Weekly Meal Plan May 14th

Had a great turn out at the oil party in the office on Saturday - so big thank you to everybody that made it.  We went down to Lakewood today for Mother's Day Brunch, still feeling pretty full from jalapeno biscuits and gravy (I know not a very healthy choice but it was delicious). 



Sunday- California Sushi Bowl

http://wonkywonderful.com/california-roll-sushi-bowl/

Monday- Eggplant Roll-ups

http://recipesfoodandcooking.com/2015/01/12/skinny-eggplant-roll-ups-eathealthy15-giveaway/
I am going to add ground turkey to the roll ups for a little protein

Tuesday- One pan Shrimp Fajitas

http://www.number-2-pencil.com/2016/09/21/one-sheet-pan-shrimp-fajitas/

Wednesday-Chicken Avocado Caprese Salad

https://cafedelites.com/2016/08/30/chicken-avocado-caprese-salad/

Thursday-Slow Cooker Honey Glazed Garlic Chicken and Veggies

http://damndelicious.net/2015/06/05/slow-cooker-honey-garlic-chicken-and-veggies/

run out of excuses.

lets be honest, just when i feel like i’ve got a grip on this workout thing, motivation drops, life goes crazy and then POOF, an excuse appears. its like magic, really. just when i need a reason not to get that run in, life almost always throws me a bone and gives me a solid reason not to.

take last week for instance. in a normal week, we operate at the level of busy, which is manageable, but much easier when you are firing on all cylinders. but then the stomach flu hit me. i had no choice but to sit life out for a day and do my best to recover. losing a day out of your week is hard and then trying to make up for it while you still aren’t one-hundred percent is even harder. 

so with 2 weeks until the colfax half-marathon, this weekend was supposed to be my longest training run, the grand finale, final push of training, if you will. but i was dehydrated and weak from being sick. i didn’t want my last big run before the race to be horrible and possibly injure myself or even get sick while running (no one wants that!). so i didn’t do it. 

but then i started feeling bad. excuses are so easy. and while this was a pretty good one, nothing about training for a race is supposed to be “easy.” and while the stomach flu wasn’t a part of the training plan, excuses aren’t either.

20,000 steps before 8:00AM!

so i found a way. it involved waiting an extra day to know that nasty flu was behind me. it meant getting up at 5:15am and starting my run in the dark so i could be home to be with mason in time for dr. chris to head up to adjust his sunday morning patients. it wasn’t the easy way. or the way i wanted to do it. but the satisfaction i got from pushing myself beyond the excuses was more than worth it. it wasn’t the 11 miles i was supposed to do this weekend, but 9.5 miles felt far greater than doing none and letting the excuses win. 

i’m not saying this is how it goes every time i want to sit one out. but this is a great reminder for me that the easy way doesn’t feel so good. and when the calendar is full and it doesn’t seem like there’s time to squeeze that run in, take a second look. 

but i’m not gonna lie, the nap i’m about to take is going to feel pretty amazing too!

- kristen

Weekly Meal Plan May 7th

When I went to the grocery store this weekend, I was thinking warm and sunny.  Warmer weather always makes me think seafood boil.  I am not sure why my mind goes there but it just always sounds good when you are sitting around the backyard.  Of course then the storm rolled in tonight, but oh well, I wont let that disturb my tasty shrimp and super hot cocktail sauce ( Ketchup and extra hot horseradish).  Another busy week in our house, Kristen is doing some freelancing and we have our oil party Saturday in the office.  As well as trying to get out all the wonderful Mother's Day gift baskets to our clients who ordered them in the office this year.  So we really tried to add a few recipes that can be done a head of time.  Our go-to quinoa power salad and a soup.  Hope this helps give you ideas for the week.

Sunday- Shrimp Boil

http://www.ladybehindthecurtain.com/country-shrimp-boil/
Monday- Quinoa Power Salad

http://www.thegardengrazer.com/2014/04/quinoa-avocado-spinach-power-salad.html?m=1We add Black beans and Feta to this recipe, adds a little protein and makes it delicious

Tuesday- Tofu Tacos (no fancy recipe for this one)
First step I press the water out of my tofu which gives it a better texture.  I just slice one brick of tofu in 8 cross sections.  Then I place it between two cutting boards with paper towels between the cutting boards and tofu.  After the tofu has been pressed I coat it with a mixture of sriracha and honey.  Throw it on the grill for a couple minutes per side and cube it up.  Then I simply fill corn tortillas with the tofu and any other toppings I desire.

Wednesday- Thai Cocunut Chicken Soup

https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/slow-cooker-thai-coconut-chicken-soup/7cc193b0-0b00-4ff5-9527-ae68db64039b

Thursday-  Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet

http://www.primaverakitchen.com/ground-turkey-sweet-potato-skillet/

Weekly Meal Plan: April 30th

It is a busy week this week in our house.  We are trying to do recipes that are prepped ahead to get dinner on the table faster at night this week.  Tuesday we are cooking a whole chicken so we can use the leftovers for enchiladas Wednesday night.  Just shred the chicken and make the enchiladas the night before, it is perfect.  We also have one true Instant Pot recipe this week on Monday, I am anxious to see how dried beans turn out in the Instant Pot.  Also a side note, Instant Pots make awesome rice and quinoa.  So, two slow cooker recipes, one Instant Pot recipe and one recipe that can be made the night before, should be an easy dinner week in our house.

Sunday- Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

 http://www.thecookierookie.com/skinny-slow-cooker-chicken-tortilla-soup/?utm_content=bufferaeb8c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest.com&utm_campaign=budgetbytesbuffer

Monday- Instant Pot Red Beans and Rice

 

http://www.apinchofhealthy.com/instant-pot-red-beans-and-rice/ 

Tuesday- Whole Roasted Chicken with Grilled Balsamic Brussels Sprouts

 http://www.skinnytaste.com/grilled-brussels-sprouts-with-balsamic-glaze/

This is a simple oven roasted chicken recipe, obviously you could use any recipe you like but the key is to have leftovers for the enchiladas

http://bestrecipebox.com/recipes/roast-baked-whole-chicken/


Wednesday- Enchiladas Verde

http://www.skinnytaste.com/enchiladas-verdes-green-enchiladas/

Thursday- Slow Cooker Thai Peanut Chicken

https://www.averiecooks.com/2016/02/slow-cooker-thai-peanut-chicken.html#
We will be substituting cauliflower rice for regular rice in this recipe

Meet Our New Kitchen Obsession!

We have a new awesome member of our small appliance kitchen family and we wanted to introduce you to it.  It is called an Instant Pot and it is remarkably awesome.  Why is it awesome you ask? Well, because when you are constantly going, it makes it easy to cook delicious, healthy food in very little time.  We were able to make an amazing chicken burrito bowl a few nights ago in less than 20 minutes start to finish.  That was with delicious moist chicken, long grain rice and sautéed onions and garlic all in one pot.


So what exactly is an instant pot might be the question you are thinking in your head.  Instant Pot is a multi-cooker that does the job of a slow cooker, electric pressure cooker, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, sauté/browning pan, and warming pot.  We are still experimenting with all the different functions this machine has to offer but lets just say so far everything we have used it for has impressed us.  Perfect fluffy quinoa with no effort, no problem.  One pot meals that save cooking time and decrease dishes in your sink, yeah, it does that.  Hard boiled eggs that peel easier than any other hard boiled egg I have ever seen, yep, covered.  We even baked little tiny personal mini cakes in it last night.  Next on the agenda homemade yogurt, which I can't wait for since they add so much sugar to the store bought varieties.

You might see more Instant Pot recipes in the future on our blog and social media posts.  There is no shortage of recipes out their as this appliance has a huge cult following.  This isn't your grandma's pressure cooker, you don't have to be scared of it.  It wont blow up in your kitchen, at least I should say ours hasn't yet, as long as you follow directions you should be ok.  Tune in later to see how the homemade yogurt experiment goes.

- Dr. Chris

Weekly meal plan week of April 23rd

Sorry the meal plan is being posted a day late this week.  We had a wonderful family barbeque on Sunday evening, it was such a great day for being outside we didn't get around to planning.  The rest of the week ushers in colder weather and warmer recipes.  One thing that will be new this week is Instant Pot cooking.  This is our newest cooking gadget and so far we have really liked it.  Look for more posts in our blog as we explore all the cooking potential of the instant pot.  Also keep your eyes out on the blog for more information on Rock Tape, a form of kinesiology taping used to alleviate pain and increase functional mobility.

Monday- Pressure Cooker Chicken Black Bean Burrito Bowl

http://cookfasteatwell.com/pressure-cooker-chicken-black-bean-and-rice-burrito-bowls/

Tuesday- Kale Pesto Quinoa Bowl

http://www.theironyou.com/2015/02/quinoa-kale-pesto-bowls-with-poached-egg.html?m=1

Wednesday- Ground Turkey Chili

We Substitute two pounds of lean ground turkey instead of beefhttps://www.chowhound.com/recipes/spicy-slow-cooker-beef-chili-30669

Thursday- Sweet Potato Sloppy Joe

http://www.skinnytaste.com/sloppy-joe-baked-sweet-potatoes/

Weekly Meal Plan: Week of April 16th

This week was kick started with sweet sugary beans and chocolate shaped like little eggs and bunnies.  Time to get it back in gear Monday.  We have a couple one pan dishes on the agenda for this week as well as a salad, and we will be re-visiting one of our favorites, the zoodle.



Sunday- Easter (Chocolate, Sugar and Ham)

Monday- One Pan Sausage and Potato

http://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/roasted-garlic-potatoes-and-sausage/

Tuesday- Kung Pao Chicken Zoodle

http://www.skinnytaste.com/kung-pao-chicken-zoodles-for-two/ 

Wednesday-One Pan Chicken Fajitas

 http://www.cookingclassy.com/sheet-pan-chicken-fajitas/


Thursday- Apple, Blue Cheese, Pecan Salad with Chicken

http://kitchendreaming.com/apple-pecan-and-blue-cheese-salad-with-apple-vinaigrette/
We add Roasted chicken to this salad to make it more filling