Living Life Balanced Blog

Burrito Bowl

3/25/2020

This is another one of our go-to meals because it's easy, delicious (who doesn't like Mexican food?) and we usually have these ingredients on hand. Make it your own by just using up the fresh and pantry ingredients YOU have and get ready for your new favorite meal! Sometimes we eat this for dinner or we make a huge batch and eat it for the week. Yum!

Burrito Bowl: gluten free and dairy free recipes by Elena McCown, LLC a health coach in Franklin, TN

Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

4 servings brown rice, cooked according to package
2 Tbsp lime juice
½ tsp chili powder
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp minced garlic
2 bell peppers, sliced thin
1 onion, sliced thin
2 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
4 Tbsp guacamole
4 Tbsp salsa
2 cups blueberries

Directions

When rice is done cooking mix in lime juice, cilantro, chili powder and 1 Tbsp of olive oil.
Heat a skillet over medium heat and add oil, garlic, peppers and onion. Sauté, stirring frequently, until slightly softened and they start to brown. Add in the beans and cook until hot.
To serve, divide rice with the bean and pepper mixture between serving bowls. Enjoy with guacamole and salsa.
Serve with 1/2 cup blueberries each.

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This is for YOU

3/20/2020

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This is for You! My take on the quarantine due to Coronavirus/COVID-19 and your health by Elena McCown, LLC a health coach in Franklin, TN

Yes, I am saying all of this to myself as well....(picture taken before everything went downhill)

Hello!

Instead of the numerous typical COVID-19 emails you have been getting recently, I am taking a different approach. First, it’s because I typically work from home and only meet clients one-on-one at coffee shops (which I can’t do right now anyways) or virtually – so I don’t really have to tell you that I am keeping things sanitary and clean. I mean, I have somewhat cleaned my home but that is beside the point. If I meet with anyone else it is for an outdoors workout with at least 6-10 feet of space between us. But that is not why I am writing this today.

I am here to remind you that “living life balanced” is a lifestyle that holds up for anything life throws at you; be it a pandemic, a recession, a quarantine, the holidays, vacations, or just another ordinary day (although that might be far off from how things feel right now). What that means is – I don’t offer you diets…because they don’t last. They don’t stand up to stress or when something comes and completely turns your world upside down. But a healthy, balanced, lifestyle does.

When everything gets crazy, people resort to what they know. You could have been on a health kick but as soon as your quarantine happened, everything went out the window and you gave up. If you haven’t changed the little habits and behaviors that you do every single day and make them part of your life and instead make a huge restricting change all at once, you haven’t actually implemented something into your life. The day eventually comes when you can’t do it anymore and you reach for comfort.

While I have been laughing at some of the memes out there (“me after I eat all my quarantine snacks in one night”) it just reminds me how important it is to actually change those habits and behaviors slowly over time so that when shit hits the fan and you end up resorting back to your “comfort level”, it won’t be much of a difference!

I understand there are other things that also get in the way, but I’m talking to all of you who just decided not to care anymore as soon as you got stuck at home. If you are working from home or are staying home because of your family and kids and everything has changed – you CAN still eat well and you CAN still exercise and you CAN still have a healthy mental attitude. It just is going to look a little different and maybe feel a little harder at this point – but it doesn’t need to be. Let’s keep it simple by following the steps below.

Make each day count. Don’t become numb to your life and just wait for each day to pass and for this all to blow over. It’s going to take time (unfortunately). SO in the meantime, think about what you are thankful for and truly treasure and explore each day – “What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it.” ~Heartsill Wilson. Do good each day. Help others in whatever way you can. Everyone is suffering in their own way. How can you help? Make sure you are doing something each day that you truly enjoy! Do something each day that makes you feel alive!
Stick to a schedule. Make a new one each day if you need to. But pencil in the hours for when you will wake up, when you will exercise, when you will work, when you will teach school (if you need to), when to do something you enjoy, when to relax, and when to go to bed. Schedules and routines make us feel safe and secure and in control to help make room for all that’s important.
Plan your meals. Ok, now let’s talk about food. You know, all the stuff you ran out to buy “just in case”. I find it interesting what I am seeing out of stock at the grocery store - frozen pizzas, frozen dinners, chips, crackers, cookies, Gatorade, soda, meat, bread, milk, canned things and oh yeah, can’t forget the toilet paper and paper towels. I understand having SOME of these things, especially canned goods if you just want to stock up for the future but we are stuck in our houses people...with electricity and running water. We can still eat regular meals. If anything, now is the time to start practicing new healthy recipes. Put down that bag of chips. Look at the food you have, buy some produce (if you can), and create your meals for the week. Write them down. Include your snacks. Don’t restrict yourself from those cookies, BUT instead of eating them all in one night, make them last. That was the point in stocking up on food, right? To make it last? Not to eat it all in one night. If you schedule your day, schedule your meals too. Know what you will be eating for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Utilize the food you have so you don’t waste anything. Just stop grazing and eating it all at once.
Get active. You have all the time in the world to exercise right now. There really aren’t any excuses. Plan your workout into your day just like everything else. Get creative if you have to. The outdoors isn’t closed so you can definitely go on a walk, run, hike or bike ride. In fact, it is strongly encouraged! If you can’t do that then create a small space in your house/garage/driveway/front yard/back yard/etc. where you can do your own workout. Come up with the moves on your own, or follow a free or paid routine or video online. There are SO many options available right now. Look for them and you will find them. Move as much as you can. It will do you SO much good.
Focus on your mental health. It is TOUGH right now. I know. I feel it too. It’s scary. You know what else is scary? Constantly being on your phone looking at social media and the news and the fake news and reports you can’t trust and even ones you can. It is NOT healthy to do this to yourself. Stop looking constantly. Pick one or two times a day where you will check in with a trusted source to see what is going on. Then, put it away. Other than that try to only use your phone to connect with others which is also SO important. Do this by talking, texting or even better – video chatting. STAY connected. And as I said before, you have all the time in the world right now so what better time than to aim for 8 hours of sleep a night? Yes, you heard me. 8! Need help with the stress you are feeling? Utilize all of the free resources like yoga videos, meditation apps, therapists, warm baths, books, music, etc. Need specific help with something else? Please ask.

This is hard. Your health doesn’t have to be. Don’t wait for this all to blow over to start taking care of yourself again. Whatever your personal struggle may be, you can and you will get through this. You need to put yourself first so you can not only take care of yourself, but your loved ones as well.

Let’s think of “quarantine time” as “self-care time”.

I’m going to leave you with the rest of the quote I used in the beginning because I think we all need to hear this:

“This is the beginning of a new day. God has given me this day to use as I will.
I can waste it or use it for good.

What I do today is very important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.

When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, leaving something in its place I have traded for it.

I want it to be a gain, not a loss – good not evil.

Success, not failure, in order that I shall not regret the price I paid for it.”

– Heartsill Wilson

In the meantime, if you want to support small businesses and gain a comfy new shirt for your loungewear wardrobe, please think about ordering one here (thanks to Twine)! Limited edition - order yours before 3/27/2020.

I appreciate your support!

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Chicken Pot Pie

3/18/2020

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A few weeks ago I was back in Texas visiting my family for my birthday. I had been craving chicken pot pie but it is hard to find a gluten free and dairy free version. I asked my parents if they would be interested in eating it if I made one and they said yes! We went to Sprouts and grabbed all of our ingredients. The best part was that they had already cooked, unseasoned, rotisserie chicken that we could buy! I highly recommend using something similar to cut down on cooking time (unless you already have leftover shredded chicken). That is also where I bought the gluten-free pie crust and gluten-free flour. If you watch the video you will see that I had trouble with the pie crust because I let it sit out for too long before using it. This caused it to get very sticky and I was unable to pull it off the parchment paper to place on top of the pie. Instead, I just pulled off pieces and added it on top just like if you were using a biscuit batter - which probably is just easier to do in the first place! Fortunately, all it changed was the look of the pot pie - the taste was still incredible! If you want your pie to be a little prettier, you might be able to just pour the chicken mixture into a pie crust and then top it with the other one instead of rolling them out to top a baking pan. Either way, the result will be a delicious pot pie! Shout out to my mom for videoing and helping me with this recipe and my dad for the music! Video posted at the bottom.

Chicken Pot Pie: gluten free and dairy free recipes by Elena McCown, LLC a health coach in Franklin, TN

Total Time: 60 minutes
Serves: 8

Ingredients

2 Tbsp vegan butter
3 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
4 oz baby bella mushrooms, chopped
5 Tbsp vegan butter
7 Tbsp gluten-free flour (I like King Arthur Measure for Measure)
dash of salt and pepper, to taste
2 1/2 cups no or low salt added chicken broth
1 cup almond milk
16 oz frozen mixed veggies
1 25 oz rotisserie chicken, unseasoned, skin removed and pulled
3 Tbsp dried parsley
1 Tbsp dried thyme
2 gluten free pie crusts

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 400 F.
Heat 2 Tbsp butter over medium-high heat in a large pan and saute the celery, onion and mushrooms until tender.
Remove the veggies from the pan and set aside.
Add 5 Tbsp of the vegan butter to the pan and 7 Tbsp of the gluten free flour and a dash of salt and pepper to make a roux. Mix together until combined.
Add chicken broth and whisk until smooth and thick.
Stir in the almond milk until blended and smooth. Add more broth or almond milk if you need to thin it out a little more.
Now add in the frozen veggies (I like the one with green beans, carrots, peas and corn) and the vegetables you just cooked, as well as the pulled chicken, and mix together until well combined. Add parsley and thyme and set aside and turn off the heat.
Roll out the cold but not frozen pie crusts to fit over a large 9x13 pan OR just pull apart pieces of the crust to throw on top after you put the chicken and vegetable mixture in the pan.
Add the chicken and vegetable mixture into the pan and top with either the rolled crust OR the crust pieces to cover the entire top (see video).
Bake for about 30 minutes or until crust starts to turn golden brown. If your pan is really full you might need a baking sheet underneath to catch anything that drips out of the pan.
Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

If you like this recipe, download the Prepear app for more of my recipes (plus thousands of others), meal planning, grocery list creating AND grocery ordering from Walmart!

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Learn how to make a delicious, gluten free and dairy free chicken pot pie! Recipe in bio. #livinglifebalanced #healthcoach #chickenpotpie #glutenfree #dairyfree #recipes #healthy

A post shared by Elena McCown â€¢ Health Coach (@elenamccown) on Mar 18, 2020 at 5:07pm PDT

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Tacos

3/11/2020

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Tacos: gluten free and dairy free recipes by Elena McCown, LLC a health coach in Franklin, TN

Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 lb extra lean ground turkey
1 sweet onion, chopped
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 poblano pepper, seeded and chopped
1 Tbsp minced garlic
½ Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp paprika
Dash of salt and pepper
12 corn tortillas
2 tomatoes, chopped
½ head lettuce, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
2 cups raspberries

Directions

Heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium-high heat in a large pan.
Add the turkey and cook for about 8-10 minutes or until cooked through and no longer pink, breaking it up with a spatula. Remove from pan and set aside.
Add the remaining 1 Tbsp oil with ½ of the onion (saving the rest for serving), the bell pepper and poblano pepper and sauté for about 10 minutes until veggies soften.
Add the turkey back in with the veggies and combine with the garlic, chili powder, cumin, paprika, a dash of salt and pepper and the turkey until everything is seasoned and hot. If necessary, add 1-2 Tbsp of water to help mix the spices with the turkey.
Serve corn tacos with the turkey, the rest of the onion, tomatoes, lettuce, cilantro and avocado.
Serve each with 1/2 cup raspberries.

If you like this recipe, download the Prepear app for more of my recipes (plus thousands of others), meal planning, grocery list creating AND grocery ordering from Walmart!

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Shrimp Jambalaya

3/11/2020

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Shrimp Jambalaya: gluten free and dairy free recipes by Elena McCown, LLC a health coach in Franklin, TN

Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 sweet onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp Cajun seasoning (I like Kingsford Cajun Style Seasoning)
2 Tbsp Worcestershire
1 can diced tomatoes, no or low salt added
4 servings quick cooking brown rice
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 stems green onion, chopped
4 oranges

Directions

Cook rice according to package directions and set aside.
In a large shallow pan, heat oil over medium high heat and add the chopped onion, bell peppers and celery. Sauté for about 8 minutes until slightly translucent and brown. Add garlic and Cajun seasoning.
Add shrimp to the pan and cook until pink and opaque.
Add the Worcestershire, diced tomatoes and rice and stir until everything is hot and mixed thoroughly. Top with green onion.
Serve each with an orange.

If you like this recipe, download the Prepear app for more of my recipes (plus thousands of others), meal planning, grocery list creating AND grocery ordering from Walmart!

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