Holiday Leftovers: Sweet Potato and Cranberry Muffins

There's something about a newborn baby at Christmas time that makes me feel nostalgic.  The first holiday season we had our oldest was unlike one I had ever experienced.  I could relate to Mary on a whole new level as I sat up late at night nursing my two month old and rocking him to sleep.  Don't get me wrong, I was dead tired and did not always enjoy those late night feedings.  But there are a few that I remember sitting in his room and this feeling of complete joy washed over me.  Children bring a joy like no other and I can only imagine the immense amount of joy Mary felt knowing her child was going to be the Savior of the world.  I wanted to hold onto that joy and feeling all throughout the year!  I love decorating for Christmas because it's a visual reminder of the joy and hope that was given to us.  I'm always reluctant to put them away because I'm afraid that in the chaos of the year to come, I'll forget.  I'm holding on as tight as I can.  Dear Jesus, help me remember in every season of the year that you are the reason for the season!

As I'm strategizing how I'm going to store my growing collection of Christmas decor, I'm also strategizing how I'm going to use up my leftovers!  I had a couple of sweet potatoes in the pantry that needed to be used, a tad bit of flour left in my jar and a bag of cranberries in my freezer so I set to work figuring out how to use these items up.  Apparently I need to go grocery shopping.  I found lots of great sweet potato muffin recipes but none seemed to suite my taste.  The closest I found was from Taste of Home.  While the recipe looked delicious, I wanted to make some changes to make this muffin a little more clean.  So I adapted it to be a clean recipe that hopefully you will enjoy!  We certainly did!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup coconut sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 large egg
3/4 cup almond milk
1/2 cup cold baked sweet potato
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 cup fresh cranberries or 1 cup frozen cranberries that have been thawed

Directions:

1.  In the bowl of your stand mixer, add all of dry ingredients and whisk until combined. 
2.  In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients. 
3.  Add wet to dry and mix on low until combined.  Gently fold in whole cranberries.
4.  Pour batter into jumbo muffin pan lined with parchment paper or jumbo muffin liners.
5.  Bake at 375 for 20-25 or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. (reduce time for regular sized muffins to 15-20 minutes.

I absolutely LOVE making jumbo muffins!  I don't think I'll ever go back!  I bought myself a handy dandy ice cream scoop for my cupcake/muffin and it has helped consistency in baking and size.  Definitely worth the $5. 

Also, how cute is the parchment paper?  I cut these a little big, but I wasn't sure how big to make them.  All I did was take a sheet of parchment paper and cut it into 4 pieces. 

My test if a muffin recipe is good or not is if the paper peels away without taking half the muffin with it!  That's the worst!  These muffins passed my test, but just barely. They are pretty moist with both the sweet potato and cranberries.  

Sweet, tart and delicious!

Enjoy!

Clean Iced Chai

Sometimes, I take too much on.  It's a weakness of mine.  I'm starting to read Hope for the Weary Mom.  I couldn't make it through the first chapter without crying my eyes out.  And craving coke and dark chocolate.  If you've read it, you'll understand.  I have what seems like an endless list of activities I have signed myself up for.  All because I love to help.  I love to be a part of things.  But I think that's my weakness.  Dare I tell you my weakness?  I am your typical words of affirmation people pleaser.  (gasping for air...deep breaths...my heart is racing and I haven't even hit publish. Did I just say that out loud?)  Do I volunteer myself for these things because I'm dying for words of affirmation from people?  No, I do most of them because I love what it all entails.  And yes, if you want to think I'm amazing too, that would be great.  But the reality is, I'm feeling fresh out of amazing lately.  These last few weeks, while juggling my commitments, my toddler is morphing into a 3 year old thrower of tantrums, sending me into a bottomless pit of despair where it's so deep I'm afraid people won't be able to see me waving my white flag.  But there, in that pit, where I feel the most alone, is where God meets me and shows me that it's His grace that is amazing, not me.  Time and time again we have a habit at meeting in that pit. If I am strong all the time, I have no need of His all encompassing grace.  And I guarantee you, I don't ever what to lose that.  So, I guess from now on, I'll be weak.  Because when I am weak, He is strong.

I recently posted a recipe for my favorite clean iced coffee, which people loved!  But if you're not a coffee drinker, don't worry, I've got you covered.  I know several people who loved iced chais and a few have requested a clean version, such as my lovely sister.  I, myself, am trying to take as much of a break from coffee as I can and am looking for some better alternatives.  Today was my first day.  We'll see how tomorrow goes.  Is black tea really better than coffee?  I don't know.  Maybe.  I guess it all depends what you put in it.  This one is clean as a whistle.  There are different diets so whichever category you are in, you can easily adjust this recipe per your diet.  Use splenda instead of raw sugar, or brown sugar instead of raw if you don't care about that sort of thing...or hey, you can even use maple syrup if you want an extra dash of fall.

What I love about this drink is that it isn't overly sweet. I used to love chai lattes from Starbucks but now the sweetness just kills me.  Whether I bought the concentrate in the box or fresh from the store, I could never finish the whole thing because it was so sickly sweet to me.  But this is perfect, the raw sugar adds a hint of sweetness, not too much and not too little.  I topped with extra pumpkin pie spice and stirred it with a cinnamon stick to add even more spice.  This is heavenly, you're gonna love every sip of it.  How do I know?  I made two today.

So here is the recipe, you're welcome.

Ingredients:

3 bags of your favorite chai tea
10 ounces of HOT water
4 packets of raw sugar
Unsweetened vanilla almond milk
pumpkin pie spice
cinnamon stick

Directions:

1.  Prepare tea, using 3 tea bags in 10 ounces of hot water (I used the large cup setting on my Keurig which measures 10 ounces).
2.  Immediately add sugar and stir to dissolve.
3.  Let tea steep for 5-7 minutes. The longa, the stronga.
4.  Fill a large glass full to the top of ice and pour halfway-three quarters with tea.
5.  Add almond milk and top with pumpkin pie spice and stir with cinnamon stick.

And because it was naptime, I took ALOT of pictures.  So enjoy :)

Coffee Addict {Clean Vanilla Iced Coffee}

My name is Melodee.  And I am a coffee addict.  But I probably didn't need to tell you that.  If you see me every Sunday and any day in between I'm toting around my iced vanilla coffee from my favorite place with the green straw.  Last Saturday as we were venturing out to go car shopping, my husband was getting ready to turn in the opposite direction of my green straw store and I stopped him and said sheepishly (as if he'd be surprised by my request), "uh, can we get coffee?"  Unsure of his reply, I was relieved when he turned to go the right way.  As we got down the road, I turned to him and said, "honey, are you annoyed that I asked to get coffee?"  And his response is why I married him.  He said, "I'd rather spend the $3 than have a cranky wife".  I couldn't stop laughing because IT.IS.TRUE!  But I realize that drinking that much coffee with all my vanilla syrup and cream isn't good for me.  I can feel it at the end of the day.  I feel even more tired and weighed down by the heaviness of the cream and syrup.  So, since starting on my clean eating adventure, I've come up with a perfect iced coffee to make at home.

Now, I've made iced coffee at home for quite a while and it turns out different every time...so I end up tossing it.  How wasteful!  I thought, why oh why am I having such a hard time making a good cup of coffee?!  Surely it's not that hard!  Well, my dear friends.  I discovered that following the directions on the pack of coffee makes all the difference in the world.  Are you laughing at me?  Shaking your head and saying, "you're kidding me right?!"  But it's true.  I have a terrible time reading directions but since I did, I now make the perfect cup of coffee.

You'll probably read my directions and think, "girl, you make this way more complicated than it needs to be!"  And you're probably right.  But I'm picky.  I don't like the taste of coffee when you pour it over ice while it's still piping hot.  It tastes terrible!  So I will brew it 1 of 2 ways.

1.  Cold Brew:  In my french press, I add 2 tablespoons of coffee to 6 ounces of water and let sit over night, leaving the plunger up.  In the morning I press the plunger all the way down.  Then set a filter in a strainer that sits on top of a bowl and pour the coffee through to strain away all the grit.  You don't have to do the second strain, it's just my preference.  I could probably avoid it if I used a coarser ground coffee. If you have a coffee pot (I don't) you can strain it through a filter that way.  Just pour directly into the filter and let it pour into the pot.  After it's strained, I pour in a glass, add ice, creamer and enjoy!

2.  Hot Brew: In my french press, I add 2 tablespoons of coffee to 3 ounces of hot water and stir.  (I usually double or triple this batch).  I let sit while I'm getting the boy's breakfast ready, about 5-10 minutes.  Then I press the plunger down, stir and pour the coffee through my filter.  I temper the coffee by adding the same amount of water as I used to make the coffee. (If you make it with 6 ounces of hot water, add 6 ounces of cool water.  Or add 12 ounces if you started with 12oz).  If I want a stronger coffee, I won't add as much cool water.  I have found that tempering the hot coffee makes a less bitter taste when pouring over ice.  Then I prepare how I like it and enjoy.

I have an Iced Coffee Brewer on my Christmas List so hopefully my methods will be simplified!  Haha!  But then I'll have to learn a new method all over again.  Don't worry, I'll read the directions the first time.

There are brews that are more suitable for iced coffee.  One of my favorites is Kati-Kati, found at Starbucks usually during the summer.  The coarseness of the grind really does matter, especially if you use a french press.  If you grind it fresh in  the store, make sure you pay attention to the grinder setting. I place the extra in a mason jar and keep it in the fridge.  I don't make big batches because I don't like the taste of the coffee as it sits in the fridge all week.  If I sound really picky, it's because I am.

But now let's talk about creamer.  Yes, I love vanilla syrup and half and half and it was hard for me to even think about anything else in my morning cup of joe.  But not any more!  I love this way even more than my vanilla and cream.

Ingredients:

12 ounces unsweetened vanilla almond milk or almond creamer (or unsweetened vanilla milk of choice)
4 packets of Raw Sugar

1.  While brewing your coffee, add the sugar to the almond milk. Stir to dissolve.
2.  Add to iced coffee.  (I usually do a 1:1 ratio).
3.  Stir and enjoy!

Note: If you are on the 21 Day Fix, you'll want to limit your sugar to two teaspoons since that is what you are allotted each day.  Some are strict and count their almond milk as a yellow container, but I kept it as a freebie.  No since in using a container for 30 calories.  If you use almond milk in your coffee, consider using water for your Shakeology for the day. Or if an additional 30 calories doesn't bother you, then use it in both.  Just don't be too careless and keep your serving size to 1 cup.

Enjoy!

Why Beacbody?

Growing up I was always told I was too skinny. And ya know what?  It doesn't matter how big or small you are, hearing that you're not good enough the way you are just plain hurts. Fast forward to post-partum and I was the biggest I've ever been. Whether you're a size 2 or 20, there is no freedom. If you're a size 2 you're always trying to maintain it. If you're a 20 you're always yo-yoing trying to find something that works...and that keeps it off. I slowly let the weight come off after my first one, swearing I wouldn't get pregnant until I was ___ size. Yeah right. By the time my first one was 9 months, I was pregnant and eating oreos again. When my second child was around 10 months old, I was still over weight and began experiencing this strange low grade fever that would absolutely wipe me out. I kept waiting for it to go away and the next thing I knew, it had been 3 months and this fever still lingered. I headed to the doctor in hopes for some quick answers, but they were clueless and sent me to an immunologist. I walked in hopeful that he would shine some light on this and give me an RX that would cure me. It was quite the contrary. He asked me why they sent me to him. He had no idea, but ran some tests anyway and gave me a shot but as always, the tests came back negative. I was perfectly healthy. 

By the end of April, I was asking my boss for a temporary leave of absence (from a PART-TIME JOB!) because I couldn't even handle that. I was exhausted, lethargic and emotional. All I had time for was my family. By the end of May, I had decided to take matters into my own hands. While doctors were trying to figure out which specialist to send me to next, I got online and ordered my first challenge pack. I had no idea what Shakeology or PiYo was, I just knew one of my closest friends was using it and was seeing some incredible results. So I ordered through her and joined a 5 day challenge group while I was waiting for it to arrive in the mail. Then I joined ANOTHER challenge group. This was the real deal. This was the change I had been so desperately praying God for. I knew I couldn't do it on my own. I knew I needed motivation and accountability. 

By the middle of June, I was beginning to feel a difference in my body and in my spirits. I had people (complete strangers) pouring into me, telling me that I could do this. Encouraging me to power through PiYo Sweat and Drench. Applauding me when I passed on my preschoolers Goldfish. I knew I wanted to keep this lifestyle up. In order to keep me on my toes, I became a coach. My first month, I helped 8 people. It's now August and I feel like a new person and am helping more everyday. If and when my body temperature rises, it doesn't slow me down like it did before. I want this. I want to be better. Now, I want you to have what I have. That's why I'm here, to share my story in hopes to help you write your own.  

In September, I am running my second round of 21 Day Fix.  This program has been a game changer for me.  Most people hear "portion control" and think that they're going to starve.  Quite the contrary my friend.  I'm actually eating more.  Yeah, that's right.  I'm eating healthy portions of the right types of food and am getting my fruits and veggies in too.  Eating seems to be a luxury among moms, I know it is for me!  Now I make myself slow down and fuel my body the right way.  This is not dieting, this is living.  

My next challenge starts September 14, 2015.  Get in on this...now!

Clean Eating Stuffed Apple "Pies"

Yes, huh.  You read that right.  Clean Eating Stuffed Apple Pies.  Because?  Because.  Because since starting my Beachbodyhttp://www.beachbodycoach.com/MelFiske journey, I have made a big effort to create delicious meals and desserts that you want to eat.  That are realistic.  That don't contain a thousand weird ingredients.  That tastes good.  Made out of ingredients you have in your pantry and don't have to order from Amazon.  Also, because I had granny smith apples sitting so prettily in a bowl on my table and were about to go bad so I had to think of something quick to do with them.  And because I wanted apple pie.

I'm sorry to say I don't have any after pictures.  But I don't think you need them.  All you need to see is before.  Why don't I have them?  Well, let me tell ya.  It was all apart of my plan to include them.  But then I cooked them for just a little longer than I should have and the skins exploded and peeled back leaving the flesh of the apple exposed and soft and full of flavor from the crumble.  It actually turned out to be a good thing as far as eating goes, but not as far as pictures go!  Don't worry, I have adjusted the baking times for the recipe so hopefully you don't have explosive apple skin.  :)

Ingredients:

3 large granny smith apples
3/4 cup quick cook oats
3 T melted coconut oil
3 T raw cane sugar
1 T cinnamon
1 t apple pie spice
1/4 c raisins
1/4 c walnuts

Directions:

1.  Using an apple core or paring knife, core the apples down the center, removing the seeds.  Don't core all the way through, once you have the seeds removed, stop to leave a base so the crumble stays in the apple.
2.  Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
3.  Take the mixture and stuff apples and place in a baking dish.  It's okay that the crumble overflows into the dish...trust me.
4.  Add 1 cup of water to the base of your cooking dish.
5.  Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Allow to cool before serving.  Though it's not clean, I couldn't resist serving these alongside some vanilla ice cream...because I wanted to!  My husband and boys devoured every last bite.  And yes, of course I did too!

So after they baked, the oatmeal in the bottom of the pan completely absorbed the water creating the most delicious baked apple pie oatmeal ever.  We scooped it up and served it with the ice cream...omg.  It was amazing!  This dessert inspired me to create a new baked oatmeal recipe for breakfast.  I can't wait to try it...can you have ice cream for breakfast though?  Because I feel like you might need to serve it with ice cream.  I think, yes.

Granny smith apples are on my shopping list because we will be having this again in the very near future.

Oatmeal Raisin Froyo

Since I've started on my Beachbody journey, I've enjoyed exploring new ways to cook foods.  We've always been pretty clean eaters but I'm now making a big effort to create new ways for everyone to easily enjoy healthy meals.  I am getting ready to start the 21 Day Fix Challenge with an awesome group of challengers!  It's a program designed to help you get the results you want in just 21 days through working out, controlling your portions and drinking Shakeology.  I've been drinking Shakeology for 2 months now, and have LOVED it!  This stuff is no joke. 

So this summer there was a 21 Day Fix recipe contest and people were encouraged to create clean and healthy frozen desserts.  I couldn't decide what to do so while throwing around ideas with my family, my cousin decided that Oatmeal Raisin would be good, so that's what I decided on. I still have a long list of ideas that I will be making to share too!  

I'm not gonna lie, I really wanted to make a custard with milk and eggs and add brown sugar and cinnamon to make this delectable...but it's not clean!  Beachbody has empowered me to make the right decision.  I'm completely satisfied, have no regrets and am developing some pretty amazing self discipline!  So I came up with a recipe I knew would be delicious and no guilt involved.  Always a good thing ;)

Ingredients

32 ounces of plain yogurt (not greek)
1 T cinnamon
1/3 c maple syrup
1 scoop vanilla Shakeology (optional)
1 t vanilla
1 cup gluten free granola
1/2 c raisins

Directions:

1.  Combine first 5 ingredients in a mixing bowls and stir until combined.
2.  Pour into ice cream maker using manufacture's directions.
3.  5 minutes before frozen yogurt is done, add raisins and granola.
4.  Turn off machine and move frozen yogurt to a freezer container. 
5.  Serve immediately for soft serve, or place in freezer for 1-2 hours for a more solid yogurt.

It's imperative that you serve this frozen yogurt in cute jars and adorable wooden spoons.  I'm serious.  It tastes more...fun that way.

This stuff is so addicting.  You'd think the raisins would be frozen solid, but they are in fact perfectly cold and chewy, so you keep digging for more.  And more.

And more.  The raisins are so addicting.  Sorry, did I already say that?

You can see the little ones coming after the frozen yogurt in the background.  I had to move fast before it was too late.  Of course I gave them a healthy serving of this frozen yogurt completely guilt-free and they devoured it! 

Enjoy!

Green Chile Chicken Kabobs with Mexican Cauliflower Rice

I know it's a mouthful.  But what else do I call it?  Chicken and cauliflower?  Then you won't want to eat it.  But Green Chile Chicen Kabobs with Mexican Cauliflower Rice, however, sounds delicious.  My husband begged for seconds.  We ate the whole humungo pan of "rice". 

I found a good green chile "anytime sauce" made by Stubbs that I marinated and cooked the chicken in.  The flavor was perfect paired with the cauliflower.  Let's talk about that.  Cauliflower.  What is with this new food fad?  I've only ever eaten cauliflower from a veggie tray dipped in ranch dressing (raise your hand if you're with me).  Who in their right mind thought to make pizza crust and "rice" from this stuff?  Well someone did and I'm actually okay with that.  We have had some very tasty meals lately with this white stuff at the center of it.  It adapts well to flavors you add to it and while you can still taste the cauliflower itself, the surrounding ingredients take it to a whole new level. 

I'll tell you the version of Mexican "rice" that I made, but I'm sure I'll change the recipe next time based on the ingredients I had on hand because that's what I do. 

Ingredients:

1 t garlic powder
1 t onion powder
1/4 t chili flake
4 cups cauliflower rice
3 green onions
1 tomato
1 ear of corn, cut off cobb
1/2 red pepper
1 avocado
1 T lime juice

Directions:

1.  Make "rice" by placing florets in a food processor.  Process until the cauliflower has broken down into pieces the size of rice. One small head of cauliflower should be enough.
2.  In a skillet over medium heat, diced red pepper and corn and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3.  Add the cauliflower rice, garlic powder, onion powder, chili flake and salt and pepper.  Saute until "rice" starts to brown.  Turn heat off and add lime juice in and stir. 
4.  Stir in green onions before serving.
5.  Remove to platter and serve with grilled chicken and garnish with avocado, lime and fresh tomatoes. 

If the thought of cauliflower rice is too intimidating to you or you just don't simply have it around, then quinoa or rice would also work great with this dish. 

Kabobs have been my all time favorite summer meal.  They are so easy to fix and they cook so quickly.  I find that they are a little juicier because they are close together.  I am very particular about my chicken and this way is perfect. 

I hope you enjoy this dish.  It's perfect for summer and every month in between! 

Guacamole Chicken Burger

I just recently became a member of the website Dashing Dish. I absolutely love everything about her blog.  She's encouraging, uplifting and has some incredible clean eating recipes!  The basis of this recipe is all hers, except I used ground chicken instead of turkey.  I piled it on top of spinach and a thick slice of the best and juiciest heirloom tomato! 

There is a common misconception about clean eating and that is that you eat boring, tasteless "rabbit food".  Umm, no sir.  No rabbit food here (okay, maybe the spinach BUT there is a juicy burger with guacamole sitting on top of it)!  Did you hear me say GUACAMOLE?  This is the hearty stuff, the chunky guacamole with tomato, onion, jalapeno, lime, cilantro mixed in with perfectly ripe avocado.  

If you haven't already, add Dashing Dish to your list of favorites and pay the $5 monthly membership.  This recipe alone is well worth it!

Click here for the recipe.

Clean Eating Sandwich Skewers

My husband LOVES sandwiches.  Turkey, pepperoni, chipotle chicken, avocado, tomato, red onion and SHARP cheddar cheese.  It makes my mouth water just thinking about it.  There is no doubt that a sandwich can be an easy AND delicious meal.  Cooking for the whole family when mom is trying to eat better is HARD WORK!  So I've come up with a few work arounds to make meals for the family and myself without sacrificing flavor or compromising my eating habits. 

I think these cuties are pretty self explanatory.  But here is what I did:

Ingredients

Romaine lettuce leaves
Boars Head lunch meat
cherry tomatoes
shredded carrots
avocado
cucumber

Directions:

1.  Rinse and dry the romaine leaves.  Cut down the middle, making one leaf into to small leaves and discard the ribs.
2.  Lay your 1-2 slices of lunch meat on each side of lettuce and pile some carrots in the middle.  Roll up the leaves and cut in half.  Skewer with a tooth pick to hold in place.
3.  Add cucumber, tomatoes and avocado.

Optional:  Drizzle with red wine vinegar and olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper.    

I didn't miss the bread and you won't either!