Protein Green Monster

I’m always trying to add more protein to my meals since I workout almost every day, so I thought it was time to come up with a new smoothie concoction.  I also battle with iron deficiency, so sneaking in as much greens as possible into my smoothies is also an important factor for me. 

So I came up with this bad boy…..

Once again I threw together a bunch of ingredients into my Vitamix, but I did write them down as I went along. 

To the Vitamix, add…..

• 1 cup OJ
• 1/2 cup frozen peaches
• handful of baby carrots
• 1 celeri stick
• handful of cantalope
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach
• 1/4 cup Liberté 0% Greek Yogurt – Plain
• 1 scoop Navita’s Naturals Twisters Protein Powder 

 

The Yogurt is awesome…I am addicted to this brand because it’s so hard to find Greek Yogurt that does not have a ton of sugar and additives.  It’s kind of pricy, about $4.50 for the tub when it’s on sale, but I eat in moderation.  The awesome thing about it too is it has a whopping 18g of protein per serving.  Another bonus point for this yogurt.

This is my other special ingredient.  It contains a blend of 3 super foods:  hemp, cacao and maca.  Hemp is an excellent source of protein and those healthy Omegas.  Cacao is just plain antioxidant awesomeness and gives the smoothie a great taste.  And maca is great for us women, as it benefits the endocrine system.  I can’t think of 3 better ingredients to add to my smoothies every day.  Plus, once scoop adds a great taste and loads up the protein content of the green-monster. 

I really didn’t feel like slaving over a hot stove or BBQ tonight, so I made me one of these for dinner.  A great go-to option when a sit-down dinner just isn’t in the cards. 

Enjoy and let me know how yours turns out.  What other ingredients do you add to your smoothies? 

With love

Bea

xoxo

Just another manic Monday

Monday’s are always tough for me.  I’m not really a morning person, so when that alarm clock goes off, I tend to hit the snooze button once or twice.  Once I did get out of bed, the day seemed to run pretty smoothly.  I was excited to try a new ingredient in my morning smoothie.  My local Health Food Store was able to get it in on a special order.  You can find Navitas Naturals products on their website by clicking on this link:  Navitas Naturals.  They’ve even got recipes. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I added 1 Tbsp to my mix.  It actually doesn’t look any different than my other GREEN MONSTER and it actually doesn’t taste that much different either.  Just a slight cocoa taste.  Very satisfying first thing in the morning.  It makes enough to fill up a smoothie container and drink on the way to work. 

After work I had to run from meeting to meeting and was happy to get home in the afternoon.  Then it was time to figure out dinner.  I had left over pork tenderloin from last night’s Pad Thai, so it was time to get creative.  After dinner was a 4km run on the treadmill.  I began training today for my race in May.  (stay tuned for more info).

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PORK TENDERLOIN WITH GOAT CHEESE

(Gluten-free)

The Ingredients

• 1 cup Penne (Gluten-free Rice Pasta)
• Pork Tenderloin
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup of baby spinach
• 1 cup of mixed frozen veggies (corn, carrots, peas – not in picture)
• 1/2 cup of dry white wine
• 4 oz goat cheese
• bunch of cilantro, chopped
• 6 fresh chives, chopped
• 1/2 cup or 3/4 cup walnuts
• salt and pepper to taste

Steps

Prepare your ingredients.  You will want to slice your pork tenderloin into thicker slices.  Boil your pasta while frying your meat so that it is ready to be added when needed.

Heat olive oil on medium-high heat in frying pan.  Pan fry your medallions in batches until golden brown.  The meat can be pink in center.  You will want to make sure that you do not overcrowd your pan as it will take you longer.  Set aside until ready to be added later. 

In same pan, add a little bit more oil and sauté your onions, garlic, pepper and frozen vegetable mix.  Sauté for 4 – 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Now add your spinach, cilantro and chives.  Add the white wine and mix. 

Add the goat cheese and walnuts and stir until cheese is dissolved and sauce becomes creamy. 

Now stir in your cooked pasta.  Also add your medallions and heat thoroughly.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  And your meal is now ready to eat. 

 

BON APPETIT   !!!

 

Have an awesome night. 

xoxo

Bea

Let the Good times roll

Sigh….it was back to work for me today.  I felt like I just crawled into bed last night when the alarm rang at 6am.  I had all good intentions of waking up and going for another run to kick-start the day, but my knees were very sore from yesterday.  I think I may have overdone it.  I’m going to have to ease back into my routine so that I don’t hurt myself and from now on will be wearing my T-band brace.  On the bright side…I got to sleep in an extra 30 minutes.

For breakfast I made myself a GREEN MONSTER. 

Surely you’ve heard of the Green Monster Movement.  If not, check out this link from Angela from Oh She Glows, who is behind this movement.  Everyone has their own variation of the Monster drink, as is mine. 

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BEAGLEBEA’S GREEN MONSTER

I drink one of these every morning (at least 5 of 7 days)…an awesome breakfast for on the go or post-workout.  I don’t ever measure my ingredients, so the breakdown listed below is ballpark only.

My ingredient breakdown:

• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 handful of frozen peaches
• 1 cup of cantalope
• 1 LARGE handful of baby spinach
• 1/2 ripe avocado
• 1 Tbsp  sprouted Flax/Chia Seeds
• 1 Tbsp  Udo 3-6-9 Oil blend

Blend everything in Vitamix until nice and smooth….

AND VOILA…….

The avocado makes the consistency of the Green Monster smooth and creamy….. and you can’t taste it, I promise.  (I actually don’t really like avocado on it’s own, so believe me when I say you can’t taste it).  And, since I’m allergic to bananas, it makes the perfect base. 

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My first day back to work/school looked a little like this (not a pic of my students)Well, for the most part at least.  My kids were so excited to tell me what Santa left them…lucky ducks I’d say. 

As for dinner…nothing new tonight…had lots of Butter Chicken leftovers…yummy !

Since my knees were still pretty sore, I decided to try out my new yoga DVD so that I could at least get somewhat of a workout in today.  I was a little sceptical with it because I’ve tried yoga numerous times and could never really get into it, but this DVD came in a box set with the 2 other ones I wanted, so really had no choice. 

I was pleasantly surprised… I love Jillian Michaels.  I’ve been happy with her Wii workouts and her No More Trouble Zones DVD.  We’ll see how it goes. 

HAVE YOU EVER TRIED ANY OF HER WORKOUT DVD’S?

HOW DO YOU MANAGE TO GET IN A WORKOUT WHEN YOU'RE MUSCLES OR BODY ARE SORE?

 

HAVE A GREAT NIGHT.

BEA XOX