Some of My Favorite Feel Good Foods

This post is sponsored by BabbleBoxx.com on behalf of Conagra Brands.

As you may or may not have noticed, I've lost about 35lbs recently and I'm doing everything I can to keep that weight off... while still trying to enjoy myself and the foods I eat. It's been a task learning what triggers my weight gain and finding things that actually taste delicious, but luckily Babbleboxx had my back this month and they introduced me to 4 new items I'll be regularly adding to our grocery list! Want to know my new favorite foods that help keep me on track with my goals?

Well, I've got excellent news - that is what's happening right now! We will start with something that I legit adore - the Evol Fire Grilled Steak Bowl. It's the perfect mixture of deliciously tender steak (raised without antibiotics) with black beans, white rice, red and green bell peppers, roasted corn, and cheddar cheese, all mixed with an INSANELY tasty cilantro lime pesto sauce... and the best part? I can quickly heat these up for both hubs and I because it's GLUTEN FREE too!

Evol's commitment to quality is so obvious in every single bite and luckily they minimally use sugar so I never worry about munching down on all the delicious bowl options they offer... and did I mention they also have some amazing vegetarian options too?

Speaking of no worries, I love the Gardein Nashville Hot Chik'n Tenders I received so much for several reasons - I mean not only are they insanely delicious, they are certified vegan - something I absolutely love! Whether I'm looking for a delicious choice for meatless Monday's or a snack any day, these are definitely always going to be on my grocery list and stocked in my fridge!

The tenders are the perfect non-GMO verified snack, especially paired with ranch, and since they are powered by plant protein I never feel any guilt eating them! Plus they are absolutely spicy enough to knock your socks off - something I can totally get on board with!

Next on my list of new favorites, the Healthy Choice Grain Free Power Bowls with Spicy Beef Teriyaki. Braised all-natural beef with tons of veggies, served on even more veggies (delicious riced cauliflower), all in a sweet and spicy teriyaki sauce - what's not to love?

All the Healthy Choice Grain Free Power Bowls are actually favs now, with 18-20 grams of protein and 5-7 grams of fiber per bowl - they have just what I need to power through my day and feel no guilt about what I chose to fuel my body!

Another no-guilt addition to our food routines may just be the best on the list, the Udi's Sweet Potato Crust Chicken BBQ Pizza is seriously the bomb dot com. The Sweet potato crust is unexpectedly crispy in just the right way, topped with the most amazing mozzarella and smoked gouda cheese, sweet BBQ sauce, and white meat chicken - it's seriously gourmet quality!

The thing is, I can quickly pop in it in the oven and not even stress, plus since it's certified gluten free so I can feed it to my family without worrying about allergies. That's a win in my book.

So tell me, how do you keep your eating habits in check? Leave me a comment and let me know!

The SIMPLEST Taquito Recipe & an EPIC Salsa Verde Recipe

Remember when I told y'all I made the most delicious taquitos easily at home? Want to make these little appetizers in basically no time flat? Here's all the deets on that delicious Taquito recipe and my all time favorite salsa recipe, with no fluff added to the post - because let's be real... these recipes are serious! Seriously mind-blowing, that is! 

The SIMPLEST Taquito Recipe & an EPIC Salsa Verde Recipe

Make the taquitos -

Taco meat (we used left overs, but prepare about 1/2 lb of ground beef with taco seasonings as you wish)
corn tortillas
shredded cheese
sour cream
oil (for frying)

To make:

Spread tortillas on plate, spread sour cream lightly down center, add sprinkle of cheese, add taco meat, add more cheese, tightly roll tortillas and pinch ends together. Hold together with toothpicks. Fry in a pan or deep fryer until golden crispy.

Make the BEST Verde Salsa, easily -

1 lb tomatillo
3/4 yellow onion
1 bushel of cilantro
1/2 lime squeezed juice
3 serano peppers
1 jalapeno
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

To make:

Broil peppers and tomatillos on high, on the top oven rack - for 5 minutes, then flip and broil for 3 more minutes.

Mix all ingredients into blender.

ENJOY!

My Favorite SUPER Quick & Healthy Meal - Healthy Choice Power Bowls!

This post is sponsored by BabbleBoxx.com on behalf of Healthy Choice.

If you've been following along in 2019, you may already know - but for this year, I've chosen the word REVIVE as my inspirational, intentional word of the year.

Choosing to eat a more balanced diet is definitely part of my healthy/reviving plan in 2019, but if you know anything about me and my food habits - you know I love flavor so I can't just give up all the "good stuff".

Luckily I've found the answer to my flavorful healthy food needs in Healthy Choice Morning, as well as their vegan and vegetarian Power Bowls! Coming in clutch, Healthy choice has created the most epic Breakfast and Buddha Bowls that we all want to eat, rich in fiber and full of quality ingredients - whether you are eating a vegan bowl, vegetarian bowl, or a morning Power bowl, you know you're filling your body with nutritious goodness!

Healthy Choice Morning Power Bowls provide people like us health conscious, quick, nutrient-dense breakfast options. Each flavorful recipe is the perfect mixture of leafy greens, proteins, ancient greens, and steel cut oats. With 10-15 grams of protein and 3-5 grams of fiber, these are the perfect way to make sure you are starting out the day the right way. I was sent the Turkey Sausage and Egg White Scramble and the flavors were delightful and so satisfying. With turkey sausage, egg whites, and veggies all served on to of steel cut oats, farro, and buckwheat and red quinoa with a creamy avocado sauce  what's not to love.

Speaking of love and satisfaction, this year I've learned that veggie-filled meals can be more fulfilling than their counterpart. That's why I'm so stoked these Power Bowls also came in some super delish vegan and vegetarian options like Cauliflower Curry or the amazing bowl I was sent - the Mango Edamame! With so many rich flavors mixing together, 10-16 grams of protein and 7-16 grams of fiber, these Vegan and Vegetarian Power Bowls are lacking nothing and so amazing!

What makes these bowls different? Well, beyond the fact the nutrient rich meals are specially formulated, with each bowl having the perfect base mixture of whole grains (like red quinoa or whole grain barley), leafy greens like kale, chard, and spinach, and proteins - these bowls are actually made of fiber. I mean the actual bowl is plant-based and totally recyclable... truly, every ingredient in these Healthy Choices bowls matters - even the bowl itself!

So tell me, what have you done in 2019 to revise and renew your life? If you're trying to eat healthier this year, I highly suggest you give these delicious Healthy Choice power bowls a try!

Cheesy Potato Balls with Stella - The Most Unique & Delicious Way to Use Left Over Mashed Potatoes

This post is sponsored by Stella® Cheese but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Here's the thing, you probably already know that I'm not so traditional when it comes to life, but I'm truly a little off the wall when it comes to the holidays. As far as our most recent holiday, Thanksgiving - well, if I'm being totally honest, it's definitely not on my list of favorites. Mainly because I don't love turkey and I think we should be thankful everyday, among other reasons. To make up for my lack of turkey lovin', I like to get super creative with side dishes.

This year I went totally left field and made something super unique that I've never made before and that my family seemed to really enjoy - even Miss Delainey loved these, once she finally took a break from playing long enough to eat.

What's so amazing about these Cheesy Potato Balls? Well, to put it simply... everything! These little balls of heaven are perfectly seasoned and just the perfect size to "pop" in your mouth during a holiday party or after a family meal as a little snack.

Filled with the most delicious Stella cheese, this is not only delicious - it's a GREAT way to get rid of left over mashed potatoes from a family meal as well. Have the left over potatoes but need the cheese? Find Stella cheese at a location nearby you using the locator on their website!

Enough about how amazing this recipe is though, here's how you make it -

Ingredients:

4 tbsp Stella Gorgonzola Cheese
3/4 of 8 oz block of Stella Fontinella Cheese
Half of red bell pepper, diced into small pieces
3 minced scallions
5 cups cold mashed potatoes
3/4 cup + 2 tbs of flour
3 pieces of bacon, diced into small pieces
2 eggs, beaten
Oil (for frying)

Heat oil up to 375 in a deep fryer (or a in a pan).

While oil is heating, mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

Form the "dough" into small balls and drop them into the oil a few at a time to not overcrowd the deep fryer or pan. Cook approximately 5 min or until edges look browned and crispy.

ENJOY!

Overstuffed Mushrooms with Savory Crab & Real California Cheese Filling!

This post is sponsored by Real California Milk but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.



I can't even believe it's already November... I mean, this year is really just flying by.

The thing is, THIS time of year is pretty much perfection in my neck of the woods. We start out the days with a little crispness to the air and by the end of the day, it's still nice enough to watch the sunset at the beach. It's the best of both worlds... and it also makes me crave some of my favorite savory dishes.

I seriously can't be the only one that instantly feels a chill in the air and starts dreaming of pumpkin spice dishes, chili, mashed potatoes, and "stuffed" everything. I mean, that's what the month of November is about - thankfulness & food... and one of my favorite foods to bring back this time of year is actually one I tend to favor all year round as well - I'm talkin' stuffed mushrooms, y'all & this recipe doesn't disappoint!

These crab & cheese stuffed mushrooms are just like a Florida day - absolutely perfect in every way! Pairing seafood with savory, creamy goodness - it doesn't get much better than this... Except for the fact this dish is made with all Real California Milk Cheeses. That means the flavor is better and it's made with love, with the dairy coming from 99% family owned & operated farms.

That's the thing, when your dairy comes from other families - you know it's going to be good... and the extra spectacular news is, you can buy Real California Milk Cheeses nearly everywhere! I found a huge selection at my local health food store, as well as a decent selection at Publix!

Want to find a place by you, so you can get yours hands on the "good cheese" too? Check out this locator and find out where you can find these delicious, wholesome cheeses with the "Real California Milk seal" nearby you. After all, knowing your cheese comes from real people & it's kissed by the California sun just means there's that much more love going into your holiday dishes this year!

Want to serve up the best of both coasts? Pair my "Floridian" recipe with their California cheese and you have a real winning combo! So... let's get to making those delicious overstuffed mushrooms with a savory crab and cheese filling!

Ingredients:

2 cups crab meat
4 oz freshly shredded Mozzarella Cheese made with Real California Milk
1 tbsp parsley
1/2 tbsp sea salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp marjoram
1 tbsp garlic
1/2 tbsp black pepper
2 green onion stalks, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
4 large portebella mushroom
olive oil
4 oz freshly shredded Pepper Jack Cheese made with Real California Milk
1 tbsp bread crumbs

Step one - Preheat the oven to 375 degrees & get your filling started: mix the crab meat, Real California Cheese Mozzarella, spices, green onions, bell pepper, and grated parmesan all together in a large bowl. Place to the side.

Next - take your mushrooms and apply a thin layer of olive oil to the top of the caps. Flip over & place on pan, overstuffing the mushrooms with the crab mix.

Now - add 4 oz of Pepper Jack cheese made with Real California Milk on top. Sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake or 18 minutes at 375, then turn your oven to broil for 3-5 minutes.

Garnish with parsley, if desired & enjoy!

Embracing Fall in Florida with these Fun Halloween Foods: Jack-O'-Lantern Snacks & Batty Bite Sweet Potato Fries

This post is sponsored by Bel Brands USA & Mini Babybel® Cheese, but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

So... let's get real for a moment. Living in Florida has its advantages, sure - we all know the beach is great and palm trees are gorgeous. I don't take that for granted for even a second. I love it here...

Which is why I never thought I'd say this, but I kind of miss "home" - which to me really is just the midwest as a whole. Having lived in both Missouri and Oklahoma, I just feel connected to those center states and all their glory... It's probably a mixture of missing family & looking over old pictures and reflecting on fond memories, but the midwest really is & always will be "home" to me and I'm missing it tonight. Ironically, one of the things I miss the most about my home and my childhood spent in the midwest is FALL.

I mean, not just fall, I miss good ol' trees-changin'-color, boot-and-North-Face-wearin', crisp-fresh-air, running-wild-through-a-pumpkin-patch type of fall. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore Florida, but I certainly do miss certain aspects of "home".

Since we likely aren't relocating to the midwest anytime soon, we are doing our best to at least pretend it's fall here in Florida so Delainey gets a taste of all things amazingly autumn. So this weekend we turned our a/c down a little lower, made a little bonfire out back, and embraced what felt like a little breeze outside - we even have plans to set up a tent at some point and teach her about camping. Another way we are trying to bring out that fall feeling is to decorate & even eat fall themed foods.  So... along with our apple cider, we also decided to get festive with some appetizers and these little batty bites & jack-o'-lantern snacks were just too cute!

Since we're huge fans of cheese in this house, when we saw the adorable Fall/Halloween themed Mini Babybel® at Target, we knew we had made some new "friends".

Delainey is obsessed with the little faces on these guys and I'm obsessed with how delicious they are *and the fact that are 100% real cheese with no artificial growth hormones* - so it's a total win-win!

So... Whether you are having a little shin-dig or you just want to show your toddler what fall is about, you have to give these recipes a try (and you should most definitely snag the adorable Halloween Mini Babybel® from Target while you're at it)!

The best part is these delicious snacks are so easy to make, not to mention SO fun! So go ahead and add these two Sweet Potato fry recipes to your must try pins, because although they are simple both of these yummy dishes are sure to wow your fall loving friends, no matter where you are:

To create both of these recipes you will need:

One pack of the Mini Babybel® cheeses - You can find these adorable Halloween packaged Mini Babybels at Target!

2 sweet potatoes

Black olives

¾ cup all purpose flour (I used gluten free, you can use whatever works for your family!)

¼ cup breadcrumbs

1 egg

1 tbsp milk

High temperature Frying oil (corn, peanut, or vegetable)

Black pepper

Sea salt

Garlic

Red pepper

Parsley

Pumpkin spice

Paprika

Slice potatoes. One should be cut horizontally to form circular shapes resembling pumpkins. The other should be cut vertically to make the bat wings.

Now detail the potato slices by carving faces into the circular shapes and carving bat wings out of the longer sliced potatoes. Use half a long slice per wing for small wings or one full slice per wing for larger wings.

PREP FOR Jack-O'-Lanterns Snacks: (after carving their faces):
Place on tray lined with aluminum foil and set oven to 425. Rub each slice and each side with olive oil. Sprinkle on the salt, pepper, garlic, and paprika onto one side then flip it and sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic, and pumpkin spice onto the other. Put in oven for 15 minutes flipping half way through or until browned on the edges. Serve with Mini Babybel® and use the jack-o'-lantern as a delicious substitute for crackers!

PREP FOR Batty Bites:

Wings: Mix the flour, breadcrumbs and herbs (1 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp paprika, ½ tsp red pepper flakes, 2 tsp garlic, ½ tsp parsley) together in one shallow dish. Beat the egg and milk together in another shallow dish. 

Dip “bat wings” into flour, then egg mixture, then flour again. Place them on a tray lined with parchment paper after being battered to wait for your frying oil to heat up to 375 degrees (I used a corn and peanut oil blend). 

Drop the sweet potato wings one at a time into the hot oil and cook for approximately 7 minutes or until they look done, then take them out and place them on a paper towel and/or rack to allow oil to drain and for the wings to cool.

Presentation: Slide a toothpick through one side of your Mini Babybel® Cheese and out the other. Attach wings onto the toothpick. Place sliced olive pieces onto cheese to make kooky eyeballs. Add a red sauce to make teeth if you want. We used a chipotle apricot sauce which was a delicious extra touch on all of the sweet potato goodness!

So tell me, what do you miss about your hometown? What parts of fall are your favorite about the area you live in? I'm excited to hear! I also would love to hear what you think about these kooky & delicious recipes, leave me some love when you give them a try and in case you aren't stalking Cartwheel already, I wanted to mention you can score 10% off Mini Babybel Cartwheel offer that runs 10/7 through early November.

Making Toddler Meal Time Enjoyable with Happy Family Organics & Mama Mentors!

This post is sponsored by Happy Family Brands but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

Meal times should be enjoyable... I mean, sure, we all can agree they should be... but when you're two and learning to express yourself in different ways sometimes lunch involves screaming silly words at the top of your lungs and other times dinner is filled with tears and complaints, even though your plate is full of foods you previously loved.

Toddlerhood. That's what this is. She's a ball full of confusion, sass, and knowledge. One day she begs for carrots, the next she throws them at the dog. One thing she hasn't started handing over to her canine companion is her Happy Tot snacks and bless it, I'm so thankful for this fact.

The thing is, we were worried a few weeks ago when she started turning down all her favorites, I had no clue what to think - so I turned to my new friends over at HappyFamilyOrganics.com and actually was able to get some sound advice on how to cure her picky eating habits once and for all.

When the expert I spoke to mentioned "Division of Responsibility" it sounded more like a chore chart than a way to solve our issue, but she explained it a little further and it basically breaks down the feeding relationship between parent and child and allows your child to take the lead & follow her instincts in a way that's right for her.

What it gets down to is, providing your child with an adequate, wholesome meal and letting her take the reigns at that point. This is tough sometimes, when she's being a little sassy pants especially - but it's easier when we tie in familiar parts of her diet - like Happy Tot Pouches.

We have introduced some new foods to her recently that have been huge hits - like the Happy Tot Protein bars. She sees the box and sometimes demands one for snack time, which is a-okay with me since she isn't a fan of most other protein-rich foods.

One last way that we've found to encourage her to eat, is offering something she truly enjoys once she finishes something else on her plate... this may not be ideal, I believe it's actually called bribery, but when I just want her to eat some carrots, I'll offer a Happy Tot Cookie and she's all set to chow down on some veggies!

Are you experiencing some food troubles with your kiddo? From breastfeeding help to encouraging your kiddo to enjoy a meal, the experts at Happy Family Organics are here to help. Check out the website and chat with an expert now and then grab your kiddo some delicious, nutritious Happy Family foods the next time you're at the store!