Quick Orange Cream                                                                                                                        

Ingredients:

5 ice cubes

1 cup skim milk

1/2 tsp. orange sugar-free drink mix

What to do: Put it all in the blender until ice is crushed completely. It’s that simple!

Here you go:

Too-good-to be-almost fat-free Banana Bread                                  

Ingredients:

2 small jars of banana baby food

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup honey

1 cup mashed ripe bananas

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

1-1/2  cups flour

1/2 cup oats

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup walnuts or choc chips (optional)

What to do: Grease and flour a loaf pan. Preheat oven to 350 F. In a large mixing bowl, empty both jars baby of food, and add sugar, honey, and bananas. Beat in mixer until combined. Add vanilla, cinnamon, flour, oats and baking soda. (And nuts or chips if using.) Mix until just combined. Pour into pan and bake for about 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool bread completely before serving. (When it is still hot it may be very gooey, but as it cools it gets more firm.)

Notes about this bread: Since there is no butter or eggs, this whole bread only has about 4 grams of fat. (without chips or nuts) Want to make it fat-free? Skip the oats, and use 2 cups flour instead. Also wanted to add that even though it has some honey it is not a real strong honey flavor. I am not a huge fan of honey, but I felt like the bananas balanced it out well in here!

Want to give ‘em a try? Here’s what to do…

Avocado and Chicken Quesadillas (serves 2)

Ingredients:

4-6 inch flour tortillas

1- ripe avocado

1-small red onion (sliced)

1-cut-up, grilled chicken breast (leftovers work well!)

1/4 cup-crumbled cheese (feta, blue cheese, etc)

Salt and Pepper to taste

What to Do: Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Lay the tortillas on an ungreased cookie sheet. Remove the avocado from peel and divide into four sections. Place one section on half of each tortilla, and mash it with a fork. Add the chicken, onion and cheese on top of the avocado along with some salt and pepper. Fold over the tortillas. Place in oven for 10-15 mins, flipping them halfway through. When slightly browned remove from oven and serve!

Chunky Corn and Spinach Chowder (makes 6 side servings or about 4 small bowls)

Ingredients:

1 can corn kernels

1 can creamed corn

1 cup fresh spinach chopped

1 large red onion diced

1-1/2 cups skim milk

1 tbs. olive oil

garlic salt/dash pepper

In a pan, cook the onion and spinach in the olive oil. Add the pepper and season with garlic salt. When the onions are translucent add the milk. Then add both cans of corn. (drain the can of  kernels) Stir and serve!

It’s that easy, and quite filling, perfect for lunch! With only 120 calories per serving, it’s not too bad for you either! To make the soup the main meal you might want to add some ham, or bacon bits.   

Enjoy!

It’s always hard to get back on track after the holidays, or after “falling off the wagon”. So how do we get ourselves back in weight-loss mode? My sister likes to buy new athletic clothes to get her excited about working out. My mom is always trying the latest diet craze to loose some weight. Me, I usually feel the most motivated when I am uncomfortable in a room full of thin people, or when I see people on tv that remind me of what society thinks I should look like. It usually makes me feel bad about myself, to be quite honest, and I know that if I just get moving, I’ll feel better. Occasionally, in a store I will see something that catches my eye and makes me want to work out! Recently, it was these pink gloves. They are so cute and girly, but rough at the same time. I do lots of Tae Bo, and these just seem perfect! Do I really need them, no. But would I buy them if I thought they would keep me motivated? In a heartbeat!

What about you? What gets up going when you want to quit?

Beautiful Liar-Beyonce/Shakira
Shake it off-Mariah Carey
React-Erick Sermon/Redman
Naughty Girl-Beyonce
Buttons-PCD
La Tortura-Shakira/Alejandro Sanz

Hope you enjoy dancing to these as much as I did!