Got home from a great run tonight and came across my bag of quinoa in the cupboard!!

Quinoa is generally treated like a grain in the culinary world (though it technically isn't, botanically speaking). It's pronounced "keen-wa" and provides a plethora of health benefits. One specific highlight is its high protein content: quinoa's endosperm can be up to 60% protein (as opposed to most wheat endosperm at around 3%!). 

 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with this so called "super food," it resembles what I envision the offspring of rice and Spaghetti O's would look like. The serving size on the bag is 1/4 cup, and to clarify that is 1/4 cup uncooked. Upon cooking, the starch gelatinizes, and in this process the granules swell with water. In doing so, it yields approximately 1 cup of cooked quinoa. 

Quinoa is super satiating and I especially like having it for dinner after a workout. I've experimented with it a bit in the past and made this shrimp and veggie combo a few months ago:

For dinner tonight I had:

1/4 cup quinoa (170 cal)

3 oz Tyson frozen chicken breast strips (100 cal)

1/2 cup marinara pasta sauce (70 cal)

1 slice reduced fat Sargento provolone (50 cal)

1/2 tomato and1/2 onion 

  

I paired it with a side of broccoli and an apple, enjoying a Frango mint for dessert! :) 

Unfortunately, I left a majority of my spices at my parent's house (just recently moved into my new apartment!) so it was lacking in that regard, but overall I liked the combo. Definitely going to keep this one in mind to perfect in the future! :) 

I will leave you with my favorite Bible verse:

Mark 11: 23-26 "Truly, I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your father in heaven may forgive you and your sins."

Happy Friday everyone! 

Amanda Emilee :)

 First post ever and so excited to be entering the blogging world!

I am creating Sugarplum Hearts as a health, wellness and all around happy life site. My goal in creating this blog is to hopefully encourage and inspire others (and myself!) through ideas regarding healthy lifestyle, tasty and healthy recipes, work outs, practical application of nutrition knowledge and any other fun (and probably girly) facts that I acquire along the way. Below I posted a few of my favorite things as a bit of a preview :) 

Over the years, I have learned a lot from challenges with body image and staying fit that come along with being a ballet dancer, dance team member and cheerleader.Through my journey thus far and amidst my pursuit of a Bachelor's degree in nutrition (which I recognize is still very much so in progress--I have a lot left to learn!!) I have established two philosophies that I find to be crucial to a healthy mindset, and are as follows:

Philosophy 1) Everything in moderation. You've heard it before, but let's address it a bit more deeply. Labeling elements as "good" or "bad" leads to skewed perception; when you red light some foods and green light others you are restricting yourself and setting yourself up to face unnecessary obstacles (like being hungry or really sick of the same type of food). 

For example, apples are good for you in moderation--but if you eat 20 of them in one sitting, I'd be willing to bet your body probably won't be too happy! Likewise, it's important to enjoy some "good for your soul food" every once and a while, too. Having a small portion of that homemade pumpkin pie Grandma made with Crisco will make your Grandma, heart and stomach smile, no matter how high the calorie content and low the nutritional value. Accepting the occasional indulgence will not only leave you feeling satisfied, but an infrequent increase in leptin levels could also surprise your body and give you a quick metabolism boost! 

Philosophy 2) Focus on the Positive. Okay, okay- so upon initially hearing it, sounds really cliche, right? But think about what positive really means. Positive is defined as "consisting in or characterized by the PRESENCE of features rather than their absence." So often I hear people saying "I can't have -insert obscenely long list of foods they deem unallowed- I'm trying to be healthy." It's draining to be focusing that much energy on what you shouldn't be having and it leaves little time- or energy- for you to put consideration into what your body does need. If you direct your energy towards getting essential nutrients each day (example: shooting for atleast 5 fruits and veggies/day), you won't have room in your brain to worry about what you shouldn't be having. Chances are, you probably won't have much room left in your stomach for extra junk food, either! Filling up on nutrient dense foods will leave you fulfilled and energized. This same idea can apply to exercise--think about what you have the most fun doing and get at it!! I'll touch more on this down the road :) 

For now, just want to preface further blog posts with a little bit about myself. I am a 20 year old dietetics student at Viterbo University. Originally from Rochester, MN, my faith in God is the stronghold of my existence. Everything that I enjoy doing--dancing, cooking, baking, playing the piano, work outing, and interacting with all my loved ones- have been integral parts of my development that I thank God for. It is because of Him that I first discovered my passion for ballet, and while much has changed in the past 17 years, the sparkle that fills my eyes and heart in putting on a pair of ballet shoes remains to this day. I look forward to sharing more of my journey through Christ, and in doing so want to share a bit of food for your soul (different type than Grandma's pumpkin pie--sorry, maybe I can dish up some of that in time to come :) ).

"...know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God...therefore honor God with your body." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 

People are often referred to as bodies with souls, but I prefer to think of humans as souls that have bodies. That being said, the body is our most valuable gift from God, and respecting it through an active and well balanced diet is critical to reaching our greatest potential in all aspects of our lives!!  

Prayer: Lord, please help me to respect and love my body. Thank you for providing me with such an awesome gift. 

Happy Sunday and best wishes to all as they begin a new week! Amanda Emilee :)