Nutrition: Paleo Pancakes

Nutrition: Paleo Pancakes

Recipe Whole Ripe Banana 1/2 Cup Egg Whites *** Could be whole eggs too. 1-2 Tsp Cinnamon *** I use "Pumpkin Pie Spice". Optional: Add blueberries, chia/flax seeds, or whatever you want.

Directions Cut up banana and place into a medium bowl. Add the egg whites to the bowl. Add in the cinnamon/spice. Mash the banana and mix the entire contents of the bowl very well *** Ratio of banana to egg whites is variable. *** You could optionally use a blender instead too. Heat up a pan (w/ nonstick or oil is needed) and cook the mixture like a pancake about 1/4 cup at a time. Let one side cook until the edges are dry and then flip. Depending on the ratio of egg whites to banana used, the pancakes may be thinner than traditional ones. Enjoy!

Review I love these pancakes. They are fast to make and totally guilt-free. A fast way to get in your protein and also a good amount of potassium. It's also vegetarian friendly, low-carb and gluten-free. Try making some for your friends and loved ones to see if they can even tell the difference. Tips: *** If adding in additional fruit (or any other soft substance), you will probably need to balance it out w/ additional banana slices to maintain a thick consistency in your "batter". *** Try some finely chopped greens!

Nutrition: Black Bean Pancakes

Nutrition: Black Bean Pancakes

Recipe 1-2 scoop of vanilla/chocolate protein powder * 1/3 cup of drained, unsalted black beans ** 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder 1 tablespoon of dark cocoa powder 1 egg white 1/3 cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk ***

Substitution Items * I suggest sticking with vanilla/chocolate protein because flavors like "Tropical Punch" taste weird in a pancake. ** If you don't like beans, replace with Whole Wheat Flour *** You can use soy/dairy milk if you wish

Directions Add 1-2 scoops of Vanilla or Chocolate Protein Powder to a mixing bowl. *** I use Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey - Extreme Milk Chocolate flavor. Add 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder Add a tablespoon of dark cocoa powder Add 1/3 cup of drained, unsalted black beans Add 1 egg white Add a 1/3 cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk ***Optional: Unsweetened coconut flakes ***Optional: A couple pinches of Stevia ***Optional: Ground psyllium powder for extra fiber Blend all ingredients well Heat a pan coated in olive oil or non-stick spray Cook pancakes using your normal method Makes about 3 large, thin pancakes Enjoy.

Review Black beans are high in fiber, protein, vitamin B6 and antioxidants. When eaten with brown rice, its a complete protein and extremely useful for vegetarians. The pancakes hold together well and taste like normal flour pancakes. If you like your pancakes sweet be sure to add Stevia. You can also alternately play with your black bean to flour ratio.

Nutrition: Veggie Quiche

Nutrition: Veggie Quiche

Recipe 2 Pre-Made Pie Crust 1 cup chopped Faux Chicken * 1/2 head of broccoli (chopped) 2 handfuls of spinach 1 handful of green onions (chopped) 2 carrot (grated) 2 tbsp minced garlic About 9 eggs 1 cup Soy Cheese ** 1 cup Goat Cheese *** Optional: 1/2 cup non-dairy milk (soy, almond, etc) Optional: 1 tbsp Flour

Substitution Items * Can substitute in cooked firm tofu or even real meat (ground beef/turkey, cubed/shredded chicken, etc.) We use stuff like this ** Can use real cheese here but we use this. *** Can leave this out but the quiche seems to hold together better leaving it in

Directions Look at the pie-crust instructions and pre-heat oven to that temperature. Pre-cook crust for 12 minutes. Cook your faux meat, tofu or real meat until its done. Chop/cube it into smaller pieces. *** Can season to your liking with Mrs Dash, Creole seasoning, salt, etc. We just sautee with garlic & little Mrs Dash. Heat a large skillet with some olive oil. Add the green onions and garlic. Cook for a few minutes. Now add your chopped broccoli and grated carrots. Cook for about 5 minutes until the veggies go a little soft. Stir often. During the last minute of cooking, stir in some spinach. Continue cooking until the spinach wilts. Remove the skillet from heat. Add in your chopped faux meat, soy cheese and goat cheese. Stir the mixture. Scoop spoonfuls of the mixture into your pie crusts until they are full (you may have leftover, just eat it). Crack open your eggs into a bowl and whisk. *** Can season to your liking with Mrs Dash, Creole seasoning, salt, etc. We leave it plain though. Slowly pour the eggs into each pie crust until the mixture within the crust is saturated with eggs (careful not to spill). Bake at about 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until you see the quiche is set. Once finished, set the quiche out for about 5 mintues to cool before diving in. Enjoy.

Review The recipe is very simple and tastes great. It also requires very little prep time and can be done in a hurry if you have pre-cut veggies. It reheats well but is also good as cold leftovers. Since it has a pie crust, you can eat a slice on-the-go with no utensils (watch out for crumbs though).

Sweet Potato Soup

Nutrition: Sweet Potato Soup

Recipe 2 large sweet potatoes 2 lbs diced chicken * 1 cup chopped sweet onion 1 cup chopped celery 1/2 cup carrots 2 tbsp chopped garlic 1 cup Enchilada Sauce ** 7-8 cups Chicken Broth *** Creole Seasoning ****

Substitution Items * Substitute w/ 1 cup fried hard tofu or 1 additional sweet potato for vegetarian version ** Double this for the vegetarian version (veggie broth is a lil bland). *** Substitute Vegetable Broth for a vegetarian version **** You can substitute sea salt and pepper w/ maybe some paprika

Directions Wash and cut up the chicken into small chunks, place in a bowl, season and put in fridge while you cube potatoes *** Obviously skip this step for the veggie version Scrub the sweet potatoes (or peel them) and cut into cube chunks Heat a large soup pot w/ some extra virgin olive oil Add carrots, celery and onion. Cook for five minutes. Now add the garlic, enchilada sauce and a couple tbsp of your seasoning to the pot and stir well. Let cook for a minute or so. Add the Broth now, stir and raise the heat to high. Cover the pot. Once boiling, remove the cover and add in your chicken and sweet potatoes. Lower the heat to a mild simmer and leave the cover off. Stir the soup every 5-10 minutes and season to taste. Cook until the sweet potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked thoroughly. (It was approx 15-20 minutes for me) Enjoy.

Review Sweet potatoes contain a good amount of fiber, complex carbs, calcium, iron and vitamins A and C. They're only about 100 calories per cup. The soup came out spicy due to the fact that I used Creole seasoning and a spicier enchilada sauce. For a mild soup, use salt and pepper along with a green enchilada sauce. The recipe as stands fills a large crock-pot and serves about 5 people.

Kale Shake

Nutrition: Kale Shake

Recipe A bunch of Kale *** Or any greens of your choice, the darker the better (i.e. mustard greens, spinach, bok choy, etc) Apple Juice *** Also can use any 100% juice of your choice Almond Milk (unsweetened, plain) *** This can be left out or replaced w/ any non-dairy milk of your choice (i.e. soy, rice, coconut, coconut water, etc) Fruit *** I use honeydew, cantaloupe or mango chunks A good blender Optional: Add honey or peeled ginger Optional: Add Ground flaxseed, protein, etc

Directions Grab a stalk of Kale. While washing it, pull the leaves of the stem. Drop into the blender. *** These directions are based on a 7-8 cup blender. Repeat previous step until the blender is about full. Do not press the kale down, let it sit loosely. Drop in 3-4 large chunks of the fruit of your choice. *** About 1/2 to 1 full cup of your fav fruit. Place about 1 cup of Apple Juice into the blender. *** Double this and skip step# 5 if you choose to not use any type of non-dairy milk. Place about 1 cup of Almond Milk into the blender. Cover blender top & start blending slowly. Gradually increase speed every 5-10 seconds until you are using your highest, most powerful setting. We want to completely break down the kale into a smooth mixture. *** If your mixture is still grainy on its highest setting, you need a better blender. Pop open the blender & pour. Enjoy!

Review This is a great way to get your greens, especially if you're not big into vegetables in general. You can tweak the balance of the recipe to make the shake as sweet as you need it. Dark greens are good for your immune system, they contain anti-oxidant & anti-inflammatory properties and lots of other good stuff. Optional ingredients can allow you to get your protein or omega-3s into this shake as well. My blender is good but not strong enough to totally blend my leafy greens into a smooth mix but I don't mind a bit of grit. It's kind of like the difference between no pulp & some pulp orange juice. I like pear juice & almond milk but others usually do not use milk & go with straight juice. Tips: *** If you have animals, they may like the stems if you don't want to waste them. *** If you make a large amount, you may want to do a small blend upon refill as the shake will settle a bit. *** The shake may have a semi-strong vegetable smell when you crack open the blender but generally the drink itself in a glass smells good.

Veggie Jambalaya

Nutrition: Veggie Jambalaya

Recipe 12oz pack of LightLife Smart Ground Veggie Crumbles 14oz pack of LightLife Smart Dogs Veggie Links *** NOT RECOMMENDED. I would double up on the Veggie Crumbles above. These dogs taste like sand. Going to find a better tasting veggie dog. 28oz can of diced tomatoes 32oz of Vegetable Broth 1 cup chopped celery 1 cup chopped bell peppers 1 cup diced white onion 2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce 2 tbsp Tapatio (Hot Sauce) 2 tbsp Creole Seasoning (or to taste) 2 cups Cooked brown rice *** Instead of the Veggie crumbles & Links, you can use your ground meat & sausage of choice

Directions Cut up hot dog links into chunks, add to pot. Break up crumbles into small chunks, add to pot. Add the celery, bell peppers &onions to the pot. Add the vegetable broth & diced tomatoes (w/ tomato juice) to pot. Mix the pot contents & then add your Worcestershire, Hot Sauce & Creole seasoning. Stir & season to taste. (Be careful if using the vegetarian meat as they are generally already salty). Start crock pot & stir occasionally. Should cook in about 5-7hrs on low & 2-3hrs on high. In the meanwhile, cook the rice however you normally would & set aside. Once the crockpot is done, serve the mixture on a bed of rice. Enjoy.

Review Good substitute recipe for Fat Tuesday. Just add beads & a Zydeco band to complete. I used the Smart Dogs Veggie Links to try and replace the Andouille sausage but I am not a fan of that brand. If I had to make it again now, I would just double or triple the amount of Veggie Crumbles instead. I will update this blog post once I find a Veggie Sausage I like. Also the Veggie version doesnt need to cook as long the regular meat version. You can use ground beef/turkey/chicken or chicken chunks instead of the Veggie crumbles. Also replace the Veggie Links with regular hot links.

Tofu Potato Salad

Nutrition: Tofu Potato Salad

Recipe 1lb bag of small red potatoes 1pkg (16oz) of Extra Firm Tofu * 1pkg (16oz) of Soft Tofu 10 tbsp extra virgin olive oil ** 5 tbsp lemon juice 1/2 tsp tarragon 1/2 cup parsley 2 tbsp Spicy Brown Mustard (to taste) *** Salt to taste ****

Substitution Items * Can substitute w/ eggs, tuna or whatever you like ** Can substitute w/ Grapeseed Oil or another oil of your choice *** Can leave out the mustard or substitute with your own type **** I used a couple dashes of some light sea salt

Directions Scrub the potatoes & boil them until they're tender While the potatoes cook, pan fry your firm tofu to your taste *** If you used a substitution, i.e. Tuna, prepare it how you normally would separately Grab a blender and toss in the soft tofu, lemon juice, olive oil, tarragon & parsley. Blend items until a smooth mix is formed. *** You can add a couple tablespoons of water if the mix is too thick. Find a large mixing/serving bowl & pour the mixture into it. Add the mustard, some salt and mix by hand thoroughly. Add additional spice to taste. Once the potatoes finish cooking, drain the excess water either mash them or quarter them. Add the potatoes to the mixture along with the firm tofu. Mix thoroughly. Cover the bowl with foil & place in the freezer/refridgerator until the mixture is cooled. Enjoy.

Review Everyone really liked this one. It's also my first blog post that I didn't rip from The Chevolution. I like all types of tuna/egg/potato/macaroni salad but the underlying issue is that they all generally use a lot of mayo. Mayo is bad for those trying to watch their weight, keep their cholesterol in check or with heart issues. This recipe avoids all that & if you take it easy on the salt, it's low in sodium too. It also contains a good amount of fiber. There is a very high carb count on this for you Atkins folks however. If you drop the potatoes out of the equation and maybe go with a couple cans of tuna (or similar protein), you can significantly drop the carb count. This is great to consume on its own or in a sandwich.