Maine Blueberry Cobbler Smoothie

I supplement with protein shakes frequently, most days daily-they are easy, tasty and deliver the macros I need without a lot of planning and cooking. Im busy, I like being able to put quality, organic protein into my body that has no garbage or fake stuff. Plus, they are economical. 

I personally use Isagenix IsaLean PRO, but you can use whatever protein powder you like. The Greens listed is also an supplement that I use daily (hello 9 servings of GREENS in one scoop...amazing!). I have tried other green supplements and honestly, hated the taste. The taste of these greens is very mild and mixes well with any flavor shake or smoothie, also mixes well with water just to drink. No strong "green" taste like I've had with other brands.

I am totally digging good fats lately and my 2 favs are avocados and coconut oils. 

I love creating new recipes and ways to enjoy shakes and smoothies. This is one I threw together today and it was a BIG thumbs up!! So I wanted to share...

Wild Maine Blueberry Cobbler Smoothie

10 oz water

6 ice cubes

1/2 a frozen banana, cut into chunks

1/2 cup frozen Wild Maine Blueberries*

1 TBSP Organic Coconut Oil

1 package Isagenix Isalean PRO Vanilla

(or a serving of your favorite Vanilla protein powder)

1 scoop Greens (optional)

Just a dash of quality cinnamon

A splash of Simply Organic Almond Extract

(no exact measurements on these last 2, sorry...it was literally a dash and splash)

Put into a blender and GO!!

I have tons of frozen blueberries from the summer, both WILD and conventional high bush berries...this just happens to be what I grabbed today. So why WILD blueberries?  

*Wild Maine Blueberries vs. Conventional Blueberries

wild Maine blueberries on the Left, conventional high bush on the right 

Learn more about wild blueberries here: http://www.wildblueberries.com/the-better-blueberry/faq/

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What's your favorite smoothie or shake recipe? 

What's your favorite blueberry recipe?

THR33 Things Thursday

ONE: Feelin' Craptastic  

Since the weekend, I have been feeling a head cold creeping on...I would feel "kind of crappy" but it never really got worse. Yesterday, I was feeling quite fabulous, got out for a great run in some crazy winds. No biggie...then about 1:30pm yesterday I felt it attack. Literally attack me...and my entire head and neck.

My ears felt full. My throat was sore. My nose got all stuffed up. This incredible sinus headache took hold.

BAM!

Just like that...sick. I don't have time for sick.

I HAD to work last night and by the time my last appointment was there, I was feeling chills and my body was hurting. Went home and got right into bed. I was freezing!! 3 giant, thick, fuzzy blankets on me and I think I finally warmed up. I did not sleep well since my back and neck were just SORE. I could only breathe through my mouth so I kept waking up, drinking water. 

I have a TT swim on the plan today-just tried to get ready for it and when I felt dizzy just putting stuff into my swim bag, I decided maybe I should not be trying to swim--or drive with Lola in the car---for that matter. Looks like today is a rest day.
Sadly, I do not feel relief knowing today has been declared a rest day.
I feel like a failure. I have NO CONTROL of this and that is utterly frustrating to me.

Ok....totally done whining now.

TWO: VEGGIES

So, Coach Awesome totally sent a "warning" email regarding this recovery week-

You are extremely susceptible to illness this week. I just want to warn you, you will be on a tightrope so do all that you can to remain healthy and use hand sanitizer.  Extra rest, extra lemons, and extra kale are all extremely good ideas. 

(she's so freaking smart)

Now, I have been been doing lots of thinking the last couple weeks about food and nutrition. I am always a supporter of eating clean and have been considering adding more vegetable based meals to my current repitoire. I don't have any intention of going meatless but I don't see any harm in cutting back a bit on the meats and trying something "different". I am getting kind of bored eating the same things over and over-I love veggies, so why not, right? I even had a Meatless Monday this week. 

Seeing that I am making more veggie based meals and incorporating more spinach and kale into my everyday eats, Hubby expressed concern about me going VEGAN (not sure why he thinks this or why he'd care but....) I assured him that I do not have any intention of going vegan at this time however, expect to see even more veggies. He would be content if we only ever ate pork tenderloin and grilled potatoes. 

THR33: WIAW 

What I ate Wednesday (literally) in pictures:

Breakfast:

Old Fashioned Oats with blueberries, 2 egg whites and almond milk.
I topped the oats with a small drizzle of honey for a dash of sweetness. I used Wyman's of Maine frozen wild blueberries to make the oatmeal and added fresh blueberries.

We LOVE blueberries.

Post Run Snack:

Blueberry & Spinach smoothie

My GIANT sized bag of Wyman's Maine blueberries

fresh, organic baby spinach

Blueberries, Spinach, Almond milk, Greek yogurt and a small scoop of protein powder

Added a tablespoon of chia 

Afternoon Snack:

A cup of Earl Grey tea and fresh pineapple

More tea:

Coach's secret brew with the addition of green tea x 10

On the GO!
Off to work so I needed something easy and quick!

 A slice of whole wheat bread with Justin's almond butter, a giant jug of water and Coconut water

Eating while driving and yes, taking pictures.

DANGER!!!

By the time I was at work, I was feeling pretty awful. I had a big iced tea at work and refilled my water jug.

As soon as I got home, I filled a bowl with some leftover Navajo Stew, some steamed broccoli and topped it with some avocado.

Did you enter my Tough Chik giveaway ??

Tuesday's Dish: Pancakes

Did you know that the average American gains anywhere from 7-10 lbs over the Holidays? That is a lot of extra fluff to be carrying around. To lose that extra fat you would need to burn an additional 35,000 calories!
That equals:

• running 350 miles
• 87.5 hours of circuit training
• walking the dog for 171.6 hours

I don't know about you but I don't have enough time in my schedule to add all that extra exercise into my already full days.

One of the best ways to stay on track with your nutrition is to start the day with a healthy breakfast!

Lola and I are getting ready to head out for a run with the BOB but before we do, we wanted to share what WE had for breakfast today! Add these protein packed pancakes to your breakfast repertoire--you will be glad you did.

The pancake batter recipe is from Oxygen magazine but the blueberry topping is my creation.
Every summer we go blueberry picking many, many times (remember this post?) and I love having bags of frozen blueberries available all winter long. I use them in muffins, oatmeal, pancakes etc.

The warm spices added to the blueberry topping not only tastes delicious but will make your home smell amazing!

Protein Pancakes with Spiced Blueberry Topping

The actual pancakes I devoured this morning!

Batter:
1/2 cup oats
1T flax meal
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
2-3 egg whites
1/3 cup low fat cottage cheese

Blueberry Topping:
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1T water
1T honey
walnuts* optional

Combine the batter ingredients in a blender, using 2 egg whites to start. If the batter is too thick, add the third egg white. It is suggested that you use real egg whites since the carton egg whites will change the consistency of the batter. Let the batter rest for several minutes in the fridge while you prep your sauce and get the pan ready to make the cakes.

In a small sauce pan, add the frozen berries and the water. Bring to a bubble over med heat-once bubbling, add the honey. Add your spices and let the mixture simmer gently while you make your pancakes.

Heat a skillet over med heat-spray with your favorite oil to keep the pancakes from sticking. Add a scoop of batter. Once it starts to bubble along the edges, flip and cook on the other side.

This amount of batter should make 4 4" pancakes or 3 bigger ones.

Top the finished pancakes with the warm blueberry sauce and then top with walnuts (if using).

Enjoy!

Tell me-what is your favorite healthy start to the day??

Maine Blueberry Muffins!

I love to cook~and I love coming up with healthy versions of my favorite recipes! However baking is quite new to me and I am still learning and experimenting. Unlike cooking, baking is a science and if you don't get the chemisty just right...well, let's just say some things end up getting fed to the birds!

One family adventure this week was to Libby & Sons U-Pick farm to pick blueberries with my father-in-law, Graham and Lauren (or for those of you who know her, Lola!). There are the giant, sweet, high-bush blueberries that are just perfect right off the bush. I love this place and we returned again this year!

We picked so many pounds of blueberries~and while I have been enjoying them as God intended for the last couple days (fresh!), today was the perfect day to get in some baking. Today's plan? HEALTHY Blueberry muffins and healthy zuchinni bread.

Last summer we went bluberry picking several times so I was lucky to have a recipe on hand that was healthy, packed with blueberries (and fiber) but not loaded with sugar and fats.

Healthy Blueberry Muffins

3/4 cup all-purpose unbleached flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup quick cooking oats
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1 1/2 cup fresh blueberries

1 ripe banana, mashed
1 cup buttermilk (*or 1 cup milk w/lemon juice)
1 egg
1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

OPTIONAL:

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

(topping) 1 tbsp brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F -Grease a 12 cup muffin pan, or line with paper muffin cups.

In a large bowl mix your dry ingredients together and then gently stir in the blueberries (and nuts if using). In a separate bowl, mix together the mashed banana, buttermilk, egg, oil and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and mix just until blended. I like to let this mix set for a few mins before filling the muffin cups. Spoon into muffin cups, filling all the way to the top. *I use an old fashioned ice cream scoop to fill each muffin tin. Sprinkle each muffin with the topping mixutre if using.

Bake for 15 to 18 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the tops of the muffins spring back when lightly touched.

This recipe can be tweaked, I've added raspberries-I have used applesauce instead of oil. I have used nuts but most times I leave them out. It is a nice basic recipe and I hope you have a chance to enjoy it too!

I am hoping to get lucky with my zuchinni bread recipe this time so I will keep you posted :)