This post is dedicated to Kandis

This is why we need to stay away from High Fructose Corn Syrup...very interesting.

Baked Bean Dip

1 can black beans, drained

1 can white beans, drained

1 can shoe-peg corn, drained

6-8 chopped roma tomatoes

4-5 finely chopped green onions

1/2-3/4 bunch chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 jar salsa verde

1 c. mexican 4-blend cheese

dash garlic salt

dash cumin

Stir all together. Bake at 350 for 45 min. covered. Bake additional 15 min. uncovered. Serve with tortilla chips as appetizer or side dish.

This is a great party dish because it makes A LOT--so you might want to cut the recipe in half for just your family. I make the full recipe because we enjoy the leftovers:)

{Kara}

Mediterranean Salmon Bake

Okay I am finally sharing my one and only Salmon Recipe...

courtesy of Kelsey Nixon...

That is why I have her picture on here...

sorry none of the yummy Salmon.

Mediterranean Salmon Bake

Ingredients:

• (4) 6 oz. Salmon Fillets
• 4 TBS. Greek Seasoning
• 1 Spanish (white) onion, sliced
• 2 Lemons
• 4 TBS. butter, cubed

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place salmon fillets on sheet of aluminum foil. Season each fillet generoulsy with Greek Seasoning. Distribute sliced onions and fresh lemon juice evenly over each fillet. Place 1 TBS. butter on each fillet.
3. Top Salmon fillets with sheet of aluminum foil crimpling the edges to form a loose packet.
4. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until salmon is baked through.

Need a side dish with this? Look no further...again courtesy of Kelsey Nixon!

Roasted Asparagus

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. asparagus, ends trimmed
• 2 TBS olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• Kosher Salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 TBS fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 Degrees. Rinse and clean asparagus. Break the tough ends off of the asparagus.
2. Lay the asparagus spears out in a single layer in a baking dish or a foil-covered roasting pan. Drizzle olive oil over the spears, roll the asparagus back and forth until they are all covered with a thin layer of olive oil. (Alternatively you can put the asparagus and oil in a plastic bag, and rub the bag so that the oil gets evenly distributed.) Sprinkle with minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Rub over the asparagus so that they are evenly covered.
3. Place pan in oven and cook for approx. 8-10 min., depending on how thick your asparagus spears are, until lightly browned and tender when pierced with a fork. Drizzle with a little fresh lemon juice before serving.

ENJOY!!!!!!

This may be my only post. I do not keep up on my own blog!!

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

After having a pretty tough time this morning with running I was scanning internet for some words of wisdom and thought I would share what I found on active.com

"A solid...race is not made from a handful of good runs, but rather the sum of good, bad and sometimes ugly workouts. As you make your way through the training program, remember not every run will be your strongest. Even the world's fastest elite runners have tough running days. If you're having a rough day, slow the pace, and get through it. It's all part of the training process and breaking through to your running best. The great workouts will build confidence, the challenging "When-can-I-stop" runs will develop mental strength, and all of them combined will keep your momentum flowing."

Today was definitely a "when-can-I-stop" run for me and this made me feel better.

-Heather-

Fool Proof Wheat Bread

This recipe is easy to make and requires little to no mess in your kitchen. It makes 3 loaves and lasts me a week.

4 c. warm water

1 T salt

1/3 c. oil

1/2 c. honey

2 T dough enhancer

2 T yeast

9 1/2 c. wheat flour (i usually do 4 cups white and the rest wheat)

Add flour and water to mixer with dough hook in place. Mix together for a few seconds, then you add salt, honey, oil, dough enhancer, and yeast and mix together until dough starts to pull away from sides of the bowl. (you may need to add more flour). Mix for 10-12 minutes. While its mixing, preheat oven to 170. Pour dough onto counter( i usually coat counter with non-stick spray first). Cut dough into three equal pieces. Place each loaf into a generously coated pan(non stick spray). Turn off oven and place loaves in and let rise until double in size. Once the loaves have risen, simply turn oven back on to 350 and let them bake for 30-35 minutes. When loaves are done, immediately remove from pans and let cool.

-Heather-

Running Music

Every time I run on my treadmill I plug in a movie to watch. I don't know about you girls, but when I watch TV and try to run those 30 minutes seem to drag on FOREVER!!! Even with a good movie. I just found myself wanting to sit down and watch rather than run.

I pulled out some really awesome workout music that my old kickboxing instructor gave me, and downloaded it on my MP3 player. I LOVE running to it. When you have a beat to run to it makes a world of difference.

See for yourself...when there's a 5 second pause in between songs it seems like the longest 5 seconds of your life because you don't have that beat to run to anymore. Rather than running to the music you start to realize how tired you're getting.

Anyway, for anyone who needs some good running music let me know. I'll burn you a disk.

-Tiffany

Apple Oatmeal Pancakes

Pancakes are a staple in our weekly menu and so of course I had to find a healthier version than our powder-out-of-a-box usuals. These are super hearty and kept me full until dinner! ( I'm not a very good food photographer, so there is no photo--sorry)

Ingredients:

1 cup oats

1 cup flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup shredded peeled apple

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 Tbsp. honey

Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk all the wet ingredients together in a smaller bowl then add to dry ingredients. Then cook them however you do pancakes...iron skillet, electric griddle, or whatever you have.

~Kara

Oat, Fruit and Nut Cookies

These cookies are awesome! You would never guess that these have whole wheat flour in them. This made about 1 dozen.

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup dried fruit bits (cranberries, cherries, raisins or apricots)
3/4 cup walnuts

Directions
In a large mixing bowl cream butter. Add brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Beat until combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla. With a wooden spoon stir in flour. Once combined add oats, fruit and nuts. Drop dough on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes.

-Tiffany

Black Bean Hummus

For some, hummus is an acquired taste, but my girls LOVE it and Austin is starting to come around. I used to just buy hummus at the store until I realized how easy it was to make. Then my SIL gave me this yummy recipe for black beans instead of chickpeas (garbonzo beans).

We use it as a veggie dip...Elena calls it her "Jumping Vegetable Dip" cause she thinks that after she eats it with her veggies it helps her jump higher:) Silly girl...at least she eats it right?

Ingredients:

1 clove of garlic

1 15-ounce can black beans, drain and reserve liquid

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons tahini (sesame paste)

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon paprika

Mince garlic in food processor (or use pre-minced garlic). Add black beans, 2 Tbsp. reserved liquid, lemon juice, tahini, cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper. Blend until smooth. Add paprika for garnish.

My adjustments: I didn't use tahini, simply because I didn't have it on hand but it still tasted great. If you choose not to use the lidquid from the beans, you can use olive oil instead. It's just to give it a smooth consistancy.

Happy Healthy Eating!!!

~Kara

Stay Motivated!

Because it takes so long to see results when you change your lifestyle, figure out a way to stay motivated to keep it up and keep moving. For me, the motivation is to get my body back that I once had. I post a pic of myself in front of the treadmill to keep going and remind me of what hard work can do. Can't wait to run with all of you this spring! :)

Lemon Water

I have to admit that I had a little Crystal Light addiction that I had to break. It was awful at first, but then I realized I was just craving a sweet drink. I decided a great alternative would be to squeeze a lemon wedge into every glass of water I drink. It worked! It actually makes me want to drink more water.

So for those of us that have some kind of drink addiction (diet or regular soda especially), this is a great replacement. Plus, it should make you feel good to know that there are plenty of health benefits that come along with drinking lemon water. Here's a great blog that tells you some of the biggest benefits (weight loss included) Simple Heath Cures

-Tiffany

Buttery Shrimp Pasta

Ohhhh.....This was so yummy! My goal is to post a bunch of seafood recipes since I know some of us are struggling with the whole fish thing. Let me just tell you...if you have the right recipe, you will LOVE it!

My kids loved this one. Ryan was afraid the shrimp was about to crawl off his plate, so he just ate the pasta. He at least liked that. It says to add the red pepper flakes in the mix, but I just sprinkled some on top of mine and Ryan's so I didn't fry the kid's mouths.

Also, once it was cooked it needed more flavor. I added garlic salt, and that did the trick.

Ingredients
8 ounces pasta (I used whole wheat)
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 lbs shrimp, peeled and deveined (mine was already cooked)
2 cups half and half (I used 1% milk-thickened up once I got the pasta in)
1/4 cup fresh basil, minced or 1 tsp dried basil
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions
Cook pasta, set aside. In large skillet heat butter. Add shrimp and garlic. Saute 4 minutes. Remove shrimp. Add half and half. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add shrimp, basil, cheese, pepper and red pepper flakes. Pour sauce into bowl. Add pasta and toss well.

-Tiffany