No-Bake Pumpkin Pie Pudding

I still have some pumpkin cans in my pantry from winter time. I was seriously craving something sweet and delicious, and quick and easy more importantly. I whipped this bad boy up in less than 2 minutes, and it really hit the spot. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients
1) 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2) 2 tablespoons almond flour
3) 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, or cinnamon/nutmeg
4) 1-2 tablespoons honey (to taste)

Instructions
1) Add your pumpkin puree to a small bowl or mug.

2) Add your almond flour and spices. Mix to incorporate.

3) Add 1 tablespoon of honey. Taste. Add another tablespoon if needed.
4) Enjoy!

Tuna Stuffed Post-Workout Potatoes (Paleo-Zone)

So about six months ago, we stopped drinking protein shakes as part of a Whole30 that we were doing. Instead, we focused on having a real meal as soon as got home, usually within 20-30 minutes after our workout. I've really been trying to find something that is easy to make and comes out to equal parts of protein, fat, and carbs for a post-workout refuel. I found a recipe for tuna-stuffed potatoes on pinterest that was really good, but it was really fat heavy and hardly any protein and that's not what you want right after your workout. So I modified it, and almost tripled the protein and halved the fat to try and equal the proportions out. The result was really tasty and we've been loving eating it after our workouts! I've been making a batch every weekend and eating it after workouts for about a month now, and I am definitely performing better each day!

Try it out and let me know what you think. This happens to be Paleo-Zone, for the most part, but more than that it is a good amount of protein and carbs right after your workout, with minimal fats. Everyone can benefit from a good post-workout meal, not just those who are doing Zone or Paleo-Zone.

Ingredients
1) 8 potatoes of your choice (similar sized -- 2.5 pounds total) -- about 22 blocks carbohydrates
2) 2 eggs -- 2 blocks protein
3) 1 cup of chopped pickles -- about 2 blocks carbohydrates
4) 28 ounces of tuna, drained (this was 4 cans of Costco tuna) -- about 22 blocks protein
5) 1/2 cup ghee or olive oil -- 24 blocks fat
Salt & Pepper
[Equals about 24 blocks carbs, fats, and protein. Makes 8 halves of a potato, approximately 3 blocks per potato half. Perfect post workout meal!]

Instructions
1) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2) Add a drop or two of your oil to the potato skin and rub it in. Then sprinkle with salt. This really makes the skin delicious so don't skimp!

3) Cook the potatoes for 50-60 minutes, until tender in the middle when you insert a fork.
4) Remove the potatoes from the oven, and using your cooking mitt, cut the potatoes in half to help them cool down.

5) Let the potatoes cool about 10 minutes. Once they are cooler, take a spoon and remove the flesh from the skins, leaving just a small amount on the edges to maintain the shape. Add to a large bowl.

6) Chop up your pickles into small cubes.

7) Drain your tuna and add it to your potato flesh. Mix thoroughly.

8) Add your pickles and mix thoroughly once again.

9) Add your 1/2 cup of ghee or olive oil, and 2 eggs. Mix until incorporated.

10) Using an ice cream scoop, or cookie scoop, or a measuring cup, evenly distribute the mixture into your 8 potato halves. You want them to be even! I ended up doing 2.5 scoops with my largest cookie scoop, and then pressing the mixture into the skin until packed.

11) Bake in the oven at 400 for an additional 15 minutes, until starting to brown on the tops. Enjoy! Your workouts will thank you!

Preserve your herbs!

Do you buy herbs a lot? I definitely do not, because I also end up using a small portion and the rest goes bad because I'm not making another recipe that needs it. I bought three different herbs at the store for a marinade I was doing, and I had so much left over. I knew I didn't want to let it go bad, so I thought I would try to preserve it and freeze it. I have seen some ideas for doing it with olive oil, but we cook with ghee more than anything, so I decided to use that. Chopped up some herbs, topped with ghee, put it in a silicon muffin cup, and popped in the freezer. Once frozen, I popped it right out and then put in a plastic bag. Now whenever I want to use one of those spices, I can grab one of the frozen ones and add ghee and spices to my dish. Win!

Ingredients
1) Chopped, fresh herbs (whichever you have that might not get used--I had basil, mint and cilantro)
2) Ghee, melted
--You will need silicone cupcake liners for the easiest results

Instructions
1) Roughly chop up your herbs. Place 1 tablespoon in each silicone cup. Make sure you know which ones are which if you are doing multiple spices! I used different color liners to distinguish different herbs.
2) Place 2 tablespoons of melted ghee into each silicone cup that has herbs in it. Press down the herbs to ensure they are covered.

3) Place all the cups on a baking sheet or in a baking dish, something where they can stay flat.
4) Place the sheet into the freezer for 2-4 hours, until completely frozen.

5) Once frozen, simply pop out the frozen ghee and herbs. Place in ziplock bag labeled with the herb used. When you want to use it, you can melt in the microwave or pop in the skillet with your recipe and you'll get delicious ghee plus your herb. How awesome!