muffintop-less:

Valentine Peanut Butter Cups {Gluten Free, Dairy Free & Diabetic Friendly}

Ingredients

• 6 ounces sweetened carob chips
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter, natural, no sugar added
• 2 packets powdered stevia
• 2 tablespoons crushed chopped peanuts

Directions

In a small bowl melt carob chips and coconut oil in the microwave or in a pot on the stove. Stir until completely smooth. In another bowl mix the peanut butter and stevia together. In a silicone mini valentine shaped mold or mini cupcake liners, fill each with 1 teaspoon of chocolate. Add 1/2 teaspoon of peanut butter. Cover each with 1 more teaspoon of chocolate. Top with crushed peanuts. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.

This recipe is by Sugar Free Mom, one of my favorite new recipe blogs to follow. If you like this one, go check out her site! =)

spartanchickadee:

fullfatfitblr:

Protein “cheesecake”

I have been trying to cut down my sugar intake on my cheat days because I feel like its consumption is affecting my mental wellbeing because I crash so hard afterwards it’s like I’m hungover. Unfortunately I still have a massive sweet tooth, but I’m having fun exploring indulging this in different ways - lots of fruit, and this cheesecake-like concoction I just made. It is freaking divine.

Simple combine 1 scoop whey protein powder of your choice (I used half choc half vanilla), 2 tbsp cream cheese, softened and a little stevia to sweeten in a small bowl. Top with LSA mix to mimic the cheesecake base. DIVINE.

I have to try this!

The-Iron-Angel

This looks pretty good! Will try it out next week :) 

THE-IRON-ANGEL

Super Healthy Tuna Salad - Serves 1 for a big meal or 2 for a light lunch

Ingredients

For the Tuna Mix

• 2 cans of tuna 
• 1 red onion (diced)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp ground black pepper

For the Salad 

• 2 handfuls of baby spinach
• 10 cherry tomatoes (sliced in half)
• Half of an onion, sliced (depending on how much you want)

For the dressing

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Pinch of black pepper
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of brown sugar
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp cider vinegar
• 1 tsp of fresh lemon juice

Instructions

• Mix together all of ingredients for the tuna.
• Prepare all of the cherry tomatoes (slice them in half) and slice the onion and put into a bowl with the baby spinach.
• Mix together all your ingredients for the salad dressing and either mix using a fork or small whisk.
• Spoon in desired amount of dressing in your salad and mix.
• Plate with the tuna or, if you prefer, mix your tuna in with the salad.
• Done!

muffintop-less:

My Peanut Butter Lover Protein Shake

• 1 scoop peanut butter protein powder (vanilla will also work)
• 1 TB natural peanut butter (I use PB2 for this recipe)
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1/2 banana (preferably frozen)
• 3-5 ice cubes

Blend and enjoy! =)

muffintop-less:

Clean Eating Pumpkin Fries
(Makes approximately 8 servings)

Ingredients

2 sugar pie pumpkins = approximately 8 cups when cut

Savory Spice Mix

• 2 tsp. curry powder
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp. olive oil

Sweet Spice Mix

• 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (no sugar added)

• 2 tbsp. maple syrup

Directions

• Prep: preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Step 1 – Cut the pumpkins in half and remove the seeds.
• Step 2 – Remove the skins with a potato peeler. (Careful not to get your fingers!)
• Step 3 – Cut into strips, similar to french fries. They won’t be perfect, but close enough. About 1/4 to 1/2 inch in thickness all the way around is perfect.
• Step 4 – Coat your pumpkin in desired spices (see instructions below).
• Step 5 – Arrange the fries on a parchment lined cookie sheet so that they are in a single layer
• Step 6 – Bake for approximately 30 minutes, or until the squash is soft and easily pierced with a fork.

SAVORY PUMPKIN FRIES

• Step 1 – Place your cut pumpkin and olive oil in a mixing bowl.
• Step 2 – Add 1 tbsp. of the spices.
• Step 3 – Toss by hand until the pumpkin is well coated in oil and spices.

SWEET PUMPKIN FRIES

• Step 1 – Place your cut pumpkin into a mixing bowl and sprinkle on your spices.
• Step 2 – Add maple syrup and toss by hand until your pumpkin is well coated with syrup and spices.

muffintop-less:

SWEET POTATO CINNAMON BROWNIES
 

INGREDIENTS:

Brownies

• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp cinnamon, ground
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup cooked sweet potato
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 6 egg whites
• Olive oil cooking spray

Icing

• 1/2 cup low-fat plain cream cheese
• 3 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon, ground
• 1 tbsp water (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Prepare brownies: Combine flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. In a food processor, combine sweet potato, honey, oil and vanilla. Purée until combined and smooth.
3. Gradually mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients, until just combined; do not over-mix. 
4. In a separate dry bowl, whisk egg whites until fluffy. Then, using a rubber spatula, gently fold egg whites into batter.
5. Lightly spray sides of baking pan (9 x 9 x 2-inch) with cooking spray.  Pour batter into pan and place into oven. Bake for about 16 to 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove pan from oven and allow brownies to cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
6. While brownies are cooking or cooling, prepare icing: In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, honey, cocoa powder and cinnamon. Whisk until incorporated, adding 1 tbsp water if mixture is hard to whisk. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
7. Loosen brownie and turn slab out onto a cutting board or platter. Cut into 16 pieces, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. 
8. To serve, divide icing evenly over each brownie and serve immediately. Leftovers may be kept refrigerated in a resealable container for up to 2 days

muffintop-less:

Clean Eating Mocha Coconut Frappuccino®
(Makes 2 servings) by The Gracious Pantry!

Ingredients

• 1 cup strongly-brewed coffee, chilled
• 2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup light coconut milk
• 3 tbsp. honey
• 3 cups ice cubes (or enough to make it the icy consistency you enjoy most)

Directions

Step 1 – Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until you have an icy slush.

THE-IRON-ANGEL

High Protein Cookies - Makes 10 - 12 (Source)

Ingredients

• 6 egg whites
• 1 3/4 cups Oatmeal
• 2 tsp Splenda
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup un-sweetened apple sauce
• 4 scoops whey powder (can use any flavor)
• 1 tsp virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup raisins

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. Mix all the ingredients together.
3. Bake for 20 minutes.

THE-IRON-ANGEL

Banana Protein Pancake - Makes 4 (Source)

Ingredients

• 32g quinoa flakes
• 192g egg whites
• 56g vanilla myofusion
• half of a banana
• vanilla essence
• grated orange peel

Directions

•  Throw all the ingredients together and fry them on a non-stick pan with coconut oil until a nice golden colour. 

THE-IRON-ANGEL

Protein Crème brûlée - Makes 4 (Source)

Ingredients

• 1 heaping scoop of vanilla casein (I used 32g of ON’s vanilla but feel free to add more)
• 1 pack of unflavored gelatin powder (11g’s worth).
• 2 cups of milk

Directions

• Heat up the milk (I used coconut milk from a carton but one could also use almond milk, hazelnut milk, hemp milk, or just regular cow’s or goat’s milk). 
• When the milk is hot but not boiling (i.e. when you can stick your finger in and it feels hot but obviously not scalding), add the milk to the casein + gelatine and WHISK. 
• Let it sit in the fridge for a few hours until it nicely congeals. Dig in!

Macros

• 73kcals, 3g carbos, 8.6g protein and 2.5g fat per serving

  Recipe by Anna from proteinpow.com

THE-IRON-ANGEL

Chocolate Orange Protein Cupcakes - Makes 6 Muffins (Source)

Ingredients

Blended together and baked at 180 C (356 F) for ~ 20-25 minutes:

• 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree (could sub this with cooked sweet potato)
• 1 cup of liquid egg whites
• 1/2 cup of quinoa flakes (could sub with oats or barley flakes)
• 1/4 cup of milk (I used coconut milk but any will do)
• 2 tsp of baking powder
• 2 tsp of orange zest
• 2 tsp of vanilla essence
• 1/2 cup of vanilla brown rice protein (or vanilla casein?)

Directions

• When the muffins are ready, take them out and let the cool a bit. 
• Then, get a bowl out and mix 2 scoops of casein (I used chocolate orange casein) and mix it with 5 tsbs of Greek yogurt and about 5 tbsp of milk. 
• Add one tbsp of milk at a time, until you get a frosting-like mixture - creamy and not overly watery. 
• When the casein mixture is ready, stick your nozzle in a plastic sandwich bag (a ziplock bag will do). Push the nozzle to the corner of the bag and cut a corner off the bag so the nozzle sticks out. 
• Then, just stuff all the casein mix in the bag, twisting the top so there’s pressure and the casein comes out as you press it.

THE-IRON-ANGEL

Super healthy & quick chinese broth (low carb but can be adjusted by adding rice noodles) - Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1L of fresh chicken or vegetable stock
• Small chunk  of root ginger, peeled and finely sliced
• 2-4 cloves of garlic, sliced (or 3 tsp garlic powder)
• 3 tbsp rice wine or dry sherry
• 500g mixed vegetables (green beans, bean sprouts, baby carrots, baby corn and bok choy)
• 24 raw prawns, peeled
• Small handful of coriander
• Light Soy sauce for seasoning
• Half a teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Put the stock, ginger, garlic, rice wine or sherry in a pot and bring to a simmer. Then add all your veggies and keep on a light simmer until tender.
2. Then add the prawns and cook until pink. Add pepper and stir.
3. Take off the heat, divide between two bowls, scatter coriander on top and season with soy sauce. 

THE-IRON-ANGEL

Recipe - Baked Parmesan Crusted Tilapia With Fresh Lemon Juice and Green Beans (You can find the original recipe w/ artichoke here.)

Ingridients

• 4 - 6 oz of Tilapia
• 1/2 a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese
• Chopped parsley (1/2 to a handful)
• Teaspoon of light mayo (I use a mix of greek yoghurt and sour cream)
• Sea salt (to taste)
• Black pepper (to taste)
• 1-2 tsp Garlic powder (or 2-4 cloves of very finely chopped fresh garlic)
• Cayenne pepper (to taste)
• 1 Lemon
• 200g green beans

Directions

• In a small bowl mix together the parmesan w/ the mayo (or alternative), pepper, salt, cayenne, garlic, chopped parsley and a teaspoon of grated lemon and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice.
• Put the tilapia onto some foil (pre sprayed with oil) and brush the mix lightly on the fish. 
• Bake in the oven for 12 minutes at 400 degrees.
• Steam you green beans whilst the fish is in the oven.
• You can serve with lemon wedges if you want or some lemon juice! :D