Healthy Chicks

Good afternoon, beauties! I’ve got some super exciting news for you all. Yesterday, my article was published online in SHAPE magazine. Seriously, how freakin’ cool is that? In the post, I dig into why I ditched meal planning in order to discover joy & freedom around food. Head on over to Shape.com to give it a read!

As I mention in the post, instead of Meal Prepping I prefer to listen to my body & go by how it feels in the given moment. After all, it’s quite impossible to know what I’ll be craving ahead of time, let alone a week in advance!

With this mindset, I’ve found such joy around cooking & experimenting in the kitchen! With my recent Hashimoto’s diagnosis & AIP lifestyle, I’ve had to get real creative when it comes to trying new recipes. No nightshades! No grains! No dairy!

However, instead of thinking about what I can’t have, I like to load up on the stuff I can have while prioritizing the things that nourish my body.

That’s how I came up with this fun & flavorful zoodles creation featuring ground turkey burger, garlic, lemon and cilantro. This easy dish totally … Read More!

Happy Valentine’s Day, friends! Whether you’re celebrating with your sweetie or gal pals, I firmly believe that nothing trumps the power of self-love.

I wanted to share a quick & easy recipe with you for my Raw Coconut Cacao Truffles! These little bites of joy are gluten-free, dairy-free, and made with only seven ingredients. Oh, and they’re chock-full of love. Lots and lots of love.

Raw Coconut Cacao Truffles 

Ingredients:

• 1 c. raw cashews
• 8 pitted dates, soaked
• 2 TB raw cacao powder
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. shredded coconut
• 2 tsp. honey
• 1 TB chia seeds

1. Add everything other than the coconut to a food processor. I love using my Nutri Ninja Duo. Pulse until all the ingredients are well combined. (Note: if you’re using the Ninja, just simply choose option “Fusion mix.”) You may want to add about a tablespoon of water if the mixture is too dry!

2. Form “dough” into small balls & roll in shredded coconut until coated. Refrigerate & enjoy!… Read More!

If you’ve been following along on my journey, you know that I’ve been following the Autoimmune Paleo Protocol to help support my sluggish thyroid & Hashimoto’s Disease through diet and lifestyle. I won’t lie, when I first started, it was difficult. I mean, like really’ freakin’ hard.

My husband has been a true saint! I may or may not have had several fits over the past 30 days like the time I called him on his way home from work shouting “I’M F*C*ING STARVING!” while demanding a burger without the bun. Not one of my proudest moments.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the protocol, it’s essentially a much more strict version of Paleo, in which you remove common allergens & inflammation-causing foods from your diet for a minimum of 30 days, and then slowly re-introduce to see which foods are causing issues for you. A life without eggs, cheese & coffee aint easy, my friend.

While I don’t have a sweet tooth, after starting this way of eating, I began craving baked goods big-time. I think part of this has to do with the frigid temps in New England right now! Unfortunately, it wasn’t easy to … Read More!

Are you a meal-prepper? It’s come to my attention that meal prep Sunday is a new thing lately, you know kind of like Football Sunday but for chicks who cook. I’m not against it or anything, but personally I’m not a fan of meal prepping on Sundays.

I think part of the reason is because in a way it reminds me of my years of dieting, calorie counting and meal planning. I’d dissect every last bite and was so mathematic when it came to my food. It made me stressed, guilty & anxious. I always knew exactly what my next meal would be, when I would eat it, and how many calories I’d be consuming. In fact, it’s all I thought about.

When I quit dieting, I decided I deserved to feel JOY around food. I didn’t want it to feel in any way like it once did in college. I wanted to associate food with family, love and nourishment. I wanted cooking to be fun, sexy and experimental.

Nowadays, I’m super chill around food. I buy the ingredients I love (and that my body loves!) so my fridge is stocked up, then go by how I feel during the … Read More!