Clean Italian Chicken Stew

It's getting cold around here!! In preparation for the week (and the cold, brrr...), I decided to modify a recipe that I found on Pinterest. I wanted to add a little more substance and to clean it up a bit. Enjoy!

Clean Italian Chicken Stew
Adapted from: Gimme Some Oven

Ingredients: 
1 sweet onion (diced)
2 celery stalks (diced)
3 carrots (diced)
4 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon of chopped basil
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes (optional)
2 cans (BPA free) stewed Italian tomatoes
1 can (BPA free) cannelloni beans
2-3 chicken breasts (shredded)
2 cups of chicken broth
1 package of boil-in-a-bag brown rice

Directions:

1. Saute the onion, celery, garlic and carrots in the bottom of a large pot with a little olive oil. (This is called a mirepois. Go figure.)

2. Once soft, add in all the other ingredients, except for the rice. Let it boil.

3. Once boiling, add in the bag of rice. Give the rice the 10 minutes to cook, and then remove from the bag into the soup.

4. Simmer on the stove until the carrots are completely cooked.

Adapted from: Gimme Some Oven

New Challenges

A couple of friends are starting a weight-loss challenge at my doctor's office that started Monday, and a few more of us are restarting the He and She Eat Clean She Sweats 12 Week Workout at the same time! Get your copy here. As part of both challenges, we have to take before pictures, both to be eligible for the prizes ($1000 prize at the Dr.'s and a $300 prize pack from He and She) and to see the transformation working on our bodies! To help me stay even more accountable, I thought I would share my transformation in pictures here... this is nervewreckin' y'all, be kind, please!! Even though these are technically before AND after pictures (see my starting story here), I am still not where I want to be (see my goals here.) Alright, here goes nothing! 

Before pictures:

What's Eating Clean?

Source

Just a few months ago, I had no clue about eating clean! After lots of research, I've realized that "clean eating" is somewhat subjective and everyone has created their own meanings. To be honest, I am still learning and figuring out what works for me!

Basically, to me, eating clean is about:

• eliminating/reducing processed foods
• drinking a lot of water (like a gallon a day)
• eating 5-6 small meals every 2-4 hours
• meals consist of a lean protein + a complex carb + veggies (green, colorful ones) 
• eliminating sugar (<30 grams of naturally occurring sugars a day)

I try to eat organic, non-GMO fruits and vegetables when we can afford to- it stinks that it's not in budget sometimes!

 I have some exceptions: 

• I use Stevia or Truvia as a regular sweetener (what Southern girl lives without sweet tea?) 
• Greek yogurt is my breakfast super pal
• I treat myself to avoid binges on junk food; For example, I like to keep dark chocolate in my freezer.
• I've recently removed "Whole Wheat" ingredients in the house that are considered clean- mainly whole wheat pasta, tortillas, etc. I realized that I never stay within serving size for those, and they tend to lead to binges on bad foods. 

Here are some great resources that I've used and/or had recommended to me: 

• www.heandsheeatclean.com
• Jamie Eason's 12 Week Trainer
• Tosca Reno's books (all of them :) ) 
• TLS Weightloss Solution (I hope to be a coach within the year) 

Keep a look out for more posts about what I eat!