We are also supposed to share an unusual, high protein recipe. This one I've personally tried (and it's delicious): brownie cake! The unusual protein in this dessert are beans.

Throw ingredients into a blender:
1 drained can of beans (I like black for color)
2 eggs
4 egg whites or 2/3 cup carton whites
4 tbs cocoa powder
1.5 tsp baking powder
0.5 tsp baking soda
2 tbs coconut oil or butter
2 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup ricotta or cream cheese
6 tbs truvia (more if you like it sweet)
Blend for 3-5 minutes.
Pour in greased tray.
Bake 30-35 minutes at 350°F.
Bon appetite!

Cardio 120/80
Strength 43/45
Been under so far on my calories
This is what I did for my strength training today... I found it appropriate. Lol

I've posted on the score board instead of the chat. ( doh ) so my Sasha task is on there.

I'm not a big protein person. Only started eating fish in the last year & don't know how to be clever with lentils, so have put up some hearty traditional dishes.

Lancashire Hotpot

(Serves 4)
4–6 best-end or middle-neck lamb or mutton cutlets
400g diced lamb or mutton neck fillet or shoulder
Flour, sugar, salt and pepper, to dust
3 largeish floury potatoes, such as maris piper
2 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked
1 bay leaf
2 onions, sliced
500ml lamb stock
20g butter, melted, plus extra to grease

Preheat the oven to 170C. Dust the meat lightly with flour and sprinkle with a pinch of sugar, salt and pepper. Peel the potatoes and slice them thinly.

Butter a high-sided casserole dish and arrange about a third of the potatoes in the bottom. Season them and sprinkle with a little thyme. Top with the meat and bay leaf and season in the same way, followed by the onions, seasoned in the same way.

Arrange the remaining potato slices on top of the onions like overlapping fish scales, and season these with salt and pepper. Pour enough stock over the potatoes to just come up to the base of the topping (take a piece off to see this better), then brush them with melted butter.

Cover and bake for two hours (two and a half hours for mutton), then uncover and bake for another 30 minutes, until the potatoes are golden and crisp. Serve with pickled red cabbage.

Sheapards Pie

1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 large onion, chopped
2-3 medium carrots, chopped
500g pack lamb mince
2 tbsp tomato purée
large splash Worcestershire sauce
500ml beef stock
900g potatoes, cut into chunks
85g butter
3 tbsp skimmed milk

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan, then soften the onion and carrots for a few mins. When soft, turn up the heat, crumble in the lamb and brown, tipping off any excess fat. Add the tomato purée and Worcestershire sauce, then fry for a few mins. Pour over the stock, bring to a simmer, then cover and cook for 40 mins, uncovering halfway.
Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180C/ fan 160C/ gas 4, then make the mash. Boil the potatoes in salted water for 10-15 mins until tender. Drain, then mash with the butter and milk.
Put the mince into an ovenproof dish, top with the mash and ruffle with a fork. The pie can now be chilled and frozen for up to a month. Bake for 20-25 mins until the top is starting to colour and the mince is bubbling through at the edges. (To bake from frozen, cook at 160C/fan 140C/gas 3 for 1 hr-1 hr 20 mins until piping hot in the centre. Flash under the grill to brown, if you like.) Leave to stand for 5 mins before serving.

For a lower carb alternative swap the potato sweet potato or carrot & swede.

bonniedalberg wrote: »

Betsy and Keile, y'all are so goofy

Heather, I absolutely love lamb and mutton! It's so flavorful, but a little calorie dense for me so I try to do it for special occasions.

I have been wanting to seriously cook with bugs for a long time. There's not that many (people grade) edible bug farms in the U.S. though. Sigh, I will probably have to wait until I save enough money to visit Asia to engorge on little critters.

My goal is to not freak out over eating a tarantula. Andrew Zimmerman said they taste like crab, but they look so terrifying!

You should look into cricket flour! It has a nice nutty flavor and you can get it on Amazon! Very high in protein!

Daryl Team Challange

I'm going to do the best I can to keep this short and simple...
My "best friend" growing up actually ended up being my abusive relationship. From the age of 10yr old till I was 17yr old I was constantly called fat and ugly by her. She hit me, called me stupid and threatened me that if I ever left her she would ruin my life. I Truly felt like I should be lucky to have someone like her as a friend. A typical abusive relationship though I was clueless at the time. I finally stood up to her and that was that. My life wasn't ruined, she just walked away and I finally found out what real friends were like. Even though we were over I carried around a LOT of hurt and anger over what she had done to me. It started to change me as a person. Almost 5 years later I over heard someone saying that being angry at someone was like taking poison and drinking it yourself. It was time to forgive her. I wrote her a long letter, I was honest yet not harsh. I let her know that it was just as much for me as it was for her. I knew that I had to fix my own music box. I wholeheartedly, totally and completely forgave her. No strings attached. I didn't care what her response was. I didn't need to hear how sorry she was or wasn't. It was the best thing that I could have ever done. The was one of the hardest things I ever had to do, but my music box plays loud and proud now!


Cardio 150/80
Strength 40/45

We are over the hump of the week. Let's do a Shout Out Thursday!! How is your week going? Where are you at? Why are you here? What ever. Let's just hear something from everyone!

I'm here because I love the Walking Dead, but no one in my family watches it. Plus, I need a challenge to get my butt to the gym. I'm on a medically managed LCD, losing about 3 lbs per week.

I need to get all my goals done tonight, because I am going to New York for the weekend to celebrate 20 years of marriage to my best friend. We are going to enjoy restaurant week, Wicked, and some comedy. Excited for the food, and taking a weekend off low carbs). However, I'm worried that it will set me back. You only get to celebrate 20 years once though, so I am going to enjoy myself and walk a lot.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Unusual Protein Recipes
I don't know if brussels sprouts are unusual to everyone, but I didn't grow up eating them and I didn't really know any one who had. On the last Walking Dead challenge I somehow ended up with that being one of my goals. Guess what - I absolutely loved them and they are one of the highest source of proteins for a green vegetable. The recipe is simple.
- preheat oven to 400 degrees
- spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray
- cut brussels sprouts in quarters and place in a ziploc bag
- put 2 teaspoons of olive oil in bag and shake
- pour sprouts onto baking sheet and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper
- when sprouts are crispy (about 10 to 15 minutes) remove from oven and lightly sprinkle with parmesan cheese

AnutChelle wrote: »

Unusual Protein Recipes
I don't know if brussels sprouts are unusual to everyone, but I didn't grow up eating them and I didn't really know any one who had. On the last Walking Dead challenge I somehow ended up with that being one of my goals. Guess what - I absolutely loved them and they are one of the highest source of proteins for a green vegetable. The recipe is simple.
- preheat oven to 400 degrees
- spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray
- cut brussels sprouts in quarters and place in a ziploc bag
- put 2 teaspoons of olive oil in bag and shake
- pour sprouts onto baking sheet and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper
- when sprouts are crispy (about 10 to 15 minutes) remove from oven and lightly sprinkle with parmesan cheese

I'm so doing this!! I LOVE Brussel sprouts!!

As for a protein recipe I would say that I have nothing, I'm not much for cooking my husband is....but instead I have a recipe for a Dairy-Free Tart. Dairy and I have a love-hate relationship, I love it but it hates me. I have done this recipe a couple of times and cmae out pretty good...

Berry Tart with Dairy-Free Vanilla Bean Custard
SERVES: 8

Ingredients:

Crust
•¾ cup pecans
•1.5 cups blanched almond flour
•¼ teaspoon salt
•¼ teaspoon baking soda
•¼ teaspoon cinnamon
•¼ teaspoon nutmeg
•½ teaspoon vanilla
•3 tablespoons cold butter or coconut oil
•2 tablespoons honey
•1 egg

Custard
•½ tablespoon unflavored gelatin
•1 tablespoon water
•1 cup almond milk (or any other non-dairy milk)
•¼ cup honey
•1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped and bean reserved
•3 egg yolks
•1 cup coconut cream (cream that has risen to the top from a cold can of coconut milk)
•3 cups mixed berries (I used strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries)

Instructions:
1.Soften the gelatin by placing it in a bowl with the 1 tablespoon of water.
2.Heat the almond milk, seeds from the vanilla bean, and the bean shell over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes.
3.Whisk the egg yolks and honey in a separate bowl, then slowly pour the heated milk mixture into the bowl while whisking constantly.
4.Return the mixture to the pan and heat for 2-3 minutes while whisking the entire time. Pour in the softened gelatin, and whisk until it is dissolved. Continue heating for another 5 minutes until the custard has thickened and will coat the back of a spoon.
5.Pour the custard into a bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly on top to avoid a skin from forming. Place in the refrigerator and chill for about 5 hours or overnight.
6.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7.Place the pecans in a food processor and process until you have a coarse flour. Add the almond flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, butter/coconut oil, honey, egg, and vanilla and pulse until a ball of dough forms.
8.Using the palms of your hands, press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of a tart pan with a removable base. Cut a circle of parchment paper and lightly press it onto the bottom of the crust. Fill the bottom with pie weights or a cup of beans, then bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and parchment, then bake for another 5 minutes. Cool the crust while you make the custard.
9.Remove the custard from the fridge and pour in the cup of thick coconut cream from the top of 1 can of coconut milk. Using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, whip the custard until thick and creamy. If your coconut cream is super thick (this will depend on which brand you use), you can add in a tablespoon of the coconut water to help thin it out a bit.
10.Spread the custard into the cooled pie crust then chill the tart for an hour to let the custard set up.
11.Arrange your berries in a circular pattern then serve immediately, or keep in the fridge until your ready to serve.
**I had a hard time getting the custard to thicken so I would use corn starch**

As for the motivating when your down, I have to say that I have some of the most amazing and encouraging friends. If anything they just listen and remind me that I am more than capable of going on and stronger than I am. They are my reminders that help me keep on my path no matter what has me discouraged.

Congratulations Betsy, have a wonderful weekend!
And Keile, you are doing so great, you are an inspiration with those numbers!

Unfortunately, today is my TOM first day and I'm choked up on painkillers so no workouts done at all. I will make up for it in the next few days! I did stay under my calories today.

Will post my Daryl challenge tomorrow or on Saturday.

You all are doing a great job!!

Bonnie, remember that its the total calories for the week, not just days. so if you go over one day, but you are under for the week, let me know that and you will get credit.

Cookie, I loved your story and i think you are doing an awesome job so far!!

Betsy, honey, you do not look like your old enough to have been married that long. Enjoy your weekend, Wicked is awesome.

Everyone, your recipes are creepy and delicious - keep em coming!!!!

Two more days to get in everything you need, remember to ask your teammates if you need some help.

P.S - yeah it's unsuitable viewing but as she doesn't know her *kitten* from her elbow or not to reach for the removed poopey nappy, it's ok. - were goosed when g.o.t comes back.

My Daryl challenge:

Back in 2009. my marriage ended. Without getting into too much detail, I was emotionally abused, financially used and cheated on. My ex decided to inform me that he's leaving me in an email. At that point I was at my lowest in life, I felt ugly, unworthy (mostly because the email had said that I was awful person and he the best husband I could have had and that I will never have anyone to love me like that). I had no friends because he alienated me from everyone, I only had mom and my brother who is 14 years younger than me, and I almost lost them too (they don't love you like I do, they probably don't love you at all) but luckily they stood by me through it all. So, I had no one to actually talk to about how I feel and I didn't want to burden my little family and let them suffer more seeing me like this.
I went through my work and every day chores like on auto pilot, I felt unworthy of getting up, showering, going to work, talking to people, smiling, being happy. I wasn't depressed, I was deeply sad. Surfing around the internet one day I came across the picture of a show I used to watch and like, Scrubs, so I decided to look for it and re-watch the episodes. Watching Scrubs felt like a therapy every day, I found my smile, I even laughed again and tore down my walls of sadness. When I was done, I felt like a completely new person, not sad anymore, I had some scars but I was stronger. I realized I did nothing wrong except giving my love to the wrong person. I was ready to carry on with my life. So thank you Scrubs, you helped me fix my musical box which was my broken heart.