Zucchini Lasagna

Who doesn't love recipes that exclude a yellow container? Carbs are my biggest downfall and I could seriously live off of them! Instead of using regular noodles why not use zucchini? Swapping out a green for a yellow is a win win for me. I will say that I couldn't eating this stuff! It may have been a bit too good haha. This is perfect too with all of the farmers markets that will be starting soon. There may be some questioning about how " clean"  this recipe is because of the tomato sauce and sriracha but if you have a clean, homemade sauce you would like to use go for it! Also, instead of sriracha you can always use regular hot sauce or you can omit it if you don like spicy.

INGREDIENTS 

• 2 medium sized zucchini
• 1 pound of 98% ground chicken
• 4 sweet Italian turkey sausage links 
• 1 green pepper chopped
• 1 red or white onion chopped( I used red)
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
•  large jar of organic pasta sauce without added sugar ( I used roasted garlic)
• 15 ounces skim ricotta cheese 
• 2 cups of part skim mozzarella ( I but the fresh and shred it because its free of anti-caking agents)
• 1/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese ( do not use kraft ultra processed part! I will jump through the screen and attack you!)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 egg white
• 1/8-1/4 cup sriracha to taste
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoons of onion powder
• 2 teaspoons parsley 
• Himalayan salt and pepper to taste ( do not ruin this recipe with iodized salt! I will again... jump through and attack)
• 2 teaspoons of coconut oil or olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

Prep: Approx 40 minutes

Cook: 1 hour

Servings: 8 servings

21 day fix: 1 red, 1 green, 1 blue, 1/2 purple ( sauce), 1/4 teaspoon

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Add coconut oil to skillet and sauté peppers, onions, and garlic for about 2-3 minutes
3. While they cook, peel the casing off of the chicken sausage.
4. Add chicken and chicken sausage to the peppers and onions and brown.
5. While they meat is browning, begin to slice your zucchini with a mandoline ( be careful not to amputate a finger! I almost did). Keep the slices thicker ~ 1/4 of an inch thick
6. Once your meat is brown, add the pasta sauce to the skillet along with 1 teaspoon of garlic, oregano, fresh basil, salt, pepper, parsley, onion powder and sriracha. 
7. Allow to cook on medium/low for 15 minutes 
8. While your meat sauce cooks; add ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, egg white, and a teaspoon of garlic powder together in a mixing bowl. 
9. When the meat sauce is ready, place about 1/2 meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pan . Place a layer of the zucchini noodles on top followed by 1/2 of ricotta cheese mixture. Next, spread 1/2 cup of mozzarella on top of ricotta followed by a second layer of meat sauce. Place the last layer of zucchini noodles on top of meat sauce. Finish with the final layer of ricotta cheese and top with the remaining 1.5 cups of mozzarella cheese. ( I like to save most of the cheese for the top because I like it to be all brown and bubbly) 
10. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. 
11. After 30 minutes, remove foil and return to over for an additional 30 minutes. 
12. Once the cheese is nice and brown an bubbly remove and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
13. Serve warm and enjoy! 
14. Prepare to resist going back for seconds!

SWEET POTATO AND QUINOA CHICKEN SOUP

This sweet potato and quinoa chicken soup is so nutrient dense it is insane! Check out my list below shows all of the vitamins and minerals that it contains. The recipe is super easy if made in a crock pot and it stores well.

      Health benefits

• Vitamins A, C, B-6, E. B-2
• Potassium
• Magnesium
• Iron
• Manganese 
• Folate
• Zinc
• Copper
• Phosphorus
• Choline
• Fiber
• Protein ( all essential amino acids)
• Calcium

      Ingredients

• 1 1/2 yellow containers of minced uncooked quinoa
• 1 can of black beans
• 6 yellow containers of raw cubed sweet potatoes ( 2 medium)
• 3 green containers of fresh spinach
• 1/2 green container of diced onion
• 1/2 green container of diced bell pepper
• 1/2 green container of diced green onion
• 1 1/2 lbs of diced chicken breast ( 6 red containers)
• 1 can of low sodium diced canned fire roasted tomatoes 
• 5 cups of low sodium chicken broth
• 2-3 T of chili powder to taste 
• 2 Tsp Himalayan salt
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1 T ground black pepper
• 1 T onion powder
• 1/2 T cumin
• Hot pepper sauce to taste ( I probably used 1/4 cup) 
• Cheddar cheese (optional)

Note: Anyone that doesn't use 21 day fix containers here are the equivalents: Green= 1 1/4 Cup, Red =3/4 cup, Yellow: 1/2 cup

       Preparation 

Cook: 3-5 hours in crock pot on high

Servings: 7 servings 

Serving size: 1.5 cups

21 Day Fix: 1 Red, 1 Green, 2 Yellow, 1/2 blue (optional)

1. Spay the bottom of you crockpot with coconut oil spray
2. Add to crockpot chicken, beans, quinoa* (make sure you rinse), sweet potatoes, spinach, onion,  peppers, tomatoes, seasonings *, pepper sauce, and chicken broth. 
3. Allow to cook on high until potatoes are tender ( approx. 4 hours) 
4. Serve warm and top with raw green onions and 1/2 blue container of cheddar cheese (optional)

*Note: I really just estimated what I used in seasonings so feel free to add more or less to your liking. Also, I used a seasoned pack of quinoa that I had so if you have some seasoned quinoa you can use that just make sure in the ingredients in only contains quinoa and spices with sea salt. If you don't have seasoned quinoa you can use regular just MAKE SURE YOU RINSE IT in a small strainer first or your soup will have a bitter taste. 

So I completely understand that no one wants to think about pumpkins right now.. this needs to be tropical chili to remind us of summer not fall! Anyway, I was craving something to really hit the spot during 21 Day Fix and boy did this do it! I had my best friend come over, who isn't on the fix and try it. No joke.....She licked the bowl. I also sent a bowl to my other friend who is a health and fitness fanatic and he really enjoyed the texture and the taste as well. I got the base for the recipe from Pinterest and made some changes to my liking! Feel free to spice it up and make it your own.  

Serves: approximately 6-8 servings
Serving size: 1 1/2 cups
Time: 4-6 hours on low in crockpot
21 day fix approved: 1 red, 1 green, 1 yellow,1/2 blue (optional) 

Ingredients

• 1 lb of lean ground turkey ( I used 93% lean 7% fat)
• Approx 3/4 C. chopped onion ( give or take make this your own)
• 1 bell pepper chopped (any color will do)
• 1 small hot banana pepper
• 1 large can of fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 can of tomato paste
• 1 can of great northern beans 
• 1 can of kidney beans
• 1 can of black beans
• 1/2 cup of frozen sweet corn
• 1 can of pumpkin puree ( not pumpkin pie filling!)
• 2-3 cloves of minced garlic
• 2 T. chili powder ( I added much more than this but I like mine spicy
• 1/2 tsp of cumin
• Hot sauce ( I used cholula)

Instructions

Place all of ingredients in crock pot on low for 4-6 hours. I cooked mine for about 6 hours. Serve warm. Top with a dollop low fat cottage cheese (this is what I used) or plain low fat greek yogurt and chopped green onions. Enjoy!