Guilt-Free Pizza

Finally, a healthy pizza that I can enjoy absolutely guilt-free!! I can't wait to experiment with different kinds of toppings!

Ingredients:

1 gluten free tortilla shell (I used Food for Life Brown Rice Tortillas)

1/4 cup homemade pizza sauce (see below for a simple, healthy and delicious recipe)

2 mushrooms, washed and sliced

Small handful of baby spinach

1/2 tbsp sliced black olives

1/4 cup grated light mozzarella cheese (about 15g)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Meanwhile, take a tortilla shell out of the freezer (I let it sit out while the oven was preheating so it was mostly thawed when I was ready to use it). Top the shell with pizza sauce, toppings and finish with the grated cheese. Bake on a round pizza pan for 7 minutes and enjoy!!

To prepare the pizza sauce, combine the following ingredients. This makes about 1 cup of sauce. If you don't have all the spices I listed below you could try Italian seasoning instead.

Homemade Pizza Sauce:

1 - 5.5 oz can tomato paste

1/3 cup water

1 tbsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp dried parsley

Sprinkle of dried thyme, rosemary, ground sage and fresh ground pepper

Approximate nutritional information per serving (1 pizza):

Calories: 221

Carbs: 33 g

Fat: 6 g

Protein: 9 g

Sodium: 370 mg

Fibre: 5 g

Lettuce Wraps

Spring is here! Well, officially it was here on March 20th. But it finally feels like spring! As it starts to warm up and the days get longer, I really look forward to spending more time outside. I also get the desire to eat lighter, and these lettuce wraps do just the trick. They are so satisfying, you won't even miss the bread! This recipe is adapted from Sheerluxe.com's Ultimate Clean and Lean Lettuce Wraps.

Ingredients:

4 iceberg lettuce leaves, washed and patted dry with a paper towel

4 slices, about 65 grams, of roast chicken or turkey (I prefer Natural Selections as it does not contain any added nitrites or preservatives)

2 tbsp roasted red pepper hummus

1/2 cucumber, sliced

Directions:

Top a lettuce leaf with 1 tbsp hummus, 2 slices chicken or turkey and sliced cucumbers. Top with a second leaf of lettuce and roll up fairly tight (if it's too loose it will fall apart as you try to eat it). Repeat with the remaining ingredients. This recipe makes 2 wraps.

Approximate nutritional information per serving (2 wraps):

Calories: 185

Carbs: 14 g

Fat: 7 g

Protein: 19 g

Sodium: 709 mg

Fibre: 4 g

The majority of sodium is coming from the deli meat, which I use occasionally for convenience. To reduce the sodium I would recommend using fresh cooked chicken or turkey. Fresh is always a better option than processed!

Banana Protein Pancakes

Gluten free, dairy free and oh so delicious!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup gluten free oats

1/2 cup liquid egg whites

1/2 banana

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp protein powder

1 tbsp mixed seeds

2 tbsp water (you could also try unsweetened vanilla almond milk)

Directions:

Soak seeds in water for 10 minutes (this will add some volume to the pancakes). Meanwhile, blend oats in blender. Add remaining ingredients, other than seeds, and blend. Finally, stir the seeds into the batter (not necessary to blend them). 

Spray a frying pan with non-stick cooking spray and pour 1/4 cup batter into the pan. Cook on medium-high heat for a couple minutes on each side, until pancake is cooked through. Repeat with remaining batter. This recipe makes 4 pancakes.

Approximate nutritional information per serving (4 pancakes):

Calories: 340

Carbs: 48 g

Fat: 8 g

Protein: 41 g

Sodium: 411 mg

Fibre: 10 g

Marinate and Freeze Dijon Chicken

All the prep work is done ahead of time...it makes for very easy meals during the week!

Ingredients:

1/3 cup Dijon mustard

1 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp water

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Directions:

Prepare the marinade by combining the first 5 ingredients in a small bowl. Put the chicken breasts in a freezer bag along with the marinade, then freeze until ready to use. Simply take the chicken out of the freezer a day ahead and thaw in fridge. Grill or broil about 7 minutes on each side or until chicken is cooked through. 

Recipe adapted from LifeAsMom.com

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Protein Pancakes

This is the most amazing pancake recipe!! It is adapted from Meals & Moves blog. Now that I know how good they are I'm going to follow a suggestion by Confessions of a Recovering Chocoholic to quadruple the recipe next time. I plan on freezing them for quick and healthy breakfasts during the week. 

Ingredients for a single serving:

1/2 cup gluten free oats

1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese

1/2 cup liquid egg whites

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp mixed seeds 

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend for a minute or so. Spray a frying pan with non-stick cooking spray and pour 1/4 cup batter into the pan. Cook on medium-high heat for a couple minutes on each side, until pancake is cooked through. Repeat with remaining batter. This recipe makes 4 pancakes.

Approximate nutritional information per serving (4 pancakes):
Calories: 349
Carbs: 38 g
Fat: 7 g
Protein: 37 g
Sodium: 820 mg
Fibre: 8 g

(More than half the fat is coming from the mixed seeds - but take comfort knowing that these are healthy fats!)

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Mixed Seeds

Seeds are a good source of fibre, protein and healthy fat. I like to mix the following seeds and add them to bread mixes, pancakes, oatmeal and salads. I also like to add a tablespoon to plain, fat-free yogurt for a healthy snack.

Ingredients:

Chia seeds

Hemp hearts (shelled hemp seeds)

Sunflower seeds
Flax seeds (use ground flax to receive the full nutritional benefit)

Combine 1/4 cup of each and store in the cupboard until needed. 

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Biggest Loser Egg White Bites

This recipe makes 12 bite-size servings, about 40 calories each. These are a great way to get your protein in the morning.

Ingredients:

2 cups grated or finely chopped vegetables (see below for suggestions)

18 egg whites, or 2 1/4 cups egg whites or egg substitute

Fresh ground pepper

1/4 cup grated low-fat Cheddar, Jack or mozzarella cheese

For vegetables I used tomato, cucumber, red onion and bell peppers. I also added some chopped, cooked ham. The original recipe suggests carrots, zucchini, onion, asparagus, mushrooms, bell peppers and/or spinach.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly spray two 6-cup muffin pans with olive oil cooking spray.

Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray and briefly cook vegetables until tender. Place a small amount of vegetables in each of the muffin cups then fill the cups 3/4 full with egg whites. Sprinkle pepper and a small amount of cheese on top. Bake in oven for 10 minutes until they are just set. Cool in the pans. 

Note: I had mine in for closer to 20 minutes and didn't put the cheese on top until they were almost cooked. I served mine with a spoon of salsa on top.

Recipe adapted from The Biggest Loser, 6 Weeks to a Healthier You

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Mixed Berry Protein Smoothie

This is quick and easy to prepare. Just pour into a to-go cup for a tasty, high-protein breakfast on the go.  Only 160 calories!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup plain, low-fat yogurt (I prefer Astro BioBest)

1 tbsp unflavoured protein powder (I use whey protein isolate from Bulk Barn)

1 cup mixed frozen berries

Directions:

Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth.

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Taco Salad

I was planning on trying out a new recipe for chipotle dressing to serve with this salad but I couldn't find the chipotle chilies in the store. But I will keep searching...stay tuned!

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground beef

1 package taco seasoning mix (I use Old El Paso reduced salt taco seasoning)

1 cup water

Lettuce, spinach or assorted greens

Tomatoes, chopped

Sweet bell peppers, chopped

Green onions, chopped

Jalapenos, sliced

Shredded cheese

Fat free sour cream

Salsa

Directions:

Brown ground beef. Transfer the beef to a strainer and drain the fat. At this point I also give it a quick rinse under warm water - I know it may sound silly at first but it gets rid of the grease left on the meat (say goodbye to those extra calories!) and it still tastes the same in the end. 

Return beef to pan along with water and taco seasoning. Stir well. Reduce heat and simmer about 10 mins, or until liquid is absorbed.

Prepare a salad with lettuce, tomatoes, sweet peppers, onions and jalapenos. Top with beef, cheese, sour cream and salsa. If you wish you can also serve with some corn tortilla chips on the side.

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