Rocky Road Ice Cream Shake

I'm not much of a sweets girl and I'm quite thankful for that. However, Rocky Road Ice Cream is my weakness. I love it so much and I could easily eat a whole pint of it in one sitting without even thinking twice about it. Now obviously, I can't do that and still reach my goals, so I had to find an alternative: I bought some ON Rocky Road Whey Protein, which is pretty awesome on its own. 

One day after demolishing my legs in the gym pretty bad, I really just wanted to curl up on the couch with some rocky road ice cream and zone out to some TV. A regular protein shake just was not going to cut it. So I came up with this yumminess!

Ingredients: 

1 cup of unsweetened almond milk 

1 scoop of rocky road whey

2 small bananas (frozen bananas will create a more ice cream texture, if frozen skip the ice)

ice

Just blend it all. 

It literally tastes like something you'd get at a diner except its completely guilt free and packs a protein punch 

Zucchini Boats

Zucchini boats are a great side dish that accompany essentially everything! They're fast and incredibly easy to make. They're also a great way to get picky eaters to eat their veggies as the stuffing masks the flavor of zucchini very well. It's essentially a pizza made with an all zucchini crust! 

Ingredients:

1 zucchini makes 2 boats

Shredded mozzarella

Low sodium/low sugar organic marinara sauce

Directions: 

1.take a zucchini and cut it in half vertically. 

2. Scoop out the inside with a spoon in order to create a hollow crevice. Make sure to leave some "wall" room on both ends to stop any leaks (see in photo).

3. Stuff with whatever you desire! (or use ingredients above)

4. Stick on a baking sheet sprayed with EVOO and place in oven at 375F for 10-15 mins and voila!

I stuffed these with organic low sodium tomato sauce and topped then with some skim shredded mozzarella. I've also stuffed them with meat sauce and Parmesan with great results! So basically whatever you want should work great! Try them out they're so easy, delicious and fast to make!

Rocky Berry Protein Shake

My post workout much needed protein shake! Delicious shake that combines a chocolately feel with some berry flavor. Getting some much needed protein straight to your muscles and some good carbs! 

It's a win win.

Ingredients: 

1 cup of frozen berries

1/2 cup of water

1.5 scoops of rocky road ON whey protein 

a lot of chia seeds! 

Directions:

Blend and serve over ice!

Clean and Gluten Free Spaghetti and Meatballs

Sometimes, my Italian side of me takes over and all it craves is PASTA PASTA PASTA! During yet another of one of these attacks it was quite specific: spaghetti and meatballs! So I buckled down and throw together some ingredients on a whim and came up with something absolutely delicious and completely clean!

Ingredients: 

Meatballs: 

1/4 cup Mozzarella 

1/3 cup Parmesan 

1 egg 

1 lb lean ground turkey breast 

5-6 large basil leaves, torn 

1 teaspoon oregano 

Little under 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder 

1/2 medium onion diced 

5 organic baby carrots diced 

Pasta: 

1 bag of brown rice spaghetti - can substitute with whole wheat or quinoa pasta if desired

Tomato sauce - I used marinara (organic, low sodium, all natural) 

Parmesan 

Directions: 

1. Add all ingredients to one bowl. 

2. Mix with hand until well mixed. 

3. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and then spray with no stick spray.

4. Form the mixture into balls and place on baking sheet. 

5. Bake for 25 mins at 375F or until they seem ready. The mozzarella will leak out around the edges a little and slightly brown. This is normal don't worry! 

6. In the mean time cook pasta following directions on bag/box. 

Once the meatballs are done scrape them off the sheet and then add them to the pasta with some tomato sauce and sprinkle on some Parmesan if desired. Enjoy!! 

I made rather big ones so this made a total of 10 meatballs which lasted a while as I use about 3 per serving. You can store the extras in the fridge or freeze!

Gluten Free Tostadas

These tostadas are super easy to make if you're pinched for time and perfect for beating that Mexican food craving. Coming from California, I used to always eat Mexican food so it's a common craving of mine. Thanks to this late night grocery shopping idea I now have a clean and gluten free option to turn too!

Ingredients: 

4 gluten free tostadas (I found mine at a grocery store)

1 lbs of ground extra lean turkey breast 

1 can of low sodium black beans, preferably organic

3 tomatoes diced

1 cup of brown rice 

1/2 onion diced

Italian seasoning 

Tiny tiny tiny bit of sea salt 

Italian 5 cheese shreeded blend 

Shredded cheddar 

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350F

2.Cook brown rice based on package directions 

3. Place diced onion in pan with some EVOO and cook until translucent. 

4. Add turkey breast and cook. Break it into little pieces with the spatula. Add Italian seasoning to taste as well as sea salt to taste. 

5. Drain and rinse black beans and cook according to directions. Once cooked, mash them to make them similar to re-fried beans. 

6. Place tortillas in oven at 350F for about 6-7 mins or until they're golden. 

7. Once everything is cooked and diced add all to tostadas. I did beans on bottom, followed by rice, followed by turkey, followed by tomatoes and then topped with cheese as desired! 

Delicious and actually very simple to make. Next time I'll add some shredded lettuce and some homemade guacamole if I have it!

Carrot Cake Protein Oatmeal

Now, I'm not normally a carrot cake kinda gal, but there is one cake that has my heart: carrot cake! (oh and cheesecake, but that's another story). So when I stumbled upon a few recipes for carrot cake oatmeal I immediately knew that I had to try my own. Of course being the gym rat that I am, I had to add some protein (which can be omitted if desired)

Ingredients:
2 cups of unsweetened vanilla almond milk 
1 large carrot peeled into slithers 
Little over 2/3 cup of old fashioned oats (can use gluten free oats instead)
1 tsp vanilla extract 
1 tsp cinnamon 
1/2 scoop of vanilla whey protein

Directions: 
1. Peel large carrot into slithers. 
2. Add almond milk, carrots, oats, cinnamon and vanilla to a pan and bring to a boil. 
3. Add oats once boiling. Cook for about 5-6 mins or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Add whey 1 min before turning off and stir well. 
4. If desired add organic raisins and chopped walnuts and stir. Once thickened turn off heat and then serve. 
5. Top with whatever desired toppings. I chose organic strawberries, unsweetened untoasted shredded coconut and some chia seeds!

Blueberry Protein Muffins

Here are my protein banana blueberry muffins! So moist and yummy and delicious and 100% guilt free! 

Ingredients: 
1 cup almond flour
2 bananas
1 cup of egg whites
a handful of frozen or fresh blueberries
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 scoops of vanilla protein powder
1 heaping tbs of coconut oil. 

Directions: 
1. Mash the bananas. 
2. Place all ingredients in a bowl. 
3. Mix by hand or with electric hand mixer until batter is well mixed. Little chunks of banana can be left if desired as they do not need to be fully dissolved. 
4. Grease muffin tin with cooking spray 
5. Pour enough batter to cover half of each muffin grove in muffin tin. 
6. Drop a few blueberries (if desired) into each individual muffin grove 
7. Pour the rest of the batter over the blueberries in order to fill the muffin groves almost to top but not overflow. 
8. Add more blueberries on top
9. Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes or until they have risen and look golden on top! And then enjoy!

Macros for 1: 57 cals, 4g carbs, 5g protein, 3g fat.

Creamy Avocado Pasta with Lemon Turkey Tenderloin

Perfect for dinner or a lazy sunday lunch!

It's pasta topped with a creamy avocado sauce and some lemon turkey tenderloin. This avocado sauce is oh so creamy and oh so rich that you won't believe there's no cream in it! 

The whole meal took a total of 40 mins to make all this including prep so it's super easy. 

Lemon turkey tenderloin: 
4 small turkey tenderloin slices 
Juice of 1 organic lemon
 Pinch of Italian seasoning 
Pinch of garlic powder 
1/2 tbsp of EVOO per tenderloin 

Directions: 
1. Preheat oven to 350F 
2. Roll each tenderloin in lemon juice and EVOO 
3. Sprinkle both sides with Italian seasoning and garlic powder 
4. Place on a baking sheet covered in aluminum foil and bake for about 30 mins (may need to add more or less depending on thickness of the turkey) 

The recipe for the "Creamy Avocado Pasta Sauce" (direct link to recipe) is posted on ohsheglows.com. Only thing I did differently was only use 1 garlic clove cuz I'm a baby when it comes to garlic :P 

I cooked gluten free pasta based on package directions and then added the sauce to the pot after I drained the pasta of course and stirred it up real well and then plated it with the turkey on top! And voila! Oh so good and oh so healthy. Filled with healthy fats, good carbs and tons of lean protein.

Quinoa pasta with kale, mushrooms and tomatoes

Being on vacation is not an excuse for me to stop reaching for my goals. I 100% approve taking breaks and allowing yourself to indulge every once or in awhile or if desired. However, I indulged all of last week so I decided to keep this week as clean as I could. In order to do so, I made sure to go grocery shopping and pick up a few essential here and there so I could make my own clean meals.

For lunch today I was starving so I used up a few things in our fridge and came up with this DELICIOUS creation.

Ingredients:

Kale

Mushrooms

Tomatoes

Quinoa tri color spiral pasta

Dash of oregano

Tiny bit of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to directions.

2. As pasta is cooking, start chopping mushrooms and tomatoes while warming up a pan with some EVOO.

3. Add mushrooms to pan and sauté until golden.

4. Add kale and continue cooking until its wilted. You can add a lot, it really shrivels up! I did not add nearly enough

5. Add tomatoes at the very end to just warm them

6. Add oregano and stir to make sure it is absorbed.

7. Top pasta with veggies and if desired add some freshly shaved parmesan and a drop of oil to allow it to all come together.

Voila! 

Takes a total of 10 minutes including pasta cook time to make and is packed with nutrients. Kale is a superfood and this is an easy way to add it to a daily dish to elevate it to the next nutrient level!

Oh and for all my gluten sensitive or gluten free friends this IS gluten free so dig in!

Tricep dips

Really great exercise to target those pesky triceps and get your heart rate up as well which means burning calories!

Instructions:

Simply follow the photo from the top to the bottom. 

1. Find a bench or a chair or a low table. Place your arms at the end of end and scoot your legs out until your bottom is just off the edge and your legs are straight. For beginners you can modify by bending your legs to make it a little easier.

2. Lower your body until your arms are bent at the elbows and your bottom is hovering above the ground.

3. Lift back up by powering through your arms.

4. Repeat. I do 3-4 sets of 15-20 reps. 

I love this exercise because it is super easy to incorporate it just about anywhere you can imagine. In this photo I was in the middle of a state park and just used a park table! 

Chocolate PB Protein Smoothie

Here's a quick and simple protein smoothie perfect for nourishing your muscles after a workout or to simply enjoy during the day

Ingredients: 
1 cup of plain almond milk 
2 scoops of chocolate designer whey
1 tbs of unsalted all natural smooth peanut butter. 

Directions:
Blend everything an then add some ice cubes! It's so good (and I don't even like peanut butter)

Opening Post

Hello lovelies,

I did it! I decided to create a blog to supplement my My Instagram Profile. If you're already following me, you can use this to search for specific recipes or exercises. If you're new, well hello and welcome! I created my instagram in hopes to motivate and inspire people to learn how to lead a healthy and vibrant life. My story is quite common: average girl trying her whole life to get that "perfect" body that our society has created. In order to do so I've just about tried it all: cutting carbs, hours and hours of cardio, juice fasts, specific diet plans, eating everything labeled as "diet" or "low fat" or "no sugar added". The end result was always the same. I'd lose weight fast, I'd feel deprived and as soon as the diet was up or I lost some weight I'd immediately start eating everything I could find due to having felt deprived. As I entered my first year of college I decided this had to stop.

During one of my many instagram searches I stumbled upon a few profiles that referred to "clean eating", which they described as a lifestyle and not a diet. As I spent more and more time researching it I started to understand it and truly fell in love with "clean eating". In a nutshell it's eating whole and natural food, while cutting out all the processed junk that we have all gotten so accustomed to. I stopped doing endless hours of cardio and instead did high intensity cardio and started lifting heavy weights. My body started transforming in ways I could never imagine. But the most fascinating thing was that I suddenly started feeling ALIVE. And I mean really alive, I suddenly had tons of energy and looked forward to intense workouts. Food became fuel and the idea that "diet" or "healthy" food was boring quickly became extinct in my mind. I finally starting living life and stopped obsessing over having the perfect body.

Long story short, I created this blog to help other people as they follow me on my journey. I am not perfect, I am still human. I struggle and I make mistakes. The important thing is that you always get back up. Keep your head high and always try again.

On this blog I will post healthy and clean recipes, various exercises and anything fitness or health related that I find interesting in order to help others achieve their goals. It's a learning process and we're all in it together. So enjoy and feel free to always ask if you have any questions!