Clean Reese Peanut Butter Cups

For those of you that know me, you know that I love sweets. And peanut butter. Not necessarily in that order. So it’s no secret that Reese peanut butter cups were always my go-to sweet treat. I tried out this clean Reese recipe – AWESOME!

Clean Reese Peanut Butter Cups// yields approx. 4 servings

You will need:

4 tbsp of coconut oil (I used Jungle Organic Coconut Oil - which I ordered off of iHerb.com)

2 tbsp of peanut butter (check your labels – I use organic and natural to keep it clean!)

1 packet (or 1 scoop) of Vegan Chocolate Shakeology – or regular chocolate

*I did not do this, as you can see, but I would line your dishes or use a little extra coconut oil and coat them so the cups don’t stick!*

1. First, melt 2 tbsp of the coconut oil in the microwave for fifteen seconds.

2. Mix in ½ of your Shakeology packet/scoop at this time. Pour this mixture into a small dish and freeze for five minutes.

3. Take the dish out of the freezer and smear the peanut butter ontop of your chocolate layer.

4. Repeat step 1+2 and add this ontop of your PB!

5. Freeze for fifteen more minutes and enjoy!!

Reeling It in for August

I need to be honest. Although I have been eating healthy (for the most part), I have been snacking far too much and slipping up and I REALLY need to REEL IT IN. I have the tendency to take a few bites of Harlow’s snacks here and there and it has added up. I actually feel embarrassed because I honestly didn’t realize it was happening until … it happened! I know that my body has been reacting badly to stress also – but I am partly (probably mostly) to blame.

My workouts have been on track, but I’m ready to kick this booty back into gear! A few things that help me get back on track:

1. No. More. Sugar. The best way for me to do this is totally eliminate sugar to reduce cravings.

2. No more snacking when Harlow snacks! Sticking to my plan is key. Not that Harlow eats unhealthy foods – but eating my meals/snacking on hers = not working out for me, ya know what I’m saying?!

3. Water. Lots and lots of water.

4. Writing out what I actually eat. I typically eat the same things everyday, so meal prep isn’t so much a problem as is what all I actually consume. Knowing that I’m going to write down what I eat plants a fear inside me helps to hold me accountable. Like – every single bite that goes into my mouth. Yeah. Scary.

5. I also think I’m going to be doing either the 3 Day Refresh or the Ultimate Refresh in the August to really get the ball rolling. Excited about that!

Harlow gets to try all my recipes… successful or not :-)

Who’s in it with me?! I will keep you updated on how things are going and will post progress pics along the way. Thanks for checking in! XO

Choc-PB Banana Bread Protein Muffins

That’s a mouthful (..literally!)! I got this recipe from the lovely Deanna Wolfe – You can find her on Instagram @dieticiandeanna and her blog is dieticiandeanna.wordpress.com. Check her out – she always posts to-die-for recipes and she’s very real and pro healthy body-image! I am always drooling over her food pictures (especially the ones involving peanut butter) and decided I absolutely had to try this one out J

Super easy and super delicious. You will need:

- ¾ oats ground into flour

- ¾ cups of egg whites

- 2 scoops of protein powder (Deanna used vanilla, I used Quest chocolate since it was all that I had. Still super yummy)

- 1 5.3 oz Oikos (or any plain Greek yogurt)

- 1 large, ripe banana

- 4 packets of Stevia

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- 1 teaspoon cinnamon

- 1/3 cup Carob chips

Icing – I drizzled with PB&Co White Chocolate Wonderful

Mash the banana. Add ground oats and all other ingredients (besides PB) into the same bowl and mix. Fill the pan ¾ full for each muffin and bake at 350 for 8-15 minutes depending on the size of your muffin sheet. Add peanut butter  at small or large amounts, you decide - and ENJOY!

Tough Love Monday

I’m putting my game face on while writing this post and I hope this message is received well! I love what I do. I am so passionate about health and fitness and I love sharing that with others – motivating them to make healthy changes and helping them to reach their health and fitness goals. The thing is, I can’t actually work out for you, prep your food, or eat clean for you. Don’t get me wrong, I would, I totally would. But I can’t.

I talk to so many people who have an end goal in mind, but don’t have the time, motivation, or drive to get there. Like all things in life, it takes WORK. You can’t expect change without MAKING changes and putting in the time. A lot of people don’t want hear this, but it’s so true. Also, setting unrealistic expectations and goals sets us up for disappointment – but we can touch on that with another blog post!

This tough love goes for myself, too. Sometimes I get so discouraged, but I have to step back and realize that I am the only one keeping myself from reaching my goals. I’ll fall off the clean-eating wagon and expect my body to continue to make changes – and it won’t. I have the choice to get down on myself and continue to eat unhealthy and be lazy with my workouts – or I can get off my butt and work for it. It’s a lot easier to workout and eat vegetables than it is to wake up every morning, unhappy with what I look and feel like.

It may take a few months, a year, a few years – but you’ve got to start somewhere.  You aren’t going to get where you want to be by remaining where you are. I’m NOT saying this to be mean or pushy, I’m saying this because you are capable of SO many things! Stop doubting yourself, stop worrying about the amount of time it will take to get there or what people will think of you. Get out of your comfort zone, push yourself, go for it – You wont regret it, I promise.

“If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it.”

Avocado Chickpea Sandwiches

So I changed up my recipe slightly (based on my audience !)– and have two variations – the Avocado Chickpea Salad Sandwich and the Spicy Chicken & Chickpea Salad Sandwich. I do this thing where I don’t measure anything at all – but I tried to put a measurement to each ingredient so HERE GOES! The recipe takes about fifteen minutes to throw together – easy peasy.

Avocado Chickpea Salad Sandwiches//yields approx. 4 sandwiches

-       2 medium avocados

-       ½ lime

-       2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

-       ½- ¼ teaspoon salt + pepper

-       1 ¾ cups cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained

-       sprouts - optional

-       onion - optional

Spicy Chicken & Chickpea Salad Sandwich

-       1 can white chicken

-       1 ½ teaspoon Sriracha

-       1 teaspoon garlic hummus

-       onion - optional

Cut the avocado into cubes and place into food processor. Pulse a few times, scraping the sides. Squeeze the lime and add the salt + pepper + olive oil. Continue pulsing until it reaches a thick consistency – not chunky, but not totally pureed. Add onion and stir it up!

(Not the best food photog, bear with me here!)

Mash the chickpeas in a large mixing bowl. I used a whisk to mash them up – you want them to be about half-mashed. Mix the chickpeas and avocado mix – and you’re sandwich ready! These would be great on Ezekiel muffins or wrapped up in lettuce – I made them on flatbreads. I like the texture the sprouts add - but you can add whatever toppings you would like! And as for the Chicken variation - even easier - add all into a bowl and mix!

Pinterest Fails

Is it just me, or is Pinterest the place where all good ideas go to die? I swear, I get so excited pinning awesome ideas and recipes and totally fall short with the follow-through. SO!! I decided once a week, I'm going to try out a new recipe and I need your help for Week 1! Here are the options:

Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Sandwiches with Avocado Aioli 

Avocado Pesto Chickpea Salad Sandwiches

Goat Cheese Quinoa Pizza 

What are your thoughts?! Let me know and I will post the final product and recipe!