{365} Days A Path towards Elite Powerlifting

Healthy Cinnamon Banana Bread Recipe

This is my favorite banana bread recipe. I've made this literally 10 + times, and it gets better each time. I just wanted to keep it on record here.

Ingredients

• 3 Bananas - Changed from 2
• 1 Tsp of Baking Soda
• 1 Tsp of Baking Powder
• 0.5 Cups of Canola Oil or 0.5 Cups of Low Fat Butter or 0.5 Cups of Apple Sauce
• 2 Egg - Changed from 1
• 1/2 Cups of Splenda or 1/2 Cup of Honey
• 2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 Tbsp of Cinnamon
• 1 Tsp of Vanilla Extract
• Pinch of Salt
• 1/2 Cup Water
• 1/2 Cup of Walnuts - Changed from 0 (optional)
  
• Whey (optional)

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven 350 degrees.
2. Mix the butter (oil/apple sauce), splenda (honey), eggs, baking powder, vanilla extract, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a bowl.
3. Beat/mix well.
4. Mash bananas, throw it in and beat/mix.
5. Add 1 Cup of Flour and 1/4 Cup of Water.
6. Beat.
7. Add 1 MORE Cup of Flour and 1/4 Cup of Water.
   
8. Beat.
9. PAM a bread ban, throw in oven for 30 minutes.

Here is the original post: http://yanyanxu.com/2008/06/14/day-166/ Shoutout to LB for the original recipe.

Healthy, from Scratch, Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

These came out amazing, my dad kept sneaking bites when I was not looking. This is definitely one of the better healthy recipes in the log. If I made these thinner, they would be much crunchier but I chose to make some big chewy cookies for maximum enjoyment .

INGREDIENTS

1. 1/2 TSP of Baking Powder
2. 1/2 TSP of Baking Soda
3. 1/2 TSP of Salt
4. 1 TBSP of Cinnamon (More if you like cinnamon)
5. 1 TBSP of Cocoa Powder (More if you want a darker chocolate flavor)
6. 2 Scoops Optimum Nutrition’s 100% Whey
7. 1 Scoop Supplement Direct’s Unflavored Whey Protein Hydrosolate [Just put in three scoops of chocolate flavored protein of your choice, personally I might even go up to four-five scoops in the next batch]
8. 1.5 Cups of Quaker Oat's Oatmeal (Not flour, the actual oats)
9. 1.5 Cups of Whole Foods' Whole Wheat Flour
10. 1 Large Egg
11. 1/2 Cup of Musselman's Apple Sauce
12. 1 Cap of Pure Vanilla Extract
13. 1 Big Spoonful of Natural Peanut Butter
14. 1/2 Cup of Sue Bee's Clover Honey
15. 1 Cup of Sun Maid's Natural California Raisins
16. 3 Hershey's Extra Dark Chocolate Squares (Optional)

NUTRITION FACTS

Low fat, high carbs, with a small dab of protein. Healthiest/tastiest cookie in the world!

Download: Yanyan's Healthy Homemade Oatmeal Cookies (Nutrition Caloric Facts Excel Spreadsheet)

This thing is rockin, I'm digging the low fat content.

STEPS

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Mix the dry ingredients (1-9) together.
   

   

3. Mix the wet ingredients (10-14) together.
   

   

4. Slowly pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients while mixing the whole time.
5. Next add the raisins (15) last and mix it all together.
6. Throw it in the fridge for 30 minutes to cool it down.
7. Take out some wax or parchment paper and put it over your baking sheet.
8. Use a non-stick spray on this.
9. Mold your cookies out and feel free to stick some pieces of chocolate on top. The smaller the cookie, the crispier.
   
10. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Take it out and enjoy
    

    

Here is the original.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Raisin Protein Brownie Recipe

This can be considered a protein bar as well, but when I bake something, I feel it is more of a "brownie" or "no-rise" cake. The reason I made this was because I was anxiously waiting for my new longboard. It has a nice light flavor and is a very enjoyable snack to curb some hunger pains.

INGREDIENTS

1. 2 Scoops Optimum Nutrition's 100% Whey
2. 1 Scoop Supplement Direct's Unflavored Whey Protein Hydrosolate [Just put in three scoops of chocolate flavored protein of your choice]
3. 1/2 Cup of Quaker Oat's Oatmeal Powder [Finely shred oatmeal with your blender]
4. 1/2 Cup of Musselman's Apple Sauce
5. 1/4 to 1/2 Cup of Egg Beater or 4-8 Egg Whites
6. 1 Cap of Pure Vanilla Extract
7. Large Spoonful of Skippy's Natural Peanut Butter
8. 1/2 Cup of Sun Maid's Natural California Raisins
9. 1/2 Cup of Honey (Optional) [For those who want a stronger sugary flavor, only difference is to pre-heat oven to 325 and bake for 25-30 minutes]
10. Dark Chocolate Chips (Optional)  [For those who want a stronger sugary flavor, no difference in bake temperature and time]

NUTRITION FACTS

I'm not going to lie, this thing is pretty healthy. Low fat, nice carbs, and equally nice protein. 46:43:10 ratio of protein to carbs to fat. Pretty awesome snack.

Download: Chocolate Peanut Butter Raisin Protein Brownie Nutrition Caloric Facts Excel Spreadsheet (Excel)

I personally broke it down to little chunks and just ate it randomly as a snack.

STEPS

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 (325 if used honey).
2. Mix all dry ingredients (1-3).
3. Now put all wet ingredients (4-7), and mix it up with your dry ingredients. (Also add honey in this step)
   
4. When all that is mixed, feel free to add the raisins (8).  (Also add chocolate in this step)
   
5. Spray non-stick spray on your baking container, then pour the stuff in.
   
6. Throw it in the oven for 20 minutes until the edge starts to pull away from the sides.
7. Take it out... an enjoy
   

Here is the original.

Authentic Chinese Eggplant Recipe

Ever wondered how they made egg plant in restaurants? Well here is the secret. I make my version a bit healthier (using less oil, salt, soy sauce, sugar) but you can always put more than I did for the full blast of flavor. I am more interested in enjoying the egg plant dish with "half" the flavor but relish in the fact it is easy to fit into the macros. I will comment randomly on how to bring out the full flavor.

Ingredients

1. 2-4 Eggplants (Depending on how much you want to make and how thick they are. Go with the skinner ones with unblemished skins, make sure they are FIRM to the touch)
2. Two Pieces of Ginger (Each about the size of a chicken wing)
3. Sprinkle of Soy Sauce (Extra dark variety for coloring)
4. Dash of Salt
5. Dash of Sugar
6. Multiple TBSP of Olive Oil

Steps

1. Throw some olive oil into the pan, the more you use, the BETTER it will taste. Chinese restaurants use a lot, I personally just covered the bottom of the skillet.
2. Cut 2 wing sized pieces of ginger and throw it into the skillet while it is warming up. This is where all the flavor in the egg plant comes from. You do not eat the ginger.
   
3. Wash your eggplant.
4. First cut off the eggplant's head (part with the stem).
5. Cut the eggplants diagonally, a tip is to keep it fairly thin so it cooks faster. Think potato wedges.
   
6. If you are cutting it right, it will feel like you are cutting it into a pencil.
   
7. Throw everything into a bowl, no need to wash the insides.
8. Next throw all this onto your skillet. Stir occasionally every few minutes until the egg plants starts turning soft and mushy (about 8-10 minutes + depending on cut and amount)
   
9. Here is a picture of it when it is soft and mushy.
   
10. When it is mushy, throw some soy sauce onto it. Then add dashes of salt and sugar until it is to your liking. Do not put more than a small spoonful of sugar on it.
    
11. If it looks too dry, add a tablespoon of water at a time. In the end there should be NO liquid on the bottom of the skillet.
    
12. Enjoy!
    

Easy Fish Fillet Sandwich Recipe

INGREDIENTS

1. 2-3 Catfish Fillet about 7-8 OZ (I just buy the frozen ones from a local grocery store)
2. 3-4 Large Spoonful of Corn Starch
3. Non-stick Spray
4. Large Shakes of Lemon Pepper
5. Large Shakes of Black Pepper
6. Bread
7. Ketchup

NUTRITION FACTS

My fish had 322 calories, 12 grams of fat, and 37.5 grams of protein. That plus whatever bread makes it about 500 calories, 14 grams of fat,  43 grams of protein, and 30 grams of carbs.

STEPS

1. Heat the skillet.
2. Put 3-4 large spoonfuls of corn starch in a bowl.
3. Shake black pepper and lemon pepper in this mix.
4. Throw in a little bit of water to make this a nice paste.
5. Cover each fillet of fish generously.
6. Spray your skillet with non-stick spray.
7. Throw the fillet on the skillet until it turns flaky.
8. Put this on a piece of bread.
9. Finally throw on some ketchup because the fish flavor is very mild.
10. Enjoy!

Simple, Healthy, and Fast Steak Burger Recipe

So I'm running out of food in my apartment, but I'm not running out of ideas. I didn't feel like using my George Foreman and I wanted something a little more tasty, so I came up with this AMAZING and delicious steak burger that just falls apart in your mouth. The sauce created was absolutely out of this world.

INGREDIENTS

1. 8.5 OZ of Top Round Steak
2. 2 Slices of Whole Wheat Bread
3. Rice Cooking Wine
4. Corn Starch
5. Worcestershire Sauce
6. Montreal Steak Seasoning (McCormick)
7. Black Pepper
8. Non-Stick Spray

NUTRITION FACTS

Basically only two things you need to count... (1) Steak, depending on your cut. (2) Bread, depending on brand. It can be as healthy as you want it to be.

STEPS

1. Heat your skillet on medium.
2. Lightly rinse the steak.
3. Cut the steak into thin strips matching the thickness of your thumb.
4. Put this in a large bowl.
5. Throw a generous amount of corn starch on the steak strips.
6. Then add a few spoonfuls of rice cooking wine and Worcestershire sauce.
7. Throw a few dashes of Montreal steak seasoning and black pepper on this as well.
8. Use your hands and mix everything together until it the steak is well coated.
9. Spray your skillet and throw everything (even the residue sauce from the bowl) into the skillet.
10. It should be a nice gooey mixture. (sauce will turn into a sticky consistency)
11. Keep mixing it around for 3-5 minutes.
12. Throw this onto two pieces of bread (feel free to toast this).
13. Enjoy!