Sweet Potato + Spinach Quesadilla

Alright, Christmas is over. The holidays are coming to a close. Regret may be starting to set in, vows and resolutions to eat better, work out more, clean up your lifestyle.

As ever, we are here to help. But let's not go crazy. You can't go from sugar & carbohydrate overload to cold turkey. (Literally, just straight turkey isn't going to do it for you after a season of indulgence.) A steady diet of salads and steamed vegetables sounds like a good idea, and is definitely nutritionally what your body probably needs right now, but starving yourself or denying yourself will lead more surely toward diet destruction and 'giving up' all of your grand plans. 

Today's recipe is a few important steps in the right-eating direction, while still being delicious, satisfying and best of all-nutrient dense. The new year is a great time to make changes in your health, but take baby steps. Too much all at once can be self-defeating, and the most important thing about any diet or exercise plan is that it succeeds long term.

Sweet Potato and Spinach Quesadillas

Gather

2 medium sweet potatoes, baked + soft (1 pound total)
1 cup red-wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
4 black peppercorns
1 large red onion, sliced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
5 cups fresh baby spinach (4 oz)
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella
4 teaspoons olive oil

Method:

1. In a medium saucepan, combine vinegar, sugar, and peppercorns; bring to a boil and stir to dissolve sugar. Place onion slices in a medium heatproof bowl; pour hot vinegar mixture over onion and let stand 10 minutes. Drain onion slices and transfer to a plate to cool.

3. Split cooked potatoes open with a knife; remove orange flesh and transfer to a bowl--there should be about 1 cup. Use a fork to mash potato with salt and pepper; divide potato filling among 4 tortillas. Top each with 1 cup spinach, 1/4 cups of cheese, and second tortilla.

4. Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, heat 1 teaspoon oil and transfer 1 quesadilla to skillet; cook until quesadilla is crisp and cheese is melted (about 3 minutes per side). Transfer cooked quesadilla to serving plate. Repeat with remaining oil and quesadillas. Cut quesadillas in quarters and serve each with 1/4 cup pickled onions.

Enjoy and remember, start slow and gain momentum. Let's make 2015 your best year yet! 

Grinchy Avocado-Feta Dip

Ok, so this week's recipe isn't "Christmasey" per se, but it's definitely a great bring-along for holiday parties, and an easy, delicious way to fit in your dose of healthy fats. Too often we get stuck in a rut of the same flavors, the same appetizers, etc. Much better to jazz up your holiday eating with a little something different + healthy. Traditions are great in their way, but try out this week's recipe, and you may find your holiday rituals can change.

The recipe uses the creamy nutritional powerhouse, Avocado and blends it with naturally lower-in-fat feta cheese for a Grinch colored holiday dip, perfect for vegetables or pita chips. 

Just for a reminder, avocados are higher in potassium than bananas, are stuffed with monounsaturated fatty acids, fiber and antioxidants and can lower cholesterol. One serving of feta cheese provides a good portion of your daily amount of B12 and calcium. Basically, as you are stuffing your face, you are getting some benefits from it. (Which sounds pretty good to us!)

Avocado Feta Dip

Gather:

1/2 diced sweet onion

1/2 diced + seeded jalapeño

1 tbsp olive oil

2 medium/large avocados

1 cup cilantro

3/4 cup feta cheese crumbles

1/4 cup lemon juice

3 additional tbsp olive oil

salt, to taste

Method:

1. Sauté onion and jalapeño in olive oil until evenly browned

2. Purée with avocados, feta, cilantro, lemon juice and additional olive oil until it reaches desired smoothness. Add salt to taste and serve with pita or fresh vegetables.

Enjoy, and remember: Holiday eating doesn't have to be business as usual. Make it work for your diet + your goals. 

And now for something different: Protein Pudding

So, this week was supposed to be another festive, holiday inspired recipe. Here at Norton, we were pouring through cookbooks, browsing the internet, even attempting a few different healthy ideas motivated by holiday flavors. 

But honestly... we just weren't feeling it. We are so inundated by peppermint this + Christmas spiced whatever-- that we just wanted something good to eat. Something normal, and delicious and that we didn't have to feel guilty about indulging in. So, after some trial and error, we came up with this creamy treat packed with protein and fiber to satisfy your sweet tooth and fill you up. It's a great breakfast, snack, or dessert. Perfect for curbing those impure holiday thoughts and keeping your fitness plan in check. 

And if you really need those holiday flavors...you can always stir in some cinnamon or peppermint oil. 

High Protein Pudding + Pumpkin

(ok, I KNOW there's pumpkin. And you're all like, WHY MORE PUMPKIN? It isn't Halloween or Thanksgiving anymore! The answer is, PUMPKIN IS AMAZING. It is so unbelievably good for you, and you can't taste it in this recipe. So just stop grumbling and eat this pudding in it's chocolatey wonder.)

Ingredients:

• 1 15-ounce can unsweetened pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
• ¼ cup unsweetened natural CACAO. Not cocoa! 
• ½ cup all-natural, sweetened chocolate protein powder (vegan or whey)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (OR MORE)
• ¾ cup almond milk or lowfat dairy milk
• Optional:a few drops of peppermint oil
• Optional: additional natural sweetener to taste ( stevia, honey, maple syrup---hopefully not all 3)

Method:

1. In a blender or food processor, process the pumpkin, cacao powder, protein powder, vanilla and cinnamon until smooth, pausing once or twice to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl or blender pitcher with a spatula.
2. Add half of the milk to the blender or processor; process until smooth, then scrape down sides, Add remaining milk; process until smooth. Taste  and add additional sweetener if so desired.
3. Scrape into a big container or into individual jars. Cover and chill at least 2 hours for it to thicken and flavors to set.

Enjoy and eat sweet for the holidays! 

Egg Nog

It's that time of year again. The time that boozy or not, we need a swig or Egg Nog. Because it's the holidays, and the mall is insane, and you have to buy things for people that they probably won't like, and your wallet is crying and oh wait, so are you. 

This week, we thought hey, let's help the people. They're going to the gym, they're trying their best to avoid too many slices of pie and keeping their eyes away from the buttered rolls and the cheese covered nightmare that someone's aunt made for yet another holiday party. Let's give the people a drink we said. 

A healthy one. 

And we know what you're thinking. "Healthy Egg Nog? That sounds worse than no Egg Nog." And you'd be wrong. Very wrong, because we very kindly taste-tested this recipe for you to make sure it was amazing. And after drinking a glass or 4, we know you'll be as pleased as punch (or egg nog) to throw this holiday treat down your gullet. (and keep your sanity)

This recipe calls for coconut milk, but almond milk works just the same. For a creamier treat add some canned coconut milk or almond milk coffee creamer. 

Coco Nog

Ingredients:

6 large eggs, separated

1 cup sugar

A pinch of salt

3 cups coconut milk (or almond)

2 cups coconut cream  (or coconut or almond milk coffee cream)

2 cups rum (or not. pick your poison)

Nutmeg and Cinnamon for serving

Method:

• Whisk egg yolks, sugar, and salt in a large punch bowl just until sugar is dissolved.
  Whisk in milk, cream, and rum. 
  Cover and chill egg nog base at least 2 hours.
• Just before serving, using an electric mixer, beat egg whites in a medium bowl until stiff peaks form. 
  Gently fold into egg nog base. 
  Finely grate nutmeg and cinnamon over as desired.
  
  
  Keep your holiday spirits up!