Chocolate Peanut Butter Bites: 80 Day Obsession Approved Recipe

Chocolate Peanut Butter BITES

Ahhhh, another week of this 80 day program down &

another "refeed" {aka glycogen boost} day is UP.

Read more about what the heck we're doing HERE in my post about 80 Day Obsession!

I decided to choose a new approved treat to try this week - although the chickpea brownies I've made twice now are my SOULMATE SNACK - so they better be good, right??

This recipe is actually from my trainer for these 13 weeks - who also just so happens to be the creator of a life-changing meal/recipe plan called "fixate" that I've been following for a larger part of the past 3 years.

Any meal plan that allows some freedom for chocolate & peanut butter is a win in my book, am I right!?

I'm slapping my own name on these tasty nuggets + sharing a couple of my own personal tweaks. BUT.. I gotta give credit to my girl Autumn for being the OG creator of this one!

Ready for the recipe??

Here we go..

Ingredients:

1 cup All-Natural Peanut Butter

(the original recipe called for smooth, but I went CHUNKY!)

1 tbsp Cornstarch

3/4 cup Coconut Flour

2 tbsp pure maple syrup

(next time I'll probably try honey or agave instead)

8 oz. Semi Sweet Chocolate, 62% cocoa or higher, chopped

2 tsp extra virgin organic coconut oil, unrefined

*I also used a little pink himalayan sea salt!*

Directions:

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper & set to the side.

Combine the peanut butter, cornstarch, coconut flour & maple syrup in a bowl; stir with a spatula until the mixture forms a uniform dough.

 

Using {clean.. duh} hands, shape the dough into 24 one inch balls. If you want to make the next step easier, place a toothpick in the center of each ball.

Place the balls on the prepared baking sheet & refrigerate for about 20 minutes.

Fill a small pot with about 2 inches of water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low.

Place a heat-proof mixing bowl over the pot & add the chocolate and coconut oil. Stir for 2 to 3 minutes, or until just melted.

Remove balls from the refrigerator.

If you used them, hold a ball by the toothpick and dip into chocolate, swirling to completely coat. I personally just rolled them in the chocolate & dropped them on the sheet. It's a bit messier, but I like working with my hands.

 

Return to baking sheet. Repeat with each ball.

If you want to amp up your flavah, sprinkle a SMALL amount of himalayan salt on the balls, before the next step.

Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until chocolate has hardened.

Finally, store in airtight container & try not to eat them all!

They are SO darn good, y'all.

These are most definitely still a TREAT, so remember moderation & savor one at a time.

For my readers who are following the fixate plan, one of these is equal to a "yellow container."

If you're working through 80 Day Obsession like we are, one of these is equal to a "dirty yellow container" ONLY on your refeed day!

 Give these a try & let me know what you think!

They're HEAVENLY.

Fudgy Chickpea Brownies: 80 Day Obsession Approved Recipe

Whoever said you can't have tasty things & be on a meal plan..

Well, bless their hearts.

And I hope they find this recipe!

I myself found this delicious concoction from FIXATE (via Beachbody on Demand) when I was hunting for an approved goodie to eat for our "refeed" day during 80 Day Obsession.

Some or none of that might make any sense to you..

First of all, my husband & I are working through a 13 week program called 80 Day Obsession, read more about what it is HERE.

Secondly, at the 6 week mark in this program, we get a day called REFEED.

It's an opportunity to eat some approved goodies to boost our glycogen before leg day. And we get them every other week from week 6-13! Whoop whoop!!

What did we have on our first refeed day??

Well, I had FOUR of these brownies & a cheeseburger with half a bun.

Sounds pretty amazing, right?

Well it was.

ANYWAYS.

Back to the recipe!

I know my Instagram & Facebook followers have been ITCHING for this ever since I posted a picture last week on my stories & wall.

I mean, don't these look awesome?!

*insert drooling emoji*

And YES.

They're made of chickpeas.

But guess what?

They're also made with chocolate..

Plus the mix is blended into oblivion.

So you can't freakin' tell!

Seriously.

Okay, enough teasing.

Here it is.

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FUDGY CHICKPEA BROWNIES

Ingredients:

1 15 ounce can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained & rinsed

1/4 cup of unsalted butter

2 large eggs

1/2 cup of pure maple syrup

2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

1 pinch of himalayan sea salt

1/4 cup of semi sweet or dark chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Line a 9x9 inch baking dish with parchment paper & lightly coat with spray.

In a blender or food processor, combine chickpeas, butter, eggs, maple syrup, vanilla, cocoa powder & salt. Blend until smooth.

Add in chocolate chips & mix by hand.

Spread batter into lined dish.

Bake for 25-28 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean from the center.

Cut into squares & enjoy!

*This recipe makes 12 servings.*

So you get more than just a bite or two, but not probably the slice you'd normally cut yourself from a brownie dish.

FYI:

For anyone following the portion fix system, one serving counts as a yellow container!

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So whether you're on meal plan or not - of course make sure you factor it in if needed - you've gotta give these bad boys a try!

When the first meal of our refeed day came where I got to eat these - I put the baby down for her nap, heated these up & ate with a teaspoon of natural peanut butter. OH - with a fork. In silence. At the table.

You better believe I took all the necessary steps to enjoy them.

And for the left overs, I quickly wrapped them up & put them in a freezer bag. I'm definitely going to be enjoying these again in 8 days!

Let me know what you think, friends!

Carrot Bread Muffins: 80 Day Obsession Approved Recipe

Some of you know that my husband & I recently started a new program that we're a little over 5 weeks into.

Details on our 80 Day Obsession progress (4 week photos/results!! woowoo)

& WHAT the program is coming to the blog SOON.

Well, a HUGE part of this program is the nutrition plan - not just the WHAT to eat, but the HOW MUCH & even the WHEN to eat it.

Our first meal of the day is a little after 5am & we've gotta have some sort of veggie, grain & protein combination.

That's EARLY for a full meal, right?! So I'm sure you can see the appeal of finding some winning recipes to try!

For the first few weeks, we were chowing down on egg + spinach muffins with toast & peanut butter OR turkey bacon with cut broccoli (yes, I'm serious) with oats & peanut butter. Some days it just felt like a LOT to eat so early. Other days, it was fine but we were still becoming eager for a little variety in our mornings.

Enter THIS recipe - which we saw many variations of online, but found our own little sweet spot combination that we INHALED this morning at 5:15 & decided was going to be part of our regular meal repertoire!!

Shout out to my hubby, Nate, for making them.

You da best, boo.

So whether you're on a regimented meal plan also, are simply trying to find another healthy breakfast or snack OR maybe you're desperately needing to sneak veggies into food for your picky kids or spouse - you're going to want to give this recipe a spin.

CARROT BREAD MUFFINS

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup carrots

(roughly 10 large baby carrots)

1/4 cup rolled oats - uncooked

2 eggs

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. vanilla

(you could also throw in some clove, dried ginger or pumpkin pie spice!!)

*optional sweetener: truvia, stevia, agave or honey to taste*

(we used baking truvia to sweeten ours & stay on track with our meal plan!)

DIRECTIONS:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease muffins tins or miniature loaf pans.

(I use coconut oil baking spray).

Combine ingredients in blender & let it run until SMOOTH.

Pour mixture into muffin tins or mini loaf pans.

(One serving of this mix will "fill" 4 muffin tins OR 1 mini loaf pan)

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out of the center clean.

Remove from pan or tin & allow to cool on baking rack, before storing in fridge.

Why hello, beauties..

Oh! I can't forget!

Here's a little serving suggestion that takes this RIGHT over the top.

We added 1 teaspoon of natural, crunchy peanut butter to the top of our warm muffins before serving with a dash or three of cinnamon! Holy smokes it decadent.

{this is me literally eating my breakfast in bed this morning}

Y'ALL.

This was seriously so good. 

Simple, naturally "sweet", light & YUMMY!

And if you're working through the same program as us, it will likely fit ONE of your meal plan options to a T. For us, it's our pre-workout combo!!

For my friends following the Beachbody fixate meal plan, here is the container breakdown for 80 Day Obsession and 21 Day Fix:

Each serving is 1 red 1 yellow 1 green 1 teaspoon.

FYI, we made 6 total servings of this at one time & refrigerated them in our portions so all we have to do is heat, drizzle with PB & eat - so that's 24 muffins at once!

BULK PREP APPROVED!

*be realistic & open minded when you taste these the first time, friends. remember that these are very healthy muffins & taste really yummy. BUT, don't be expecting carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese frosting when you bite in. Ha!*

Give this recipe a try & let me know what you think

+ if you make any awesome substitutions, share!

ENJOY!

{FIX approved} Clean Mac & Cheese

Last week, my husband and I had a hankering for comfort food that would somehow fit into our 21 Day Fix meal plan. I snagged my Fixate cookbook from the top of the pantry and started flipping through the pages to end up finding a healthy MAC & CHEESE recipe (RIGHT!?). The other surprising factor was that I actually had all the ingredients!

Here's what the recipe called for:

Chicken breasts, cubed

Steamed broccoli, chopped

Whole wheat pasta

Whole wheat flour

Organic butter

Unsweetened almond milk 

Freshly grated cheddar cheese

Himalayan sea salt

Pepper

Here's how to make it happen:

Whip up a roux with the butter and flour..  Slowly add almond milk and whisk until thickened..  Reduce heat and add cheese while stirring constantly until melted..  Add cooked chicken, steamed broccoli, salt/pepper & al dente pasta.

40 minutes later y'all, less if your chicken was pre cooked, and you've got yourself a tasty dinner with plenty of leftovers for the week.. speaking as a family of two.

Happy Cooking, Friends!

November CHALLLENGE Group

Believe it or not, October is coming to a close.. and we're all starting to think about & make plans for :: Turkey Day!
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I'm dreaming of green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, mac-n-cheese & pie!! Oh yeah, & maybe a side of turkey 😜
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But you know that >>guilt<< you feel later on? Those tight-pant-jokes that everyone starts making and comments about how to you need to work off the meal? Yeah, I'm not doing that! ...... My turkey day feast is going to be EARNED this year! 👊
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Beginning Nov 2nd, a determined group of us are committing to a {slightly} different kind of thanksgiving preparation. We're going to be THANKFUL for our health & strengthen our bodies daily as we count down to a special time around the table with our loved ones.
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We're committing to 30 minute daily workouts... simple nutrition with easy meal plans... group support to NOT quit when people are all pumpkin-this, caramel-that... we're going to feel PROUD when turkey day rolls around & ENJOY that well-earned meal! heart emoticon 
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Are you at all curious? Want to make this year different? Need to know a little more? Well, I'm enrolling TWO more participants and YOU have one more day left to join us! Make this holiday different. Apply Below. Message me to reserve YOUR spot!
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http://bit.ly/GetFitWithLinz
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lindseykollar@yahoo.com //or// fb message
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‪#‎EARNyourTURKEY‬ ‪#‎losethewobble‬ ‪‪#‎novemberCHALLENGE‬

**new participants MAY join after October 26th, but must understand that they will not finish the 21 Day program before Thanksgiving. They ARE, however, welcome to complete program in the follow challenge group as well!**

**21 Day Fix and 21 Day Fix extreme challenge packs are available ON SPECIAL thru 10/31/15 HERE and HERE **

21 Day Fixed Approved: Chocolate, Peanut Butter OATS

Today's recipe is a special one, folks. This tasty treat is straight out of Autumn Calabrese's new cookbook called Fixate; for those of you who don't know who Autumn is, she's the creator of the 21 Day Fix that gave me these results in 3 weeks. Yeah, she's one of my heroes. Ha!

ANYWAYS, this recipe is an awesome breakfast option for the days I save my shake for a quick lunch or on the weekends when Nate and I want to eat a yummy, guilt free breakfast together! 

So let's start with the main ingredient: Steel Cut Oats.

For those of you who aren't familiar with anything other than instant, old fashioned or rolled oats:

"Whole grain oats provide a healthy start to your day. Steel-cut oats, also known as Irish oats, are a type of whole grain oat cut from the center portion, or kernel of the oat, called the groat. Although steel-cut oats undergo less processing than rolled oats or instant oatmeal, all whole-grain oats have essentially the same nutritional value, as long as the finished product contains no added sugars. Steel-cut oats do take longer to cook than rolled or instant oats and have a chewier consistency."

Personally, I prefer steel cut oats because I'm a texture gal! Take the extra time to try them, I bet you'll like them! Go ahead and make these bad boys start to finish before you move onto the other ingredients.

Next, you're going to need some shakeology. This is going to give your oats a CREAMY sauce to bathe in & that desert-like chocolatey taste! PS, the shakeology is also adding a protein element to this meal.

If you aren't sure what Shakeology is, check out my blog post about it here; it's a nutrient dense shake that costs about $4 a day to drink and replaces a meal, vitamins and supplements. It's a game changer in healthy eating and the pursuit of fitness goal, I highly recommend you try it risk free for 30 days.

Now you need to stir in some all-natural peanut butter! My household is 100% crunchy, but you could of course go the creamy route.

SO this is where my rendition of this recipe gets comical. My hubby and I moved on Friday.. who cares, you just want the recipe.. WELL, most of my food items were either packed, discarded or misplaced. A few lucky ingredients made it over here to my two burner, no oven kitchen. SO, when the cook book says himalayan sea salt, caramel extract and cinnamon- I say no biggie!

All I had here was vanilla extract, so I used that and went without the cinnamon and sea salt. You know what? This stuff still turned out to be AMAZING! I can only imagine how much richer the other ingredients would make it.

Okay, so here's the recipe!

4 Cups Water

1 Cup Steel Cut Oats

1.5 Scoops of Chocolate Shakeology

4 TBSP All Natural Peanut Butter

Dash of Cinnamon (omitted above)

Dash of Pink Himalayan Sea Salt (omitted above)

1/2 TSP Caramel Extract (substituted pure vanilla!)

Optional: Mixed Berries for Topping (or in my case- I had like 2 strawberries left in my mini fridge) 

Top this treat with some mixed berries & you're SET!

Bon Appetit, My Friends!

xo, Lindsey