Skillet Pasta Primavera

WOW. I love this dish. So much that I have decided before eating it that I would be making it again. 

And it's only a two pot dish. Super quick and easy. I recommend having everything diced and prepped before turning the heat on the skillet (get your water boiling while chopping veggies.)

I chose to use Red Lentil Spiral pasta. I really liked it. You could make this dish vegetarian/vegan by using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. I chose chicken broth because I had it available. 

 Skillet Pasta Primavera
4 servings
Ingredients

• 1 large zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into ½” half moons
• ½ pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2” pieces
• 1 (8oz) pasta of choice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• ½ cup (2 ounces) grated Parmesan, optional

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the zucchini and cook until just tender, about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a colander. Add the asparagus and cook until tender, about 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to the colander. Add the pasta and cook until tender, 8-10 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water, and drain again.
2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender, 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add flour and stir until onions are coated. Add broth and stir until thickened. Add peas, tomatoes, cooked zucchini and asparagus, pasta, and Parmesan. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

I added chicken sausage to mine. I diced it up and threw it in the pot to cook. I would recommend grilling some sausages to go with this dish. I *love* the Sam's Club chicken sausages. My favorite is the Mozzarella & Roasted Garlic Chicken Sausage. 

21 Day Fix Burrito Bowls

A few months ago this video kept popping up on my Facebook feed. (It's safe to click, really, I'm not rick roll-ing you.) The recipe looked simple enough (click here for it); and it looked delicious and clean. I figured I'd give it a chance. 

It has now become my favorite lunch item. It is super easy to prep, and you can pre-prep and freeze extra peppers/onions mixture and the chicken. I used the portion control containers and measured it the first couple of times, but then learned that if I make the right amount of rice, it's easy to split it into four containers. I no longer use cheese and use avocado instead. 

Easy Lunch Burrito Bowls

Ingredients: 

• 1 medium or half large red onion
• 3 Bell Peppers (I prefer one red, one yellow, one orange)
• 16 ounces chicken breasts (for 4 Red containers. Double if you want 2 Reds at lunch)
• 1 can black bean
• 2 cups prepared brown rice
• 1/2-1 cup Salsa
• Taco Seasoning
• Olive Oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F/200˚C.
2. Line one 8x8 glass dish with foil & spray; and spray a 9x13 glass dish with nonstick spray. 
3. Cut the peppers and onions into strips and toss with 1 tbsp of oil and 2-3 tbsp of taco seasoning. 
4. Place the peppers and onions in the 9x13 glass pan. 
5. Place the chicken in the 8x8 glass dish and sprinkle taco seasoning over both sides of the chicken. Top  each chicken breast with a generous pour of salsa.
6. Bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes. 
7. Rest chicken for 10 minutes, before slicing into strips or dicing into cubes. 
8. Add a 1/2 cup of brown rice to 4 food storage containers. Add 1/2 cup black beans, cooked peppers and onions, and chicken. Garnish with fresh cilantro, cheese (optional), and a lime wedge. 
9. Store in the refrigerator (and enjoy any extras immediately). Can be kept refrigerated for up to 4 days. Heat up the bowl, then serve with optional avocado. 

Notes: 

The video and instructions show everything being put on a baking sheet. I did that the first time and didn't like how it turned out. My peppers and onions stuck to the foil, the chicken seemed dry (maybe I overcooked it?) So the next time I used glass baking dishes. One for the veggies and a foil lined one for the chicken. This worked better. I could also monitor if one finished first and take that one out so I didn't overcook either ingredient.

21 Day Fix Beef Stroganoff

Beef stroganoff has always been one of my favorite dishes. Beef, noodles, sour cream, what is not to love? Oh, the calories, that's right! So when I stumbled across this recipe on the Beachbody website, I had to check it out.

Note - I was super excited when I found out this is a ONE POT dish. You don't have to boil the noodles separate. They cook in the beef broth - and they are EVEN better that way! The creaminess isn't as prevalent since you aren't using a gallon of sour cream (well, that's what I used to use), but the flavor is there and the fact that I can eat and make this on the Portion Control Plan makes this recipe a must have for my kitchen!

21 Day Fix Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients

• 3 tsp. olive oil, divided use
• 1½ lbs. extra lean beef sirloin, cut into thin strips
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 8 oz. sliced mushrooms
• 3 Tbsp. whole wheat flour
• 4 cups low sodium organic beef broth
• ¾ tsp. sea salt (or Himalayan salt)
• ½ tsp. ground black pepper
• 3 oz. dry whole wheat egg noodles
• ½ cup reduced fat (2%) plain Greek yogurt
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley

Instructions

1. Heat 1 tsp. oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat.
2. Add beef; cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until browned. Remove from skillet. Set aside.
3. Heat 1 tsp. oil in same skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Add onion; cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 4 minutes.
5. Add mushrooms; cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 6 minutes, or until most liquid is absorbed.
6. Add remaining 1 tsp. oil; cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute.
7. Add flour; cook, stirring frequently, until onion mixture is evenly coated.
8. Add broth slowly, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring frequently, for 8 to 10 minutes.
9. Add egg noodles. Mix well and cover with liquid; cover. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, or until noodles are soft. Remove from heat.
10. Add yogurt; mix well.
11. Serve garnished with parsley.

Portion Fix Containers
½ Green
1 Yellow
1 Red
½ tsp.

No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Oat Bars

I stumbled across this recipe a few months ago and even bought dates (at Sam's Club). But I didn't make it until this weekend. I've been having a lot of cravings for sweets and needed to find something clean to satisfy my sweet tooth. I thought these would be great to snack on while I was home on maternity leave, but never got around to making them. First tip - dates have pits. I kinda remembered this as I started making them, read it somewhere or something. So I used scissors and cut each date open to remove the pit. I must have missed one though, because it was stuck to the food processor blade when I got done. 

The 8x8 produces 16 bars. And each one is around 80 calories depending on the ingredients used. They have the same sweetness a cookie offers without the calories and bad for you ingredients that a cookie contains. The oatmeal also "keeps on giving". They do remind me of those chocolate drop no-bake cookies I made as a kid. 

NO-BAKE CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER OAT BARS

Ingredients

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• ¼ cup coconut oil
• 3 Tbsp raw honey, or maple syrup
• 10 medjool dates, pitted
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Line a 8x8 or 9x9-inch baking pan with wax paper, leaving an inch or so hanging over the edges.
2. In a food processor, add ¾ of the peanut butter, coconut oil, honey, dates, and vanilla, pulsing until smooth. Add in the oats and pulse until well-combined. The mixture will be crumbly, but it should hold it's shape when pressed into a ball.
3. Press ¾ of the oat mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.
4. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate chips and remaining peanut butter, stirring until smooth. Pour the chocolate onto the crust layer and spread evenly with a rubber spatula or spoon.
5. Crumble the remaining oat mixture over the chocolate, gently pressing it in.
6. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Once firm, remove from the pan by lifting the wax paper by the edges. Cut into bars. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

My notes: 

These were really easy and quick to make. Liam doesn't like them so they are ALL MINE.

Make sure you really press the base down. My base was a little crumbly, until I chilled it overnight. So also - chill it overnight. 

21 Day Fix Stuffed Peppers - Revisited

This is probably the fourth or fifth time I've redone my Stuffed Pepper recipe. My version 11 months ago included ground beef and I had estimated the Portion Control. This time I measured every ingredient in order to have the proper container count. I actually double this recipe so I can have 5 sets of 4 peppers - I freeze them in groups of four to defrost and bake later. They are delicious, but a little time consuming to make. If I can make a big batch over a weekend than I have meals ready to go. 

Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

Note - when making stuffed peppers - you *must* boil the peppers to soften them up. Otherwise the peppers don't cook thoroughly and still have a little crunch to them.

• 10 bell peppers of your color choice
• 20 ounces pound lean ground turkey or beef 
• 1 onion (about a 1 cup diced)
• 1/2 diced pepper
• 1.5 cups of brown rice, cooked just shy of done
• 1 (15 ounce) can of Black Beans, drained/rinsed
• 1-2 cups of Corn, drained/rinsed if canned, I prefer frozen
• 1 (15 ounce) can of petite diced tomatoes 
• 1 (15 ounce) can of tomato sauce 
• 1.5 cups of your favorite shredded cheese
• Spices - Chili Powder, Paprika, Cumin, Garlic, Salt, Pepper, ect.  

Directions

1. Cut the caps of the peppers and clean out. Pre-cook the peppers by placing in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. 
2. Cook brown rice, or quinoa according to directions, just shy of done because the rice will continue cooking when the stuffed pepper is cooked. 
3. Brown ground meat and season with chili powder (1 tbsp), and 1 tsp each: paprika, cumin, and garlic. Set aside to cool.
4. Drain and rinse black beans. If using canned corn, drain and rinse also. Drain the tomatoes. 
5. Combine in large bowl: meat, tomatoes, corn, rice/quinoa, beans, sauce, and cheese. Season as needed. 
6. Stuff peppers with filling. (About 1-cup per pepper). 
7. Bake at 375 Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes. 
8. If frozen - defrost 24 hours. 

Each Pepper counts as 1.5 Greens, 1/2 Red, 1 Yellow, and 1/2 Blue.

For lunch, this is perfect. For dinner it's a little light. However, we've been eating egg sandwiches before bed in order to get in extra Red & Yellows and fuel our body before sleep.

Turkey Meatloaf - 21 Day Fix - Revisited

Updated 11/4 - I first made this in January and it has turned into one of my favorite recipes. I even started making it in the crockpot. I added a few new steps in order to keep it from falling apart. 
This is also one of my most viewed recipes - so welcome to my page! I hope you enjoy this quick healthy recipe as much as I do. 

I originally got this recipe from the Team Beachbody website. Each recipe tells you how they "count" for each program you might be doing. This recipe for Turkey Meatloaf is loaded full of veggies and uses ground turkey instead of ground beef. And it is delicious. Even though it looks suspicious AND the first one fell apart. But, it is good and I would recommend it.

Turkey Meatloaf 

Yield: 10 servings
21 Day Fix - 1 Red, 1 Green

Ingredients: 

• 2.5 lbs. raw 93% lean ground turkey breast 
• 3 large eggs, slightly beaten 
• 1 medium onion, chopped in food processor
• 2 medium celery stalks, chopped in food processor
• 1 medium green (or any color) bell pepper, chopped in food processor
• 1 cup old­fashioned rolled oats 
• 1 (14.5­oz.) can petite diced tomatoes (drained)
• ½ tsp. sea salt
• ½ tsp. ground black pepper 
• dashes of other spices - garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, oregeno
• 1 cup all­ natural marinara sauce, no sugar added 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. (or see Crockpot instructions note below)
2. Chop everything really fine. In the picture above, things are not chopped with a food processor, and the meat loaf fell apart. I now use the food processor in order to chop everything into the smallest pieces possibly. However, this could result in extra "juice", so squeeze out the juice before adding the ingredient to the meatloaf mixture. 
3. Combine turkey, eggs, onion, celery, pepper, oats, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and spices in a large bowl; mix well with clean hands or a rubber spatula. 
4. Line two 9x5 inch loaf pans with parchment paper. Spray the paper lightly with non-stick spray. Divide the meatloaf mixture between the two pans.  Bake for 45 minutes; spread marinara sauce evenly on top of both loaves. Bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until cooked through.

Crockpot Directions:

1. Spray a large crockpot with non-stick spray. 
2. Line the crockpot with foil and spray with non-stick spray. 
3. Place the meatloaf mixture inside the foil. 
4. Turn crockpot on. Walk away. 
5. Come back! About 1-hour before done, spread the marinara sauce over the meatloaf. 
6. When done, cooked to an internal appropriate temperature, dish out. I haven't perfected how to *get* the entire meatloaf out of the crockpot. Expect another update when I do! 
7. It turned out super moist and very favorful. 

Leftover meatloaf is even better than the first day! I either heat it in the toaster oven or a skillet in order to give it a little more "crust". Every once in a while, I add an over-medium egg because I need more protein. 

Meatloaf Royale

21 Day Fix Turkey Chili

Just in time for fall weather, chili!! I already have a great turkey chili recipe but decided to try the one listed in the FixAte cookbook, which is full of 21 Day Fix approved recipes. I love the recipes, they are all pretty basic and easy to make, and the container values are listed. I added a few extra things and doubled the recipe. This is one of my new favorite chili recipes! 

21 Day Fix Turkey Chili
Ingredients & Directions (because it's Chili, it's *not* that hard)

• 2-3 lb cooked 93% lean ground turkey breast (or lean grass-fed ground beef)
• (I add chili powder, cumin, and paprika to my turkey while it's cooking.) 

Saute the following ingredients ~10 minutes: 

• 2 tsp extra virgin organic coconut oil, melted
• 1 large or 2 small onion, chopped
• 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, diced (optional)
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or crushed

Then add:

• 4 cans (15 oz each) kidney beans (or pinto beans) drained, rinsed
• 4 can (15 oz) fire roasted tomatoes, no salt added if available
• 2 cups red wine (I choose red cooking wine)
• 1 Tbsp ground chili powder
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground paprika
• 1/2 tsp sea salt (or Himalayan salt)
• 2 tsp crushed red pepper
• Cooked ground turkey

Bring it to a boil and let simmer around 30 minutes on low.
2 cups of this chili counts as 1 green, 1 red, and 1 yellow.


It is very filling, and my version is very spicy. If you can't handle the spice, cut out the jalapeno and cut back on the cumin.

My favorite is to serve it over 1/2 a baked potato.
My son loves to eat the pinto beans with cheese and elbow macaroni.

The FixAte cookbook has been one of my favorite new tools to help me sustain the 21 Day Fix lifestyle. Autumn Calabrese has created some amazing recipes that you will actually want to make! Just like the rest of the 21 Day Fix plan, preparation is the number one key to succeeding with this plan. 

Autumn gives us her 4 ingredients to maintaining a healthy lifestyle:

1. Enjoy the foods you eat, 
2. Have a fitness routing you can commit to, 
3. Eat foods that are highly nutritious, and
4. Know how much of it to eat. 

These four easy steps is how I've managed to lose the weight I have. And it's why I keep making some of the same recipes over and over again, I love the foods I love.

RockCrok Sausage & Cheese Tortellini

This is quite the indulgence meal on 21-Day Fix. Though I don't think it's any worse then what you might find eating out though. We planned to have this for Valentine's Day dinner this year, but we both weren't feeling well so we had a few days later. Serve it with a nice french loaf bread.

I made it in the RockCrok but you could also alter it to make it in a sauce pan on the stove or maybe the crock pot. 

Sausage & Cheese Tortellini

Ingredients

• 1 package of chicken broth (32 oz)
• 1 package of your favorite tortellini (20 oz, we used three cheese)
• 1 lb spicy italian sausage
• 2 Cans Diced Tomatoes (seasoned with basil, garlic & oregano), not drained
• 8 oz. Cream Cheese (try low fat).
• Grated Parmesan Cheese for toppings

Directions

1. Take your cream cheese out of the fridge, and let it sit while you brown your sausage in your RockCrok.
2. Add tortellini, tomatoes, and broth to the RockCrok and stir. Cook for 12 minutes in the microwave. 
3. Dice the cream cheese into small cubes. 
4. Remove from microwave, add the cream cheese, put lid back on. Let sit 5-minutes. Stir and serve!

If making in a crockpot: 

1. Take your cream cheese out of the fridge, and let it sit while you brown your sausage. 
2. Add the sausage, tortellini, tomatoes, and broth to your crock pot and stir. 
3. Dice the cream cheese into small cubes and place on top. 
4. Cook on LOW for a total of 4 1/2 hours. Stir at 2 hours, and again at 4 hours, removing the lid for the last 30 minutes of cooking. This will give the sauce some time to thicken up.

Banana-Strawberry "Ice Cream" (21 Day Fix Approved)

Have I mentioned yet this week how much I love my food processor? If I had more counter space it would be a permanent fixture. I use it for so much! Everyone should get one. Getting married? Put it on the registry. Having a baby? Put it on the registry (you'll use it to make baby food, so it's a need.) Birthday coming up? Ask for this. I have the 14-cup Cuisinart. My mom and grandma gave it to me at my Bridal Shower. (I remember things like that.) 

4 Ingredient "Ice Cream"

Ingredients

• 2 bananas, cut into 1-inch slices(frozen)
• ½ cup frozen strawberries, sliced
• 2 Tbsp Almond Milk
• ½ tsp vanilla

Instructions

1. Place banana slices on a plate, separating each slice. Place slices in freezer for 2 hours (overnight is best!).

2. Remove strawberries and bananas from freezer and place in food processor, blend until they are the consistency of soft serve ice cream.

3. Add almond milk(more or less for desired texture)and vanilla and blend until smooth and well-mixed.

4. Transfer ice cream to a freezer container and freeze until solid. (You don't have to wait if fruit is frozen, it is like soft serve ice cream)

5. Scoop with ice cream scoop and serve.

One CUP of this counts as a purple container on the 21 Day Fix! 

You can really use any frozen fruit to make this. I might add some cocoa powder next time and peanut butter to make Chocolate PB. And brownie pieces. (Just kidding!) My husband doesn't like bananas, but I bet I could get him to eat some of this ice cream. 

CrockPot (RockCrok) Buffalo Chicken Chili

This is one of my new favorite soups. I shared the recipe with a coworker and he raved about it. Additionally, it was requested at our work potluck. I'm trying to dig up a picture, but it's orange. The wing sauce turns it orange.  

The original recipe can be found here. I've added a few extra things and noted my actual measurements. Additionally, while you can do it in the crock pot, I made it in the RockCrok!! 

Buffalo Chicken Chili

Ingredients

• 1 pound of ground chicken
• 1 can white navy beans, drained and rinsed
• 14.5 oz can fire roasted tomatoes, drained
• 4 cups chicken broth
• ¼ - ½ cup buffalo wing sauce (start with ¼ cup and add more at end if needed)
• 1 package ranch dressing mix
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon celery salt
• ½ teaspoon dried cilantro
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 8 oz cream cheese
• Blue cheese crumbles (optional)

Crockpot Instructions

• Brown ground chicken until fully cooked, place in crockpot (or brown ahead of time and store in fridge until ready to assemble)
• Add remaining ingredients except for cream cheese and blue cheese and stir to combine
• Add block of cream cheese on the top and cover
• Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8
• Stir to incorporate cream cheese and add additional wing sauce as desired
• Top individual bowls with blue cheese crumbles if desired

RockCrok Instructions

• Brown ground chicken until fully cooked (or brown ahead of time and store in fridge until ready to assemble)
• Add remaining ingredients except for cream cheese and blue cheese and stir to combine
• Cook in the microwave (with LID) for 13 minutes. 
• Add the block of cream cheese on the top and cover
• Stir to incorporate cream cheese and add additional wing sauce as desired
• Top individual bowls with blue cheese crumbles if desired

Greek Turkey Burgers

This is one of my favorite recipes. I haven't made them recently and I plan to make them again soon! I served them up on Pita bread with the homemade Tzatziki sauce. They are delicious!!!

Greek Turkey Burgers
Ingredients

• 1 package (.7 oz.) Italian dressing mix
• 1 1/4 pound ground turkey (93% lean)
• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1 egg , lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese

• Pita Bread
• Optional Topping: Dice up 2 Roma Tomatoes and 1/2 a cucumber, more feta cheese

Directions

1. Mix the burger ingredients together. Measure out 1/2 cup portions and form into patties (should form 5 patties.
2. Grill up the hamburgers 
3. Shove in a pita (I had to cut them in half!) with Tzatziki sauce and the tom/cuc mixture. ENJOY!

If you're counting this on the 21 Day Fix, I'd count it as 1 Red, 1/2 Yellow, and 1/2 Blue (if you add more cheese.) 

Zucchini Cakes (21 Day Fix)

Did you ever eat potato pancakes growing up? I sure miss those!! I found a kinda similar, not really at all, recipe in the form of Zucchini Cakes! They were very good and very filling. 

Ingredients

• 3 medium zucchini
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 green onions, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, smushed/pressed
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup almond flour (or any flour)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• coconut oil

Directions

1. Grate your zucchini. I used the food processor. EASY. 
2. Place zucchini in a bowl with the 1 tsp salt and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Then, extract all the water from the zucchini. You can place it in a cheese cloth and squeeze. You can also place it in a colander and press the water out. You want to remove as much water as possible so the cakes form and stick together. 
3. In a large bowl, mix together the zucchini and remaining ingredients (except the coconut oil)
4. Melt 2 tablespoons of coconut oil in a large pan.
5. Use a 1/4 cup to scoop out the zucchini mixture. Place in pan and "press" down to form a small cake. 
6. Cook 3-4 minutes, flip over and cook another 3-4 minutes. Cakes should have a golden brown crust. 

You can eat 4 of these to count as 1 Green and 1/4 Yellow (the flour -- if you are being super serious.) You've also got some Teaspoons in there from the Oil. 

Zucchini Cakes & Spaghetti Squash

Grilled London Broil

(This blog post is from April 2014. It's been saved as a draft for a long time. I think I was waiting to post a picture. I want to post it so it's out of my draft file!)

London Broil is a tough cut of meat that requires marinating for more than an hour. So plan ahead! 

Grilled London Broil Marinade

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 8 ounces Apple Juice

Mix the ingredients in a gallon sized ziplock bag. Add 1 or 2 London Broil "steak cuts". Marinate over 4 hours. 12-24 hours is ideal. 

Grill to desired temperature. We use a meat thermometer while grilling in order to make sure my steak is a wonderful medium-rare and the husband's is a medium. 

Beef and Broccoli (21 Day Fix)

How delicious is Chinese food? And how BAD is it? Very. Very very very bad. I found this recipe on Team Beachbody and decided to change it up a little bit. I find the hardest part of making a good beef and broccoli recipe is the chosen beef. I think it's not so much which type of beef you use - but how you marinate it. It's usually recommended to use Flank Steak - and I agree. However, in "Use what you have", I chose a sirloins steak for this dish. I like this recipe because it incorporates peppers, and I added some extra veggies. It is very filling too!

Healthier Beef and Broccoli
Note - You must marinate the steak 4+ hours. Prepare wisely!
Ingredients

• 1 pound flank steak, cut into strips
• 1 tsp. coconut oil
• 4 cups broccoli florets
• 3 medium bell peppers, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 cups snap peas (optional)
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tsp (dry) Ginger

Marinade Ingredients

• ¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce 
• 2 TBSP Rice Vinegar
• 1 tsp Seseme Oil
• 2 TBSP Honey
• 2 Garlic Cloves
• 1/2 tsp (dry) Ginger or 1 tsp Fresh Grated Ginger
• 1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes

Sauce Ingredients

• 1/2 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce 
• 8 TBSP Water
• 2 TBSP Corn Starch
• 2 TBSP Honey
• 1 garlic clove

Directions

1. Combine the Marinade Ingredients in a ziplock bag. Add the sliced steak to the marinade and place in fridge for 4+ hours. 
2. Combine the Sauce Ingredients and set aside.
3. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Add beef; cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes, or until cooked through and no longer pink. Remove from skillet, keep warm.
5. Add broccoli, bell pepper, snap peas, garlic, and ginger to skillet; cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes. Remove broccoli mixture from heat. 
6. Add Sauce mixture to skillet; cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat for 30 seconds, or until thickened.
7. Return beef and broccoli mixture to skillet; cook, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until well mixed and heated. 

Measure out the meat - 1 red container worth, and two cups of broccoli & peppers, and 1/2 cup of snap peas for 1 yellow. The soy sauce mixture counts as 1/2 yellow. Serve with 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice. 

Total count: 2 Greens, 1 Red, 2.5 Yellows. This dish was VERY filling. I was able to get 4 servings out of it. 

If you need less yellows, leave out the snap peas and reduce the rice. You can throw in some shredded carrots to bulk the dish up a little more. 

Greek Marinated Chicken

We wanted to get back to basics this week.... reboot our diet after a rough weekend with amazing food and the Super Bowl snacking. 

This recipe isn't the *healthiest* because of the yogurt. But by using greek yogurt, it can be healthier. You can use plain yogurt - but I don't know how that will turn out. You can serve it with some Tzatini sauce. Mine didn't turn out like this picture (that I swapped from Pinterest.) 

Greek Marinated Chicken  
Ingredients

• 1 cup greek yogurt 
• 2 Tbsp olive oil 
• 4 cloves garlic, minced 
• 1 Tbsp dried oregano 
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley
• 1 medium lemon zest juice from 1/2 lemon 
• 1 tsp salt 
• freshly cracked pepper 
• 3 to 4 lbs chicken pieces (I used boneless skinless, the picture used skinned and boned. Maybe that's where I went wrong?)

Directions

1. Combine marinade. 
2. Place pieces in marinade in gallon ziplock for 3-5 hours. 
3. Bake 375 45-60 minutes or grill.

Hearty Beef Stew - 21 Day Fix

I went searching through the Team Beachbody website and found a recipe for beef stew. I figured I'd give it a try. The only downside to this is the prep + cook time is almost 90 minutes. It takes an hour to cook after you get all your vegetables and meat chopped. Plan accordingly! I prepped it and then worked out while it cooked. 

It's very delicious and feels like a cheat meal! You wouldn't know you are "dieting" when you eat this.

Ingredients:

• 1½ lb. raw lean beef stew meat, boneless
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 1 (15 oz) can of diced tomatoes
• ¼ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. hot pepper sauce (like Tabasco)
• 1 (14 oz) can of low-sodium beef broth (or vegetable broth)
• 14-oz of water (use the beef broth can)
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ medium green bell pepper, chopped
• ½ medium red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, sliced
• 4 large red potatoes, cubed
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place beef, onions, tomatoes, soy sauce, hot sauce, 1/2 cup broth, and bay leaf in large stock pot.

2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, carrots, and potatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook, covered, for 60 minutes, adding additional broth as needed.

Yield: 6-8 servings

A two-cup serving counts as 1.5 Green, 1 Yellow, and 1 Red. 

You can serve it with quinoa, but take the serving/container into consideration.

Homemade Hummus

I love hummus. I can eat it with a ton of veggies, lots of pita chips, those little bagel chips.... more pita chips. Since it's ok on the 21 Day Fix, I thought I'd make my own. I found a basic hummus recipe and plan to dress it up with either a roasted pepper or avocado. Or extra garlic. 

Tahini is hard to find. My Walmart doesn't carry it, but Schnucks carried *one* brand in the Ethnic aisle. Luckily it's not too expensive and goes a long way. One $7 jar will make 5-7 hummus recipes. You can make your own and I found a recipe here. 

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), reserve liquid
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic
• ¼ cup tahini (sesame butter)
• Sea salt & Pepper (to taste; optional)

Optional Extras:

• Roasted Red Pepper
• Avocado
• Extra Garlic

Directions:

1. Place chickpeas, lemon juice, oil, and garlic in food processor or blender and pulse until chickpeas are mashed.
2. Optional: Add in the "extra" item you might want to flavor it with. I added one avocado this time. 
3. Add tahini; pulse for 1 minute. If hummus is too thick, add some of the reserved chickpea liquid. Add salt if desired.

Crockpot Chicken Fajitas - 21 Day Fix

I found this recipe somewhere -- and it's not a difficult recipe to follow. Unless you're doubling it. And you double it, and you get to the end of the recipe and it says "Divide among 2 bags.". UGH! I doubled an already doubled recipe? Crud. So lots of leftovers.

Crock Pot Chicken Fajitas
Ingredients

1.5 – 2 lbs. Chicken Breasts, boneless and skinless 

1/2 medium – large white onion, sliced vertically 

3-4 Bell Peppers, any color, sliced into strips 

2 cans (10 oz.) Rotel diced tomatoes, undrained (I used “Mild”) 

2 cloves garlic, diced or pressed

2 tsp. chili powder 

2 tsp. cumin

2 tsp. paprika

*Divide all ingredients into 2 large freezer bags

Directions
Cut things up. Put in crockpot for 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high.

Dish out 1 cup of veggies and 3/4 cup of chicken for 1 green and 1 red.
Add some whole grain torillas (yellow), and lettuce and homemade salsa (green).

Here's what mine looked like. They were SUPER filling. It counted as 1 Red, 2 Green, 2 Yellow, and 1 Blue (Cheese). I can't wait to eat them again!!!

Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup - 21 Day Fix

I made this last week and it doesn't even feel like a "diet". You can add cheese and greek yogurt to it. Eat it with a salad for a very filling dinner or by itself as a nice lunch. If you're not on a diet, indulge with some tortilla chips! 

Chicken Taco Soup

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 (16 ounce) can chili beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer (or broth)
• 2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
• 1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning
• 3 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
• greek yogurt or sour cream (optional)
• crushed tortilla chips (optional)

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours (can we say Super Bowl!).
2. Once it's done cooking, pull out the chicken and shred. I used the Mix 'n Chop to do it. Add the shredded chicken back to the crockpot and let cook another 15-minutes. 
3. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of greek yogurt (or sour cream), and crushed tortilla chips, if desired. 

Approx 6-7 1-cup servings. 

Measure 1.5 cups and count as  1 Green, 1 Red, 1 Yellow 

Make sure if you add greek yogurt and cheese you count those in addition! 

21 Day Fix Stuffed Peppers

I love Stuffed Peppers. Jason LOVES LOVES stuffed peppers. It's what he brought to the relationship, actually. I tried to make them healthier with ground turkey. He didn't care for the change. Because I love him, I went back to beef. 

I had to change up this recipe a bit from the 21-Day Fix SUPER friendly one I found online. We don't have lean beef in our house. We have a quarter of a grass fed, non-hormone raised cow. So while not the leanest meat, it can still be healthier than store bought beef. 

She also premade a lot of things and then measured. I'm all about "throw in a whole can of corn and see how it turns out." Turns out I made 10 peppers, so I'm not completely sure on the containers. I have probably overestimated the containers. However, I kept this recipe as if the mixture divides nicely into 6 containers. It would also depend on the size of peppers you are able to find. 

I cooked six and froze four for later. I prepped these the night before so they just had to be put in the oven. It is not an easy prep process!  

Note - when making stuffed peppers - you *must* boil the peppers to soften them up. Otherwise the peppers don't cook thoroughly and still have a little crunch to them. 

Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients

• 6 Sweet bell peppers of your color choice
• 1 pound lean ground turkey or beef, seasoned with 21 Day Fix Southwestern Seasoning 
• 1/2 Cup Dry/1.5 cups cooked brown rice or quinoa, cooked just shy of done
• 1 (15 ounce) can of Black Beans, drained/rinsed
• 1 (15 ounce) can of Corn, drained/rinsed
• 1 pound lean ground turkey or beef, seasoned with 21 Day Fix Southwestern Seasoning 
• 1 (15 ounce) can of petite diced tomatoes 
• 1 (15 ounce) can of tomato sauce 
• 1 cup of your favorite shredded cheese

Directions

1. Cut the caps of the peppers and clean out. Pre-cook the peppers by placing in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. 
2. Cook brown rice, or quinoa according to directions 
3. Brown ground meat and season with Southwest seasoning (See 21 Day Fix book). Set aside to cool.
4. Drain and rinse black beans and corn.  
5. Combine in large bowl meat, tomatoes, corn, rice/quinoa, beans, and sauce.
6. Stuff peppers with filling.
7. Bake at 375 Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes. 

I counted it as 1 Red, 2 Yellow, 2 Green, 1/2 Blue. As mentioned above, that's per 6 peppers. It's probably less since I split the filling into 10 containers. 

21 Day Fix Stuffed Peppers