Healthy Spinach & Artichoke Dip (with white beans!!)

Its been a crazy week. One of those weeks that makes you want to spend an entire day in bed just relaxing & sleeping. Given that I have an (almost- whaaat) two year old and a slam packed weekend, an entire day in bed isn’t looking likely ;). BUT, I did take a little time off work this week to get my hair done:

I’ve also had some good quality time with the peanut, including picking strawberries from our garden. Her carefree attitude always picks up my spirits:

Time in the kitchen always makes me happy too!! I re-made a recipe I made a longgg time ago, a healthier spinach and artichoke dip.  I am re-posting the recipe because it is that good! Note: this isn’t like the dip you get a restaurants (packed full of fat), so you must actually enjoy the taste of artichokes to like this ;)).

Ingredients:

• Fresh spinach- bowl full (or desired quantity)
• 2 15-ounce cans of artichoke hearts
• 1 15-ounce can of white beans (whatever white beans you can get your hands on)
• 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil
• Juice from 1 lemon
• chopped garlic (desired amount)
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (+additional cheese to top dip)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350

On the stove over medium/medium low heat, wilt spinach in a little bit of olive oil. In a food processor or blender, mix together wilted spinach, drained artichokes and white beans, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, red pepper and parmesan cheese. You can either blend until smooth or leave some chunkier pieces (however you like it!).

Place mix into baking dish, top with additional cheese. Bake for 45 minutes. Enjoy with veggies, tortilla chips, or pita chips.

This is a picture pre-bake I didn’t nab one post bake):

    

Josh enjoyed it (again) so much, he asked me to make a batch for his man day on Friday!

Are you having a busy week???

Baked Vegan Pineapple Black Bean Burgers

I love black beans. I’ve passed the love onto Kaylin…she can house them! Then her entire face gets covered in black bean “juice”. We call her the coal miner ;). I wanted to make up a batch of black bean burgers, but I wanted them to be on the lighter side:

 

Baked Vegan Pineapple Black Bean Burgers

Ingredients:

• 15 oz black beans, drained and rinsed (I used Bush’s low sodium- always do!)
• Crushed pineapple in pineapple juice
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
• 1/2 cup panko (or bread crumbs)
• 1/8-1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground flax seed

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mash the black beans to desired texture using a fork or potato masher (I like mine a little on the chunkier side). Add 2 tablespoons of the crushed pineapple in pineapple juice, onion, bread crumbs, ground red pepper, and flax seed. Mix until just combined. Form into 4 burgers.

Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the burgers on the paper. Bake for 8 minutes on each side.

I used the burgers to make burger bowls. For the bowls,I  mixed some of the remaining crushed pineapple in with cooked brown rice. I topped the rice with steamed vegetables, the black bean burgers, and avocado. mmmm….

Pre-bake:

In the bowl, pre-avocado.

These were super tasty. Are you a bean burger fan??

Strawberry Picking & Asparagus Guacamole

Yayyy for the weekend! What have you been up to? On Friday, after a nice workout and food shopping, Kaylin and I met Christina at Boone Hall Plantation to go strawberry picking.

It was super windy and the fields were extra muddy from the rain, but we got a delicious bundle of berries:

 

 

Yum!

Friday night, we enjoyed a delicious dinner in. A Mexican feast including my burrito filler & homemade guacamole. This guacamole was different because it was a combination of asparagus:

and avocado. I found the recipe in my Self Magazine. The recipe is posted here (I eliminated the tomatoes because Josh isn’t a tomato fan). The outcome is SO yummy. You can’t even taste the asparagus.

Saturday morning, I took Body Step, did a few things around the house, and got a pedicure. Post half marathon, my feet were a disaster and in need of some love. Josh and I also spent lots of quality time with Kaylin and we went to dinner with his parents.

Sunday, we’re trying out a new-to-us restaurant/coffee spot and may be going shopping for new clothes for Kaylin & Josh. I may squeeze a run in (if this crazy weather cooperates). What are you up to??

Festive Salad Recipe & Dynamo Dog Review

Phew. I told you in my last post that Kaylin had been sick, but that she was getting better. Well, apparently I didn’t knock on wood and she ended up with a fever for the majority of the weekend. Another trip to the Doctors office and…we may be on the mend (knock on wood ;)).

Other than taking care of sicky peanut, I did get to teach my two classes, fit in an easy run, spent lots of time with Josh & Kaylin, and went to a birthday party for my niece and nephew. I brought along this salad:

Not a real recipe for this. I mixed a giant bag of spinach with a smaller bag of romaine. I then topped the lettuce mixture with two cans of mandarin oranges (no sugar added, drained, rinsed, dried), a large container or strawberries, diced, raw sunflower and pumpkin seeds.

I brought along these two dressings. The sesame pineapple vinaigrette is amazing (notice the photo bomber).

 

I think the salad was a hit! What did you do this weekend?

Recently , I was contacted by Cloudstar to see if Frank would be interested in reviewing their Dynamo Dog™ Functional Treats*. Frank LOVES treats, so I knew he’d be in:

According to the company:

“We are a small, family owned company, and for more than a decade have been baking all natural, low allergen treats right here in the USA.  Check us out at www.cloudstar.com.”

Adore that they’re made in the USA! They sent us four bags to review:

  

Dynamo Skin & Coat: “With salmon oil and vitamin E supplement, plus specially selected fruits, vegetables, and herbs you will be giving your dog a healthy and mouth watering treat.”

Dynamo Tummy: “With added probiotics, ginger, and fiber from pumpkin, plus specially selected fruits, vegetables, and herbs to ease digestion, you'll have one happy dog.”

Dynamo Hip & Joint: “With all the running and jumping dogs do in a day, they could use the added glucosamine and chondroitin, plus specially selected fruits, vegetables, and herbs to keep them feeling their best.”

Frank watched as I photographed all of the treats.

 

He tried the bacon & cheese hip and joint variety first. It was hard for me to take a photograph because someone was ready to sample.

  Frank gobbled these down! He has enjoyed all of the varieties and always looks for more. He shared graciously shared a bag with his friend Tedy, more to come!

If you have a dog, you should give these treats a go!

*disclaimer: treats were received for free

New Favorite Recipes & Happenings

AHHH! Sorry for being so MIA. Last week was hectic. It was spring break week here, so I was subbing for a lot of instructors that were out of town, Josh was on travel, and Kay was sick (despite her tubes she has another double ear infection :(). But, I’m back! So other than the above, a quick run down of last week:

I did a 12 mile long run with Kaylin. I was only planning on doing part of it with her, but she fell asleep mid run and ended up making it through the whole thing! I am planning on doing another race soon, more to come:

I found an awesome product at Harris Teeters that I can’t get enough of:

 

One of the gyms I teach at got a new stage. I taught on it for the first time on Sunday. I’m happy to report that I didn’t fall off:

 

I’m learning choreography like crazy because we have our Body Step & Pump launches this weekends. I’m so glad we launched Attack early, I couldn’t imagine learning another program right now.

I’ve made two new recipes this week. Stephanie’s Cheesy Spinach n’ Chobani Enchilada Bake. Pre-bake:

 

Post:

 

It looks TOTALLY indulgent, but with low fat cottage cheese and 0% Chobani, its actually pretty light! Give it a go!!

Next up, Maria’s Easy Marinara:

  I think I could eat the whole pot with a spoon and nothing else! So tasty. I used some of the sauce to top a pasta, vegetable & chicken mixture:

   

I froze the rest. AWESOME recipe Maria!!

Last item! I received my new Ellie outfit, a very cute sports bra and pair of fitted pants.   Ellie recently had a delay in delivery of their March line (which is still available on the website). They sent their customers a note that included the following explanation:

“As a new company, we have had some obstacles, namely in production. The March pieces were delivered at the beginning of this month but were not up to our standards of quality. We sent them back in exchange for brand new, improved pieces that will all be sent out next week.”

I can only imagine the challenges that are encountered when you start a new business. I really respect the fact that Ellie takes pride in their clothes and sent back the initial items. Hope you consider giving Ellie a try (disclaimer: I received my outfit for free)!!  I will be testing out my new gear when I teach Attack today.

Crock Pot Baked Beans & Taco Chicken

I really enjoy doing at home Mexican. You can have all the flavor, without all the grease. We were having a few friends over on Saturday night, so I decided to put together a little fiesta.

I made pulled taco chicken in the crock pot (recipe below):

 

I served the chicken with tortillas and all the toppings, including bell peppers, shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, corn:

Salsa, tomatoes, jalapenos (love the bottles and bottle cleaner in the background ;)):

 

Chobani Greek yogurt and avocados:

 

I also made a batch of vegetarian crock pot “refried” pinto beans (recipe below):

and desserts:

 

My friends brought over a big, delicious salad and chips with salsa and guacamole. MMmmm

Crock Pot Pulled Taco Chicken: 

 

I started with this recipe, and made lots of adjustments. This makes a lot of chicken, enough to feed 8:

Ingredients:

• 2 limes
• 4 teaspoons chili powder
• 3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 16 oz container of taco sauce

Directions:

Place chicken in the bottom of a large crock pot. Squeeze limes over chicken and then sprinkle chili powder on top. Cook on low for 4-6 hours (my chicken was PERFECT at 4 hours).

Drain crock pot, shred chicken and return to crock pot. Mix in taco sauce and cook on low for another 1/2 hour.

Crock Pot Vegetarian Baked Beans:

Refried beans may not look pretty, but they’re so yummy.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups dried pinto beans (cleaned/rinsed and gone through)
• 9 cups water and 4 vegetarian bouillon cubes (alternatively, you could use 5 cups water and 4 cups vegetable broth)
• 1 sweet onion (cleaned and cut in half)
• 2 cloves of garlic, diced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika

Directions:

Add all ingredients to crock pot. Cook on high for 8 hours. Remove onion. Drain beans (RESERVE liquid). Use an immersion blender (or other mashing device) to mash beans ( you can either completely mash them or leave them somewhat lumpy as I did. Add reserved liquid to achieve desired consistency.

I think everyone had a blast. The ladies attempted to take a couple pictures after dinner (even Kay!):

 

 So much fun!

Tell me about your weekend. 

Also, with Google reader going away (tear), don’t forget to follow me on Bloglovin:

Mayo Free Crab Cakes & Asian Turkey Meatballs

I’ve been so bad about posting recipes lately. I’ve just been busy (in the best kind of way)! This week has involved work, teaching at the gym, spending time with the man, taking care of my favorite little lady:

spending time with friends:

trying new (and delicious) foods:

and cooking & baking! I made these crock pot Asian meatballs a while back. They were so good, that I re-made them using turkey (served with quinoa, peas & sesame seeds):

Yesterday, I threw together crab cakes. I despise mayo, and put together a batch without it. I had just finished teaching at the gym, was trying to feed Kaylin, and Josh was walking in the door from work….so this is the only (lame) picture I got. I assure you these are delicious!

 

Mayo-Less Crab Cakes:

Ingredients:

• 8 oz crab meat (canned)
• 1 egg (medium or large not extra large)
• 1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 teaspoon old bay

Directions:

Combine all ingredients except crab. Add in crab and mix with your hands. Form into 5 mini cakes. Place (covered) in fridge for a half hour (or longer).

Either spray a skillet  with non-stick spray, or add a little butter or olive oil. Heat over medium heat and cook each cake for ~3-4 minutes each side (they should brown up). Serve with your favorites sides or put on top of a salad.

So good! Love crab.

I fit in my workout this morning, so I am off to finish up work, pickup my Color Me Rad race packet, and meet Mandi for coffee! What are you up to? 

Weekend & Coconut Cauliflower Bisque

Monday? Already? The weekend always goes by too fast. In a nutshell:

I taught Body Step and went for a great run this weekend:

I spent lots of time with Josh, Kaylin & Frank. Josh also watched Kaylin for a bit so I could get a pedicure:

 

I made Jenna’s Coconut Cauliflower bisque:

Light & delicious:

On Sunday night, we went to Chipotle:

We found out they will be opening TWO Chipotle’s in Mount Pleasant, SC, one in Summerville, and one in Charleston! How exciting. LOVE Chipotle. Kay adores their black beans:

Tell me one thing about your weekend.