What's Cookin' on Day 19 of My 24 Day Challenge

Happy Monday y'all.  Hope you've had a good day.  Our weather has been a bit abnormal - wind
blowing like crazy, and the temps dipping down in the 40's tonight . . . and it's almost May.

Tonight there were only two of us home for supper, so I decided to try something new.  After we had a few bites, I told the Mr. thanks for eating all the "experiments" I've been cooking on the Challenge - did I mention it's day 19?  The inches keep melting away and I've still got lots of energy.   Luckily, he replied "no problem".  Right answer.  Guess he knows what's good for him!   Here's what was on the menu . . . Salmon burgers, Zucchini pasta, and Avocado Tomato salad.  I'm really enjoying all the fresh veggies.

Salmon Burgers - 
3 small cans Pink Salmon, drained
2 Egg Whites
1/3 - 1/2 Oat Flour*
1 tsp minced Garlic
1 tsp chopped Cilantro
juice from 1/2 Lime
Kosher Salt & freshly ground Black Pepper

Mix salmon, egg whites and spices together.  Add enough oat flour so the mixture will hold together.  Shape into burgers -  I got 4 good sized burgers out of this recipe.  I cooked the burgers on my George Foreman grill for about 7 minutes, or until golden brown.

Zucchini Pasta
2 medium Zucchini, julienne sliced
1 tsp minced Garlic
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Kosher Salt, Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Heat Olive Oil in skillet.  Add minced garlic and stir for about a minute.  Add julienned zucchini.  Saute for 5-6 minutes until heated through.  Season with Salt and Pepper.

Also tried out this recipe for Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Squares.   I subbed unsweetened applesauce for the brown sugar, and unsweet almond milk for the milk.  I added 2 packets of Stevia for a little more sweetness.

Thanks for stopping by!  If you'd like to learn more about the AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge, go here or leave me a comment.

Saturday, Chocolate & Tuna

Today is day 17 of my 24 Day Challenge with AdvoCare.  I've lost a few pounds, quite a few inches, can feel my pants getting looser, and probably most important - feel awesome!   Besides feeling the best I've felt in quite a few years,  I am also eating healthier.  I have been trying some great new recipes and have two more to share today.  I started my morning off with a 30 minute walk, an awesome chocolate shake (with a spoonful of peanut butter), and then a trip to the grocery!

Recently I read a recipe for Chocolate Protein Bars (think brownies that are GOOD for you!) on Jamie Eason's blog .  One night this week I was going to make these, only to find that one of my sweet girls had put the vanilla whey protein container in the pantry . .  empty!  So, to satisfy my sweet tooth, I settled for a rice cake with peanut butter and a few mini chocolate chips sprinkled on top.  Today I made sure I purchased  the vanilla whey protein powder and came home and mixed these babies up & baked them!

While the brownies protein bars were baking, I mixed up "twisted tuna" for lunch.  Growing up in Florida, we actually had avocado and lime trees in our back yard.  Most of the avocados you see in the grocery here are not the same kind of avocados we had.  I think I remember my dad and granddaddy calling them alligator pears.  They were huge - one of those Florida avocados would make about 3 of the little ones we buy on sale for 10/$10!  Anyway, back to the recipe.  This tuna salad can be adapted to your tastes.  I think it might just be my new favorite thing for lunch!   If you decide to try either of these recipes, let me know what you think please.

Jamie Eason's Chocolate Protein Bars
Here's what you will need to make this treat -
1 cup Oat Flour*
4 Egg Whites
2 scoops Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
1/2 cup Splenda, Truvia, or Ideal
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp Salt
8 oz Berry flavored Baby Food (I used Apple Blueberry)
3 tbsp Cocoa
4 oz Water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix dry ingredients together in bowl.  In a separate bowl mix egg whites, baby food and water.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix together.
Spray square baking dish with a non-stick butter spray and pour batter into dish.
Bake 20 - 30 minutes.
Makes 16 squares (1 serving = 2 squares).
Nutrition Info:  96 calories, 1.4 grams Fat, 12 grams Carbs, 10 grams Protein.
* An easy way to make Oat Flour is to grind up old fashioned oats in a coffee grinder or food processor until it is the consistency of flour.  I store mine in the freezer.

"Twisted" Tuna
1 can water packed Tuna
1 avocado
1 stalk celery
1/2 lime
cilantro, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the avocado in half, remove the seed and peel.  Put avocado in a mixing bowl and "smash" (like the technical term?) it with a form til smooth.  Open the tuna, drain the water and add to bowl.  Chop your celery and cilantro and add.   Squeeze lime juice over all and mix well.  Season to your like with kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper and more cilantro and lime juice if needed.

This would be great served on a bed of lettuce, stuffed into a pita pocket, wrapped in a tortilla or lettuce . . .

If you've got any questions about AdvoCare products or the 24 Day Challenge, you can find more info here  or leave me a comment or send me an e-mail (mary.vannus@yahoo.com).

Hope you have a great weekend!

Mary

Changing How I Cook

Today is day 13 of my 24 Day AdvoCare Challenge.  I've finished the 10-day cleanse, and now I'm in the "Max" phase where you fill your body with great things to help reset your metabolism.  So in the midst of doing this Challenge, I've also changed what I'm eating (and what my family is eating - they have no choice, unless they are going to start cooking!).  Now when I shop, I'm stocking up on fresh fruits & veggies and lean protein.  My shopping path goes around the outside edges of the store - not up and down all the aisles.  I've been a label reader since I did WW several years ago, but now rather than looking at just calories, fat & fiber, I'm looking at all the additives & preservatives that are added to our food.  No wonder so many people are overweight!  And I've not visited my favorite lunch spot - where the slogan is "eat more chicken"  - in several weeks.  Although on my last few visits before the Challenge, my lunch consisted of the grilled chicken nuggets, fruit cup & water so that wasn't too bad.

The first result I noticed just a few days into the Challenge was I was losing the bloated feeling around my midsection (how attractive) and how great I felt!   If you need energy & focus and don't want to drink several cups of coffee, tea, energy or carbonated drinks, you should definitely try Spark.  Got my hubby to give Spark a try (he loves his energy drinks and I hate the way he crashes).  First he told me he wasn't going to drink the "juice", but he did, and he loves it.

By day 10, I'd dropped a few pounds and lost 9 inches overall.  I'm positive several more pounds will be shed by the end of day 24, and more inches.  This is actually the easiest thing I have ever done to lose weight/inches.  I promise if you give it a try, you will not be hungry - you eat every 3 hours so your metabolism doesn't slow down.

I've been looking for new recipes . . . "clean" recipes that are pretty much food in it's natural state without all the salt, preservatives, chemicals, etc.  We've had turkey - zucchini burgers from Jamie Eason's website.  Also used this recipe, but changed it up and made meatballs to serve with spaghetti squash.  Pretty yummy!    We've also tried the Clean Pizza that can be found on He and She Eat Clean.  Another hit at our house.

Tonight I created a crustless quiche (no white flour, no white sugar, etc.).  Here's what I did.

Crustless Quiche -

Spray bottom of glass baking dish with Olive Oil Pam.  Cover the bottom of the dish with a layer of baby spinach.  Now go crazy - start slicing & shopping up all the veggies you love - I used zucchini, baby bella mushrooms, red & yellow peppers, roma tomatoes, Vidalia onions.  Layer this on top of the spinach.  Then I took about 1 1/2 cups of non-fat cottage cheese and spooned that over the top of the veggies.  Because I did an 11 x 13 baking dish, I used 12 eggs.  Crack the eggs in a bowl and whisk til mixed well. Stir in about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of unsweet almond milk.  Add a pinch of  salt and some fresh ground black pepper.  Pour the egg mixture over the veggies.  Bake at 375 for about 35 minutes (or til the eggs are set).

I served this with link turkey sausage.
Fast, easy & delish!  Give it a try.

If you're interested in trying any of the AdvoCare products, or have questions, leave me a comment here or e-mail me at mary.vannus@yahoo.com

To learn about the many wonderful products AdvoCare offers, use this link - https://www.advocare.com/120417347/

A Month of Classes at Just Sew! Studio

Things are getting busy at Just Sew! Studio.  I am really enjoying sharing the art of sewing with some awesome young women.  Some I've known since they were in elementary or middle school, and others I've only known as adults.  Some are moms, and some aren't.  Some are married, and others are single.  I love hearing them say "this is stressing me out", and then see their faces light up when they realize they just accomplished what they thought they couldn't do.  

We have a variety of classes on the calendar for April.  All of them are perfect for a beginning sewer or someone who wants to freshen up those sewing skills they learned a few several years ago in home ec class.  

The first class is an Accessories class on Saturday, April 14.  We'll do a little machine sewing, some hand stitching, and use the glue gun!  A variety of fabrics and ribbons will be available so you can use your design skills and make two original hair bows, a headband with fabric flower, and a hair clip. 

I'm so excited that we are using some of this great designer fabric by Jennifer Paganelli & Riley Blake for the Tank Top Dress class on Friday, April 20.  This was one of the most popular classes offered last year.  We start with a ready made tank top, shirr up one of these cute prints and stitch them together for a super easy, comfy & stylish dress.  Perfect for spring & summer!

 

Aren't they great?  Can't decide which is my favorite!

Moms & Grandmas, there's another opportunity for you to sew a sweet spring dress for your special girl.  On Saturday, April 21 we'll be making peasant dresses.  This is another easy dress that goes together without any trouble; almost as easy as a pillowcase dress!

And on Saturday, April 28 we will learn how to applique.  I'm coming up with a few designs for boys in this class too, so come stitch up something for your little man.  

If you're interested in any of these classes, please check our Facebook page for the links to sign up for any of these classes.

Sweet Stitches,

Mary