Shrimp Avocado Ceviche

One day, C and I stopped into Bonefish, just as their Happy Hour was going on (between 4:00pm and 6:30 pm). Their happy hour is amazing, $5 drinks and appetizers, and you'll walk out full and tipsy on $30.00 or less between two people!

My favorite thing they had was this ceviche appetizer. It had shrimp, avocado, lemon juice, and more. SOOOO delicious. So i decided to recreate it..check it out!

It's pretty simple to make, and can be used as a great appetizer or even dinner with some couscous on the side.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of shrimp, deveined without tail
• 2 lemons
• 2 limes 
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 avocado
• Chopped fresh cilantro and basil
• A drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Directions:

1. Chop up the avocado and tomatoes into bite size pieces. Leave shrimp whole, or if using as a dip with chips or as a bruschetta, chop shrimp into small pieces as well. 

2. Roll lemon and lime along counter to make it extra juicy, then chop in half and squeeze the juice over the mixture.

3. Add in the fresh cilantro and basil, and a drizzle of the olive oil. Season with some sea salt and pepper. Serve on it's own, with chips, or bread.

Try this out next time you have friends or family over, it'll be a hit!

Life's Little Instructions.

In the spirit of loving yourself and keeping yourself happy...here's some little life instructions. I found this picture this morning, and find it so cute and inspiring. 

Give Your Home the Benefits of Yoga.

Yoga is a great way to exercise to keep you toned and lean...but also to keep you focused, calm, and unstressed. Unfortunately, it can all go out the window once you come home to a cluttered unorganized house!


If you're like me, coming home to a messy house can stress you out beyond a doubt. So why not give your home a dose of yoga...in the form of Feng Shui??

This Chinese art of placement has been around Asia for more than 2,000 years, while it's just becoming a trend in the U.S. The ancient practice is based on the principle that everything is made of energy...and that good energy flow can bring balance and vitality to every element of your life!

Here are some signs that you may be in need of a Feng Shui Makeover:

-There's clutter everywhere. 

-Messy or overflowing closets and drawers

-Unused or underused spaces

-Wilted/Dying Plants

-Squeaky Doors, stuck windows, leaky roofs

-Bad Smells

-Bedside table on only one side of bed

-Desk facing the wall (creates vulnerability leaving your back to the door)

-Front doors that aren't used

-Dark entries, or unwelcoming art

So here are some tips to get started!

1. Have a specific place for everything in your home...and make sure to always have everything back in it's place! Things like the mailbox key, daily mail, spare linen..all should have a designated spot to call it's own. 

2. Make sure to have a junk box/drawer, for temporary storage of all the small misplaced items. Don't forget to clean out that area from time to time! 

3. Don't hoard things you don't need! If you haven't used something in the last month...and can't think of a time when you will use it next..get rid of it. Why keep it? 

4. The inside and the outside of a front door has the ability to warm, invite, and re-invite guests in your home. So make the views appealing! Light the exterior walkway, and when you open the door, have fresh flowers or smiling faces of your family clearly visible.

5. The living room is a space to gather, so the living room is a room of opportunities. Avoid placing furniture with the back to the door. Large floor rugs, curtains, and candles are great decorations that really warm a room. Decorate to your liking...but don't go overboard!

6. Bookshelves in a living adds depth and texture to a living room. Don't leave magazines and books on tables though-this just adds more clutter.

7. The bedroom, i find, is the most important room to have organized! Your day begins and end in the bedroom, so adding some feng shui really starts and ends your day in a relaxing and pleased mood. But keep things simple. A bookshelf, side tables, and a bed are really all you need. Add in some eye soothing decorations. And remember...vacant floor and wall space have no place in a bedroom!

Now go add a more calming and stress-free environment to your life!

Face Scrub to Make You Shine.

When life hands you lemons....make a face scrub!

It's time to shed that winter coat...and I found the best recipe to bring that dull skin back to life!

Ingredients:

5tbsp sea salt

1tbsp olive oil

1 lemon.

Directions:

Step One: Mix the olive oil and sea salt together (Once the salt gets coated by the oil, the lemon won't dissolve it)

Step Two: Rub the lemon along the counter to loosen it up, then cut it in half and squeeze the juice over the salt mixture. Mix and mash!

Step Three: Splash your face with warm water to open up the pores, then rub the scrub on your face for at least a minute. Rinse with warm, then cool water. Once done, your face will be smooth as a baby's butt!

Healthy Easter Desserts!

Easter dinner is coming..and just when you thought the holidays (and all of the calories that came with it) were behind you!!

One of my favorite things about easter was the sweets. Candy, chocolate, and desserts galore! But i'm here to tell you that you can enjoy that Easter Dessert, without feeling guilty about it. Here are 3 recipes to bring to the family table that everyone will enjoy :)

Key Lime Pie Bars.

Ingredients:

-1/2c Honey graham crackers, low fat, finely crushed

-2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter, melted

-1 tsp. truvia/sugar substitute

-1 small box Sugar free lime jell-o 

-3/4c water

-16 oz. pkgcottage cheese, fat free 

-8 oz. pkgcream cheese, fat free, room temperature

-8 oz. pkgcool whip, fat free, frozen, thawedkey limes, sliced, for garnish, optional

Directions: 

Step One: Combine graham crackers, butter and sugar in a spall bowl, and mix until well blended and it has turned into crumbles. Then, press the graham cracker mixture in the bottom of a small square baking dish. Set aside in fridge.

Step Two: Bowl water in a small pot or microwave safe bowl, and stir in Jell-o, mixing until dissolved.

Step Three: In a mixing bowl, blend cottage cheese and cream cheese until smooth, stopping every now and then to scrape sides of bowl. Then whisk 1/2 of cream cheese and cottage cheese mixture into Jell-o mixture until combined, then add rest of cheese mixture. 

Step Four: Fold in cool whip. Using a spatula, spread key lime mixture over chilled crumb mixture. Cover and refridgerate for 8 or more hours, until filling is firm. Cut into squares, and top with a lime wedge for presentation!

Lemon Souffle Cups

Ingredients: 

• -8 large lemons
• -3 large eggs, separated
• -1/2 cup granulated sugar
• -2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• -Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions:

Step One: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Trim tip end from a lemon so fruit sits level. Cut stem end one-third of the way down, making cut parallel with bottom; reserve top. Repeat with remaining lemons.

Step Two: Hold a lemon above a sieve set over a bowl, and scoop out the pulp. Squeeze the juice from the pulp, and reserve. Repeat with all lemons. Place shells on prepared baking sheet

Step Three: Combine egg yolks, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 cup reserved lemon juice, and flour in the heat-proof bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat mixture on medium speed until pale yellow, about 3 minutes. Place bowl over a pan of simmering water; whisk constantly until very thick, about 8 minutes. Remove bowl from heat, and return to mixer. Beat on medium speed until cool, scraping down sides several times, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl, and set aside

Step Four: Combine egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar in clean mixer bowl. Place the bowl over the pan of simmering water, and stir until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm to the touch. Remove bowl from heat, and return to mixer; beat on low speed until frothy. Gradually increase speed until meringue is shiny and holds soft peaks, 2 to 3 minutes, being careful not to overbeat

Step Five: Whisk 1/3 of the meringue into the yolk mixture. Gently fold in the remaining meringue. Carefully fill the prepared lemon shells to just below the rims

Step Six: Transfer baking sheet to oven, and bake until meringue is slightly golden and rises about 1 inch above the shell, about 14 minutes. Remove from oven, and transfer to serving plates. Garnish with the reserved lemon tops, and dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve immediately.

Raspberry Pudding Cake

Ingredients:

-2c. Raspberry Sorbet
-1oz pkg Jell-O Vanilla Fat Free Sugar Free Pudding
-1c. fat-free milk
-8oz tup of whipped cream, thawed
-1c. fresh raspberries

Directions:

Step One: Line a loaf pan with foil. Spread sorbet into loaf pan and freeze for 15 minutes.

Step Two: While sorbet is freezing, whip pudding and milk together until pudding consistency. Fold in cool whip.

Step Three: Spread over sorbet mix in pan. Place pan back into freezer for at least 3 hours, or until pudding on top has firmed.

Step Four: Flip pan upside down onto a plate, and remove pan and foil from "cake". Let your creation thaw for about ten minutes, and then slice and serve with fresh raspberries on top.

What Eating a Healthy Breakfast Every Day Can Do For YOU.

Your mom always told you, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. And how about this....she was right! A study on about 4,200 people showed that those who ate breakfast daily have a lower overall fat intake than those who didn't, and also consumed fewer calories during the day. But that doesn't mean go and make yourself a stack of pancakes and expect to lose weight!


I'm all for low-carb, low-sugar daily intakes. So here's a couple of breakfast ideas to help you get on the right track!

1. Greek yogurt with berries. 6oz of plain greek yogurt is about 100 calories. Add in a 1/2 cup of strawberries, and your breakfast comes out to be about 125 calories!

2. Egg white omelet. Either get your egg whites the old fashioned way, or try the all-natural egg white Egg Beaters. 6 tbsp is only 50 calories and makes a good size omelet (i would know, i just had it for breakfast this morning!) Add in a little deli ham and some cheese, and you've got yourself a filling 80 calories breakfast.

3. Instant oatmeal. One packet with the apples and cinnamon is only 130 calories. Or make it yourself, using unsweetened applesauce and fruit or cinnamon.

4. Whole wheat toast with peanut butter. One slice of toasted whole wheat bread and 2 tbsp of peanut butter is about 240 calories. 

Continually skipping breakfast isn't good for you, even if you're skipping on calories. In the end, you feel the need to snack more during the day, making up and sometimes surpassing those calories skipped in the morning. So try eating a light breakfast every morning :)

The BEST exercise....

I've always looked for ways to lose the most weight fast, instead of losing weight the right way. I wanted the easiest, most convenient way to lose the extra pounds put on from the winter holiday seasons.
But now I realize, that the best exercise...is the exercise that you do!


Get up and move! Whether it's the elliptical, treadmill, kayaking, swimming...anything. Anything that raises your heart rate.


But here's a couple of secrets that i've found effective when working out:


1. Workout when you have the MOST energy. 
If you get your bursts of energy in the morning, schedule a morning plan. If you tend to get those bursts of energy in the afternoon, then work out then. Forcing yourself to wake up early, or stay up late to workout is just going to de-motivate you. That one morning when you feel like hitting the snooze button instead of grabbing the workout clothes will become a downhill spiral, until you stop working out altogether!


2. Switch it up.
Doing the same thing every day will bore you out of your workout routine. Try something new every day. If you only workout at a gym, switch machines daily. 30 minutes of Treadmill one day 20 minutes of Elliptical the next, 30 minutes on the stationary bike. Keep it lively, and keep your body and mind interested in going back every day. 


3. Keep your entire workout at 30 to 40 minutes.
After about 30-40 minutes of exercising and weight lifting, the benefit your body receives isn't as great. It's better to work out at a higher intensity in a shorter time period!


4. Patience is Key.
There is no such thing as weight loss spotting. I wish! Otherwise I'd only be working out for my thighs and hips. A safe and healthy workout helps you lose weight all over. The best thing to do is workout at least 3 times a week, and keep to a healthy diet.


5. Don't forget the Water!
Water is super important. When I did my GM Diet, i realized what helped me lose those 10 pounds in a week was how much water I was drinking. It takes your body a couple of hours to absorb water. So don't only drink all of your water around the time of your workout (also, when you do that, you can feel the water jiggling around when you're working out...usually ends up making me feel sick!), but throughout the day. Replace those fruit juices and pops with water, and you'll see the pounds coming off in no time :)


Working out should be a fun thing! Just keep in mind the goal you're working towards, whether it's fitting into that little black dress for a big event, the teeny tiny bikini for summer vaca, or beating a coworker in a weight loss challenge. Good luck :)