Clean-Eating Protein Bars

Hello my lovely readers!

I am so happy today! It's such a beautiful day outside with the sun shining and the temperatures at a mild 28 degrees! Okay so it's still way too cold here but I love the warmth the sun brings both to my skin and to my heart. It gets me in a good mood. Which is great! I also got up early and finished my work out before 8 am which NEVER happens. So I guess things have been going my way today. 

I've been thinking a lot about one of my goals; not only for this year but a goal I want to accomplish throughout my life. This goal is to inspire someone. Not even a lot of people. If I could inspire just one person to change their life and be healthy then I would die a happy woman. I've been doing Turbo Fire for my work outs and Chalene Johnson is one of the most inspirational people I've ever seen! (I obviously haven't met her). I follow her on Facebook and also on twitter and every day she has a new message to keep you going and to give you confidence in yourself. She's one of the people who I look up to and hope that I can be even one ounce like her one day. If you have no idea who I'm even talking about then you're missing out! She has quite a few workout DVDs out there that are all wonderful I'm sure. If you're interested in that visit beachbody.com. 

Now are you ready for an awesome recipe?

Check out these beautiful protein bars!

I got this recipe from The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook by Tosca Reno, who is also an amazing role model. I just got The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook 2 on Saturday and I'm so excited to try some new and yummy recipes from her. These protein bars are great for before or after a work out. I really need to make a new batch for myself! They're not too hard to make and they're really quick to grab and get to your work out. I really like to eat them before because they're just enough to give me energy. You should always have something in your stomach before you workout or else you could be burning muscle instead of fat! Especially if you are working out in the morning. I found out too that if I don't eat I have NO energy to carry me through the whole workout. Which is BAD! Why even do it if you can't give 100%? 

I hope you guys enjoy these! Let me know if you added anything different and what worked or what didn't. I'd love to hear from you!

Clean-Eating Protein Bars
Adapted from The Eat-Clean Diet Book by Tosca Reno

Ingredients:
1 cup vanilla protein powder
1/2 cup whole wheat flour or flour of your choice (oat, amaranth, millet, spelt, kamut)
2 cups old-fashion oats
1/2 cup wheat or oat bran
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup Sucanat or agave nectar or honey
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. best-quality vanilla extract
Olive oil cooking spray

Tools:
9 x 13-inch glass or silicone baking pan
1 medium bowl
1 large bowl
Spoon
Measuring cups
Parchment paper or silicone mat
Wire cooking rack

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. In a large mixing bowl combine protein powder, flour, oats, oat or wheat bran, ground flax seed, wheat germ, sea salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and Sucanat or other sweetener. Stir in dark chocolate chips.
3. In another bowl mix the Greek yogurt, oils and vanilla. Mix well. Add the yogurt mixture to the dry ingredients. Use your clean, bare hands or a spoon to combine these well. If using your hands, coat with olive oil to prevent sticking.
4. Place mixture in prepared pan. Press it down and even out the top. Bake on middle rack in oven for 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Let cool and cut the dough into bars. Place these bars on a cookie sheet lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper and bake again for another 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Transfer mat or parchment paper to a wire cooking rack and let cool. Place in airtight container and store in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. This recipe makes anywhere from 20 to 24 bars, depending on how big you cut them.

Easy Power Protein Oats

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to a new day of your life! What are you doing to improve your life today? Did you work out? Did you challenge yourself to something new or unexpected? Each day is a new day and we need to work on improving our lives all the time. We will only have this life once, so why not make the most of it? Try something new! Instead of sitting on the couch and watching TV, get up and go for a walk, go to the library, visit a friend or family member. We need to make the most of what we have right now. In my own life, I've found myself just waiting for my life to get better. It's not going to happen for us if we sit and wait. We have to DO something about. Take action. I've only just learned this principle of life in the last year or so. After you have a baby your mind set changes drastically. Not only are you worried about your personal life but you're now worried about your child's life too! In the past year we have made some pretty drastic decisions that have resulted in a lot of change in our life. But we took action! We are doing something to help make our life better. So I want to know what you all are doing or have done to improve your life today. Share! I'd love to hear!

Today I have an awesome breakfast recipe for you. This is the best protein oatmeal that we've tried to date. We pretty much eat this every day unless I decide to try something different. It's so quick to make too! I used to just make the quick oatmeal from the packets but this is so much better for you and it really doesn't take that much time to put together. I'm never going back to that Quaker stuff! You don't need to add any sugar because it's flavored by the protein powder. I love my oatmeal with fresh blueberries and sliced almonds. It's to die for! This Oatmeal really fills you up and keeps you from snacking before lunch time!

Power Protein Oats

Ingredients:
4 cups water
2 cups old fashioned oats
4 Tbsp. natural nut butter- almond, peanut, cashew or other
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 scoops protein powder (I used Vanilla Elite Gourmet...it's the best!)
4 Tbsp. ground flax seed

Tools:
Medium sauce pan
Spoon
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons

Directions:
1. Bring the four cups of water to a boil in a medium sauce pan.
2. Add remaining ingredients except flax seen, and reduce heat. Cook gently for 3 to 5 minutes, until mixture becomes thick and uniform.
3. Spoon into four bowl and sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed. Serve immediately. OR Let cool and put the rest into a plastic container and refrigerate. 
*You can also add fresh or dried fruit, plain Greek yogurt, sliced almonds or walnuts. 

Yum! Now you're ready to take on the day!

Resolutions and a Recipe

If you haven't noticed, I've taken quite a bit of a break since before Christmas. My husband started school and is working full time so our lives have changed quite a bit within the last few weeks. I have been cooking a lot and playing with my new camera! I got a Nikon D3000 and Photoshop Elements which will hopefully help me produce better pictures to help your mouths water! I also made a few New Years resolutions which I really haven't done before. One was to make a habit of working out. The next, to start eating healthier for me and for my daughter, Paisley. That's what I want to talk to you about. I've discovered the lifestyle of Eating Clean...

It all started before the holidays.

 I was on Pinterest just minding my own business and I saw a pin for the website heandsheeatclean.com  which I've seen in the past and I had actually been on their website before. For some reason, this time was different. When I re-read the story of their (he and she) transformation and the transition to eating only clean foods I thought "is that something I could do?" 

I know most of you are probably parents and some maybe not yet, but when your child starts eating the same food as you do it really makes you (me at least) rethink what you put into your mouth. Did I really want her eating the same things I was eating? Food like brownies, cookies, Hamburger Helper, french fries, etc.? So I told my husband about eating clean and of course he looked at me like I was some crazy person because he thought it was a crazy diet. Well it's absolutely not a crazy diet. It's a way of life. The next time I talked to him about it he actually said it sounded like a good idea! I could hardly believe what I had just heard! My husband, who's favorite dinner is baked potatoes and pot roast actually wanted to go along with me in my journey to eat clean. I was so relieved since I knew I wouldn't be able to accomplish this lifestyle without him. So we decided that after the holidays (of course) we would start eating cleaner, less processed foods.  You know what? We've stuck to it since then. It's been our New Years resolution to change what we eat for the sake for each of us and our daughters heath and well being. Obviously we have cheated some and had a few processed snacks here and there. We are still human and we get that. All in all we have way better than I could have ever imagined. We are still transitioning but we're getting better each day. It is not an easy task but the benefits are innumerable!
If you want more information about Eating Clean visit cleaneatingmag.com,  heandsheeatclean.com, or eatcleandiet.com. They are all really good resources to find out for yourself  if eating clean is something you'd like to do to. I'll be adding some tips along the way to help each of you eat a little healthier.

Now, most of my recipes from now on may be part of my eating clean plan but trust me, flavor is not sacrificed with any of the recipes I've tried so far. So don't be afraid! I'm still the Bad Kitty in the Kitchen just in a different way. :) If you have any questions PLEASE ask! I'd love to help!

Let's get on to something delicious shall we?
I found this recipe on Pinterest and it's from sohowsittaste.com. The first time I made it I made it exactly how her recipe said to prepare it. She used melted butter and maple syrup to sweeten it which isn't exactly a clean eating choice. So the second time I made it (this last Monday) I tweeked it a little to fit our clean eating needs and guess what? It tasted EXACTLY the same! It turned out wonderfully. I also doubled the recipe so we could have it for breakfast all week. For the two of us it lasted five days which is pretty darn awesome! I love dishes that last a long time, that means not as much cooking for me. If you don't want such a big dish just half the recipe and only use a 8 x 8 or 2 qt. baking dish. I hope you guys enjoy this as much as we do!

Blueberry Baked Oatmeal

adapted from sohowsittaste.com

Ingredients:
2 cups old fashion oats
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, divided
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sucanat* or brown sugar
2 cups skim milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 bananas, peeled and sliced
2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen, divided
Cooking spray

Tools:
1 Medium bowl
1 9 x 13 baking dish
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 
2. Spray a 3-quart baking dish (9 x 13) with cooking spray.
3.In a medium bowl, mix the oats, half of the walnuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir to combine. 
4. Spread the sliced bananas in a single layer over the bottom of the baking dish. Top with half of the blueberries. Sprinkle the dry oat mixture over the fruit in an even layer. 
5. Then, using the same medium bowl, combine the sucanat or brown sugar, milk, eggs, oil and vanilla. Mix until sucanat is mostly dissolved. Pour the liquid ingredients evenly over the oats. Make sure that the dry oat mixture is completely wet or you'll end up with dry oats (I know from experience). 
6. Sprinkle the remaining nuts and berries over the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is browned and the oats have set. Let cool 10 minutes before serving. 

*In this recipe I used Sucanat which probably some of you have never heard of. Unlike processed white sugar, Sucanat retains its molasses content. Nothing is added and nothing is taken out so it's a much healthier choice. It also helps keep your blood sugar balanced. Brown sugar is okay to use too or another healthy sweetener you have.