Shopping Healthy At Sam's Club

Walking through the aisles of a gorgeous grocery store like Whole Foods, I am always inspired to cook fresh, natural meals and try new healthy foods.  Unfortunately, Whole Foods is an hour and a half away and I don't quite get that same feeling walking the aisles of the Wal-Mart grocery section.  We try to eat as healthy as possible during the week which means our grocery card looks pretty similar: lots of fresh produce, meat, and many of the same pantry staples.  We try to get most of our produce from the Farmer's Market (or our garden!) and prefer to get our meat from Beaverdam Farms but realistically, we aren't at a place right now where we eat all local/organic.  So are we stuck making the most of the aisles of Wal-Mart?

My new secret: Sam's Club!  We have always had a membership to Sam's Club because you simply cannot beat the price for bulk fruit, vegetables, and meat.  Recently though, I've realized that I am able to knock out more and more of my grocery list for a fraction of the price.  Sprouted bread?  Bulk quinoa?  Almond butter?  Check, check, and check!  While I'm not sure Sam's Club will ever beat out Costco as my favorite big box store, it is definitely

Here are a couple of my current favorite Sam's Club products and ones that we always have stocked at our house.

Kind Bars {18 bars / $18.98}

Chia Seeds {A zillion lol / $12.98}

Sprouted Grain Bread  {2 loaves / $4.98}

Sprouted Grain Rolls {30 rolls / $2.91}

Organic Chicken and Cheese Burritos {8 burritos / $12.28}

Frozen Broccoli {4 bags / $5.98}

Frozen Fruit {4 lbs / $7.98}

Eggs {18 eggs / $3.48}

Unsweetened Almond Milk {3 half gallons / $8.48}

Bananas {3 lbs / $1.49}

Avocados {6 / $6.98}

Sweet Potatoes {10 lbs / $7.98}

Food Should Taste Good Chips {20 bags / $9.98}

Almond Butter {24 oz / $9.78}

Microwavable Quinoa {4 bags / $9.98}

Coconut Oil {54 oz / $10.98}

Coconut Flour {5 lbs / $8.98}

Coconut Palm Sugar {4 lbs / $12.98}

Rotisserie Chicken {1 / $4.98}

Do you shop at Sam's Club (or Costco)?  What are your favorite finds?

What We're Reading + Cooking: Inspiralized

It's no secret that I am obsessed with zoodles and my spiralizer.  So when I came across the Inspiralized blog and found out that she also has a cookbook, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it.  So many options, so many possibilities.

The first thing that I noticed about this cookbook was the sheer amount of variety of spiralized fruits and veggies.  I had been sticking in my comfort zone of zucchini and thus completely missing out on tons of different recipes and ideas.  I am kind of a cookbook fanatic so beautiful food pictures make me so happy.  This cookbook did not disappoint in that category.  Everything from salads to bagels to desserts; all made out of spiralized fruits and vegetables!

I picked a couple of recipes to incorporate into my weekly meal plan and try out.  Since we live in small town Mississippi, I wasn't too confident in our Winn Dixie's produce section.  While we were in Pensacola, we headed to The Fresh Market to try to pick up some of the more unique ingredients in the recipes I choose.  The ingredients weren't anything too crazy -- daikon radish and jicama -- but even in The Fresh Market, they were no where to be found!  I decided to just make due with cucumbers, carrots, and zucchini but I am on the hunt now for those two in particular.  (I'd love suggestions if you've found them anywhere!)

The first recipe I tried was the Jicama Kiwi Corn Salad with Honey Lime Dressing.  I had to swap out  zucchini for the jicama but it was still delicious and completely embodied summer flavors.  I topped it with some honey lime salmon for protein and it made for a perfect lunch.

But the real star of the show has been the amazing Chicken Bahn Mi with Sriracha Greek Yogurt.  Bahn Mi sandwiches are one of Rob's absolute favorites and usually at a restaurant, we have to split a Bahn Mi and a bowl of Pho because we can't decide which we want more.  But it's no secret that the amount of bread in a traditional bahn mi sandwich can be a little tough on the waistline.  I loved that this recipe kept all the original, amazing flavors without the extra carbs.  I'm sharing the recipe from her cookbook with y'all below!



Chicken Banh Mi with Sriracha Greek Yogurt
From Inspiralized 

One of my simplest tricks is to eat sandwiches open-faced—not only for health reasons but also for greater flavor! If you’ve ever had a banh mi sandwich, you know the bun can easily overpower the delicious pickled vegetable filling in this classic Vietnamese street food. Here, I’ve replaced the bun with a bell pepper, which not only offers a refreshing and hydrating crunch but also is a low-calorie, low-carbohydrate vehicle for showcasing what you came for: the pickled (spiralized) vegetables, Asian marinated chicken, and a high-protein Sriracha spread made with nonfat Greek yogurt.

Makes 4 sandwiches

For the pickled vegetables
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
½ teaspoon salt
1 small daikon radish, peeled, blade C (<< I omitted this because I couldn't find one)
1 medium carrot, peeled, blade C
1 medium cucumber, blade C

For the chicken
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon honey
3/4 to 1 pound boneless chicken breast, cut into strips

For the Sriracha yogurt
1/3 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon Sriracha or other hot sauce

For the sandwiches
2 large red bell peppers
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves

Pickle the vegetables. Whisk together the vinegar, honey, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the daikon radish, carrot, and cucumber noodles; toss to coat well, then marinate in the refrigerator until ready to assemble the sandwiches, tossing every 5 minutes.

Prepare the chicken. Whisk together the olive oil, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, lime juice, and honey in a shallow dish. Add the chicken and turn to coat. Heat a large grill pan over medium heat. When a bit of water flicked onto the pan sizzles, add the chicken and grill for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through, until no longer pink. Cut into thin slices.

Make the yogurt. In a small bowl, whisk the ingredients.

Assemble the sandwiches. Slice the tops off both peppers, remove and discard the seeds and white flesh, and halve them to yield four sandwich “bottoms.” Lay out the bell pepper pieces with the insides facing up. Spread on the Sriracha mayo, then layer on the chicken and top with the pickled vegetables. Drizzle the tops with extra yogurt, if desired, and garnish with the cilantro.

 I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review but all opinions are my own!


Have you gotten hooked on spiralized veggies yet?  Expect more recipes to come because I am obsessed!

Sweet Potato Walnut Mason Jar Salad

Mason jar salads are my go-to for quick and easy prepped lunches.  I'm obsessed with how fresh the keep everything and it's so easy to customize them to never get bored.  This week, I made sweet potato walnut jar salads and they turned out delicious.  I used mega mason jars (thank goodness for Irish Wake glasses!) to make big salads and they were super satisfying for lunch.

Making homemade dressing takes two extra minutes of work but really makes the salad.  Plus you aren't getting all the sugar and chemical additive junk that comes that regular dressing.  The recipe makes enough for four large jar salads so prep them for the week or share them with loved ones.

Can't beat greens fresh from the garden!

Sweet Potato Walnut Mason Jar Salad

Ingredients:

1 Large Roasted Sweet Potato, cubed

2 Apples, cut into matchsticks

4 Cups Kale, Lettuce, Spinach Mix

1 Cup Toasted Walnuts

Honey Mustard Dressing (see recipe below)

Directions:
Blend dressing and pour evenly into the bottom of four large mason jars.
Add walnuts to each jar.
Add apples and sweet potatoes.
Add lettuce, kale, and spinach.
Seal with lid and place in fridge.
Shake well and enjoy!

Honey Mustard Dressing

Ingredients:

2 T Honey

2 T Mustard

2 T Chopped Onion

1 T Apple Cider Vinegar

Salt and Pepper

1/4 Cup Olive Oil

Directions:
Add honey, mustard, onion, vinegar, salt and pepper to blender and blend until smooth.
Turn to low and slowly add olive oil until emulsified.

The Superfood Power Bowl

My usual lunch is a sandwich.  Why?  Because it's quick, easy, and doesn't require me to do extra dishes.  Those are pretty much my requirements for lunch!  Quick.  Easy.  No dishes.  But this week since we had so many fresh ingredients in the house, I decided to try my hand at meal prepping and see if I could have a lunch that was just as easy but a little more adventurous than my typical sandwich.

Enter: the power bowl.  The power bowl is just that: a bowl full of foods that will give you energy.  Part starch + part protein + part veggies, these bowls are totally customizable and will leave you full for hours.  I made mine with quinoa, butternut squash, kale, mushrooms, caramelized onions, chicken sausage, and fresh mozzarella cheese.  But the real question is did it pass the lunch criteria test?


YES!  On Sunday night, I prepped everything for a week's worth of lunches and put them in labeled containers in the fridge.  Each day, I just measured out a portion of each into a bowl and heated it up.  Quick, easy, and no extra dishes!  The options are really endless with the power bowls so I think this will have to be added to the rotation.

Whole Wheat Zucchini Harvest Muffins

Last week, I woke up early to make muffins for the #SelflessSelfie campaign and was looking through my fridge for inspiration.  I saw a zucchini and remembered seeing a zucchini bread recipe in the 100 Days of Whole Foods cookbook and thought I could adapt for some harvest muffins.  Everything from that cookbook turns out delicious so I shouldn't be surprised but oh my goodness were these absolutely delicious.

The perfect balance of sweet and hearty--these muffins are delicious for breakfast, as a snack, or even with dinner.  Rob and I tried one straight from the oven, for taste testing purposes of course, and could not stop devouring them!  With only natural real food ingredients like whole wheat flour, zucchini, and honey, these are guilt-free to snack on in our house!

Whole Wheat Zucchini Harvest Muffins

Adapted from: 100 Days of Real Food

Ingredients:

3 cups of Whole Wheat Flour

1 TBS Cinnamon

1.5 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Salt

3 Eggs

3/4 Cup Coconut Oil, Melted

1/2 Cup Honey

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 Large Zucchini

1/2 Cup Chopped Pecans

1/4 Cup Raisins

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325
Grate zucchini (I threw mine in the vitamix and pulsed into small shreds) and chop pecans.  Set aside.
Mix dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Stir in wet ingredients: eggs, oil, vanilla.  (Batter will be very thick)
Fold in zucchini, pecans, and raisins.
Scoop into muffin tin (with liners) and bake at 325 for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Blueberry BBQ Paleo Chicken Wings

When I think of watching the Super Bowl, I think of one thing....FOOD!  More specifically, chicken wings.  I knew that we were going to be indulging in several dips and sweets, so I wanted to at least try to lighten up some of the dishes, without missing out on any of the flavor.

These chicken wings do not disappoint.  Baked, not fried, these wings won't leave you in a food coma.  And the paleo blueberry BBQ sauce is delicious, without all the added junk in your normal bottled sauce.

Blueberry BBQ Paleo Chicken Wings

Inspired by: The Paleo Kitchen

Ingredients:

3 lbs Fresh Chicken Wings

1/2 TBSP Coconut Oil

1/2 Onion, diced

1 1/2 TBSP Mustard

1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Salt

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 Cup Chicken Broth, low sodium

1/4 Cup Honey

1 6oz Can Tomato Paste

12oz Blueberries

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 375.
Separate chicken wings -- this video is super helpful if you aren't sure how.
Line a baking sheet with tin foil, spray with cooking spray, and add chicken wings in one layer.
Season chicken wings with salt and pepper and bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes, carefully flipping once while cooking.
Meanwhile, melt coconut oil in a medium pot and saute onions until translucent (about 8 minutes)
Stir in mustard, vinegar, cinnamon, and salt.
Add lemon juice, chicken broth, honey, and tomato paste and stir together until smooth.
Add blueberries and remove from heat.
Pour into blender and blend until smooth.
Put sauce back over medium low heat, cover slightly with lid (it splatters!) and allow to simmer for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove chicken wings from oven and toss with BBQ sauce.
Place back in the oven and bake at 375 for for 6-8 minutes.


Husband tested and approved ;)