The Most Delicious High Protein Zucchini Muffins

Protein packed, no added sugar, and vegan optional zucchini muffins are a treat to have with a cup of coffee or to freeze for a raining day. Or if you're like me, you make a large batch to freeze so when the thick of summer hits, the oven doesn't have to be turned on.

This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

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What does carrot cake, beet brownies, and zucchini muffins all have in common? Hidden veggies! And they are delicious to say the least. But just because these baked goods have a little hidden nutritious element doesn't make them a guilt free treat. There's still plenty of sugar and they usually lack protein.

Now, you can have your cake and eat it too. I mean, now you can enjoy one, two, or three of these no-sugar added high protein zucchini muffins without hesitation.

While the dark chocolate chips are completely optional, and allows you to purchase both dairy-free or vegan brands, they are 100% necessary in my household. Dark chocolate is good for you anyways, right?! I truly believe it has it's own portion of the food pyramid.

Zucchini is such a summer staple and you can find it all over ever farmers market. Or if you're lucky, you'll be growing some big boys in your backyard. With all the fruits of you labor, you can make several batches of these muffins and freeze them for a raining day. Or just when it's too hot to turn on the oven.

Eat these no-sugar added high protein zucchini muffins for breakfast to keep you fueled for hours, eat them after a workout to help your muscles recover, or just eat them for dessert. There's no wrong time of day to eat these muffins since they are naturally sweetened with extra ripe bananas.

Click to tweet: You MUST make these no added sugar high protein zucchini muffins.

No Added Sugar High Protein Zucchini Muffins

Recipe by a traveling Wife

Yield: 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 1 very ripe Banana (I use a frozen banana that I thawed)
• 1 cup Zucchini, shredded
• 1/2 cup Applesauce, unsweetened
• 1 Egg
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 cup Kodiak Power Cake Mix
• *optional: 1 scoop Protein Powder
• 1 cup Oatmeal, blended
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
• *optional: 1/4 cup Nuts, chopped
• *optional: 1/4 cup Dark Chocolate Chips

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray muffin tins
2. Mix all wet ingredients together, including the zucchini, with a spoon, electric mixer or stand mixer
3. Mix all dry ingredients together in a separate bowl
4. Combine dry ingredients slowly into the wet ingredients
5. Stir in optional items such as nuts and chocolate
6. Equally portion out batter into a 12 count muffin tray
7. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown
8. Cool on cooling tray until you can't wait any longer

Do you prefer zucchini muffins or zucchini bread?

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Freezer Smoothie Bags

There is no better time to enjoy a daily smoothie than during the hottest season of the year. Fill your freezer with pre-made individual sized drop-in-the-blender smoothie bags. 

This post is brought to you in partnership with Naked Nutrition. It also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

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The days are getting warmer and longer (hello sunset at 9pm) and more humid. The last thing I want to do is heat up a warm meal or sit and chew on a salad. Smoothies are the perfect replacement for breakfast, lunch or dare I say, dinner! They are so versatile by using your favorite fruits, veggies, nuts, etc. Then throw in some fancy powders and you have yourself one of the healthiest drinks EVER. 

My least favorite part of making smoothies used to be the cleanup. However, I learned a little trick to clean the blender super quick. Just rinse out the blender after use, fill halfway with hot water and drop in some dish soap. Turn the blender back on and bam - your blender just got a nice little cleaning.

Click to tweet: Genius - pre-made individual sized drop-in-the-blender smoothie bags!

Another thing I dislike about making smoothies is gathering all of the ingredients. Trying to manage and entertain a 3 month old can make simple things impossible and then my healthy smoothie turns into me grabbing a bag of chips or a dozen cookies. That's where pre-made individual sized drop-in-the-blender smoothie bags come into play. 

My favorite type of smoothies are simple. I can't really be bothered with loads of ingredients to make a new flavor each day. I typically just buy whatever frozen fruit is on sale or freeze my overly ripe fruit, some type of green, and freeze almond or coconut milk in ice cube trays. This is the basis of a delicious smoothie.

Pre-made Individual Sized Drop-In-The-Blender Smoothie Bags

Ingredients

• 2 handfuls frozen fruit
• handful frozen kale
• 2 ice cubes frozen almond or coconut milk
• fold top sandwich storage bags

Directions

1. Place all ingredients in fold top sandwich storage bag.
2. Store multiple sandwich bags in a gallon sized freezer bag and keep in freezer until ready to use.

How To Make Smoothie

1. Blend fruit, kale, frozen almond or coconut milk, and 8 ounces water in Ninja blender until smooth. 
2. *Optional: pulse in 1-2 scoops Naked Whey, 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed and a few dashes ground cinnamon. 
3. Enjoy!

Naked Whey protein powder is the only protein powder I feel comfortable using while nursing. It contains only one ingredient (grass fed whey protein) with 25 grams of protein per serving. And you will love that it's gluten free and soy free too!

*Get 10% off Naked Nutrition products by using the code 'JENNATL' upon checkout. 

What are some of your favorite ingredients for smoothies?

Have you ever made smoothie bags before?

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Candied Almonds

Almonds are chock-full of healthy fats, fiber, protein, magnesium, and vitamin E. They make for a great snack to help reduce hunger and promote weight loss. Take those tasty almonds and coat them in sweet cinnamon sugar and you have a delicious snack. Best yet, make a large batch and throw extras in the freezer to snack on later or to put on top of salads. 
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Happy 2017! I hope you all had a fun and safe welcome into the New Year and that this year is one of your best years yet.

The turn of each new year is a great time to reflect on your past and focus on future goals. I know there are loads of you out there making fitness/health goals, educational goals, family planning goals, and life journey goals. I too set aside some time to really get a good grasp on what I want to get out of 2017.

This year will be a year to remember - but so has the past several years.

In 2011, I married the love of my life and moved from Michigan to California so that we could live a happily married life. And in 2012, we moved from Northern California to Indiana for A's job. Then in 2013 we purchased our first home in Indiana.

2015 took us from Indiana to Maryland, where we purchased our second home. And last year, we moved once more. This time from Maryland to Missouri and purchased our third home.

2016 was also the year that we found out we were expecting our first baby - a baby girl! Baby Girl is expected to make her grand appearance in February, and this will be one of the many great events that will take place this year.

So to start the year out, I am planning and prepping for Baby Girl's arrival. The house is being cleaned and organized, and the freezer is being packed with ready-made items. One of these freezer items include delicious candied almonds.

Click to tweet: Almonds are full of healthy fats & fiber. They also promote weight loss.

Several months ago I shared the recipe for gebrannte mandeln, translating to candied almonds from German. They are so tasty as a snack that I eat them by the handful, but they are also really great on salads. Plus they fare extremely well in the freezer so you can make a big batch and just throw them in the freezer for future use. And let's not forget that almonds contain healthy fats, fiber, protein, magnesium, and vitamin E. They can reduce hunger and promote weight loss - we can just forget they are coated in sugary goodness!

Candied Almonds

Recipe by a traveling Wife

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons Water
• 1/2 cup + 1/3 cup Granulated Sugar, separated
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 12 ounces Raw Almonds
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Cooking Directions

1. Using a dutch oven, bring water and 1 cup sugar to a boil over medium heat
2. Add almonds and stir, stir, stir
3. Once the water has dissolved and the sugar starts to stick to the almond (roughly 5-8 minutes, or longer), add vanilla extract and remaining sugar
4. Stir for another 1-3 minutes until sugar is to your desired clumpiness or smoothness
5. Pour onto silpat and allow to cool completely
6. Enjoy!

Did you make any New Year's resolutions?

What are some of your favorite ready-made freezer items?

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Extremely Moist Banana Nut Bread

Start your morning with an extremely moist banana nut bread that is super simple to make. This banana nut loaf comes out perfectly every time and it's a great way to use up all those overly ripe bananas. 

* This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

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I have always been a sucker for banana nut bread. Warm up a slice, smear it with a little bit of butter, and serve it with a hot cup of coffee - that is perfection to me. However, there are loads and loads of banana nut bread recipes all over the internet.

Some of those recipes incorporate multiple sticks of butter or cups and cups of sugar. Both of those items I try to keep to a minimum when I am baking or cooking. But those of you that have been baking for some time know the importance of butter and sugar to create the perfect recipe. In fact, that's the type of banana nut bread I grew up eating and loving.

I've played around with several recipes and I have successfully been able to reduce the amount of refined sugar and butter by at least half, compared to other popular banana nut bread recipes. Yep - half the amount of added sugar and half the amount of butter and yet it's still the moistest banana nut bread I have EVER eaten.

Now I know you'd rather be the judge to determine if this banana nut bread is extremely moist, so you'll have to make the recipe for yourself. My number one trick for ensuring an extremely moist banana nut loaf is to not whip the butter. Mixing it in with the other ingredients will leave the butter slightly chunky, but that will yield the moistest possible banana nut bread.

Extremely Moist Banana Nut Bread

Recipe by a traveling Wife

Cook time: 40+ minutes
Yield: 10 slices

Nutrition per slice: 195 Calories | 28 g Carbs | 8 g Fat | 4 g Protein | 12 g Sugar

Ingredients

• 3 large Very Ripe Bananas, frozen then thawed bananas work best
• 4 tablespoons Butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup plain Applesauce
• 2 large Eggs, at room temperature
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 1/4 cup All Purpose Flour (whole wheat works great too)
• 1/3 cup Chopped Nuts, either walnuts are pecans are tasty

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Using a stand mixer, mix bananas until they are mushy then mix in butter and applesauce until well incorporated. *Remember, butter will be slightly chunky and that's perfect.
3. Add in eggs and mix until combined then mix in sugar and vanilla extract.
4. Mix in salt, baking soda, and flour until dough has formed.
5. Slowly stir in chopped nuts.
6. Place dough in a grease 9 1/2 x 5 inch loaf pan and bake for 40+ minutes.
7. Check to see if the bread is done by inserting a toothpick into the middle of the bread. If the toothpick comes out without any dough on it, then the bread is done. Continue to bake if the toothpick comes out with raw dough.
8. *Depending on the wetness of the dough and the environment in the house will determine how long this bread will bake. I've had several loaves be completed in the 4o minutes and other loaves took almost 60 minutes. Just keep your eye on the bread.
9. Allow bread to cool completely. Cut and serve.
10. Enjoy!

Click to tweet: Try this extremely moist banana nut bread bit.ly/moistbanananutbread It has 50% less butter & sugar than other recipes.

Are you a fan of banana nut bread?
What do you like to smear on top of your banana nut bread?
Have you completed all of your holiday shopping?
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Pumpkin Protein Muffins

* This post has been updated and revised on October 18, 2016. The recipe has been revised to represent the best possible mini pumpkin protein muffins. Also, this post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.
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I believe I expressed my love of all things protein and muffins in my high protein zucchini muffins. So it can't be much of a surprise that I have created a seasonal muffin that fits this mold.

Click to tweet: These pumpkin protein muffins are delicious.

I am the type of baker that likes things simple. Simple ingredients that I always keep on hand are key for me to really enjoy baking, because if I'm being honest, I HATE measuring things. One thing I always keep is bananas in the freezer. A really likes green bananas and if they start to get even the teeniest of brown spots, they go right in the freezer. And for those that have been reading a while, you know I have an allergy to bananas - food-latex syndrome. Luckily cooked bananas don't bother me, just yet.

Another thing I like to do as a baker is make things mini. Bite sized food is so much more enjoyable to me over massive items. So my mini muffin tray gets much more use over my regular sized one.

Pumpkin Protein Muffin
original recipe from a traveling Wife
*Revised October 18, 2016
makes 24 muffins | nutrition per muffin with chocolate chips: 
69 calories | 2 g Fat | 10 g Carbs | 3g Protein | 4 g Sugar

Ingredients:
- 1 large very ripe banana, mashed
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/4 cup plain applesauce
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup Kodiak power cakes
- 2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch salt
- * Optional: 1/2 cup dark chocolate morsels

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray mini muffin tray with non-stick cooking spray
- Mix together banana, egg, pumpkin puree, applesauce, and maple syrup with a hand mixer or stand mixer
- Mix in vanilla extract
- Mix together Kodiak powder cakes, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl
- Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture
* Optional: add chocolate morsels of your choosing.
- Spoon one Tablespoon of the mixture into mini muffin tray
- Bake for 15-18 minutes until firm to the touch
- Allow to cool and then enjoy!

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Are you a lover of mini muffins or traditional sized muffins?
What pumpkin flavor items have your indulged in so far this season?

Four-Ingredient Loaded Potato Soup [Freezer Friendly]

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I could eat soup all year round. Anyone else with me? It can be simple and semi-homemade or it can be a complete from scratch recipe. It doesn't really matter to me, just give me the soup.

One reason why I enjoy soup year round is because soup is usually really freezer friendly. That means I can freeze smaller portions of the soup and enjoy them at my leisure, or when I am running short on time to make dinner.

But let's get back to the ease of soup. Unless you are trying to copy a recipe, a good soup only requires whatever ingredients you have on hand - chicken stock, vegetable stock, carrots, onions, noodles, rice, potatoes, cheese, bacon or anything you can imagine will make a delicious soup.

Click to tweet: Try this 4-ingredient loaded potato soup.

A soup that always does well in my house is my four-ingredient loaded potato soup. There are two reasons why I love this soup. It can be made with any of your favorite Hungry Jack Hashbrowns (like the new black pepper and onion flavor) and it does extremely well in the freezer. I typically make a large batch and fill muffin tins with the soup. Then place it in the freezer overnight and you have yourself individual pucks of soup that can be thawed whenever hunger strikes.

Loaded Potato Soup

Recipe by a traveling Wife

Ingredients

• 4 cups Chicken Stock
• 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 8 ounces Cream Cheese
• 1 package Hungry Jack Cheesy Hashbrowns
• *optional: garnish with green onions and pancetta

Cooking Directions

1. Prepare Hungry Jack Hashbrowns as directed on packaging.
2. In a large cooking pot, bring chicken stock and cream of chicken soup to a low boil.
3. Cube cream cheese and mix into stock mixture. Stir until thoroughly combined (5-10 minutes).
4. Add prepared Hungry Jack Hashbrowns.
5. *Optional: serve with cooked pancetta and green onions.
6. Enjoy!

If you want to give this soup a try, you can use Hungry Jack's store locator to find your favorite flavor.

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What's your favorite soup?

Have you ever froze soup to make busy nights easier?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffin

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Start your day out with outrageously moist Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffins. They are freezer friendly making your week even easier. This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CarnationSweepstakes #BetterBreakfast #CollectiveBias
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Raise your hand if you went through the painful experience of braces. I know I did! In fact, I went through several mouth contraptions prior to even the thought of braces. This would be the part that I insert a horribly embarrassing photo of my crazy crooked smile from way back when.

The tightening of the braces were the absolute worst and left me eating only soft foods for several days. I always relied on items like mac and cheese, applesauce, smoothies (before smoothies were a thing and actually used iced cream - aka shakes), and Carnation Breakfast Essentials® powder drink mix. I can't even tell you how many times I would take the packets of Carnation Breakfast Essentials® powder drink mix to school and just purchase a milk. It was the easiest and most satisfying meal I could eat when my mouth was in so much pain.

I still like to enjoy Carnation Breakfast Essentials®. Mostly because I like food and mostly because breakfast is a very important meal - some might say the most important meal of the day. Not only can you enjoy Carnation Breakfast Essentials® just they way they are, but you can also enjoy some tasty breakfast muffins. And this is when the Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffin was born.

Click to tweet: Outrageously moist Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffins.

The muffins are super moist with a delicious crunchy, sweet, and buttery top. Hello, breakfast perfection! And the best part, each muffin is 127 calories with 7 grams of sugar. That means you can enjoy one or two of them on your way out the door for work, or whatever you have going on in the morning. You also have the option of using fresh strawberries if they are in season. Personally, I just bought a bag of frozen strawberries from Walmart (along with all other ingredients) and slightly thawed them prior to baking the muffins.

Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffin

Recipe by a traveling Wife

Cook time: 15
Yield: 12 muffins | 1 muffin per serving

Calories per serving: 127 
Carbs per serving: 12 grams
Fat per serving: 8 grams
Protein per serving: 2 grams
Sugar per serving: 7 grams

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
• 1/4 cup White Sugar
• 1 Egg, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup Skim Milk, room temperature
• 2 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup All Purpose Flour
• 1 packet Carnation Breakfast Essentials® Strawberry Sensation
• 1 cup Frozen Strawberries, slightly thawed and cut into quarters
• 1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, cold
• 1/4 cup All Purpose Flour
• 1/4 cup White Sugar
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In a stand mixer, mix together 1/4 cup softed butter and 1/4 cup white sugar until whipped together.
3. Add in the egg and mix until well mixed.
4. Pour in vanilla and milk and mix until blended together.
5. Combine baking powder, salt, and 1 cup all pupose flour together. Slowly mix these into the mixers and blend until combined.
6. Mix in Carnation Breakfast Essentials® Strawberry Sensation packet and mix until combined.
7. With a spatula or spoon, stir in the slightly thawed strawberries.
8. Thoroughly grease muffin tray and scoop out 2-3 tablespoon muffin mixture for each muffin.
9. In a seperate bowl, cut remaining butter, flour, white sugar, and brown sugar with a pastry cutter or fork until crumbly.
10. Add 1 tablespoon of crumble to each muffin.
11. Bake 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
12. Allow to cool completely before removing from tray.
13. Enjoy!

Click to tweet: Freezer-friendly Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffins. 

Before you head out and run to the store to grab all these ingredients, I wanted to share how you can rock your breakfast without breaking a sweat - try for a 7-day nutritious breakfast challenge. First off, you could make these Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffins over the weekend and freeze them. Then you can grab one or two to thaw out each night so you have fresh breakfast each morning.

Second, you could purchase some of the Carnation Breakfast Essentials® ready to drink bottles to grab as you are running out of the door in the morning. I like the high protein ready to drink flavors!

The last suggestion is perfect for those mornings that you have just a few extra minutes to whip up some tasty drinks. In a blender you could add the rich milk chocolate or dark chocolate powder drink mix along with some strawberries and milk. You'll then have a delicious chocolate covered strawberry breakfast drink. YUM!

If you are ready to rock your morning, you might also be interested in the Carnation Breakfast Essentials® Sweepstakes. Ready to get started? Follow these easy steps:

1. Sign up at CarnationBreakfastChallenge.com
2. Complete a simple yet fun breakfast mission for a chance to win. New prizes will be revealed every day!
3. Come back any day in February to complete missions and see new prizes. The prizes range from a Fitbit to a GoPro and other awesome stuff!
4. Head to your favorite store to purchase a Carnation Breakfast Essentials® Nutritional Product and upload your receipt for five extra entries per day.

Click to tweet: Make breakfast easier w/ Strawberry Crumble Breakfast Muffins.

Have you ever had braces? What was a go-to food when you had braces?

Do you have any hacks to rock your work week mornings?

Will you be joining the 7-day Breakfast Challenge?