Once upon a time I was 30+weeks pregnant and said to myself more than a few times — I can’t wait to lose this pregnancy weight! It’s going to be fun, like a game! I’ve done this before, it won’t be hard! I’m going to walk with the baby in the stroller so much the weight is just going to melt off! I’m going to get fit in no time!

Clearly, I was a bit mental at the time. What in the world. Crazy pants.

Now here I am 20+ weeks post partum and I can not even believe how out of shape I am. I’m so low energy and just feel bleh all the time. Pair that up with not sleeping well most nights, I pretty much feel like a mess lately. Oh and it’s full on spring in Florida right now and let’s just say black yoga pants just aren’t cutting it anymore. Something has to be done here.

So I’m committed. I’m committed to exercising in some capacity every day (even if it is just a quick stroller walk with my baby). I need to be selfish with my workouts, it’s very important “me time”. I got back in the gym last week. I also got myself jogging a bit over the weekend (that felt GOOD!). Things have to change and it’s starting first with my attitude —

I need to be telling myself things like:

Just do it!
No more excuses!
and on the days I’m feeling down… What are you going to do about it? (this one is key)

So far it’s working.

I got this. But dang, it’s hard!

I’ve been making this kefir smoothie in the afternoons lately for my car ride to pick up the kids from school. It gives me exactly what I need to hold me over until dinner and I like to believe it gives me a little energy boost too. Micah’s not a huge fan of the blender so I have been avoiding making smoothies for a few months. Now when I turn the blender on I have to put on a really happy funny face to distract him from that “loud scary noise”. You gotta do what you gotta do right?

If you’re not familiar with kefir, it’s very similar to yogurt and can be found in the dairy aisle most likely near the milks. I discovered it a couple years ago when I was on the 17 Day Diet (…for 14 days). It’s a probiotic, has a good amount of protein and calcium, and is a great option for an afternoon snack. I personally like it’s natural tartness but feel free to add a little honey or sweetener of choice if that’s your thing.

Happy Monday!

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Hard to believe, but this week marks Aggie’s Kitchen’s 5 year anniversary! Yep, it’s true, I’ve been posting recipes to this little space on the internet since June 3, 2008. It all started with hitting “Create Blog” on blogspot, then writing Snoop Bloggy Blog, proclaiming my favorite cookbook, then sharing my first and second recipe posts – all in the same day. Yes, I guess you could say I was a little bit excited about this whole blogging thing. 🙂

Blogging has changed SO much in 5 years. It’s hard to keep up with at times, but it’s even harder to imagine my life without it. It’s fun to go back and read old posts, see how much my kids have grown up (crazy – my daughter was just barely over the age of 1 when I started, and my son was 3! They were total babies!!), and see all the food that I’ve cooked up in the meantime. Every time I go back and read older posts, I get hit with the feeling of exactly why I started this blog and what has kept me writing it – the food. I love food, the healthier the better! And I love even more the connection with others that love good food just as much. 🙂

(Hard to imagine these two ever this little … photo taken in Sanibel Island, Summer 2008 – Gina had just learned how to walk that summer!)

In celebration of the blog turning 5, and to thank everyone that has been reading over the years – as well as new readers – I wanted to have fun and host some special giveaways throughout the month. I’ll be giving away some items that I love and use frequently in my kitchen – starting with my beloved Blendtec blender.

I first got my Blendtec back in August, 2011 and have used the heck out of it since then.

My Blendtec sits on my counter and gets used almost every day. We make mostly smoothies and whole juices in it, as well as pesto, hummus (using the Twister jar) and lots of salsa.

The other night, my friend Liz mentioned she was craving and about to make herself a Chocolate Malt. As soon as she mentioned it, I started craving the same and thinking about a “faux” Frosty I used to make back in the day when I was on the South Beach diet. It had been so long since I’ve made it, and after hearing about Liz’s version with Ovaltine Chocolate Malt powder, I knew I had to try it – immediately.

This fake out Chocolate Malted Frosty did not disappoint. It hit the spot, and will be making an appearance many a night this summer when I’m craving something sweet, I can guarantee you that.

Skinny Malted Frosty Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk
• 1/2 cup lowfat cottage cheese
• 2 heaping tablespoons Chocolate Malt Ovaltine
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder (optional, for extra chocolatey flavor)
• 2 handful of ice (or a cup of crushed ice)

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to your blender and blend until smooth.

Notes

Using My Fitness Pal I calculated this to be 175 calories, 2.8 g fat, 14 g protein

A high protein, somewhat low calorie dessert you can feel good about. Inspired by The Lemon Bowl's Chocolate Malt and adapted from this South Beach Style Frosty Recipe

Now for the giveaway!

Giveaway Details:

Blendtec Total Wildside Blender (value $454.95) plus an additional Twister jar (Black, White or Red – your choice!)

(Blender is factory reconditioned, as the one I received is)

Starts today, Wednesday June 4 and ends Wednesday, June 12 at 12 noon (EST)

Sorry, giveaway open to US readers only. Winner will be chosen randomly using Pick Giveaway Winner plugin application. Winner will be notified by email and has 48 hours to respond before another winner will be chosen.

To enter into the giveaway:

Leave a comment on this post saying hello and telling me how long you’ve been reading Aggie’s Kitchen!

Additional Entries can be earned by:

(leave a separate comment after you complete each item, each individual comment will count as an entry)

1. “Like” Aggie’s Kitchen on Facebook. (if you already a fan, let me know, that counts as an entry!)

2.  “Like”  Blendtec on Facebook.

3. Follow @AggiesKitchen on Twitter (if you already follow, let me know, that counts as an entry!)

4. Follow @Blendtec on Twitter

5.  Share about giveaway on Twitter: “I want to win a Blendtec from @aggieskitchen and #Blendtec! http://su.pr/1hmU0M ”

6. Share about giveaway on Facebook with link to this post.

7. Subscribe to Aggie’s Kitchen posts to come to your inbox or in your reader.

8. Follow Aggie’s Kitchen on Pinterest

(note: if you are commenting on Aggie’s Kitchen for the first time, it may take some time to see your comment appear. Thanks for your patience!)

Disclosure: Blendtec is providing the blender for this giveaway.

The post Celebrating 5 Years of Blogging! Skinny Malted Frosty Recipe appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

There’s a new butter in town folks, and it’s made with one of my most favorite things in the world – coconut. Coconut butter may not be all that new to some of you, but it’s new to me. I’ve seen it popping up around here and there and I finally broke down and bought some today. At first, I didn’t see much of a difference flavor wise or texture wise as coconut oil, and I felt confused. But as I dug my spoon in a little deeper into the jar I saw a slight change of color and I knew then that I had found gold. Holy cow, this stuff is good (if you love coconut that is).

What is coconut butter? Well, it’s basically just the flesh of the coconut ground up and processed until creamy – similar to nut butter. You get all the nutrition of eating pure raw coconut into a small amount that can be used as a spread or as a supplement to meals such as smoothies, granola bars or even oatmeal. Coconut is full of good stuff – lots of fiber, vitamins & minerals, along with a little protein and good for you fat.

When I got home with my jar of gold I immediately knew I wanted to add it to a smoothie. I love simple banana smoothies, especially right after a morning workout. This smoothie isn’t your typical thick smoothie – it’s light and refreshing and makes a perfect snack for those in between meal times. Enjoy!

So tell me, am I the last person on Earth to try coconut butter? If you’ve had it, tell me how you like it!

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It’s always fun to celebrate a new mom and their soon-to-be bundle of joy isn’t it? Today a group of bloggers are coming together to shower Lisa from With Style and Grace (surprise!!) with lots of love and well wishes. And of course lots of goodies too.

I met Lisa through Maria 2 summers ago at Evo in Park City and was happy to get to know her better on a hike we all took together one morning. If you’ve met Lisa in person, then you know that her smile can brighten up any room and you just can’t help but feel good when you are around her. I love people like that. And I just know her baby boy will be so blessed to have her as his happy mama.

This past month, I’ve been completely obsessed with this cinnamon apple spice herbal tea from Celestial Seasonings. I drink a hot cup almost every night before bed for “dessert”. I decided to dress it up a bit and serve it iced with some fresh apple slices, a cinnamon stick and a kiss of honey to bring to our little virtual baby shower today. In addition to this lightly sweetened refresher, I wanted to also share with you my favorite baby shower gift that I give to all my new mommy friends – a baby library. I can not walk through a book store or library without spending a good amount of time in the children’s book section so you have no idea how much joy gifting books to a baby and his mommy brings me!

My favorite books for a new mom and baby

All of these books were given to me when my babies were little and we have enjoyed them so much over the years – I can’t even begin to tell you how many times we’ve read each of them.

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I’m a coffee drinker. I love my coffee first thing in the morning…so much that I’ve finally trained figured out a way to get my husband to make it for me every morning. It’s simple, it gets me out of bed with a smile and I need it to function. I’m so glad that my family understands this. This is good.

Now, I like my cup of hot coffee in the morning (is there anything better than that FIRST sip from your mug…???), but what I also love is my mid-morning iced coffee that I started treating myself to this past year. I basically just started dumping the leftover coffee over ice instead of down the sink…it was one of those ‘duh, why didn’t I do this sooner?’ type of moments…

It’s a nice pick me up after I work out, or drop off the kids at school, or to take with me as I run errands. It’s a perfect mid-morning or afternoon treat. It really is.

And it only takes seconds to make.

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The post My Mid-Morning Iced Coffee {and a Dunkin’ Donuts Coffee Giveaway} appeared first on Aggie's Kitchen.

My kids went back to school yesterday. I seriously can’t believe our summer break is officially over…though our summer surely isn’t. It’s still hotter than heck and not much is changing for a while other than our schedule.

One of the best parts of summer, other than the obviously fun activities that come along with it, is definitely the fruit. You can’t beat summer fruit. Especially peaches. Gosh, do I love peaches. My favorite are the ones that come from Georgia and the Carolinas…those are the ones I look for around this time of year, they smell so darn good. I love popping one in the fridge to chill for a couple of hours then slicing it up into a glass of red wine…that’s my grandpa’s version of dessert…and that’s another post for another day.

My kids and I have been playing with our new Blendtec the last few weeks. We are blending up everything in sight. One hot afternoon, my daughter and I made this juice. Just like most 4 year old girls, my daughter loves anything pink. When asked what ice cream flavor or smoothie flavor she wants, her response is always “pink”. Not strawberry, but pink.

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Long week?

(nod yes…)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 7 reviews

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Ingredients

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

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So what if it’s Monday and I am thinking about sipping on one of these.  Nothing wrong with that!

I discovered this perfect summer drink on Dara’s site not long ago.  I met Dara at evo ’10, and shared a few laughs with her during our Food & Photography Workshop that we attended.  I connected with her right away and it’s a shame that we live across the country from each other…I wouldn’t mind making another trip out west to visit Dara, Maria and Jyl!

(Dara is one talented chickie…awesome cook, takes gorgeous photographs and is not afraid to take on this lobster!!)

If you’ve got some serious mint growing like I do, then go get yourself a watermelon right now while they’re sweet and treat yourself to one – or a couple – of these amazing drinks.  Enjoy!

Watermelon Mojitos

Ingredients:

• 3 cups 1/2-inch cubes watermelon
• 12 medium to large fresh mint sprigs
• 6 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar
• 6 oz. light rum
• 4 lime slices
• 4 mint sprigs

Directions:

1. Place watermelon cubes in a blender. Blend until smooth.
2. In a small pitcher, combine fresh mint leaves, sugar, and fresh lime juice. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, muddle the ingredients to release the oils from the mint. Take care not to muddle to the point where the leaves fall apart. Pour rum and the watermelon puree into the pitcher and stir gently.

Recipe courtesy of Cookin' Canuck

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