Sneaky Roasted-Red-Pepper Hummus

Hey my Luscious Spring Blossoms!

Thanks for all of your comments on my last few posts. Your continuing support really means a lot to me and I am so grateful to have friends like you. I’m so grateful for my family and everything they do for me each and every day. I’m so grateful for the opportunity I have to be up here in college. I am learning so much and I’ve been dying to share some of it with you. Here are a few things I’ve been learning throughout my various classes:

(Disclaimer: Though I’m studying Health Science: Health Promotions with an emphasis on Nutrition and Personal Health and Fitness, I’m still a college student. I don’t have my degree yet. Nonetheless, these are some of the things I found really interesting as I’ve studied for my health classes. Don’t forget to consult your health professional before revamping your entire diet and/or lifestyle.)

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What’s an easy way to know if I’m hydrated or not?

Check the color of your urine! An easy rule-of-thumb to tell if you’re well hydrated is to check the color of your urine. A light lemonade or clearish-yellow color usually indicates that you’re well hydrated. The darker the shade of yellow becomes, the more dehydrated you are. (This doesn’t always work; i.e. excess riboflavin, a B-Vitamin, is excreted through the urine, and when riboflavin mixes with the water it turns yellow.)

Why do we need to grind flaxseeds and not chia seeds?

It’s because the outside layer of the flaxseed is insoluble. If they aren’t ground up, they will simply pass right through your gastrointestinal tract and be excreted. Chia seeds on the other hand have a soluble outside layer, so their nutrients can be absorbed right into the blood and lymph systems.

How does soluble fiber (found foods such as legumes, oats, and flaxseed) help lower cholesterol?

Bile is produced in the liver from cholesterol. After the gallbladder excretes bile to help the lipase “divide and conquer” the fatty acids, a lot of the bile is then reabsorbed and taken back to the liver to be recycled. In simplified terms, the soluble fiber can attach itself to some of the bile and make it be excreted in the stool. The liver then has to produce more bile, which it creates from cholesterol in the body, which then lowers cholesterol.

Why is it important to get the right ratio of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids?

Because my book says it better than what I could, here’s what it says: “… [T]he omega-6 and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids made from them are used to make hormone-like molecules called eicosanoids. Eicosanoids help regulate blood clotting, blood pressure, immune function, and other body processes. The effect of an eicosanoid on these functions depends on the fatty acid from which it was made. For example, when the omega-6 fatty acid arachidonic acid is the starting material, the eicosanoid synthesized increases blood clotting; when the omega-3 fatty acid EPA is the starting material, the eicosanoid made decreases blood clotting” (*page 145).

Why you should be grateful for adipose tissue (fat cells)?

You might ask why I would say something like that. Why on earth would someone want to be grateful for fat cells? Let me explain. One gram of fat contains 9 calories of energy. 1 gram of protein and 1 gram of carbohydrate each store 4 calories of energy. If the body were to store the excess calories as either protein or carbohydrate, you would be “twice” the size in a sense. And, since carbohydrates and proteins hold on to water, you would be much larger than you were now. Fat is a compact version.

Carbohydrates are not the enemy.

They provide the body the most efficient form of energy and allow protein to do it’s job. “Body proteins that are broken down  [in the case that there is not enough carbohydrates] to make glucose are no longer available to do their job, whether the job is to speed up a chemical reaction or contract a muscle. Sufficient dietary carbohydrate ensures that protein is not used in this way; carbohydrate is therefore said to spare protein” (*page 112).

In addition, eating more protein than you need does not build muscle. Exercise builds muscle. Sufficient protein can be used to rebuild the muscle after exercise, but only if the body has enough energy to do it – it gets that energy from carbohydrates. Instead of worrying about carbohydrates, simply focus on the kinds you eat: try to get most if not all of them whole and unrefined.

* Grosvenor, Mary B. and Lori A. Smolin. Visualizing Nutrition: Everyday Choices Second Edition. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2012.

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In addition to these fun-facts, I wanted to share with you another delicious hummus creation – this one with extra sneaky veggies blended in!

My Sneaky Roasted-Red-Pepper Hummus!

If your garbanzo beans (chickpeas) are canned, drain and rinse them thoroughly.

Measure out the roasted red pepper, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and spices.

Add the chickpeas to your blender.

Add the other ingredients and secure the lid on top.

Turn your blender on med/high.

Blend until it becomes smooth and creamy — it may take a couple minutes. (If your blender is having trouble thoroughly processing the chickpeas, add a tablespoon of water at a time as needed to help it out.)

Spoon it out into a 2-cup container, grad some dippages (I like raw carrots and celery especially – pretzels actually taste great too).

Roasted-Red-Pepper Hummus

Ingredients

• 1 ¾ cup cooked chickpeas/garbanzo beans (or one 15-oz can, drained and rinsed)
  
• ½ cup roasted red peppers
  
• 1 ½ tbsp. tahini (sesame seed paste)
  
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
  
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
  
• ½ tsp. cumin
  
• ½ tsp. chili powder
  
• ¼ tsp. salt
  

Directions

1. (If your chickpeas/garbanzo beans are canned, drain and rinse them thoroughly.) Measure out your other ingredients. Add them and the chickpeas to your blender and secure on the lid.
   
2. Turn your blender on med/high. Blend until it becomes smooth and creamy, or for a couple minutes. (If your blender is having trouble thoroughly processing the chickpeas, add a tablespoon of water at a time as needed to help it out.)
   
3. Spoon it out into a 2-cup container, grad some dippages (I like raw carrots and celery especially – pretzels actually taste great too).
   

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Yum yum yum.

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What is one way you like “sneaking” more vegetables into your diet?

With lots of hugs,

Vanilla Cinnamon Spice Crockpot Quinoa

Hey My Spicy Vanilla Swirls!

We had a snow storm this morning.

I had my first personal trainer appointment this morning too!

What do those two things add up to?

A crazy morning.

I woke up at around 7:00am (a sleep in for me), ate breakfast, and then worked on some school work for a couple hours until it was getting close to the time I needed to head out the door. When I looked outside, I saw the wind. I could feel the chill. I saw the storm.

I didn’t want to miss my appointment (10:00am) at the gym, so I bundled myself up and headed outside. My face stung. My hands froze. My eyes quenched. Nonetheless, I pressed forward against the wind. It took me a little longer than usual to reach the gym, but I through the affliction of the wind and snow whipping and scratching at my eyes and face. It hurt the entire trip (it felt like rocks incessantly hitting my face without mercy).

When I got inside my hair was a mess from the wind and my face was bright red from the cold. Thankfully the building is heated and my face recovered after a few minutes. I changed, grabbed my water bottle, and headed down to the main gym to meet up with my personal trainer.

The personal trainer I worked with is one of the guys I see when I walk to and from my classes – and he’s so much fun to hang out with. He told me I should try the personal trainers, and so I thought I’d give it a try. He pushed me. It was not an easy workout, and because of that I really liked it. I didn’t want a wimpy workout – I wanted it to be a workout I would feel afterwards. And I did. And still do. The feeling I had afterwards was similar to the feeling I get after a home-workout with Jillian Michael’s or Bob Harper with their workout DVDs. It was a killer. He was also quite impressed with my knowledge of motor units in the muscles, circuit training, and names for exercises.

So, even though today seemed like a day of impossibilities, it turned out alright in the end. I still got to walk through knee-high snow few times, but for the most part I was able to stay warm and dry.

And in addition to all of this loveliness, here’s some deliciousness. As promised, here’s my recipe. It’s gluten-free, sugar-free, high-protein, vegan, and made easy with a crock pot.

My Vanilla Cinnamon Spice Crockpot Quinoa

Place quinoa in a bowl,

And cover with water.

Stir it around with your fingers until the water starts getting cloudy. (That cloudiness is the bitter flavor coming off of the quinoa – it’s a good thing.)

Once you’ve done that for a few minutes,

Drain and rinse the quinoa to get the rest of that cloudy water off.

Scoop the quinoa into a 1 ½ -2 ½ quart slow cooker.

Add the vanilla soymilk, vanilla extract, and cinnamon (and optional sweetener if desired).

Put the lid on and cook for about 1 1/2 – 2 hours. (Keep an eye on it; stir it and/or add more liquid if needed.)

Once it’s done the liquid should be all absorbed and the quinoa should be big and fluffy with their little tails sticking out like happy little dogs.

Take a fork and fluff it up, like you do for rice.

Serve yourself and bowl and store the rest in a large bowl with a lid in the fridge for the week.

Top with desired goodies, grab a spoon, and dig in!

Vanilla Cinnamon Spice Crockpot Quinoa

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa, well-rinsed
  
• 2 cups vanilla milk (I used organic vanilla soymilk)
  
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
  
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  
• Optional: a few packets stevia or sweetener of choice (I don’t usually add this)
  
• Toppings of choice: I really like blackberries and almonds
  

Directions

1. Place quinoa in a bowl and cover with water. Stir it around with your fingers until the water starts getting cloudy. (That cloudiness is the bitter flavor coming off the quinoa – it’s a good thing.) Once you’ve done that for a few minutes, drain and rinse the quinoa to get the rest of that cloudy water off.
   
2. Scoop the quinoa into a 1 ½ -2 ½ quart slow cooker. Add the vanilla soy-milk, vanilla extract, and cinnamon (and optional sweetener if desired). Put the lid on and cook for about 1 1/2 – 2 hours. (Keep an eye on it; stir it and/or add more liquid if needed.) Once it’s done the liquid should be all absorbed and the quinoa should be big and fluffy with their little tails sticking out like happy little dogs.
3. Take a fork and fluff it up, like you do for rice. Serve yourself and bowl and store the rest in a large bowl with a lid in the fridge for the week. Top with desired goodies, grab a spoon, and dig in!

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With lots of hugs,

P.S. Up next I’ll be sharing with you some of the things I’ve learned up here in college.

Week 5 + Slow Cooker Quinoa with Black Beans

Hey My Darling Doves!

Thanks for all of your comments on my last post. Last night was definitely not a best night of sleep (I got home late and tossed most of the night), but hopefully I will get to bed earlier tonight and get a good night’s rest.

I just finished my fifth week of ThisFitChick’s workout program – and the intensity has really gone up. Split days have been included and drop sets introduced. I love the definition I’ve been getting in my arms from this program (and have learned A LOT from it and discovered a lot about myself that I didn’t know before). My arms were KILLING me today as I was doing the drop-sets since I had just worked my arms the day before. (I always have Sunday as my day of rest, and so I did it today instead of tomorrow, so I didn’t have a day’s rest between…. I’ll try to figure this out for this next week so that doesn’t happen – I may have to move some of the workouts around, but I’ll get them all in.) This week I mixed up the cardio again, so Jillian and Kim’s sections on the Biggest Loser Cardio Max DVD for the cardio (as I can’t use a treadmill, but I pick other cardio based on the workout planned to fit in with the goal of that cardio workout – the cardio max usually fits that bill). Another one of the weight-lifting moves I had to change because I don’t have access to a leg press machine, so I did weighted squats in their place. Still got the burn.

Since I’m going up to college and will be living in a dorm in less than 8 weeks, I’ve been striving to find meals and recipes I can easily prepare at college and don’t take a lot of time to do so. One of those things is my slow cooker (who will be my BEST friend in January – he can help keep me warm! ). This is one of my favorite recipes for the slow cooker.

My Slow Cooker Quinoa with Black Beans!

Chop up an onion. Heat a little coconut oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.

Add the onion and garlic to the pan, sautéing until lightly browned.

Take off the heat and set aside (remember to turn off the burner!).

Thoroughly wash the quinoa. I do this by placing my quinoa in a bowl and adding water over it (enough to thoroughly cover it).

Then I stir it around with my finger and/or spoon for a few minutes until the water gets cloudy. That cloudiness is that bitter flavor coming off of the quinoa, so don’t skip this part if you can help it! I like rinsing it a little bit longer just to make sure.

Strain the quinoa and grab your slow cooker!

Rinse the black beans and add them to the bowl.

Followed by the quinoa, carrots, and sautéed onion and garlic.

Add the cumin, chili powder, and top it off with the water.

Stir them all together.

Cook on High for 2-3 hours, until the quinoa is cooked and their little “tails” emerge from the seeds.

Fluff it up with a fork. Serve. Makes about 8 cups worth.

I like to top it with some more coconut oil and a dash of garlic salt.

Slow Cooker Quinoa with Black Beans

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp coconut oil
  
• 1 onion, chopped
  
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
  
• 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
  
• 1 (15-oz) sliced carrots (or 1 ¾ cup sliced raw carrots)
  
• 2 (15-oz) cans black beans (or 3 ½ cup prepared beans)
  
• 1 ½ cup water (or vegetable broth)
  
• 1 tsp cumin
  
• ½ tsp chili powder
  
• Salt and pepper to taste
  

Directions

Chop up an onion. Heat a little coconut oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic to the pan, sautéing until lightly browned. Take off the heat and set aside. (Remember to turn off the burner.)

Thoroughly wash the quinoa. I do this by placing my quinoa in a bowl and adding water over it (enough to thoroughly cover it). Then I stir it around with my finger and/or spoon for a few minutes until the water gets cloudy. That cloudiness is that bitter flavor coming off of the quinoa, so don’t skip this part if you can help it! I like rinsing it a little bit longer just to make sure. Strain the quinoa and grab your slow cooker!

Rinse the black beans and add them to the bowl. Followed by the quinoa, carrots, and sautéed onion and garlic. Add the cumin, chili powder, and top it off with the water. Stir them all together. Cook on High for 2-3 hours, until the quinoa is cooked (and their little “tails” emerge from the seeds). Fluff it up with a fork. Serve.

Makes about 8 cups worth.

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And not only is this Vegan, Gluten-Free, High-Protein, Veggie-filled, Sugar-Free, but it is Absolutely Delicious.

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Ever used Qunioa before?

This is my favorite way to use it. I still want to try it in baking and smoothies and for breakfast.

Do you have an exercise that you hate but love?

Planks are one of those for me. They’re hard, but absolutely worth it. One exercise I disdain is push ups. I love chest-presses (it’s my favorite exercise), but push-ups and me do not get along. I simply don’t like them. I’d rather do 3 sets of chest-presses than 2 sets of push ups.

Do you like Daylight Saving Time? Do you prefer to set the clock forward or backward?

I love gaining an hour (like in fall), but losing one is never fun (like in spring). I’m glad I have an “extra” hour tonight – hopefully I’ll get a good amount of sleep in preparation to working with my sunbeams in the morning. (Those little ones are SO worth it!)

With lots of hugs,