Guilt Free Wings Made at Home

Football season is here.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE wings when watching Football.  I think the two should go hand in hand.  Literally, one wing in each hand.  I also really like staying home on Sunday's and not going to a bar to watch the game.  ALSO, I don't want to eat fried wings all of the time. Here is my solution.... and I'm sure it could be better for you depending on the sauces you use. 

First you need to get some wings! I got them at Costco and put them in my freezer.  I got 6 packages of 10-12 wings for $13. They are all packaged individually for easy storage.  

Marinade! I take the wings out the night before and marinate them on the sauce.  I did BBQ and Buffalo in my picture.  I didn't have zip lock bags, so I just did it in some Rubbermaid containers. Worked out great.  I let them sit from about 6 pm until around 11am.  

Then we grilled them on Med heat for about 20 minutes.  You should use the excess sauce while grilling.  We have a brush we use.  Just add more sauce when you flip them. 

The first time I made them we were having a party, so I didn't want them to get cold before everyone could enjoy them.  I put them in my crock pot for about 2 hours on low.  (I have a casserole crock pot  get your crock pot here ) Honestly, they were the best wings.  They were crispy from the grill, but still moist from the crock pot! 

I cannot wait to make these again..... this weekend.

Sweet Potato Hash - 21 Day Fix Approved

So I had a pack of Chicken Apple Sausage and had NO idea what to make with it.  Honestly, I hadn't even tried it before.  I found a recipe online and it is seriously, and I mean seriously the BOMB.COM!  I had it for dinner and it made enough for me to have it as breakfast the next two days.

PS it took maybe 20 minutes to make from cutting veggies and cooking.

Ingredients:
Al Fresco Chicken Sausage Apple (you could use different brands)
1 Red Pepper
1 Zucchini
1 Green Apple
1/4 Onion
1 Sweet Potato
Eggs

First thing I did was wash my sweet potato and poke it with a fork.  I cook it in the microwave for 3 minutes on one side, flip and cook on the other side for 3 minutes.

Then while that is cooking, put some extra virgin olive oil in a pan and heat up.  You probably want to use a pan that has higher sides, so that your veggies don't fall out.

Dice your onion first.  I used about 1/4 of an onion, but by all means if you're an onion lover feel free to add more.  My boyfriend calls them poison, so I can't add too many. (even though he doesn't know 1/2 the time I add cooked onion to meals) Add them to the pan and let them start cooking.

Next, dice up a red pepper and add it to the pan.  Once that is added I sliced the zucchini in rounds then cut the round into 4 pieces (so it was 4 triangles). Add that to the pan.

Dice an apple into small pieces and add that to the pan.  I used 1/2 an apple the first time and the second time a whole apple. I like it with the whole apple better.

Once the sweet potato is cooked, you can cook the Al Fresco Chicken Sausage in the microwave! (SAY WHAT!) Crazy right.  If you're using a different brand than what I used check the cooking instructions.  I don't want anyone getting sick.  I cooked the 4 sausages on a plate for 1 min then flipped them over and cooked for another 2 minutes.

Your potato is going to be HOT! So, what I do is slice it so that it can cool off a little bit.  Once it's cooled so you can touch it the skin should come off relatively easy.  Then cut it into smaller pieces.  It's going to be a bit mushy, but that is ok! Add that to the pan with everything else.

Once the chicken sausage is cooked, slice it into smaller pieces and add to the pan.  I sliced it then cut the slices in half to make them go further.

While that is all cooking, cook 2 eggs over easy in a separate pan.  I know sounds weird, but trust me it's so good.

Don't fill your plate with this! Seriously, a little bit goes a long way.  I put some in my bowl and thought that isn't a lot maybe I should add more. Then I said to myself NO ASHLEY, you can come back and get more if you really think you need it.  Top with the fried egg.  Then break the egg up and enjoy!

You can measure everything out with your containers and cook an individual serving or you can try to measure after you cook it all.  I would say it's about 1/2 a yellow, 1 green, 1.5 red, and 1/2 a purple.

PS - if you want to eat it as leftovers at home with a pan where you can cook more egg go for it, but you can also eat it with out the egg and it's still amazing.  I had it at work for breakfast and was in heaven.

I hope you enjoy!!

Egg Muffins

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I decided to try something new for breakfast this week.  I am tired of hard boiled eggs, yogurt, and toast with peanut butter and banana. PLUS it's always good to get in a few extra veggies when you can. 

This recipe was so easy.  The hardest/most time consuming thing was cutting up veggies. 

Ingredients
12 eggs
pepper/salt
1 red pepper
Salsa - make your own/organic
1 floret of broccoli
hot sauce

You will need a muffin tin to make these

*optional - onion, mushroom, carrots... CHEESE if you're feeling jazzy! (I totally would of added cheese if I wasn't trying to be good!)

Preheat your oven to 375 and then grease your pan so it's ready to go. 

Dice your red pepper and broccoli and set aside. 

Whisk 12 eggs with salt and pepper to taste. 

Pour eggs into muffin tin with a little bit of room left at the top - maybe 1/2 an inch.

Then drop your ingredients in each tin and then take a fork and give it a light stir.  If you have any egg mixture left top off the muffins that are low. 

Cook for 15-20 min 

Let cook then take a knife around the outside of the egg muffin to help pop it out! 

You can eat this cold or warm it up! I plan to add some hot sauce on mine to spice it up!

I would count this as one Red - you can add green but there is so little (maybe 1/4) that I don't think it is necessary.  

Enjoy!

PS - The tin is hard to clean if you let it sit so make sure you clean it right away. I learned this the hard way.

Interested in the 21 Day Fix?  Email me ashleyfrancisfitness@gmail.com 

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Chocolate Protein French Toast

Ingredients 
3/4 Cup of Unsweetened Almond Milk

1/2 Scoop Chocolate Shakeology (or protein powder you use)
2 eggs
Cinnamon 
Bread - Whole Wheat or Ezekiel bread

Directions
This recipe was so easy! You basically are making regular french toast but adding the protein powder.  I was going to use my ezekiel bread, but it was frozen.  So, if you are like me and keep it in the freezer take out some slices the night before and put them in the fridge they will be ready for use in the morning. 

Start by mixing unsweetened almond milk, eggs, protein powder, and cinnamon in a bowl.  Use a fork to whisk it together 

Use coconut oil on your pan so that the bread doesn't stick.  

Dip the bread, both sides in the mix and put on the pan to cook.  Flip after a few minutes of cooking. 

Use some pure maple syrup or some peanut butter and enjoy! 

Banana Pancakes - No Flour - 21 Day Fix Approved

I  LOVE pancakes, but I know that my love handles and thighs do not!  This morning I tried a new recipe and it's so yummy!! I'm thinking I could even add other fruits to it like strawberries or blueberries!  You don't even really need that much syrup for them!  If you do use syrup I do suggest using the pure maple syrup. 

Ingredients:
2 Eggs
1 Banana
1/2 cup apple sauce
3/4 cup quick oatmeal
1 tsp cinnamon 
1 tsp vanilla 

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender.  I suggest breaking the banana into smaller pieces so that it blends completely.  I used the liquify option for about 30 seconds.  

2. Pour onto a lightly greased pan (coconut oil) to make you pancakes.  The first round did not come out as well as next.  Make sure you pan is nice and warm before you pour the mix. 




3.  Enjoy! This will make two servings of pancakes.  

21 Day Fix Friends: I counted this as 1 purple, 1/4 yellow, 1/2 red

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Stitch Fix #3

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So excited about my third Stitch Fix!! I feel like everything was perfect for me.  I really really really wish the skirt would have fit around my butt and hips.  Sad day.  I guess I could have worse problems.  Anyways.  This time I linked a Pinterest Board, so I'm not sure if that helped at all, but I love it all!

I got two tops, a dress, a skirt, and a necklace! The dress has sail boats on them and will be perfect for my cousins outdoor, end of June, hot, hot, wedding.

I never shared this before, because I just forgot, but the Stitch Fix comes with a card that has suggestions on how to wear the article of clothing!

I love how the polka dot shirt ties at the bottom.  It reminds me of the movie The Sandlot! hah I know so random.  I love how the white shirt looks on my arms and isn't too flowy.  I just can't wait to wear the dress! It ties on the side.  It might be hard to see that so it will be tighter or loser.

So this is what I got!  

I just really can't get over how great it all fit and worked out.  I also LOVE that I don't have to go to the store and try anything on.  I just send what doesn't fit back in the bag :) I plan to keep everything except the Necklace and the Skirt that didn't fit!  Also, the shirts I'll have to wear a tank top under.  Now I need some black skinny jeans/pants.  The pants shown in the picture are dark skinny jeans!

 

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Meal Planning, Shopping, & Prepping 101

Ways to set yourself up for success:

1. Meal Planning
2. Shopping
3. Meal Prepping

Sometimes meal planning and prepping can seem overwhelming at first.  It took me a few weeks to get the hang of it.  I thought some of my experience could help you if you are feeling overwhelmed or just don’t know where to start.

Meal Planning

I started by creating a template that I could easily use week to week.  This took about 5 minutes, but saves me time each week.  I don’t mind typing my meal plan, but I know others like to hand write things.  This template works for either person.  You can easily type your meals, change the font colors for different items, and even include links to recipes you will be using.

OK NOW THAT WE HAVE THE TEMPLATE (if you want a copy of my template email me ashleyfrancisfitness@gmail.com)

I like to start my planning off with what I am going to have for dinner throughout the week.  I write down the different items I will need for that meal.  An example is grilled chicken, asparagus, and ½ a sweet potato.  I like to write out all the things that I will need so that I can easily make a grocery list from my meal plan. 

I then move onto my lunch because I will take some leftover food from dinner the night before.  I will usually add a salad to what I had before – maybe put the extra protein on top of the salad.  If I don’t take left overs I usually plan something easy, but I like to have variety through the week.  I don’t want to eat salads every day.

After that I plan my breakfast, which is easy, I have Shakeology every morning with 1 fruit serving mixed in.  I then have a snack around 9:30 at work.  It’s either hard boiled eggs with hot sauce or Greek Yogurt.  So I plan that out too even though it stays the same.  Sometimes I will have a bagel thin with Peanut Butter or Oatmeal with Peanut Butter and Cinnamon.  It really depends on the rest of my meals and how many carbs I am eating.   

I also plan an afternoon snack which is usually a piece of fruit to hold me over until dinner.

After you create one meal plan a lot of things stay the same throughout the week.  For example I don’t usually need to change much for my breakfast and morning snack don’t usually change week to week.  This helps cut down on the planning time.  Sometimes I will have the same lunches the following week and dinners.  It really just depends on what you are in the mood for when you are planning!

Grocery Shopping

If you make your meal plan with all the ingredients listed this will be easy!  I make my list straight from my meal plan.  This allows me to organize things like produce, meat, dairy all in order on my list so I can make my shopping trip nice and easy.  Sometimes I linger in the meat department because I like to check out sales and will buy additional items and freeze them if it’s a good deal! 

If you belong to Costco, BJ’s, Sam’s Club, etc.  I recommend checking the meat selection and pricing there because I usually save money by buying in bulk and freezing.  Another tip check out the frozen fruit at these locations because I add frozen strawberries to my shake and it’s much cheaper at Costco for a large bag. 

Once you have your list created head to the store.  While you are at the store, try to avoid the center isles because they are filled with processed food.  I know that it’s not always possible, but that is where the temptation will get you.   If you are thinking about buying something processed check out the label and see what is actually in the product, can you pronounce the names, is it 50 ingredients?  That product might not be the best choice. 

Meal Prep

When you get home from the grocery store do not put all your food away.  Make sure you leave your veggies out so you can prep them for next week’s meals.  Also, if you bought a lot of meat and need to portion it to put in the freezer keep that out so you can do it right away.  I think the easiest downfall is putting everything away and relaxing on the couch!  Just get it done.  At least the time consuming things like cutting the veggies.  If you’re having hard boiled eggs put cook them while you are prepping everything else.  When you finish cutting your veggies portion them into single bags that are easy to grab throughout the week and take with you.  Also, if you have salads on your plan throw them together and store them so they are easy to grab.  

I also like to cook my protein for lunches at this time.  So I will either bake or grill chicken for my salads or meal.  I will also cook ground turkey to top a salad.  I will make meatballs and store them in easy to grab containers for the week and then have them with steamed veggies.  I will cook extra veggies the night before I have that meal so it’s quick and easy.

My downfall is the weekends.  Make sure you plan yummy things when you are home on the weekends for lunch because otherwise you will want to run and get Chipotle, Chinese, Pizza, or a sub….. I try to plan new things so that I’m excited to try them.  I am not very good on the weekends and it’s something I am working on.  I have noticed that this does help!

I’d love to hear back from you on this and any comments you have to help me make it easier! Or even quick meal ideas J  Shoot me an email at ashleyfrancisfitness@gmail.com

I talk about portions and how many carbs I am having in this I follow the 21 Day Fix meal plan which is simple and easy.  Feel free to shoot me an email about it or you can check out  My website