(I participated in "The 30 Day Mushroom Makeover Challenge" a campaign on behalf of mamavation for Mushroominfo.com. I received compensation as a thank you for participating)
I am writing this post at the end of my first week participating in the Mushroom Makeover 30 Day Challenge. While other's taking this challenge are doing to with the goal of loosing weight and getting fit, since I am almost 24 weeks pregnant, I am focusing more on weight management and overall health. As part of the challenge I have been able to utilize the expertise of a personal trainer and nutritionist.
To be really healthy it is important to not only eat well, but also be physically active. (i.e. working out) Since I have already been active in working out the biggest part of this challenge for me is the eating portion. Here are a 3 things that I have learned from our amazing nutritionist Corrine that have had the biggest impact on helping me create healthy eating habits:
1- Always eat breakfast within an hour of waking up and within 30 minutes of working out in the morning.
2- Eat regularly, like every 3-4 hours
3- Drink enough water. (like 2-3 liters a day)
It has taken conscious effort to apply these 3 rules into my daily life this week, but as I have done so, I have noticed a marked difference. I have more energy and generally feel better both It has taken conscious effort to apply these 3 rules into my daily life this week, but as I have done so, I have noticed a marked difference. I have more energy and generally feel better both physically and mentally.
The other part of the 30 day mushroom makeover challenge is to incorporate mushrooms into my diet. I am required to make over at least 4 meals a week with mushrooms (either replacing or supplementing meat). Though I grew up in a house where mushrooms were never on the menu, I have discovered how delicious they can be. I have loved the meals I have made using mushrooms so much I find myself finding ways to incorporate them into more. In addition to the recipes I share with you in this and the next 3 posts I will write as I take this challenge, you can find some awesome recipes at mushroominfo.com.
For my first Mushroom meal makeover I decided to make a breakfast omelet. Usually when I make omelets I will put in a lot of Ham or bacon and cheese along with a smattering of onion and sometimes some bell pepper. Oh and I usually cook it up in melted butter. yumm. This week however, for my mushroom makeover I changed out the ham/bacon with chopped mushrooms, cut out the cheese, added in the chopped onions and red bell peppers and cooked it up in coconut oil instead of butter. Let me tell you it tasted as great as it smelled which was pretty divine. And best of all it was uber healthy.
Recipe:
2 Large Eggs
1-2 TBL Milk
1/4 cup chopped Mushrooms
1/4 cup Chopped Red Bell Peppers
1/4 cup chopped Yellow Onion
1-2 tsp Coconut Oil
Directions:
Sautee up the onions, peppers, and mushrooms in the coconut oil on medium heat. In separate bowl beat the eggs and milk together (the milk makes the omelet lighter, fluffier, and keeps it moist while allowing you to cook the omelet thoroughly.) Add the eggs to the vegetables in the frying pan (making sure the vegetables are evenly spread in the egg mixture.) Then slowly cook until you can see that the egg is mostly cooked through. Then either fold omelet in half or gently roll it up to finish cooking. Prep time 2-4 minutes. Cook time about 5 minutes.
My second mushroom makeover meal was a mushroom and Veggie topped baked potato. Usually when I top my baked potatoes I add a ton of butter, bacon or ham, cheese, and then season with seasoning salt. Instead for my 2nd mushroom makeover, I sautéed chopped baby bella mushrooms, with onion, red bell peppers, yellow onion, roma tomato, and green onion in a small amount of coconut oil. I poured this on my potato and seasoned with a bit of salt and was amazed at how savory and just plain delicious it was.
For my 3rd mushroom meal makeover I made Italian chicken/mushroom fajitas. Now normally when I make Italian Fajitas I cook up a bunch of chicken (occasionally I sauté onion and Bell peppers with the chicken) in my favorite Italian dressing and then serve it on a tortilla with cheese and lettuce. For this meal I substituted part of the chicken with chopped mushrooms, and cooked them up with red bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes using coconut oil. I still added cheese though not as much and lettuce. Boy, were these fajitas great!
For my 4th and last official mushroom meal makeover this week I made tacos. However instead of using ground beef or chicken for my tacos I used mushrooms and veggies (Red Bell Peppers, Yellow Onions, Tomatoes, Carrots, and celery) all cooked up in coconut oil and seasoned with some garlic salt. Then instead of using a tortilla or hard shell I used romaine lettuce. If I had used a different sort of lettuce I would have made these into wraps, but because I only had romaine lettuce I ate them as tacos. This meal was light and very flavorful. I think it is a new favorite of mine.
Stay tuned for more as I continue this challenge over the next 3 weeks!
