won’t even need to look at the menu when you sit down!! 

It’s all about planning, and figuring out the times to prepare that work best for you.  And be creative!  It’s boring to eat the same bland foods over and over again.  Experiment!  If there’s a meal you REALLY like, like lasagna, find a way to make it healthy.  Use ground turkey breast instead of beef, whole wheat lasagna noodles, make your own sauce, use less cheese…it can be done!  If you have a recipe you really like, but aren’t sure how to make it healthy, I’m a dork and LOVE to turn recipes into a healthy version of themselves.  Send it to me!  I’ll help you out J

It happens to all of us, we all get stressed out and drive ourselves insane with weight loss! Things like plateaus, lack of motivation, a million other things going on in our life, etc, all stress us out. You shouldn’t stress out about your weight loss, because when you do, it makes it even HARDER to lose weight! If you believe you will only be successful if you lose weight, it’s not going to work. Losing weight should only be part of it. For example, think about how you’re taking care of yourself, you’re boosting your mood by exercising, you’re making healthy food for your family, you’re feeling great about yourself, your internal health is improving, etc.

I know that it’s hard not to focus on losing weight and having certain expectations, but here are some tips that have worked for me that keep me from getting too stressed and too focused on my weight loss goals.

1. Be realistic. Not everyone is going to lose 2-3 lbs consistently a week. I have a Bodybugg, I know that I’m creating a deficit of over 3500 calories per week, which equates to 1 lb loss a week, every week. I don’t always lose this, and it used to blow my mind! Be realistic, not everyone is the same. You may have a deficit of 7000 calories and expect to lose 2 lbs, and lose ½ lb, while your friend has a deficit of 3500 and loses 3 lbs. Don’t worry!

2. Don’t compare yourself to other people. It used to crush me when I talked to someone who’s not even trying to lose weight and they lost more than me 1 week, when I worked really hard. The more I dwelled on that, the less motivated I was. You have to remember that consistency pays off. If you’re consistently exercising and making smart, healthy choices, it will pay off for you. (this requires patience, which is NOT my thing, but I have learned LOL!)

3. Plan ahead. You will get stressed out if everyday, you’re waking up and blindly deciding what healthy food to eat at the spur of the moment. If you get in the habit of planning out what you’re gonna eat the next day, you’ll be set! For example, pack your lunch ahead of time for the next day. Sit down a weekly basis with your family and decide what your healthy meals will be for the upcoming week, and make sure you have the proper groceries on hand. When you’re not frantically rushing around to figure out what to eat, it’s more manageable.

4. Don’t rely on the scale for your happiness. If you constantly watch a # on your scale, first of all, it’s dangerous and could be a sign of a bigger issue like an eating disorder, and it’s not always a good indicator of what’s going on! Do you know how many factors play into your weight? Too much sodium, for the ladies – PMS (sorry guys LOL), weight training that causes muscle soreness which causes muscles to retain water…and a million other factors! I am over the scale, I don’t focus on it anymore. I do weigh myself periodically, but I don’t dwell on it. I’m free!! Try taking photos – take front, side, and back photos. Also, take your measurements, especially your chest, waist, hips, thighs, arms. You can take measurements and pictures on a monthly basis and see more improvements than you do on the scale. When I did P90X, I lost hardly any weight. I gained at first! Then I kicked the scale into the closet, and when I did my monthly measurements was amazed to see the inches coming off. And man did the pictures show the changes!

5. Realize that this is a lifestyle change, NOT a diet. Diet implies deprivation, quick fix, temporary changes. That’s not what we’re doing. We’re making healthy changes in our lives that will last forever. I realize that when I was 30 lbs heavier, I hadn’t gained it all over night. It took time. So realize that it will take time to lose your goal weight, and that’s okay, because slow and steady wins the race. Wow, sorry to throw that cliché in, but it fits LOL!

6. Realize that life happens. I’m a planner, and if something doesn’t go my way, I do stress, and I’m working on this! I have realized that only certain things are in my control, and if something unexpected comes up, I make changes to adapt to the situation. For example, you can’t control a snowstorm that causes you to get home 3 hours late from work and forces you to skip your workout. Solution, take an unplanned rest day, and either make up that workout on the planned rest day, or take an extra rest day that week.

7. Don’t be that person that person that never allows yourself a splurge. You know what I’m talking about. You really want that piece of chocolate cake and you think about it for weeks, and you don’t allow yourself to have it, and next thing you know, you eat everything in your pantry because you can’t control yourself. If you realize that it’s a true craving, and nothing else is working, enjoy it IN MODERATION! I’m not at all telling you to go eat chocolate cake. Also, make a list of things you’re not willing to give up. For me, it’s peanut butter and olive oil. I manage this by using it in moderation and planning for it. I only use 1 tbsp of peanut butter in my shakeology, and when I cook with olive oil, I use 1 tsp. A little of it can go a long way.

8. MOST IMPORTANTLY - Be positive, and feel good about what you’re doing for yourself!

I SOO wish that I had come up with this all on my own, but I must give credit where credit is due.  One of my BESTEST friends Michelle made this when I was visiting her a few months ago and it was unbelievable!  I believe it is a modification of a cooking light recipe.  THANK YOU MICHELLE! 

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground turkey (or lean ground beef)
• 1 cup of shredded 2% cheddar cheese
• 1 cup of 1% cottage cheese
• 1 cup of salsa
• 1 1/2 cups of black beans
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 tbsp taco seasoning
• 4 low carb, whole wheat tortillas, cut into strips

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a skillet pan sprayed with nonstick spray, cook up the ground beef and the onion.  Once cooked, turn to low and add salsa, black beans, and taco seasoning and mix together.  Turn off the heat and set aside.

In a bowl, combine 3/4 cup of the cheddar cheese & the cup of cottage cheese.

In a baking dish sprayed with nonstick spray, line the pan with 1/2 of the tortilla strips.  Scoop 1/2 of the meat mixture on top and spread out, covering the tortillas.  Then add 1/2 of the cheese mix on top of the meat and spread out.  Repeat the layers again with remaining strips, meat, and cottage cheese.  Top with remaining cheese.

Cover and bake for 40 minutes at 400 degrees and ENJOY!  Makes 4 servings at 350 calories each!

Weight Watchers Points Plus points: 8 1/2!

This was amazing, both me and my husband crushed our portions LOL!

Ingredients

• 6 egg whites
• 2 whole eggs
• 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
• garlic powder, about 1 tsp
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 red pepper, chopped (optional)
• 10 oz of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 tsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat 1 tsp of olive oil in a skillet pan, and add the onions and peppers.  Cook until the onions are soft.  Meanwhile, whisk the egg whites and eggs, garlic powder, and mozzarella in a separate bowl. 

Also, make sure that the spinach has been completely drained and all excess water has been squeezed out.  Once that’s done, add that to the bowl with the eggs.

Finally, add the onions and peppers to the mixture and mix up.  Then pour into a pie pan that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

Bake the quiche at 350 for about 20 minutes.  At 20 minutes, remove it from the oven, and stick a toothpick in the middle to see if the eggs are set.  I baked for another 10 minutes, so 30 total.  It was DELICIOUS!

My family makes these appetizers called spinach balls, and they are so good dipped in hot sauce.  This reminded me a lot of them, but very healthy!  I used a sprinkle of hot sauce on top and that was awesome too!

Makes 2 big servings, for only 315 calories a serving! 

For my weight watchers friends, this is only 7.5 points plus per serving!  YUM!