Lean Bodies - Amy Perez

With it being the Holiday Season, most people are busy baking, shopping and wrapping presents. This year, we were running behind schedule all due to the Gingerbread House.
I will try to keep this post from being too long, but I first need to give you a little ‘backgroud’ on how this all came about. It all started about 6 years ago when my son was in pre-school. For every holiday a parent signed up to make/buy the centerpiece for the table where the children would celebrate. I picked Christmas of course.
So for a centerpiece, you would think that it would be no big deal right? Wrong. These mothers would go crazy with the centerpieces. I remember for Thanksgiving one centerpiece was a giant Mayflower. So being the competitive spirited person that I am, I told my husband ours HAD to be the best.
I remembered my mom making graham cracker houses and trains when I was growing up, so that is where the idea all started. That year I made a graham cracker house along with a train. Each child took part of the train home with them.

After that first year we started to get more detailed and larger in size.

2006 Graham Cracker House

2007 Gingerbread House

It is a time consuming project, but we always love the end result.

It’s already that time of year! Time to bake, bake, and bake some more. With all of that baking, there might be the temptation to do some sampling. Most of you would probably agree that a sample of the sweets would probably be not all the bad to do in terms of still seeing progress in your weight loss goals right? The problem usually isn’t having one sample, its having a lick here, a bite there, etc. Those little ’samples’ add up and before you know it, those pants are feeling snug. Trust me, I have been there.

Every year our family makes a gingerbread house. Now I’m not talking a little store-bought kit….this is more like a mansion that is worked on over the course of a week or two. If I were to sample everyday I could really stall progress in my weight loss. As much as I know this to be true, my brain doesn’t always follow my plan. This is where the atomic fireball comes into play…

Right now you are probably thinking “What does an atomic fire ball have to do with Holiday baking?” Well….have you ever had a really spicey meal and you go to drink a diet coke or something similar and it just taste awful? The atomic fireball does just that-it makes those sweet treats your baking less appealing, and sometimes even yucky. Have yourself a fireball and all of a sudden those 10 pounds of fudge you’re making is not so tempting.

Now I am not saying you need to pop an atomic fireball in your mouth everytime you bake or are tempted by sweets. With my gingerbread house, we used 12 pounds of powdered sugar just for the icing!! So if I were to lick my fingers while doing the ‘gluing’ of the house, my calories would surely add up. Would I rather suck on a 35 calorie fireball, or lick a couple hundred calories worth of icing? I’ll pick the fireball.

Don’t be mistaken, atomic fireballs are hot! Hence the name :funny: Being the fireball connoisseur that I am let me note that you want to buy the bigger atomic fireball (35 calories). I have found that the little ones are hardly spicey and more like a jaw breaker. The larger ones will numb your mouth HEHE! I have included a picture to note the difference

I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday season. Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau’oli Makahiki Hou!

I am sure my parents would have described me as a picky eater when I was younger. It’s interesting how we pick up a lot of our eating habits from our habits growing up. I always thought veggies had to have melted cheese on them, and that bread could serve as the main dish.

Having two kids of my own, I am constantly trying to find ways to ’sneak’ in some healthy snacks, and more protein. My son, who we refer to as the ‘carb lover’ of the family, could easily live on bread alone. He likes chicken and eggs, but really struggles to like other protein sources. His idea of having some veggies would be carrots smothered in ranch dressing or cheese. My daughter on the other hand, was defintely born after my eating habits changed for the better. She loves vegetables and most protein sources. She even asks for brocolli and cauliflower on a daily basis. :faint:

So for all of you with picky eaters, this ranch dip, has really been a life saver! Not only for my kids, but for me too. Its not only low carb, it’s also high in protein. This is a perfect thing to serve the kids to help in getting them to eat more protein. Not to mention, it doesn’t have all the fat that your traditional ranch dressing. :thumb: And as a bonus-it doesn’t taste like those tangy fat-free dressings.

I take 1 packet of Ranch mix (buttermilk recipe)
400-600g of cottage cheese (depending on how ’strong’ you like your ranch flavor)
1/4 to 1/2 cup of water (depending on the thickness you prefer)
Blend all together in the Magic Bullet or blender.

I seal it in a rubbermaid container, so that I can use it throughout the week. My kids like it with their veggies, but also like it to dip chicken in. :yum:

So you probably thought I was going to post some great Mexican dish that is really low fat and great for refeeds right? Wrong. I save my Mexican meals for a free meal, or else I have baked nachos on refeeds
This dessert is one of my kids favorites when we go out to the local Mexican restaurant. However, it is usually soaked in butter and fried. This version is perfect for a refeed (and my kids like it too). I also like making it when having people over because if decorated right, they are really pretty

Cinnamon Chips
Ingredients
1 whole wheat Pita
Spray butter
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ cup splenda (you may not even need all of this)
1 Tbsp Sugar Free Hershey’s syrup
2 Tbsp Fat-Free Cool whip
*you can also use sugar

Directions:

• Slice edges of Pita so that you essentially have 2 pita’s
• Using fat-free spray butter, spray both sides of pita and lay them on
cookie sheet or stone.
• Then take cinnamon and sugar and sprinkle it on pita (side facing up)
• Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes then flip and sprinkle cinnamon and splenda on
other side. Bake for a couple more minutes. If you like it extra crispy, broil
for 1 to 2 minutes.
I cut my pita’s into pizza shapes, drizzle sugar-free syrup over the top and serve with a couple Tbsp of fat-free cool whip.
Nutritional Information:
Calories: 177.5 Fat: 0 g Carbohydrate: 35.5 g Protein: 7.5 g

I made this last week and my family was sold on it My husband loves pumpkin pie. In fact, I know he likes to have one pie all to himself at Thanksgiving. This recipe is not only perfect for re-feeds, its also a great alternative to the traditional pumpkin pie because it tastes ‘real’ (in my husbands words). When used with my fat-free pie crust, you have a slice for around 130 calories versus 320 calories (give or take).
Not that there is much to show in the video, I still decided to video it. I had a little helper this time

For Crust
1 cup all purpose flour (could use whole wheat)
4 Tbsp fat free margarine spread
¾ tsp salt
2 Tbsp cold water

For Filling
One 15-oz. can pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
One 12-oz. can evaporated fat-free milk
3/4 cup Splenda, or 10-12 packets of splenda (I will be trying this with Stevia next time)
2 egg whites
1/4 cup sugar-free maple syrup (Davinci’s is what I used)
1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl mix all of the pie crust ingredients with a fork, Stir until mixed well. Roll it on between wax paper with flour. In an oven-safe 9-inch pie dish, press it into the edges and up along the sides of the dish. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for the filling. Mix well. Pour mixture into pie crust. Bake pie in the oven for 45 minutes, and then remove it and allow to cool. Chill in the fridge for several hours (for best results, chill overnight). MAKES 8 SERVINGS
Nutritional Information: per slice
Calories: 122 Fat: .2 g Carbohydrate: 24 g Protein: 4.8 g

I figured that I would put up a recipe that I posted on LBF several months ago. It is my nightly dessert. Although typically I am not fond of cottage cheese, you would never know that my peanut butter ice cream is made with it. I even had my husband fooled. I typically make up a weeks worth of these at a time so I don’t have to bother with the prep every night. I’m usually tired from a busy day and the last thing I want to do after put my kids to bed is make another meal.

Like I have mentioned before, I am all about volume or at least the appearance of it. The ice cream takes me a while to eat, so I always finish this meal feeling satisfied. I usually take it out of the freezer about an hour before I am planning on eating it. This way it is slightly thawed out. YUMMY!

Protein Ice Cream
My plan calls for:
100-125 grams of cottage cheese (changes based on day)
10-15 grams of peanut butter
1/2 scoop of protein powder- (you can add this into your ice cream however, I like to crumble it over the top)