Friday, June 25, 2010

Cashew Chicken with Vegetables -Cali

I love this recipe. I made it for the first time a couple nights ago and I was shocked how yummy it was. You could taste the yummy ginger and broth along with the tender chicken then to top it off with a few chopped cashews. It was heaven! I hope you think so too!

Serves 6

1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 4 breasts), cut into 1-inch cubes
3 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil cooking spray
2 carrots (8 to 9 inches each), shredded (2 cups)
1 bunch broccoli, cut into florets (about 3 cups)
1 small onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup unsalted raw cashews, toasted and chopped
cooked brown rice or quinoa (serve chicken over)

One: Combine chicken, soy sauce, ginger and garlic in a large shallow dish; cover and let marinate for at least 30 minutes at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours.

Two: Mist a large wok or skillet with cooking spray and set over medium-high heat. Add chicken and marinade and saute for 5 minutes or until tender. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.

Three: Add carrots, broccoli, and onion to same skillet and saute for 5 minutes or until crisp-tender. Move chicken back to pan, then add broth. Cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve over brown rice or quinoa. Sprinkle cashews on as needed on each plate. (If keeping for left overs, don't mix in all the cashews at once, they tend to be soggy the next day.)

Nutrient per 1 1/2 cup serving: Calories: 330, total fat: 9g, Sat fat: 1.25g, Monounsaturated fat 3.5g, polyunsaturated fat 1.5g, Carbs: 31g, Fiber 5g, Sugars 3g, Protein: 32g, Sodium 396 mg, Cholesterol 58mg

Love it!!! Even better the next day, enjoy!

Martha's Favorite Protein Shake 6.25.10

So I'm sitting here drinking my protein shake as usual after my workout. Then I thought, I need to share this with everyone because as my daughter says, "it tastes like candy"! So here it is:

Spinach and Fruit Protein Shake:

1 1/2 Scoops Vanilla Protein Powder (I avoid protein powders with "Casein" in it because it is slow-digesting and makes my stomach bloat and gives me discomfort and cramps)
1 Large handful of fresh Spinach Leaves
1 Banana
3-4 Strawberries
About a 1/4C (or less) Vanilla Almond Milk
6 Ice Cubes

Put in blender and mix!

Makes one tall class....ENJOY!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

EGG Bites! -Cali

500 ml container of egg whites (not sure how many actual eggs that is)
1/4 tsp hot sauce
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp chili flakes

Pour into mini muffin tins sprayed with cooking spray(should make 2 dozen)
Cut up 1 cup of any vegetable that you like to have with eggs(mushrooms, red peepers, onion, spinach) and add this mixture to the mini muffins.
Bake 400 Degrees for 35 minutes.

Yummy! Like little quiches! Goes great with your morning oatmeal or perfect for on- the-go snack!

-Cali

Monday, June 21, 2010

Martha's Turkey Burgers


This has got to be the best hamburger (turkey burger) recipe I have ever found! It's perfect for summer and is packed with flavor! I think I have had it at least 5 times in one week! The best thing about it is it's super quick and super easy! Here it is...

Turkey Burgers:

Ground Turkey (enough for one patty)
Salsa (about 1 TBS)
Chopped onion
Chopped green pepper
Chopped green onion

Mix ingredients with hands until evenly distributed. Form into a patty and place on a frying pan with Olive Oil Spray. I put the heat just above medium. Cook 4 min on one side and flip over. Cook other side until meat is no longer pink inside.

Toast a Sandwich Thin and place burger on bread. Add 1-2 slices of tomato and 1/2 avocado. You could also add some spinach leaves if you have some handy.

This stays in the range of a 300 calorie/per meal plan. 27g protein and about 40g carbs.

So juicy, full of flavor...MY FAVORITE!

-Martha

Friday, June 11, 2010

Martha's Bootcamp 6.11.10

Some of you know that I do my own bootcamp at the college football stadium here in St. George. I thought it might be fun to post a few of my routines on here for those of you that can't join us! Yesterday was fun, so I think I will start there. If there are exercises in here you aren't sure of, I recommend going to youtube and see if they have a demo of it. I need to make videos for you guys...workin' on it!

Martha's Bootcamp:

Started with some Power Sun Salutations to warm up our quads and glutes.

Every exercise in these circuits (with the "helified lunges" as the exception) had a certain amount of reps to go with them. That was determined by flipping 3 face cards over and adding up the numbers. Ace was worth 11. King, Queen, Jacks were worth 10 each.

Do each exercise 1 at a time, then repeat 1-3 times (depending on how much strength you have left!)

Circuit 1:
1) Helified Lunges - This consists of doing a 12 walking lunges with a double bounce, then 12 more walking lunges in singles this time, then go straight into 12 sumo squats
2) Jack Knife Abs
3) Jump Squats up the stadium stairs


Circuit 2:
1) Jump Squats
2) Plie Lunges on a step
3) Push ups

Circuit 3:
1) Chattarungas
2) Full Sit Ups
3) High Knees (2 legs is worth 1 rep)

Circuit 4:
1) Butt Kicks (2 legs is worth 1 rep)
2) Stationary lunge into a leap (so you go into lunge position, then take your back leg and swing it up to your chest while you leap off the ground with your opposite leg)
3) Abs - any kind

Then we cranked out 300 abs without stopping.
Stretch and call it a day!

Hope you like it!!!

Martha's Homemade Hummus 6.11.10


Hello everyone! I whipped up some hummus for lunch today and instantly knew I had to post this recipe. It only takes as long as it takes to make your protein shake after your workout!

Hummus:

2 Cups canned chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
1/4 Cup olive oil
1TBS lemon juice

Blend all ingredients in a blender until almost smooth.

You can add salt, paprika, cumin, dried tomatoes for varied flavors if you want. I eat mine with Blue Chips. YUMMY!