Friday, March 2, 2012

This Week's Protein Favorites & Chobani Giveaway Winner!

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I recently rediscovered my love for egg white omelets... They bring back so many college memories. While I was there, my university had already begun to make great efforts toward conscientious and sustainable eating by offering farm-fresh & cage-free eggs, grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, and local organic produce. By the time senior year rolled around, there was an entire vegan salad bar resembling that of Whole Foods! Roasted beet salad with clementines... Merinated mushrooms... Roasted tofu... And even seitan!


In the mornings, I would often let the chef get creative with my omelets. Each time, I would find a different combination of veggies in my omelet and the absolutely best was when there was ooey gooey cheesy goodness. When I gave up meat and then dairy, the chef embraced the new challenge - he would add tofu or smokey tempeh (amazing!). On some mornings, I would bring my own container of Daiya or nutritional yeast, and he would recreate the cheesy goodness. Of course, this was truly special... and happened only because I was one of theee first students to come to the dining hall as soon as it opened at 7am (I was always an early bird, with early lectures, and looked forward to waking up early to start my productive day!)


I recently shifted my focus from cardio (mainly in the form of running) to strength-training (all done at home with resistance bands! I'm dreaming of a gym membership because I'm getting bored of working out at home), and have been trying to make some appropriate changes in my diet, too.


I have always loved eggs, and you know I'm especially obsessed with runny yolks! (Check out all of my Happyolks posts!). The yolk unfortunately has a bad rep because of its cholesterol content, but I surely hope ya'll don't think that it's bad for you! The egg as a whole is the perfect source of complete protein, folate, B vitamins, and lecithin (one of my fave bloggers, Sarah, just wrote a wonderful post on the incredible, edible egg yolk), and the cholesterol is actually good for for blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels! So, don't fear the happyolk! Embrace it :)


Because I always do, it's important that I don't over-do on my happyolks, and on some days I do choose to go with the egg white only. However, I don't believe in letting the beautiful egg yolk go to waste. Instead, I've invested in liquid egg whites!


Today's egg white omelet was filled with fresh veggies - my fave combo from the college days: broccoli, cauliflower, and red pepper.


A side of ketchup is a must.


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My other recent protein-licious creation, as you may have noticed, is the protein muffin, inspired by the very awesome Chelsey. I've been making one nearly every day, and now that I've got the hang of it and know the recipe by heart, I decided to get creative with the flavors...


Today's protien muffin: {Chocolate - Almond Butter Swirl Lava Protein Muffin}... okay, that's too long...


Swirl? Because it has two layers - bottom is the regular vanilla, top is chocolate, but it came out swirled!


Lava? Because it has an almond butter center!


Yup, I'm proud of this one :)


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Ingredients: (Serves 1)

  • 1 scoop Sunwarrior Vanilla protein powder

  • 1/8 tsp. salt (helps to balance the "chalkiness" of protein powders! works like magic!)

  • 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

  • 1/8 tsp. baking soda

  • 1/4 tsp. vanilla

  • 1/4 cup fruit puree (i.e. banana, pumpkin, apple, pear, carrot - in fact, you can use baby food!)

  • 1 flax egg (1 tbsp. ground flax + 3 tbsp. warm water, left to sit for ~3 minutes)

  • cooking spray

  • 1 tsp. cocoa powder

  • 1 tbsp nut butter


Directions:



  1. First combine the dry (except the cocoa powder), and then add the wet ingredients.

  2. Stir until you have a "batter" - it will be sticky and thick!

  3. Spray the baking dish with cooking spray.

  4. Scoop 1/2 of the batter and spread to cover the bottom of the baking dish.

  5. Make an indent in the middle and scoop the spoonful of nut butter.

  6. Stir in the cocoa powder to the remaining 1/2 of the batter, and add to the baking dish to completelyy cover the nut butter.

  7. Microwave for 3min and allow to stand for a minute or so.

  8. Use a butter knife to loosen the muffin away from the edges.

  9. Enjoy! I love to top my protein muffin with more nut butter or fruit preserves, or to crumble it on top of Greek yogurt for even more protein!


Last but definitely not least, the Chobani Champions has also made it to the Top 3 Protein Favorites of the Week! Indeed, Chobani Champions is the first Greek yogurt for kids, but who says an adult can't enjoy this delicious and healthy goodness? I'm a total fan!

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These are smaller than the "adult" Chobani - 3.5oz instead of 6oz, and contains 8g (16% DV) of protein, about 100 calories. Creamy, smooth, and sweet (but not too sweet), they are a perfect afternoon snack. I've only tried the Vanilla Chocolate Chunk and the Orange Vanilla flavors. You can actually see the chocolate and the orange zest. Yup - that's what I call real food with real ingredients! Looks like there are also 2 other flavors! Honey Nanna and Verry Berry. YUM!


...Speaking of Chobani... Thanks to everyone for entering the Chobani Giveaway! The lucky winner will be getting an assortment case of Chobani Greek Yogurt!

...AND THE WINNER IS...


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PARISA!


Congrats, girl! With just one comment entry, you're one lucky duck! Please check your email!


TGIF! Have a fabulous weekend everyone!


xoxo. Veronica


P.S. Please share your favorite sources of protein! Would love to hear from you! 



4 comments:

  1. Mmm our stores don't carry Chobani Champions (that I know of), but I'm going to have to hunt it down and give it a try!

    I teach multiple fitness classes as well as work full time, so I try to get in a LOT of protein (at least 100g each day), and sometimes that can be a challenge. I eat a lot of beans, Greek yogurt, eggs, nut butter, nuts, fish, chicken, cottage cheese, and of course, SunWarrior! I have 20 more grams to get in today, but I have my protein smoothie (SW+almondmilk) and then dinner (fish or chicken and veggies), so it shouldn't be a problem.

    Have a great day!

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  2. Hi Natalie!
    Thanks for stopping by! :) You certainly "eat clean" - no wonder you are one fit foodie! I'm so glad I stumbled upon your blog. I look forward to following you!

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  3. Agreed! I'm so glad you did come across my little blog so that I could find yours! :)

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