All-Star Hummus

Don't forget to enter the DVD Giveaway! 
We'll draw the winners names on Wednesday at noon.

I have been on the lookout for a good hummus recipe for a few years now.  I am not easily satisfied and have spent hundreds of dollars on hummus in the last 5 years.  This is probably my favorite snack.  It's high in protein (and calories) which makes it more filling than some other options.  I'm not one to count calories, but I know that if I splurge too much on my hummus consumption, then it can add a few pounds to the scale.  Just eat in moderation.  I throw this on a wrap with some black beans, brown rice, spinach, salsa, and avocado or just grab my sprouted wheat tortillas (love Food for Life brand) and tear a few pieces off to use in place of tortilla chips.  Delicious.  I've had a few people ask me for this recipe recently, so I thought I'd share.

Hummus (courtesy of my Cuisinart food processor cookbook)
1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp sea salt
1-2 cloves garlic (I use 1)
4 cans (15.5 oz each) garbanzo bean (or chickpeas)
1/4 cup tahini (puchased at most health food stores--it's ground sesame seeds)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup water (I used 2/3 cup this time to make it a little less dry)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine parsley, lemon zest, salt, and garlic together in food processor (or blender) and process about 6 seconds and then scrape the sides and repeat again.  Add remaining ingredients and process until smooth, about 1 minute.  Scrape bowl and process again to incorporate all ingredients. 

Nutrtional Information (2 Tblsp)
Calories 55, Carb 5g, protein 2 g, fat 3 g, fiber 1 g, calcium 13 mg

Huge DVD Giveaway

Just in time to participate in the Shed 5 Fast Contest sponsored by Mom's into Fitness...

We are giving away 12 DVDs

to 12 lucky winners!

A little of my history about these DVDs.  A few years ago, I did a spot on a weekly internet radio show.  I was asked to review some workout DVDs from a company called Moms Into Fitness.  At the time, I was hoping to be a mom someday (and the future didn't look bright).  I popped in a Boot Camp DVD (for mom's who are trying to 'get their body back' and have been a fan ever since.  These aren't just for moms--but they are designed to be a fast, but challenging workout.

I was embarassed how sore I was the next morning (yes, my co-workers could tell by my slight limp from my sore legs) because it was a 'mom' video.  The interval training combined with toning exercises make it one of the hardest DVDs I have done before.  Since then, Lindsay Brin and Moms into Fitness have come out with many more excellent DVDs.  Lindsay Brin herself sent these DVDs to us because we have shared them with friends and family for the past few years--simply because they're great.  Now you get the benefits!

Enter to win 1 of the following:

 

Post-Natal Boot Camp
        (4 available)
 
Post-Natal Boot Camp 2
(4 available) 
 
Shed 5 Fast
(2 available)
 
Core Metabolic Jumpstart
(2 available)
 Here's how to enter:
1. You must be a follower of our blog.
2. For one entry, leave a comment with:
    a. your first name
    b. your email address so we can contact our winners (forgot that last time...oops!)
3. For 2 additional entries, post this giveaway on Facebook--tell us in your comment.
4. For 3 additional entries, do a post on your blog about this giveaway and just to be fair, give us the link to your blog.

We'll pick a winner on Wednesday, Feb 2nd! 

A Prize-Winning Recipe

I discovered a great blog with healthy recipes.  Some require some specialty ingredients that would involve a trip to the health-food store.  This is such a recipe.  My mom took these to a work party last week and won the prize for the best healthy food (even if the prize was a candy bar--lame). 

We will be posting the next big giveaway tomorrow, so stay tuned. 

Dreena's Frosted B-raw-nies!

Don't pass on making the frosting, it's what makes these brownies especially delicious.
Base:
1 cup raw almonds (see note)
1/4 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup raw walnuts
1 3/4 cups (packed) pitted medjool dates (see note)
1/4 cup dried organic pitted cherries (OR more dates, ie can use 2 cups dates in whole - omit almond extract if not using cherries)
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 vanilla bean (Or 1 – 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract)
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp almond extract (optional)

Frosting:
1/2 cup coconut butter (not coconut oil; I use Artisana coconut butter)
1/4 cup raw agave nectar
2 tbsp raw cocoa powder (or regular if you prefer)
pinch sea salt

In a food processor, first add almonds and cashews and process until very fine (the almonds are the hardest, and need to be worked until crumbly). Then add walnuts, dates and cherries and pulse/process until mixture is quite crumbly, but not yet coming together. Then, add cocoa powder, salt, and almond extract, and pulse through. With a sharp tip knife, slice the vanilla bean down the outer side to open up the bean. Using a blunt (butter) knife, scrape out all the tiny seeds from the bean on both sides, and add them to the processor (or add vanilla extract). Process again, along with the almond extract if using. Process until the mixture starts to come together but do not overmix so that the nuts release their oils (see note). Then remove the mixture and press into a brownie pan (8” x 8”) lined with parchment paper.

For the frosting, in a mini-food processor, first combine the coconut butter and agave nectar until smooth. Then add the cocoa powder and salt, and pulse through again until just combined. Do not overprocess or the frosting will begin to separate with the heat of the churning and become oily. (If you don’t have a mini-processor, you can follow the same steps stirring by hand in a bowl). Smooth frosting over base, and refrigerate for an hour or more until set. Cut into squares and serve! You can also freeze the squares after cutting, and enjoy them out of the freezer!
Note: A combination of ¾ cup almonds and ½ cup cashews also works well.
Note: If your dates are on the dry side, you can add 1-2 tbsp of water to the mixture to help assist the pureeing and the mixture easily coming together.
Note: If you process the mixture too long, the heat generated by the food processor will bring the oils out of the nuts. If this happens, the brownies won’t be ruined necessarily, but they will have an oily appearance and be oily to the touch. So, process minimally to begin, rather than over processing the nuts at the outset.

another HUGE giveaway (a day late)

i know we said we'd post our giveaway yesterday. with heather having twins that are approaching their first birthday, and me with four kids under the age of 6 (all of which are home with me all day), we just didn't get around to it.

but we have great news (a day late)!

to our followers and readers, lindsay has offered two AWESOME promotional codes for you!

*for 30% off her 60-day slim down program ($15 savings), use promo code:

60daydvd30

(this normally sells for $49.99 and you can get it for just $34.99)

*for $6 off her already "special price" right now (her first 4 downloads for $20- already an $8 savings), use promo code:

60daydvd30

(that's her first 4 downloads for $14 total- $3.50 per download- JUMP ON THAT!)

*for $3 off a single download (normally $7), use promo code:

download3

thanks to miss lindsay for being so generous! seriously ladies. jump on these deals! go to:

WWW.MOMSINTOFITNESS.COM

to use your promo codes!

stay tuned for another awesome giveaway this week...

some of lindsay's dvd's and more than one copy of each.

post-natal bootcamp

bootcamp 2

shed 5 fast

core metabolic jumpstart

Four Lucky Winners

Many of you took advantage of our extra entries and it came down to 174 entries!  Thanks for sharing the link with others.  More followers allows for more giveaways in the future.  Now for our winners...drum roll please...

With 4 entries, Ann Marie (entry 95):

With all 6 possible entries, Danila (entry 84):

Also with all 6 entries, Ash (entry 52):

With all 6 entries, Creel Family (entry 22):

Winners, please send your name and mailing address to FindYourBestSelf@gmail.com so we can get them in the mail for you. 

We will be announcing another GREAT giveaway tomorrow, so stay tuned.  We haven't finished with Lindsay Brin's videos and many of you will still win these great workout DVDs.

PICK ME! PICK ME! OUR BEST GIVEAWAY EVER!

with the new year beginning, so many of us need and want to get in shape. getting in shape has a lot to do with eating well. but it also has a lot to do with exercising.

i would be lying if i said i think a walk around the block, a few times per week is enough to get into great shape. not true. you need to really challenge your body.

this is one reason i love workouts like lindsay brin's dvd's and her new monthly downloads. (you can buy them one by one for $7 or receive a monthly subscription for just $5 per month. you'd better believe i'm a subscriber!) her workouts are designed to really challenge you. no more step aerobics with 2 lb weights. they are tough (especially if you haven't done any intense exercise before). but they are also quick. designed for busy moms who need to get back to "being a mom." but don't get me wrong... these workouts can be done by anyone, even if you haven't had a baby.

unfortunately, our bodies hit a plateau at some point. with any form of exercise. if you do the same thing, with the same weights for more than a few weeks, your body will stop changing. variety in exercise is HUGE! and i mean HUGE! so change up your workout every few weeks! and i mean, really change it!

we are so excited about today's giveaway! lindsay brin sent us TONS of dvd's to giveaway on our blog! yay! i know to kickstart the new year, lindsay is having her second, shed 5 fast contest. what better way to be motivated to get into the shape you've always wanted to be in! so stay tuned to her blog and her facebook page for the details.

something else to keep in mind: if you already have some of these dvd's or all of them, it doesn't hurt to have an extra copy (i have two copies of all of her dvd's... i lend them out ALL THE TIME for friends to try). and make sure and spread the word if you love her dvd's like we do, so everyone can have a chance to win!

to kick start our series of giveaways, we are starting off with 4 copies of:

60 day slimdown system

believe it or not, lindsay was generous enough to send us 4 copies! each 60 day slimdown includes:

*60 day meal plan

*60 day calender

*progress tracker

*fit level test

*4 dvd's (post-natal boocamp, cfs method, shed 5 fast, core metabolic jumpstart)

each of one of these is valued at $49.99!

here's are the rules:

to enter the giveaway, you must:

*become a follower of our blog

for 2 extra entries:

*post this giveaway on your blog

for 3 extra entries:

*post this giveaway on your facebook, twitter, or whatever else there is

after you have completed these tasks, leave a comment let us know exactly what you did so we can make sure and give you the correct amount of entries!

the contest ends one week from today, saturday, january 15th. we will announce the winner on the 16th.

good luck!!!