pumpkin protein muffins

today i tried to make some pumpkin protein pancakes without following a recipe.  epic fail! it's embarrassing how badly they turned out and how horrible they tasted.  not even remotely palatable.  so there i was, on a rainy day, in my kitchen with not one extracurricular activity to have any particular person(s) to and an open can of pumpkin puree.  what more could a girl ask for?

pumpkin muffins, that's what.  a girl could ask for pumpkin muffins and these did not disappoint.  totes healthy and plenty palatable.

pumpkin protein muffins
printable recipe

1 3/4 cup quick cooking oats (i prefer "mom's best" brand)
1/4 cup vanilla whey
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup truvia baking blend
1 whole large egg
2 large egg whites
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1/2 cup low-fat yogurt (i used vanilla but plain would be just as good and greek, even better)
1/4 cup coconut oil (melted)
1 tsp vanilla

preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a muffin tin by using liners or spray.

using a food processor or blender, process the oats into oat flour.

in a small bow, mix all of the dry ingredients in exception to the truvia baking blend. set aside.

add all of the wet ingredients and the truvia blend to a larger bowl and mix until combined (fluffy).  add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until blended.

pour batter into prepared tin, filling each full.  the batter will be thick.

bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until tops are golden.

yields 12 muffins

i'm baaack ...

oh internet, i love thee.

okay, so i haven't been able to really go grocery shopping for a while in exception to our purchase of "super bowl friendly" foods on saturday. not having much to choose from ingredient wise makes meal preparation sort of really hard (sort of really) which makes my nutritious dish blogging sort of really hard too. 

super bowl friendly foods are not diet friendly foods, not around here anyway and i wholeheartedly regret partaking in them for several reasons.  one being the way i feel the day after the binge.  i feel awful and my cravings are insane.  i am guessing this has something to do with my insulin levels being sky high after eating layer upon layer of salt, fat and sugar.  that's all that crap is really; salt, fat and/or sugar (or a delicious combination of all three i.e. chips with mango salsa).   another reason i am filled with regret is because i'm filled with gas and seriously backed up. 

let's talk about poop people.  my brother doesn't believe women poop.  he told me this once.  ha.  i do poop and it's something i'm really proud of because after years of serious irregularlity (which i attribute 100% to diet), i am finally able to go places without fretting over where the nearest toilet is.  no more stop-at-the-next-gas-station requests that i always blamed on my "genes" because i happen to be a member of a large family with many IBS suffers, most of whom are self diagnosed.  i'm now fairly certain that 90% of these great people could cure most of their tummy issues by changes in diet alone.  eat less fat, salt and sugar and drink more water and your colon with thank you.  i'm telling you!

today i have been focused on drinking a lot of water and eating super light just waiting for some relief. 

so far, for breakfast, this again.  it's a winner. 

for lunch:

a delicious protein shake after my run (which also really helps to loosen the bowels in case you were wondering).

1 scoop of vanilla whey protein (gnc ampliflied wheybolic)

1/2 cup of frozen berries

1 cup fat free milk

1 scoop (tbsp) ground flax seed (bob's red mill)
crushed ice

243 calories, 2.5g fat (0.4g saturated fat), 10mg cholesterol, 236mg sodium, 25.8g carbs, 4.3g fiber, 19.2g sugar, 30.8g protein.

i crave my shakes.  smoothies.  whatever you want to call them.  they are super filling and super quick to make.  they're convenient too ... easy to consume on the run. 

the protein powder i use from gnc was recommended by the knowledgeable man working the counter.  he asked me a bunch of questions about my diet and lifestyle and then made his recommendation. 

i use bob's red mill ground flax because i like it better than any other brand i've tried.  why ground flax seed? well, i don't eat any seafood so i don't get a lot of those healthy omega-3 fatty acids in my diet.  they're great for a lot of reasons; they help reduce your risk of heart disease and may help reduce the inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis.  in addition to omega-3s, flax seeds contain fiber, zinc, iron, vitamin E and calcium among other vitamins and minerals, and are low in saturated fat.  i know this because eatright.org told me so and they don't lie.  ground flax can be added to all sorts of foods.  i'm sure it's great in baked goods as well as oatmeal and cereal.  store it in the fridge in an airtight container for a longer shelf life.

lunch will be a really boring salad of sorts but dinner is going to be delicious.  until then ....