Blueberry Quinoa Pancakes

When pregnant our bodies take the good nutrients from our food and give them to baby before we see any bit of them - which is exactly what we want! But often this leaves those fatty remnants for us to absorb. This is why exercise is so important because exercise turns those fats into energy, and why eating a healthy protein-filled breakfast can really make a difference in how we feel and look at the end of the day.

These quinoa pancakes are so delicious and a great way to get healthy proteins into your baby's body, your body and your toddler's little body! Here are some of the reasons - aside from the buttery, nutty flavor it adds - that I love quinoa!

• Quinoa is one of the most protein-rich foods we can eat. ...
• Quinoa contains almost twice as much fiber as most other grains. ...
• Quinoa contains Iron. ...
• Quinoa contains lysine. ...
• Quinoa is rich in magnesium. ...
• Quinoa is high in Riboflavin (B2). ...
• Quinoa has a high content of manganese.

I will make a whole batch of these and stick the leftovers in a freezer bag and just reheat in the microwave on mornings when McKinley and I want them for breakfast. She can be finicky when it comes to blueberries, (she doesn't really care about all the great antioxidants they provide her) so I will make about half of these with just one or two blueberries in them. 

BLUEBERRY QUINOA PANCAKES

PREP TIME: 15 minutes

COOK TIME: 30 Minutes

SERVES: 16 pancakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 

1/2 cup quinoa flakes

2 tsps baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

dash of salt 

2 egg whites + 1 egg

1 1/2 cups milk

1 tsp pure vanilla

1 tsp pure maple syrup

1 cup fresh blueberries (frozen is fine, too)

1-2 tbsp evoo

In a small mixing bowl combine your dry ingredients. 

In a mixer, add your egg whites and mix on high until fluffy - this is a great trick I learned from the Food Network which helps to make those pancakes nice and light! This especially comes in handy when you don't use sugar, like we are doing today.

Add in the remaining ingredients, but save the blueberries for later. 

Pour the bowl of dry ingredients into the mixing bowl and mix on low until combined.

Lastly, gently fold in the blueberries. 

Heat a skillet to medium heat. Add a tablespoon of evoo (or your choice of oil) to the pan. You will only need to do this a couple of times while cooking your pancakes. 

Pour about 1/4 cup of mix onto the pan for each pancake.

When the batter begins to bubble, flip!

Continue cooking until the pancakes are nicely browned on each side and cooked through the center - 3-4 minutes per side.

Top with a little butter and enjoy your protein-filled breakfast! 

Pregnancy Full-Body Morning Stretch Routine

This morning I was a bit sore from the previous week's workouts. Pregnancy soreness is common for most Moms-to-be anyway - its our body's way of preparing for childbirth; hence why the aches and pains become that much more prominent the closer to our due dates we get.

To help prevent the discomfort as much as I possibly can and to keep me active I have implemented a morning stretching routine I try to incorporate into my coffee-time as often as I can.

Below is a series of stretches to help you get on with your day - pregnant or not! It is just a good stress relieving, relaxing habit to get into. 

Stretch your hands up to the ceiling. Involve your whole body down to your tippy toes.

Reach your arm over to the side, creating a streamline from your waist through your fingers. Make sure to repeat the stretch on both sides.

Bring your elbows down to your hips and push against the inside of your knees to stretch the groin and hips.

Rotate to one side and place both hands inside the bent knee stretching out the hip and inner thigh.

Come down to rest on your right leg, rest your arms over the bent leg stretching out the thigh..

Sit up straight, bring one leg in and stretch the other leg out. Reach over towards the toes, stretching out the hamstring and back.

Come on to all fours for Cat Pose, extend the head and rear upwards, bringing the chest and belly towards the floor; then reverse the move by bringing the back up towards the ceiling, and the head and hips in toward the chest to stretch out the back.

To complete the back stretches, come down for Child's Pose.

Last but not least, bring the feet together for Butterfly Stretch. Pull the feet in close to the body and lean over, stretching out the inner thighs and lower back. 

Enjoy your day! 

My stretch this morning was followed by a delicious easy-to-make breakfast of Whole Grain Raisin French Toast (continue reading for the recipe)! Then followed by a 6 mile run powered by my protein and carb packed breakfast.

At 15 weeks now, I don't know how much longer I will be able to manage these long runs, so stretch stretch stretch I must! 

Whole Grain Raisin French Toast

Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Serves: 6-8

1 loaf Aunt Millie's Whole Grain Cinnamon Raisin Bread
2 cups 2% (or skim) milk
4 eggs
1/4 cup ground cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar (optional)

In a large bowl mix together your milk and eggs.

Dip the bread in the eggs, but don't allow to get too soggy!
Spray a pan with nonstick cooking spray and set to Medium.

Cook until either side is nicely browned.
Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

Enjoy!

Toddler-Friendly Whole Wheat Banana Waffles

WHOLE WHEAT BANANA WAFFLES 

                               NO SUGAR!
                                  NO OIL!
                                           NO BUTTER!

These waffles are a-ma-zing!

 Not only does McKinley gobble them up...

but they are one of my favorite breakfast foods, too. They have no sugar, no oil and no butter and yet, they are so sweet and fluffy you almost won't believe it. You can even throw in a dash of ground flax seed or wheat germ for added nutrients, but for the basic healthy goodness, here is the recipe:

Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 5 Minutes
Total: 20 Minutes

Makes: 8 Waffles

Ingredients:
2 Ripe Bananas, mashed
1 Large Egg
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tbsp pure maple syrup
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
3/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
2 tbsps All Natural Applesauce
1 Cup Milk

Toppings:
1 Banana, sliced
Pure Maple Syrup

Mix together the above ingredients well. Spray your waffle maker with nonstick spray. Pour about 1/4 cup size of batter into your waffle maker. Depending on the waffle maker it takes 3-5 minutes to cook. Top with banana slices and syrup and enjoy!

Whole Wheat Banana Blueberry Mini Muffins

This is a delicious, simple healthy muffin recipe. This can make for a little snack for Mom or breakfast for your little one! Enjoy.

Whole Wheat Banana Blueberry Mini Muffins
Yields about 24 mini muffins

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3/4 cup skim milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup honey
2 bananas mashed
1 cup fresh blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Grease a mini muffin tin using nonstick spray.
2. In a large bowl mash 2 bananas with a fork.  Add the milk, oil, honey and egg.  Stir until combined.  

3. Mix in the flour, baking powder and salt. Fold in the blueberries until evenly distributed throughout mix.
4. Fill your mini muffin tins most of the way. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into the center of one of the muffins.

Post-Workout Recovery Fruit Smoothie

Mike is at the gym right now doing his Saturday morning workout while McKinley and I are home recovering from a busy week. He's a bit of a weekend warrior when it comes to the gym, so I have a feeling this is going to be a long one and he loves nothing more than coming home from his workout to a good breakfast. So this morning McKinley helped me get one together!

Packed with fruit, calcium, vitamin E, and those good Omega 3's, this smoothie is sure to power the rest of Mike's day with our busy little teether.

1 Cup Orange Juice (we use Simply Orange with Calcium)

1 Cup Skim Milk

1 cup Dole Frozen Fruit Mix with Strawberries, Peaches and Bananas

2 tsp Ground Flax Seed

2 tsp Toasted Wheat Germ

What does each one of these components do for the body post-workout? 

Orange Juice: 100% natural Orange Juice contains more potassium (electrolytes) and carbohydrates than manufactured sports drinks; not to mention it helps re-hydrate.

Milk: stronglifts.com states that combination of carbohydrates, electrolytes and calcium in milk makes for the perfect lean body mass gain and recovery. Dairy calcium also increases fat loss and decreases hunger.

Fruit: MuscleandFitness.com states that fruit provides valuable phytochemicals that benefit health. Bananas in particular help replace those "good" carbohydrates, which restores your body's level of glycogen which leads to muscle repair.

Flax: Typically a no-no for  PRE workouts, can be a great post-workout recovery aid. The Omega-3s in Flax are believed to improve an athlete's response time due to an improved condition of the brain and central nervous system. The anti-inflamatory effects are also a great benefit as they help speed up muscle repair and recovery.

Wheat Germ: That Vitamin E is a leader in muscle repair! 

The combination makes for a great creamy, fruity nutrition packed post-workout recovery smoothie!

Have a happy Super Bowl weekend everybody! We will be making our favorite 7-layer dip on Sunday.  Enjoy the food you make and do your best to make good healthy choices.

Whole Wheat Banana Panackes

McKinley has been going through a picky toddler/teething phase lately, so I've had to pull some tricks out of my hat. She loves her carbs - of course, who doesn't? So this recipe is a sure thing!

Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes

Yields around 12 pancakes

2 c whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp honey
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups coconut milk
1 ripe banana
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsps EVOO

1. Mix dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.
2. In a separate small bowl mix honey and milk.
3. Combine wet and dry ingredients, fold in mashed up banana and cinnamon.

Tip: If you separate the egg white from the yolk and mix the white to fluffy then blend it all together it makes the pancake really nice and light!

Spread 1 tbsp evoo on your pan and heat to medium. Pancakes tend to cook fast so I don't turn the heat up any more than medium.

Pour out 1/4 cup of the pancake mixture per pancake.

Spray the pan again when you are half way through.

Enjoy!

Have any leftover bananas? 

Cut them up, spread a little peanut butter, and stick them in the freezer. This has become one of McKinley's favorite healthy snacks!

For more healthy snacks, click here.

Healthier Banana Bread

It's a baking kind of day today. So I pulled out my book of favorites in search of something to fulfill my sweet tooth but that McKinley could sink her "teeth" into as well..

And up came one of my favorites - banana bread! This recipe is filled with gobs of healhthful components and is melt in your mouth delicious. So we set to work. 

Ingredients: 

2 eggs (or egg substitute)

1/2 cup honey

3/4 cup applesauce

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp cinnamon

3 ripe bananas

1 cup almond slivers (optional)

1/8 cup ground flax seed

1/8 cup wheat germ

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. In a large mixing bowl add the eggs, honey, apple sauce, vanilla extract, and stir until all ingredients have been well combined. 

3. Add whole wheat flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. 

4. One at a time beat in the bananas and fold in the almonds, flax and wheat germ. 

5. Grease a 9x5 baking loaf pan and pour in the batter. Bake for 40-45 minutes.

My assistant waiting impatiently... :)

Let cool 10-15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

We're back! And we have a baby!

Hello blog fans we're back! We took a bit of a hiatus when we decided we were going to try to get pregnant with our first baby and May of 2012...we did!

Christmas 2012, 7 months pregnant with McKinley

Pregnany was an amazing experience and a challenge to say the least. Mike and I have always considered ourselves a health minded couple, but nothing makes you analye your life like having a baby. I scoured the bookshelves for reading material on exercise to do while pregnant (having been a division 1 college swimmer, exercise was always a priority in my life and I wanted to be sure to go about it the right way for this baby) and the right foods to eat and not to eat. 

I focused on a vegetable, fruit and protein-rich diet. I made sure to eat a healthy breakfast every morning - something I did not make an effort to do before pregnancy, and stay away from too much sugar. I began baking more of my own pastries and snacks and started incorporating natural substitues. A great resources to find healthy baking substitutions can be found here: 

Healthy Baking Substitutes

One of my favorite recipes was this healthier banana nut bread. 

I could eat an entire loaf in one sitting if I let myself.

Mmm...and filled with so much good stuff! I discovered by eating the better items, I didn't have to worry about calories like I had been before, because these foods were feuling my body and satisfying my hunger in a whole new way! Eating natural, protein-rich foods was helping me get in the best shape I had ever been in. 

With as healthy as I was trying to eat, this is not to say the pregnancy cravings monster didn't hit me a few times, especially in the last trimester. Oreos and pizza found their way in my kitchen more times than I care to admit, but for the majority of the time I stuck to my guidelines of good, healthful foods that would help my baby grow.

Aside from a few nose bleeds, a very straining work environment, and a heck of a lot of braxton hicks, I had a pretty fantastic pregnancy. I worked out throughout the majority of my pregnancy - giving in only in the last month when my braxton hicks took over if I did anything too strenuous. I ran 4-5 times a  week during my first trimester and moved on to the eliptical for the second trimester, continually doing light weight lifting throughout to try to avoid the sagging everyone talks about!

By my third trimester I had succomed to walking the dogs a mile a day, just to keep myself busy, but I was still working between 8-12 hour days as a publicist for the entertainment company I was employed with, so I was getting more than my fill of activity at this point. 

Then, after 39.5 weeks, a total of 23 pounds gained, and 17 brutal hours of labor...

 I gave birth to a beautiful, healthy 7 lb 2 oz baby girl, McKinley.