Spiralizing Veggies - Zoodles!

I recently bought my own sprializer. Spiralizers are used to cut fruits and vegetables in a thin, spiral-like shape - almost like spaghetti. I had seen a lot of recipes on Pinterest and heard from friends that it was a great substitute for pasta, so I figured I'd give it a try, and boy was I happy.

I'm a carb lover, so pasta is one of my favorites, but this zucchini noodle - or zoodle - substitute was just as great. First of all, I love the fun shape and never ending spirals that I can create. Second, it's super easy and takes just a few minutes to cook! And third, it's calorie count is extremely low, so I don't feel guilty about eating a full plate of "zoodles." Keep reading to see my recipe.

Since I was just making dinner for myself, I used one medium-large sized zucchini, but you can adjust the recipe to reflect however many people you are cooking for.

Ingredients

1-2 medium zucchinis
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Cut the ends off of the zucchini and place into spiralizer.
Use the spiralizer until all zucchini has been put through.
In a medium saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat.
Add zoodles to pan and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
Plate and add your favorite toppings!

I topped my zoodles dish with organic vodka sauce and grilled chicken, but I'm looking forward to trying different toppings and combinations. This is a great dish for those who are eating clean too! If you're interested in what eating clean means, check out my last post or click here. 

Do you have a spiralizer? Have you ever made zoodles before? What are your favorite spiralizer recipes?

The Easy Guide to Eating Clean

I'm the type of girl who hates diets. I love food and I love eating (and I especially love my carbs), so going through the diet cycle of losing and gaining weight was frustrating and annoying. Last April, I discovered "eating clean." Yes, there are restrictions, but I felt that I had much more freedom than I did on other fad diets, and I felt and looked great! So for Lent this year, I went back to strictly eating clean again.

Last April, I picked up Tosca Reno's book, The Eat Clean Diet, to get started. In simple terms, it's all about eating all natural food, eating small portions all throughout the day and pairing complex carbs with proteins. Your body doesn't want to run on preservatives, additives and artificial flavors, so simply feed it the right natural ingredients, and I promise you'll feel great!

I recommend purchasing a book like Reno's to begin or at least doing lots of research online. She gives you a lot of background about what foods are good and why and gives you tips to remember along the journey. But like I said, in simple terms, eating clean means eating foods that are in their whole form without any odd ingredients that you don't recognize or can't pronounce.

In order to do this, you have to become label obsessed at first. But the good thing is, instead of looking at the calories, fat or carbs on the label, you're looking at the ingredients. I was surprised to find that some of my favorite foods that I thought were "clean" weren't at all. For example, most peanut butters have added salts and sugars, so I switched to an all natural peanut butter. Even ketchup has added sugar! Whole Food Markets will become your best friends.

Here are some examples of foods that I was eating before that I switched out for clean foods:

White Potatoes -> Sweet Potatoes

White Rice -> Brown Rice or Quinoa 

Instant Oatmeal -> Steel Cut Oats

Peanut Butter -> All Natural Peanut Butter or Almond Butter

White Bread -> Whole Wheat Bread

White Pasta -> Whole Wheat Pasta

In summary:

• Only eat whole foods - no additives, artificial flavoring, etc.
• Check the label - always check the food label to see what ingredients are in the food. You may be surprised with what you find.
• Try to pair complex carbs (like whole wheat bread or brown rice) with proteins (like chicken or almonds)
• Drink lots of water! At least 8 glasses a day.
• Schedule your meals - This makes it a lot easier at the grocery store and so you won't stray away from your plan.
• Try to avoid sugars and sodium as much as possible.
• Eat 5-6 small meals throughout the day.

Remember it may be hard to change your ways at first, but I promise you, it's worth it. Even if you eat clean during the week and save your weekends for indulging, that's making progress! I'll be posting recipes here on my blog (like the maple salmon pictured above), but you can find tons of supplemental information and fun recipes to try on Pinterest too!

Have you ever tried eating strictly clean? What are your favorite clean recipes?

Easy & Healthy Protein Pancakes

I've recently joined the Tone It Up team! You may have seen the wonderful Karena and Katrina on their show, Toned Up, on Bravo lately - the season finale is tonight. Tone It Up is a health/fitness community that provides workouts, recipes and support from other ladies all around the world!

I'm part of the "Members Only Group" because I purchased the nutrition plan that also comes with exclusive recipes and meal plans. I'm currently doing the 7 Day Slim Down to kick start my journey and one of the recipes for breakfast is the Perfect Fit Protein Pancake. Perfect Fit is a type of protein supplement with the Tone It Up brand, but I just use a soy protein that I got at the grocery store. 

I was a little skeptical when I saw the ingredients for this because they sounded a bit out of the ordinary, but it came out tasting great with some all natural maple syrup on top and fresh strawberries on the side. It's a great light breakfast or snack after a workout. Check out the recipe below and let me know what you think!

Ingredients (serving size: 1 pancake)

4 teaspoons protein powder
1/2 banana, mashed
1/2 tablespoon almond milk
1/4 cup egg whites
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

- Mash banana and mix with almond milk until combined
- Add the rest of the ingredients and mix throughly
- Spray skillet or pan with cooking spray and slowly pour batter into pan
- Wait for 3-5 minutes, check the bottom of the pancake, then flip and cook for a few more minutes until it's cooked all the way through and both sides are golden brown

3 Ingredient Maple Salmon

I grew up in Clearwater, FL surrounded by the ocean and I've always loved seafood. One of my favorite types of fish is salmon. Not only is it delicious, but also really healthy for you! It contains omega-3 fatty acids which are great for your heart and your brain by lowering your cholesterol and improving memory, among tons of other benefits.

The great thing about this maple salmon recipe is that it's super easy and great for beginner cooks - it's very low maintenance and only has three ingredients! It's also a meal that can be cooked for one person or a whole family. The ingredients below reflect a single serving size, but just multiply the ingredients to reflect how many people you'll be cooking for.

This meal is also clean, which means that I used all fresh and natural ingredients - no preservatives or additives - so you can eat well and still enjoy your meal!

I had my salmon over a bed of brown rice and quinoa with a side of asparagus and avocado. I would love to hear your experience if you decide to try this maple salmon. Also let me know if you try adding anything else into the ingredients. Have fun and enjoy!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon soy sauce

5 - 7 ounces of salmon

Directions

 - Put salmon in a bowl or dish and pour the maple syrup and soy sauce over top the piece of salmon.

 - Work salmon into marinade and place covered in refrigerator for 30 minutes, turning once.

 - Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

 - Place salmon into a baking dish (I like to put aluminum foil on the bottom to avoid a mess), and pour the remaining marinade over top of the fish.

 - Bake uncovered in oven for about 20 minutes or until the fish is flaky.