Lean Protein

Maple Kissed Pork Medallions

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Ok, friends i’m not gonna mislead you here.  This is not a “sexy” blog post.

It’s not cookies, cake, muffins or scones.  I don’t claim to be a Bakerella, Tartlette or Sweetopia. I am Marla and this is MarlaMeridith.com.  Sure, sometimes i’ll give you a recipe for a sugary special occasion treat. Often i’ll give you a recipe for something that tastes like a treat but it is really Superfoods in disguise.  You know, things that taste decadent but won’t add inches to your waist and won’t leave you feeling all groggy.  I call this pork Maple “Kissed” to give it some sweet sex appeal.

Personally, I like to go with a fairly high protein diet filled with loads of veggies, some fruit & whole grains and healthy fats. Synergy & balance is what I’m after.   Do I eat carbs?  Of course, they give me energy.  Fuel to keep going.  Do I eat fat?  Yes again.  How else would I stay satisfyed!  Everything we eat should work together.  Like a puzzle.   My kids go a bit heavier on the dairy and carby thing.  That’s cool.  We all need to do whatever works for us and our bodies.  Some live best doing the raw/vegan thing others char their foods to a crisp.  I fit somewhere in between.  I dig raw, I dig cooked.  Basically I love food.  A lot.  I don’t avoid any food group.  I do limit the things make me feel not so good.

Seafood, chicken, turkey & tofu, that’s my usual lean protein rotation.  Sometimes a little bison or sirloin is thrown into the mix.  I went a bit wild here and purchaesd some pork.  It’s “the other white meat,” right???

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~ Marla Meridith

Commentary

Super Bowl Essentials: A Skinny Take on Party Food

We all love parties.  We love to hang with friends and share good times together.  Parties are really fun places to eat & drink….lots…..until we don’t feel so good any more.  I watch my kids at parties, the temptation is huge.  There are loads of food available to them that they don’t see regularly….other than at parties.  “Orange” Mac-n-Cheese, “Day-Glo” cakes, “Rainbow” carbonated beverages and lots of crispy, crunchy, deep-fried “party” food.  When they are at these parties they ask if they can have at it and of course I oblige.  After all, life is not about deprivation.  We need to experience life in full color, not just black and white.

Kids need to taste everything and so do we!  We can then decide for ourselves if we like it or not.  Who am I to control my kids taste buds?  (Well maybe I try just a little!)  The first few times I took my daughter to kiddy birthday parties she over ate & she got a belly ache.  The rest of her day was sort of destroyed.  We talked about that belly ache.  We agreed that it came from too much food, eating too fast and eating large portions of things her little body wasn’t used to.  She was tiny when this happened to her, but she remembers clearly how much it hurt.  Who wants to wreck their day or night feeling overly full, bloated, tired and guilty.  Do you?  Not me, that’s for sure.

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~ Marla Meridith

Chicken

Pasta with Tomato Basil Sauce and Chicken

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I just realized as I was proofing this post the caption I wrote above: “One Super Bowl of Pasta.” As I mentioned in my Skinny Mini Baked Potato post, I will not be indulging in the Super Bowl sporting event (I think it’s this weekend.) When I created the graphic above it had nothing to do with the Super Bowl, but hey if you want to make a big batch of pasta for your SB party go for it! (It will help absorb all the booze!) Homemade sauce can be so simple, and so very fabulous.

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~ Marla Meridith

Lunchbox Favorites

Spinach Salad with Toasted Pine Nuts

There is nothing like a simple salad for lunch or dinner. Add to it some toasted nuts, lean protein and you have a filling and fabulous meal. We love all kinds of nuts over here. In the fridge we have all different kinds and always a batch of roasted pine nuts ready to go.

If you don’t have pine nuts on hand feel free to use walnuts, pecans, pistachios, hazelnuts, etc….

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~ Marla Meridith

Chocolate

Chocolate Ginger Truffles

Tempted by Chocolate…..Sure why not? With Valentine’s day coming up in a few weeks I figured I would tempt you with some dark chocolate truffles.  These are rich and fabulous.  A little goes a long way.  Remember small indulgences with high-quality ingredients keep us happy and satisfied.  Deprivation, BORING.  Small occasional indulgences with highly flavored, pure ingredients…….GRAND!

Oh, by the way….I entered these truffles in the Scharffen Berger/TuttiFoodieChocolate Adventure Contest. They were also given as holiday gifts to my friends and my kids’ teachers.  They all loved ’em, I think you will too. A little sweetness goes a long way. Let’s live it up and celebrate Valentines Day together! Truffles anyone?

Dark Chocolate Ginger Truffles | MarlaMeridith.com

Fresh Benefits…

Chocolate

Chocolate is loaded with Flavonoids (antioxidants.)  The darker you go, the higher percentage of these benefits come your way. Chocolate is a win-win treat.  You get health benefits and taste bud satisfaction!!

Did you know that chocolate is an all natural mood enhancer?  It produces feelings of pleasure because it stimulates the secretion of endorphins.  Love that!  This feel-good goodie contains the hot topic neurotransmitter Serotonin.  Stimulating, Sugary, Caffeinated chocolate…..Here’s to happy thoughts!  To read more about Cocoa and the health benefits of chocolate click the following links:

Cacao

Cacao Nibs are great for you too!  They are the building blocks of chocolate so they have even more of the good for you stuff mentioned above.  To read more about Cacao click here:

Ginger

Ginger has a bunch of great for you properties as well.  It is known to help relieve gastrointestinal stress.  It also has antioxidant properties that provide anti-inflammatory support.  Get Seasick?  Sucking on a ginger candy can help relieve symptoms of motion sickness.   To read more on the health benefits of ginger:

 

Click HERE for Recipe Details.

 

Chocolate Recipes on MarlaMeridith.com

Truffle Recipe Links

~ Marla Meridith

Commentary

Book Review: The Golden Door Cooks at Home

 

I enjoy reading before bed.  The reading I choose needs to be stimulating, but at the same time I need to be knocked out after a few pages.  One night recently after tucking the kids into bed I decided to browse through my copy of the Golden Door Cooks at Home. Big mistake……the photos and recipes stimulated all my senses.
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~ Marla Meridith

Entertaining

Roasted Kale Chips

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Super Fit Kale Chips on MarlaMeridith.com

Are you looking to add some crunch to your day in a satisfying healthy way? Well have I got the thing for you. Often we buy overly processed, too salty tasteless snack foods. Have you ever tried kale chips? They have been all the rage for some time now. When roasted in the oven kale takes on a crunch that will satisfy any kind of crunchy cravings. They are a bit delicate and not really meant for dipping. You can use a spoon for that.

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~ Marla Meridith

Chocolate

Cocoa Coconut Oat Parfait

Big news folks! It is National Oatmeal Month. Wow, who knew??

Around here it might as well be Oatmeal Month every day! We heart our oats.

I speak of the oat often. Oats are whole grain complex carbs that taste great and have loads of health benefits (see my post Oatmeal: The Basics for more on that.) Oats work well for breakfast, they perform strongly in a Mini Meal and kid’s love ’em. OK, now onto a more significant agenda:

Sure I live my life with a lot of rules, especially when it comes to food. As long as I have healthy, yummy ingredient combinations at the right times all is good, really good. I like my meals six times a day and I like each bite to be well worth my time. In this recipe, we have some of my favorite whole food ingredients…..Oats, Coconut Milk, Chocolate, Toasted Almonds, Cacao Nibs & Thick Yogurt. These high energy ingredients are all layered on top of each other to create a rich, creamy, sweet, full-bodied meal. Remember even though this tastes rich, there is nothing here that will talk junk to your hips.

So let’s break it down, we have oats (complex carbs,) cocoa powder & cacao (antioxidants,) almonds (healthy fat,) and thick Greek yogurt (lean protein.) That is quite the balanced & tasty way to kick-start the day. Don’t you think?

Each day we get to know each other better. That is a really cool thing. I share my recipes and daily inspiration. You guys lurk, browse and some even leave loving comments. Have I ever told you how much I love getting comments? It’s like waking up Christmas morning and seeing loads of shiny, colorful presents under the tree. I mean that I really do.

I love working on each and every post. Each one is unique to itself. Each a culinary, creative puzzle that I can’t wait to figure out. When I finally hit the “Publish” button I cringe a bit. I think to my self: Is my spelling and grammar correct? Are my photos lookin’ good? Are the recipes inspirational and awe-inspiring? Will I encourage someone today to think outside the box? Will their kids eat it?? (I won’t let that worry me so much, ’cause mine are getting pickier by the day!)

Will my readers agree that my recipes are indeed “Clean, Healthy, Yummy, High Energy Foods?” I hope so.

That said, let’s have chocolate for breakfast!

Cocoa Coconut Oat Parfait

  • Source Organic ingredients when available
  • Makes a Big Batch (about 9 one cup servings of oats)
  • 3 cups Coach’s Oats (you can use these or use your favorite oat)
  • 9 cups of water
  • 14 ounce can Light Coconut Milk
  • a dash of Salt
  • optional: Cinnamon
  • For each serving:
  • 8 oz of the above-cooked oats mixture
  • 6 oz Thick Non-Fat Greek Yogurt
  • 1 tbs Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (if you use sweetened cocoa powder you might want to OMIT the sweetener choice below)
  • Sweetener: I love my Vanilla Stevia Drops; you can use Maple, Agave, Honey etc.
  • sprinkle Roasted Cacao Nibs
  • sprinkle toasted Almonds

METHOD

OATS

  • Cook oats according to directions, add a dash of salt while cooking. Stir well. If you use Coach’s Oats you will be thrilled with how quickly they cook. Watch carefully because they will be done in 5 minutes.
  • Add coconut milk and cinnamon if desired. Combine well.
  • Now your Big Batch is done. Let’s work on our parfaits!

PARFAIT

  • Combine cocoa powder, sweetener (if using) and 8 oz coconut oats, stir together thoroughly.
  • You can sweeten the yogurt too if you wish. I did not. The sweetness from the oats blends well with the tart, creamy yogurt.
  • Layer your parfait in a glass, alternating layers of yogurt and cocoa coconut oats.
  • Sprinkle the top of your parfait with nuts, cacao nibs and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
  • Enjoy!

OPTIONAL TOASTED ALMONDS

  • Preheat oven to 350˚F
  • Lay almonds on baking sheet in a single layer
  • Bake for about 10 minutes or until fragrant and slightly browned

Fresh Variations

We know each other well enough by now to realize that there is always loads of room for interpretation of FFC recipes. Cooking is all about suiting your own taste buds. If you want something sweeter, go sweeter. I would use stevia for that ’cause I don’t need to be wearing my sweetness on my hips. There are so many ways you can individualize this parfait, here are a few ideas:

  • Use any nut you love- or-
  • Use your favorite nut butter. Simply stir 1 or 2 tbs into your oats or yogurt before layering.
  • Not in the mood for nuts? Use some ground flaxseed instead.
  • Add some fresh or frozen fruit. Berries would be delicious, so would sliced bananas or mango.
  • Stir in or top with some dried fruit. Raisins, dried cherries, cranberries, blueberries or crushed dried bananas……yum!
  • Spice variation: Go with ginger or cardamom instead of or in addition to cinnamon.

~ Marla Meridith

Dressings

Chopped Broccoli Salad with Tahini Soy Dressing

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Crisp, crunchy, bite sized veggies meet creamy avocado in this chopped salad. Blanching the broccoli creates a vibrant color and a tender texture, while the carrots and red cabbage are chopped fine and are kept raw.  The avocado and creaminess of the tahini dressing lend a symphony of flavor and texture to each bite. This salad is loaded with vitamins, minerals and just enough healthy fats.  Be sure to keep all of your veggies chopped small and relatively uniform in size so you get every flavor in each bite.

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~ Marla Meridith

Cake

Skinny Peanut Butter & Cocoa Mousse “Cake”

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Decadent meets skinny….just the way I like it.

I crave sweets daily. So do my kids…..I think most of us do come to think of it. Tasty rewards are something to look forward to….right?? For me everyday mindful lifestyle treats need to be clean, high energy goodies. You guys might think I have gone a bit wacky here, but I tell you…..you gotta try this. Just visualize your favorites. In this treat we have a toasty, warm “cake,” thick & custardy chocolate “mousse” all topped with rich, creamy nutty “butter.”

Yes, I just uttered these three words:

OK, how the heck is Marla gonna make this an “everyday food” and not the infrequent “indulgence food”. Let me interpret this for you, but please stick with me ’cause it’s not what you think.

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~ Marla Meridith