Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate and an Egg White Pancake

Last night's dinner was a FreshDirect "short cut" of Stewed Pull Chicken. We served it with a salad and gluten free schar parbaked rolls. It was easy, simple and only 8 points. It was so beautiful out last night, so Ryan and I went for a walk after dinner and went to buy dessert. I was planning on making quest bar cereal, but we bought Ben & Jerry's Froyo Chocolate Fudge Brownie and Immaculate Gluten Free Fudge Brownie Chocolate Cookie Dough...YUM! The cookies were gluten and dairy free. It was a chocolate overload (and I topped it with arctic zero chocolate peanut butter ice cream). Each cookie is 4 points, but I wanted froyo so I measured out 19g of cookie dough (2 points) and 52g of froyo (2 points) and 35g of arctic zero (0 points) for the most delicious chocolatey dessert. I topped it with 3g hemp granola (0 points) and 3g coconut chips (0 points).

I loved that the cookie dough was pre cut into chunks so it was really easy to put on a baking sheet and bake for 13 minutes!

This morning I had breakfast at home. It was an egg white and oatmeal pancake with chia seeds and powdered peanut butter blended together (6 points) and topped with hemp granola, flax seeds, goji berries and sliced almonds (toppings weighed to be 0 points)! This was so filling and I used a small pan so it was really thick and fluffy!

Last night I prepped a chicken salad for lunch today. Maybe I can try to get outside to eat for a bit today!

It is so warm and sunny this morning so I walked to work! It was beautiful and a nice change from the cold windy days we've had (and still have ahead of us this week)!

Tomorrow starts the craziness of our busy weekend beginning with early bar method and an evening focus group. Long days are made a lot easier though when it is still bright out when I head home!

I hope everyone enjoys the sunshine today! Get out and take a walk if you can!!

XO

Evening Bar Method Workout

Last night's bar method class was great! I got off the waitlist and into Tiana's 5:45pm class which takes place in the smaller studio C. I really like the small studio because the class is small so there is more attention on each individual. My shoulder was really hurting by the end of the day so I did take a few modifications like push-ups against the bar and laying down on the mat during round back. The hardest part of class was during final stretch when you pull on the stretching strap - that seemed to hurt my shoulder the most. We did arabesque for seat work and I was shaking through the whole thing. It had been awhile since I had done it so it took a little bit to get used to the turned out position and having my hips uneven. During foldover it's important to keep your hips squared and not turned out and since I had done so much foldover this month, I had to remind myself that arabesque is different. It works your obliques as well as the underside of your seat. It felt really good!

I got home and made a kale and grain salad. I got the kale and mixed grains from FreshDirect pre-made deli salad. It was made with sprouted mixed grains, including mung bean, letins and brown rice, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, kale, soybeans, cashews and olive oil. I served it with mesclun salad, tomatoes and cucumbers to give it the appearance of being more than just grains in a plastic container! It was delicious and filling for an evening meal (it was 7:30pm by the time I got home so I was eating much later than I was used to). The total was 8 WW Points.

For dessert, I was really excited to bake a quest bar. Since I had a cookies and cream bar before bar method, I opted to only have half of a chocolate chip chunk for dessert. I didn't want too much protein and I didn't think eating 2 protein bars in a short amount of time was a great idea. Tonight though, I prepared to have only 1 quest bar after spin and have 2 hard boiled eggs before the class. The baked quest bar was delicious!! Even more than just microwaving it.

I baked the bar on foil in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. The outside was browned and crispy and the inside was moist and gooey. Even having half felt like such a treat! The chocolate chunks and the gooey cookie made me think I was actually having a perfect chocolate chip cookie, but it was even better! I topped it with chocolate peanut butter arctic zero and some coconut chips. It was only 2 WW points for half of the quest bar and I only had half a serving of the arctic zero for 0 points!

Tonight I am going to bake the cookie dough bar (5 WW points). I cannot wait to try that.

This morning I slept in again since I had taken an evening bar method class and had breakfast with Ryan. We made egg white and oatmeal pancakes topped with almond butter and coconut. It looked just like a juice generation acai bowl! I even blended some almond better with the egg whites. It was nice to spend the morning with Ryan (and Haley) and commute to work in 10 minutes. But, it is much harder for me to go to an evening bar class so it's easier for me to wake up and go and have it done with. Because you need 12 hours to cancel a morning class and only 2 hours to cancel and evening class, I can always talk myself out of going at night because I'm too tired from work, or I am too hungry, or I just want to see Ryan. But the mornings need much more of a commitment with the cancellation policy so I just have to get myself out of bed and get to the studio and I know I will feel much better afterwards.

I am exciting to spin tonight too. I haven't been to Pablo's class since before Italy! I know I am going to be sore but I am going to bar method tomorrow morning so that will certainly help stretch me out before my muscles know what happened to them! I usually hate spinning - I hate being yelled at, I hate feeling like I am in boot camp, and I hate thinking that I need to burn calories and sweat in order to lose weight. The problem with spin is that, yes you burn a lot of calories, but that is not an excuse to stuff your face when the class is over. People over eat after a spin class because they think they sweat so much and need the "fuel." I also don't want my muscles to bulk up so I don't turn the resistance knob as much as I could, but I need some resistance so that I do get a good workout and my muscles have something to do. Spinning with no resistance is pointless! I also love spin because I usually get 6 activity points so it's great on weeks (like this week) when I need a boost in points, especially with a 16 course tasting menu on Saturday!! Pablo is a lot of fun though. Pablo (and all of the instructors at the studio) are so encouraging and they tell you to ride for yourself and not for them or anyone in the class. They tell you that you don't have to follow the routine and to be at your own pace - make it about you and what you want to accomplish. It's a great 45 minutes where you break a sweat, you get out of your own thoughts and you listen to some really awesome music and just take a ride.

I hope everyone is having a great day! It's really cold out and I know we're all looking forward to warmer weather. Just stay positive!

XO

Slow Cooked Turkey Meatballs

I love coming home to the smells of a home cooked meal. I think it was part of growing up - my mom would cook dinner every night for the family when we got home from school and the smell of it throughout the house is something I will never forget. And she always had fresh baked bread to go with the meal. On weekends, she would even make homemade bagels.

Last night I walked home from work. It was a little bit cold, but since I had been sitting at my desk all day and I hadn't done a morning bar class, I knew I needed a little activity! So I walked home (that got me to a total of 9,000 steps for the day and 1 WW activity point). I got home within 20 minutes and the turkey meatballs I had prepped in the morning were warming in the slow cooker. I love that I was able to cook them for 6 hours, but still keep them warm even though I wasn't home! Slow cooking is so easy and because I slow cook in large batches, we have leftovers for days! I was already thinking about all of the meal possibilities that we could make with left over meatballs (meatball parm or meatball wraps anyone)!

Ryan and I had meatballs with mashed potatoes (FreshDirect Sides in a Snap) and asparagus. I love crunchy, bright green asparagus and it was a nice break from our usual salad. 4 meatballs with sauce were 5 points and 1/2 cup of mashed potatoes were 5 points. The meat was dense, but still moist from having slow cooked for 6 hours. Next time I might even cook it for 4 or 5 hours since the meatballs are so small. Or I could make 12 meatballs instead of 24 so that 2 meatballs would be 4 points. However, eating more is a mind game so having 4 meatballs (small) instead of 2 (large) seems like a lot more to me. And if I think I am eating a lot more, then I stay fuller longer!

For dessert, I had a Yopa greek yogurt with dark chocolate bits that I had put in the freezer. It was just like eating ice cream, and I topped it with a banana.

Tonight I am going to SoHo for a Bar Method class. I really wanted to sleep in now that the upstairs neighbors haven't been so loud and I wanted to have breakfast with Ryan! He made ham and cheese on udi's gluten free bread with eggs over easy and I had an egg white omelette topped with powdered peanut butter, flax seeds and a banana! It was fun to sit around with Ryan, watching the morning news and getting ready on my own time. However, this morning, I am feeling not working out and I feel a little sluggish. I am excited for an evening class, but I am not excited about it being at 6:30pm. It means I won't be home until 8pm. I hope it warms up a bit so maybe I could bike home. It's been awhile since I took citibike since I got so used to the early morning bus/train commute, so it's about time I took a bike ride!

I also plan to go to spin tomorrow night. If I am going to complain about feeling bloated, sluggish, tired and not happy, then I need to do something about it. A good diet is great, but exercise helps get everything moving and sweating mentally tells me that I am doing something good for my body. I sweat a lot more in evening bar classes because the studios are warmed up, people have been in classes all day, and the air is not as fresh (sounds gross, but the morning classes have cold studios from not being used all night, so I don't break a sweat). It's all mental - I am not working any harder in an evening class than a morning one, but sweating makes me feel like I am pushing myself harder. I also am a bit more flexible at night because my body has been moving all day (well, not really since I sit for 8 hours). I feel more flexible, stronger, and more capable of going lower, tucking harder and even taking some of the challenges like raising my legs in flat back or the L shape in round back. I did hurt my shoulder last night, so unfortunately I will be modifying with push-ups at the bar tonight. I am going to have a Quest Cookies and Cream bar before class (my new favorite flavor) and a pre-made kale and grain FreshDirect salad when I get home for muscle recovery protein! Night classes usually energize me, so I hope that I will be able to fall asleep reasonably early. I have been feeling so refreshed lately now that I have been sleeping through the night!

I also worked to work this morning, again, it was cold, but it felt good to get in some activity before I sat around all day since I didn't do a morning bar class!

Below is the Turkey meatball recipe. Skinnytaste recipe can be found here! I used 99% fat free turkey breast and gluten free breadcrumbs. This can be made with turkey, chicken or beef (WW Points will vary). Enjoy.

Skinnytaste Crock Pot Italian Turkey Meatballs
Servings: 6 (4 meatballs)
Weight Watchers Points: 5

Meatballs
1 pound turkey breast, ground
3 tbsp Schar gluten free breadcrumbs
4 tbsp grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup parsley
1 egg
1 garlic clove, crushed
salt and pepper to taste

Sauce
1 tsp olive oil
4 garlic cloves, crushed
28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large bowl, combine turkey, breadcrumbs, egg, parsley, garlic and cheese. Mix all of the ingredients together.

2. Form small meatballs and set aside (24 meatballs)

3. Meanwhile, in a small pan, heat olive oil over medium heat.

4. Add garlic and saute until golden, be careful not to burn.

5. Pour crushed tomatoes into slow cooker with bay leaf. Add garlic and oil from pan.

6. Add meatballs to slow cooker.

7. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

Serve and enjoy!

Warm Chai Cupcakes on a cold snowy night with a green pancake for breakfast!

A Nor'easter has come to NYC and it has brought winds, snow, ice, rain and a lot of unhappy commuters with it. I am so ready for winter to be over and for the warmer weather to be here! I hate being cold and bundled up and not being able to walk a lot! But in preparation for the storm, Ryan and I mad Carrot, Walnut, Chai cupcakes with a vanilla maple frosting. The chai mix was something I found at Home Goods last weekend with my mom. It is gluten free and if you use non-dairy milk, it is dairy free as well. I don't like to use mixes a lot but when I do, I love added my own ingredients to it to make it more special! To a chia mix, the thought of a walnut carrot addition sounded perfect. I used Wholesome Chow Chai Mix and Wholesome Chow Vanilla Frosting Mix and to the frosting I added maple syrup and vanilla extract. The cupcakes were so moist and the added carrot and walnut added so much to a simple mix and the maple in the frosting made this cupcake super delicious!

Carrot, Walnut Chai Cupcake with Maple Vanilla Frosting
Servings: 12 Cupcakes
Weight Watchers Points: 9 per cupcake

Cupcakes
Wholesome Chow Gluten Free Vegan Chia Spice Cake Mix
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cup Lactaid Milk 2% (Use non-dairy milk to make these dairy free)
1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

Frosting
Wholesome Chow GF Vegan Vanilla Frosting Mix
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp Lactaid Milk 2%
2 tbsp Pure Maple Syrup
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

TO MAKE CUPCAKES
1. Preheat oven to 35o degrees. Line or grease cupcake pan.

2. In a medium bowl, combine Milk and Apple Cider Vinegar. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes, until foamy.

3. Meanwhile, shred carrots and chop walnuts.

4. Add olive oil to milk and vinegar mixture and whisk well.

5. Whisk (or use stand mixer) baking mix with the liquid ingredients and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds.

6. Add carrots and walnuts and continue to mix until blended well..

7. Pour batter into cupcake pan and bake for 20 minutes.

8. Let cool before adding frosting.

TO MAKE FROSTING
1. In stand mixer, whip butter until creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes.

2. Add frosting mix, maple syrup, vanilla extract and milk, whip on low speed for 1 minute until mix is well combined.

3. Increase speed to high and beat for 5 minutes until frosting is fluffy.

TO PREPARE FROSTED CUPCAKES
After cupcakes are cool, add frosting to each. Frosting can be stored in fridge if not used immediately.

Serve and Enjoy!

It's snowing a lot and when I woke up this morning, a lot of my coworkers were working from home. Now that I moved so close to the office, I didn't think it was fair to not try to come in and work. But I did get to sleep in a little until 7am. I decided to make a warm breakfast at home before trekking out in the snow so I decided to make my usual egg white and oatmeal pancake. This time though, I added spinach to the mixture and blended all of the ingredients in the nutribullet (similar to my green eggs). I blended the oats as well, though next time I might blend all ingredients and add oats at the end. The batter was super green and Ryan even thought I was making a bullet to drink. 3 hours since breakfast and I am still full and satisfied which is my biggest struggle when I eat breakfast at home before coming to work. I try to eat lunch at 1pm to make the day spread out so that I am not starving by 3pm/4pm which is when I will start snacking and craving sugar. But that means I usually try to eat breakfast at 9:30am so I don't have to wait too long until my next meal. I cooked up the batter and topped it with almond butter, flax seeds and a banana. Ryan made corn bread for breakfast and a spinach, grape, orange and raspberry bullet! We ate breakfast together before I layered up to go to work.

Ryan is working from home and doing some work around the house. I don't mind being at the office when its a snow day - the work day is slow but its a different experience than when everyone is here and busy! We are ordering pizza for lunch and I got to order a separate salad since I am not eating pizza that isn't gluten free.

I hope everyone stays safe and warm and dry today in this crazy weather - just remember, the more snow storms we have, the closer we are to winter being over!!!!! My biggest problem with this weather is how little activity I have. I can't wait until its warm and I can start walking to and from work and biking more. I probably have to take the bus/train to Bar Method tomorrow morning - the citibikes are buried under 3 feet of snow right now!

XO