Chicken Spring Rolls

Recipe:  Spring Rolls with Chicken (yields 6)

I've also made these with shrimp, which is also delicious!

Ingredients:

For the rolls:
2 chicken breasts (cooked and shredded)
2 bell peppers (sliced length wise)
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 vidalia onion (diced)
2 TBSP fresh basil (diced)
2 TBSP fresh cilantro (diced)
1 TBSP fresh mint (diced)
Rice paper

For the dipping sauce:
6 TBSP soy sauce
3 tsp fish sauce
2 tsp peanuts
Lime juice to taste
Crushed red pepper to taste

Directions:

For the rolls:  
1) Take a sheet of rice paper, soak it in water and let stand on a plate for 1 minute or until it is very malleable and sticky.
2) Place 1/6 of the ingredients in the roll (I usually just throw it in there, but you can layer them neatly too), and roll the paper up burrito style, let stand.  Repeat steps 1 and 2 to make the rest of the rolls.
3) Refrigerate until you serve them.

For the dipping sauce:  
1) Place the ingredients in a blender and blend into well mixed.
2) Refrigerate until serving the rolls.

Thai Coconut Chicken Soup (Slow Cooker)

This is one of my favorite slow cooker meals.  I usually make some sort of spring rolls to serve with the soup.  We also add so siracha to personal preference for a little more heat!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons red curry paste
2 12 ounce cans of coconut milk
2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons honey (or brown sugar)
2 tablespoons almond butter (or peanut butter)
1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into 1/4 inch slices
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 heaping tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup shredded carrots
1 tablespoon lime juice
Cilantro for garnish

Instructions:

1) Mix the curry paste, coconut milk, chicken stock, fish sauce, brown sugar and peanut butter in a 4-1/2 to 6-quart slow-cooker bowl.
2) Place the chicken breast, red bell pepper, onion and ginger in the slow cooker, cover and cook on low or high based on your preference.
3) Add in the peas and carrots and cook for 1/2 hour longer. Stir in lime juice and serve with cilantro.

Quinoa Salad

So I am one of those who doesn't really measure . . . Since it's a salad you can use really as little or as much as you want of each ingredient :

Ingredients:
Quinoa (cooked)
Kale
Cucumber
Tomatoes
Mung beans
Red bell peppers
Cilantro
Red lentil (cooked)
Lemon juice
EVOO
Red wine vinegar
Basil
Salt and pepper

I may add a little feta cheese as a treat 

Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse: May 27-29

You can still sign up for my 3 day Shakeology Cleanse for May 26 - 29! We have a great group getting ready, including myself, because I want to jumpstart losing the remaining baby weight - those stubborn final pounds. And I hope to feel a little more comfortable come June for the beach and summer, even though I will have a 1 1/2 month old. I still have a few spots left - so message me if you are interested! 

In a nutshell we will all eat clean, replace two meals a day with Shakeology, drink a lot of water, and make sure to get some good detoxing foods in our diet (I will provide recipes) to really cleanse the body. You can lose weight or just give your body a clean slate ;-). I will coach and support you through the whole process, and we will have a private FB group for accountability, questions, and motivation. Can't wait to start!

If you want to know more about the 3 day cleanse, go to:

http://barterjennifer.wix.com/fitnessandnutrition#!shakeology/c2q4

My new favorite pushup!

Did T25 Alpha Carido and then decided to crank out some pushups now that I don't have a huge baby bump that messes up my form ;-).  I decided to get to smooch on my 3 week old baby girl at the bottom of each rep for extra motivation.  It is now my new favorite way to do pushups - definitely pushed me to do more reps than I would have without her - and she seemed to enjoy it too!

May Promotions!

Do you know what HIIT training is? It is High Intensity Interval Training - which means you do intense intervals with breaks in between to efficiently and effectively maximize workout results. Both of these awesome programs, TurboFire and P90X3 incorporate HIIT training and are on sale for the month of May so that you can get fit for summer fast! P90X3 has effectively condensed the intensity of the conditioning and strength training of the original P90X workouts into 30 minutes - totally doable, right? Not to mention it is one of my new favorite workout programs, especially for sculpting lean muscle ! TurboFire incorporates HIIT training to develop lean muscle while burning crazy amounts of calories. 

As always the challenge packs include:
*The complete workout program
*30 days of Shakeology
*Custom meal plans and nutrition guides
*A free Beachbody Club Membership Trial
*Free coaching by me
*An Accountability/Support group
*Free shipping

If you are ready to commit to a healthier, more fit you, then fill out and submit this form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1WI0lxLg8KCemgBMMtv-wLDZsr3t5-86L8OYJqBqLPxQ/viewform?usp=send_form

May is going to be a good month!