5 Ingredient Kale Chips

Im about a week and half into maintenance of the HCG Diet. So far things are going really well. Ive been working out like crazy and doing the best I can to avoid carbs!

One of the hard parts about maintaining a low carb diet is passing up on crunchy snacks. I love crackers, popcorn and potato chips, but slipping up and eating those will negatively impact my weight. Luckily Im not the only one with this problem, so I was able to do some research and find some yummy, healthy, crunchy alternatives on several healthy blogs.

Im pleased to introduce you to my absolute favorite snack: 5 ingredient kale chips. These little guys are addictive.

I ate  these on Phase 2, but they did slow down my weight loss a bit. Because the recipe does contain a bit of olive oil, this recipe is ideal for Phase 3 of the HCG Diet.



Heres what youll need:
1 large bushel of kale
4 cloves of garlic, grated
1 tablespoon olive oil
garlic powder
salt
1 gallon size Ziplock bag
Paper towels
2 cookie sheets
Tinfoil

So first thing is first, lets talk about picking your kale. When you are preparing to make this recipe, youll want to buy more than one bushel of kale...yup, its that good. Also, the wetter the kale is, the harder your life is going to be. Because youre baking this leafy vegetable, moisture can actually cause a steaming effect and prevent your kale from getting extra crispy. When I first attempted making these, I was meticulous about washing the kale and drying every crevasse  It took forever. Im a bit impatient so the next time I tried making these I simplified the process of removing moisture. I picked the driest looking bushel at the store, then washed the leaves with a slightly damp paper towel. It was much easier doing it this way than submerging each leaf in water then trying to get them dry.

Once youve got your kale picked out, youre ready to start.

Directions: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with tin foil. Take your cleaned leaves and begin breaking off the bushy greens from the stems. Dont make the pieces you break off too small, they will shrink once you get them in the oven. Set these aside.

In the gallon Ziplock bag combine olive oil, garlic, and garlic powder (I just add as much garlic powder as I feel like. Just make sure you are using garlic powder and not garlic salt!). Seal the bag and massage these seasonings together.

Add the kale into the bag, leave the air in the bag and seal it. Shake it up for 2 minutes. Open the bag and let the air out, reseal the bag, and massage the flavors into the kale for 1 minute.

Spread the seasoned kale out in a single layer on the cookie sheets. Sprinkle with salt (be careful how much salt you put on, kale really absorbs flavor well, you dont want your chips to be too salty!).

Bake for 30 minutes and enjoy!

You can make this recipe in big batches, just make sure you store your leftovers in a brown paper bag and not a Ziplock. These chips get really crunchy in the oven but if they are kept in a Ziplock, they will start to soften.

I like to dip mine in wing sauce, but they are also great plain.

Let me know what you think about this recipe! Feel free to share any healthy, crunchy snacks you eat while on Phase 2 or 3 of the HCG Diet.

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Water Do you drink enough !

Ill be simple with this one. If you dont drink water, start! Its the only thing that passes through your mouth that doesnt contain a calorie and has multiple benefits. It also helps you feel full when fasting.

I would aim at drinking at least 1.5 litres per day with the intention of increasing over 2 litres.

Read the below article on the benefits of drinking water and start to change your lifestyle from today!

www.mangosteen-natural-remedies.com/benefits-of-drinking-water.html

Remember, it only takes a little dedication and motivation to be healthy. Make it your 2013! 

D x

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Sauteed Kale Sausage Spaghetti Squash Medley

Whats better than a recipe with spaghetti squash or kale? A recipe with both. I was checking out some low carb recipes on Pinterest and I found a Sausage, Kale, and Spaghetti squash. I thought Id check it out, and simplify it a bit. Kale pairs so well with sausage and spaghetti squash pairs well with with almost everything. Im a big fan of making dinners in less than 30 minutes. The original cook time on this dish was around and hour and 20 minutes. I did it in about 25. Woot woot. Turns out, my variation is super delicious, and I thought this low carb dinner would be worth sharing.

Ingredients:

• 2 small spaghetti squash, halved and de-seeded
•  1 bunch kale, chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• 1 pound Italian Sausage
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1/4 cup mozzarella 

Directions:
In a casserole dish, place spaghetti squash face down and fill dish with about an inch of water. Microwave for 15 minutes. While spaghetti squash is cooking, heat olive oil in large pan. Add kale to pan and sprinkle with garlic and onion powder. Saute kale on medium heat until tender. While youre sauteing the kale, cook sausage in a small pan. Once sausage is browned, add in onion and cook them through. Add meat and onion mixture to kale and cook on low heat until sausage, onion and kale lightly brown. Scrape spaghetti squash into a large bowl using a fork. Add in the kale and sausage mixture and combine. Serve immediately topped with a little mozzarella.

Makes 4 servings. 545 calories per serving, 16 net carbs, 20 grams protein.

If you want to cut down on fat and calories, go with regular ground turkey instead of Italian sausage and skip the mozzarella.

Recipe adapted from: PaleoGrubs.com

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Maintaining Weight Loss on the HCG Diet My 5 Tips for Success

It has been awhile since Ive updated all of you on my progress! Not too long ago I finished my 4th round of the HCG Diet.  My four rounds on the HCG Diet were an incredible success; I lost 100 pounds in 293 days.

Losing this weight has been a tremendous blessing in my life. But now that the weight is gone, my next goal is to maintain. I started the maintenance phase at the beginning of March. And I am finally adding carbohydrates back into my diet successfully after 8 weeks of transitioning.

I am so proud to say that 8 weeks after finishing my HCG Diet I have maintained my 100 pound weight loss!

The thought of maintaining can be intimidating. After all, you go from eating hardly anything to doubling your caloric intake overnight.  I have gotten several emails from people who are terrified to gain weight back after finishing their diet. The transition seems impossible and frustrating. I completely understand this feeling, but after doing maintenance 4 times, there are some things Ive learned that I feel are worth sharing.

 Here are my 5 tips for maintaining weight loss after the HCG Diet.

1. Take it day by day
It is incredibly easy to get overwhelmed by maintenance. When you start maintenance, dont take it month by month or even week by week, take it day by day. If what you eat one day makes you gain weight, you dont eat it the next day. The weight you gained will come off if you just re-evaluate your diet. One bad day of weight gain does not mean youre going to gain everything back, it just means you need to make adjustments. Your overall goal is health, so take each day as the opportunity to nourish your body. Each day your body needs nutrients to function properly. Make sure you are getting in the best nutrients so you feel the very best! Your body isnt going anywhere. Youre not in a hurry to be healthy. It is a day by day process. Rushing will only add more pressure to an already difficult situation.

2. Develop a routine
Know what youre going to eat the day before you eat it. For me, I know that if I skip my 10 a.m. protein shake, Im more likely to get hit by a 2 p.m. snack attack. If I schedule out my food ahead of time it is easier to avoid tempting situations, plus I can trend my weight. I know that if I eat certain things at certain times I am going to maintain better than just eating whatever I want whenever I want.

3. Avoid feeling Guilty
So there have been several instances where I give into emotional eating. At one point I ate Chinese food and Del Taco simultaneously. And the next day I gained. I wasnt proud, I knew better than to eat those greasy foods, but it happened. After a binge day, the best thing you can do for yourself is recognize that your behavior led to consequences and recognize that youre human, and youre capable of getting back on track. Guilt will not lead to health, in fact dwelling in guilt after a binge can lead to dangerous behaviors like more binging, skipping meals, or purging. Thats not healthy. You will have bad days, you are not perfect. All that matters is that you make the day after a bad day a really good one!

4. Learn to love exercise
When I was 285 pounds, I HATED exercise. But now that I am not carrying around as much extra weight, I am actually enjoying exercise. It has been one of the biggest helps in maintaining my weight loss. Its helped me get my metabolism going again and its a great release for me mentally. Maybe running and walking isnt your thing, but you can try Zumba or swimming, bike riding or kickboxing! There are so many amazing activities that will help you get in shape and avoid gaining weight back.

5. Give yourself some breathing room
The original HCG protocol suggest a two pound window for gains. For me, I give myself a 5 pound leeway. If I gain more than 5 pounds, I know I need to adjust what Im doing. There will be times where you gain, there will be times where you retain water or eat something bad, so dont stress. This is not the end of the world. Just be proactive about the situation and recognize for every thing you eat there will either be a positive or negative consequence. As long as you are willing to live with the consequence and overcome the negative effects of it, youll be just fine.

Maintenance has taught me that healthy is not a destination. Healthy is an everyday effort! If you do maintenance correctly, you will learn healthy habits. Hang in there. You are more than capable of maintaining your weight loss. Im doing it, so can you!

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