If you’ve arrived here today, WELCOME!! Today, I’ll be promoting my NEWEST & BIGGEST challenges for January. Every New Year, I like to take on a fresh new challenge, hopefully healthy, and ideally something that will push me to be a better version of me. Plus, I need a way to keep myself distracted from my #1 of the 2 challenges I’ll be tackling:

1. No drinking for the month of January
2. A Keto Lifestyle

That’s right folks, I said NOOOO drinking. Are. You. Kidding Me. Relaxxxxx, it’s not as hard as it seems! For those that are close to me, know I LOVE my W.I.N.E., but after the hustle and bustle of the holidays it’s a great time to kick start getting back on the right fitness track. And, what better way than to keep myself distracted by learning an entirely new diet/eating régime!?

I’ve officially been doing Keto for (1) whole week. And to be honest, I’m SUPER impressed with myself! No cheating, just straight up Keto. It was super tough at first – I was one of the few to experience what they call “the Keto flu” known as the period when your body learns to transition over from using carbohydrates for energy to using fat for energy. It. Was. Rough. I could barely move from the couch.

BUT – don’t let that deter you! The way I feel now, there’s no turning back. I have even more energy than I ever have before (I barely even need coffee anymore in the AM) and I feel super focused, motivated and driven at work!

Outside of the traditional cheese, avocado, no-prep needed snacks, I’m going to take you along in my journey of cooking, baking, prepping and taste testing (and trust me – those who know me know I am NO COOK), in the world of Keto recipes.

Keep scrolling for a sneak peek into this week’s (easiest EVER) prepped snack menu:

Keto Cheese Crisps

Ingredients:

• Cheddar Cheese Slices

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Arrange Cheddar cheese in 24 small squares on the prepared baking sheets. (I folded each slice into quarters)
3. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Cool for 5 to 10 minutes before removing from baking sheets.
4. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:

Per Serving: 60 calories; 3.0 g fat; 6.0 g protein; 0.0 net carbs

Pizza Keto Chips
(Pepperoni and cheese are great keto snacks. To turn them into a chip, is absolutely brilliant. A simple recipe that the kids are absolutely going to love without question. It is impossible to eat just one.)

Ingredients:

• 6 oz Pepperoni
• 5 ¼ Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Take out some cookie sheets. You may need 2-3.
2. Arrange pepperoni’s – don’t worry, they’re not going to expand like cookies. They can be close together!
3. Bake them for about 5 minutes until they are semi-crispy and the grease is coming out of them. If they move out of place just arrange them back together.
4. Sprinkle the cheese on top. Bake for another 3 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and a little crisp.
5. Lay the chips onto paper towels to soak up any excess grease.
6. Let sit for 3-4 minutes to cool off and crisp up even more.
7. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts:

Per Serving: 61.3 calories; 5.3 g fat; 3.0 g protein; 0.2 net carbs

No-Bake Keto Peanut Butter Balls

Ingredients:

• 1-2 100% Bakers Chocolate Bar
  (For dark chocolate lovers, you can use a 100% bakers chocolate bar. It is extremely bitter, but when used in these peanut butter balls, they’re perfect, as they pair with the sweet and salty peanut butter filling)
• 2 Cups Smooth Peanut Butter
• ¾ Cup Coconut Flour
• ½ Cup Sticky Sweetener of Choice
  (The sticky sweetener is necessary to not only add a tad of sweetness but also to help the dough have a soft and chewy texture. Unfortunately, using a granulated sweetener will not yield the same result. The article I found suggested using a monk fruit sweetened maple syrup, which is 100% sugar free, keto-approved and low carb. Since I couldn’t find this, I used the next closest, sugar-free, low carb syrup)

Directions:

1. Line a large baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine all your ingredients, except for chocolate bar, and mix until fully combined. If the batter is too thick and crumbly, add some liquid (water or milk) slowly until a thick, formable batter remains.
3. Using your hands, form small balls and place on the lined plate or tray. Freeze for 10 minutes.
4. While the peanut butter balls are firming up, melt your sugar-free chocolate bar. Remove the peanut butter protein balls from the freezer and dip each ball in the melted chocolate until completely covered. Repeat until all the balls are covered in chocolate.
5. Refrigerate for 20 minutes, or until the chocolate coating has firmed up.

I hope you all enjoyed my first Keto recipe spill!
Check back for more as I continue eating my way through Keto!

 

xoxo
Brittany