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What I ate Wednesday– May 10th, 2017

Good morning!

I am not sure if it’s the pregnancy or just my mood, but for the life of me, I can’t bring myself to finish a few posts I have half way done that require some concentration and hard work to get through. Last night, I fully planned to spend my evening at my computer, working on one of the posts that is about a recent partnership, but instead, I relaxed with a manicure and pedicure and then watched a movie on the couch. After doing some reading, it seems that it is pretty common for expecting moms to experience some attention deficit disorder or absentmindness during the third trimester. It’s interesting as I feel like I’m on my game during the work day but bringing myself to focus on something after hours is difficult. Or, maybe it’s all my friends and followers telling me to be lazy while I can.

Regardless, the partnership post that I had planned for today will hopefully go live tomorrow and instead, I’m sharing another What I Ate Wednesday with you guys. I’ve received some questions on Instagram and Instastories lately about the food I’m eating during third trimester so giving you guys a sneak into a day of eats will help address some of these questions.

Pre-Breakfast – 6:15 AM

When Bo and I go to the 6:45 AM Orangetheory class, we typically have coffee and either a piece of toast with almond butter or a handful of Purely Elizabeth granola. Yesterday morning I opted for a handful of granola, some NUUN and coffee before heading to the workout.

Breakfast – 8:15 AM

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This week I’ve been craving yogurt bowls filled with lots of fruit. Yesterday’s bowl included Fage 0%, ground flaxseed, 1/2 banana, a few strawberries, 1/4 cup of Purely Elizabeth granola and a drizzle of Justin’s Almond Butter. I microwaved one tablespoon of Justin’s almond butter so I could drizzle it versus putting a glob in my bowl. I tend to eat breakfast at my desk while catching up on emails and reading industry articles.

Lunch – 1:00 PM

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On Saturday, I suddenly had a craving for a sandwich after weeks of having salads or leftovers for lunch. While I’ve avoided lunch meat most of my pregnancy, after doing some research I realized that as long as I buy fresh, high quality meat that is nitrate free and hasn’t been sitting out very long, I can answer this craving. The harm in eating deli meat comes from the risk of listeria as well as the nitrates often found in lunch meat. We are lucky that there are a few places within walking distance of our apartment who slice their lunch meat fresh from meat they’ve roasted in house. After talking with them, I feel very comfortable about eating this meat.  Since Saturday, I’ve been enjoying the same sandwich and lunch on repeat.

Two pieces of whole wheat bread, one slice of Muenster cheese, 1/4 pound of roasted chicken, romaine lettuce, tomato, Sir Kensington’s mayonaise, dijon mustard and a dash of salt and pepper. I round out the plate with mini sweet peppers, hummus and a pickle.

Afternoon Snack – 4:30 PM

Yesterday I made a snack bowl which included one serving of these delicious, chocolate almonds mixed with 3 cups of popcorn. I enjoyed that with a La Croix during an afternoon conference call and loved the mix of salty and sweet!

Dinner – 8 PM

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Bo and I are still loving Hello Fresh and in fact, are currently on our third week of meals. Last night’s dinner was the Blackened Catfish served atop green beans, baby potatoes, peppers and onions. Many people have asked me what we like about the service and I think last night’s dinner is a perfect example.  We love that the meals take the exact amount of time the recipe card says (30 minutes), features a mix of proteins options including fish, and combines flavors that we would rarely use and therefore don’t typically have on hand such as blackening spices.  You are able to look at the meal cards in advance when you choose your meals for the weeks and each card provides you with the ingredients, time required, difficulty level as well as the nutrition values. I love that we’re able to make informed decisions together in advance of receiving our delivery. You can even customize your plan to Fit, Quick or Variety preferences and yes, they do offer vegetarian options!  If you haven’t tried it, you can get $40 off your first box by clicking here. For perspective, the Classic Plan which includes 3 meals for 2 people is $59 per week, which means you’d get 3 meals for 2 people for just $19 using the code!

Dessert – 9 PM

halotop

As I mentioned, last night I found myself relaxing on the couch for two hours instead of being productive. The couch time was made even better with a bowl of delicious ice cream. A few weeks ago the team at Halo Top sent me five golden tickets, aka coupons, to try their ice cream.  I picked up chocolate chip cookie dough and cookies & cream this week at the grocery store and had a double date with each of them last night. While I know they advertise being able to eat the entire pint, I preferred to enjoy one scoop from each. Based on Instagram, it seems like the fan favorites are birthday cake, cookie dough, chocolate almond and peanut butter cup.  For those of you who haven’t tried it yet, Halo Top is a low-calorie, high protein and low sugar ice cream that uses all natural, wholesome ingredients. The ice cream is sweetened with organic stevia and Erthritol which is an all-natural sweetener which doesn’t cause the bloating and negative blood glucose side effects that the typical articifical sweetners cause. While I wouldn’t say that Halo Top can replace my beloved Ample Hills or other fresh, local ice cream it is definitely a good alternative to enjoy a few nights a week.  In Brooklyn it can be found at Fairway, Whole Foods, and Stop & Shop while nationally it’s now carried in many large grocery stores such as Kroger and Publix!

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Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes

Pumpkin Paleo Pancakes

Happy Monday! Here’s a delicious, healthy Fall recipe you can make this weekend, courtesy of my sister-in-law Meg and her husband Russell! Originally posted in 2014, the post and recipe have been updated a bit.  Come back tomorrow for a recap from yesterday’s Dare to Bare event in NYC! 

Hello again! Over the past two years my husband Russell and I have both had great success following Paleo-like diets off and on, especially when I originally lost 10 pounds in one month.  Since then, we have evolved our eating style, maintaining a healthy balance which often includes Paleo friendly recipes.  We’ve made a lot of omelets and frittatas in the past, but now that the leaves are falling and the air is crisp, we wanted to cook something that reflected the fall season. What better than a warm stack of fall themed pumpkin pancakes?

meg-and-russell

We struggled to find a recipe that was fluffy and tasty enough to stand up to a regular pancake. Some of our first batches, while tasty, left us with results that we could only describe as “scrambled pancakes”. We thought we were cooking them wrong because they were so crumbly and dense. To remedy this, we tried cooking them at a lower heat for a longer time, we tried different types of flour, and different wet and dry ingredients but couldn’t replicate the consistency of the traditional pancakes we grew up with. After scouring the web and trying parts from numerous recipes, we finally figured it out. Baking soda. Not all Paleo recipes call for baking soda, which is one of the things that makes these pancakes so fluffy and DELICIOUS!

pumpkin paleo pancakes

Paleo Pumpkin Pancake Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup pumpkin puree
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar free syrup
  • ½ teaspoon allspice
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ⅔ cup almond flour
  • a dash of kosher or sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ cup pecans

Instructions:

  • Heat a small skillet over medium heat with a touch of coconut oil. Add pecans. Toast for about 3 minutes or until pecans are fragrant. Be careful not to burn the pecans – shake the skillet frequently. (Note – these are for the topping. Feel free to leave them raw if desired or not use them at all).
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin, syrup, cinnamon, allspice, and vanilla until well blended.
  • In a separate bowl, mix together the almond flour, salt and baking soda.
  • Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, making sure there are no lumps.
  • Lightly grease a griddle with your fat of choice (we used coconut oil) and turn on medium heat until a drop of water sizzles on the griddle.
  • Pour the batter onto the griddle in whatever size pancakes you like. Cook until bubbles form on the top of the batter. Carefully flip and cook the other side.
  • Stack and top with pecans and sugar free syrup (or whatever fun fall toppings you choose!). We also dusted ours with a bit of cinnamon.

*Note – you will see in the picture we served these with bacon (which makes every meal better). During our Paleo challenge, we learned that most bacon you can find at the grocery store is cured in sugar. We recommend Organic Sunday Bacon by Applegate which has less sugar than most and is cured in Paleo friendly, organic cane sugar.

If you love this recipe as much as we do, please share it on Pinterest, Twitter or Facebook!

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My Favorite Healthy Breakfast Recipes

Last week during a work happy hour, a co-worker who is getting married in six weeks asked me how she can lose 10 pounds before the big day. While I am neither a dietitian nor a personal trainer, I spent the next thirty minutes sharing with her a few of the tips and tricks I’ve learned over the years.

Since she and the other co-workers continued to ask me questions for the duration of our happy hour, I thought it was only kind of me to share the discussion with you guys.

Over the next few weeks, I am creating posts inspired by the questions asked during the conversation. Some of them may be more basic and less relevant for readers who are already practicing a healthy, balanced lifestyle. But, for others, I hope that these tips, tricks, workouts and recipes will serve as inspiration to improve even just one aspect of your day.

As you know, my goal is to inspire each one of you to lead healthier, happier lives regardless of your stress levels, commitments or daily life demands.

Today’s focus is BREAKFAST.

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Now, I’ve never been one of those girls who can survive on water and coffee alone until taking a lunch break. While I know many people who just “aren’t breakfast people” I am not one of them. Growing up, my parents never let us leave the house without eating breakfast. Over the years this meal evolved from milk and cereal to toaster strudels and Jimmy Dean sandwiches until finally circling back to the balanced, healthy meal of oatmeal or eggs. In fact, eating a healthy breakfast makes me feel like SuperWoman the rest of the day.

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Not on team breakfast yet? Maybe these facts will convince you.

  • Breakfast eaters tend to have better diets overall, consuming more fruit, vegetables, milk, and whole grains than non-breakfast eaters. (Consumer Reports)
  • Studies show that breakfast can be important in maintaining a healthy body weight. (Johns Hopkins)
  • Breakfast needs healthy protein and fat in order to satiate you and stabilize your mood and cravings. (AnnetheRD)

A creature of habit, over the past ten years, since taking charge of my health, I rotate through the same four breakfasts depending on the season, my workout schedule or mood. Similar to my workout habits, my breakfasts have evolved for the better over the past year. I’ve spiced up each of the breakfasts to have a bit more staying power, nutritional punch and flavor by adding protein sources, fruit and spices. Gone are the packs of Quaker Oats Weight Control oatmeal, of which the banana nut flavor was a favorite during my Weight Watcher weight loss era from 2005-2007. Friends and resources like Anne have helped me understand the importance of being able to pronounce each ingredient. I don’t need to buy prepackaged oatmeal with many unknown ingredients. Instead, I can save money and eat healthier by making my own oatmeal concoction, inspired by seasonal flavors.

quaker oats nutrition facts

Below, you’ll find a round-up of my favorite healthy breakfast recipes for each of my four breakfast rotations.

Healthy Breakfast Round-Up

Oatmeal/Quinoa/Chia

Smoothie

Eggs

Yogurt Bowl

How about you? What is your favorite breakfast? 

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