Just Protein Pancakes

"I feel like I've never done this before"...Annie, Overboard

I was on Facebook one day last winter when one of the pages I follow shared a page for Protein Pancakes. Alas, as someone who typically tries to eat a healthy diet pancakes were not something I had regularly. So I was excited about the idea of pancakes that were in fact good for me to eat, and not the starchy substance that all health magazines and sites encourage you to avoid. This was new territory!

So of course I picked up the few ingredients I needed to make these magical pancakes, and whipped them for breakfast the next morning. This is actually how I discovered Tone It Up! -  http://www.toneitup.com/ which is a great online company that offers a lot of excellent information and tips as well as workouts and a nutritional plan.

This recipe has as much protein as an omelette and keeps you full all morning. I like a good omelette,  but I seriously can't eat eggs every morning. You can really vary the ingredients to suit your style. Or make easy substitutions depending on what you have on hand. For example, you could use some apple sauce if you do not have a banana on hand or vary the fruit. I have these a few mornings a week so I like to get creative! You could also have them as a snack. Here is the original recipe below:

Ingredients:
1/4 cup egg whites
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (organic brown rice protein or whey)- visit your local nutrition store or wholefoods!
2 tbs vanilla almond milk or skim
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbs ground flaxseed
After above ingredients are mixed together add 1/2 banana (mashed)- mash first, then add!!
Add a handful of fresh or frozen blueberries

Pour into a pan that has been sprayed with olive oil cooking spray ~ heat on medium. Cook one side until you see the little bubbles.. just like cooking any pancake! Flip over (careful!) and cook on the other size until the middle is done (peek inside with a fork). Top with two sliced strawberries and optional powdered stevia. ENJOY your protein pancakes :)

Just Curry Tuna Cakes

"Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid."... Mom, Almost Famous

This recipe caught my eye a few weeks ago on one of the blogs I follow -  http://carrotsncake.com/ . I really admire Tina who is the woman who started Carrots N Cake as she was one of the first big healthy living blogs. She even got a book published of her recipes which really shows you how powerful this medium has become. Tina is also one of the "founders" of the Healthy Living Summit which is an event that I hope to attend next year. It's great to see an example of someone who followed their bliss and through time and dedication turned their passion into their profession.

Here was the recipe:

Curry Tuna Cakes
Ingredients:
1 can of tuna, drained
1 egg
1/2 tbsp coconut flour
1/2 tsp curry
1 tsp minced garlic
Chopped scallions
Salt + pepper to taste
Coconut or olive oil for the pan

Directions:
Combine all ingredients (except oil) in a bowl; blend well.
Divide tuna mixture in half and then form into two cakes.
Heat pan on medium-low heat and coat with oil.
Add tuna cakes to pan and slowly cook on each side until lightly browned.
Remove from pan and serve immediately.

Makes 2 cakes

I was sort of intrigued as to how canned tuna would be cooked. With all of the spices it was actually quite delicious. Sadly my cakes did not hold their shape quite as well as Tina's. I think people are a little too concerned sometimes with how foods look. When you are cooking alternatively you have to accept that it might not turn out as perfectly as you would like. With some avocado slices and roasted asparagus on the side it honestly did not matter. I recommend checking out the blog and this recipe.

Just Relax

"The reason that I can be 38 and have two kids and wear a bikini is because I work my ass off. It's not an accident. It's not luck, it's not fairy dust, it's not good genes. It's killing
myself for an hour and half five days a week, but what I get out of it is relative to what I put into it. That's what I try to do in all areas of my life." Gwyneth Paltrow

Kudos to Gwyneth for stating the obvious. I remember this from an interview she had done within the past year or so. I thought it was so refreshing for a celebrity to completely come clean about what it takes for a woman to look good. Let alone one who is in her late thirties and has had children. It's dedication and not magic. Honestly, it's not even being rich and famous because I know we can all name a good amount of television and movie stars who have less than perfect bodies. I thought she was dispelling a lot of mystery.

Of course her bold statement elicited a lot of backfire as people criticized her less than perfect body and mocked her think frame. She was challenging other people that they could in fact do it too which only made them angrier.

I work out 5-6 days a week if you count yoga classes. Is that too much? I guess I probably maintain a schedule a little like Paltrow. Working out is one of those weird things where there is no guideline for how much you should do. Most people mock working out as one of those things they can't imagine fitting in at all. So is any type of regular exercise schedule viewed as overkill or an over indulgence of time? Sometimes it's hard to gauge by the way people react. I am almost a little insulted when people comment that I'm so skinny when I really want to be seen as fit.

I have struggled with pain in my right shoulder for about a year now. It comes and goes so some days I feel ok. This week has particularly bad. I did a low impact workout on Monday night and I had to skip my yoga class tonight. I went for a walk instead, but It felt a little like a set back to me as I settled in for the night with a bath and a glass of wine. I had to remind myself that like everything else it's a journey and not a destination. You cannot let challenges deter you from your goals in any area of your life. It's important to get back on that bicycle and just keep pedaling. However, for tonight it was nice to take it easy and relax. After all, to look good and feel good it's vital to listen to your body.

Just Pasta

"Snap Out of It!"....Moonstruck, Loretta Castorini

Moonstruck is the ultimate movie that inspires Italian-style cooking for me. Probably for a lot of other people too since there are very few people who don't like Italian food! I was driving home from the gym last night and was thinking about what to have for dinner. For some reason, I was just craving marinara sauce. Maybe the tang of the tomato? I was not sure really. I thought about how I could satisfy this craving while still making a healthy meal..  

I think it's really vital to find ways to make your favorite foods while still finding short cuts to make them better for you. It's no fun to deprive yourself of the things you really want to eat. A great way to do this is to learn to cook for yourself if you don't already. Then you can substitute where you need to in recipes or modify meals you have in restaurants. Isn't that easier then pledging you'll start you diet tomorrow? Maybe it's time to snap out of the cycle.

My simple recipe combined a healthy complex carbohydrate, protein, greens and some healthy fats. Plus, it was very easy!

Chicken Sausage Arugula Pasta

1/2 Cup Quinoa Pasta (you could also use whole wheat if you prefer)

1 Cup Arugula

1 Chicken Sausage (you can pick these up at Trader Joe’s or Stop and Shop)

1/2 Cup Marinara Sauce

½ tsp Olive Oil

2 tsp Parmesan Cheese (I always prefer fresh)

Add Ground Pepper and/or Red Pepper Flakes

While I boiled the water for the pasta, I cooked the chicken sausage in pan with a cooking spray. When both were done, I combined all of the ingredients in a bowl the marinara sauce which I had heated separately. I topped it all with the Parmesan cheese, pepper, and red pepper flakes.

Just Zumba

"No one puts baby in the corner"...Johnny Castle, Dirty Dancing

Or do they? Zumba is a latin dance craze that has become a popular feature at many a local gym. I hear a lot of people say they love it, and that it hardly feels like you are working out...I guess because they are having so much fun. Interesting. I can move around on a dance floor, but following a specific routine on the fly is not a specialty of mine.

So this past Friday night, I decided to jump on the bandwagon and give this dance-a-thon a try. I was running late of course from silly rush hour traffic that I didn't anticipate on a Friday afternoon. So I jumped right in with a group of about seven women who were all moving at different paces and levels.

There was a lot of cha-cha-cha and what felt a little bit like dancing at a wedding. You know how you become excited when you hear music you have heard before? So it was a little awkward at first, but gradually as I became more comfortable during the class I was moving a little more fluidly. The hour did go by rather fast and the positive spirit in the room was kind of catching.

I would not say it was an intense workout. I am sure they are all different but this class was not.  However, it did get my heart rate going and after a full day at work it simply felt good to move. I am not sure if I will return every Friday night to the class, but when the mood strikes I think it may make a guest appearance.

Just Walk

A Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with a Single Step. Proverb

There's nothing like a good walk to clear your head and this is often what I use my daily walk to do. It allows me to think things through or mull things over...sometimes it helps me come up with new blog posts! I try to walk every day for 20 minutes. I live in New Jersey and the weather doesn't always cooperate, but I do my best. As a cube dweller, I had been looking for a way to add in a little extra movement during my day. I do a lot of sitting during a typical day. So now I like to enjoy my lunch and then go for a 20 minute walk to just get moving.

Walking is also a great way to get started with a weight loss routine. It helps your body grow stronger though increasing your cardiovascular capacity. It's so simple, and all it requires is slipping on a pair of sneakers! I keep a pair at my desk. I highly recommend walking to get started with a walking routine if you want to start exercising or need a little bit of a boost to lose a few pounds. There have been studies that have shown that walking a little after you eat improves digestion as well. It's a win-win.

Just Sweet & Sour Fiesta Salad

"Why not? Life is short. Life is dull. Life is full of pain. And this is a chance for something special." Juan Antonio, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

I believe that eating and food should be a special experience. It's important to eat foods that we love and that love us back in terms of the nutrition they provide. I totally  heart this salad that I came up with over the summer. I just put it together one day just using miscellaneous items I had in my fridge. Honestly sometimes experiments results in the best meals! It's also another reason I like prepping food over the weekends because you can just grab different items and put them together. Even if you are cooking just for yourself it should be a ritual that you savor and enjoy. Hence, don't eat a bowl of cereal and a cookie standing at your kitchen counter because you can't be bothered. Whenever I have been lazy and done this I just end up eating odd snacks throughout the night, and I'm never really satisfied.

I came home from yoga class the other night and this was exactly what I wanted.
I was impressed I even made it to class since we were experiencing horrible rain storms and it's always a production for me to venture out in the rain. Aren't some nights just tougher than others?

Sweet and Sour Fiesta Salad

Salad
3 cups of greens (I prefer arugula but you could used mixed greens, spinach or kale)
1/2 cup cooked sweet potato (I toss the skin)
2 tablespoons chopped red onion (I always prefer the taste of red onion since I think it's sweeter and I also learned recently that white onions are surprisingly high in sugar...who knew?)
3 tablespoons corn (I defrosted some frozen corn I had on hand in the microwave)
1/4 of an avocado chopped
3 tablespoons black beans
3 tablespoons diced red pepper
3 ounces grilled chicken or protein of your choice (you could also use a white fish like cod or tilapia and tofu is great as a vegetarian option)

Dressing
2 tablespoons nonfat plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon chipotle or flavored mayonnaise
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Extra lime and salt/pepper to taste

It's so tasty and very filling! This serving is for one person so you could just double up on ingredients to make it for more people.

If you are feeling festive you could add a Skinny Girl Margarita to round out the meal. Who doesn't love Bethenny Frankel and her cocktails?