A tale of two peppers...

Hey guys!  I know it's been a minute since I've shared a recipe with you for the Collingswood Farmer's Market Bloggers, so today I'm bringing you a DOUBLE whammy. 

But first?  A photo of Katie, who lingered by this mural next to the market for a good half hour while we noshed on Tortilla Press Quesadillas.  She just couldn't get over all of the animals hidden in the tree branches, and I couldn't get over watching her love it:)  #Momlife.

And of course, we have our produce picture...

...and this STILL doesn't tell the tale of how many beautiful and fresh veggies are just BURSTING at the seams at every turn at the market.  TIS THE SEASON for ALL the beauties.

And one big theme this week:  Peppers.  Peppers ALL DAY.  "You get a pepper!  And YOU get a pepper!"

OK, I'll settle down.

BUT not before sharing 2 recipes with you today.  The first is for one of my favorite ways to 'healthy up' one of those awesome decadent treats:  Pepper nachos!

Swoooooonnnnn...nachos minus the cards and + lots of vitamins & minerals?  Done and DONE.

You can use any peppers you want for this recipe, but my favorite is to use those ADORABLE baby peppers to make bite-size 'nachos'...

Slice the peppers in half, remove the seeds and bake the peppers for about 10-20 minutes on 350 just to soften them up a bit.

While the peppers are cooking up a bit, it's time to get your fillings together.  For this recipe, I poached some chicken breasts until cooked, give em a shred and sprinkle with taco seasoning.  (you could also use ground meat/turkey, black beans, whatever sounds good to you)

Next, pile the chicken (or your favorite filling) into the peppers...

Top with cheese (I used monterey jack & cotija) and green onions and bake until the cheese is melty and delicious...

Top with lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole or any of your favorite nacho topping and you've got a quick, delicious and HEALTHY way to serve nachos ANY day of the week!

Baby Pepper Nachos

Ingredients:

• 1 bushel of mini peppers, seeded and sliced
• Poached chicken (or your favorite nacho filling)
• Cheese
• Green Onions

1. Place pepper halves on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for about 10-20 minutes at 350 degrees until warmed through.
2. Fill with chicken (or your favorite filling) and top with cheese and green onions.
3. Bake until cheese is melty.  Top with lettuce, tomatoes, etc.
4. Devour!

And from the itty-bitty peppers to these beauties...

...I put them to work to make a great meal for these grilling days:  Grilled Pepper Pizza...

I quickly lopped off the tops of the peppers and deseeded them before slicing em in quarters and giving em a quick whirl in my food processor, creating a flavorful 'sauce' in mere minutes.  I also added a couple garlic cloves because, well, WHY NOT?  But feel free to omit if that's not your jam.

While I worked on the pepper, I had the crust workin on that grill.  The way we make grilled pizza is to stretch out the dough and toss on one side directly onto the grill.  When the crust is done, it will easily release from the grates.  Flip the cooked side up.... 

...and start to pile on the goods.  For this pepper pizza, we added the pepper & garlic 'sauce'... 

...we also added some sliced onions (to really extenuate how AWESOME we were going to smell later;) and lots of mozzarella...

...toss back on the grill until the underside is cooked and the cheese is melted.

I mean...

Can you really argue with GRILL kissed pizza laced with fresh flavors?  It's one of the perfect ways to wind down this summer season.

Grilled Pepper Pizza

Ingredients:

• Long peppers, deseeded and quartered
• 3 cloves of garlic
• Pizza dough
• Onion
• Mozzarella Cheese

1. Preheat grill and roll out the dough.  Once the grill is hot, place dough directly on grates.  It will easily release once the dough is cooked on one side.
2. While the dough is cooking, toss the peppers & garlic into the food processor and whirl until it is a sauce consistency.
3. Take dough off the grill and flip so the cooked side is on top.  Top with pepper sauce, sliced onions and mozzarella cheese.
4. Place back on the grill and cook until the underside is cooked and the cheese is melty.
5. ENJOY!

Hope you liked these recipes.  I'll have more to share with you next week since, this time of year, I am BURSTING with fresh, healthy veggie recipes.  Have a great one!

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As always...thanks for reading!

Too hot to cook, round 1....

Morning, all!  Well, our house is finally rested and recovered after Katie 'generously' shared her cold with Scott & I.  So there wasn't too much cooking (or much activity, really) this weekend, except for Katie getting into making a crumb cake for Daddy on Sunday morning...

(she was VERY proud of her crumblesJ)

...and downing as much chicken broth & these "Vitamin C" smoothies as we could manage.

The above made with as many healthy ingredients as I could find around the house including fresh squeezed oranges, non-fat yogurt, carrots and....I actually don't even remember what elseJ  It's all a bit foggyJ

Anyways, it was back to normal for all of us come Monday morning and thus ushering us BACK to WEEK 1 of the Bikini Series after completing all 8 weeks!  (OK, OK...week 7 went a bit awry, but the rest were pretty solid!)  And in the 8 weeks, give or take due to the 'current situation', I still weigh less than I did on Easter over 2 months ago, and for THAT, I'll chalk it up as a SUCCESS at the momentJ.  

I decided to go back to the beginning of our list, but subbing in a few of our favs from the last 2 months (THOSEBREAKFASTTACOS!) and trying to work in 'our own' recipes in between a few Tone it Up-specific ones during the week just to keep it fun and seasonal with all the great produce and summer recipes lately.  As usual, it's all about PORTIONS and trying to eat as much healthy stuff over processed stuff as we can.  Anytime those scales tip towards HEALTHY=  Win.  Win, win all around.

Monday Recap:

*Still drinking coconut oil coffee and still finding it to be very 'calming' for the brain.  Almost as much so as yoga & meditation, which is WILD.  Just FYI.  I'll keep ya updated.

Workout:  2 sets arms & squats

Breakfast:  Toasted Oats with Strawberry chia jam, coconut milk + caco nibs 

...cause I am OBSESSED with putting caco nibs on as many things as I can.  Tis' a superfood, afterall!J

Snack:  Tone it Up Carrot Apple Cardamon Cupcakes Muffins with coconut frosting 

Fresh out of the oven, I just HAD to try one of these as snack.  Admittedly, I still have not mastered 'alternate flour baking' at ALL just yet.  The recipe called for brown rice flour, but I subbed in coconut flour cause I just thought WHY NOT?  Well, Why NOT is because I still can't get the ratio of flour to liquid right in coconut flour baking.  The TASTE was just fine, but the texture wasn't quite right.  (forgot I coulda used oat flour or even REGULAR flour if you wanted),  So these, PLUS the frosting (that called for SOY LECITHIN...an emulsifier which I was, ummmm, plum out ofJ) had to be pieced together a bit, but AGAIN, they were pretty tasty (and they're not being brought to a potluck!J) so who really cares??  I have since put them in the fridge in the hopes of them 'firming up' a bit.  We'll see.  I'm about to go grab one ASAP.

Lunch:  Salted caramel crunch yogurt

Snack:  Outshine Pineapple Yogurt Bar + 6 almonds

Blame this snack choice on the fact that I had just come home with them from the grocery store AND that by the time I got home, it was about 20947203952093 degrees outside (give or takeJ).  We've been LOVING these 90 calorie bars and so has Katie, which I figured was a win in the toddler department.  Between these bars & freezing some of those Stonyfield yogurt squeezers and letting her think they're like an 'ice cream treat', she's gotten plenty of her fill of yogurt lately.  I'll take it.

Dinner:  Polenta Caprese Bites + side salad

Chalk this recipe up as the first "TOO HOT TO COOK" dinner of the season, that thankfully required barely ANY 'hands on' time and came together in under 20 minutes.  Not to mention my first CAPRESE dinner of the season, which I was sooooooooooo excited about!  I had spied a log of fresh mozzarella at Whole Foods the other day and it never left my mind till I got my fill last night in this light, but cheesy dish!  I had made these as a side dish about 500 years ago (aka- 5 years & pre-KatieJ), but last night they starred as the MAIN EVENT and were completely satisfying.

First up, slice up some polenta (got mine at Trader Joe's) and toss em on a medium-heated skillet (or on the grill) for about 5 minutes before giving em a flip...

Once they were flipped, I topped em with some reheated roasted cherry tomatoes (I had roasted these a few days ago and kept em in the fridge for a quick 'reheat & eat.'  They are ALWAYS great to have on-hand.)  and a slice of fresh mozzarella & a sprinkle of sea salt.  I tented them with aluminum foil to melt the cheese and finish crisping up the bottoms. 

And then once they were off the griddle, I topped em with a sprinkle of Parmesan and a TON of diced fresh basil... 

...which I'm OH-SO-EXCITED to say came from my own little 'porch garden!'

It's been WELL documented on this blog that I have ZERO green thumbs, but after finding this nice little sun patch on my front porch (along with the added reminder to water them givin I walk by them daily), they've actually managed to thrive for about a month.  Which is BEYOND a record in my house.  ....even if it took plenty of tips from my gardener friend PLUS a youtube tutorial on how to trim basil before I actually embarked on said 'adventure.'  I mean...THIS is what we're dealin with here people:  YOUTUBE TUTORIALS ON TRIMMING BASIL, it's THAT badJ hahahahahah

ANYWAY, keeping with the theme, I topped my salad with MORE diced basil, Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil & sea salt....

This whole dinner was sooooooo nice, fresh and a great way to kick off the fresh-produce/caprese season.  And, oh yeah, let me mention again how it came together in under-20 minutes and had barely any 'hands on' time.  THAT is what is VERYYYYY much needed in these WAYTOOHOT months ahead.

Alright...well, I feel like I've written my word quota for the day PLUS Katie's current activity is painting her nails while I type this blog, so I better get back and see what's goin onJ

Have a great Tuesday!J

How to avoid 'diet deprivation'...

Morning, all!  Hope you guys had a great weekend.  And much like most Mondays:  I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S MONDAY ALREADY!  This was definitely a 'get whipped up in a tornado and crash back into Monday kinda weekend'J  aka.- we were busy, but THANKFULLY, still got to relax a bit.  We got it kicked off proper with a trip Saturday morning to our fav 'brunch' place:  Tortilla 

Press...and um, a lesson in how much can change in under 2 years....

ANYWAY...

I had been thinking about it since I heard Katie's dance class was going to be cancelled for the weekend a couple weeks agoJ  So, yeah, I was excitedJ

We had all our favs, including the TODIEFOR cinnamon coated tortilla chips...

"Brunch nachos": aka- hash brown potatoes topped with peppers & onions, BACON, cheese, salsa, guacamole & sour cream....

And my 'savory' pick of the day:  Chilaquiles with a side of chorizo coins...because I seriously CAN NOT get enough of ALL THE CHORIZO! 

I enjoyed all of that while STILL managing to not go overboard and left 'just full' rather than "OHMYGODSTUFFED," which felt like a victory unto itselfJ  Scott was even surprised just HOW full he felt, even though he ate quite a bit less than usual.  He was full right until dinner, but I needed myself a mid-day pick-me-up in the form of this Blueberry Muffin smoothie.  This pic doesn't even do the beautiful purple hue justice...

Kristin had posted a recipe for a Strawberry Shortcake smoothie on Friday and I was SOEXCITED to try it that I made it post-yoga for lunch on Friday afternooooonJ  The 'secret ingredient' to both the strawberry & blueberry smoothie is a 1/4 teaspoon of lemon zest, which really makes it magically taste like a baked product.  SOOOOOOOO GOOD!  Give both of em whirl!

We kept the rest of the weekend a balance of 'splurges & saves.'  The splurges being some brown butter coated popcorn on Saturday night, while we lounged around and played Mario PartyJ 

My Mom offered to take Katie for the night and in lieu of a wild night on the town (which, in our world, would really just be dinner & a movieJ), THIS was as far as we got to any partyinJ  hahahahahaha

We also savored up an Orange Saffron Cake for Sunday morning breakfast that Katie was VERY PROUD & excited to eat since she helped me make it...

A flourless orange-saffron cake topped with an orange, honey, saffron syrup, it was soooooo sweet, Springy and delicious!  We enjoyed every bite with NO LEFTOVERS since we made a 'quarter cake' recipeJ

And in the 'save' category, our dinners for Saturday & Sunday night were not one....

...but TWO rounds of lettuce-wrapped tacos! 

I was VERYCLOSE to having a 'moment of weakness' on Sunday night and asked Scott if he just wanted to order pizza.  Not because I REALLY wanted it, but because I just felt so BONE-TIRED after a day of cleaning out a room to make into Katie's new 'big girl' room that I just couldn't even fathom getting up to cook...even though I knew dinner was going to take less than 15 minutes to make!  (and if I only told you how much of that actual 'cleaning' involved me pointing and TELLING Scott where to move stuff/clean, you would wonder how I was so tired tooJ)  But Scott SAVED the BIKINI SERIES DAY and whipped up these tacos in no time...Hallelujah!    

Our two-big 'extra wins' with this recipe:  

1. We made each night's worth of them with less than 1/2 pound of ground turkey per recipe (vs. the usual pound we would normally use)
2. We swapped the sour cream for "Skinnygirl Sour Cream" which was just non-fat Greek yogurt mixed with a squeeze of lemon juice.  Now I'm not really a big fan of the sour cream/Greek yogurt swap ALL the time, but on these tacos, you HONESTLY could NOT tell the difference.  The lemon must cut the yogurt tang quite a bit, making it much more smooth & sour cream- like. 

The rest of the tacos were piled with avocado, a sprinkle (vs. a TORNADOJ) of reduced fat (I NEVER do non-fat!) shredded cheese, peppers, onions and black beans.  And when wrapped in a lettuce wrap (which I REALLY enjoy, actually), they make for a REALLY healthy/fun meal.  Again-there is TOTALLY a time & place for REGULAR sour cream, taco shells and all that fun stuff, but if you're not gonna REALLY miss them, why not just try a few of these swaps to just make em that much more healthy?  You can always have the FULL BLOWN tacos next time!J

  

Telling myself that I can ALWAYS have the 'full blown' stuff (and having it when I REALLY WANT IT!) at another meal keeps me from feeling deprived and wanting to try out the 'healthier variations' more often.  It totally makes the splurges & saves more easy to balance without any feelings of deprivation.  That, plus eating 5-times a day (on this series) keeps you full and your blood sugar balanced so you never really crash/feel super hungry leading you to be REALLYSTARVING by the time you pick what you're going to have when you sit down to eat.  And if you can stay out of 'that zone,' it's MUCH easier to make healthier/rational choices 98% of the time.  Definitely something I've noticed in the last 2 weeks of this Bikini Series.  ONTO Week 3! ...

Well, and after THAT ramble....

Have a good Monday, everyone! 

I know you may not believe me...

Monday Recap:

Workout:  2 sets of arms & legs with 8 pound weights

Breakfast:  3 Berry Bliss Bars

Much like the Mango Coconut & Key Lime Pie Bites, these little numbers are a mix of ground almonds, protein powder & dried fruit.  What made them EXTRA delicious was the addition of orange zest, fresh orange juice and vanilla....swoooooooooon!  FABULOUS!

Snack:  2/3 cup non-fat Greek yogurt + cinnamon + chia seeds + dried pineapple + protein powder 

OK, so Scott & I both agreed the first bite of this was ROUGH.  I'm still TRYING to get used to that SUPER TANGY plain Greek yogurt flavor that everyone tells you to add your own fruit/flavoring to make it healthier, but I must admit it's still a tough sell...and that was even after I added a tablespoon of vanilla protein powder in here just to give it a flavor boost.  BUT, once you swirled in all of the pineapple and got a little bit with each bite, I must admit that it was 100000% better.  Getting there...J

Lunch:  Pasta Salad 

The healthy swap here was the pasta was actually quinoa & brown rice pasta (from Trader Joe's), which you honestly couldn't tell the difference (well, maybe a little, but nothing earth shattering)  The rest of the salad was a mix of veggies & balsamic, olive oil and lemon juice for dressing.  Scott & I both decided the diced artichoke hearts were our favs, since they added a bit of a briny KICK to the whole thing.

Snack:  Slice of dried mango + 1/4 cup cashews + 2 tablespoons of unsweetened coconut flakes 

I REALLY thought that pasta salad was going to hold me over till dinner, but I knew my sweet tooth was pingin at 3:30 and I was ready for a snack.  TIU recommended 1 tablespoon of dried mango, but how the hell are ya supposed to do that??  The Trader Joe's dried mango contained no extra sugar, so I just stuck to a slice.  I wasn't about to obsess over the serving size of a single piece of dried fruitJ

 Dinner:  Pesto Quinoa Bowls

OK...I know you may not believe me from the picture, but I seriously think this is my VERYFAVORITE way I've eaten quinoa EVER!  It was that or the fact that I had already prepped a whole bunch of quinoa in my fridge for the week, so when I went to make this meal:  it took under 5 minutes & made in ONE POT!  Scott & I both agreed we think we'd eat anything if it was THAT simple (and delicious) on a busy weeknightJ

All I had to do was add 1 1/4 cup of cooked quinoa (2/3 cups for each) to the pot, add in pesto (about 2 tablespoons for each of us) and then about 6 handfuls of torn spinach and toss it around until the spinach wilted a bit... 

I think pesto may be quinoa's BFF because the 2 just pair SO WELL.  We REALLLLLLLLLLLY liked this dinner and could easily see us making it often, especially with fresh basil this summer.  Again...can't beat that cooking & clean up time, plus it felt FABULOUS for the ole bod.  Just trust me hereJ

I WILL admit it was a bit tough to stick to no dessert last night, but I hung in.  But if desperate times called for desperate measure, I think 1/2 of a KIND bar would have done the trick.  Not to mention, after a FULL weekend, I just could NOT get off the couch for more yoga last night.  My head & heart were in it, but my body just wasn't feelin it.  Hopin to head back to a gentle class tonight just to ease myself back into the week.

Alright...is anyone else sweating??  It's super humid in the house this morning, but I hear it's gonna be a gorgeous one, so we'll have to get out and about today.  Not that I'll have much of a choice since Katie had not one, but THREE meltdowns yesterday over the fact that it was raining and she couldn't go out in her backyard.  Thankfully she did get in some puddle splashing once the rain passed in the late afternoon, thanks to NonaJ  She already asked me before 7:03am this morning if she could go outside.  None too subtle hint takenJ

Have a great Tuesday!

Bright & sunny....

Tuesday Recap:

Workout:  2 sets of Arms & legs with 4 pounds

Breakfast:  Berry Chia Seed Pudding + 2 tablespoons toasted walnuts

Oh man, this was sooooooooooo good!  A mix of mashed strawberries (blueberries for Scott), coconut water, unsweetened coconut and a bit of agave and this just SCREAMED "sunny weather breakfast" and tasted soooo fresh.  I plan on making this for breakfast all summer long...ya know, when I can keep my eyes open with a newborn & a toddler, that isJ

Snack:  1 Blueberry Protein Muffin

Lunch:  Kale Chips with Guacamole 

Another winner from the 'vegan' plan, I couldn't argue with this one...an excuse to have 2 of ma favs and call it lunch?  OKJ

Just realized this morning I was also supposed to have a piece of fruit here too!  That probably would have helped since I was a little hungry by the time we got to snack...

Snack:  1/4 cup hummus + 1 cup of carrots 

Artichoke Spinach variety for her (which I LOVEEED!  I must only like 'briny' hummus since olive is the only other flavor I really dig) & garlic for him and mini herJ  I'm usually not a crazy fan of those bagged baby carrots, but couldn't really argue with 3/$5.00 at the grocery store this weekendJ

Dinner:  Turkey Chili (TIU nutrition program) with 1/4 sliced avocado

I seriously thought this was going to be some paltry serving of chili, but once we divided it into our portions, it was MORE than filling (esp. with that little extra help from the avocado).  Bonus was the recipe made with a pound of turkey was enough for dinner for Scott & I, plus 2 servings for him for the weekend (while I'm off to yoga schoolJ)  Food prep seems even MORE worth is when you get multiple meals outta the dealJ

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can rinsed & drained kidney beans
• 1 large diced onion
• 2 cups diced bell peppers (I used red & yellow)
• Chili, cumin, black pepper, a little salt (use your tastes)
• 1 large can of crushed tomatoes

Cook up the ground turkey in an olive oil-spritzed pan.  Add in the onions & peppers and cook for about 5-10 minutes.  Add the crushed tomato, beans and spices and bring to boil.  Allow to simmer on low heat until dinnertime.

Nothin fancy...pretty basic.  I was keeping an eye more on the servings size and again: I was pleasantly surprised!

So yep, that wraps up Day 2 of the Bikini Series.  I was a little more hungry in the morning/afternoon (that fruit with lunch sooooo would have helped!), but had I known how filling the rest of the day was going to be, I probably woulda just bumped up my snacks and then wouldn't have had to worry about it at all.  Again:  Lots of delicious food/no junk, and it feels FAB!  Woke up feeling fantastic this morning and that was only after 2 days.  VERY happy about that.

Well, that and the fact that the sun is shining this morning and it's suppose to tap out at 70 today.  THIS is making me crazy happy lately.  Hey...whatever gets ya outta bed with a little extra spring, right??

Have a good Wednesday, everyone!

Winner, winner, chicken dinner....

Tuesday Recap:

Breakfast:  Apple with 2 tablespoons peanut butter

Lunch:  1/2 can of tuna with mayo & capers on sprouted grain wheat bread

 Snack:  Trader Joe's Chocolate Chip Brownie & Oat Bars

These little babies are soooooo yummy.  Much more brownie than granola bar and studded with chocolate chips.  Perfect for a mid-afternoon chocolate fix for 120 calories.

Dinner:  Slow Cooker Italian Pulled Chicken + broccoli

Talk about a yummy dinner with MINIMAL EFFORT.  Into the slow cooker went:

• 1 pound chicken breast
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• Oregano
• Garlic Powder
• Onion Powder
• Dried Basil  (didn't measure any of those, just sprinkled em on top)

Let that cook on low about 5 hours and then add:

• 1 cup shredded kale (mine went in frozen and cooked up fine)
• 3 diced roasted red peppers

Let everything cook up for another hour and you're good to go.

Well, sort ofJ These were supposed to be sandwiches topped with melted mozzarella, but since we were plum out of sandwich rolls, I just laid the chicken out on non-stick sprayed foil and topped it with a sprinkle of parm and lots of mozz and popped it in the toaster oven for about 5 minutes, or until the cheese was melty.

Extra step = WORTH IT!  The cheese made it extra gooey and all of the flavors of the chicken just powered on through. All the flavors, and who can't use an excuse to cut back on carbs for dinner here and there.  Try this one out.  It was def a winner, winner, chicken dinnerJ

Dessert:  1 Smore  (not pictured)

Not pictured cause I was JUST TOO EXCITED to eat it to stop and take a pictureJ  Made with Trader Joe Grahams and pieces of one of the THREE Lindts chocolate bunnies that Katie got for EasterJ  Poor bunnyJ

And sigh...another day and no workout.  As excited as I was to get to movin, I actually had a doc appointment yesterday morning and after a few 'signs,' she suggested it I take certain 'strenuous' exercises a little easier ....and that I need to drink a LITER of water for every HALF HOUR of exercise???  (even though I admittedly HAVE been really thirsty this time around) So in an attempt to give my body one extra day to heal an ache I had had, I rested for another day and am going to try to get on a regular/not so strenuous routine....which means:  probably more walks/less zumba/and paying more attention in power yoga (cause I'm NOT givin up that one yet!).  We'll see how this goesJ  Just gotta pay more attention to the 'signs' at this momentJ

Alright...that was a lot of yammeringJ  Have a good Wednesday!