Pumpkin Pie Protein Mousse Spread Recipe (Soy, Dairy & Gluten-Free)

All I've been hearing lately is talk of Fall, apple picking, changing of the leaves, hot apple cider and all things pumpkin...I am 100% A-OK with this and plan to indulge in all of the Fallyness every chance I get. Actually, Chris and I have invited his mother up for a visit this weekend so we can go apple picking for the first time! At least it's this Florida girl's first time. I seem to always miss out on apple picking season so this year I was not letting the chance slip away from me. 

So in honor of all things Fall-y I decided it's time to whip up one of my favorite easy yummy pumpkin recipes that I have been making for several years now as a topping for my rice cakes, pancakes, and a dip for apples. Each year, it seems to evolve and get better as I discover new ingredients that I love to use.

One of my favorite ingredients that I discovered at the beginning of the year is Pumpkin Seed Protein Powder.  I had never heard of it before and so I thought I'd give it a shot. I knew that there were many benefits to including pumpkin in the diet such as it being rich in vitamin K, phosphorus, magnesium and manganese and other minerals including zinc, iron and copper and it is also great for removal of intestinal parasites...yucky sounding but totally necessary. It is also high in protein, it has only one ingredient - ground pumpkin seed - so I don't have to worry about any other unnecessary ingredients lurking in my protein, it's not chalky or gritty tasting, and it has almost no taste so it mixes really well in everything. Lastly, it's soy and dairy-free which are both foods that I avoid because of food allergies and intolerances. This protein is a WIN-WIN in my book and a constant kitchen staple for me.

The pumpkin pie protein spread over rice cakes make a great pre-workout meal as it give you the perfect amount of fuel to crush your workout which I am about to do! It's also the perfect meal to enjoy with a homemade pumpkin spice latte that I have been making with Trader Joe's delicious Pumpkin Spice Coffee, stevia, cinnamon and coconut milk creamer. It's WAY cheaper and has WAY less sugar than the PSL that is being served up at Starbucks right now. 

I hope you enjoy this recipe and all the Fall-y things as much as I do! :)

Pumpkin Pie Protein Mousse Spread Recipe

• 3 Tbsps Pumpkin seed protein powder (20g of protein)
• 1/4 pumpkin purée - NOT pumpkin pie mix
• 2-3 Tbsps unsweetened almond milk
• 2 Tbsps tahini (or nut butter of your choice)
• 1/4 tsp Ceylon cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
• stevia to taste

Mix all ingredients together and spread over rice cakes, pancakes or as a dip for apples.

Note:  If you don't need as much protein, you can make this recipe without the protein powder or cut the protein in half and use less almond milk. It tastes delicious either way!

Sources:

http://www.naturalhealth365.com/natural_healing/parasites.html

Disclaimer: We earn a small commission if you use the highlighted links to purchase the products mentioned in this post. We recommend only products that we would use in our own home or that we would recommend for our clients. Your purchases help to support our blogging activities such as creating yummy recipes to share with you and also helps us to bring even more helpful nutrition and training information to you on a weekly basis. Thank you for your continued support and for helping us continue what we LOVE to do!

Zesty Avocado Shrimp and Corn Salsa

Summer is almost upon us and that means the BBQ invites will be rolling in soon! Instead of bringing a dish that will make you feel junkie after, bring a healthy dish that everyone will LOVE and will allow you to stay in line with your health goal.

One of our favorite recipes that we have made over and over is this zesty avocado shrimp and corn salsa. Anytime we make it for parties, it gets rave reviews. It’s also super simple to make so you don’t have to worry about a laborious process when you have no time.

It's a great recipe because you can change it up each time by adding or taking away ingredients and it tastes delicious every time! We love to make ours a little spicy and with extra pink salt. :) You can enjoy the shrimp salsa over a salad, as a taco on a corn or brown rice tortilla, or on a simple organic corn tortilla or cassava flour chip like Siete. 

I realize that not everyone can eat corn these days so I have included some swaps for corn below. Maybe you have some other favorite veggie ingredients that would taste amazing in this salsa mix. I would love to hear what amazing things you come up with so make sure to keep me posted in the comments below. 

Let’s break down why this dish is so healthy:

• It’s high in protein

• Rich with healthy fat from the avocado

• Packed with vegetables

• Contains lime which is great for your digestion

Zesty Avocado Shrimp and Corn Salsa 

• 1/2 to 3/4 lb or 1.5 cups raw medium size shrimp, peeled/deveined

• 1 Tbsp coconut oil for shrimp sauté 

• 2 cups organic frozen sweet corn

• 1.5 cups Roma tomato, chopped 

• 1 cup red onion, finely diced

• 1 cup avocado, chopped 

• 1 lime or lemon juiced 

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 1/2 - 1 tsp Penzey’s forward spice or use any other spiced seasoning of your choice such as cayenne, chili and cumin powder to taste 

Additional ingredients that could be added for extra flavor or substitutions:

• Fresh Cilantro

• Red or green pepper instead of corn

• Chopped zucchini instead of corn

• Jicama instead of corn 

Instructions

1. In a sauté pan, heat a tablespoon of coconut oil over medium or medium-low heat. Add peeled shrimp, salt, pepper and forward spice to taste. Sauté a couple of minutes on each side until shrimp is pink and no longer translucent. Once done, set aside to cool. Once cool, chop shrimp into small chunks.

2. Defrost frozen corn in either the microwave or on stove top with a little water. Drain and set aside to cool.

3. Chop your avocado and Roma tomatoes into small cubes and dice red onion finely by hand or in a food processor. I used the Cuisinart Mini Food Prep.

4. Juice your lime or lemon.

5. In a large bowl, add all prepared ingredients, extra salt, pepper and forward spice and mix thoroughly. 

6. Place in fridge for 5-10 minutes to cool and serve with either organic tortilla chips or corn tortillas. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: We earn a small commission if you use the highlighted links to purchase the products mentioned in this post. We recommend only products that we would use in our own home or that we would recommend for our clients. Your purchases help to support our blogging activities such as creating yummy recipes to share with you and also helps us to bring even more helpful nutrition and training information to you on a weekly basis. Thank you for your continued support and for helping us continue what we LOVE to do!

Easy Scrambled Avocado Ham Egg Cups

We are always looking for ways to make our lives easier while using the best possible ingredients to keep us healthy and stay in line with our personal health goals. One thing we do often is prepare our breakfast meals at the beginning of the week especially if we have a busy week ahead of us. An easy breakfast to make are these scrambled avocado ham egg cups. They are great when you are on the go and don’t want to sacrifice taste! Plus they take care of your protein and fat needs so all you have to do is cover your clean carbohydrate and you have a complete meal! Chris loves to make a big batch of oatmeal ahead of time for the week and I am more of a sweet potato gal so I will roast sweet potatoes in the oven. This recipe only calls for 6 eggs which will last about 3 days at 2 egg cups per serving. If you want to make egg cups for the whole week, just add 2 extra egg cups per mix or you can just double the recipe. Also, you can use different ingredients in each egg cup if you really want to have variety throughout the week! Try to use organic ingredients when you can to avoid GMO’s and harmful pesticide residue on your food. Enjoy and let us know what egg cup combinations you come up with! 

Scrambled Avocado Ham Egg Cups

2 Egg Cups Per Serving

• 6 organic pasture-raised eggs (1 egg per muffin cup)
• 1 medium organic plum tomato, diced
• 1/3 avocado, chopped
• 6-10 sliced low sodium, sliced ham (larger ham slices work best)
• Salt and pepper to taste, cayenne pepper if you are really feeling saucy! 

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. 
2. Grab a muffin pan that holds at least 6 cups. With a paper towel, apply coconut oil to all sides of each tin cup to prevent sticking.
3. In a bowl, scramble your egg mixture with salt, pepper and any other seasonings you'd like. Use 1 egg for each egg cup you plan to make, so if you make 12 egg cups, you need 12 eggs.
4. Place ham into muffin cups to form a bowl. If your ham slices are smaller like mine were, then use 1 1/2 slices of ham by cutting ham slices in half and place one slice on the bottom of the cup and the other two slices around the sides to form your bowl.
5. Place avocado slices and diced tomato into each egg cup then pour scrambled egg mixture into all of the egg cups. 
6. Bake for 20 minutes or until no longer runny. Enjoy! 

What's your favorite egg and veggie breakfast combination?

Homemade Gluten-Free Flatbread Bun (also, nut-free!)

I have been mostly gluten-free for a few years or so now because of the nasty effects that gluten can have on ones gut and physical health and I really haven't found any gluten-free bread replacements that I can really stand behind. Mostly because of their long list of ingredients and the GF breads that I do approve of are just so darn pricey. So I have cut out all types of homemade sandwiches and wraps over the years and since they haven't been on the menu for so long I don't really miss them very often...BUT from time to time I get a hankering for one.

I've tried making some coconut flour breads in the past but they usually called for a ton of eggs because coconut four is super dense and I just can't eat eggs in large quantities without having respiratory issues. Plus I could never really get them to hold together enough to make a sandwich with. So recently during my 28-Day Beat Belly Bloat group program, myself and others shared a couple soy, dairy, gluten and egg-free tortilla and na'an recipes using different flours like quinoa, almond and tapioca flour. I tried several of my own recipe variations with other fours I had on hand but they just never came out quite right. Then I used tapioca for the first time and noticed how amazingly you could create a bread-like bun using only a few ingredients. So after several experimental recipes I have settled on a delicious gluten-free flatbread bun made of brown rice an tapioca flour.

I've enjoyed the bun with both chicken breast and a burger patty topped with tomato and avocado and the bun has stayed intact every time. Not only does it stay intact while eating the whole sandwich but it also travels well to make sandwiches at the beach or on a picnic. Best of all it tastes buttery delicious! 

I have this sandwich about one meal a day as this is by no means a low carb sandwich as it has about 43g of carbohydrates. So don't go crazy and eat three of them once you taste how yummy they are! The great thing is it's void of all the junk ingredients that most processed packaged gluten and gluten-free breads have which makes your body happier and healthier!

Gluten-Free Flatbread Bun

• 1/4 brown rice flour
• 2 Tbsps tapioca flour
• 1 tsp extra virgin olive or coconut oil
• 1/4 cup water
• Salt to taste, I use a lot for flavoring

1. Pre-heat a flat pan to medium heat.
2. In a small bowl, mix dry ingredients. Slowly stir in olive oil and then water, make sure it does not become too liquidy. If it the mix does look too runny, add less water. 
3. Spray the pan lightly. I use a misto oil sprayer to avoid soy and chemicals. Pour liquid out into 2 round flat pancake like circles. 
4. Cook for 2-3 minutes on the first side until the bun starts to slightly brown. Then flip and cook the other side for 1-2 minutes. Let cool and enjoy with your favorite protein and toppings. 

Tips for travel: If you don't plan to eat the sandwich right away, let the bun cool first then wrap it in a paper towel and put it in a ziplock bag. The paper towel may stick to the bun but it will remove easily.

Disclaimer: We earn a small commission if you use the highlighted links to purchase the products mentioned in this post. We recommend only products that we would use in our own home or that we would recommend for our clients. Your purchases help to support our blogging activities such as creating yummy recipes to share with you and also helps us to bring even more helpful nutrition and training information to you on a weekly basis. Thank you for your continued support and for helping us continue what we LOVE to do!

Guiltless Chocolate Chia Pudding

Do you ever have those days when all you want is a delicious chocolate treat but you are agonizing over it because you are trying to lose a couple pounds? Well agonize no more because I am going to share a guiltless Chocolate Chia Pudding recipe from our 10-Day Spring Detox to bust those cravings! You will actually want to gobble this treat up because it is loaded with rich nutrients and antioxidants! Chia seeds contain healthy fats like Omega-3's, protein and fiber to help keep you full and keep things moving smoothly, and antioxidants which protect your body from free radicals. Raw Cocao also contains antioxidants and has more than 300 phytochemicals, including vitamins, minerals, and nutrients such as: fat, carbohydrates, fiber, iron, zinc, copper, potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, and sulfur.

Chia chia

Chocolate Chia Pudding - Serves 3-4

1 1/4 cups unsweetened almond or coconut milk 1/4 cup chia seeds 1 tablespoon raw cacao powder 1 tsp cinnamon to taste 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1/2 tablespoon raw honey or a few drops of stevia

1. Combine all ingredients well with a whisk and pour into a glass jar with lid. Shake it up and mix further if there are still clumps in the bottom.

2. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, stirring once an hour to keep from clumping

3. Serve topped with dried fruit, sunflower seeds, cacao nibs, or unsweetened shredded coconut.

What's your favorite guiltless dessert?