{Mini Banana Protein Muffins}* Low Carb, High Protein, Low Calorie

The baking continues...

Guess what!? I may have perfected the mini muffins today. These were too good not to share with you. I like them better than the Mocha Muffins I made yesterday. Plus, the macros are even better!

Per one mini muffin: 53 calories, 3.1 g fat, 2.1 g carbs, & 4.6 g protein!

This post is going to be short & sweet because I am studying for an exam I have to take tomorrow. I know I told you all I would post about a transformation, but that is going to have to wait until later because I want it to be detailed & informative.

{Mini Banana Muffins}

Ingredients for Muffins:

1/2 c almond flour

1 scoop Quest Banana Protein Powder

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 egg

1 T flax meal

1/4 c unsweetened almond milk

Ingredients for Frosting:

1/2 scoop Quest Banana Protein Powder

1 T greek cream cheese

1 T plain, nonfat greek yogurt

1 T unsweetened almond milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all ingredients for muffins in a bowl. Mix until combined. 

Place 12 mini muffin liners in a mini muffin pan.

Spoon the batter into the muffin liners.

Place the muffin pan in the oven & bake for 8-10 minutes.

While the muffins cool, in a bowl combine all the ingredients for the frosting.

Mix until combined.

Once the muffins are cool, frost them with frosting. 

I topped mine with freeze dried bananas and strawberries (keep in mind this will change the nutrition of the muffins slightly if you top them with something).

*Makes 12 mini muffins*

ENJOY!

Later Taters

"It's a beautiful day, don't let it get away."

{Mini Mocha Muffins} Low Carb, High Protein, Macro Friendly

Hello beautiful souls!

Today I have a fun fall recipe to share with you... MINI MOCHA MUFFINS! 

Let me first start off by telling you the macros for one muffin:

83 calories, 3.9 g fat, 5.3 g carbs, & 7.4 g protein 

WHOOP WHOOP! 

Ingredients for Muffins:

1/3 c oats, ground into flour

2 T flax meal

2/3 c almond flour

1 egg

3 scoops Quest Peanut Butter Protein Powder

1 T vanilla bean paste

1/2 container (5.3 oz container) of Silk Vanilla Yogurt, Dairy Free

1 T ground coffee

3 T melted Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Chips, melted

6 T + 2/3 c unsweetened almond milk

Ingredients for Frosting:

66 g ( 3 servings) of Greek Cream Cheese

1 scoop Quest Peanut Butter Protein Powder

1 1/2 T Ghirardelli Bittersweet Chocolate Chips, melted

pinch of coffee grounds

2 T unsweetened almond milk

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

In a food processor or blender (I used my Vitamix), add all ingredients for muffins. Combine in the blender until smooth and ingredients are blended fully. 

Place mini muffin liners into a mini muffin pan & fill with batter. Bake for 10 minutes or until the muffins feel cooked to touch. 

While the muffins are baking, make the frosting. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. 

Once the muffins are done & cooled, top with frosting. 

*Makes 18 mini muffins*

Macros for just one muffin without frosting:

64 calories, 3 g fat, 4,3 g carbs, 5.5 g protein

Macros for one serving of frosting:

19 calories, .9 g fat, 1 g carb, 1.9 g protein

*** TO MAKE RECIPE LACTOSE FREE***

Simply use the rest of the dairy free yogurt in place of the greek cream cheese for the frosting. This will make the entire recipe lactose free

I hope you all enjoy your weekend. I am going to double post this weekend, so stay tuned for my story tomorrow. 

Later Taters

"It's a beautiful day, don't let it get away."

{Healthy Lunch Tips}

Hello Cupcakes,

It's been a while since I posted last, but I promise I am still here. I am still studying to become a certified personal trainer. My boyfriend and I also adopted a puppy & I am working part time. California is treating me pretty well. I am still working on trying to find a full time job. 

Anyways, I wanted to share some tips for packing food for the work day. Many of my friends have mentioned they have food allergies and they want meal ideas. I am lactose intolerant, so I know the challenge of finding and making food that tastes good without dairy! One thing I am loving right now is homemade Chipotle bowls (Boyfriend approved!). Once I have all the bowls prepped, I freeze them. This makes such an easy lunch or dinner. After getting off work, I am usually super hungry. All I do is take one of these bowls out of the freezer and microwave it for 2-3 minutes and I have a super tasty and healthy meal.

So here's how I do it:

1) Gather all of your ingredients. To make 5 bowls, I used 1 lb. of lean ground beef, 1 1/3 c dried brown jasmine rice, 1 can of no sodium black beans, salsa, green onion, cilantro. You can also add frozen vegetables of your choice. 

2) Gather spices. I like to use these five seasonings to season my taco meat. Sometimes it can be hard to find a pre-made taco seasoning that is allergen free. These five taste so good together as a taco seasoning. 

3) Start browning the meat in a pan & boiling the rice according to package directions. While those are cooking, cut up the cilantro and green onion. 

4) Drain the black beans. Once the meat & rice are done you can start assembling the bowls. I love these tupperware containers from Isolator Fitness because they are freezable, microwaveable, & dishwasher safe. They also stack really well in the fridge or freezer. 

Here is the final product

Another healthy snack tip is to pre-portion snacks so they are easy to grab & go. Below is my protein puppy chow that I made with only 4 ingredients. The recipe can be found on my Instagram page: @toriswholelife (p.s. the protein puppy chow is gluten and lactose free)

I also packaged some trail mix for my boyfriend to take to work. Trail mix can be an easy gluten and dairy free option, just make sure you don't over do it with trail mixes. They can be high in calories. This is another reason why I like to pre-portion snacks (make sure you read the labels). 

Once I have all my pre-packaged snacks ready to go, I place them in a bowl on the counter. 

More tips for a healthy lunch or snack:

1) Pre wash and cut up fruit or veggies. Place these containers or baggies so you can grab them to stick in your lunch box

2) Pinterest is amazing for healthy allergy friendly recipes and ideas

3) Paleo recipes are a good search term if you are trying to eat gluten and dairy free

4) Look through some of my previous recipes for ideas to make. For example, I have a recipe for Otto's Cassava Flour Tortillas or Healthy Brownies. 

5) I have recently been introduced to Skinny Pop which is a gluten free popcorn. Make sure you read the labels if you are lactose intolerant as some flavors may contain dairy. Has anyone tried SkinnyPop? What are your thoughts? Comment below.

Later Taters!

"It's a beautiful day, don't let it get away."