Clean Eating Zucchini Bread

After trying to have a healthier life style for my family and myself, I have been a little nervous to go into this time of year.  Seriously, food is the best in the fall.  All the pumpkin and apple pies, loaves of yummy bread, caramel apples, all of that yummy stuff.  What is a girl to do when she had a fabulous bowl of soup and bread sticks are staring her right in the face!  Right!?

So this is what I did, to help myself out a little.  After trying a few recipes for zucchini bread that were a little healthier.  I couldn't get some of them to rise, or they didn't have any flavor.  So I kept trying and kept playing around with a few ingredients.  One of the recipes that I tried had used oats in it, and it was so moist.  But the flavor wasn't exactly what I wanted.  So I knew I wanted oats, but I knew I didn't want enriched flour.  So I had posted on facebook to some friends, asking for suggestions on flours.  I had quite the response to Almond flour.  I felt pretty good about buying it, since I knew the people who had suggested it to me were all fabulous cooks.

To compare the two flours from what I have learned.
 - Enriched flour, usually means that during the processing all the good for you nutrients were stripped out away.  Then to top it off, the "enriched" means that the flour has had more processed products, or preservatives put back into it.  Because it is so starchy we lose our energy more quickly since it is not being broken up slowly in our bodies.
- Almond flour, is made from raw almonds ground down to a fine texture.  A good source of protein, fat, and nutrients.  So we feel more full between meals, and keep our energy up.



Here is the recipe I came up with, and my family truly enjoys!

Clean Eating Zucchini Bread

1 cup Almond Flour
1 cup oats (ground)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
Dash ground cloves
1/4 cup olive oil or coconut oil
1/2 cup raw honey
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups puree zucchini

Preheat oven to 350
Grease and flour bread pan.
Combine all ingredients in mixer.
Pour the batter into your baking pan, and bake for about 60 min or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.
Cool, slice and enjoy!

My Favorite 21 Day fix Snacks To Go

Why do we think healthy snacks are more work than unhealthy snacks.  We always grab a bag of potato chips, or a candy bar at the gas station thinking that is all we have time for.  Our days are busy, we all have the weight of the world on our shoulders.  If it is running kids around, working 2 jobs, taking care of animals, or just just being one of those sweet spirits that just can't say no and does it all!  So I wanted to put together some of my favorite snacks that I take as I am running around.  

I am color coding these snacks for those of you that love the 21 day fix program.  If you don't know what the 21 day fix program is, send me a message.  I would love to fill you in!  There are so many more ideas out there.  I wanted to show you what works for me, and to see how easy it is to have something healthy and something quick at the same time.  Who said we can't have it all!  I want it all!  So here are my favorites!

Green Container - 

carrots

celery

snow peas

cucumbers

cherry tomatoes

Purple Container - 

grapes

berries(blueberries, strawberries, raspberries)

sliced apples

cherries

banana

Red Container - 

Hard boiled eggs (we take these on the run all the time, they are my kids favorites)

Greek yogurt

Cottage Cheese

Can of Tuna

Shakeology

Yellow Container - This can be the easiest to grab on the go, but remember you don't get very many of these in the day.

small whole wheat tortilla

air popped popcorn

small whole grain crackers

Blue Container - 

Almonds

Cashews

Mozzerella cheese stick

Orange Container - 

Peanuts

These are all easy to mix and match too.  If you wanted you could dip the fruit in the yogurt.  Or put some peanut butter on the crackers.  My kids are always running out of the house with a few crackers smothered in Peanut Butter.  You don't have to make any of this complicated at all!  The key is to just do it!  Did you know that healthy people, not skinny people, will eat the same foods and just rotate through them.  They know what works for them, so they don't change it!

So don't forget to have your containers ready to go for the day, or just throw your goodies in a baggie!  No need to stop at the drive through, or gas station.  Most importantly though, don't forget your water!!  You need to be drinking half your body weigh in ounces.  Take your water with you.  I have found that if I am hungry and know that it is a snacky hungry that I just need to catch up on my water.  So I will drink a glass of water and feel so much better, and proud of myself for not grabbing that yummy cookie I have laying around for the kids.