Supper-Time "Sunday?"

So, I'm back. I know, I know. It has been a long time. But I have been evaluating and figuring out what I want to do.

I don't want to be solely a food blogger or solely a family blogger. I love health, fitness, nutrition, religion, everything. So you are going to get a little bit of everything here. I will continue to report on my family on our family blog (http://jacobshayla.blogspot.com) but here will be my more personal space where I get to share with you what I love.

So what have I been loving lately? Well for starters....

WENDY'S PROTEIN FROSTY

Recipe + photo courtesy of Janetha over at Meals & Moves

I will always be a smoothie lover. Do I realize that we just had the coldest January Utah has seen in many many years? 19 degree average temperature? Yes. Did that stop me from having a smoothie probably 4 or 5 times a week? Uhhh... no. It just didn't. I sit in bed with my heating pad on high on my stomach, under the covers, delightfully sipping away at my smoothie. 

This particular smoothie is one that I have made for the cute hubster and I a few times while we watch endless episodes of The Mentalist. Love the show? Hate it? Favorite character? Of course, we love Jane but there is just something about Cho that you have to absolutely adore. Love love love.

Anyways, back to smoothie talk. Does it taste like a Wendy's Frosty? Yeah, it is pretty close although you will need to add sweetener if you want it to be close-er. The biggest issue we had with it is that this puppy is THICK. Like, super super super trying to suck a pillow through a straw thick. 

Recommendations? Load up on the ice and go carefully on the xanthan and guar gums. They are necessary but you want an icy/creamy texture not a jaw workout. 

I will post later about my classic go-to protein smoothie. It has cute hubster approval and everything.

________________________________________________

Not enough of a satisfy for your sweet tooth? Well...

CHOCOLATE PB-FUDGE

Recipe + picture courtesy of Katie over at Chocolate-Covered Katie

You can be into health and fitness and nutrition and I can guarantee you are still going to want something sweet now and again. I have a sweet-tooth, no doubt. Is that complicated when I am restricted by a gluten-free/refined sugar-free diet? Oh yeah. That is why people like me RELY on people like Chocolate-Covered Katie to get our sweet-tooth satisfaction.

This fudge was everything that fudge should be. Rich, decadent, with seriously the perfect flavor. Did I change anything in the recipe intentionally? Well, no. Did I not exactly measure things out perfectly precisely? Lol... yes... but it still turned out amazing! We didn't wait to refrigerate ours. We smeared it on strawberries and enjoyed ourselves. However, cute hubster and I both agreed that we liked it better plain. 

And sometimes a spoonful of health-ier fudge is JUST what is needed at the end of the day. 

QUESTION FOR MY DEAR READERS: What are your favorite health-ier desserts? Do you watch The Mentalist?

Loves...Shayla

Supper-Time Sunday!

Overnight Apple Cinnamon Steel Cut Oats (Slow Cooker)

Rating: A

Hearty and delicious - this recipe is definitely a keeper! Since I don't eat added sugars if I can avoid it I didn't add the brown sugar to this recipe at all. I doubled the cinnamon and substituted the butter for coconut oil 1:1. My family just added pure maple syrup to their portions when it was done. I ate mine with just the sweetness from the apples. You also have to be really careful about cooking time. Although this calls for 7 hours mine only took 3 in my INSANE crockpot. 

LINK: http://jamiecooksitup.net/2012/03/overnight-apple-cinnamon-steel-cut-oats-crock-pot/

Instant Mug 'O Mac in the Microwave

Rating: ...B-?

This is a really great idea for a toddler who loves macaroni and cheese. They get to have their favorite dish and you get to feel more confident that they aren't eating a bunch of preservatives and added colors. That being said, however, this technique didn't work for me. I bought a big box of noodles from Sam's Club and I guess the noodles are too "premium" quality for microwave. I had to cook them on the stove top after all. Which is fine. Abrielle still loved it. Maybe you'll have better luck!

LINK: http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2012/05/17/instant-mug-o-mac-cheese-in-the-microwave/

Pasta with Fresh Garden Tomato Sauce

Rating: A+

We have established that I haven't liked tomatoes for my whole life, right? Well I had no anticipation that I would like this but I was making dinner at my parent's house in exchange for my mom cutting Jake's hair. I decided to try it and WOW!!!! I absolutely loved it. Love love love love love. We topped ours with feta instead of parmesan cheese and didn't drizzle any additional olive oil on it. We had it again the next day on top of bread, and again a few days later. It is amazing. Make it. Soooo easy and wonderful!

LINK: http://www.marthastewart.com/904229/pasta-fresh-tomato-sauce

Chocolate Protein Power Balls

Rating: A+

These are excellent! I made a big batch and keep them in the freezer. I take 2 of them with me to eat after a big workout or eat 1 occasionally for a snack. The only substitution that I made was to use natural peanut butter instead of almond butter (I didn't have it). LOVE the flavor, texture, everything!

LINK: http://www.damyhealth.com/2011/04/damy-health-protein-power-balls/

Thai Turkey Burgers

Rating: A+

We have had these twice now. Once I made them with ground chicken and the second time I did turkey. Both were fabulous. The sauce is a perfect combination of sweet and spicy and they are very filling. We will make these again and again!

LINK: http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/meal-ideas/best-healthy-recipes-around-world?page=9

Baked Cinnamon Breakfast Bites

Rating on cooking technique: A-, Rating on crowd consumption: A

These were quite easy to make and seemed to be a great hit at the party I took them to. My husband tried one for me and said they were great and my aunt asked me for the recipe for them. The only change that I made was to use cake flour instead of just all-purpose flour. If you don't have it on hand you can make it by measuring out 1 cup of all-purpose flour and taking out 2 tbsp of it. You then replace those tbsp with 2 tbsp of cornstarch. It helps them to be a little bit lighter and not quite so dense. 

LINK: http://ohmysugarhigh.com/scrumptious-baked-cinnamon-breakfast-bites-recipe/

NOTE: I didn't actually taste these so I can't give you a rating on taste... I can only tell you what others told me!

Clean Eating Gingerbread Waffles

Rating: A-

I really like gingerbread... although Jake does not. I decided to try these anyways and I really liked them. It calls for 5 cups milk and I only used 3 although next time I will probably use 3 1/2 because they turned out very thick. Still delicious. I need to draw your attention to the fact that the recipe calls for NO added sugar. I like them this way and only topped mine with fresh banana slices and peach slices. That was perfect for me. My kids loved them also. I think it could use a little bit of salt added to the batter but otherwise I think it is great.

LINK: http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-ginger-bread-waffles/

Clean Eating Turkey Rice Bowls

Rating: B-

These were okay but were honestly kind of bland. We remedied this situation by adding Sriracha to our portions but it isn't one that I would make again. And if I did I would use fresh pineapple and not canned. But I don't plan on making it again. Maybe you'll like it better?

LINK: http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-curry-pineapple-turkey-rice-bowl/

The "Best" Snickerdoodle Cookie

Rating on cooking technique: A-, Rating on crowd reception: A

These were pretty easy to put together - Abrielle and I did them together. I refrigerated them for too long though and I had to leave them out for a while before they were not too hard to roll out. However, if they get too warm then they flatten a lot more while cooking. They are a bit finicky like that. But my hubby and our neighbors loved them and so I will probably make them again.

LINK: http://www.lovintheoven.com/2010/03/even-better-snickerdoodle.html