Picadillo Quesadilla

Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 2 • Size: 1 quesadilla (3 triangles)
Calories: 211 • Fat: 10 g • Carb: 15 g • Fiber: 8 g • Protein: 22 g • Sugar: 1 g
Sodium: 563 mg • Cholesterol: 30 mg

For the quick Pico De Gallo:

• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 1 tbsp chopped tomato
• 1 tbsp chopped scallion
• juice from 1/2 lime

For the quesadilla:

• cooking spray
• 2 reduced-carb whole wheat flour tortillas
• 6 tbsp shredded reduced fat cheddar jack
• 1/2 cup Crock Pot Picadillo (see below, drained)

Directions:

Combine the ingredients for the quick pico de gallo in a small bowl.

Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spray the skillet with oil and add a tortilla. Brown about 2 minutes on each side, then spread 1/4 cup picadillo on half of the tortilla. Top with cheese and half of the pico de gallo, then fold and press down with a spatula. Cook 1 to 2 minutes on each side, until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is crisp.  

Remove from heat and cut in 3 pieces. Repeat with the remaining. Eat hot!

Slow Cooker Picadillo
Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 11 • Size: 1/2 cup 
Calories: 170 • Fat: 7 g • Protein: 22.5 g • Carb: 4.5 g • Fiber: 1 g • Sugar: 1.5 g
Sodium: 237 mg (without the salt)

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 lbs 93% lean ground beef
• 1 cup minced onion
• 1 cup diced red bell peppers
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup minced cilantro
• 1 small tomato, diced
• 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup alcaparrado (manzanilla olives, pimientos, capers) or green olives
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 2 bay leaves
• kosher salt and fresh pepper, to taste

Directions:

Brown meat in a large deep skillet on medium-high heat; season with generously with salt and a little pepper. Use a wooden spoon to break the meat up into small pieces. When meat is no longer pink, drain all the liquid from pan. Add the onions, garlic and bell peppers to the meat and cook an addition 3-4 minutes

Transfer the meat to the slow cooker, then add tomato, cilantro, tomato sauce, 1 1/4 cups water, alcaparrado (or olives) [I usually add some of the brine from the jar for added flavor] then add the spices.

Set slow cooker to HIGH for 3 to 4 hours or LOW for 6 to 8. After it's ready, taste for salt and add more as needed [I added a little more cumin and garlic powder at the end as well since the crock pot tends to mute the flavors of herbs and spices]. Discard the bay leaves and serve over brown rice.

Makes about 5 3/4 cups.

7 Mistakes Even Healthy Eaters Make

You've taken the first step: vowing to eat well, starting now. Many dieters are so determined to finally lose that weight that the pounds will indeed start to whittle away. The problem, though, is that many haven't learned from their mistakes -- and within a month or so, they've returned to their poor eating habits. Here are seven of the most  common dieting mistakes:

1. Not eating enough protein with breakfast.

A person decides to eat healthy and chooses a bowl of cereal with non-fat milk and a banana; one hour later, he or she starts complaining of hunger. People who make this mistake are definitely moving in the right direction, but if they are truly watching their serving sizes, the 8 grams of protein from the milk is most likely not going to keep them full until lunchtime. Consequently, they wind up over-snacking until then or eating a lunch that’s too big. Adding a healthy fat to the cereal mix, like slivered almonds, or having a little extra protein -- like a hard-boiled egg -- can make a big difference in their satiety level.

2. Having a snack.

This is a tricky one. Most nutritionists recommend a mid-morning snack if it's going to be more than four hours between breakfast and lunch. But often, people misjudge the size of their snack and create another actual meal. A 1-ounce serving of almonds is not the same as a 2-ounce serving. Remember, a snack is a mini-meal, and it ought to be less than 200 calories. Plus, it should contain protein, healthy fat or both, or you will most likely be hungry one hour later. In other words, don’t just grab a piece of fruit. And guess what? If you aren’t really hungry, there's probably no need for a snack at all.

3. Not counting the calories from alcohol.

You would think this would be a no-brainer, but too many people sabotage their weight-loss efforts by their cocktail consumption. Cocktails don't need to be flat-out avoided, but you can't drink like a fish on the weekends and reach your weight-loss goals -- no matter how well you eat during the week. And watch the size of your weekday pour -- a 6-ounce glass of wine doesn’t have the same calories as a 12-ounce glass.

4. Eating a salad for lunch.

Dieters often boast they're eating salads for lunch, as if they think they're following the No. 1 weight-loss guideline. Here’s the thing:  Some salads are healthy, and some are not so healthy. If you’re piling your salad with everything but the kitchen sink, it’s closer to the latter. Croutons, bacon bits, lots of cheese and a creamy dressing can be just the tip of a diet disaster. Too much chicken, too much avocado and too much olive oil can push it over the edge. So just because you're eating all those healthy greens, you need to make sure all the other ingredients follow suit.

5. Leaving the carb off the dinner plate.

This is a really popular mistake. Believe it or not, you can lose weight and enjoy carbs with dinner -- too many people think more protein on the plate is far better than adding a carb; when you do the math, however, it doesn’t usually work out in the protein’s favor. For example, a plain 8-ounce chicken breast is around 375 calories, but if you were to eat a 4-ounce serving and add a half cup of brown rice, you would save about 78 calories. A small baked potato (topped with salsa) can save you 105 calories, if you stick with a 4-ounce serving of broiled salmon versus an 8-ounce. And besides saving calories, you'll be getting fiber, which overall may help with weight loss.

6. Avoiding your 'bad' foods.

This is probably the No. 1 diet mistake. Ask yourself: What do you love to eat? And don't list what you think you should be eating. It's important to continue to eat those foods you really love -- though you likely think you should avoid them. Sound crazy? Well, whenever someone completely avoids the foods they love, they inevitably feel deprived and give up on healthy eating. The key is to find a way to keep the favorites in the mix without  sabotaging weight-loss goals. For example: Occasionally having a slice of pizza for lunch with a side salad, so you don’t wind up wanting to sit down for an entire pie. Enjoying French fries with your burger, but losing the bun. Sharing dessert at a restaurant when dining out, while consciously passing on the breadbasket.

7. Trying the next fad diet.

If you hear about a diet that promises quick weight loss, run. If you hear about a diet that eliminates food groups, run faster. And if you think trying yet another diet instead of attempting to make lifestyle changes is the answer, think again.

Courtesy of:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/7-mistakes-even-healthy-eaters-make_55a5279fe4b0b8145f738f28?utm_hp_ref=healthy-living

Buffalo Chicken Meatballs (no dressing)

Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 26 • Size: 1 meatball
Calories: 37 • Fat: 2 g • Carb: 1 g • Fiber: 0 g • Protein: 4 g • Sugar: 0 g
Sodium: 135 mg (without salt)  • Cholest: 26 mg

Ingredients:

• oil spray (I used my mister)
• 1 1/4 lb ground chicken
• 1/4 cup panko crumbs
• 1 large egg
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 1/3 cup finely minced celery
• 1/3 cup finely minced carrot
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/3 cup Franks Hot sauce
• 1/4 cup skinny blue cheese dressing (optional)
• finely chopped celery leaf for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly spray a non-stick baking sheet with oil.

In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, panko crumbs, egg, scallions, celery, carrot and garlic; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Using clean hands, mix until combined. Roll the mixture (1/8 cup each) into 26 round meatballs.

Place meatballs onto prepared baking sheet and bake until cooked through and golden, about 16 to 18 minutes.

Place the meatballs in a bowl, add the buffalo sauce and gently toss to combine. Serve immediately, drizzled with blue cheese dressing, if desired.

Makes 26 meatballs.

The Best Form Of Cardio Just Keeps Getting Better

It turns out that one of your favorite schoolyard games doubles as one of the best cardio workouts.

A jump rope weighs next to nothing and can fit in your pocket, and when you start using it, you can burn approximately the same number of calories you would when running an 8-minute mile. It is considered one of the most effective workouts due to this calorie burn, as well as its higher intensity, its additional resistance component and its use of the entire body.

"Jumping rope for just 10 minutes is a huge dose of aerobic exercise," Neil Johannsen, an assistant professor in the Louisiana State University School of Kinesiology, told The Huffington Post. "It's a vigorous exercise that works all the muscles in the body as opposed to something like walking. You can walk up to a vigorous intensity, but you're only working a few muscle groups. Jumping rope makes you use your arms, your core stabilizer muscles, all the leg muscles, and it gets your heart rate up in that vigorous exercise range."

Jumping rope is also considered by some fitness professionals to be an effective way to reduce cellulite. For example, Edward Jackowski, the CEO and founder of Exude Fitness who has who has observed such changes in his clientele over the course of 30 years, calls jumping rope an "intensive cardiovascular workout" that could reduce cellulite by burning fat stores.

"Cellulite occurs when fat cells push against the surrounding subcutaneous connective tissue in your skin," Jackowski told The Huffington Post. "If your lymph circulation becomes sluggish, toxins accumulate in these fat cells. Interval training with the jump rope improves your lymph circulation... Jumping rope can cause thousands of muscle contractions that pump your lymphatic fluid out of problem areas, reducing fluid congestion in your tissues."

Johannsen agrees that cellulite reduction is plausible, but the fact still remains that there are no completed laboratory tests confirming such an effect. "Scientifically speaking, cellulite isn't just a matter of fat buildup -- it also includes the connective tissue in that area to make it dimple, so it's more complex than making the cell bigger or smaller," he said. "But to reduce the mass of it, you have to burn fat."

Jumping rope is both aerobic and includes resistance, making it an exercise that promotes fat loss and minimizes muscle loss simultaneously (most forms of cardio lead to the loss of both fat and lean mass). "When you push off the ground to jump into the air, you're lifting your body weight off the ground," explained Johannsen. "And when you land, in order to dampen that force of you landing, you're engaging those muscle groups similar to if you were doing some sort of light resistance training."

From its cardiovascular benefits to its fat-burning potential -- not to mention affordability, portability and ease of use -- jumping rope could be worth a try. Want to check it out? Here are a few different types of jump ropes that can elevate your experience:

Smart Rope

The jump rope is even joining the fitness gadget scene. Forget tracker wristbands and heart rate monitors -- this wearable technology is something you can physically use to improve your fitness.

Smart Rope might take your jump rope workout to a whole new level with this LED-embedded prototype that connects to your smartphone and soon it'll be able to keep you in sync with your workout routine, no matter where you are.

According to their video explainer above, 23 LED lights display up to a 4-digit number, keeping track of your jumps as you work and reminding you of available battery life. Its Bluetooth capability also syncs with its maker, Tangram's SMART GYM app to store all of your workout data (jumps, time, calories burned, etc.) from the jump rope to help you get healthier.

Lightweight Speed Ropes

On the other hand, one of the main benefits of jumping rope lies in the fact that it can be so simple. We at HuffPost Lifestyle are fans of minimalistic, lightweight plastic speed ropes like this one from GoFit. Quality speed ropes can cost less than $5 and definitely get the job done.

Weighted Jump Ropes

If you're looking for additional resistance (and fitness challenge), we recommend giving a weighted jump rope a try. This leather rope from Nike has a smooth rope design and durable grip handles to help you work even harder.

Crossrope

For those who are interested in using their jump rope for a variety of workouts, it's worth checking out Crossrope, a jump rope system with interchangeable ropes and handles to cater to strength on one day and speed on the next. The original Crossrope Elite system, for example, comes with nine cable types and easily adjustable weights ranging from 2 ounces to 3 pounds. The free Crossrope app for iOS devices also just launched on July 1, which offers jump rope interval workout ideas for exercisers of all levels.

Beaded Jump Ropes

And even the classic beaded ropes that mentally take you right back to high school gym class will get the job done. This beaded rope from Fitness Gear, for example, will run you less than $10, and many find that the beads not only help with speed, but also with consistently timing the rope through spin after spin after spin.

At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter if you opt for the high-tech gadget or the old schoolyard classic -- the jump rope is essential to your personal fitness arsenal.

Courtesy of:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/07/13/benefits-of-jumping-rope_n_7689320.html

Caramelized Onion, Red Pepper and Zucchini Frittata

Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 1/4th
Calories: 157.7 • Fat: 9.3 g • Protein: 14.6 g • Carb: 5.7 g • Fiber: 1.6 g • Sugar: 0.8 g
Sodium: 243 mg (without salt)

Ingredients:

• 1 white onion, thinly sliced rings
• 1 medium red pepper, diced
• 1 1/2 cups zucchini, diced into matchsticks
• 4 large eggs
• 4 large egg whites
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 2 tsp olive oil
• salt and fresh pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°.

Over medium-low heat, heat oil in a 10-inch skillet. Stir in onion and cook until slightly brown, about 10 minutes. Add peppers and cook 5 more minutes, then add zucchini. Season with salt and pepper and cook 3 more minutes stirring occasionally.

In a medium bowl whisk eggs, egg whites, parmesan, salt and pepper.

Add eggs to the skillet making sure eggs cover all the vegetables. When the edges begin to set (about 2 minutes) move skillet to oven. Cook about 10-15 minutes, or until frittata is completely cooked. Serve warm, cut into 4 pieces.

10 Morning Habits of Well-Balanced People

Mornings are hard for everyone. Whatever to-do lists we finished yesterday are instantly forgotten, and new ones begin to pile up -- fast.

To help you win your mornings and start your day off right, we’ve partnered with belVita to bring you the best early-day habits of well-balanced people.

They Have A Set Bedtime

Morning habits begin when you close your eyes the night before. You can’t start a well-balanced day if you don’t get a well-balanced night’s sleep, can you? Set a bedtime that allows for the recommended seven to eight hours of shut-eye. Adequate sleep not only helps you feel better, boosts your mood and offers numerous health benefits, it also improves memory and sharpens attention, which are both crucial to maintaining a balanced life.

They Wake Up Early

You don’t need to be on a rowing machine at 4 a.m. to make the most of your morning, but you do need to leave yourself enough time before heading out the door to finish all the things that make your first few hours successful. Research shows early risers use extra time in the mornings to organize, set goals and plan their schedule, which all contribute to a smooth day ahead.

They Don’t Hit The Snooze Button

While those extra Zs are enticing, especially so early in the morning, don’t give in to the temptation! Hitting “snooze” will only exacerbate any sluggish or tired feelings you have when you first open your eyes, leaving you more tired -- and rushed, since you’ll have less time to prep for the day.

They Exercise

Exercising first thing in the morning is a great way to start your day off on the right foot and create a positive routine. Not only are there numerous health benefits -- like improved mental clarity and metabolism -- you’ll also free up your schedule for any post-work activities, or a night of much-needed rest and relaxation. If you can’t fit in a yoga session or quick run, try walking around the block.

They Take Time To Be Thankful

Instead of immediately thinking about the never-ending list of tasks you have to accomplish, wake up grateful for another day. Give yourself a moment to celebrate a recent accomplishment, or something positive going on in your life.

They Are Appreciative

Sending an uplifting message, or simply a “Good morning!” text, to a family member or friend is a great way to put yourself in the mindset to have a strong and uplifting day -- and remind yourself of all the great people you have in your life. You can make this part of your routine during your morning coffee, commute or even while waiting in the bodega line.

They Meditate

Whether you meditate during your commute, on your lunch break or before you even leave your bed, this “mental hygiene” practice helps to reduce stress, improve concentration and encourages a healthy lifestyle. Meditation can also boost happiness, self-awareness and self-acceptance, which are all essential steps to live your steadiest life.

They Are Realistic

While overachievers may be quick to prove how many tasks they can pack into one day, it’s important to be realistic about what you can and cannot accomplish so you can set expectations -- those of the people who are relying on you as well as your own -- accordingly. This leaves less room for stress and unnecessary rushing throughout the day, leading to a calmer, more balanced day (and life).

They Listen To Uplifting Music Or An Audiobook

Set yourself up for success by starting your morning with music you find enjoyable, or a book or podcast you find inspirational, motivational or uplifting. Not only will this give you something to look forward to in the mornings, but music has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety, improve immune functioning and aid memory.

They Eat A Filling Breakfast

Beginning your morning with a well-balanced breakfast sets the precedent for an equally steady and productive day. Not only does eating breakfast help you feel fuller longer, but studies show that regular breakfast eaters feel more energized, have better memory retention and even have steadier cholesterol levels than those who skip the meal.

Courtesy of:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/12/morning-habits-well-balanced-life_n_6818110.html

Summer Pasta Salad with Baby Greens

Skinnytaste.com
Servings: 4 • Size: about 1 1/2 cups 

Calories: 169 • Fat: 5 g • Carb: 29.5 g • Fiber: 4 g • Protein: 6 g • Sugar: 4 g
Sodium: 271 mg (without the salt) • Cholest: 2 mg

Ingredients:

• 3 oz (about 4 cups) baby arugula and baby spinach mix
• 5 oz high fiber or whole wheat pasta (use brown rice pasta for GF)
• 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes, sliced thin
• 2 tbsp capers, drained
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• salt and fresh pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp freshly shaved Parmigiano Reggiano

Directions:

Boil pasta in salted water according to package directions. When done, drain and rinse under cold water.

In a large bowl, combine the pasta, baby greens, sun dried tomatoes, capers, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Toss well then just before serving top with fresh shaved Parmigiano Reggiano.