Black bean Chicken soup

Trying to NOT shop for groceries this week and use up what we have in the fridge. We will be heading out soon for VACATION and I like to leave with a empty fridge. I am one of those freak people that have to have the entire house cleaned, truck cleaned, files in order, and yard cleaned before I can leave for vacation. Its a problem, I know. Lucky for me my Family seems to get that I have this problem and seem to just stay away from me while I'm preparing for our trips!
Also lucky for me that the kids are all old enough to pack alone! I just make a list of must haves and they do the rest. Now we sometimes end up with car bags that are bigger that our clothes bags because they hold the contents of ones entire room, but we just smile and say "I'm not going to be responsible for getting all of that back home". Or I also like to smile and say "We are returning to this house you know. You dont have to bring your entire room". Most times it results in ONE stuffed animal being removed from the bag or a bouncy ball. Hey, better than nothing! I have my issues, so do they! Ha!ha!

Since we are trying to use what we have this week I was a little lost as to what to make for dinenr. My husband LOVES the fiesta chicken that I make but I asked what he wanted for dinner the other night too late to make that so I can up with this and It turned out AWESOME!! I LOVE me some black bean soup but my husband LOVES him some chicken. This dish is pretty much like the fiesta chicken just made into a soup. A simple soup. Because I already had my chicken prepped this really only took about 15 minutes to put together and then I let it simmer for about 25 minutes.

I was searching recipes online a while back and found that a lot of people use vegetable broth in black bean soup so I gave that a try since I happen to have a box and it was really good!
Check out the fiesta chicken farther down and you'll see that its almost the same. So if you like that, you'll love this!

Your will need :
1 whole organic cooked chicken, shredded or chopped to your liking
3 cans low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed (two of the cans smashed and set aside)
2 cups frozen corn
1 tub of all natural salsa (NO SUGAR ADDED)
1 large onion chopped and sauteed
1 box (4c) of no salt added veg stock
**spices to taste (used when cooking the onions and again when all mixed):
cayenne
garlic
cumin
onion powder

**optional toppings:
low fat sour cream
2% shreded motz cheese
fresh cilantro
hot sauce
avacodo

After chopping the chicken, cooking the onion with the spices, and smashing two of the cans of beans, mix everything into a pan. Spice it up some more to your liking and simmer for about 20-25 minutes. We topped ours with motz cheese and cilantro because that all we had in the fridge. It was awesome!! Everyone loved it and asked If I could write it down and put it on the rotation!
I hope your family enjoys it as well!

**This made enough for my Family of 5 with 2 servings left over.

kale soup, perfect fall dish

It seems as though this fall has come in so quickly. Kids were busy with sports until last week, school, jobs, animals, girl scouts...
I've been making it a point to spend time outside each day and just enjoy the fall time weather. The colors and smells. The cool breeze and short afternoons. I also have been making it a point to get out of my pj's. Its so hard sometimes to get up and get motivated when its so comfy and cozy sitting on the couch with a cup of coffee and the fire going!

We did recently take a weekend trip to NC and visit my brother and his girlfriend. We went into the mountains and did the whole farmers market thing and enjoyed just driving through the beautiful colors. We really do miss North Carolina very much. We would spend most weekend in the mountains when there. Hiking in the fall because the summer was so darn hot! It was a beautiful weekend and we had the best time!

Halloween has come and gone. Another thing that always seems to come and go so quickly. We took the kids on a trip (trip #2 actually) to the pupmkin patch to grab some pumpkins and quickly decided that we would be making a trip to our local Publix instead. $14.99 for a pumpkin? $50.00 for our family to walk through the corn maze? REALLY?
The kids suggested going to publix and the pumpkins were only $4.99 each and just as beautiful as the ones at the patch. We learned that day (again), that its not the amount of money you spend but rather who your spending your time with!

In the fall we love to stay in for dinner, go to the fire pit at night on the weekends and enjoy being at home with eachother. Game nights, movie nights and good food!
We all love soup but differ on what we like in our soup. Husband has to have meat in his soup. This particular soup can be made with our without meat and is delicious either way. This time I decided to add the meat since I was making it for the whole Family. I've made this before but this time decided to add a bit more and make it more of a hearty soup. We served ours with whole grain bread and unsalted butter. It was a perfect meal for a cold rainy night.

I made a big pot as to have some left overs, but you can just use less of things to make how much you need.
*8c low sodium organic chicken broth
*1 sweet onion chopped and sauted in olive oil
*1 can low sodium organic fire roasted tomatoes
*1 large bunch of kale, removed from stems, clenaed and chopped
*2 cans of low sodium chick peas, drained and rinsed
*1 whole cooked chicken, I used a crockpot chicken that I had prepped on prepping day, cut and skin removed
*red pepper flakes, cumin,black pepper, garlic and onion powder,cayenne pepper
I sauted the onions with the spices (spice to taste) and then added all the other things to the pot. added some more of each seasoning and simmered for about 30-45 minutes.

Clean Fritters

Ive been feeling a bit borning when it comes to my food choices lately. I just cant seem to really get into the groove of "making" things. I could honeslty eat a bowl of oats for every meal. That wont fly though with the kids and hubby so Im trying really hard to get it together.
The other day I came accross a great looking recipe for fritters on Facebook. I didnt really have everything to make them as the recipe stated, but put together what I had and came up with what I think were some darn right amaazing fritters!!

*1 handfull of baby carrots (processed)
*1 zucchini (processed and squuezed of juice)
*1 sweet onion (processed)
*1/2 cup oat flour (processed rolled oats)
*1 egg
*pepper, cayennne, garlic and onion powder and one crank of sea salt
*cooked on medium heat in a skillet with a drizzle of olive oil until brown and crispy on both sides.

~AMAZING

Lettuce head lunches. Chicken bites

The kids made a plan this school year that they would mark down the days on the calendar that they wanted to eat school lunch and the other days, I would pack for them.
This to me was pretty fair. The only like a few things that school provides, such as stuffed crust pizza and buffalo chicken bites.
I think the kids have settled into this whole "eating healthier" lifestyle and have learned to just embrace the changes. I found this awesome recipe on a blog called "Part time housewife" (I cant figure out how to link it up, but go check it out)and thought it would be perfect for the kids lunches. So on my food prep day I put together what I had and came up with this.

The whole Family LOVED them! They are not at all spicy, just a great buffalo flavor. I just dipped mine in the egg/buffalo sauce and then into the bread crumbs. so simple! Perfect for school lunches! Maybe even a "chicken tender sandwhich"!! M's favorite!!

Black bean soup

John and I ventured out to a new Cuban restaurant this weekend and the food was yummy! Service was horrible, but the food was good so I'm sure we will be back again.
One thing I had was a cup of black bean soup. Very simple, but oh so good. We laughed at the fact that before I started clean eating, I hated black beans!
I really wanted to try and make some at home because I seriously could have ate six cups of it! Gave it a shot today and other than the fact that I put way too much couscous in it, it was great!! Kids loved it! I adjusted the amount of couscous for the recipe list.

1 box low sodium organic chicken broth
2 can low sodium black beans
1 can low sodium fire roasted tomatoes
1/4c couscous
1 onion chopped
Garlic
Cumin
Oregano
Cayenne
Sauté onion in olive oil and season to your liking.
Add remaining ingredients and summer until couscous is ready. Serve topped with feta cheese and cilantro.

Poached egg goodness!

Poached eggs, love them!! They are seriously one of my favorites, and I have finally found a great way of cooking them.
This is a two poached egg, Ezekiel toast thingy!
It's so amazingly good! I was in food heaven while eating it!
*heat a skillet sprayed with a bit of olive oil. Spray a cookie cutter with olive oil also and set in the middle of the skillet. Crack your two eggs and add to the cookie cutter. (needs to be a larger cutter) put about 1/2 cup of water in the skillet, cover and bam! In a few minutes you have wonderfully poached eggs!
Toast a piece of Ezekiel bread, top with eggs, a bit of low fat cheddar cheese, avocado slices and a scoop of all natural no sugar added salsa.
Pick that sucker up and eat it!!
*two eggs
*ezekiel bread
*Avocado
*low fat cheddar cheese
*all natural, no suggest added salsa
*1/2 c water
*skillet
*olive oil
*lrg cookie cutter

PUMPKIN PANCAKES

Oh, it's my stomach!
Got up at the butt crack of dawn to get ready to volunteer at the middle school today so I quick grabbed a banana and a coffee for breakfast. Went right from the school to the gym for legs, abs and sprints.
Got in 2.5 miles on the treadmill, 2 of them sprints. Killed legs and abs also and gave the giant ropes a try today! Those things are heavy!
On the way home I was starving! Stomach rumbling!
Been craving some pancakes and needed some protein so I blended these up!
1/2c egg whites
1/2c pure pumpkin
1/2c rolled oats
2 scoops flax
1 heaping scoop vanilla protein
1 tbsp baking powder
Cinnamon
Liquid vanilla
Cooked in a skillet on low heat with coconut oil.
Topped mine with PB2, 1/2 banana and a tiny tad of pure maple syrup.
AMAZING!!
I tried to enjoy them with a nice cup of coffee but made the coffee with NO cup!! A tinymess under the keurig!

Let's make a list...

That's almost always how we start a Thursday. More so if we have no plans for the weekend. We make a list if things we want to get done and almost always end up doing maybe one thing!
This weekend was no different.
We fixed the kitchen light that needed a new switch.
We spent a bit of time at soccer, baseball, guitar practice and out back by the fire pit. A really nice weekend. We also had date night!! We always pick a place we love with food we love and most of the time, beer we love!!
I wish I would have grabbed a picture of the Pizza we ate, and the pitcher of beer we drank, but I was busy...stuffing my face!! Then we went to get ice cream! A single of Peanut butter! Amazing!
It's all good, I work my but off all week and don't feel one bit bad about living a little. But...I felt like crap for two days! So today, back to business and a little week long challenge.
No junk, no added sugars, no alcohol.
Day #1 is a success so far!
Made this amazing green smoothie as a kinda snack mid morning and had one with breakfast. So Delish!
1c water
1c spinach
2c kale
1/2 frozen banana
1/2c frozen peaches
Blend and enjoy!
Of course you can add protein powder, different fruit. Mix it up to your liking!!
ENJOY and don't feel like crap for treating yourself as long as your working your butt off 99% of the time!

Pumpkins are taking over the world!

Every year around this time I fight the urge to put out all my fall decorations, make every pumpkin recipe I have and dress in Halloween costumes at random!
My very favorite time of year. I just love everything about fall time. The kids love it as much as I do and already have costume ideas and are begging me to put all the decorations out!
I love it!
Yesterday we started prep for the million fires we will have this fall and winter. I had ordered 1 cord of wood, hubby requested 2 and I think we are pretty set in wood this year.
That will be part of my workout...loading the wood and stacking it. I'm kinda excited about it! Maybe I have lost my mind as my good friend said the other day! Ha! Ha!
Now onto pumpkins...
Every place I look people are making pumpkin this and pumpkin that! Pumpkin coffee, muffins, cakes, and custards! I love it! So inspiring and yummy! Our oldest daughter can kill a whole pumpkin pie by herself and its one of the first things she talks about when referring to fall! She has requested pumpkin pie for breakfast on her birthday before (in April) and we were happy to oblige! She happens to also be my only child that requests oatmeal sometimes for breakfast so I wanted to come up with "pumpkin pie oats".
The first bowl was so nasty! I had put a pumpkin pie spice in it and I think it has way too much nutmeg or something because it was gross!
Bowl number two was great! This is what I did...
*1/3 cup oats
*2 tbsp flax (optional)
*2 tbsp 100% pure pumpkin
*1/2 tsp cinnamon
*5 drops of liquid vanilla stevia
*1 tbsp honey
Put all the above in a bowl, pour boiling water over top, mix and top with slivered almonds.
Simple and the perfect amount of pumpkin flavor.
www.facebook.com/CreatingAFamilyOfLettuceHeads

It's chili time!

Been rising in the morning to a chill in the air, kids grabbing jackets on the way out to school and ending the night with beautiful fall feeling evenings!
The kids and I have decided that yes, fall time is our favorite season!
So many reasons to love the fall, food not being the least of them!
Ty
I found this recipe in one of our local little magazines. It's titled football feeding frenzy, by Jon Webber. I have no idea how to link Jon or if he has a link but if ya find him tell him we loved his recipe!
I changed only the amount of chicken stock, tomatoes and beans, and I added chicken. It was delish! Kids loved it! Of course they topped it with cheese(low fat) AND sour cream!
I shall rename this recipe from Red lentil chili to:

Red lentil chicken chili
4 c dry red lentils rinsed
2 32oz low sodium organic chicken broth
3 boneless skinless organic chicken breast chopped
1 can low sodium diced fire roasted tomatoes
1 can low sodium kidney beans drained and rinsed
1 large onion chopped
2-4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
Olive oil
Cumin
Cayenne
Salt and pepper

Pour broth into Pan and bring to a boil, adding the lentils at the boil and turning heat down slightly. Continuously stirring lentils until tender.
In another pan pour in some olive oil and cook chopped chicken and onion with all seasonings.
After fine add in beans and tomatoes.
Once the lentils are ready, add on everything else and season more as needed.
My lentils took about 25 minutes to fully be tender and ready.

Busy little lettuce heads!

When school starts I get do excited to be able to hit the nail salon, go get my hair done, go to the gym. Just have a little relaxing time for ME.
Having the kids home in the summer is a blast and I seriously love every minute of it, but my roots and toes need some attention come August!
About one month after school starts though so do fall sports and after school clubs! Like every other family, we get crazy busy and those hair and nail appointments are put aside for other things. Making sure everyone uniforms ate clean, getting team snack put together, making sure we have dinner ready to take with us. It's a fun and busy time and a routine is huge for me. I have to stick to the routine!
Yesterday was a day that my routine got a little behind, a little bit broken!
And I maybe had a minor breakdown!
It ain't always pretty, but we made it to the ball field on time. Everyone had homework done, and I was still able to have a meal ready for us to eat so we didn't get sucked into the "fast food" trap after the game!
Life gets busy sometimes! Simple, healthy dinners on the go are a great way to make sure that everyone is staying fueled up to make it through those busy times!
*grilled chicken salad
Seasoned with just black pepper garlic and and smokey paprika.
Spring mix, red onions, carrots, green peppers and a yogurt based gluten free no sugar added dressing.
*steak wraps
Steak and onions sauteed with pepper and olive oil
Lettuce, avocado, whole wheat tortillas and yogurt based ranch dressing.
*grilled chicken pasta salad
Whole wheat pasta, grilled chicken, whatever veggies you want to include and this super yummy organic ville dressing.
All portable and simple ingredients and kid approved!!!

You want me to do what??

A month ago my husband asked me to try a new exercise program with him. My response was something like this "why would I want to change everything that I'm doing", "I have no interest in working out while watching a DVD and doing it for an hour", "are you even going to really do it"?

I was not excited about it at all! But I decide that nothing I said was either motivating or helpful to him. Nothing I said was something I would want my husband to say to me. Plus, I really do enjoy working out with him. It's always fun, we laugh a lot!!
So I laid out the guidelines! Yup, I had rules! Lol
*no quitting!!!
*no changing the rotation of the workouts to suit what works for you
*you have to follow a good diet. No crap and no cheating when your away
*NO QUITTING!

Day #1 fit test:
My thoughts were "I got this, I work out like this everyday, I'm gonna kill it"
I don't normally warm up and that was a shock, I don't stretch either. (I know, bad) But, I did really good on the fit test!
My initial thoughts though were that I was going to hate it! It seemed slow and all the talking...who knew that after 30 days I would turn down the music and turn up the DVD so that I could listen to Shaun T. Talk to ME!! Tell ME to push harder, to dig deeper, to get my butt down!
Who knew that going into month TWO I would be talking back to the tv and asking Shaun T. To slow down!! Lol

My husband says for the person who doesn't have a structured workout program and can benefit from a great instructor and structure it's a great workout! The intensity of it helps you to avoid "lazy" workouts you might get at the gym without instruction and the cardio focused approach is amazing for fat burning. You can travel with it and all you need is your body and a DVD player!!
It is tough to do alone, a workout partner is huge!! If your already a big weigh training person you will want to add gym days specifically for weights.

I say if your lookin to lean out, get faster, get mentally stronger and love HIIT style workouts, you will love INSANITY!
SHAUN T. Is an amazing motivator and the workouts are INSANE! Doable but crazy! You will be shocked at things that you are able to do! You will be shocked at things you are NOT able to do! At the end of month one you will be so proud of what you've done!

How I feel about my results: I was terrified I was going to "get skinny" from all the cardio, so I tried to eat more and hit the gym two days a week for weights. Made sure to drink my protein shake everyday! I didn't get skinny and I actually see huge improvements in my arms and legs. Insanity or weights? Not sure but I think the two are working together nicely! I have that cut in at my waist in both sides and can't wait to see how everything shapes up in month two!

My husbands results: he feels sore all the time! Tough on his hips and calfs!
Saw huge results in waist line, has seen definition in his abs! Legs and arms also getting leaner! He says he may let me post pics after his 60 days! Lol

Enjoying everything so far! Month TWO is no joke though! It seems like a huge jump from month one and may just kill me! ;)

What's your limit?

During the last month of doing Insanity my husband has had to ask himself this many times, I'm sure!
It's a tough workout. Each and everyone bringing you practically to the floor by the end!
I've been holdings own yet I have NEVER had sweat dripping off my like I do with these workouts!
Loving it!
This week we are doing a whole week of the same workout. Kind of a recovery if you will until they kill you next month with "Max" everything!
Should be fun!
The kids have really enjoyed watching us through this month. Working out with us at times, saying we are crazy at other times and wondering why Sean T. Stops working it sometimes and just "walks around"!
I have had to incorporate weights into my routine, at the gym. I just felt like I was getting too thin from the high intensity of the workouts. I am loving being back at the gym. Two days a week is plenty and what I feel I can truly handle and commit to.
I feel like I am eating constantly! Trying to make sure I get enough protein. Making sure I'm getting in enough water.
It's tough!
One of my favorite snacks is this Fage with PB2 and vanilla stevia! It's crazy good! I saw someone on IG do this and gave it a try. (I'll link up a post if I can remember where I saw it)
Great to dip fruit in! Kids love it with apples.

What are they eating when they leave your house?

You know how it is, they get invited to a Friends house. They are there ALL day. You pick them up and they tell you all the fun they had, including eating a while bag of chocolate chips! Two bowls of captain crunch for a "snack"!
You cringe and say "glad you had a good time", knowing that next time the play date will be at YOUR house! Lol!
I really try not to be too crazy about it but one place I want to know what my kids are eating is school. So far they still like the lunches I pack (I have them all make a list of likes and dislikes because who can keep what three kids like and dislike straight? Maybe super mom but not me)

I try to keep a fruit and veggie in every lunch, some protein and a treat. The treat is usually a homemade healthier version of a cookie or protein bars, or balls. (these can be found on my FB page)
I have them leave whatever they don't eat in the bag so I can see what they actually ate. (that gets eaten for after school snack.
Take the guess work out of what they are eating at school!

Tacos!

Gotta love them! Gotta have them at least once a week! Kids favorite!

This is our healthy version of tacos. A bit of a change from a year ago when we used to fry corn tortillas in canola oil and use beef with sodium filled season packets. Not to mention the cheese and sour scream! Good gravy they were good! Lol okay, back to these equally good healthy tacos...

*whole wheat tortillas wrapped in foul and heated in a 350 oven for about 10-15 min
*3 chicken breast sliced into pieces. The size is your choice. Sometimes I get lazy and my pieces are bigger!
*1 green pepper and 1 onions chopped.
*cook chicken in a skillet on medium heat and a bit of olive oil.
Season with *ancho chili powder, cumin, smokey paprika, black pepper, garlic.
* when cooked almost through, I toss in the onions and green peppers and cook until done.
*served with low sodium black beans, lettuce, cucumbers, avocado, and tomatoes.
The kids still add shredded cheese, though 2%.

Oh my...I am in love with a new food!

While out shopping a while ago I asked my husband if he thought I would like salmon. He quickly said "no". He thought it would be to fishy for me.
How could this be?? I see so many people eating it on FB and instagram! It looks do good!
Plus it's amazing for you!
Plus I like other fish, tilapia, grouper.
I also really like shrimp, crab and Tina.

So, of course after asking him what he thought about it, I did the exact opposite! He lives when I do that!

In this case, I am so glad that I did! I am seriously in love!
Now I may not use the best method ever for cooking it, but I'll get more adventurous as time goes on.
For now though, this is amazing!

*heat a skillet to med with a bit of olive oil
*marinade pieces of salmon in about 1/2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce, 1 tbsp agave and some black pepper
I have only been letting the sit long enough to get my sides ready and then I start to cook.
I place them in the skillet and cook for about 7 min on each side. Until they are a bit flaky.
YUM!!

INSANE!

A couple weeks ago the husband asked me if I wanted to do Insanity with him.
I was all like "heck no! I love what I'm doing. It's fast, fun, gets me results and I think I would be lost without it".
I MAY have also said a few things like, "I will be crazy mad of I switch up what I'm doing and then you do t Dinah the program"!
He works a lot, which is his main excuse for missing workouts and eating crap. I get it, kinda but not really. I do want to always be a supportive wife, (even though it may not sound like it in this blog) so I signed on and we have started Insanity!! I really live working out with my husband do honestly it was a no brainer! :D
I would not say that I was really excited about it though. Longer workouts, watching a video, having to wait until the husband was ready.
I took our before and after pictures and jumped right into it. Prepared to dominate the fit test! I seriously was!
All my fears, all my groans and gripes about why I didn't want to do it went right out the window when I did the fit test. I loved it! It was a lot of the same things I always do which was cool. I did really well which was cool. I was working out and supporting the man I live which was super cool!

Stay tuned for more updates about our Insanity journey! :)

Frozen yogurt

Kids and I had big plans today. Get packed up for our next trip, clean house, do some school work and then head to the pool. Thunder ruined those plans, do we opted for making a yummy treat instead and watching a movie.

Frozen yogurt:
1 cup 0% plain Greek yogurt
1 cup frozen mixed berries
(my bag was raspberries, blueberries and blackberries)
1 frozen banana

Popped all in a food processor and it turned into this yummy, yummy treat!
The kids topped with mini dark chocolate chips!

Camping fun and first night food.

So much fun. So much work. So great for Family bonding!
SO GOT RAINED OUT!!

Okay, so we did have 95% chance of rain when it was time to check in, but we worked our butts off making food for that trip! We really wanted to go!

We bagged the trip because of horrible rain, thunder and lightning and decided to do a fun "screen porch camp night"!!
sounds fun, right!!??

We played a couple games, laughed a lot, had some heathy snacks. It was a fun time...then all the kids went in the house to sleep! Ha! Ha!

Dinner we had was fantastic! We made up a grilled chicken salad to be eaten the first night at camp, cause who likes cooking after setting all the stuff up? Not me!!

Grilled chicken
Ancho chili powder
Garlic
Smokey paprika
Black pepper
Cumin
Cooked in a bit of olive oil
Chopped and added to a bowl of chopped veggies. Whatever you want is fine, I used green and red peppers, cucumbers, red onion and cherry tomatoes.
Added some whole grain noodles, and some balsamic vin dressing.
Just a very small amount. Like really little. Just a lite pour across the top.
Mix it all up and refrigerate!

Travel tips to help you stay fit over vacation

*take your cooler, packed full of healthy veggies, fruit, salads, waters and protein shakes! Plan for a long trip by taking the time to bake some things ahead.

*pack a small bag full of healthy snacks and waters.
Even when you think your leaving for just a short trip, things can change and you might be out all day. Be prepared!!

*take your workout binder and shoes!
I usually do HIIT workouts, so it's not a big deal to do a quick workout. I don't miss out on anything and still feel like I'm keeping up on my fitness.
My gymboss timer always makes it into my bag!
Pick quick, effective workouts!

*look around you and use what you have for equipment. Don't make excuses.

*make little packs of things you love!!
I always try to make oatmeal packets, with oats, protein powder, almonds and flax. Perfect portions for one person. Just boil water and add it to the oats!