Month: September 2016

Chocolate Chip Protein Pancakes

I wanted to change up my protein pancakes this morning and was craving something sweet so I decided to whip up some Chocolate Chip Protein Pancakes. These protein pancakes were full of flavor and tamed my sweet tooth all while providing a nutritious breakfast to start my day off right. Try these protein packed pancakes for your next breakfast!

 

Chocolate Chip Protein Pancakes

Ingredients:

  • 2 egg whites
  • 1/4 cup quick cooking oats
  • 1/2 large banana
  • 1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
  • 1 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • 1/8 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbsp Enjoy Life Mini Chips

 

Directions:

  1. Add all ingredients, expect for chocolate chips, to a magic bullet or blender and blend until batter is smooth. Add 1 tbsp chocolate chips and let batter set for 5 minutes.
  2. Spray a large skillet with non-stick spray and heat on medium.
  3. After the batter sets and your pan is hot, pour batter onto pan (makes 3-4 pancakes) and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side. Pancakes are ready to flip when bubbles appear.
  4. Drizzle with 100% pure all natural maple syrup. Enjoy! 🙂

Healthy Condiments and Sauces

We all have a favorite condiment and chances are it’s not the healthiest. Most condiments are loaded with sodium, sugar, and unhealthy fat along with preservatives and processed ingredients. I used to eat mayonnaise on everything and a lot of it. I would even mix it with my ketchup for burgers and fries… all of that indulging eventually caught up with me.

Since I started being more mindful of what I am putting in my body I have found healthy alternatives to some of my favorite condiments. Here’s a list of just some of the healthy options that are out there to add some flavor to your meals.

 

  • Sour Cream – I found that plain non-fat greek yogurt is a great alternative to sour cream. It has less ingredients and no fat! You can hardly tell the difference.
  • Salad Dressing – Making your own salad dressing is not hard and is an inexpensive option. I found some easy and tasty homemade salad dressings on Wellness Mama. If I decide to buy a salad dressing I try to look for an organic and healthy option. I am a big fan of Annie’s salad dressings. The ginger dressing is my favorite.
  • Mayonnaise – Similar to salad dressing, a great option for mayonnaise is to make your own. I never thought about making my own mayonnaise, I just figured I would opt out for the most part. Well I did some research and I found a tasty DIY mayo that is easy and a great alternative to the store bought mayo!
  • BBQ Sauce – I found an easy homemade barbecue sauce recipe that would make for a great alternative to store bought. If I buy BBQ sauce from the store opposed to making my own, I usually get Annie’s Organic BBQ Sauce. It has no artificial flavors or preservatives and it only has 4g sugar for every 2 tbsp.
  • Ketchup – I like to watch my sugar intake so I usually buy sugar reduced ketchup, this decreases the sugar per serving to 1g. A lot of these options usually contain an artificial sweetener, if that is something you want to stay away from, Annie’s Organic Ketchup would be a good option. It has a little more sugar per serving but no artificial ingredients. As always, you can make it yourself as well. Here’s another option I found on Wellness Mama.
  • Mustard – There are a lot of great options for store bought mustard. My favorite is Annie’s Organic Mustard.
  • Whipped Cream – I found a homemade whipped cream recipe when I made my Strawberry Shortcake Protein Pancakes and it was so good! It tasted like the real thing. This is a much healthier option compared to store bought whipped cream.
  • Salsa – There are a lot of good and organic salsas in the stores but I prefer to make my own. Here are two of my favorite salsa recipes; Nectarine Avocado Salsa and Avocado Tomato Salsa.

Read the ingredients label! If it’s a paragraph long and you don’t recognize what most of the ingredients are, you should probably put it back. Look for items that are low in sodium, sugar, and have organic ingredients.

It’s always better to make your own condiments and dressings from scratch. You can stay away from preservatives, added sugars, and sodium this way and it usually is a cheaper option!

Healthy Mahi Mahi Tacos

I was looking for a meal to make for dinner when I found a fish taco recipe similar to this. I changed a few things to make it a healthy recipe and I was happy with how good it came out! The nectarine avocado salsa is delicious and compliments the fish and zesty “sour cream” nicely. These are full of flavor without the added fat and oil.

 

Healthy Mahi Mahi Tacos

* You will want to prepare the salsa first before you start anything else as this should chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.

Nectarine Avocado Salsa Ingredients:
• 2 cups finely diced nectarines (2 to 3)
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 1/4 cup minced red onion
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon minced seeded jalapeño pepper
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 avocado, diced

Preparation:
1. Combine first 8 ingredients; cover and chill 30 minutes to 1 hour. Just before serving, stir in diced avocado.

Zesty “Sour Cream” Ingredients:
• 1 cup plain non-fat greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp minced fresh cilantro
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 tsp hot sauce
• ¼ tsp kosher salt

Preparation:
1. Stir all ingredients. Serve slightly chilled.

Mahi Mahi Taco Ingredients:
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 4 (4-ounce) mahi mahi fillets
• 8 corn tortillas
• Cooking spray

Directions:
1. Combine first 6 ingredients, and sprinkle over all surfaces of the fish. Spray a large skillet with non stick cooking spray and heat on medium. Add fish to pan and cook for 4 minutes on each side until fish becomes opaque and begins to flake. Remove fish, and break into chunks.
2. Lightly coat tortillas with cooking spray, and heat in pan for 1 to 2 minutes each side.
3. Fill each tortilla with fish and top with nectarine salsa and zesty “sour cream”. Serve immediately.