Chicken Piccata is a classic.

Fresh lemon paired with white wine and capers makes a light and refreshing sauce that is perfect for this time of  the year.

I love this recipe because it comes together so quickly and because my whole family loves it, 2 year sold- 40 years old, everyone around here is happy to eat it.

Try serving with some fresh asparagus and brown rice.  Or  double the ingredients for the sauce and serve over some pasta.  Enjoy!

Continue Reading: Clean Eating Chicken Piccata (Video)

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

6 Reasons You May Be Overeating:

1.  Lack of awareness.  Simply put, you are not eating when you eat.  In other words, you do not pay attention to your meal and therefore miss out on the eating experience.  If the brain does not register pleasure and nourishment from a meal, it will say, “HUNGRY”.  This message will cause you to keep eating even though the physical hunger has gone.  What you are now hungry for is your own attention.
2.  Meal skipping.  This one is simple, but true nonetheless.  Think of your appetite like a pendulum that it is aligned with your physical appetite (vs. the mental appetite).  If the pendulum swings to far in one direction (i.e. not eating or skipping meals) it is bound by nature to swing back the other way (and when it does, it will be with vengeance).  You may be clever, but at the end of the day you cannot outsmart your body, no matter how hard you try.
3. Attempting to de-stress.  Within 30 seconds of chewing and eating food there is a chemical reponse in the body, which puts the body into an automatic relaxation response.  If you don’t practice using other tools for de-stressing (i.e. breathing, walking, calling a friend, journaling, etc.) eating food will provide you with a quick ticket to ‘destination relaxation’.
4. Feeling ungrounded.  Sometimes when we have something going on in life that creates big feelings inside of us or if we are in a state of transition, vulnerability, or unknown; eating more food will help create the experience of feeling more grounded.  Remember, feelings are simply vibrations in the body, so eating more food and ‘weighing’ yourself down helps to ease the intensity of an intense feeling.
5. Numbing Out.  Ever have a feeling, circumstance, situation, etc. in your life that you just don’t feel like looking at or dealing with?  Well overeating is a great distraction and once you are done overeating you can now direct all your attention to why you shouldn’t have done that, yet again distracting yourself from the main issue.  It’s ok to not want to deal with your feelings sometimes BUT if you are going to give yourself a label, be truthful.  You are not “an overeater’ you are simply “a person that doesn’t feel like feeling your feelings at that time”.   And that’s ok.
6. Lack of Pleasure.  When we do not receive enough pleasure in our lives we tend to reach for symbolic substitutes.  Eating some of your favorite foods can provide temporary pleasurable experiences.  Use them when you choose.  Receive the pleasure they are giving you.  Then move on.

As you can see, none of these causes of overeating can be ‘managed’ or remedied by trying to ‘control’ or ‘restrict’ your diet.  The eating itself is merely an invitation to dive in and take a closer look at yourself.  Be curious and interested in you!  You may just learn something that you didn’t know.

Do you ever find yourself overeating?  And if so, can you relate to any of the examples above?  Do any of these reasons resonate with you?  I’d love to hear your view down in the comments below.

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

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The giveaway is now closed – congrats to Vicki Howes.  Check your email!

I think of a strata as like the bread pudding of a quiche or frittata.

A combination of egg and milk absorbed by hearty chunks of sourdough bread which when cooked up results in a crispy, crunch exterior paired with a light, custard-like center.

It’s rich and light all at the same time.

This would be the ideal recipe to make for Mothers Day because you can prep everything the night before and then simply pop it in the oven and hour before you are ready to serve it.  For me, this strata served with a fresh fruit salad and a pot of strong brewed coffee would be the perfect start to any day, holiday or not.

This video was a part of a Mothers Day collaboration with some other tasty YouTube channels, so if you are interested in some more recipes for Mothers Day be sure to check out the playlist here.

And now for the giveaway!

I recently had the opportunity to try out this Go Long Crew With Thumb-Holes from Albion Fit (they specialize in fashionable and practical women’s fitness, swimwear, and workout clothing) and now have the chance to give one top away to one of YOU!

*This recipe is not new but it is one of the most popular recipes on my website so I decided to make a video to go along with the post.  Enjoy!

As much as I would love to post a recipe that would hit the spot on a crisp Autumn day, it just ain’t happenin’.  “Why?”, you ask.  Simply because I’ve yet to have a crisp Autumn day.  Here in SoCal. we’re still warm… not hot… but definitely warm.  We’re talking mid-seventies.

So, when I heard that my brother-in- law and his girlfriend were coming over to watch the World Series this past Sunday, a big pot of chili wasn’t really an option.

I wanted to make something that was light and easy, but would not have me stuck in the kitchen for the whole game… that’s when I remembered this recipe that I saw over at Kirsten’s Home Cooking – Shrimp Tacos! I bookmarked them as soon as I saw them last week and this was the perfect time to try them.

Let me tell you guys, these are so good and so easy. I was suddenly feeling A-OKAY about our anti-fall weather. Who needs chili when you can have Super Simple Shrimp Tacos!

I pretty much stuck to Kirsten’s recipe, except I swapped the sour cream for some fat free greek style yogurt and I doubled the recipe. It’s a keeper!

Oh yeah, I also served them with some fresh guac too… it was the perfect game side meal and great for Cinco De Mayo too).

Super Simple Shrimp Tacos

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of frozen shrimp, defrosted, peeled, & deveined
• 6 oz fat free Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• 2 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• ½ a head of cabbage, thinly sliced (about 5 cups)
• 8 corn tortillas
• 4 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat tortillas over medium heat in a dry skillet until warm and starting to form small brown spots. Set aside on a plate covered with a clean kitchen towel.

Mix yogurt, cayenne, lime juice, cilantro, & salt in a small bowl, set aside.

Heat two teaspoons of olive oil in a medium non-stick skillet and add cabbage.  Cook for about four minutes or until the cabbage is just barely wilted.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Cut shrimp into thirds, so you have little bite size pieces.  Sauté in two teaspoons of olive oil and season with salt, pepper and a dash of cayenne pepper over medium heat just until done.  They cook up in just a few minutes… so be sure to watch them!

Build your taco!  Place a scoop of cabbage on the warmed tortillas taco, then top with shrimp, and cilantro sauce… enjoy!

Serves 4.

Nutritional Analysis

Nutrients for 2 tacos: Calories: 264; Total Fat: 5.8g; Saturated Fat: 0.4g; Cholesterol: 850mg; Sodium: 850mg; Carbohydrate: 23g; Dietary Fiber: 4.6; Sugars: 6g; Protein: 30.2g

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

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Everyone seems to have a favorite way to make guacamole and this is by far my favorite.

These are some simple guidelines I use to get my guacamole just the way I like it:

1.  Garlic.  I’m a big flavor girl, SO I like big flavor guacamole.  Translation = lots of garlic!

2.  Scallions. I prefer the milder flavor of scallions over onions in my guacamole (I’m kind of contradicting my big flavor theory here BUT isn’t that just the way life seems to work?).

3.  No tomatoes. I like to garnish with tomatoes but I never stir them in – they tend to add too much liquid.  (If you really like tomatoes in your guac, then I suggest removing the seeds first [something I do not have the patience to do]).

4.  Cilantro.  People either love it or hate it.  I love it.

These are the basics.  I love my guacamole.  And I hope you love it too.

PS – be sure to watch the video because I share my fail proof techniques for choosing perfectly ripe avocados every time.

Guacamole

Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 fat cloves of garlic, minced (about 1/2 tsp)
• 3 scallions, minced (about ¼ cup)
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
• The juice from 1/2 a lime (possibly more depending on how juicy the lime)
• 2 avocados
• A fat pinch of kosher salt

Directions:

Combine the garlic, scallions, cilantro, avocado, lime and salt  in a medium bowl.

Using the back of your fork, mash the avocado in with the rest of the ingredients until you have a nice chunky consistency.  Adjust seasonings and enjoy!

Makes 8 servings.

Nutritional Analysis

Nutrients per 1/8th of the recipe; Calories: 73; Total Fat: 0.9g; Saturated Fat: 0.9; Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 4mg; Carbohydrate: 4.1; Dietary Fiber: 3; Sugars: 0.2; Protein: 0.9

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

If any of you are fans of shrimp cocktail this recipe is going to be your new best friend.

I don’t say that just because it’s delicious but using the technique of roasting the shrimp is a really easy and quick way to make ‘shrimp cocktail’.  SO much easier than the classic technique of boiling with herbs, etc.

This technique was inspired by Ina Garten(aka the Barefoot Contessa).  Her clever, tasty twists on the classics always catch my eye.

I love making these on the weekend and then having them in the fridge to throw on salads during the week.  Shrimp are high in protein so they’re a great choice for all my little gym rats out there.  Plus my kids love them too, so that always adds bonus points in my book.

If you decide to try them I highly recommend peeling and deveining the shrimp yourself.  Not only will this save you a few bucks but the difference in taste (and texture) is remarkable.  I did a side by side taste test to see if doing the work of cleaning my own shrimp was worth my time and was really surprised to see just how much fresher and better the shrimp that I cleaned myself were.

And should you want to try another recipe that uses roasted shrimp, be sure to check out my Roasted Shrimp And Green Beans.

Continue Reading: How-To Make Roasted Shrimp Cocktail (Video)

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

Banana Protein Muffins – Clean & Delicious®

Now that I am focusing more on strength training at the gym, I’m constantly trying to find convenient, yummy ideas for high protein snacks.

After making these simple Apple Cinnamon Protein Muffins I’ve been dying to experiment with different flavors.  I just love having a muffin that actually supports my fitness goals (so much better than a plate of egg whites;)).

So today I did a quick search online and found these amazing Banana Bread Protein Muffins from DashingDish (yet another amazing blog stuffed with tons of clean eating recipe [and it also provides info for weight watchers] so please check it out).

The only changes I made to the original recipe were to up the cinnamon and replace the Truvia with a couple tablespoons of turbinado sugar (I really don’t want to get into the habit of baking with artificial sweeteners – I’d prefer to just have a little of the real thing).

These muffins are light, satisfying and delicious (and you would never know they were gluten-free to boot).  Perfect for a pre-post workout snack or simply with some coffee or tea in the afternoon.

I especially love them topped with a little almond or peanut butter!  And am certain a schmear of Greek yogurt would be delicious too.

Are you a fan of protein muffins?  I’m really looking forward to experimenting with more flavors!

Continue Reading: Clean Eating Banana Protein Muffins

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

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Time or money?

When it comes to cooking (and ironically life) you almost always have this choice.

Do you take the extra time, save a little money and do the dirty work yourself?  Or do you save a little time, spend a little extra money and have the dirty work done for you.

I think most of us probably do a little of both and I certainly don’t believe there is a right or wrong, simply what works best at the time.

However, when it comes to shrimp, I can tell you first hand that when you buy shrimp that is pre-peeled and deveined it never tastes as fresh and delicious as when you do it yourself.

I’ve done side by side comparisons on this one and can promise you that cleaning and deveining the shrimp yourself will result in a superior end product.

So needless to say, it’s worth knowing how to do and I wanted to be sure you knew.

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

Remember those Baked Banana Crepes from earlier in the week?  Well they’re back in this video and this time I’m taking them to the next level.

I double the serving size, smear the center with crunchy almond butter, roll them into logs, and then slice them into pinwheels.

Now you can certainly make these for breakfast and enjoy right away but what I love most about this recipe is that it’s an easy make-ahead meal/snack that you can take on the go.

I like to pop a few pinwheels in some type of airtight container or baggie and bring them on the road, this way when I’m picking kids up from school and then heading straight out to activities I know I have a delicious, healthy snack to look forward to that will prevent me from falling victim to the lack of nutritious convenience food out there.

Plus my kids LOVE them too, which is why I like to double up on the serving size when I’m making these.

You can certainly change up the fillings as well.  I’m thinking  cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, Nutella, or peanut butter would all be delicious options as well but I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

What do you think would be delicious stuffed inside these crepes?

Continue Reading: Banana Crepe & Almond Butter Pinwheels (Video)

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies

Baked Banana Crepe – Clean & Delicious®

The urge is to call this recipe a pancake but the truth is that only those that eat super clean and/or have specific fitness goals would actually consider this a pancake.

If you are reading this, you are probably one of those people.

For me, this recipe very much satisfies a pancake craving although it is more ‘eggy’ than ‘bready’ and therefore I went with crepe.  Besides, when my hubby tasted it, he thought it was a crepe so that was one more reason I went with it.

It’s simple. It’s fast. And it’s made with 2 base ingredients; egg and banana.

This recipe (or some form of it) has been sweeping the ‘health/paleo/fitness/clean-eating blog’ world for some time now and I’ve seen lots of people cook this in a pan just like you would a regular pancake.  But every time I tried to do this myself it never worked.

The idea to bake it came from Tiffany of the Gracious Pantry (a blog dedicated to clean eating recipes – check it out if you haven’t already!).  Not only does baking it create perfectly cooked and delicious results but it also frees you from the time of ‘stove-time’ cooking.  Just pop it in the oven and you’re done.

This is a great alternative for anyone who is gluten-free or simply trying to cut back on processed carbs.  It’s also an ideal pre-post workout meal due to it’s high protein and quick acting, natural carbs.

And because my kids inhale it every time I make it, I can say with confidence that it is also delicious for those who simply like good food (no dietary restrictions required).

Be sure to check back later in the week, because I am sharing a video for my Banana Almond Pinwheels using this banana crepe as the base.

Continue Reading: Baked Banana Crepe

© Clean & Delicious with Dani Spies