I may have teased you all a little bit with my Wordless Wednesday post this week.  It was a sandwich that I liked so much, that I ended up eating it 3 different times last week.  I made BBQ pulled pork in the crockpot and when it was done, I was looking for a new way to eat it.  Often times I will toss it on a salad, stuff a baked potato or make a big rice bowl with the pork, but this week I was in a sandwich mood.  I was also in an avocado mood, so there my idea was born. 

• BBQ pulled pork
• Udi’s gluten-free whole grain bun
• Guy Fieri Kansas City Smokey & Sweet BBQ sauce
• Avocado (I may have used half on this sandwich)

Heaven!  I don’t know why I have never thought about putting avocado on a pulled pork sandwich before, but it is glorious!  I used to use cheese and I have been eating less cheese & more avocado and I seriously wondering why it took me so long! 

Is it wrong to just sit and eat an avocado out of the skin?!

Make sure to head over to enter my So Lucky Gifts “So Active” box giveaway!

Just incase you missed it, make sure to check to see if you won the Perfect Fit Protein Cookies giveaway. 

I was the “lucky” recipient of a So Lucky Gifts Active Box full of Honey Stinger products the other day!  I love Honey Stinger gels, so I was excited to try the protein bars & organic energy chews.  Check out this beautiful packaging from So Lucky Gifts:

I didn’t want to ruin it because it was so nice!  Inside the box were several different flavors of the organic energy chews & 2 of each protein bars.

The organic energy chews are great for a pre- or mid-workout energy booster.  I sampled the pink lemonade, pomegranate passion fruit and caffeinated lime-ade.  I have to say that my favorite was the pomegranate passion fruit!  More about the organic energy chews:

Honey Stinger Organic Energy Chews are formulated specifically for health-conscious individuals and athletes seeking a great tasting energy snack. Honey Stinger Organic Energy Chews are unique as they are the first to include naturally occurring fiber and protein derived from 100% organic tapioca syrup and honey (Lime-Ade chews are 95% organic). Smaller and softer than other chews.

Made with USDA certified Organic ingredients. Gluten-free, dairy-free, non-GMO ingredients. 0g Trans Fats and no partially hydrogenated oils. 100% RDA Vitamin C along with 1g protein and 1g fibre per package. Adults and kids love them!

The protein bars come in 2 different varieties 10 grams & 20 grams of protein.  I sampled the 10 gram bars in dark chocolate coconut and dark chocolate mint flavors.  I loved both of the bars, but I think the dark chocolate coconut stole my heart – the flavor combination reminded me a bit of the Girl Scout Samoa cookies.  These are great for refueling after a hard workout!  More about the protein bars:

A smaller size version of our popular 20g Protein Bar. A truly great-tasting meal replacement snack or after workout recovery bar. Honey Stinger protein bars are gluten free and contain no trans fats. Our protein bar is truly unique as we include over 30% USDA certified organic honey, 10 grams of whey protein – 20% of the daily recommended allowance, 22 vitamins and minerals, calcium and antioxidants

I wanted to add that while there are no gluten ingredients added to the Honey Stinger products, I was concerned when I saw this statement right below the “gluten-free ingredients” statement:

“May contain peanut, wheat, egg and other tree nuts”.

Honey Stinger was kind enough to share this information to provide some peace of mind:

“Honey Stinger protein bars are made with 100% gluten free ingredients.  We have many customers with celiac (disease) report their successful use of our protein bars.  We realize every person with celiac has a difference level of allergic response and the disease is a significant inconvenience. The wheat warning on the allergens statement of our package is there because the protein bars are not produced in a certified gluten free facility. The facility that packages our protein bars also package wheat products therefore there is always a chance particles of wheat may be present. The likelihood of this happening is small but the chance exists.”  Additionally on their website, they state, “Our organic energy chews have non-gluten ingredients and are made in a facility that does not process any products with gluten. Our 10g protein bars, 20g protein bars and gels do not have any gluten but they are made in a facility that processes gluten. In between production runs the lines are meticulously cleaned.”

The “So Active” box is $14.99 + $5.00 in shipping. So Lucky Gifts offers many other options than the “So Active” box that I received.  They have a gift box for just about every occasion you can think of!  I love the “Starter Kit” and “Away-from-home” packages!

The great people over at So Lucky Gifts have graciously offered to give one lucky reader a “So Active” box, just like the one I received.  How does that sound?  Just follow the instructions below to enter to win!

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I was fortunate to be selected to receive some new prototype cookies from Nana’s to sample & provide feedback on.  I was excited, as it had been a long time since I had any of the cookies from Nana’s.  The new cookies are similar in ingredients to the current gluten-free cookies with the exception of how they are sweetened.  The current cookies are being sweetened with 100% natural fruit juice, while the prototype cookies are being sweetened with organic cane juice.

The prototype cookies come in 3 different varieties:

Lemon – Mostly crunchy with a decent texture.  This was Jon’s favorite.

Snickerdoodle – Crunchy to hard – great flavor, but not my favorite texture.  Jon liked this one a lot and if there had not been a “lemon” flavor, this would have been his favorite.

Chocolate – Soft and chewy and hands down my favorite.  I have to be honest that I didn’t share this cookie.  I was fortunate enough to be able to sample all 3 cookies before Jon got home & I hid this one from Jon.  (I guess we will see if he reads my blog,  huh?)

These cookies will only be available for a limited time, in limited quantities on the Nana’s website.  The sample package is $6.95 for 6 large cookies.  Enter “gfproto” for free shipping on your order.  I hope that these make it to store shelves in the near future! Next time I will share with Jon.  Promise.

Nana’s gluten-free products are baked in a certified gluten-free facility and are also free of dairy, corn, eggs, cholesterol and GMOs.

***The cookies reviewed in this blog post were sent to me free of charge for review purposes.

Welcome to March!  Funny that we have had such a mild winter and here we are on March 5th with snow on the ground.  Given it is only a dusting, but this is just what I figured would happen.  I can live with it, though, as these cold days have been interspersed with mild ones with temps in the 50s and 60s.  I’ll be happy when it stays warm, though.  I am ready for SPRING!

The weekend was spent running, studying & even some movie watching with Aaron.  We finally watched The Social Network (yes, we are a little behind).   We really enjoyed the movie and it was kind of cool to see how Facebook came about.  Have you seen The Social Network?

Onto the task at hand – meals.  Here is the plan for the week:

Sunday – Rotisserie chicken, garlic roasted red potatoes, steamed green beans & carrots

Monday – Shrimp fettucine Alfredo, steamed broccoli & salad

Tuesday – Mexican pizzas, Mexican rice, corn and salad

Wednesday – Perfect pork tenderloin, sweet potato puffs, roasted asparagus & salad

Thursday – Bourbon chicken, coconut baked rice, broccoli & salad

Friday – Make your own pizza and salad

Saturday – Leftovers

Baking

Crispy Rice Treats

Scones

Week in review

Don’t forget to enter to win samples of Boundless Nutrition’s Perfect Protein Cookie.

The Lowdown on Gluten-Free Flours & Mixes

Check out my guest post over at NuGo Nutrition

Gluten-Free Easter Candy Info

My review of Kiss My Face gluten-free products

Burger Deconstructed: Spicy Sweet Potato Hash Browns

What is the weather like where you live? 

Do you like cookies?  I do.  I like them even better when they are the chosen food for refueling after a hard workout or long run.  No, I haven’t lost my marbles, these cookies are Perfect Fit Protein Cookies, and they are good for you!

I wanted to chow down right away on these, but I waited & used them for refueling after 2 different strength training sessions & 1 long run.  The protein cookies come in three different varieties:

• White chocolate macadamia nut
• Peanut butter
• Chocolate chip

I sampled the white chocolate macadamia nut first and fell in love!  The flavor & texture were much better that I had expected.  The peanut butter & chocolate chip were equally as impressive.  I can see getting used to having these around to look forward to after my runs.

All of the cookies have pretty impressive nutrition stats:

• 150 calories
• 10 grams protein
• 4 grams fiber
• 3 cups green tea

The cookies are also free of soy & egg and contain hormone-free milk protein.  The cookies can be purchased at many stores across the US, including GNC and Whole Foods.

How would you like to win a box of the protein cookies for yourself?  All that you have to do is follow the instructions below.

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I have shared my rice bowls many times in the past, and they are some of my favorite, quick meals.  However, the other day, I had a huge sweet potato that needed to be used, but I really wanted a burger.  I didn’t want a bun, so I decided to make a burger bowl or deconstructed burger.  I made my sweet potato into spicy sweet potato hash browns & then layered in the bowl with some mushrooms that I had sauteed in extra virgin olive oil and white wine. 

Spicy Sweet Potato Hash Browns

• 1 –2 large sweet potatoes
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Cinnamon
• Cayenne
• Sea Salt

1.  Chop sweet potato into small chunks.  The smaller they are, the faster they will cook.  I have found that this is important with sweet potatoes, as they tend to burn on the outside if you aren’t careful. 

2.  Heat oil in pan (I used roughly 1-2 teaspoons for 1 large potato).  I cooked the sweet potatoes over medium head to avoid burning. 

3.  Season potatoes with cinnamon & cayenne to taste.  I just eyeball it and may have used a little too much cayenne because we were all coughing, but the potatoes tasted great! 

4.  Cover with lid & cook until browned on both sides.  Season with a dash or 2 of sea salt.

Meanwhile, cook your burger to your liking.  I used 90% lean, grass-fed beef from Whole Foods and cooked medium-rare.  The mushrooms were quickly cooked before my burger in EVOO and a dash of white wine.  Tip: Don’t salt your mushrooms until they are done cooking or it draws the water out & they won’t brown. 

Layer in a bowl, starting with the sweet potatoes, then mushrooms, then burger & toppings.  I chose simple ketchup & field greens for this bowl, but the sky is the limits!