bootcamp bitches and some quickies from the widowed yogi's recipe box

2015 is off to an amazing start! after completing my mini cleanse last week, it was clear that some major lifestyle changes needed to be made in the new year. i had heard about core power's elite bootcamp and had thought about signing up but after my intense headache from a one day fast, i knew it was time . if you recall, i did a bootcamp last december right before the holidays. then it was a three week program and now it's a two week program. the elite bootcamp is for those that have gone through corepower's bootcamp before. for two weeks at 6am i am doing some sort of bootcamp challenge. this format has been different in the fact that every day we have a different style of training. yesterday it was pilates (this wasn't your average pilates) and the day before it was cross fit. the best thing about these bootcamps is that it forces me to eat well. my body is so fatigued and in need of foods that will fuel me, that unhealthy eating just isn't an option. biggest lesson learned thus far, you need protein after an intense workout to repair your muscle. and just like last BC, i realized that a "second workout" is imperative to not getting sore. it's usually not intense for me but just a walk on the beach or teaching yoga. either way, it helps a lot. and the third a-ha moment is how i spend my evenings. i have to get bed early because well by about 9.15 i can't keep my eyes open and instead of drinking wine and surfing the web, i have been wanting to meditate and do some quiet yoga practice including lots of savasana. crazy how making one change in life can cause so many others to feel right. below i included some of my favorite healthy snacks from the week. try em out for some fuel!

drinking this as i blog! i also added some vanilla protein powder instead of vanilla extract to fuel up after my workout. pic and recipe taken from In Search of Yummyness.

prepping some rosemary roasted almonds... pour a little olive oil in there... chop up rosemary very fine... couple of dashes of chili powder... and lots of salt for me... bake for about 25 minutes at 325 and you've got a great grab and go snack! 

hoping your 2015 is off to an amazing start! looking forward to learning and growing in this new year with my readers out there! 

namaste

Melissa 

the widowed chef's recipe box

I have been cooking up some mean dishes the past two nights... ones so delish that I didn't think it would be right to keep them from the world. So here goes...

So usually I have some recipe idea appear in my head. I have a couple of ingredients that I want to feature and I need to think up a way to highlight them without too much prep time. I love casseroles for two reasons... you mash up everything in one pan/pot and then there is only one pan/pot to clean. As a widow cooking for one now, I also have very special criteria that I keep in mind including; ability to reheat and be delicious, ability to not get sick of after multiple meals, and the ability to not make me think of the depressing though of cooking for one. I always google around for recipes once I have an idea in my head. Then I meld all of the recipes until I find something that doesn't require me to buy five new spices and doesn't require too much prep time. So here was my recipe from tonight... super yummy and I can't wait to eat it for the rest of the week!

Crockpot Balsamic Vinegar Chicken

1. Coat crockpot with olive oil and put in some minced garlic.

2. Cut up chicken into manageable sized pieces

3. Season chicken with garlic powder, kosher salt, ground pepper, and Lipton onion soup mix

4. Place chicken in crockpot and drizzle 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar

5. About an hour later check on chicken to see cooking status (perhaps turn chicken bits over) then add artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, and basil/oregano from the garden

6. Let cook for about three hours but depends on the chicken chunk size and be sure to spoon the sauce mix around a few times

7. When ready boil whatever rice/noodle/quinoa that you prefer (wheat angel hair is my preferred choice at the moment) and open your fav bottle of wine

8. Smoother your fav carb/grain with the chicken deliciousness and top with your fav cheese

9. Enjoy

As I wrote this I realized how hard it is to write a recipe especially when you cook like me which includes a lot of eyeballin it! Just feel it out... thats how you get to be good both on and off your mat! But below are a few tips...

• Although sometimes its nice to just leave the crock pot and go... it's best to watch chicken so it doesn't burn and get dried out!
• I used Lipton onion soup mix because that's all I had... any sort of onion flavoring would do.
• Invest in a gourmet olive oil and balsamic vinegar... it can change the dish! 
• Anything from your own garden is a 100x better!
• I used organic free ranged chicken.
• Wash everything a million times after dealing with chicken chunks. 
• I don't have a fancy crockpot... I registered for one but Matt made me return it after he reminded me I had a crockpot that his Dad bought us at a garage sale that I rarely used. Then the movers smooshed one side in. But it still works fine, I use it all the time now, and I love it! 

Hope this inspires you or provides you with a delightful meal one night!

Here were my inspirations for more exact measurements:

http://crockingirls.com/recipes/balsamic-chicken/

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/CROCK-POT-BALSAMIC-CHICKEN-52439591

namaste

the widowed chef