Imma bout to show you the way to my heart.

How To Cook Grilled Artichokes

Artichokes are one of the first foods that the Pilot and I would make to go along with our dinners. When we first started dating, money was tight so instead of going out to eat, we’d share an ahi tuna steak and cook two artichoke hearts as our fancy dinner at home. The Pilot is kind of the artichoke king and over time, he’s shared the method to cook them perfectly. They can seem like an intimidating veg – they’re covered in battle spears for goodness sake – but they’re a simply-prepared and nutrient-dense side.

Here’s the step-by-step artichokes recipe!

How to Prepare Artichokes

Artichokes need a bit of a trim before you cook them. You’ll pull off the artichoke leaves, trim the top and the stem, and scoop out the chokes.

After trimming, place the artichokes in a bowl of cold water with a squeeze of lemon juice to prevent browning. You can also rub lemon juice on the cut areas of each artichoke, but I find it much easier to just dunk them in lemon water.

Now it’s time to cook them!

How to Cook Artichokes

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Sharing some festive ways to enjoy rice crispies this Halloween season!

With the spookiest day of the year just around the corner, I can feel the excitement in the air. Halloween isn’t just about costumes and pumpkins; it’s a fun time to bake up some tasty treats!

Today, I’m sharing a delightful Halloween Rice Krispie Treats recipe—a perfect blend of gooey, crispy goodness that will surely add a touch of magic to your Halloween festivities. Rice crispies are one of my all-time favorite treats; they’re gluten-free, SO delicious, easy to customize, and the kids love them.

Halloween Rice Krispie Treats Ideas

Spooky Shapes and Silhouettes

Transform your ordinary Rice Krispie Treats into Halloween-themed shapes. Use cookie cutters to mold them into ghosts, bats, or pumpkins. The kids will love getting involved in this creative process. For an extra eerie touch, add black food coloring to the mix.

How-to: Shape the freshly made Rice Krispie mixture with cookie cutters. Enhance the details with a piping bag filled with different colored icing.

Monster Mashup Madness

Unleash your imagination by turning your Rice Krispie Treats into a parade of friendly monsters. Use candy eyes, colorful icing, and various candies to create a variety of goofy, spooky, or silly monsters. It’s a fun way to get creative and like a little art project for the kiddos.

How-to: Decorate each treat with candy eyes, colored icing for features, and candies for added texture. Make each monster unique for a vibrant and playful Halloween treat.

Haunted Graveyard Delight

Take your Halloween Rice Krispie Treats to the next level by turning them into a haunted graveyard scene. Use crushed chocolate cookies for “dirt,” gummy worms for added spookiness, and small tombstone-shaped cookies for decoration.

How-to: Assemble the graveyard by placing tombstone cookies and gummy worms on top of the Rice Krispie surface. Dust with crushed cookies for a graveyard-inspired look.

Halloween Rice Krispie Treats Recipe

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 package

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Hands in the air if you’re equally excited to be back in a routine, but also lamenting the end of summer. We are officially back in school, back to the dance-horses-homework extravaganza, and while I thrive on a schedule, things are busy, as I’m sure many of you can relate.

I’m here trying to make the week as streamlined as possible, and here are some of the things that have helped:

– Doing anything I can the night before. This means packing lunches, setting out uniforms (including hair accessories and shoes), packing snacks, and setting out water bottles to be filled. I also make a mental note of what the kids are having for breakfast, so I can make anything in advance.

– Start dinner in the afternoon. Many nights, Liv is finished with dance late, so I have dinner waiting for the crew when they’re done with their activities for the day. I’ve found that late afternoon, before school pickup, is the best chance to get some veggies chopped, and make anything I can before pickup.

– Snack prep! I try to make snack staples at the beginning of the week, so that the kids have lots of options.

Here are two favorites that they’re loving lately!

Lemon Blueberry Muffins and Chocolate Coconut Energy Bites

Lemon Blueberry Muffins

These lemon blueberry muffins have a bright and zesty flavor. P says they taste like pancake muffins! I also like that they’re not too sweet. You can absolutely increase the sweetness by adding more coconut sugar or maple syrup. Make a batch and freeze to have on hand for the week. I’ll heat them up and serve with pre-boiled eggs for a quick school morning breakfast.

I’m sharing 10 high protein snacks that don’t use protein powder. These whole food, protein-packed snacks will keep you satisfied while you’re on the go!

Looking for quick and easy protein snacks that won’t make you choke on a mouthful of powder? 

I hear you! Whether you want to keep your blood sugar stable, boost your weight loss efforts, or simply fuel your body with healthy protein, I’ve got great high-protein snack ideas for you.

I’ll introduce you to a world of delicious options, from crunchy roasted chickpeas to creamy nut butter treats. These protein-packed snacks come with impressive grams of protein per serving, and they’re so delicious that you’ll forget you’re even snacking for health. 

Plus, I’ll throw in a little fun fact: did you know that cucumbers are a surprisingly good source of protein? Who knew?

So grab your cup of joe and let’s snack smart, snack deliciously, and snack our way to happiness and health!

10 High-Protein Snacks Without Protein Powder

While I love a good protein shake, and there are some delicious protein bars on the market, today I want to share some tasty snack ideas that don’t use any fancy protein powders. These ideas and simple recipes are made with whole food ingredients that are packed with protein — naturally!

Whether you need to refuel after a workout or are simply trying to make it from lunch to dinner during a long workday, these protein-packed snacks will help power you through your day.

Roasted Chickpeas

These roasted chickpeas make such a delicious and healthy snack! They’re perfectly seasoned, a bit spicy, and super easy to prepare. They’re perfect for parties, snacking in front of the TV, road trips, and so much more! Get the recipe for roasted chickpeas (pictured above) from Vegan Heaven.

Protein Pancakes

Rise and shine, breakfast lovers! Who says pancakes can’t be part of a healthy, high-protein lifestyle? Enter protein pancakes, the perfect blend of fluffiness and fuel. These breakfast beauties are a delicious way to start your day, packed with essential amino acids to keep you energized for whatever comes your way. 

Whip up a stack of these golden delights, topped with your favorite fruits and a drizzle of maple syrup, and savor every bite. With protein pancakes in your breakfast arsenal, you’ll conquer the day with a full belly and a smile on your face. 

Jerky or Meat Sticks

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Sharing a super delicious and healthy homemade peanut butter protein bars recipe! Perfect for meal prep and grab-and-go snacks. Plus, they’re gluten-free and dairy-free.

Hey! How are you? I hope your morning is going well! I’m here getting everything together for Spring Shape Up – workouts and meal ideas go out on Friday! – and hopping on a podcast interview. I hope you have a lovely morning!

How about a little protein bar with your morning coffee?

I love protein bars as an on-the-go snack because they’re healthy yet delicious. At the same time, I don’t usually love the ingredients for many of the ones on store shelves. My top bars right now are these good! bars (which are impossible to find; usually Sprouts has them), Aloha, and the chocolate whole foods bars.

Homemade peanut butter protein bars

While it is possible to find tasty ones with good ingredients, they can also be a bit on the pricey side! They’re so quick and easy to make at home, way less expensive, and they don’t require any cooking or baking skills. Peanut butter is one of the popular ingredients used in protein bars (and one of my fave flavors!), so today, I’m sharing a peanut butter protein bar recipe that you can make at any time!

What Is A Protein Bar Good For

A quick snack when you don’t have time for a full meal

Sometimes it gets busy and instead of skipping a meal because you don’t have time to make a full meal, I’m ALL about relying on convenience. If these are in the fridge ready to go, you can enjoy one along with a hard-boiled egg or an apple – it’s perfect if you don’t have time to actually cook anything. Is it a substitute for a real meal? Nope! Buuuut it can give you extra fuel and nutrients when you’re on a time crunch and in a hurry.

For travel

I love wrapping up a homemade protein bar and popping it in my tote bag when we’re traveling, along with the usual suspects: jerky, tea, an apple, some chocolate, LMNT packs, trail mix, and a tuna pouch. I can never find any of my go-to protein bars at the airport, so it’s nice to have one on hand that you know you enjoy.

Post-workout fuel

These are great if you’re heading to the gym and then have to head straight to an appointment or back to work. It gives you a burst of protein, carbs, and healthy fats, plus it’s portable and not messy. 😉

Late-night snacks

Despite what you may have heard, it is not harmful to eat before you go to bed if it’s macro-balanced. Sometimes if you’re hungry, you may need a bit of protein and carbs to prevent a glucose crash in the night, disputing sleep. Just make sure that it’s balanced and not too sugary, which makes these bars an excellent choice. More of my favorite pre-bedtime snacks include hard-boiled eggs and some fruit, yogurt with some grain-free granola, and deli meat rolled up with hummus.

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