Kesto!

Basil pesto, puh-leassse!  Let’s spice this sucker up by using kale instead. Kale pesto.

I know what you’re thinking, GENIUS! Ill be honest, it wasn’t my idea. It was my mother in-law’s. She is the mad scientist behind this recipe. We’re also using walnuts instead of pine nuts.

Kale is wonderful for so many reasons. It’s highly rich in antioxidants, high in fiber, high in iron, high in vitamin K and vitamin A, has anti-inflammatory properties, etc. 

Let’s just say IT’S REALLY GREAT FOR YOU!

Without further a-do here is the best kale pesto (aka kesto) recipe:

Tools:

- Food processor or food blender

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 Cups of Kale
  • 1/4 Cup of Walnuts (Chopped)
  • 2 Cloves ofChopped Garlic
  • 2/3 Cup of Olive Oil
  • 1/2 Cup of Grated Cheese

Step 1: In a food processor toss in the kale, walnuts, and garlic. Blend them together until all of the kale & walnuts are finely chopped

Step 2: Pour in half of the olive oil and blend for about 30s. Then toss in the rest of the olive oil and blend again.

Step 3: Lastly, put in the grated cheese and blend. Here comes the best part, put it on whatever you would like. Ha! It is SO GOOD!! Enjoy it! 

Simply Slow

I think one of the top 5 best inventions in the world is the slow cooker. 

Ok, I might be exaggerating a little bit, but if you don’t have time to cook or if you want to prep your meal the night before and still have it steaming hot to eat, the slow cooker is your best friend. 

Here is a yummy chicken slow cooker recipe that Victoria and I had last night. 

Wet Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup of Ketchup
  • 1/4 cup of Soy Sauce or Bragg Liquid Amino's (soy sauce replacement)
  • 1/4 cup of Olive Oil

Dry Ingredients:

  • 2 Medium sized Sweet Potatoes (Chopped)
  • 1 cup of Baby Carrots or Large Carrots (whichever you prefer)
  • 1lb of Chicken Breast
  • 2 servings of Celery
  • 1 Tablespoon of Onion Powder
  • 1 Tablespoon of Italian seasoning
  • 1 Teaspoon of Parsley Flakes
  • 2 minced Garlic Cloves

Step 1: In a measuring cup mix the ketchup, soy sauce, olive oil, & all of the spices together until well blended and set aside.

Step 2: Put the chicken in the slow cooker with the carrots, sweet potatoes, and celery. 

Step 3: Pour the olive oil mixture into the slow cooker and make sure all of the dry ingredients are covered. 

Step 4: Cover the slow cooker with the lid and set it on low for about 8 hours (or you could also put it on high for about 3-4 hours).

Step 5: Take the lid off and enjoy all of the juicy greatness of the slow cooker.

Who Loves Ranch Dressing?

Kyle loves ranch dressing! I am not kidding. 

As a kid, I put ranch dressing on pizza, nachos, and lots of sandwiches. 

I wanted to make my own ranch dressing because not only is it healthier but I know what ingredients is actually in the dressing. 

So, here is my ranch dressing recipe. 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of 2% greek yogurt
  • 1/3 cup of buttermilk powder
  • 1 Tablespoon of onion powder
  • 1 Tablespoon of onion flakes
  • 2 Tablespoons of parsley flakes
  • 1 Tablespoon of garlic or garlic paste
  • 1 Teaspoon of Red Pepper (If you want to kick it up a notch)
  • Salt & pepper for taste

Step 1- Toss all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Step 2- Season to taste.

Step 3- Store it in the refrigerator for about 5-7 days in a airtight container or tupperware.

Waffles Anyone?

The other day, Victoria went to meet up with her lady friends and asked me to make something for brunch.

I have no idea what came over me but I instantly said, “how about waffles?” 

Come on! Who is honestly going to say no to waffles?! If they do, I don’t trust them. Haha! Just kidding.

Here is my cinnamon banana waffle recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup coconut flour
  • 1/4 cup oat flour
  • 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 1/2 cups of almond milk
  • 3 tablespoons of grass fed butter (melted)
  • 1 egg or 1 serving of egg whites
  • 1 large ripe banana, mashed
  • Cooking spray (we use coconut oil spray but you can use whatever you have)

Tools:

  • Waffle maker

Step 1: Plug the waffle maker into the outlet to start to heat it up. 

Step 2: In a large mixing bowl put together all the dry ingredients (all purpose flour - salt) and whisk together. 

Step 3: Once the dry ingredients are well mixed, add the wet ingredients to the mixture and whisk together.

Step 4: At this point the waffle maker should be ready to go. Spray the waffle maker with the cooking spray and pour in the mixture. 

Step 5: Take out and let it sit for 2 minutes. Enjoy the delicious goodness! 

Why Aren’t Burgers Too Good at Basketball?

Too many turnovers! Haha! That was a knee slapper. Ok, maybe not. 

Every time I make a burger I just think it is the most delicious burger EVER! But I’m a little biased.

Here is my juicy sizzling burger recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

  • 5-8 Ounces of ground beef (I use grass fed beef. 85% lean/ 15% fat. I find that if you have beef that is too lean, it’s kind of tough and not as tasty)
  • Salt & pepper
  • 1 Teaspoon olive oil
  • 1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder

Tools:

  • Small Skillet (If you don’t have one, you could use a regular pan but I like the taste of the burger when it comes off the cast iron skillet)

Step 1: Put a small skillet on the stove on medium heat and pre heat the oven to a low broil.

Step 2: While that is heating up, mix all of the ingredients together except the olive oil and shape it into a patty. 

Step 3: Pour 1 teaspoon of olive oil into the heated skillet and slowly lay the patty onto the skillet (if you just plop the patty on the skillet, the oil will spill and get everywhere). Leave it on the skillet for about 1 minute.

Step 4: After 1 minute flip the patty and let it cook for 1 minute on the other side (the side that is cooked should have a slight dark brown color).

Step 5: Once both sides are cooked, stick the skillet in the oven for about 2 minutes. This will properly cook the inside and outside of the patty. 

Step 6: Cook patty until desired doneness and let it sit for about 2 minutes. 

Step 7: BOOMSHAKALAKA!

Slurp up Some Warm & Cozy

The squash season seems to never end and I LOVE IT!!!

A few days ago I decided to make butternut squash soup, but I didn’t want to cook it on the stove. So, slow cooker butternut squash soup it was. 

Here is my recipe and I must say, it would be an excellent appetizer for Christmas dinner!

Ingredients:

  • Butternut squash
  • Granny smith apple
  • Yellow onion
  • 3 to 4 carrots
  • 2 cups of vegetable broth
  • 1/2 cup of coconut milk
  • Nutmeg 
  • Cinnamon
  • Salt & Pepper
  • Ground Sage

Tools: 

  • Slow cooker
  • Hand Blender or Blender

Step 1: Take out the slow cooker and clean it.

Step 2: Chop up everything from butternut squash to carrots and toss them in the slow cooker.

Step 3: Add the vegetable broth, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, pepper, and ground sage to the slow cooker and mix it.

Step 4: Set the slow cooker on high for 4 hours. 

Step 5: After the 4 hours, use a hand blender (if you don’t have one, use a regular blender) to blend all of the ingredients together, and pour in the coconut milk. 

Step 6: Enjoy the delicious greatness!

Cauliflower Steak Anyone?

Let’s be realistic, there is actually no steak in cauliflower steak. Sorry to let you down so soon, but let’s just get that out of the way. Cauliflower is a great substitution for high carb ingredients like dough, cous cous, or mashed potatoes. 

Technically you could get cauliflower all year long, but the best season for it is in the spring. It falls into the cabbage family and it is more difficult to plant than most of the cabbages just due to the fact that it can’t handle climates that are too hot or cold. So, if you were thinking of planting any cauliflower, start planning to plant the seeds in the spring and keep the temperature around 60 degrees. If not, it will bloom too fast. 

Without further a-do here is the recipe for my cauliflower steak.

So here are the ingredients you need:

-Head of cauliflower

-Lime

-Lemon

-Olive oil

-Garlic clove

-Paprika

-Salt

Step 1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees

Step 2. In a bowl pour in some olive oil, lime juice, lemon juice, and crushed garlic (you can use garlic powder if you don’t have fresh garlic). Mix it and leave it to the side. 

Step 3. Wash your cauliflower and take off the leaves at the stem.

Step 4. Put a skillet on the stove at medium heat.

Step 5. Cut the cauliflower in half and then cut 1” slices all the way through the stem (the stem will keep the cauliflower together. Without it, it will crumble). 

Step 6. Wipe one side of the cauliflower with the olive oil mixture and season with paprika and salt. 

Step 7. Put a little bit of olive oil in the skillet and slowly put the seasoned side of the cauliflower face down. Cook each side for 6 minutes. 

Step 8. Season the unseasoned side of the cauliflower in the skillet the same way you did before. 

Step 9.  Flip cauliflower and let it sit for another 6 minutes.

Step 10. Take out a baking sheet and spray the pain with non-stick spray (we use Trader Joe’s coconut oil spray but you can use whatever is available). 

Step 11. Take the cauliflower off the skillet and place it on the baking sheet. Cover it with aluminum foil and put it in the oven for 20 minutes.

Step 12. Remove the cauliflower steaks from the oven. Uncover it and let it sit for 2 minutes to cool down.

Step 13. Enjoy the GREATNESS!!!

 

 

7 Ways We're "Phoning It In" In Our Lives

Are you able to say you're living with no regrets? Think about that. You're all in on this life experience thing? Urban lingo uses "phone it in" to describe a non-committal, not-fully present effort. I'm not sure I'm 100% all the time either, so I wanted to understand why. And why instead of becoming more thankful for our amazing circumstances (because if you have some means of reading this you're of the more affluent part of this world), that we're seemingly more discontent and still searching. Let's look at some of the reasons we're not all there. Or here, if you will.

1. Our fixation with our bodies and our external environment...as if any of it is lasting or the way to true fulfillment. Time and time again we quote meaningful expressions of gratitude for the intangibles that make life worth living.

"The best things in life aren't things."

"The love of a family is life's greatest blessing."

"The best friends make you laugh a little louder, smile a little brighter and live a little better."

And yet, we put far more time into the quest for abs than we do each other. Come clean with yourself. Most of us have moments of dread thinking about just sitting around with the family. In our heads we're squirming, thinking, "there's so many other things I could be doing right now!" We want the perfect body. We want the perfect home. The perfect car. The perfect clothes. The perfect "look" of our lives. Tim Robbins created a great analogy for this when he said, "we waste time looking for the perfect lover instead of creating the perfect love."

2. We over-consume social media. We don't look at facebook every few hours because we love facebook. We love the distraction from our reality. We're creating distraction habits. Just because A.D.D. is real doesn't mean everyone has to have it. Of course some people actually do, but the rest of us are just giving ourselves permission to be mentally all over the place. Partially involved. Always ready to move on to the next thing. Next shiny object. This isn't entertaining enough. Scroll.

Gee, I wonder why happiness is so fleeting and nothing really impresses me anymore.

3. That brings me to the most relevant point for most of us - image management. We can't just capture memories; we have to manufacture them. I'd venture to say more women do this than men, but it varies from pre-teens to post-menopausal. "Delete that picture. I look fat." I've been there. Done that. A social media post has the ability to onset a meltdown. Now the ACTUAL memory has an entirely different meaning. What could have been a beautiful moment to remember is now a reminder of our less than perfect existence. Most of us are not sharing on social media to express ourselves. Or to connect. No. We crave affirmation.

Did you affirm me? Do you like me? Can I like me today?

We're missing out on our lives putting the answers to these questions in other people's hands.

4. Electronic engagement is half-ass communication. It's safe connection, so it isn't genuine connection. Seeing someone for coffee and staring them straight in the eyes is now terrifying. I'll be safe here behind my email address security blanket, which ties into my next point...

5.  The need for speed (raises hand in guilt). How much more can I pack into my day? There is not enough tempo variation to our lives. It's go, go, go and if it isn't we probably aren't successful enough or in enough demand. Our packed schedules and our pace is part of our worth. The problem isn't with getting things done and moving the ball every day. It's with not allowing ourselves to change speeds. When we can't comfortably move slower, we're missing out on presence. The buzzword here, "mindfulness."

It's a western mindset that sitting and doing nothing is wasting time. Is it though? It just might be the key to unlocking our greatness. Releasing the resourceful and brilliant nature within us that's suppressed as we stay in high gear. Too much go takes away our trust in God and puts all the responsibility on us.

Let what we do today be enough.

6. We are numb. We're more "connected" today globally than we have ever been. Something tragic happens in another part of the world and we'll find out almost instantly. The problem with this is we're growing numb to tragedy. A terrorist attack? Oh, how sad. Post something sad and move on. A shooting? We could react and move on to the next thought in 60 seconds. It's as if its commonplace. There's no emotional depth to despair because it's everywhere. So we don't know empathy. We don't feel things deeply unless they are truly in our faces.

And with that, we don't experience joy the same way. The depth of our compassion or lack thereof is also the reality of our inability to express gratitude. So nothing is ever enough. It just is. Sad, happy, angry, they're all blurring into a gray area. Just close that tab so you can move on to the next distraction. We have to allow ourselves to dwell in our feelings, so we don't paralyze ourselves emotionally.

We're missing out on life.

7. FOMO. Another urban dictionary favorite. It's now super common, especially for young people, to have the "fear of missing out." So we will do anything not to miss out. We want it all. An incredibly scary thing for all of us is one day looking back on our lives and feeling like we missed out on something or we had regrets for what we didn't do.

But is the fomo really helping us or hindering us?

We're doing anything to be a part of everything, so are we really getting to the bottom of what we're as individuals meant to do? In doing everything and being everywhere you can be keeping you from actually doing the ONE thing that would create lasting contentment and your impact in the world.

Are you running around in circles looking for a happy high when what you're missing out on isn't life, it's YOU. What do you want? What do you actually like? What sets your soul on fire? Stop doing everything just to be involved and start doing YOU.

So what's the antidote? Pick one thing, your worst offense from the list. We all have done some if not all of these things. And spend the next week or few weeks changing it. Staring in the mirror too long scrutinizing yourself every morning? Write a thank you card to a friend in that time. Scrolling for more than a minute for no reason? Close the phone and sit still. Listen to your thoughts. Say a prayer. Schedule time with the people you love to do things without electronics. Look people in the eye. Say what you think. Allow yourself to feel more deeply.

I'm writing about this, because I want to DO this. And I know I'm going to fight myself on every point. Sit still more. Meet people face to face more. Meet people where they are, not where social media has led you to believe they are. Only post the real me on social media.

Yeah, that's what I want.

5 Exercises That Will Bump Up Your Rump

“I like big butts, and I cannot lie!” Both my lady and I can attest to us loving big butts, since we both have them. “Dance! Too much booty in the pants!” Sorry this article might contain a few more famous lyrics on booty’s. Not sorry! All over the fitness world, people try to make up these crazy exercises to grow their glutes more. But I’m here to give you 5 exercises that will trump all of those crazy ones. So let’s talk about the “Booty Booty Booty Rocking everywhere.” Here it is ladies and gentlemen

1.   The Booty Dominator, THE DEADLIFT!

This complex movement is one of the superior lifts that everybody should be doing. It requires all of your muscles to work as one but is considered a hip dominant exercise due to the flexion of the hip. As you reach down to grab the bar, hinging from your hips (aka hip flexion) will activate your glutes and hamstrings. Notice, the shins must be vertical for this to be a deadlift pattern. If not, you make it into a squat variation. Take a deep breath and drive off the floor through your heels. Keep the bar right along your legs as you lift and lock your knees and hips at the same time. 

2.   The Bootinator, HIP EXTENSION

If you look at this movement from the side, it’s technically a progression of a glute bridge. Put your back against a bench and roll the barbell over your hips. Tuck your feet in towards your booty and keep your feet flat on the floor. Drive through your heels and extend your hips all the way up until they line up with your knees and shoulders. 

3.   The Bootiman/Bootiwoman, SINGLE LEG RDL (Romanian Deadlift)

This one is a little tricky. Not only does it require a lot of strength but it also involves a ton of core stability. As you hip hinge, counterbalance yourself by slowly elevating your leg (kind of like a teeter totter). The working leg will be on the ground.

4.   The Bootilistic, KETTLEBELL SWINGS

Here you have the famous kettlebell swing. Most people think this is a squat exercise but it is a hip dominant exercise (aka deadlift pattern). Take a look at the back swing, my hips are flexing more than my knees and my torso is almost parallel to the floor. By doing so, your glutes and hamstrings will be engaged. This will also help to absorb the kettlebell into the hips and propel the kettlebell forward with your glutes. 

5.   The Booty Humbler, 45 DEGREE RAISE

A lot of people tend to do this incorrectly and feel this in their lower back. You are working the extensor muscles in your back but mainly this is a glute exercise. Hip hinge and keep your core tight. Keep going until you feel resistance in your glutes and hamstrings, then squeeze your glutes to go into hip extension. At that point, make sure you are not going into hyperextension in your lower back. If you keep your core tight, that will be prevented. 

Alrighty everyone, I hope you enjoyed this booty rocking article. Now, go out there and kick some butt!