Black Beans and Rice

Ingredients

• ½ cup canned low-sodium black beans, drained
• ¼ tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 dash ground chili powder
• 1 pinch ground cumin
• ¼ tsp. ground coriander
• Himalayan salt (to taste; optional)
• ¾ cup cooked brown rice, hot (see recipe on pg. 75)

Directions

1. Combine beans, oil, chili powder, cumin, coriander,  and salt (if desired) in a medium saucepan; mix well.
2. Heat mixture over medium-low heat for 1 to 2 minutes, or until heated through. Remove from heat.
3. Gently fold rice into bean mixture.
4. Serve immediately.

Nutrition

• Calories: 290
• Total Fat: 3 g
• Saturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Sodium: 1,004 mg
• Carbohydrate: 55 g
• Fiber: 11 g
• Sugar: 0 g
• Protein: 11 g

Ultimate Reset Creamy Garlic Dressing

This is now my only dressing I use. No need for all the artificial crap. 

Creamy Garlic "Ultimate Reset" Salad Dressing 

Ingredients

• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tsp. Himalayan salt
• ½ tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp. raw honey (or pure maple syrup)

Directions

1. Place oil, vinegar, garlic, lemon juice, parsley, salt, mustard, and honey in a blender or food processor; cover with lid. Blend until smooth.
2. Refrigerate dressing if not using immediately. If dressing solidifies when cold, hold at room temperature for 30 minutes. Stir before serving.

Nutrition

• Calories: 119
• Total Fat: 11 g
• Saturated Fat: 1 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Sodium: 235 mg
• Carbohydrate: 6 g
• Fiber: 0 g
• Sugar: 5 g
• Protein: 0 g

BBL and Les Mills Pump

Lately I've been doing more Les Mills Pump until my next challenge group starts on September 30 for the Brazil Butt Lift. This top picture is during one of the Brazil Butt Lift videos. How fun!! The last two weeks I've been borrowing the Les Mills Pump and I can already tell toning results. I love it. It's lower weights/higher reps. It will give you the details without feeling like someone punched you in the arm. 

Honey Mustard Pretzel Crusted Chicken Salad

I came across this on Pinterest through Half Baked Harvest. Hands down our favorite salad. From living in St. Louis so long I was used to Schafly's honey mustard pretzel chicken. This has to come in as a close #2. 

Ingredients

Pretzel Crusted Chicken
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken tenders (or 2 large breast, cut into tenders)
• 1 1/4 cups crushed thin pretzel twists
• 2 egg whites
• 1/4 cup dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
Honey Mustard Dressing
• 1/4 cup dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon pepper
For the Salad
• 2 cups tiny twist pretzels (for the honey mustard roasted pretzel-croutons)
• 4-6 cup bib lettuce (or a mix of lettuce and spinach)
• 2 cups sliced strawberries
• 1 large avocado, diced
• 2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, combine the honey, mustard, egg white and whisk well. Toss the chicken in the honey mustard and set aside. Place the pretzels in a sealable plastic bag, seal, and finely crush through the bag with a meat mallet or other heavy utensil (or just carefully step on the bag). Spread the mixture out on a large plate or in a large dish. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray. Remove one piece of chicken at a time from the mustard. Place in the pretzels crumb bag and use your fist to pound the pretzels onto the chicken. Place on the prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining chicken. Mist the tops of the pretzel crusted chicken with nonstick spray. Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes, flipping chicken halfway through baking, until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the oven and serve with the salad.
3. While the chicken cooks combine all the ingredients for the dressing in a small bowl. Whisk well and adjust seasoning to taste.
4. Remove a few tablespoons (I think I used around three) of the dressing and place in a medium size mixing bowl. Toss the whole pretzels with the dressing an place on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Place in the oven with chicken for 10-15 minutes or until the pretzels have turned golden brown, flipping halfway through (don't forget about them, they can burn quickly). Remove from the oven, let cool 5 minutes and then transfer to a bowl.
5. In a large bowl toss the lettuce, spinach, strawberries and avocado together. Plate the salad and top each plate with a sliced piece of chicken, roasted honey mustard pretzels and feta cheese. Drizzle with more dressing.

Jamie Eason's Monster Meatloaf

Another genius idea from the one and only Jamie Eason

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups chopped onion & red peppers

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp minced garlic

1/4 cup liquid aminos

3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth

2 tsp tomato paste (no salt added)

3 lbs extra lean ground turkey (or ground chicken breast)

1 cup quick cooking oats

4 egg whites

1 cup reduced sugar ketchup

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees & spray 9X13 Pyrex dish with non-stick spray.

2. In a large saute pan, cook the onions & peppers with salt, pepper, & thyme until onions are translucent (about 5 minutes).

3. Add garlic, soy sauce, chicken broth, & tomato paste, mixing until heated through.

4. Set mixture aside to cool.

5. In a large bowl combine ground turkey (or chicken), egg whites, oats, & sauteed mixture (cooled).

6. Mix by hand until all incorporated & press flat into the 9X13 Pyrex dish.

7. Spread ketchup in an even layer on top of the prepared turkey (or chicken).

8. Place in the oven to bake for 1 hour & 20 minutes.

Hummus Crusted Chicken

I found this over at Gimme Some Oven. Definitely couldn't of came up with this one on my own. It's another chicken favorite of mine. I hope it will be your too. It's genius! 

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

35 minutes

Yield: 4 Servings

Hummus serves as the perfect sauce in this easy baked chicken dish!

Ingredients

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• salt and pepper
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 1 yellow squash, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 cup hummus, homemade or storebought
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 lemons
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika or sumac

Method

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Prepare one large baking dish or two smaller baking dishes with cooking spray.

Season the chicken breasts with generous pinches of salt and pepper. In a large bowl, toss the zucchini, squash and onion with olive oil until evenly coated. Season with salt and pepper.

If using one baking dish, place all of the vegetables on the bottom of the dish in an even layer. Lay the four chicken breasts evenly on top, then cover each chicken breast with the hummus so that the entire breast is covered. Squeeze the juice of one lemon over the chicken and vegetables. Then sprinkle the pan with smoked paprika or sumac. Thinly slice the remaining lemon, and place the slices in between the chicken and vegetables if desired.

**If using two pans, use one for the chicken and one for the vegetables.**

Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Serve immediately.

PB2 Chicken

Say What? Like PB2 Peanut Butter Flour? Yep. On chicken? Yep. Yep. Trust me. It's good! I ran across this on Pinterest and it really is one of my top chicken recipes. I prefer it any day over a restaurant. 

4 Tbsp PB2 
2 tsp: Crushed fresh garlic
2 tsp: Grated fresh ginger
4 Tbsp: Light soy sauce
1/4 cup: Sliced scallions
1 cup: Water
1 Tbsp: Dijon mustard
2 tsp (to taste): Asian chili sauce or hot sauce
1 cup: Low-fat buttermilk
1/4 tsp: Pepper, salt
1 lb: Boneless skinless chick breast
1/4 cup: Fresh cilantro leaves

Mix together first 8 ingredients to make dipping sauce and set aside. Put chicken, salt, pepper, buttermilk and a third of the dipping sauce into a resealable bag and shake to coat. Marinate in fridge for up to 6 hours. (Refrigerate the rest of the dipping sauce, too). Remove chicken from bag, shake off excess and grill in a very hot pan or on a grill, (sprayed with non-stick spray) for 5 minutes on each side until cooked through. Garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve with dipping sauce on the side. Add more or less chili sauce to the dipping sauce, depending on how spicy you like your food.