Secret ingredient...

Wednesday Recap:

9:30am:  Flax pancake with Almond butter & a drizzle of maple

Morning Workout:  Power Yoga Class

TOUGH one yesterday.  The class was soooooooo hot...and it's not even 'hot yoga.'  I don't think I'd ever do well in one of those Bikrim classes where the temperature is set to 95 degrees or something ridiculous like that.  (I get it, I get it...detoxing.)  If you haven't noticed, I'm not a big fan of heat & humidityJ  This class was borderline, but still greatJ

1:30pm:  Lunch- Strawberry & Oat Smoothie in a bowl 

So not only is eating a smoothie with a spoon more fun, BUTTTT the added texture of a sprinkle of toppings makes these EXTRA fun:

Smoothie (adapted from here)

• 1/3 cup oats
• 3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• Frozen banana
• 3 frozen strawberries
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• Pinch of salt
• Sprinkle of cinnamon

Toppings:

• Sprinkle of Kashi Go Lean
• Coconut butter  (about 1/2 tablespoon)
• Coconut chips 

...which I was so excited to use after finding them on the cheap at the market over the weekend....(although Trader Joe's has phenomenal ones too!)

Blend all of the smoothie ingredients, sprinkle on your toppings and you're good to go!  Ain't she so pretty???

Love the cool, creamy consistency + the crunchy texture from the toppings.  Makes for a 'complete meal' in my opinionJ  And I'm not POSITIVE this will work, but I'm gonna go out on a limb & and say if you make the smoothie and freeze it ahead of time before letting it defrost for 20 minutes or so before lunch, it might not be a bad 'prep ahead' lunch idea.  And how jealous will your co-workers be at your 'bowl of ice cream' lunch??J  You don't even need to tell em how healthy it isJ  You can just let em think you're fit & fabulous while downing that ice creamJ hahahahahahhaha 

5:00pm:  Dinner- Hummus Patties with spinach feta salad

My latest re-emerged obsession with hummus + a pint of brown rice in need of use in our fridge made this dinner a no brainier.  Katie & I whirled up some hummus in a matter of moments (well, as many moments as it takes to make hummus with a 2-year oldJ), but store bought would make this meal even quicker.

Give the...

• 1 cup hummus
• 1 1/2 cups brown rice
• 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
• 1 egg white

...in a food processor.  Form them into patties, toss em in an olive oil drizzled pan and cook until crisp on either side...

Oh...and sprinkle em with salt when they are cooked.  THAT's what's also on the panJ

While the patties were cooking, I whipped up a quick side salad:

• Spinach
• 1/2 diced cucumber
• Greek seasoning
• Feta cheese 

The patties were crisp & creamy while the salad was cool, with nice sharp bites of feta.  This dish was as delicious as it was easy to throw together.  Definitely add this to your list of 'quick & healthy weeknight dinners."

Evening Workout:  Body Jam

8:00pm:  Dessert- Healthy Fudge Pops 

I think I have about 20 recipes for 'healthy Popsicle' lined up on my Pinterest board for summer this year, and at least 3 of them are for fudge popsJ  But I had to try these ones first, where the creamy & rich texture comes NOT from cream, but from...

AVOCADO!

(oh...can I add my child has never even LIKED avocado.  That was until I needed that half to toss into the food processor for the popsicles.J)  Thankfully I had another one to split in half...since she wasn't parting with her new favorite snack of the momentJ)

"Tone it Up" Fudge pops

• 1 cup chocolate almond milk  (didn't have any so I swapped vanilla almond milk & a teaspoon of chocolate protein powder.  But you can just use vanilla if that's all you have.  They'll be chocolate-y enough)
• 3 dates
• 1 medium avocado, pitted
• 5 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of sea salt

Let the dates soak in the milk for about an hour before pouring all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulsing until smooth.  Pour into Popsicle molds and freeze for 4 hour or overnight.

Here was one little change I made:  the only cocoa powder I had was DARK, so I used 4 tablespoons + 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder, which helped add a bit of extra sweetness.  I think they would have been VERY 'chocolate-intense' without that added sweetness, but try out the mix before adding it to the molds to check your desired level of sweetness.

But there's no need to tell anyone you made these with healthier ingredients since there was NO WAY you'd know avocado was in there (as long as you blended it up really wellJ) They really were supremely rich & VERY chocolate-y.  Definitely a healthy way to get that chocolate fix!

Which we enjoyed along with the season finale of Survivor!  SO SAD to see this season end!  Even though my FAVORITE (Spencer) didn't win, at least a Jersey boy didJ  Such a great season that I already can't wait for the next one to start.

Alright...well, it is a DREARY day in Jersey.  It's never encouraging to wake up to a RAGING thunderstorm.  I'm still surprised Katie slept as long as she did this morning.  The thunder was CRACKING around here.

Stay dry and have a great Thursday!