Fast Fit Food- Eating on the Go

This past week, we visited Angel Fire, NM for spring break. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

 

And that sums up my feelings today when I got back to "real life"... I loved watching the snow fall out of the cabin window!

Anyway, on the coming and going (and at my friend Tracey's request too!) I thought that I would share my favorite "on the go" foods. Both drive through and what I pack for a road trip.

Up first, what I pack in the car to go.

My top 3 travel items that go into the car

1) Pure Protein Chocolate Deluxe Protein Bars

http://www.amazon.com/Pure-Protein-Chocolate-Deluxe-Value/dp/B002XULC70/ref=sr_1_1/175-3525976-6946943?ie=UTF8&qid=1395096059&sr=8-1&keywords=pure+protein+chocolate+deluxe

At 180 calories and 20g of protein per bar, these tasty bars feel like a candy bar. I usually have one as my daily snack.

2) Jack Link's Teriyaki Beef Jerky

And I pack this huge size bag, because the whole family loves this stuff. A 1 oz serving is 80 cals and 14 g of protein. Beef crack.

3) Apples

 

http://www.forevergracephotography.com/

A medium apple is around 70 cals and filling. Love the Pink Lady variety- crisp and sweet.

My top 3 drive through fast food items

1) McDonald's Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken and Newman's Own Southwest Dressing

 

http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/product_nutrition.salads.88.Premium-Southwest-Salad-with-Grilled-Chicken.html
 

*standing ovation* BRAVO McDonald's!! Finally, a fast food meal I look FORWARD to and can get just about anywhere I travel in the US. With the dressing, the salad is a fililng 390 calories with 28g of protein, 14 g of fat, and 39 g of carbs.

2) Taco Bell Taco Salad without the shell, salsa for dressing

 

http://www.tacobell.com/food/menuitem/Fiesta-Taco-Salad

By forgoing the shell and salsa instead of dressing, you can easily save 350-500 calories. So pretend that picture has no shell. Go ahead and order it without the shell too while you are at it, too tempting! And get lots of salsa on the side for dressing.  And pretty much any taco/burrito joint has this option, not just Taco Bell. If you choose a standard beef taco salad as above sans the shell, you are looking around 420 calories and 24 g of protein. Fat comes in around 21 g and carbs around 33 g. I often get grilled chicken instead and save a few cals if I am in the mood. Some burrito places have extra veggies to fill out your salad like grilled peppers and onions :) do not be shy about adding them!

3) Chickfila Grilled Market Salad

 

http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Food/Salad-Detail/ChickfilA-Grilled-Market-Salad

Chickfila has MANY standout options including a grilled chicken sandwich and a side of fruit. And do not get me started on their diet lemonade. PURE BLISS. Bless your heart if you do not have one of these fine establishments around! So this salad is my favorite in their line up. I like to add the Reduced Fat Berry Balsamic Dressing with it. The salad is 180 calories, 4 g of fat, 13g of carbs, and 25 g of protein. If you add the Berry Dressing, it is another 110 cals, 4g of fat, and 20g of carbs.


Obvously, I have a salad fetish. So those are my "on the run" picks. What are yours?

Fit Refried Beans

I got a great, simple recipe today that the whole fam will love. And you will too. It is easy on the pocket book as well! 

I have been making a few short videos lately for Venus, and wanted to share!

That one is some alternatives for stability ball work if you do not have a ball. Try them, they are super challenging :)

I also had another cake to make this week. It was for my daughter's luau birthday party!

 

She wanted "tropical cake" so I made this bottom layer pina colada cake, the top layer was chocolate-chocolate chip with nutella filling. All of it is topped off with coconut scented buttercream. It was delish!


But back to the beans...

See, I have a "thing" for refried beans. Must be the Texan in me. I LOVE them on my taco salads, but the cals can add up QUICK. One day my mother-in-law Ana (who is also now addicted to Venus Index now, ya'll! WOOT!) showed me her recipe to make them which is this one! So I started making them on my own, and have never looked back to canned, calorie-laden versions.

 

My family loves these. They are so versitile. Nachos, burritoes, tacos, and of course taco salads. I serve them with my slow cooked tex mex shredded chicken usually, sometimes some taco seasoned lean ground beef.

Fit Refried Beans

Approx 10 servings

 

Ingredients

• 1 lbs pinto beans, dried

• 2 cubes of beef bullion, optional

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil (I tend to use olive oil or canola)

• 1 tbsp taco seasoning (I make my own, see recipe at the bottom)

• 1 tbsp flour (I use whole wheat)

What you do

Soak beans overnight, you want about double the amount of water of the beans. Pour off water, and rinse beans once more. In a crockpot, put beans, about double the amount of fresh water than beans, and beef bullion. Cook for 8 hours on low. Drain the beans. (You can also start at this point with 2 cans of cheapo pinto beans from the store- that is how Mrs. Ana does it!)

In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, add oil, taco seasoning, and flour. Cook until flour makes a roux that is about peanut butter colored. Add the beans, and start mashing. Enjoy :) I find that these keep well for up to a week and also freeze well!

 

 

I have my Tex Mex Slow Cooker Chicken going in the crockpot next to my beans!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nutritional Stats

Per 1/3 cup

Cals- 77 cals
Fat- 0.3 g
Carbs- 14.5 g
Protein- 4.6 g
Sodium- 134 mg



***Taco seasoning recipe***
Mix together 2 tbsp cumin, 1 tbsp garlic powder, 1 tbsp onion powder, 1 tbsp cilantro, 1 tbsp oregano, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp chili power (increase or decrease depending on your preferred level of spice, this is medium) Store in a ziploc or clean spice container.

Low Calorie Black Bean Brownies

These guys are gluten free and vegan too! I think it is awesome that one little dish checks off so many marks on the diet spectrum.

I had a custom cake order this week, which was kind of hilarious. The request was for a baby butt cake LOL I was kind of stumped on what I was going to do. So Saturday morning I got up early and went to work...

 

 

It is hard to keep out of the left over frosting and cake batter.... but I digress. Took some monthly progress pics too.

 

 

 

So back to the brownies...
I was inspired to make these from an @ +loveMaegan IG post which I then pinned on Pinterest. (BTW you can follow me on IG my handle is @MLGraham09) My sister in law saw the pin and requested that I bring them to family dinner night. I was afraid that the husbands and kids would not be fans, so we had regular brownies too as back-up. Well, my 9 YO son and niece finished a third of the pan. If they are kid approved, then they must be good!

So then I decided I would tweak the recipe some more and take them to a work luncheon. Everyone was suprised about the secret ingredient. After the experiment, I decided that I liked the original recipe better. So I am posting that :)

Low Cal Black Bean Brownies

(gluten free and vegan too!)

From Chocolate Covered Katie

 

Ingredients

• 1 15 oz can black beans (drained and rinsed)
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup oats
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup maple syrup (or honey although it is not strict vegan)
• 2 tbsp sweetener of choice (I used stevia, or you can omit and increase syrup to 1/2 cup)
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips (not optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350*F. In a blender or food processor, combine all the ingredients except chocolate chips until smooth. Stir in half of the chocolate chips. Pour into a greased 8x8" dish. Top with other half of chocolate chips. Bake for 15-18 minutes.

 

 

 

Nutrition

(per 9th)

Calories: 115

Fat: 5.5g

Carbs: 15g

Fiber: 3g

Protein: 2.5g

WW Points (new system): 3 points

Tropical Delight Microwave Protein Pancake

I am pretty much leaning on these microwave protein pancake variations for breakfasts almost every single day now. I love them, delicious and filling! Ummm and if you can microwave, you can make this LOL Besides, I am getting a huge hit of my protein req's early in the day right after my early AM lifting. (Check those macros out at the bottom!)

Image courtesy of http://www.bodyfortress.com/vanilla-creme-whey-isolate-protein-powder

 I was on a roll with the Dark chocolate & berry microwave protein pancakes. Then I got some new vanilla whey isolate and frozen dole mixed fruit (contains strawberries, peaches, pineapple, and mango!) the other day and the wheels got turning for a new recipe! BTW- I am a BIG fan of this Body Fortress Vanilla Whey Isolate. At 130 cals and 30 grams of protein in each tasty serving, it's macros are hard to best. Did I mention, I got it for less than $16 at Walmart?! Yeah, I am a fan!

We started this book in a book study at church a few Wednesdays ago, and I cannot put it down. It is "Extravagant Grace" by Barbara R. Duguid. This passage out of Romans sums up the book pretty well, "18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me." Romans 7:18-20. Check it out.

After seeing a post on IG from @lovemaegan, I tried making some black bean brownies for the fam on Friday night family dinner night. They were a hit! Even my 9 yo niece and son ate them! So I will def be sharing that recipe with y'all soon. Just need to tweak it a midge first.

Oh yes, have you seen this gum yet? Tastes just like the real deal!

And I am loving these new Springblade shoes from Adidas. They are too cool. WANT.

 Tropical Delight Protein Pancakes

 Ingredients 
 *banana, half
 *1 scoop vanilla whey powder (I used Body Fortress Vanilla Whey Isolate)
 *1/4 cup egg whites *1 cup Frozen mixed tropical fruit (I used Dole)
 *3/4 cup fat free plain Greek yogurt (I used Fage 0%)

 What you do 
 Spray a microwave safe plate with nonstick spray. Mash a banana with a fork, along with 1 scoop of vanilla whey, and quarter cup of egg whites. Microwave on high for approximately 3 minutes, or until the center is set. Microwave the fruit in a microwave safe bowl for 2 minutes or until thawed. Top the pancake with the Greek yogurt and fruit mixture. Enjoy! (I like to top mine with a little cinnamon!)

 Nutritional stats:

• Cals- 373 cals 
• Carbs- 39g 
• Fat- 0g 
• Protein- 55g