Archives for March 2017

Fitness Update March 23rd Eat Plants First

March 23, 2017 by Zucchini Runner in Life, Running | Comments Off on Fitness Update March 23rd Eat Plants First

Before we get to the fitness update, I have something SO EXCITING to share with you! Today is the grand opening of my Etsy shop! Wait. What? Your Etsy shop? I know, I know… just bear with me here. I have been working on a way to provide valuable information to people seeking change in their nutrition. The number one concern I was hearing, was “how do I get more plants in my daily life?” So, I created a downloadable and printable quick start guide called, “Eat Plants First”. Go check it out here, I’ll wait. I’m so excited!

Eat Plants First

What do you think?! I made it super colorful, because I’m all about “eating the rainbow”. The more colors we eat, the more variety of beneficial nutrients and antioxidants we get.

eat plants first

If you didn’t head over to the shop to read more about the quick guide, it’s ok, I understand! We are all busy and have many tasks going on all at once, every day. Above is a little preview of the fun logo I created for the quick start guide. My goal was to keep the guide as simple and straightforward as possible. Page one covers why it’s beneficial to switch to plant-based, or simply just add more plants to your daily nutrition. I also talk about some easy changes you can make to your kitchen to help with the transition. Page two is an 8.5 x 11 page you can print and attach to your fridge or pantry door, which will guide you in making the best choice possible for each meal. Page three gives some more details, for those who like to read the fine print. The number one goal? EAT PLANTS FIRST. If you can remember that, you are already taking steps to improve your health.

In the upcoming months I hope to add more items to my Etsy shop, which will be more tools and guides to help you maintain or switch to a plant-based lifestyle. Your support will make it grow, so please share with anyone you know who is interested in plant-based nutrition.

Fitness Update

Below are the workouts I did over the past week:

Friday
Butt & Thigh workout online through Fitness Blender

Saturday
8.5 miles run with some moderate hills

Sunday
Rest Day

Monday
Upper body weights + 3 trail miles

Tuesday
Yoga Stretch + 30 burpees later in the day (Day 1 of 15, thanks for the inspiration Amy!)

Wednesday
5 mile run at an easy pace, listened to Rich Roll Podcast (interview with Conor Dwyer)

Thursday
4 mile run, with 7×800 in the mix.

Here is a quick visual of my training calendar for March so far. It has felt really good to be back on track this week.

training calendar

WEEEEEEEE! I got my new Be Well Fitness log in the mail, so as soon as this week is up, I’m going to start in my new journal.

be well fitness log

Until next week!

Sleep hard.
Get moving.
Trust Your Gut.

Three Bean Corn and Quinoa Vegan Chili

March 22, 2017 by Zucchini Runner in Dinner, Food, Main Dish | Comments Off on Three Bean Corn and Quinoa Vegan Chili

Despite having an amazing chili recipe on the blog already, I wanted to add another. I like variety, I like change and I like black beans and corn with a passion. Well, maybe not that much, but I definitely love the combo of black beans and corn together! I decided to wing it with this version of vegan chili, and use my other chili recipe as the base. If you follow me on Instagram, you got to see me “mess up live” in IG stories when I put the quinoa in last. It ended up taking FOREVER to finish cooking, so please follow the recipe below and get those suckers in there right away with the tomatoes!

three bean vegan chili

Print
Three Bean Corn and Quinoa Vegan Chili
Rate this recipe
Average:0/5

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 25 minutes

Three Bean Corn and Quinoa Vegan Chili

Ingredients

SPICES:

1/2 tbsp. chili powder

1 tbsp. basil

1 tbsp. oregano

1 tbsp. ground cumin

1 tea. black pepper

1/4 tea. cayenne pepper

1/4 tea. sea salt

Main ingredients:

2-3 med. onions, chopped

3-5 cloves garlic, pressed

3 – 26.46 oz. containers of strained (1) and chopped (2) Pomi tomatoes

1 c. quinoa, NOT cooked

1 pint assorted mini sweet peppers (yellow, red and orange)

1 – 15 oz. can dark red kidney beans drained

1 - 15 oz. can great northern beans

1 - 15 oz. can black beans

1 - 16 oz. bag frozen organic corn

vegenaise (for topping, optional)

cholula (for topping, optional)

gluten-free crackers (for dipping, optional)

Instructions

    1. Prepare all the spices in a small dish and set aside.

    2. Chop onions into small pieces, and place in a heated stock pot with about 2 tablespoons of water.

    3. Let them simmer and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally until transparent.

    4. Add crushed fresh garlic and all the spices; stir.

    5. Pour in all the tomatoes. Stir well to combine.

    6. Add dry quinoa and stir well. Cover and cook on medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the beans and peppers.

    7. Chop and remove seeds from sweet peppers and set aside.

    8. Rinse and drain all the beans.

    9. Once the quinoa has cooked for 10-15 minutes, add the remaining ingredients and simmer on low for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes.

    10 Serve with gluten-free crackers, top with a little veganaise and/or cholula and enjoy!

Recipe Management Powered by Zip Recipes Plugin
https://www.zucchinirunner.com/2017/03/22/three-bean-corn-quinoa-vegan-chili/

As many of you know already, I’m a big proponent of “eating the rainbow” so it was really fun to make a more colorful chili.

three_bean vegan chili corn

I was so hungry by the time this batch of vegan chili was done, that I ate 3 bowls. No shame in my game. All the ingredients are super good for you! I added a little vegenaise and cholula to my first bowl and it was amazing. Having that extra fat in the dish kicked it up a notch! By the way, that is my new favorite combo – vegenaise and cholula. I use it to top salads, sandwiches and we just used it today for riced cauliflower and put it on top of our salads. That might make an appearance on the blog in the near future, I also see it as a great use for a nacho topping! ANYWAY, back to vegan chili. Besides cutting the onions and peppers, this is very hands off. So throw it all in a pot and enjoy!

three bean vegan chili

What do you love to eat your vegan chili with? (corn bread, corn chips, crackers…)

← Older posts
Newer posts →