The "World's Best Chicken"

I love Pinterest recipe inspirations, especially those that are relatively healthy and easy to make.  This chicken dish, named the "World's Best Chicken" and highly rated by those who have pinned and repinned it, was a hit at our house.  In fact, I have already made it a few times.  Since the ingredients are minimal, it's a great go-to dish to have on standby.

Maple syrup is one of my preferred sweeteners, since it is high in manganese and zinc, two crucial minerals that are important cofactors in a variety of physiologic reactions.  It may also be helpful for your immune system and good for male reproductive health.  When choosing sweeteners, I try to stick to those that are minimally processed and exist in nature, preferably honey, maple syrup, stevia, sugar in the raw, and small amounts of agave nectar.

World's Best Chicken

Ingredients:

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs (use organic)
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper
Rosemary

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together mustard, syrup, and vinegar.  Note: I doubled the recipe.
 

Place chicken breasts into 9×13 greased baking dish. Season with salt & pepper.  

Pour mustard mixture over chicken. Make sure each breast is coated.  No need to marinate.

Bake for about 35-50 minutes or until meat thermometer reads 165 degrees.  Err on the longer side if you want it a little more baked in. There will be extra sauce in the pan, which you can elect to toss out or use for extra flavoring.  Season with rosemary.

Serve with some roasted veggies and in our case, some sweet potato soup, for a well-rounded and warming meal.

Enjoy!

*M*

No Bake Dark Chocolate PB Oatmeal Bars

I did it!  I developed my own recipe!  (OK, I usually tweak any recipe I use to make it more Meg-a-fied, but this time I developed it on my own!)  I wanted to make a healthier no-bake cookie or bar that could also sub as a pre- or post-workout snack and had the two flavors I love the most: chocolate and peanut butter.  The result?  These fun little oatmeal bars that are great as a dessert, sweet snack, or even breakfast on the go.  Chocolate for breakfast, you ask?  Better (and more satisfying) than a chocolate doughnut!

This recipe is made up of some of my favorite nutrient-rich foods:

Cocoa powder and dark chocolate - full of phytochemicals (flavonoids, theobromine) that are cardio-protective and lower blood pressure.  Most of us love chocolate, and combining cocoa powder with coconut oil and a bit of stevia forms a nice chocolate "sauce" that's also super healthy.

Coconut oil - this once demonized oil has been heavily researched in the past decade and is now understood to be quite health-promoting.  We now know that it is beneficial to your heart and thyroid, and it may boost your metabolic rate and immune system strength.  Coconut oil is made up of medium chain triglycerides, which are preferentially metabolized and used for fuel by the liver.  (Polyunsaturated fats are made of long-chain fatty acids, which are harder to metabolize and are preferentially stored for fuel.)  Much of the research vilifying coconut oil was performed on oil that was partially hydrogenated; virgin coconut oil is what you want to reach for.  It is solid at room temperature but melts easily, especially if kept in an Arizona kitchen (mine is usually liquid after a few days in my pantry).

Peanut butter - great source of protein, adds satiety to meal, and thought to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels.  Plus, it's just plain awesome.

Oatmeal - full of soluble fiber, which is thought to bind to LDL cholesterol and "sweep" it away from arteries.  This makes oatmeal heart healthy and a good whole grain option, if you eat grains.  Oats are naturally gluten-free, but many crops are cross-contaminated with wheat, rye or barley, or they're processed in facilities that also process gluten.  If you are gluten intolerant, opt for gluten-free brands like Bob's Red Mill, Holly's Oatmeal, or GF Harvest.  The less processed the oats, the more slowly they will be digested, so opt for traditional oatmeal or steel cooked oats whenever possible.  You can make oatmeal overnight in the crockpot to save time.  I used old fashioned oats for this recipe.  

Honey/stevia - I only used a small amount of honey, which has antimicrobial properties and is high in B vitamins, in this recipe, but I recommend it (and stevia) over other sweeteners because of its health benefits and minimal processing.  Plus, if you buy honey made in your local region, it may help you manage seasonal allergies a bit better.

This recipe is pretty dense and "oat-y" but has a strong chocolate peanut butter flavor.  If you don't like oats as much, you can reduce the quantity.  You can also make this lower in carbohydrates by reducing the honey (increasing stevia), eliminating the chopped dark chocolate, and swapping out 1 - 1 1/2 cups dried coconut for the oats.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon coconut oil
3 tablespoons honey
Few dashes of stevia (to taste)
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup smooth peanut butter
2 cups old fashioned oatmeal
3-4 ounces dark chocolate chopped (optional; about 1 bar)

Instructions:

Add 1/3 cup coconut oil, honey, stevia, and cocoa powder to a small saucepan and heat until gently boiling.  

Remove from heat.  Stir in vanilla extract and peanut butter until well combined.  

Fold in oatmeal and chopped dark chocolate.  Drizzle with 1 tablespoon coconut oil to help bind the mixture.  

Spread evenly into an 8x8" baking dish and refrigerate to set.  

Cut into 12-16 squares and served once set.  Look how dense and yummy these are!  

I am considering freezing a few pieces to see how that goes, too!  Greg and I love having these in the fridge to satisfy our sweet tooth without a ton of sugar.  Let me know how you like them!

Enjoy!
*M*

Sugar Sugar SUGAR!

I promised the 15 attentive, health-minded women who attended the Karve Scottsdale Sugar seminar yesterday that I would put up the tips, tricks, and products I recommend for reducing the processed sweeteners we eat and picking some healthier options. Here are some things I recommend:

1. After a meal, drink herbal ginger tea. This helps you digest your food better, as ginger is a digestive tonic, but it also places some space between the meal and a potential dessert. By the time you've finished enjoying the tea and go for the sweets, you might not really want them anymore. Like always, listen to your body and give it a chance to tell you what it really wants. I especially like Yogi Tea's Ginger Tea (Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Sprouts).

2. Go for GT's Kombucha to alkalinize the system and support general health. The mild sweetness and natural fizziness (from fermentation, not added carbonic acid) mimics a soda feel without the junk and is full of probiotics, enzymes, and amino acids. My favorite flavors are Trilogy (a raspberry, lemon, and ginger blend), but many people really like Grape and Cranberry too. Get them at Whole Foods, Sprouts, Sunflower, and AJ's.

**Aisha, one of the participants at the seminar, informed me that if you get the Sprouts weekly coupons, about once a month you can get coupons for Kombucha for $2.50 each! Thanks, Aisha! **

3. If you really can't get off diet soda and want a relatively healthy alternative (though Kombucha is better), check out Steaz 0-calorie soda. They are sweetened with stevia and erythritol, a sugar alcohol (but not artificial sweetener). My husband loves the raspberry flavor, and having them in the fridge ensures that he won't reach for the diet soda! Now if I could get my father-in-law, who's visiting this week, to drink them instead of diet pepsi I'd be REALLY happy...Find them at Whole Foods, and look for coupons...they're often on sale!

4. Want a substitute for less healthy desserts that are full of vitamins, minerals, and enzymes? Check out Innocent Indulgence! The owner, Alisha, is a registered dietitian who loves sweets and wanted to make them both delicious and nutrient-rich. My all-time favorites are her "cookie dough" and peanut butter squares, both made with sweeteners like agave, stevia, and honey, as well as fruit, nuts, and coconut oil. YUM! Check them out here.

5. If you want to make some of your own raw, natural desserts to keep in your freezer, look at Dr. Ben Kim's dessert section of his website here. I love the raw fudge the best...not quite as good or pretty as the Innocent Indulgence desserts, but still very satisfying when you need something sweet in a flash. Buy raw almond butter at Trader Joe's (only $4.99), and get everything else at Whole Foods or Sprouts.

6. When you're picking the healthier sweeteners to add to coffee, Teeccino (a healthier coffee alternative that's all natural and made from fruits/nuts found here or at Whole Foods), tea, oatmeal, desserts, or anything else, make sure to get them as natural and unprocessed as possible. Go for raw honey and agave nectar, and look for organic plain stevia extract...no need to spend money on fillers or "patented" stevia blends. I get raw agave nectar and honey at Whole Foods and organic stevia and maple syrup at Trader Joe's.

Well, that should be all for now! If you have any questions or would like to set up an appointment, feel free to email me at megan.mcnamee.rd@gmail.com. Looking forward to the sugar seminar at K Pilates and Karve Mesa on April 24th!