Cilantro Lime Black Bean Rice & Chicken Bowl

I used to be the girl that kept everything separate on her plate and ate one thing at a time...ok, I still do that sometimes, but now I am more likely to throw a bunch of different foods in a bowl. 

A few nights ago, I was on my own for dinner because mrC was on a trip. I had spent most of the day getting work done and dropped the ball on meal planning for myself. Fortunately I had all the ingredients (well, most of them) for this yummy recipe from the FASTer Way meal guide.

*Every week, FASTer Way clients receive a meal guide as a resource. Clients are not required to follow it, but it definitely makes planning and coming up with ideas for meals A LOT easier. You can learn more here.

Most of the time, I like to use the meal guide as inspiration. I'll add some ingredients, substitute for others or just leave out what I don't like. That's how I put together this recipe for Cilantro Lime Black Bean Rice & Chicken Bowl.

My version:

1 cup baby spinach

1 cup read leaf lettuce

1/4 cup basmati brown rice

1/4 cup black beans seasoned with 1 tbsp lime juice, 1/4 cup frozen onion, 1 tsp dried cilantro, 1/4 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 cup organic salsa

1 tbsp flaxseed and 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds (because I seed cycle)

4 oz grilled chicken diced

This recipe came together so easily because I had grilled a big batch of chicken earlier in the week and use pre-packaged rice (this is my favorite) and organic salsa from Whole Foods. I'm all about keeping things simple!

This is a great macro meal for days when you need all the macros! Plus it is packed with fiber to keep the gut a happy place. I encourage my clients to do meal bowls because they're more likely to have balance.

Do you like meals in bowls? What is your favorite combo?

 

Hiking: Pu'u Ma'eli'eli Trail (Digging Hill)

Our first attempt at doing this hike was postponed when mrC got an unexpected work trip. We did it a few days later under not so perfect conditions, but you can't wait for conditions to be perfect!

So, once again we headed to the trail even though the skies were cloudy and rain was in the forecast (same thing happened when we hiked Aiea Loop Trail). We parked at the Ko'olau Shopping Center and then followed the guardrail on Kahekili Highway to get to the trailhead. It was super easy to find.

After two climbs to get our legs warmed up right off the bat, I looked behind us at the Ko'olau Mountains topped with clouds. We see them in the distance every day, but I will never get tired of taking in their beauty. 

The reviews of this trail warned that it would not be easy or fun to hike it in the rain, so we crossed our fingers that the rain would hold off and the trail stay dry.

Hiking Pu'u Ma'eli'eli was fitting for a Monday hike because the trail ascended in intervals (we do HIIT workouts on Mondays in the FASTer Way community). Just when our legs were tiring from the climb, it leveled out. It's become our routine to have me lead us on the way out and mrC takes over on the way back.

It didn't take us long at all to reach the first pillbox (underground), but it was at the top of a final big climb. Fortunately there were ropes in place to help us get up.

About 20 yards beyond the first pillbox, was the pillbox with the view. The view was still pretty awesome, even on this really cloud covered day. To me, Kaneohe Bay looked like it might if Hawaii actually had a winter, like it was frozen.

We only hung out on the pillbox for a short period because the sprinkles started getting heavier. We are getting better at our selfie game.

mrC took the lead on the way back and it was slow going. The rain came down hard enough that we actually broke out the rain jackets. Any chance of getting off the trail with mud-free shoes went out the window, but at least no one slipped and fell.

Taking in one more view of Kaneohe Bay and mrC points out Coconut Island - a marine research facility for University of Hawaii.

We are happy to cross another new hike off our list, but this is one we will do again on a better weather day to get those amazing views of Kaneohe Bay in the sun.

Blueberry Protein Bars

I've been making these protein bars for years, but the way I make them has evolved enough that it was time to write an updated blog post. 

It is also worth noting that these bars are perfect snack material for Feast Days. If you are not following the FASTer Way yet, Feast Days are when we strategically increase our food intake by 25%. For a lot of people on health journeys (trying to lose weight), this sounds like a crazy and even scary idea. However, eating MORE helps with metabolic adaptation and prevents plateaus.

• That means the thyroid will be active and functioning which raises the metabolic rate increasing the fat burning process. 
• It helps prevent muscle breakdown which also keeps our metabolism revved up. 
• When we eat a little more than our body is expecting, our cortisol levels and hormones are in check and happily letting the body burn fat for fuel.

So, like I was saying, we aim to eat more food, but we still focus on whole food nutrition.

The recipe:

2 cups quick cooking gluten free oats

1 cup protein powder (I use vanilla)

1/4 cup organic buckwheat flour

1 tbsp ground flaxseed

1T chia seeds

1 tbsp cinnamon 

1 cup sunbutter

1/4 cup honey

6-8 oz blueberries (mash half)

I combine all the dry ingredients separately from the wet ingredients. Then I gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry. Sometimes I need to add a little water to help the mixing along. I toss the whole blueberries in last.

Spread mixture into a sprayed baking dish. Bake 350 degrees 15 min. Let cool. Cut and refrigerate.

If you make them, tag me in your post @amycainefitness and let me know what you think!

Baby bella Taco Salad

Apparently fall is the best season for mushrooms.

I honestly don't eat mushrooms unless they are mixed in with something else -> gravy, salad, sandwich. 

They came to be on my radar when I started the final stage of my healthy gut journey. My functional medicine practitioner has me doing a Liver and Gallbladder detox to flush out any toxins that may have been present as a result of my bacteria imbalance. So, for five days (and I'm on day 3 as I write this) I will start my day with a very terrible detox beverage, take some supplements and only eat fruit and veggies (non-root). 

Back to the mushrooms :) I read somewhere that mushrooms can be used as a meat substitute, so I got a crazy idea to use them to make a taco salad. I bought an 8oz package of baby bellas at Whole Foods and used my mini chopper (like this one on Amazon) to mince them up. Once they were minced, I used them just like I would minced meat.

Baby Bella Taco Salad:

8oz minced baby bella mushrooms

Taco Seasoning:

4 1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp seasoning salt

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp dried minced onion

1/2 tsp beef bouillon powder

Directions:

I sautéed the mushrooms in taco seasoning and approximately 1/4 cup water for about 10 minutes. I suggest adding water in small amounts so that your minced mushrooms aren't soggy (learned the hard way).

Build your bowl - I use about 3+ cups lettuce (romaine and leafy green) and top with baby corn, Black beans (usually), salsa and avocado.

This is a great plant-based option for vegetarians who like taco salads! I'm not vegetarian, but I did a plant-based month with the FASTer Way VIP community and have kept some favorite recipes in my rotation.

Hiking: Wiliwilinui Ridge Trail

Moderately hard = hard work, but totally worth it!

That's what we would say about the Wiliwilinui Ridge Trail. This hike went on our list because it has amazing views.

This trail is popular, but because the trail head is located inside an affluent Honolulu community, it probably never really gets crowded. Which is good because it's an out and back. We decided to go on a Friday morning to avoid the weekenders and I think it worked. We checked in with the friendly guard at the gate to Waialae Iki, who took down our license plate number and gave us a parking pass, and made our way through the neighborhood to the trail head parking area.

They have some amazing views in this community!

We were the 6th car to arrive. It was a short walk down the street to the trail which starts off as the access road for the water department. It quickly turned to gravel, which is actually hard to walk on and then the typical Hawaiian red dirt. 

Although there were clouds lingering on the ridge that we hoped would scatter by the time we made it up that far, it didn't take long for us to get some views of what was to come. I'm pretty sure those clouds were also keeping all the humidity packed in on us. We were sweating!

The first part of the hike is best described as a slow and steady climb. Fortunately, there were plenty of places to stop and take peeks at the views that continued to get better and better.

We knew that the real fun began when we made it to the first of a series of steps - created to help hikers and erosion prevention.

I tried to count how many different sets of steps we came to but lost track. The trail would dip and rise in between and eventually the steps became a little more intimidating. 

Every so often we made it to electrical towers. The openings here were a great space to take a break and take in the views.

We used the All Trails app to track ourselves, but that didn't stop us from looking up and thinking we were almost there several times. The clouds blocking our view of the summit kept playing tricks on us.

The higher we got, the more it looked like the clouds were going to cooperate and make their move out of the valley.

Some spots along the trail were challenging and required using a rope to pull ourselves up. The ladders were convenient, but a little scary climbing up on the side of the ridge.

The closer we got to the top, the more the clouds cleared, which was good news for us. We didn't want to climb all the way up and miss out on the views.

After a final push to the top, we were at a tower but not quite at the summit with the 360 degree views. We had to walk to the left of the tower and follow the trail just a little bit more. Finally we spotted the end of trail sign and a single bench to sit on. We took a break there and waited for the clouds to finish blowing by.

Once the clouds cleared, we took our time taking in the views. We spotted Kailua in the distance, Bellows AFB, Flat Island where we swim to and the Mokes. Right before heading back down, we decided to take a selfie on a timer and got swarmed by a bunch of gnats!

Going down wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be, thanks to mrC helping me. Even though the clouds lingered just above us, the views were even more amazing on the way down. I loved seeing Diamond Head and Waikiki in the distance. 

Other than my knee getting a little cranky, there was no trail first aid administered on this hike unlike when we did the Aiea Loop Trail. A few hamstring stretches were all I needed to finish.

And just like that, we crossed off another hike from our bucket list.