Friday, June 26, 2015

Clean Eating Recipes

Happy Summer! We have been on vacation the past couple of weeks to Maryland, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida. We had a blast seeing family and friends. We also got to see my sister get promoted to Captain in the Army - we are so proud of her! We had a wonderful week in Florida at a Marriott Vacation Club in Orlando for a week and got to experience Disney World for four days and LegoLand for a day. What a blast we all had and really focused on staying cool in the pirate pool at the hotel in the afternoons when it went up to 100 degrees! So hot! I must say my favorite part of our FL vacation was seeing our kids' faces light up when they watched the performances or while riding a ride. The Magic Kingdom Electric Safari Parade and the light show on Cinderella's castle were amazing and ended with fireworks! We have made such nice memories.

Well, as with most vacations, we did not eat as healthy as we could have. So, once we got home I have placed us all on a clean eating diet! Here are a few recipes we have tried. I hope you enjoy them - they have simple ingredients and are very flavorful, and healthy!

Whole Wheat English muffin with 2 slices of turkey bacon and one egg

Chicken Salad: 4 baked chicken breasts shredded with 1/2 cup sliced grapes and 1/2 diced red onion
Clean Ranch dressing: 5 tbsp buttermilk, 3 tbsp Greek yogurt, 1/4 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp dried dill, 1/2 tsp parsley, 1/2 tsp chives, 1/2 tsp salt, pepper to taste

Smoothie: 1 banana, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1/4 cup blueberries, 4 strawberries, 1 cup orange juice

1 cup Greek yogurt, 1/4 cup blueberries, 2 tbsp granola

Clean Eating Taco Seasoning: 2 tbsp cumin, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1/2 chili powder

Whole Wheat tortilla with taco meat, sliced cherry tomatoes, 1 tbsp shredded cheese and guacamole (2 avocados, garlic powder, Creole seasoning, lime, dash of salt)

Garlic Chicken with Zucchini and Corn: 1 lb chicken cut in cubes, 2 cups corn, 1/4 cup dill, 2 cloves of garlic minced, 1 sliced zucchini, 2 tsp pepper, 3/4 tsp salt, 2 tsp olive oil

Enjoy!
Brittney

Monday, June 8, 2015

Summer Happenings!

We are Philadelphians! We moved into our new Row House last week and have been unpacking boxes ever since... we never knew how much stuff we had until our basement had everything from our garage in it! We currently do not have a garage, or much of a backyard, but we are learning to make the best of all these new changes. I will admit, I did find a grocery store that I probably will not go back to, only to find one in the other direction that seems to be much safer - win! One thing we are trying to embrace is that you WALK EVERYWHERE. Plus parking is a nightmare so it sort of forces you to walk. We have found the awesome running trail along the river and a great local park for the boys. We even got a tour of Kinley's new preschool. The boys are doing really well adjusting and we have made some new friends already!

Today we had local Philly Cheesesteaks and they were amazing! We have also been to a few restaurants around our neighborhood and really look forward to the next two years!

We spent a few weeks at my parents house in Maryland and had a crab/shrimp boil. We actually had a local grocery store steam the crab legs for us - super easy.  I also made a fresh strawberry and blueberry tart. They were simple recipes and I hope you have a great Summer!

Crab/Shrimp Boil

- Zatarain's Crab Boil in a bag, or 3 tbsp. Old Bay seasoning
- 12 baby red potatoes
- 6 ears of corn, broke in half
- 12 oz. bottle of beer
- 1 onion, quartered
- 2 lbs. smoked sausage, cut in 1 inch pieces
- 1 lb. raw shrimp, fresh or frozen

1. In a stockpot, add seasoning, beer, potatoes, corn, sausage, and onion.
2. Cover with water.
3. Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Add shrimp and allow to steam for 3 minutes.
5. Drain the liquid in the sink and serve boil.

Stockpot with Crab Boil in a bag

 Filling the stockpot up with water

 Steamed shrimp

 Boil!

 Steamed crab legs

Maryland Crab and Shrimp Boil

Rustic Strawberry and Blueberry Tart

Pastry:
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 2 tbsp. cold water

Filling:
- 3 handfuls of strawberries, quartered
- 1/2 cup blueberries
- 3 tbsp. flour
- 3 tbsp. sugar

1. In a medium bowl, mix strawberries, blueberries, sugar and flour together. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, mix flour, sugar, butter and salt in a food processor or with an electric mixer until it resembles course breadcrumbs.
3. Add the egg yolk and water. Mix on low until dough forms. Wrap your dough in cling wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
4. Roll out your dough on a floured surface, in a thin, round shape.
5. Place dough on a parchment paper lined baking sheet (or greased foil). Place filling in the middle of your rolled out dough and roughly fold the edges up around the filling.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar if desired.

 Strawberry and blueberry filling

 Rustic tart before baking

Perfect Summer Dessert!