Delicious and healthy.... what a beautiful couple!

See that??? I didn't always knew I could eat sooo good and not worry about gaining weight! Sometimes when someone says "healthy" our mind can go to places where everything is green and bland...  There are so many misconceptions about what healthy really is! Sadly I've been on that same boat in the past... only being able to lose weight by "punishing myself" for being "such a bad girl"! The punishment many times worked, at least apparently and temporarily... but who can live "forever punished"? Not me!!! In my most rebellious moments I would give up and go back to overeating or if I "stuck with the punishment" long enough and managed to lose lots of weight then I would "reward myself" by going back to eating what made me fat in the first place! What happened then? Well... take a guess!!! Yes... I went back to gaining all the weight I had lost (and more) so I needed to be punished one more time!

ENOUGH!

Then on 2012 I discovered a new "thing" (new to me)... exercising... I did become very strict with calorie counting but... this "thing" that I had never tried before made me feel great and even when it still gets hard to wake up every morning to go for a run or to a bootcamp I now don't understand how I could live my whole life "without it" ... But I still couldn't get the 'food thing' figured out! I was actually terrified of losing "all the weight I needed to lose" because what would happen next? I didn't know how to maintain! I've never known how to have a healthy relationship with food... or at least not until 2013 when a friend told me about Trim Healthy Mama; and I started to read and educate myself through books I checked out at my library... I still haven't lost another inch... to be honest... I actually struggle not to gain weight even when eating healthy... but I now know that it is in great part because of the crazy diets that slowed down my metabolism in the past... I now have read books like:  The Fast Metabolism Diet: Eat More Food and Lose More Weight, The Good Fat Cookbook, Cavewomen Don't Get Fat: The Paleo Chic Diet for Rapid Results and many other health/nutrition related cookbooks where I have been able to compare studies, theories and I came up with pretty much the same conclusions from them all and here are some of them:

1. Fat DOESN'T make you FAT!
2. Natural and Whole is always best! (duh!?)
3. Grains and starches are not necessarily all healthy!
4. How we combine our foods results in weight gain or weight loss
5. I have to keep movin'!
6. Food is not my enemy... is my friend!
7. Read the labels!
8. A label that says "Light" does not mean "healthy"
9. Delicious is not in a fight against healthy! There is nothing more delicious, satisfying, and "calming" than good food! delicious and healthy actually make the most beautiful couple!

Right now I am following more closely the Trim Healthy Mama plan, it is way simpler for my lifestyle (and it is soooo good!).... and to hopefully get you on the same boat... I will share a very simple recipe that I enjoy making on the weekends or on Friday night for a fun dinner for my family:

Healthy Lettuce Tacos!
THM - S "Satisfying Meal"

Ingredients:
Yield: About "14-16" tacos

• 2 lbs. ground beef or turkey (beef should be grass-fed preferably)
• 1 small white onion (or 1/2 large one)
• 1 clove of garlic (finely chopped or minced)
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 2 tsp. chili powder mix
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional for more heat)
• 1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 3 tbsp. tomato paste (make sure there is no sugar added)
• 1-2 tbsp. chicken or vegetable broth if needed
• romaine lettuce hearts (enough to use 3-4 leaves per person)

Garnish:
chopped cilantro, sour cream (not light!), slices of avocado, shredded cheddar cheese and maybe some lime wedges.

Let's put it all together!

First brown the beef in a skillet, drain the juices that remain (especially if not using grass-fed meat), add the onions and cook until translucent (about 5 minutes), add the rest of the spices and cook until aromatic (about 1 minute), taste and season with salt and pepper accordingly, add tomato paste and a bit of broth the mixture is too dry so it all incorporates well, cook for about 1 more minute if you want to serve this right away or add more liquid and let it simmer for about 1/2 hour to concentrate the flavors.

Serve on the washed romaine lettuce hearts as the 'real deal tacos'... top with the garnish ingredients!

Tip: I mix the meat filling with cooked quinoa for a very healthy crossover for my family... It is delish!

Enjoy your healthy/delicious food... Healthy and delicious go forever together! Let's not separate them!

Paloma.

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. 

Fried Chicken! Yes I can!

If you are a Trim Healthy Mama then you will not be horrified when you see that we can eat "Fried Chicken" and still lose weight... you know that being on this plan "anything is possible". Now... even as a Trim Healthy Mama you might still be surprised at the thought of having "breaded chicken" ... but today I was feeling adventurous in the kitchen and I was really craving some "breaded chicken strips" so I went to my "THM pantry" (oh yes! If you ever join Trim Healthy Mama you know that by now your whole pantry has changed and a big bucket of Extra virgin olive oil is KING in that pantry!) and I grabbed the things that I thought I would need to satisfy my craving and stay on plan!

Here's what I did:

Almond Crusted Chicken Strips (or just call it fried chicken!)
Yield: 4 generous servings (about 4 strips per person)



"Fried chicken" with "cauliflower rice"

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts (skinless/boneless) cut in strips (about 4-5 strips out of each breast)
1/2 cup coconut flour
2 cups (or more) of almond meal (it's basically just ground almonds, I bought a good sized one at Trader Joe's for a great price)
salt and pepper to taste
Italian seasoning (about 1 tbsp.)
4 eggs
Oil to pan-fry (extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil or a mix of the two)

Directions
Season the chicken strips with salt and pepper, transfer to a plastic bag and add the coconut flour, shake to coat all the strips evenly.

On a separate dish whisk the eggs and on a large dish (can use a baking dish or a pan) mix the almond meal and Italian seasoning together and add some salt as well (about a teaspoon). Now pass each coconut flour coated chicken strip through the egg and then through the almond meal, set aside.

In a large skillet pour all of your oil necessary to pan-fry your chicken (not too much that the chicken would be swimming or completely covered), turn your heat to medium-high and let it warm up until it's hot enough to fry (very, very hot!), now pass your "breaded" chicken strips to your skillet (carefully, don't just drop them or the oil will splash and burn you) and cook them for about 3 minutes on each side -or more if necessary- but be careful, the strips are not too thick and they cook (and dry) quickly.

When they're ready transfer to a plate lined with paper towel to remove excess of oil and serve! You can serve it next to some buttered vegetables (or cauliflower mash) ... Butter? Don't be scared! It's OK!!! If you've been on THM for a while you now confidently add more butter to your veggies and you know you're doing a big favor to your health and heart!

My girlies topped their chicken strips with ketchup and devoured them, I was a good THM so I used some Ranch dressing on mine! YUM!

You are not a THM yet? Sounds too good to be true? Well... it is true though! Those THM ladies are losing weight almost like they're getting paid to do so! And they're doing so by enjoying life and great food!

This recipe is low carb, it's an S meal in the THM plan and also paleo friendly, gluten-free and dairy-free.

Quick update: A fellow THM (Marilyn) just said (on the THM Facebook Page) that she used this recipe to coat pork cutlets.... she said: "it is awesome"(her exact words). That was so encouraging, thanks Marilyn!

Hope you will try it and love it too!

Paloma.

Delicious and Nutritious Homemade Protein Bars

Hello everybody! Sorry it took me a while to write a new post... my computer was acting up really bad and then after some cleaning done to the inside of the CPU it decided to act even worse! So... we ended up having to get a new computer... nothing fancy... just a desktop that would allow me to keep couponing, allow me also to be in touch with our families far away and also let the girls continue to enjoy Starfall.com ... I am sure you have heard from them... if you haven't you and your little ones are missing out on some good ol' learning! I am sharing about them with you because it is another GREAT DEAL! You can use it for free to some extent (great materials are available for free) and then if you pay for access for your computer for a whole year you do get all the benefits of this amazing site! It's been a great tool to complement our homeschooling.

Now... you're here probably because the sound of Homemade Protein bars caught your attention... So... yes... I make our own Protein Bars... I should probably call them Protein squares though ... these are amazing and oh so good for you! Hubby loves them so much that he forgets that they're not just a "delicious treat"... I actually make them to have something healthy at hand for those moments when I have a chocolate craving but also to eat them right before a good workout!

My recipe is a very basic one and very easy to customize to your own taste and liking... The measurements are approximates... You can add or switch ingredients for your favorite ones....

So... to make these delicious protein bars you'll need:

Ingredients:
(Yield: about 35 2x2" squares)

- 1 cup raw almonds
- 1 cup pecan halves
- 1/2 cup chia seeds
- 1/2 cup hemp seed hearts
- 1/2 scoop of protein powder (My recommendation is Jay Robb Chocolate whey, Swanson Vanilla Whey Isolate -way more affordable and the one I typically use or the Trim Healthy Mama Brand)
- 2 tbsp. to 1/4 unsweetened cup cocoa powder
- Sweetener to taste (if you're trying to lose weight I recommend you use stevia, I use THM pure stevia extract, if you're not concerned about weight issues you can use honey or pure maple syrup)
- about 3 tbsp. extra virgin coconut oil (sooooooooo good for you!)
- 2 tbsp. of an unsweetened nut butter (optional)
- vanilla extract (optional, to taste)
- almond milk (unsweetened) - enough to incorporate it all, about 2 tbsp. to 1/4 cup -

Directions:

Put all your dry ingredients in a food processor (no nut butters, almond milk, extract or oil yet), pulse until they are chopped into very small pieces, add your wet ingredients except almond milk, pulse again to incorporate. Gradually add almond milk (just enough to make a "dough" looking mixture, it should be very thick).

Transfer your mixture to a flexible long (rectangular preferably) container (I use the lid of my 9x13" baking pan), spread it out with a spatula or butter knife until it's evenly spread out and it's about 1" thick. Superficially score your mixture with a knife to make squares (about 2" each) and get it into the freezer for about 20 minutes. Take it out and pass the knife again through the lines of the squares just to cut them all the way through (but don't move them yet) and get them back in the freezer for a few hours until they are completely frozen.

Remove from your lid/container/mat and store in Ziploc bags in the freezer, enjoy frozen (or they'll melt/get soggy) ... They are a delicious frozen protein square that even your children will love!

Now... since we are talking about "deals" let me tell you that I buy most of the ingredients in this recipe at Costco (you can get the super affordable swanson protein at Amazon), it is 29.99 for a big container of protein powder (over 2 pounds)


Click here



And I don't think you will find cheaper almonds/pecans, hemp, chia seeds and extra virgin coconut oil than at Costco (but if you do, please let me know!)

If you follow this recipe and do not add any dried fruits/honey or maple syrup each square has:
about 100 calories, less than 1 net carb and everything else is rich nutrition that will energize you! good fats that will heal you but keep in mind that the amount of protein is not high enough for a complete meal so make sure you do incorporate other sources of protein for a whole meal.

So... there you have it! You've made your very own protein squares! If you are a Trim Healthy mama then you know you can enjoy these in an "S" setting. Enjoy!

Paloma.