Hello Powermealaweekers! Here is my "Naner Vanilla and PB Fluff Chia Pudding".  Please do not judge based on what this looks like...haha. It's as easy as it sounds to make. I first took 1 tbsp of chia and mixed it with 1/4 cup almond milk and sugar free vanilla pudding mix (1/2 tbsp). Mix and let it sit for about 30 mins so the chia can absorb the milk. After the longest half hour ever, I cut half a banana and top it off with some PB Fluff (2 tbsp PB2 and 1/4 cup water). This tasted like heaven in my mouth. I wish I had made more, but I ran out of bananas. This was for dessert the other night. My dog was on my lap trying to eat it because PB and banana is his favorite!  Go make this now for a healthy and delicious snack/dessert/justbecause. 

Good Morning Spoonable Smoothie

So this morning I had a hankering for a smoothie that I could eat with a spoon. I found this yummy looking recipe on Pinterest and tweaked it a little for my needs.  I included half a banana, half cup frozen mixed berries, half cup of almond milk, and a half cup of Greek yogurt.  The recipe also called for 1 heaping tbsp of PB, but I decided not to include that this morning. If it was  post work-out smoothie, you could include protein powder and more fruit if you want. I blended away and topped it with homemade granola and fresh strawberries. However, I was super excited to eat it, that I forgot to take a picture, so I am including a picture from the website I found it at: Sweet Verbena. What are some of your favorite spoonable smoothie recipes?

Sunday Power meal a week

I am new to following Powercakes, but I love everything I have tried so far. I like the idea of challenging ourselves to eat better, and have others out there doing the same thing. It's easy to get recipe ideas from others (especially when you get bored with your lunches). For post workout breakfast, I made Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes. They were tasty(cakes)! 

Here is the recipe:

• 1/4 cup coconut flour (ground up coconut)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg
• 1/4 cup fresh pumpkin puree
• 3 eggs (I used 1 whole egg and 2 flax eggs)
• 1 tablespoon coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil (I used 1/2 tbsp and 1 tbsp applesauce)
• 1/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1. Mix together coconut flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg with a whisk.
2. In another bowl, whisk together eggs, coconut oil, coconut milk, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, and pumpkin puree.
3. Gradually add the coconut flour mixture to the egg mixture as you whisk the ingredients together until well combined.
4. Heat coconut oil or butter over medium-low heat until melted.
5. Spoon the batter into the pan in whatever size you prefer. The batter is thick, so you can shape them with the spoon. They do not bubble like regular pancakes, so keep an eye on them to make sure they’re done on one side, then flip. They should need several minutes for each side.
6. Check the edges to see if they’re done. No raw batter should show.
7. Serve with maple syrup, fruit, butter, or plain. (I did 1 tbsp sugar free maple syrup and 1/2 tbsp coconut oil heated in microwave together.Yum!)

TLC: The Losing Channel

As a society, us Americans LOVE to watch drama. We have sitcoms, soap operas, prime time, and...... TLC? Last time I checked TLC stood for :The Learning Channel. In college, I used to watch A Baby Story and What Not to Wear on a daily basis. Nowadays I hardly ever watch the station. And there's a reason. Toddlers & Tiaras. Since when is this a learning show? I mean, parents can learn what NOT to do, but this does not fit in with the station's tender loving shows they once relied on. My thinking is that they are trying to keep up with the rest of the stations (Jersey Shore, Real Housewives, etc) but this show really gets to me, especially as someone who works with children everyday. There is something wrong with a 5 year old girl with a face full of make-up, high heels, and looking like she belongs on a stripper pole rather than a stage. Why are these women allowed to procreate? They care more about THE PAGEANT than their own child. These moms take their sweet daughters and turn them into spoiled brats in one brush stroke of eye shadow. Who takes 2 packets of sugar and pours it down their daughter's throat? These moms were pageant girls who never made it.

I could go on and on about this show. But I went end with 2 words of advise: Let your daughter go out and roll around in the mud. Take off the make-up Mom and stop living vicariously through your daughter!

Shame on you TLC for giving in to society's demands. Find something to spotlight other than washed up Moms and their bratty daughters .

Game Day Goodies

Today's the day. The whole enchilada. The biggest game of a football player's life. The Superbowl. The day when people's diets don't really matter. Wrap your bacon in bacon and fry it up! This year I just went simple: Brown Sugar Blondies.

I chose Patriot colored M&Ms to Superbowl them up. I call these "Brady's Blondies."

First off, I noticed it was a very small batch so that kinda made me mad. There's only about 4 left that I didn't use for the photo. Second, I was a little disappointed when they were done because they tasted more life chocolate chip cookie brownies then brown sugar brownies. In the original post, the author use M&Ms too. I wonder if that's what they taste like or if the chocolate makes them taste like that? Either way they are good, but I wanted them to taste less like choco chip cookies. I was originally going to make these on Valentine's Day for my kids, but I'm not sure anymore.

Here is the recipe if you'd like to give it a go (I would appreciate any feedback on the taste):

Brown Sugar Blondies (stolen from Baked Perfection)

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup to 1 1/3 cup M&M's

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).

Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and set aside. Melt 1/3 cup butter. Add 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar and mix well. Cool slightly. Add egg (beaten) and vanilla and blend well. Add flour mixture, a little at a time, mixing well. Mix in 2/3 cup M&M's. Spread in 9 x 9 x 2 inch pan. Sprinkle 1/3 to 2/3 cup M&M's on top. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes (maybe longer because the middle didn't cook all the way through on mine.) Store in airtight container at room temperature.

My first Green Monstah

......Smoothie that is! This morning I made my first green monster smoothie before my workout. It was really yummy and did not taste like it had SPINACH in it. It's crazy! I'm thinking about making weekends my "smoothie days" for breakfast and lunch. This is my trial weekend to see how I feel. I said in my last post that I would give the recipe for the strawberry cheesecake recipe, but this was too good to pass up. I had some of this before my workout, along with the leftover apple. I had the rest after my workout. This will not keep me full until lunch, but it's a great way to get extra veggies in without really noticing.

"Avapple Smoothie"
1/2 avocado
1/2 large apple (or 1 whole small apple)
1/3 cup your choice of milk (I used soy for the protein)
1 tbsp flax/choice of protein
heaping handful of fresh spinach (this is a good time to use those that are starting to wilt) 
1 cup ice
You can use honey to sweeten, but I did not have any readily available. Plus, with the soy milk it was sweet enough.


Place avocado and apple chunks (small), along with milk and blend until smooth. Next comes the spinach and flax. Be sure to push the leaves down or else they will have a hard time blending. Last, add the ice. Use the ice setting on your blender because otherwise they just sit on top. Blend until smooth and voila you have your Avapple Smoothie.

Quinoa Stiry-Fry

It's been just over a week that I've been eating flexitarian and so far I don't miss meat much at all. I've had meat twice since I've started, but in small portions. So far, breakfast and lunch hasn't been too different from before, but it's now making sure my snacks and dinners include enough protein. Obviously I've increased my protein other places, but dinner is the most important place for me to get my protein.

Last night I made Quinoa Stiry-Fry. It was simple, quick, and filling. I measured out 1 cup quinoa and cooked it according to the directions (if anyone has a good method of cleaning those little buggers please let me know). Next, I sauteed frozen (yes frozen) stir-fry vegetables and added my own fresh bell peppers because I was running low in the veggie department.  Mark started me on adding soy sauce to the quinoa, so I added a little of that as well and some butter. When all was said and done, we probably had almost 1 1/2 cups each on the quinoa and about 3/4 cup veggies. We also had salad on the side to get in more veggies.

The quinoa alone provided about 10 g of protein (but high on carbs- 49g). Needless to say, Mark and I loved this meal and will definitely make it again. Next time I think I might use peanut sauce and chopped peanuts.

The next recipe I will share will most likely be Strawberry "Cheesecake" Smoothies. Can't wait to try that one!