Happy Wednesday! Now for a great hump day treat I am going to share with you all what I normally eat during the week for lunch. Now if you ask any of my family members as a child I hated vegetables. You couldn’t pay me to eat one even if I got just plain pasta at a restaurant and they put any green on it as a garnish I wouldn’t eat it. Yes I was one of those kids when it came to certain things. However, I now eat vegetables every single day. I try to have for lunch everyday a protein and a veggie. Now for some of you who don’t necessarily like veggies there are so many ways to eat them that you didn’t think of before. Like if you don’t like steaming your vegetables another great way to eat them is by cooking them in the oven. Another way to eat veggies that is a huge craze is by spiraling them. I saw a 4 year old eating a plate full of zucchini pasta out at a restaurant and he had no idea because it was spiraled and he thought it looked fun to eat. So today for lunch I made it simple. I took a little bit of olive oil and coconut oil and drizzled it over some broccoli and cut zucchini in a baking pan that I normally use for brownies. I lined it with aluminum foil to help make it less messy. I know that coconut oil is better for you, but I with certain things I still don’t fully like the taste of it if there isn’t any olive oil in it so I am slowly transition all my veggies being cooked with coconut oil. I set the oven to 400 degrees and every 5 – 8 minutes I stir them around so they don’t stick to the pan and also so they brown on both sides. While the veggies are cooking I heat up a small fry pan with some coconut oil and I grill some onions. Now I am like my father where I like my onions cooked well done to the point where they are almost black in color. Once the veggies are close to being done in the oven and the onions are almost done cooking I add a ¼ tsp of chopped garlic into the pan and then cut up raw chicken. I found that the coconut oil and the onions with the garlic gives the chicken enough flavor. The vegetables in the oven shouldn’t take more than 20 – 25 minutes tops. You should always have some sort of protein and vegetable in the middle of your day especially at work because it will help boost your energy. Hope everyone is having a great day! <3
Hump Day Treat: Cheesy Zucchini Sticks
Happy Last Day of Summer Everyone! Anyone that went to college with me knows that I love cheese sticks especially the ones from Papa John’s. They come in what looks like a pizza pie and with many sides of dipping sauces. It is one of my weaknesses that if it is put in front of me I would not be able to resist, but I wanted to find an alternative way to have something that is similar but healthier alternative. Thanks to Buzzfeed I found this amazing recipe for cheesy zucchini sticks.
INGREDIENTS
4 medium zucchini
⅓ cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon salt
1 large egg
⅓ cup cheddar cheese
½ cup mozzarella cheese
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400ºF
2. Grate zucchini into a mixing bowl.
3. Transfer grated zucchini into a larger mixing bowl and add garlic powder, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and egg. Mix it all together.
4. Pour the mixture onto a small towel and wring the excess fluid from mix.
4. Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet and spread mixture evenly into a square about a ½-inch thick.
5. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until middle has thickened.
6. Remove from oven and spread cheddar and mozzarella cheese over top .
7. Place back in the oven at 350ºF/175ºC for 10 more minutes or until cheese melts and is bubbling.
8. Let cool for 5 minutes, and enjoy with marinara, ranch, or any sauce of your choosing!
Here is a video of it being made step by step. Hope you all enjoy!
(image taken from google / buzzfeed)