Thanksgiving Potato Recipe

This is a quick and easy potato recipe. It's perfect for any time of the year, but I think it would be an awesome addition to any holiday meal. If you try the recipe, I would love to hear your thoughts!

Ingredients

Potatoes (use 1/2 to 1 potato per person serving) 

Olive oil

Italian seasoning

Garlic

Sea salt

Pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Wash and chop all potatoes. Put these in a large plastic container with a lid.

3. Drizzle olive oil over the potatoes and add the seasonings.

4. Put lid on container and shake potatoes so the oil and seasonings can cover all of the potatoes.

5. Remove the potatoes and place on baking sheets.

6. Bake for 15 minutes. Flip the potatoes and bake for another 15 minutes.

7. Remove and enjoy!

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Vegan Mug Cakes - YUM!

I am not a fan of protein shakes - the consistency is not my favorite thing. I'd rather make my protein like a pudding and eat it. I think it keeps me satisfied longer and it also makes me feel like I'm eating a "sweet".

BUT! If I have the time, I like to experiment and make new protein "sweets". Tonight I made a yummy, delicious vegan mug cake. It wasn't too sweet, but it was definitely satisfying. I know it doesn't look the best - the cake fell apart on me!

The best thing is that I got a lot of these ingredients from the bulk food section, so it was super cheap to make!

Ingredients
3 tbsp protein powder
2 tbsp powdered peanut butter
2 tbsp oats
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 tsp oil
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 a banana (ripe works better)

Recipe
~ Mix all ingredients in a coffee mug, except for the banana.
~ Add water to the coffee mug, just a little at a time. Mix. Keep repeating until it's a liquidy pudding-like consistency. Put this to the side.
~ Take the banana and mash in a separate bowl.
~ Mix the banana mixture in the coffee mug. Add more water if needed.
~ Microwave for 2 minutes.
~ Let sit for 1 minute.

I hope you enjoy! I'm going to continue to experiment with different recipes. Like I said, I think it's just so much more fun to eat a protein "sweet" as opposed to drinking a shake.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Send me some emails at kelliraefit@gmail.com and follow me on Instagram at kelliraefit.

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Got a sweet tooth?

I see the question all of the time...do you have any healthy ideas for a sweet tooth? Oh yes!

I love making pudding! Protein pudding is delicious...but so is PB2 pudding! If you don't know, PB2 is a brand of powdered peanut butter. It's a delicious alternative without all of the fat. Plus, it helps with portion control. I absolutely love peanut butter, so having a jar of it in the house is so dangerous. But having powdered peanut butter means that I actually have to make something and it's not as easily available if I am starving!

This dessert will be very low in calories, making it a perfect treat for even late at night. All you have to do is take a small bowl and add a serving of PB2 to it. Slowly but surely, add a little bit of cold water and stir. Personally, I prefer a thicker pudding. So I take it extra slow.

Here is what it should look like in the end. ENJOY!

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Vegan "Parmesan Cheese"?

I absolutely love parmesan cheese. I am one of those people that likes to have some "cheese with their sauce". Heck, I've even consumed it straight from the jar before. This was years ago, but it still happened.

However, it is not vegan friendly and it's one of those foods that I have learned to go without. I still eat pasta, so what do I do instead? Is there even a good substitute?

YES!!! The answer for me has been nutritional yeast. I typically purchase it either at my local health food store or on Amazon. I just purchased a pretty big container for less than $20.

Here's a picture of my dinner from the other night...angel hair pasta with diced tomatoes and my "parmesan cheese". Dessert - strawberries. YUM!

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Daiya Cheese! YUM!

A recent change for me has been eating more vegan. I have been a vegetarian for about 21 years, meaning no meat or fish. More recently, and I couldn't even tell you the date, I have been avoiding eggs and dairy. It just makes me feel better, but it is huge because I do love my cheese and ice cream. However, I even went to Chicago last week and had some vegan pizza instead of regular pizza. YUM!

I am learning there are other alternatives that are just as tasty and won't leave me feeling ill. DAIYA CHEESE! For some people, it may taste a little different. But I think it's absolutely delicious. So if you're one of those people that feels a little bloated or sick after eating dairy, try some Daiya cheese. I see more and more restaurants offering it now, and I can also find it in my local grocery store.

If you buy this in the store, a word of caution. There are other brands out there, and I am not going to bash anything. However if you are looking for something vegan and Daiya is not available, read the ingredients. I have been in the organic section of my grocery store before, and I picked up a "dairy version" before, thinking it was beside the Daiya cheese and it would be the same thing. Not so much!

I hope you enjoy the alternative!

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ONWARD!

ONWARD! It's a new energy and health supplement produced by the awesome Dana Linn Bailey and her husband. Besides that, it doesn't have sucralose - of course I wanted to try it. The artificial sweetener is Ace-K.

The first time I tried it, I thought it was the most disgusting drink ever. It had a bad aftertaste, which wasn't something I enjoyed at all. I followed the directions on the back, mixing 1 full scoop with 16 ounces of water. It also has the option of mixing one scoop with a half gallon of water, but I wanted quicker energy.

-HOWEVER-

I decided to try it again, but this time I only used a half scoop with 16 ounces of water. Wow, that was a world of difference. It had a light berry flavor, but no aftertaste this time. I felt like it gave me good energy, but I am not sure how to judge the health part of it. I do not get sick much at all, but I'm still getting my seasonal allergies.

For me, this is a product that I can't take too late in the day. The package says to not take it 4 hours before bed. Yesterday, I had some extra work to do and I took a half scoop around 4pm and I normally go to bed around 10pm. I thought that would be okay - NO! I don't think I will ever do that again, unless I know I'll be up later than normal. Not the end of the world, but I just like being on a schedule.

That's about it on my thoughts. Since I only take 1/2 scoop at a time, it's definitely worth the price for me. Will I buy it again in the future? Probably.

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Do What Successful People Do

http://www.businessinsider.com/why-successful-people-do-the-hard-tasks-first-2013-12

I read the above article a few weeks ago, and I found it interesting.  I always like reading about what successful people do - it helps to learn and get better.

The hardest task for me to do during the day is work out.  It may seem a little bit weird because I do love to work out.  However, being self-employed, there are a million and one things to do during the day.  If I hold off working out for just a few hours, there will typically be a distraction.  It happened to me when I was starting up my Amazon FBA business.  I wanted to work as soon as I got up because I never wanted to go back to a 9-5 job.  I would tell myself that I'd work out later, but that never happened.

So I made an unofficial rule for myself - no touching the computer until I am back from my workout. I started this last week and it's made a huge difference.

I challenge you - what is the toughest task in your day?  Do that thing first and see what happens.

Have a wonderful week!

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