Easy-Peasy Gluten Free Black Bean Chocolate Cake

This past weekend we celebrated several birthdays!  Yay for birthdays!

Saturday we celebrated my friend's oldest daughter's sweet 16! We had a blast at her home grilling hot dogs, making s'mores around the fire, and eating too much cake!  Us moms got a chance to sit down and chit chat, which was sorely needed. The men did manly things like catering to their inner pyro.

Sunday we had a family gathering at our house to celebrate both Little Miss Helpful's birthday and my mother's birthday.

It was nice having our family here to celebrate and enjoy the day with us.  And LMH really loved her presents, which were all artsy supplies!  No.. she really did love them!  She is easy peasy to keep happy. :)

I wanted to make a cake that was a bit healthier, and I have several friends in the Gluten Free circle rave about Black Bean Chocolate Cake.  So I decided to give it a go! 

A quick Google search landed me on A Hippie With a Minivan and her recipe for Black Bean Chocolate Cake. 

At first I was a bit skeptical, because I have never made a cake without flour before.  But this cake turned out so moist and definitely chocolatety!   Plus it filled the house with the most amazing chocolate cake aroma ever!  

When it was done I kept it simple with just a small dusting of powdered sugar, topped with some frozen strawberries and blueberries. (Fresh berries would of been better, but I only had frozen on hand).  No overly sugary frosting needed for this cake!   

When my mom tried it, she loved it and even said it was better than normal chocolate cake.

I tweaked the recipe a bit.   I used regular granulated sugar, because that is all I had on hand.  I want to play around with the recipe to try to make this with raw honey instead of sugar.

And I mixed everything together in the blender.   This made it really quick and easy and cut down on the amount of dirty dishes!   I ended up making 3 cakes in a very short amount of time.  :)

Little Miss Sunshine and Little Miss Helpful love making the cake for Grandma!

Here is the recipe with the steps I took.

Easy-Peasy Black Bean Chocolate Cake

1- 15 oz can black beans drained and rinsed or 2 cups cooked black beans, drained and rinsed*

5 large eggs

1 Tblspn vanilla extract

3/4 cup granulated sugar

6 Tblspns butter - softened at room temperature

1/2 tspn salt

6 Tblspns Cocoa Powder (I used Nestle Toll House Cocoa)

1/2 tspn baking soda

1 tspn baking powder 

1 Tblspn water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.   

Grease a 9" circular pan or a 8x8" square pan.  Grease with shortening or coconut oil, and dust lightly with cocoa powder.

 In a blender - Add black beans, 3 eggs, vanilla extract, sugar, butter, and salt.  Blend on the highest setting (liquify setting on my blender)  until the beans are liquified and all items are mixed well. This took about 45 seconds to a minute in my blender.

To the blender - Add remaining two eggs, Cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and water.   Blend on the "blend" or "mix" setting until all ingredients are incorporated and mixed well.

Pour cake batter from the blender into the cake pan.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes.   Start doing the toothpick poke test for doneness at 35 minutes and adjust the cook time accordingly.  Cake is done when the top is rounded and you can insert a toothpick into the center and it comes out clean and dry.

Remove from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack.  Remove from cake pan, cut into serving size slices.  Put a slice on a dessert plate, dust lightly with powdered sugar.  

Top with your favorite berries and fresh home made whipped cream. 

Serve and enjoy with love and gratitude for another blessed day with your family and friends.

* 1 cup dried black beans equals about 2 cups after soaking and cooking.

This recipe originally found at A Hippie with a Minivan. and tweaked a bit by me. Please stop by her blog and tell her hello!

In the kitchen today... making a yummy turkey!

The week before Thanksgiving I stocked up on Turkeys at great prices. Today I've put one of them in the oven for dinner tonight.

My family loves turkey. Turkey's don't take much more time to prepare for the oven than a chicken does. And by fixing turkey you are sure to have leftovers to last a few days or freeze for later throw together meals. Making them economical.

I love to slow roast my turkey all day long. Thanks to Cindy Rushton in her Perfect Turkey Every Time (REALLY!) post for sharing how to make roasting a turkey all day long easy and hassle free.

After I thaw the turkey (in the fridge for several days), I start the turkey early in the day, by rinsing out the inside. Then I slice a lemon, and peel 5-6 garlic cloves, put a few lemon slices and a garlic cloves in the neck cavity, and the rest go in the body cavity. I then create a herb rub of thyme, rosemary, sage, and anything else I want to add at the time, mixed in a few Tblspns of olive oil. I rub the turkey breast underneath the skin. And then rub the rest of the turkey on top of the skin all over with the remaining herb/olive oil rub.

I then cover with foil, stick it in the oven, and let it roast all day long. By the middle of the day the house is filled with all sorts of yummy smells from the turkey and the herbs, heightening the anticipation for a family dinner together. And I can have one more thing off my mind knowing that the main entree for dinner will be ready when we are.

What meals did you make from your leftover Thanksgiving turkey? Leave a comment and share your ideas here!

Be Blessed

Primal Blueprint Recipe: Avocado Cocoa Rolls

I found this recipe video via Mark's Daily Apple submitted to Mark's video recipe contest by a reader Betty. I have started using bananas alot to trick our sweet tooth on family dessert night, and have paired them with cocoa. But I never would of thought of a cocoa, banana, and avocado combination! Thank God for more those with more fitness lifestyle experiences who are willing to share their ideas!

Thanks MDA and Betty!

Baking Sourdough Bread.

I like baking bread. There's just something about kneading the dough, letting it rise, and then smelling that goodness wafe out of the oven. On a cold day, it really brings a warm and cozy feeling to the home when the scent of baking bread drifts through the house. Plus there's the bonus of relieving stress and toning your arms when kneading the dough!

I normally make a wheat flour yeast bread. But I've been reading alot about the benefits of Sourdough, and wanted to make some again. I made Sourdough starter and successfully made a few batches of bread last year, but then somehow killed my starter and never made another (I think I fed it too much flour, and too little water one day).

I wanted to try my hand at it again, and this time keep the starter going.

The recipe I used is from Above Rubies issue 76. It is from the kitchen of Serene Allison, and has been used by her family with great results. I do not lay claim to this recipe at all, but I just wanted to show you how I did it, and how easy it is to make a few good loaves of healthy Sourdough Bread.

To see Serene make this recipe in her kitchen, you can go the the Above Rubies YouTube page, or you can look up the recipe in the Above Rubies magazine archive.

I made the starter with:

1 cup Rye Flour
1 cup filtered water
1 tspn honey
Mixed all together in a glass jar that was sterilized. I sterilized it by pouring boiling water from my teapot into it and swishing it around, emptied the water, and let it cool.
Covered with a cheesecloth secured with a rubber band, and set on top of the fridge.

Day 2-6
Each day I sterilized a gallon beverage pitcher, with boiling water, let cool. Poured the starter into the clean container, and mixed in 1 cup Rye Flour and 1 cup water. I noticed that the starter would be pretty thick in the mornings, and since the rye flour does seem to absorb liquid more than wheat, I added a little over a cup of water each day. Probably closer to 1 1/4 cup water. Recovered with a cheesecloth and rubber band, and returned it to the top of the fridge to just let it do it's thing.

Day 4 this is what my starter looked like.

By day 7 I had about 3 quarts of starter, that had a fresh sour smell, and was nice and bubbly throughout.

Thursday night was mixing night. To prepare I dressed in my most comfy socks and donned my favourite apron.



I believe the success of the bread depends on how cozy your feet are when kneading the bread. No matter who you are, you need good comfy socks to make great bread. At least in my kitchen.

Next I greased 5 bread pans with Coconut oil


This recipe makes a larger batch, so you'll need a big bowl to mix it in. I use my dishpan. Scrub it out with hot soapy water, let air dry, and it's good to go.

In the dish pan I measured in 8 cups of my starter, not perfect cups so it could be a little more than 8 cups.



To that I added 1 handful of coarse sea salt, approx 2 1/2 - 3 Tblspns worth of coarse Sea Salt. Then added 6 cups Spelt flour, 2 cups wheat flour, and approx 6 1/2 cups Stoneground Rye flour. With a wooden or sturdy plastic spoon, mix it in till it's a really thick glob.



It almost looks like damp sand that's stuck together.
Then the fun part came. :) I filled a 2 quart jar with filtered water to the 7 cup line. I started by adding 5 cups of water, mixing it in with my hands. You could try mixing it with a spoon, but it's really thick and you would need a really sturdy spoon or utensil. I mixed a little, added a little water, and mixed some more, added a little more, and mixed some more till it was a good consistency. This is not a typical dough that is kneaded on a counter top. It's like a really thick cake batter, and it almost feels like kneading glue that's just starting to harden. This starts out kind of thin, but thickens when the gluten starts to come together. After kneading about five minutes the consistency felt just about right. It was still pretty gooey, but holding together and becoming elastic.



I would of gotten an action pic of my hands in the midst of the goo, but it's hard to hold the phone with dough covered hands.

I then dipped the dough into the waiting bread pans. I used Serene's suggestion by using a table or cereal bowl to use to dip the dough. (Wet the bowl, scoop up some dough, and the dough should flop right out into the pan.) The bread pans are just over 1/2 - 3/4 full.

Cover filled bread pans with a cheesecloth or towel to discourage any little critters from becoming extra protein in your bread.

The pans are sitting on the counter, rising till morning. I'll pop them in to bake (350 deg F for about 1 hour) when I wake up, and the smell of fresh bread should be welcoming my 3 little chicklets when they stumble out of bed.

I'm not left with much of an aftermath to clean up. With my normal yeast bread I have to scrape and wipe down the counter top where I kneaded the bread, plus wash the mixing bowl, the rising bowl, the spoons, etc. Tonight all I have is the dishpan to re wash, and a few measuring cups, a few spoons, and my big jar. Less than a full sink full of dishes and no flour on my counter! Sounds like a winner to me!



The remaining starer, I fed again
1 cup Rye flour
1 cup approx filtered water.

This is what it looks like after being used and fed again.

By continuing to feed it everyday, I should have enough starter to make another batch within a week. With this making 5 generous loaves, this should be enough bread to last my family till the next batch comes out of the oven.

Meal Plan Monday - Daniel Fast Recipes

Vegetarian Crock Pot Chili

2 Tablespoons Oil (Olive, Canola, or Coconut)
3 cups chopped onion (white or red)
3 cups chopped green pepper
2 cups chopped celery
4 - 16 oz cans Pinto Beans, drained and rinsed
2 - 28oz cans whole tomatoes
2 - 6oz cans tomato paste
3 cups water
2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
2 Tablespoons Chili Powder (more or less to taste)
1 Tablespoon ground Cumin
2 Teaspoons oregano
1 Teaspoon pepper
1 - 16 oz pkg firm tofu (optional)


Place all ingredients except tofu in a large crock pot. Cook on low (6-8 hours) or high (4-6 hours).
20 minutes before serving, with a potato masher, mash the whole tomatoes (don't have to take them out of the crock pot, just press the masher into the crock a few times)
If Tofu is desired, open package and wrap tofu in paper towels. Press lightly to remove any excess moisture. Cube tofu into about 1/2" cubes. Gently stir into chili.
Cover and warm, stirring gently, till tofu is warm.
Serve with a side of whole grain wild rice, brown rice, or quinoa. Or serve on top of prepared spaghetti squash with some marinara for a version of 3 way chili.
Top with vegetarian cheese if desired.

Vegetarian wraps

1 whole grain tortilla OR one large Romaine lettuce leaf, washed and patted dry
1-2 oz vegetarian cheese, sliced thin
Hummus
1/4 Red pepper, seeded, and thinkly sliced lengthways
1-2 cups mixed prepared Romaine lettuce and baby Spinach leaves
1 Tablespoon Honey Mustard
1 Tablespoon mashed advocado

On the tortilla or the lettuce leaf, spread hummus, layer the cheese, sliced pepper, and mixed lettuce to fill. Top with mustard. Start to fold and roll tortilla/lettuce leaf. Spread the mashed advocado near where the seams will meet up to help seal the wrap, and finish rolling up the wrap.

Eat with a piece of fruit or some berries.

Enjoy

Black Bean Salsa
1 15 oz can petite diced tomatoes -undrained
1 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
2-3 green onions, finely diced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 cup loosely packed chopped cilantro
1 lime
sea salt

In a large bowl, combine diced tomatoes, tomato juice, black beans, frozen corn, green onions, cumin, cilantro. Cut lime in half, and squeeze juice into salsa. (If you like more lime juice, use another lime). Add sea salt to taste.
Cover and let set overnight in refrigerator to let the flavors meld.

Spaghetti Squash Supreme
1 large spaghetti squash
1 - 16oz Box Firm tofu (optional)
1 small red onoin, chopped
4-6 medium mushrooms, rinsed and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 small green bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 -15 oz can petite diced tomatoes
1 cup chopped spinach - tightly packed in measuring cup
4-8 oz vegetarian cheese
Paprika

To prepare Spaghetti Squash, cut in half. Scoop out seeds with a spoon. Put in a large dutch oven or pot, skin side down/cut half up, with about 1 2 inches of water. Simmer on stovetop till tender, about 30 minutes. Remove squash from pot, and fluff strands with a fork. Scrape strands out into a bowl.

In a large pan, heat oil. Saute all vegetables till tender but not too mushy. Remove tofu from package, wrap in a paper towel and press lightly to remove moisture. Cube into 1/2" cubes. Add to pan with vegetables. Heat till tofu is warm, stirring gently.

Mix tofu/vegetable mixture into the spaghetti squash.

Grate cheese and sprinkle on top.

Creamy Corn Potato Soup
Oil (oilive, canola, or coconut)
1-2 cans of corn.
6 medium to large Red Potatoes, cleaned and diced into about 1/2"cubes
6 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 large red onoin, peeled and finely diced
2 green or red peppers, seeded and finely diced
2 bay leaves
3 teaspoons marjoram
3 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons sea salt
2 teaspoons pepper
3 - 32 oz boxes vegetable broth
water

In bottom of a large stock pot, drizzle oil. Heat slightly. Add vegetables and spices. (Add the 1st can of corn, then rest of veggies. If more corn is desired add the second can). Saute vegetables over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes. Add broth. Heat to a slow boil. Reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes to 1 hour. Remove from heat.
If a creamier texture is desired: Remove about 3/4 of the soup in small batches and blend. Keep the blended soup in a separate bowl till all the batches are blended, then add the blended soup back to the larger pot. OR lightly blend soup in the stock pot with an immersion blender.
Add water if desired to thin to preferred consistency.

Quinoa
1 cup Quinoa, rinsed in a strainer
2 cups water or vegetable broth.
1 medium onion - diced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced.

In a sauce pan over medium heat, put water or broth, and bring to a light boil. Add diced onion, garlic, and Quinoa. Bring back to a slow boil, reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff.

Keeping little hands busy - Home Made Modeling Clay

1 16 oz box baking soda
1 cup cornstarch
1 1/4 cups COLD water
Food coloring

In a large microwaveable mixing bowl, combine soda and cornstarch. In a separate 2 cup measuring cup combine water and food coloring. Stir to distribute coloring evenly. Pour colored water into soda mixture. Stir until smooth.

Microwave on high for 4 minutes. Or until mixture is stiff but can still be stirred. Stop after each minute and stir, then microwave another minute, stir, etc till stiff. Cover with a damp towel and let cool. Knead it until smooth. Store in airtight containers or plastic baggies.

Meal Plan Monday

Good Morning Fruit Salad

3 medium green apples - cut into about 1/2" chunks
2 medium oranges - peeled and cut into about 1/2" chunks
1 1/2 cups frozen raspberries
1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries
2 cups frozen strawberries
1 cup green or red seedless grapes
1 Tablespoon Honey

Mix all together in a medium to large bowl. Let sit overnight in refrigerator.
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Weekly Meal Plan

Monday
Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs, Fruit, Milk
Lunch: Fruit Salad, Turkey franks, carrot sticks
Snack: Baked Oatmeal and cheese sticks
Dinner: Turkey Fajitas, Black Bean Salsa, Salad, Milk/Water

Tuesday
Breakfast: Crockpot oatmeal, blueberries or strawberries, Milk
Lunch: Toasted Cheese Quesadillas, Celery Sticks, Peanut Butter
Snacks: Apple slices and deviled eggs
Dinner: Turkey or Chicken Enchiladas, salad, water

Wednesday
Breakfast: Spinach and cheese crepes
Lunch: Peanut butter roll ups, cheese sticks, fruit salad
Snack: Bananas and peanut butter balls
Dinner: Dinner at church

Thursday
Breakfast: Mushroom, pepper, onion omelette
Lunch: Turkey and oatmeal steaks, cheese, tortillas, apple slices
Snack: Deviled eggs and carrot sticks
Dinner: Grilled Chicken and Asparagus, Peas, Salad

Friday
Breakfast: Yogurt and fruit salad
Lunch: Grilled Chicken and Spinach Salad, Orange Slices
Snack: Apple Slices, Peanut butter, cheese sticks
Dinner: Chicken and broccoli rice casserole

Saturday
Breakfast: Pancakes, turkey sausage, eggs, milk
Rest of Day: Leftovers

Sunday
Breakfast: Breakfast Casserole
Dinner: Roast Rosemary Chicken

Eating This - India Chicken

I love my crock pot. It just makes my life so much easier. Anything I can cook in there I do. Yesterday I made a huge fryer hen, and had enough for our dinner and leftovers for a few lunch portions.

India Chicken

7-8 lb Whole Fresh Fryer Hen
6 cloves garlic - minced
1/2 lemon
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Curry Powder
Turmeric Powder
Paprika
1 small Red Pepper - seeded and diced
1 small Onion - peeled and diced.

Warm up crock pot. To help remove the chicken later, Take a long length of aluminium foil and fold it legth wise. Line the crock pot length wise with the ends of the foil extending over the edges. Take another length of foil, fold it in half length wise, and lay it in the bottom of the crock pot perpendicular with the ends extending over the edges of the crock pot.

Wash and rinse chicken. Tuck wings under back of chicken. Place in crock pot. Pour in just enough water for about 1/2" depth. Drizzle chicken with olive oil. Rub with sea salt and minced garlic. Sprinkle generously with Turmeric Powder, Curry, and Paprika.

Fold the ends of the foil over the chicken so you can put the lid on and have a good seal.

Cook on low all day, or cook on high for 3-5 hours. About 1 hour before it's done, generously sprinkle the red pepper and onion over chicken.

When you think it's done, check the temp with a meat thermometer to ensure it's done.
Lift Chicken out using ends of foil. Let most of the juices drain, then place on a cutting board. Let set 10-15 minutes, then slice to serve. Serve with broth in a serving bowl.

Let's talk about eggs!

Lets talk about eggs or What are you going to do with all those eggs?

My family eats a lot of eggs. We could easily go through 1 ½ or 2 dozen a day. We have eggs in some form for breakfast almost every morning. And eggs make a great take along snack when they are hard boiled.

It's not unusual for me to go to Braum's on my shopping day and get a case of eggs or more.

I love the reactions I get when I walk in and get that many eggs at once. The question I get the most is “What are you going to do with all those eggs?” DUH!!!! We're going to eat them. But sometimes I feel almost onery enough to say “We're having an egging spree tonight. We need a few new targets, can I have your address?” I haven't done it yet, but it's more tempting each time! :)

I also get the response in the statement that “Eggs are so expensive”. I had one lady tell me that, just as she was paying over $5.00 for one ice cream sundae with all the trimmings.

For that same $5.00 I got my family 4 dozen eggs. For the same price that she purchased a small boat of fat and sugar, I was able to get protein for the next 2-3 days for my family.

It's all a matter of perspective, and all a matter of priorities.

Eggs are cheap protein. When you compare 1 egg to the price of 1 oz of cheaper ground beef, the cost is usually the same or less. Then you have to take into consideration, that when you cook the ground beef, you loose some of the volume as the fat is cooked and drained off. 1 full oz of raw meat is not going to remain 1 full oz cooked. You're going to need to eat a little molre 1 oz of cooked ground beef to get the same protein as in one cooked egg.

Eggs are nutrient dense, and considered a high quality complete protein. They contain all the essential amino acids required for the human body. They are calorically low, and one egg can have as few as 3% of the daily calories needed by a adult man. Eggs contain most of the vitamins and many minerals the human body needs. They are high in the B vitamins, especially B12.

And yes they contain fat. But fat has gotten a really bad rap. Fat is essential for the cells to properly develop, and the brain required a fair amount of fat to function to it's full potential. The right kinds of fat taken in moderation are not as harmful as most of the nutritional communitiy would like you to think.

I could go on, about the nutritional contributions that eggs make to the human diet. But there are already countless websites and journal writings that say way more that I could. Just do a google search on eggs and nutrition.

So here's just a few ways we make our eggs, and eat them too!

Perfect breakfast:

2 egg as an omalette or scrambled with ¼ cup whole milk with small dash sea salt

2 cups raw spinach leaves tossed in just before eggs are completely cooked

4 Tablespoons fresh salsa

Snack

1 hardboiled egg, 3-6 almonds/cashews, 1 medium apple or orange.

You can take the hb egg and make a single deviled egg by splitting it in half, mushing the yolk, with a tiny bit of mayo and mustard. If you do this, don't eat as many almonds if you're worried about zone blocks.

Dinner:

Eggs Florentine

½ stick of butter or coconut oil

¼ cup flour – more if needed

2 cups whole milk

Nutmeg to taste

8-12 eggs

Variety of fresh veggies; such as red peppers, tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, onion, green onion, broccoli, asparagus, peas, corn, ect, chopped/diced/sliced.

½ lb grated cheese

Start by making the white sauce. Melt butter or coconut oil in skillet or saucepan. Add flour and blend well. Add milk a little at a time to avoid lumping of the flour. Heat until sauce starts to thicken and bubble. Add Nutmeg and remove. Stir more to help it thicken evenly.

Whisk eggs till well beaten. Add white sauce to the eggs. Whisk well to mix.

Prepare veggies and place in bottom of a square or rectangular baking dish. Pour sauce/egg mixture on top. Bake at 350F for 45-50 minutes. About 40 minutes start doing the toothpic test. Stick a toothpick in the center of the dish and pull out. When it comes out clean and dry, the dish is done. Remove from oven and top with cheese. Place back in oven for about 5 minutes to let the cheese melt a bit.

Let cool 15 minutes before cutting into. Serve along side a big salad of romaine and red leaf lettuce.

Eating This - Crock Pot Chicken

1 5-6 lb roasting chicken
6 cloves garlic, unpeeled and whole
1 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
3/4 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
1/2 pound large mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1/2 medium onion, sliced into 1/4 wedges
1/2 - 1 pound carrots, washed, peeled, and cut into long slices

Wash chicken, rinse inside of cavity thoroughly and discard gizzards and neck. Remove skin of whole chicken if desired. Tuck wings under the back to secure, and place in a crock pot. Put whole garlic cloves in cavity of chicken. Sprinkle salt, lemon pepper, thyme, and rosemary evenly over chicken breast. Arrange mushroom slices on top of chicken. Arrange onion wedges and carrots around chicken.
Cover and cook on low all day long, or on hight 4 hours or until chicken temps at 160F.
Serve with steamed brocolli and a large mixed salad.

Eating This - Spinach Mushroom Scramble

Spinach Mushroom Scramble

1 Tablespoon canola or olive oil
1/4 onion diced
8 eggs
1/4 cup milk
4-6 Medium/Large mushrooms, washed and sliced
2-3 cups baby spinach leaves
1 small to medium avocado

Warm oil in large pan over med low - med heat. Add diced onion, and saute a bit.
in a bowl whisk eggs and milk together. Pour into pan with onions. Immediately top with sliced mushrooms and spinach. Stir frequently, to turn mixture, till egg is cooked completely. Portion evenly onto 4 medium plates.

Skin and quarter advocado. Slice quarters and arrange on plates beside eggs. Serve with a 1/2 cup bowl of cinnamon oatmeal sweetened with a touch of honey or stevia.

This does have a bit more fat because of the added avocados. But its a fat that is good for you and your brain. I give it to my kids often because they are growing and need it. But you can omit it if you choose to.

Eating This - Sandwich wraps

One thing that can really throw your diet off is not keeping things simple. It's really easy to let yourself (myself, I'm the pot calling the kettle black here) look at what's on the "what you can eat" list and get so overwhelmed until trying to pick something to eat is stressful!. When you start stressing about what to eat, you're really shooting yourself in the foot. The food you eat needs to be healthy and nutritional because it is your fuel, not only for your workouts but for your daily life. But you can over think about what you're going to eat, letting food dominate your thinking instead of focusing on more important things. Also, thinking about food so much makes it harder to keep eating under control!

Here's a simple lunch or snack that is yummy. It does not take much thought, and is easy to make. Prepare several ahead of time to keep in the fridge to grab through out the week.

Sandwich wraps

1 low carb tortilla OR one large Romaine lettuce leaf, washed and patted dry
1-2 oz Muenster cheese, sliced thin
2 oz thin sliced black peppered ham or leftover turkey breast/chicken
1-2 cups mixed prepared Romaine lettuce and baby Spinach leaves
1 Tablespoon Honey Mustard
1 Tablespoon mashed advocado

On the tortilla or the lettuce leaf, layer the cheese, ham or other meat, and mixed lettuce to fill. Top with mustard. Start to fold and roll tortilla/lettuce leaf. Spread the mashed advocado near where the seams will meet up to help seal the wrap, and finish rolling up the wrap.

Eat with a piece of fruit or some berries.

Enjoy

Recipe: Speared Chicken Bundles

Daily Food Journal

Breakfast:
3 eggs
1 Apple

Lunch:
2 oz tuna
Celery and Carrot Spears
Applesauce

Snack:
1 McDonalds Double Cheeseburger
1 Large Diet Coke

Dinner:
Speared Chicken Bundle
Water

Recipe for Speared Chicken Bundles

Makes 4 servings.

• 2 10-12 oz boneless Chicken Breasts
• 1 Bundle Asparagus Spears
• 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 tspn Herbs De Provence (Available at Whole Foods) OR
• 1/2 tspn Thyme and 1 1/2 tspn Rosemary
• 1 clove garlic

Pre heat a 10" or larger cast iron skillet on the stove top OR Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare the Asparagus spears: Remove the band or tie from the bundle, rinse spears of asparagus under cold running water. To break off woody steams, hold each spear firmly at the base and in the middle and bend the stalk. The stalk will snap off just above the woody base of the stem. It is best to break off the woody ends individually, rather than guess and cut off the ends. Rinse again and set aside to drain.

Place chicken breasts in a gallon size freezer ziplock bag. With the flat end of a meat tenderizer, flatten each chicken breast. (Please don't tell my husband that my kids borrowed and lost my tenderizer and I used his MagLight flashlight.... :P )

Dip a basting brush in olive oil and lightly oil bottom of cast iron skillet. If you are baking it in the oven lightly oil the bottom of the baking dish.

Pour rest of oil into a small mixing cup. Mix herbs into the olive oil. Mince garlic clove and mix in oil/herb mixture. Baste the center of the top of each chicken breast with 1/4 of the oil/herb mixture.

Place 4-6 asparagus spears in center of each chicken breast. Roll up each chicken breast, keeping asparagus in the center. Secure seams with 3-5 toothpicks.

Place chicken bundles in cast iron skillet or baking dish. Baste the bundles with the rest of the oil/herb mixture.

If baking chicken in the oven, arrange rest of asparagus spears in the baking dish and cover with aluminum foil or baking dish cover. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-40 minutes until chicken is done.

If cooking on stove top, cook over medium heat in a cast iron skillet. Brown bottom of chicken bundles about 5 min. Then with a spatula loosen each bundle from the bottom of the skillet. Cover skillet with lid, and simmer for 30 minutes. Test with a thermometor to ensure the chicken is done. Remove the chicken bundles, drain juice and set aside to use later.

Arrange rest of asparagus in the skillet, cover and saute for approx 5-10 minutes, turning halfway through, until tender. Add chicken and reheat till warm.

Remove toothpicks from bundles. Cut each bundle in half, and place each half on a dinner plate. Arrange 1/4 of rest of asparagus on each dinner plate for a pleasing presentation. Lightly drizzle chicken bundles and asparagus spears with juice from the pan.

Serve along side a spinach salad and enjoy.