Mexican Casserole

Hello Blogosphere! It's been a while, I know. I've been crazzzyyy busy the past few weeks. Sorry! Thought I'd update with a recipe. 

I was at a bridal shower yesterday, and the bride said "Mexican Casserole" and ever since then, I've been having a serious craving for it. I pretty much made this up on my own. I know I wanted it to be gluten free, nutritious, and so damn good.

I made my base crushed corn tortilla chips. Topped it with a layer 98% fat free ground chicken made kind of like a picadillo (I used salsa instead of tomato sauce), a layer of organic canned corn, a layer of organic black beans, a layer of one sliced jalapeno, a layer of fat free organic greek yogurt, and fat free cheddar cheese. Threw it in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 mins and done! It was quick and so simple. I also made a side of homemade guac. 

Simple. Healthy. Tasty. What more can you ask for?

Baked Balsamic Chicken and Roasted Broccoli

Hey all! Sorry I haven't posted in a while, my b. I haven't been making anything interesting as of late. Just plain ol' chicken and broccoli/kale/salad aka nothing worth blogging about. I took a stab at balsamic chicken the other night and it came out wonderful. Flavorful and juicy, just the way I like my chicken. The pic above is my ideal dinner plate: a protein, a vegetable, a healthy fat, and a glass of ice water. Perfie! I hope you aren't judging me for the reversed fork and knife lol.

Chicken recipe:

• Boneless chicken breast
• Balsamic vinegar
• Egg whites
• Breadcrumbs (gluten free)
• Dried parsley 
• Sea salt and pepper
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Garlic powder

1. In a bowl, whisk together 2 egg whites and 2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Set aside.
2. In a bowl, mix together breadcrumbs, parsley, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. Wash chicken. Pat dry. Trim the fat.
4. Dip into the balsamic bowl on both sides. Let the excess drip off. Then dip into breadcrumb bowl on both sides.
5. Place in aluminum foil lined broiler pan (or cookie sheet). Pour a drop of extra virgin olive oil on top of the chicken.
6.  Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-45 mins or until juices run clear. (My chickens were large and I didn't butterfly them, so it took 45 mins. I also used a thermometer) 

Forgive the appearance of the broccoli. It was a tad old, so it started to yellow, but still delicious and edible nonetheless! PS this is broccoli from the farmer's market :D

Broccoli recipe:

• Broccoli
• Garlic cloves
• Extra virgin olive oil
• White vinegar

1. Peel 4-5 garlic cloves and place in food processor. Add in 2 tbsp of oil, 1 tbsp of vinegar, and some black pepper. Chop in food processor.
2. Put broccoli in a ziplock back. Add in contents from the food processor and mix back around.
3. On an aluminum foil lined cookie sheet, place broccoli and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 5 mins.

If you don't have a food processor, you can just mince the garlic and add everything into the ziplock directly.

And of course I topped the broccoli with some siracha for a little spice. FYI, spicy foods boost your metabolism! Bring on the burn! And 1/4 of an avocado for some fats. Yes, fats are important too!

xoxo

Baked Turkey Breast

There she is..beautiful and tasty as ever. Tonight I made possibly the best dinner ever. I made turkey breast, garlic kale, and kidney beans. So good. I got the turkey breast from the farmer's market and it was delicious. It was lean, fresh and perfect. I paired it with my garlic kale (no carbs for din) and my spanish kidney beans.

The turkey was boneless, about 3-4 lbs, and had skin.

Here's my recipe:

• Boneless turkey breast
• Thyme (fresh)
• Rosemary (fresh)
• Oregano (dried)
• Sage (dried)
• Tarragon (dried)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Chicken broth (gluten free)
• Garlic
• Salt
• Pepper

1. Wash the turkey and pat dry. Put holes all around with a knife. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Cut up fresh herbs and place in bowl. Add in dry herbs, salt, and pepper.
3. Mince the garlic (about 3-4 cloves) and add in the bowl with the olive oil (1-2 tbsp).
4. Stir up the herbs and spices and rub all over chicken.
5. Line roasting pan with aluminum foil and place chicken in the middle. Be sure to put some fresh rosemary underneath it.
6. Pour chicken broth into pan with turkey until its covering 1/3 of it (about 1/2-1 cup).
7. Put chicken in middle rack and bake 1.5-2 hrs.
8. **Be sure to baste every 30 minutes or it will come out dry.**
9. For the last 30 mins, cover with aluminum foil. When it is done thermometer should read 170 degrees Fahrenheit. 

You can also add in potatoes, carrots, and other veggies all around it. Just make sure to cover it in a little olive oil. This is great as a dinner dish with veggies, rice or in a sandwich for lunch. It's versatile and best of all it's healthy. I also recommend using fresh herbs along with dried herbs to really get the flavor. As for the chicken broth, you really have to read the nutrition label. A lot of them are super high in sodium. I prefer organic, gluten-free (obvi), and low sodium.

That's all for now. G'nite!

xoxo

Easy Chicken Bits

Hey everyone! Today I made myself some chicken. I "steam-sear" it, which is probably the best way to cook food on a skillet. It's when you add just a little bit of oil to get it hot, then add a little water and cover it and allowing it to steam. I keep it really simple and basic to keep the calories, fat, carbs, etc. low. I never fry my foods. Here's why..Frying food in oil creates harmful free radicals, which are reactive chemicals that damage cells, increases cancer risks, aging, and destroys essential nutrients. The high temperatures oxidize the oil therefore creating free radicals. This is true for all fried foods: french fries (even homemade), potato chips, and crispbread. If you must fry food, use a little bit of olive oil. Avoid vegetable oil at all cost (explained more below). So here's my steam-seared chicken..

Ok so first you have to buy your chicken. I'm a fan of organic chicken from Trader Joe's, but use what floats your boat. Make sure it's boneless chicken breast. I wash it, cut out the fat, and cut it into cubes. 

I place it in a pan to make marinating much easier. I then throw in like 5 cloves of garlic, extra virgin olive oil, white vinegar, and black pepper in a food processor and run it for a minute. Then I pour the mixture over the chicken and add in cumin, onion powder, and Mrs. Dash garlic and herb. 

Once all that's mixed up, I heat up a skillet on medium heat. And I add coconut oil. Here's the thing with oil: it's better to use a saturated fat (coconut butter, coconut oil) or a monosaturated fat (olive oil) rather than polyunsaturated fat (vegetable oil, corn oil) because they produce harmful free radicals when put under high temperature. CO is better than EVOO because CO is much better at tolerating the high temps. EVOO is best used as a salad dressing (although I include it in my marinade). You can buy a jar of extra virgin coconut oil and store it at room temp in a dark place or buy it as a spray (mine is from Trader Joe's).

When the skillet is hot enough, add the chicken and cover. Remember how I said I add water so it can steam? I don't need to do that with chicken because it creates it's own water (vets of the cooking world know what I mean). When it is a little brown, flip over.

Now, you can cook until the water is gone to brown it just a tinge. You have to watch it or else it will burn (burnt food also contain free radicals). Or, you can broil it on both sides  very quickly. Literally about 4 mins on each side at 500 degrees Fahrenheit. This is optional  just to get it a little brown. Serve with a side, and you've got the perfect meal.

I didn't watch my chicken so some of it got a little burnt, so I just cut those parts out. I also had this with a little sauce on the side. It was a mixture of ketchup, mustard, and siracha. Low cal with a punch of flavor. 

That's how I cook my chicken a lot of the time. It's super easy and very healthy. Happy Monday!

xoxo

My First Quinoa Salad!

Hi!! Here is my dinner for tonight, Grilled Flank Steak with a side of Quinoa Salad. It was so delicious and so healthy. Ok so about the steak. I try to limit my red meat to once a week sometimes twice a week. If I do a steak, it is always flank steak. It's the healthier, leanner choice. It's packed with protein and is a good source of iron. It has a toughness to it, so it takes a little bit longer to grill. Another good steak is top of the round. I never marinate it, I always throw it on the grill plain and use Hot Bone Suckin' steak sauce on the side. My serving size is usually 4-6oz. 

As for the quinoa salad, it was my first time making one. I borrowed a little bit from Skinnytaste.com , and tried a little few things of my own. I mixed cooked quinoa, organic black beans, organic canned corn, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, cilantro, red onion, extra virgin olive oil, lime juice, white vinegar, mango, cumin, chili powder, sea salt and pepper. Mixed it all up and served it on the side. I didn't really measure, I just did everything by eye. But you can check out Skinnytaste for her recipe. The quinoa and beans add more protein, the EVOO adds healthy fat, and the rest have added health benefits that are just too long to list (will make a separate blog post). 

This all took like 15 mins to make (if you already have the quinoa cooked). It was super fast, super easy, and super nutritious. Happy weekend!

xoxo

Overnight Oats

Morning! Today I decided to make some overnight oats. So good! Recipe:

• 3/4 cup rolled oats (I use gluten free)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 3 tbsp vanilla soy yogurt (I'm trying to be dairy free but feel free to use plain greek yogurt, especially for added protein)
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• handful of blueberries
• optional: sweetener (I didn't put any)

1. Mix all the ingredients.
2. Place in the jar.
3. Stick it in the fridge the day before.

It's simple as that! I wanted something super quick this morning that would take no time to make. This is perfect! You can eat these cold (how I prefer) or heat it up. Don't forget the chia seeds! That's what gets the oatmeal to expand over time. And right before I ate it I added a scoop of protein powder for a boost of protein. Now I have to get my butt to work!

xoxo

Oatmeal Mugcake

Good morning! I whipped up my usual breakfast, an Oatmeal Mugcake! They are so delicious and nutritious. Today I made the blueberry version of it. Recipe:

• 1/2 rolled oats (I use gluten free)
• 1 tbsp coconut flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp chia seeds (optional)
• 1 egg white (3 tbsp liquid egg white)
• 1 tbsp unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 tbsp greek yogurt 
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• ~5 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• a dash of agave (optional. You can add 1 tbsp of any sweetener you'd like)
• blueberries (I use a handful)

1. Grease the bowl or mug. I use coconut oil.
2. Add in ingredients and mix together.
3. Microwave for 2-3 mins, depending on your microwave. 
4. Top with protein sauce.

Recipe for protein sauce:

• 1-2 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• frozen blueberries
• 1 scoop of vanilla whey protein (optional)

1. Put 1 tbsp of the almond milk in blender. Then frozen blueberries. Then protein. Then a little more almond milk.
2. Blend together adding more almond milk if necessary.

Voila! There you have it. Blueberry is just one variation, but you can really mix it up and get creative with it. You can use raspberries, which gives it that nice tart flavor. You can sub the applesauce with pumpkin and add cinnamon. It's whatever you like! I like to use berries because of their antioxidants, but anything can work.

As I said before, I eat oats almost everyday for breakfast. There are a lot of health benefits to oats. 

1. Lowers Cholesterol - oats contain a fiber called beta-glucan which absorbs and eliminates cholesterol in your digestive track before it gets into your bloodstream. A bowl a day keeps the cholesterol away!
2. Weight Loss - the soluble fiber mentioned above also has another benefit. It slows down digestion and makes you feel fuller longer. You are less likely to indulge in a late morning snack if you have a bowl of oatmeal in the morning. Also, they are more "complex" (compared to white bread or cereal), and their release of sugar is slower. They keep your blood sugar balanced, which largely determine your appetite.
3. Nutritional Value - great source of fiber helps in digestion and prevents constipation. Also great source of vitamins and minerals (selenium, manganese, tryptophan, phosphorus, and thiamin). It's high in iron and a good source of low-fat protein. They contain antioxidants that prevent heart disease. They are rich in lignin, which decrease the risk of hormone related cancers.

And that is why I loveee oats. It's best to get raw oats - either steel cut or rolled oats. The whole oats are less processed and possess the nutrients in their natural form. Mugcakes are super simple, but if it seems too complicated throw them on the stovetop with some milk and in 5 mins they're done. Hope this helps!