Summertime (almost) and the Grillin' is Easy

Truth: I'm not the one actually doing the grilling BUT I am definitely preparing everything.  Ok, that's a lie too - my skinny grilling efforts have been shared but I think that makes it less stressful for all parties and you both can relax a little and spend some QT together.  Awwwww.

Grilling is the perfect way to get great tasting and very healthy dishes.  Plus, sitting outside with a cocktail is pretty spectacular this time of year.  Here’s a recipe that is SUPER simple, low-calorie and pretty damn tasty.  For a side, just grab one of those bagged salads from the store, I added some nuts, avocado and light feta and it was the perfect side to a spring(ish) night. I also got a new Braggs ACV Ginger-Sesame salad dressing and it was AWESOME. Oh, and if you have extra shrimp you can eat it for lunch on a salad the next day! Look at that - healthy recipes AND saving you some dough. 

Grilled Shrimp Skewers:

- ½ teaspoon of cinnamon

- ¼ teaspoon of paprika

- teaspoon of chopped cilantro

- 2 tablespoons lemon and lime juice (each)

- 2 tablespoons of tequila

- 3 tablespoons of EVOO

- 1 red and 1 green bell pepper

- 1 yellow and 1 green zucchini

- ½ Red Onion

- 1 LB of peeled shrimp

Basically, mix all of this together (minus the shrimp and veggies).  Cut the veggies into big slices.  Chuck all the goodies (veggies and shrimp) into a big ass bowl and mix together.  Put your stuff onto skewers, salt and pepper and throw those bad boys onto the grill (3 minutes-ish on each side).

Photo Credit: JG Photography :)

Pair with a nice glass of wine or prosecco. Or even a Skinny Peach!

Xo,

zo

Crabby Pants!

It happens to the best of us.  Some call it waking up on the wrong side of the bed, but I like to call it crabby pants (it's much less subtle). I had one of those days this past week and decided to make a delicious "theme based" dinner.  I love seafood, especially crab cakes, but I always feel like they are LOADed with mayo and stuffing and just not so healthy things. So, I found a wonderful recipe on SkinnyTaste.com.  Add any type of summer/spring (cause there's no use in denying that this 80 degree weather isn't actually the start of summer in the south) bean salad and you have yourself a meal! Yum!


too easy.

 I changed the recipe around a tad bit to add more veggies and less filler. Also - you could probably add a PINCH of Old Bay for flavor, cause who doesn't love that stuff (please note I refrained from saying shit. I'm trying to start using less curse words, this should be interesting).  :)

Baked Lump Crab Cakes:

9 ounces lump crab meat

10 reduced fat Ritz crackers, crushed

1 whole egg plus 1 egg white, beaten

2 tbsp finely chopped red onions

1/2 a chopped red bell pepper

1 tbsp low fat mayonnaise

2 tbsp fresh cilantro (or parsley)

1/2 lime, juiced

salt and pepper to taste

Pre-head oven to 400. Mix all ingredients BUT the crab meat in a bowl, then fold in crab meat. Don't get aggressive or you wont have those big chunks of crab that are so good.  Form the mixture into 4 medium size cakes and put in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.

Spray a cooking sheet with spray (Spray with spray, wow, I'm waxing poetic in this post). Bake about 10 minutes on each side and serve with your salad! Booya!  I made the salad below...

Black Bean & Avocado Salad

• 1 can black beans, rinsed
• 1 avocado, in chunks
• 9 can of corn
• 1/4 cup of lime juice 
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• cilantro to taste (leftover from the crab recipe).

ENJOY - Happy Pollinated Spring ATL!

XO,
zo

ACV for ya BODy

I realize that there are many ways people use apple cider vinegar (ACV). From mixing with water to clean hard wood floors, remove residue from styling products in your hair or help take away the pain from a jelly fish sting, today I'm not going to focus on those but I AM going to tell you a few interesting (and unproven) health benefits of this liquid.

So what is it? It is a type of vinegar made by squeezing the liquid from apples and fermenting it (adding bacteria and yeast so the sugars turn into alcohol) twice. It turns into vinegar during the second fermentation process. 

So why is this good for you? Well my dears, if you're trying to lose some lbs, two teaspoons of this vinegar (after you eat) prolongs the feeling of being full and also aids in breaking down body fat. It also contains pectin which is known to help regulate blood pressure and reduces crappy cholesterol. 

I use BRAGG, you can get it at Whole Foods or Dekalb Farmers Market

Note: None of this stuff is FDA proven so it's kinda just like, try it out, if it works awesome! If not, no big whoop.  But if you have diabetes or something else that effects your blood sugar, definitely have a little chit chat with your doctor before you down this stuff.  Oh hell, might as well just chat with your doc and do some online research even if you are 100% healthy. Oh and my suggestion would be to only drink the raw, organic kind.  Don't need all of you guys drinking random stuff that's not good for you.

Cheers!

xo,
zo

Pecan Crusted Chicken

Oy.  What a week? I promise I'm not neglecting all of you Skinny Peaches.  I admit, I have been traveling and fell off the band wagon for a hot second.  Note to self: The green icing on king cake is not a vegetable. But I'm back, I promise.  I'm in the midst of a move so I haven't been going out to any new restaurants recently. I've been MAJORLY slacking on the whole packing thing - besides from my shoes which are all moved (this is probably not a shock for those who know me) but will have a good ATL restaurant for you soon. In the meantime, check out this great, healthy recipe for Pecan Crusted Chicken.

What you'll need:
- Chicken breast
- 1/2 cup of Pecans
- Whole wheat flour
- Whole wheat Panko crumbs
- Oil
- One sweet potato
- Already cooked edamame

What you'll make:
Pre-heat oven to 375
- Sweet potato chips: Thinly cut sweet potatoes and mix with oil, salt and cinnamon. Bake for 20ish. I like mine a little crispier/burnt (I know, I'm weird) so I sometimes keep them in for 30 or more. Just watch them every 5 minutes to make sure you don't burn your house down.
- Chicken Coating: Chop the shit out of pecans or put them in a food processor and mix with 1/2 cup of Whole Wheat Panko. Keep in a bowl and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder. 
- Chicken: Dredge (the BF had to tell me what that word meant, but basically it means lightly coat or sprinkle) chicken with flour. Dip it into some oil after and then coat with the mixture above. Place into baking pan and cook for 15-20 minutes.
- Edamame: Heat up in the microwave (that's a toughy)

 XO,
Zo

Spaghetti...Squash?

You read it right. Spaghetti squash, it's the ish. And I loooove a good Italian meal. One of my favorite parts of training for a triathlon is the few nights before when I get to carb up. Hello white pasta (which I never eat) and meatballs (not scared). But alas, if I ate like that on a regular basis I would need to be doing a triathlon a week.  I've tried whole wheat pasta which is delicious but still not the same.  I've been reading a lot of recipes that substitute spaghetti squash for real pasta and I figured, what the hell right?

Kinda just made this recipe up but it was delish, if I do say so myself.

1. Cook the spaghetti squash. Pre-heat oven to 375. Cut that bad boy open, rub some olive oil up in there and cook for 45 - 55 minutes.  Just check it and make sure it's not burning (a little char on the skin isn't too bad).  Take it out, let it cool for 5 minutes and seperate the squash meat so it looks like spaghetti.  Booya!

2. Saute the veggies in a little olive oil and then pour a half a cup of light marinara sauce in there and let simmer. 

I heart veggies.

3. Cook chicken sausage, cut into slices.

4. Throw all ingredients together and mix.

5. Cook shrimp with garlic and a little oil and place on top of the "spaghetti"

Sprinkle a little parm on top and voila - you have yourself a delicious mock-Italian meal.

XO,
zo

Healthy Berry Dessert

After a long week of uber healthy eating (see Healthy Budget-Friendly Menu), I felt as though I deserved to treat myself to a little something sweet but not ridiculously detrimental to all the good healthy eating I just did.

I threw this together for a dinner party and it was a HUGE hit, if I do say so myself. Plus has a TON of anti-oxident power. 

Ingredients:
- Strawberries
- Blackberries
- Blueberries
- Raspberries
- 1 package of shortbread (Optional)
- Dark Chocolate drizzle
- 2 Cans of Fat-Free Whipped Cream (no need to use all just don't wanna have too little)

Basically, just half the strawberries, wash and layer each fruit.  Super simple.

I did it like this: strawberries, whipped cream, shortbread, more strawberries and blueberries, whipped cream, raspberries and blackberries and one last layer of whipped cream and a small drizzle of dark chocolate sauce. 

Cha-check it out!

XO,
Zo

Healthy Budget-Friendly Weekly Menu

So I am making a conscious effort to spend less money in 2012. I realized that a lot of the big line items on my bank statement were food because either I wasn't planning meals and buying tons of random shit or I was just buying way too expensive items at Whole Foods.  This is my first shot at planning for the week so let me know what you think!

A few tips if you're in the same boat:
- Only buy specialty items at more expensive stores. Example: You can't find Manuka honey at Publix.
- Write down your daily menus and only buy from that.  Example: Last week I almost got $5 worth of diet cranberry juice with fizz because it was new. Really necessary? Nope.

MENU
p.s. the links link to the recipes!

MONDAY:
B - Egg White & Veggie Omelet, Ezekial Bread Toast, Fresh Spinach/Carrot/Apple Juice
L - Grilled Chicken Breast (Use Mrs. Dash seasoning) & 1/2 a Sweet Potato
D - Turkey Lettuce Wraps w/ Cashews
S - Fat Free Yogurt, Pre-Made Snack Mix (15 almonds, handful of cranberries), Strawberries, BabyBell Light

TUESDAY:
B - Steel Cut Oats w/ Blueberries and Peanut Butter, 1/2 cup Almond Milk
L - Grilled Chicken & other 1/2 of Sweet Potato
D - Turkey Burgers w/ Avocado and Salad (Whole wheat bread - duh)
S -  Fat Free Yogurt, Pre-Made Snack Mix (15 almonds, handful of cranberries), Green Tea, Blueberries, BabyBell Light

WEDNESDAY:
B - Egg White & Veggie Omlette, Ezekial Bread Toast, Fresh Spinach/Carrot/Apple Juice
L - Nicoise Salad
D - Out to Dinner (I figured no one really cooks EVERY night and if you do that's amazing)
S - Fat Free Cottage Cheese w/ Blueberries, Pre-Made Snack Mix, Green Tea

THURSDAY:
B - Steel Cut Oats w/ Blueberries and Peanut Butter, 1/2 cup Almond Milk
L - Nicoise Salad
D - Baked Tilapia w/ Veggies & Brown Rice
S -  Fat Free Cottage Cheese w/ Blueberries, Pre-Made Snack Mix, Green Tea

FRIDAY:
B - Blueberry Banana Shake (w/ Peanut Butter), two pieces of Ezekial Toast
L - Turkey Sandwich on Whole Wheat
D - Fish Tacos w/ Guac & Greek Yogurt Slaw
S -  Fat Free Yogurt w/ Blueberries, Pre-Made Snack Mix, Green Tea

GROCERY LIST (Print and tear this off if you want):
- 2 chicken breasts
- 5 tilapia filets
- 1.5 lb of ground turkey
- Eggs
- Whole wheat tortillas
- Ezekial Bread
- Berries
- Veggies (for all meals)
- Brown Rice
- Cabbage (for fish taco slaw)
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Cranberries
- Cottage Cheese
- Yogurt
- 1 sweet potato
- romaine lettuce
- spinach
- bag of carrots
- 2 tuna packets
- steel cut oats
- 2 avocados
- baby potatoes
- green beans

I probably forgot something (whoops).  I hope you enjoy the meals!

xo,
zo