Meal Plan- 22 Minute Hard Corps: Week 3!

Have you ever wondered what a typical meal plan looks like if you're using The 21 Day Fix food plan?!?  If so, today is your lucky day!  I just finished my meal plan for week 3 of 22 Minute Hard Corps, and I'm going to share it with you!  The Fix food plan is actually used for 21 Day Fix, 21 Day Fix Extreme, Hammer and Chisel, and 22 Minute Hard Corps.  Do you know why most of the new programs use the container system from The 21 Day Fix?  Because it's easy, convenient, and IT WORKS!  It is extremely effective and helps to truly turn clean eating into a lifestyle!

You will notice that I tend to have my Shakeology for breakfast during the week.  It is fast, easy, delicious and it keeps me from craving junk throughout the day.  I won't go without it.  On the weekends, however, I have more time for a bigger breakfast, so I tend to have my Shakeology either for my morning or afternoon snack (depending on what I'm doing that day).  Generally, I like to drink it as my morning snack on Saturday as I'm heading to get groceries.  It helps me to stick to my list while I'm grocery shopping and not throw unnecessary and unhealthy food in my cart.  (Let's face it, it's much easier to stick to the plan if you don't have junk sitting around your house calling for you to eat it!)

You will also probably notice that I don't generally have a huge variety of food throughout the week.  There are a couple of reasons for this.  First of all, at first I tried to switch things up everyday, eat different foods all of the time, and what I found is that we were wasting a ton of food.  That is not feasible, nor affordable.  I also found that I was spending entirely too much time preparing all of that food.  So now, we make three main meals (often doubling the recipe) and we eat them as leftovers throughout the week.  Obviously if you aren't a fan of leftovers this may not be the best option for you.  Luckily, this works for my family, saves me money, and keeps me from spending so much time in the kitchen.

I plan to get the recipes on this meal plan posted this week and throughout next weekend, so stay tuned for those as well...they are some of my favorite recipes!

Feel free to send me questions if you have any.  As always, I'm here to help you reach those goals!

Happy meal planning!

21 Day Fix Approved: Slow Cooker Creamy Taco Chicken

This is a new twist on a family favorite!  We love all Mexican food around here!  We have several favorite recipes that are part of our normal rotation, but I was very excited to find this one, which was similar to several others, but switched up just enough to feel like a new meal!

I just made this today and it was so easy, delicious and family approved!!

If you like Mexican food, definitely give this one a try!  I think you will be very happy you did!  Let me know how you and your family liked it!

What you need:

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 
• 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 7 oz. can chopped green chiles
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 bell peppers (I used red, orange, yellow...green would work too)
• 15 oz. can diced tomatoes (if you want to spice it up add diced tomatoes with chiles)
• 1 Tbs chili powder
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 red container greek yogurt
• Fresh cilantro, for garnish

What to do:

1.  Clean and trim your chicken, then add it to your slow cooker.

2.  Top with remaining ingredients, except for the greek yogurt and cilantro (those will be added in later)

3.  Cook on low for 8 hours, or until chicken pulls apart easily.

4.  Remove chicken and shred.  Then add back into the slow cooker with your veggies.  Add the greek yogurt, mix it all together and continue to cook on low for about 30 minutes.

5.  Stir everything well, then top with fresh cilantro.

6.  Eat it as is, with a tortilla shell, or on top of brown rice or quinoa!  Add avocado or cheese to your liking!

Fix Counts- 

Makes 6 servings

• 1 red
• 1-2 yellow (depending if you use tortilla, rice or quinoa)
• 1 blue (depending if you use cheese or avocado)

Granola Energy Bites!

It's always so exciting when I can find a recipe that the whole family loves!  My boys are granola bar addicts, so I was so excited when I stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest!  There are so many ways that you can change it up to try different flavors...such a versatile and yummy "clean" recipe!

I make a triple batch every time I make these because they go so fast around here!  I hope you will find that your family enjoys them as much as mine does!!  A special thanks to Gimme Some Oven for the original recipe!

Now, for the important details...how to make these delicious little guys!

What you need:

• 1 Cup (dry) old-fashioned oats (or other oats of your choosing)
• 2/3 Cup toasted Coconut Flakes
• 1/2 Cup natural Peanut Butter (or other nut butter)
• 1/2 Cup ground flax seed
• 1/2 Cup dark chocolate chips (or you can mix it up with white chocolate chips for a different flavor...not quite as healthy of a choice, though...)
• 1/3 Cup honey
• 1 Tbs chia seeds (optional but seriously...these are my favorite part)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (have also made with caramel extract for a different flavor)

What to do:

1.  Start by toasting your coconut until it is golden brown.  I tend to do this on the stovetop, but it can also be done on a baking sheet in the oven.  Just be careful because it tends to toast quickly!

2.  Stir all ingredients together until mixed well.  I personal like to mix all dry ingredients up well first, then add the peanut butter, honey and vanilla, but that's just me.  Cover, then refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  I prefer to let them refrigerate for a couple of hours, I tend to find that they are then easier to roll into balls.  

3.  Once they are chilled, I use a cookie scoop to scoop them out, then roll them into balls.  You can make them whatever size you want (mine are usually about 1" in diameter)...but it truly doesn't matter...sometimes we eat it by spoonfuls!  :)

4.  Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  Enjoy!!