Yesterday I made a trip to Trader Joe’s with little miss Ava. I don’t know which one of us loves that store more. She has a blast pushing her little grocery cart around the store and I enjoy looking at all the new products that they keep stocking their shelves with.

After stumbling across Trader Joe’s pumpkin display of all things pumpkin my brain started thinking of all the things I need to start baking. I looked at the boxes of pumpkin pancake mix, waffle mix, pumpkin bread, pumpkin bars, pumpkin everything and as I looked at the ingredients I got frustrated when I saw the word SUGAR as either the first, second or third ingredient. I get it… baked goods should have some sort of sweetness, but sugar shouldn’t be the first ingredient right?

Okay, so I got home from the store and immediately started looking up recipes and I really couldn’t find one that I wanted to make, they were all packed with white flour and sugar. I didn’t have flour, I didn’t have vanilla extract, my ingredients needed to be simple and clean.

As I was making these muffins, I’m pretty sure Marc started questioning how they would turn out. I debated whether or not to use almond butter, but I went with my belly I mean gut and chose peanut butter. I tossed up the idea of maple syrup but Marc chose honey, and I used oat flour because Kelly’s kitchen was out of every other type of flour.

So I whipped up a FLOURLESS PEANUT BUTTER PUMPKIN MUFFIN. It has the spice of pumpkin, it’s moist, there’s a hint of peanut butter and a delicious touch of pumpkin and just like that I’m hooked on my creation. (I think Marc is too!!)

His response to his first bite of muffin was, “I think I could eat all of these!”

(WIN!)

Now for the recipe:

FLOURLESS PEANUT BUTTER PUMPKIN MUFFIN

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup oat flour
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 5 tsp honey
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp baking soda

Optional: add 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips (which I am definitely trying next time!)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line muffin tin with 8 liners.
2. Put 2 cups of oats in a food processor. Mix until oats become flour. Pour flour in a container.
3. Combine all ingredients in food processor and blend until mixture is smooth.
4. Pour mixture in each muffin tray until filled 3/4 of the way to the top.
5. Place in oven and cook for 12-14 minutes or until cooked through (I use a toothpick to test)

ENJOY!

(yields 8 small muffins!)

I can’t wait to eat one of these for a morning snack! They might not make it to the weekend!

What’s your favorite healthy pumpkin recipe? 

Do you prefer pumpkin spice baked goods or apple baked goods?

I hope you have some fun, relaxing, productive things headed your way this weekend. I have a party at my friend Lauren’s house with some other bridesmaids to do some fun wedding stuff & have dinner. She’s getting married in 2 weeks! I also have my beautiful niece’s baptism and a family dinner followed after. I’m looking forward to it.

Because it’s Friday, it’s time to share with you things I’m LOVING this week! 

We have now that it’s officially fall I feel like I can share with you some fall favorites. Yes I have fall favorites already.

I picked up some of these mini pumpkins at the store and they are a simple way to decorate the kitchen table without taking up too much space, they are also super cheap!

Have you ever heard or tried a Delicata Squash before?? Um, please go buy one. I’m slightly obsessed. They are so easy to cook and they are a bit more starchier then some other squashes out there so I felt very full and satisfied after eating it this week!

I felt generous yesterday, so if you haven’t emailed me or left a comment today is the last day to enter for a chance to win 2 free samples of Shakeology!

If you don’t know me, I love ice cream. I try not to eat it too often but it’s my weakness and its my go to TREAT!! Especially smothered in crunchies.

Popcorn is my FAVORITE snack of all time haha. Trader Joe’s has this amazing air popped popcorn that is healthy & delicious. I highly recommend it, its also a great snack for TGIT entertainment like Grey’s Anatomy & SCANDAL.

Guys I can’t even begin to tell you how pumped I was for the return of my 2 favorite fall shows. I did a little happy dance yesterday.

To wrap up this post, here are some pics of Ava from the playground this week. This girl is so much fun and I can’t get enough of her smiles and crazy faces.

What fun stuff do you have planned this weekend? 

Are you a Grey’s Anatomy or Scandal fan?

]]> http://thefitskool.com/?feed=rss2&p=8178 2 http://thefitskool.com/?p=8067 http://thefitskool.com/?p=8067#comments Fri, 18 Sep 2015 14:49:20 +0000 http://thefitskool.com/?p=8067 Continue reading →]]> HAPPY FRIDAY!

I love saying that, it just feels good to know free-time awaits us at the end of the day.

Last weekend we made a trip to Trader Joe’s AKA my favorite grocery store ever. I wish there was one a little closer so that I could go every day, but there’s not. It really makes me look forward to our trips and of course all the good finds from the store.

THING’S I’M LOVING TRADER JOE’S STYLE: 

There’s nothing quite like fall and knowing there are so many good pumpkin products available. I’m a complete sucker for anything pumpkin and most of the time I need to turn my head due to the pure fact that most of the pumpkin products are loaded with sugar and other crap that I don’t need. I usually try to make my own pumpkin treats but sometimes its fun to try out new products and of course share them with my family & YOU.

I found these Pumpkin O’s in the cereal aisle… 1. They are crunchy 2. They are toddler approved 3. They are a sweet pumpkin treat for 110 calories.

I also stumbled upon these Pumpkin Bars. We have had their fig bars before and we are all a fan so when I tried these I nearly died. They do have a little more sugar then I would’ve liked but it beats having a slice of pumpkin pie. You can enjoy one of these bars for probably 1/3 of the calories as that slice of pie!

We love hummus in our house, this tomato & basil trader joe’s hummus is creamy and tasty. I enjoyed it with some whole grain tortilla chips, Ava enjoyed some with her fingers, and Marc spread some on his sandwiches this week. It’s great and it’s only $1.99 per container.

Sometimes eating veggies can be challenging and there’s always days that I’m just not feeling it. Having this Broccoli slaw on hand was an easy way to get a serving of veggies. I added a simple dressing and enjoyed it with my lunch and my dinners! Ava also ate some big spoonfuls of the broccoli slaw.

Last but not least.. Trader Joe’s chicken sausage is awesomely delicious, contains no preservatives, is high in protein, toddler approved, and tastes great as is, on a sandwich or mixed with some veggies & potatoes. Some Chicken Sausages aren’t that filling but these did the trick!

I am also LOVING this end of summer weather we are having. We have been enjoying the park a ton and I’m sure we will be going a lot more throughout the fall. I’m not gonna lie, I have fun going down the slides too.

What’s your favorite Trader Joe’s Product?

Any fun weekend plans?

We have enjoyed the last couple days at the beach and are planning to go to Todd’s point again early today. The weather has been perfect and we’ve practically had the beach to ourselves.

It’s so relaxing and peaceful and I really don’t want summer to end.

Sorry I didn’t post yesterday but vacation time got in the way of me blogging.

I figured today was a great day to share some of the things I’m loving this week!

First up is my workouts. Being able to workout the way I want to has been so awesome. Don’t get me wrong I love my job as an instructor, but sometimes I’m forced to do specific workouts on certain days when I would rather be working on a different area of fitness. So this week I took advantage of mixing up my workouts. I did a few 21 day fix workouts plus boot camp class and it felt great. I feel a difference in my arm strength this week and my inner thighs are on fire….two thumbs up.

This quote was perfect for my workouts this week. I literally dripped so much sweat but you know what it felt great!

I’m loving Terrafina Trail mix. I bought it when we were in Rhode Island and it’s a great mix of nuts, seeds, & raisins. We have been snacking on it while we are at the beach and it’s almost gone. Mixed nuts have been my snack of choice this week.

We have eaten a few lunches at home this week. Once we left the beach Ava was wiped so we came home so she could nap and I ran out to Citarella to get some food. This Orange Glazed Chicken was AMAZING. We also had roasted butternut squash with carmelized onions and cranberries. SO Delicious. I love stores that offer fresh prepared meals. It was like eating at a restaurant in our house. I highly recommend Citarella.

Twice this week I had a Quest bar after my workouts. It’s an easy snack for me to grab and I love that it’s super high in protein because my muscles needed it this week. I’m pretty sure the cookie dough flavor is to die for.

I found this Quinoa mix at Stop and Shop the other day and I’m glad I did. It only has “real” ingredients and it was so easy to make. It was the perfect side dish to chicken or fish and I the taste was great!

Spending time with family this week has been incredible and I don’t want it to end.

It’s made me push aside all the non important things in life and focus on what really matters and to me that’s happiness. If you aren’t happy you aren’t living.

Have you ever had a “staycation” before?

What’s something you are loving this week?

We aren’t doing anything wild on our vacation week but it’s kind of nice to be able to go with the flow! We are headed to Rhode Island tomorrow morning to visit family & friends for a long weekend. Next week we plan on heading to the beach with Ava and then hopefully Marc and I will do a day trip somewhere just the 2 of us.

This week I have had a lot of “favorite” things that I wanted to share with you. Most of them are food related because I just love food and trying new things.

Things I’m loving this week:

Sugar Snap Peas from Trader Joes are pretty amazing. I can’t believe it was Ava’s first time having them this week but she absolutely loved peeling them a part and finding the peas inside. They are such a delicious healthy snack to keep on hand!

Trader Joe’s Sprouted Multi Grain Bread has no preservatives and is made with super healthy ingredients. For the last 2 weeks I really hadn’t eaten any bread but when I saw this at Trader Joe’s I had to try it and I’m glad I did. It paired nicely with my over easy eggs and Marc enjoyed it too.

Mamma Chia Pouches have made it into my Things I’m loving posts before but I found them in a box of 4 at Target and I was excited. Individual ones cost more so it was nice to be able to have a box of them on hand. They have all 3 omega’s, fruits & veggies, plus fiber. These snacks are great to keep in your purse or car and I’ve enjoyed having them as a quick no brainer healthy treat.

Omega Trek Mix speaking of Omega’s this nut mix is packed with healthy ingredients like walnuts, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries & pistachios. Ava has been on a nut kick lately and I like having trail mix to give her. It also keeps her nice & full.

I always like to finish these posts with a picture of Ava. She’s constantly growing & developing and to see her personality come out has been so fun. She absolutely loves being outside and of course playing with Cooper.

Oh and this Quote is a great reminder for when you need a little boost.

I keep reminding myself about positivity.. you can really tell convince your mind to do anything!

What are you up to this weekend?

Do you have any favorite things from the week?

If you didn’t know that I LOVE swimming in pools, now you do!! My parents called me a fish when I was younger. If there was water I was in it and you literally had to pry me away from the pool.

To have plans to visit multiple pools makes me so happy inside, I feel like a kid

Because it’s Friday, I want to share some snacks, foods & things I’ve been loving this week:

I’m not usually one to buy sugary snacks but this one won me over and its probably due to the extra added sugar but who cares! Yoplait has a delicious greek yogurt that I had as a “treat” the other night. There are flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds and oats in the mix and all the different textures make it delicious.

I’m always looking for new healthy snacks when I’m shopping and I stumbled upon these individual portion packets of nut butters from Wild Friends. OMG they are delicious. I bought 2 different flavors: chocolate sunflower butter

and honey sunflower butter.

They are both delicious. If you like sunflower seeds you must try them. Each packet was only $1 and they are great to keep in your car, purse or lunch box for a nutty nutritious snack.

Using the Honey Sunflower butter I made some energy bites for me & Ava. They were a tasty & healthy snack!

Speaking of nuts. This nut mix from Back to Nature is hands down my favorite. It has cashews, pistachios & almonds and I can’t get enough. Ava has been loving the cashews herself… she says “more nuts please” its pretty cute.

Annie’s Cheddar Bunnies are a great snack that we have for Ava. They are organic snack crackers that are super cheesy and I’ve been keeping them in Ava’s travel lunch box for road trips. She likes them a lot!

On Wednesday night we made a trip to the St. Roch’s Feast. It was a beautiful night and we got to enjoy being outside plus Ava went on a couple rides.

She did not like the carousel (I don’t blame her though because it made me really dizzy)

She did however love the giant slide!!

And of course fishing in the pool for some fish. She won a duck to take home with her!

I’m hoping to get back to the carnival one more time but we kinda have a busy weekend ahead of us!

What’s something you are loving this week?

Do you enjoy carnivals? 

This was such a fast week and I’m so happy about it.  I had a lot of positive vibes this week and it really helped make each day of the week so enjoyable!

There are so many things I love each week and I feel like I need to share those little things with you.

Things I’m Loving This Week!

Honest Kids Juice Boxes my dad bought these for Ava at costco and they contain real ingredients and less sugar then most of the juices out there for kids. Ava loves them and I do too! It’s always hard to get her to drink her water & juice, she’s really just a milk drinker so these are great to have on road trips and days at the beach.

Group Power was pretty awesome on Wednesday. I mean awesome because the group was so energetic and motivating that it made the workout so fun! I got in such a great workout and it felt great to see my class smiling and enjoying themselves. Exercise needs to be fun right?

Hot days call for salads. I’m on a salad kick as you know and I’m really loving the convenience of having salad kits available to throw together in 5 minutes. I’m really enjoying avocados and tomatoes in the salads. It’s so refreshing.

Back to Nature Animal Crackers. Ava eats a very healthy diet just like her mom and dad, but just like us there are some convenient snacks that I like to pack in the car and to keep on hand for when hunger strikes! A hungry kid is not a happy one so keeping crackers and snacks in my purse is a must! These are organic animal crackers that are lower in sugar and contain some healthy ingredients. I’m a huge fan myself

Fudgy Protein Bites I made a double batch of my Fudgy Shakeology bites on Wednesday and because they were made with love they came out EXTRA tasty. Even my mom & dad loved them! If you are looking for a satisfying snack check out the recipe.. it only takes about 5 minutes to make.

Larabars. I love snacks, and although I should take some more time to make these myself they are just too darn good to pass up in the store. I love the peanut butter chocolate chip cookie one. It’s even better when it sits in your car in the hot temps and gets all gooey and chocolatey. YUM! One of these days I’m gonna change my blog name to Peanut Butter Lover.

Night Night Mama. For the first time ever, Ava said “night-night mama” to me. I nearly melted and I came downstairs with such a smile on my face. She has been sleeping like a champ this week and super easy to put down, so what’s not to be happy about? But seriously, she’s too darn cute and I loved it.

Okay well this list could go on and on but I’m gonna end it on a good note. I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

What’s something you are loving this weekend?

Are you a big snacker?

Tonight we will be heading to Marc’s softball game and then I have a Boot Camp Class schedule for 9:15 Saturday morning if you would like to join us

In case you missed my post yesterday about my amazing client transformation and Sheila’s tips on “How she stocks a healthy kitchen,” please check it out!

I wanted to share some things I have been loving this week with you guys!

On Wednesday Ava and I headed to a new park in Greenwich, CT called Cos Cob Park.

The park is set right on the water, it has an awesome playground for kids, a trail walk along the water and a great field complex for sporting events.

Clearly Ava had a blast and we will be heading there again today to have some more fun with her friends.

These almonds from A&P. If you don’t read nutrition labels most stores sell notes that have added oils, sugars, & salts. This brand has just RAW ALMONDS. This is great and I can mix in my own salt, cranberries, etc!

Ava was on a very bland diet this past week after throwing up several times and having some stomach issues. We eliminated dairy, and have been giving her foods that are pretty dry and plain. She chose to snack on these Popcorners and I must agree they are pretty yummy. They also have only 3 ingredients: corn, sunflower oil, & sea salt! Not bad!

While shopping at A&P the other day, Ava spotted these freeze dried apple Fruit Crisps. I wonder why???? marketing companies are so smart, Mickey will catch any kids attention. They are actually only dried apples so they are super healthy!

I’m a huge Chicken Marsala fan. It’s an easy recipe to whip up and it tastes great. I have a new recipe to share with you next week and it’s Gluten Free.

I know I have posted almond milk before for things I’m loving but Stop & Shop has their own brand and it’s usually around $2. You can’t beat it. In case you haven’t tried almond milk, it has almost 1/2 of your daily needs for calcium. That’s pretty amazing considering regular milk doesn’t even come close!

Sometimes I want to eat veggies but nothing is appealing. On a couple of afternoons this week I have popped in one of these zucchini pancakes to have with my afternoon snack. They are made with simple ingredients and they are quite tasty! I’m definitely a fan.

The last thing I want to share with you is this Pink Orchid Candle that I bought at Bed Bath & Beyond a few weeks ago. In case you didn’t know I am slightly obsessed with candles and this brings a nice spring scent to our house when I light it!

That’s it for this week, we have a couple of BBQ plans for the weekend that I am looking forward to and besides that I hope to get to the beach so we can see Ava run around and play in the water like the crazy little girl she is

What are some things you are loving this week?

do you have any fun holiday weekend plans?

I figured today is a great day to share some of the things that I have been loving this week.

On Wednesday night Marc and I went to Harvest Wine Bar & Restaurant on Greenwich Avenue to celebrate our 4th Wedding Anniversary.

We decided to share a bunch of small plates and everything was amazing. Especially this Brussel Sprout salad

and the grilled calamari with jalapeños and guacamole!

Marc got me beautiful Red Roses for our anniversary and I love that Ava knows how to smell them with her nose. It’s too cute.

Speaking of Ava, her favorite animal right now is ducks and she loves to look at them swim in the brook behind our house. We have been feeding them and they keep coming back. So every day she wants to go out and see them.

The weather has been pretty amazing here lately, I have no complaints about high 70 temps and being able to hang out and play outside with Ava and Cooper.

I am a big popcorn girl, and on the weekends a glass of wine with some healthy homemade popcorn is right up my alley. I stumbled across a bag of this Fit Popcorn when I was shopping the other day so I figured I would give it a try because the ingredients were simple and it was made with Olive Oil. That was very intriguing to me so we tried them the other night and I loved the flavor. It was different but addicting

Now that the temperatures are warmer, I find myself digging into more fruit. We have been eating watermelon almost every day and I am also loving fresh cold apples!! They are so juicy.

I got in some awesome workouts this week and I have been sore in my upper back, glutes and inner thighs. I’d be lying if I said it feels great, because every time I go to squat I feel like I can’t get back up!! I have been loving my Boot Campers as always, but this week we had some fun and we sweat a ton together!

This weekend is Mother’s Day and I can’t wait to celebrate with my family. We will be heading to Rhode Island Saturday morning to spend the day and night with Marc’s Mom and driving home Sunday morning to spend the day BBQ’n and hanging out with my Mom.

I hope you all have a great weekend

What are you doing for Mother’s Day weekend?

What things have you been loving lately? 

I wrote this post because I’m curious as to what everyone else has in their pantry. I try really hard to keep these 7 items on hand at all times because I use them a lot!

My Top 7 Healthy Pantry Staples:

1. Peanut Butter I usually buy Stop & Shop’s jarred peanut butter. It has 2 ingredients: peanuts & salt, and it only costs about $2! Marc, Ava, and I go through a jar in about 10 days or less so extra is always necessary in our pantry.

2. Canned Tuna & Canned Chicken Some days are busier then others and if I have no food in the fridge I love having a quick protein option like canned tuna or chicken that I can whip up in 2 minutes with some avocado & tomatoes!

3. Mixed Nuts & Dried Fruit When in doubt a filling snack for me is a Nut mix. My favorite nuts are pistachios & almonds. This is from Trader Joe’s and is about $5 or so and I’m obsessed with the great flavor this mix has.

4. Oats & Oatmeal Packets Believe it or not growing up I hated oatmeal. The texture was just gross to me. Now I am a huge fan. The single serve plain oatmeal packets are great for portion control and on the go snacks! I have been eating oatmeal at least 5x a week this past month!

5. Healthy Soup Not all canned soup is healthy. I make sure mine doesn’t have extra sugars, processed chemicals, or any ingredients I can’t pronounce. I usually make home-made soup but a back up soup is always great to have!

6. Almond Milk this is only $1.69 at Trader Joe’s. Almond milk has grown on me and I love it with my oatmeal and coffee! It also contain 45% of your daily calcium.. that’s awesome!

Pickles I try to keep pickles on hand when I need a salt fix they are packed with sodium and I love the taste! An added bonus is they are low-calorie!

I

I definitely have other pantry staples but I would say these 7 items are on my top used list!!

Well it’s Friday the 13th again… not like that matters but I am looking forward to a relaxing weekend!!

What are your healthy pantry staple items? 

Are you a snack person?