I love having frozen apples on hand to put in smoothies, desserts, and other fruity treats. Here is what I do to freeze apples:
Now you can pull out desired amount whenever you need them! Try them in any of these recipes:
Posted by M. Terry on February 20, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/20/frozen-apples/
Happy President’s Day! Here is a great treat for today’s patriotic holiday, or for just any ordinary, American day.
Makes 1 smoothie
Place all ingredients in a blender and mix. Serve and enjoy!
Posted by M. Terry on February 20, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/20/an-apple-pie-smoothie-for-presidents-day/
The core consists of the muscles in the mid-section including the abdominals, upper and lower back, hips, and gluteus maximus. Having a strong core can help reduce the chances of back injuries and pain, improve athletic performance, and ensures better balance and coordination. It also plays a pivotal role in maintaining internal functions.
This core move is one of my new favorites to use in my circuit training. Along with the core, the triceps and chest are fully engaged too.
Hold a dumbbell in each hand and get into plank position (keep hands positioned under shoulders- Figure A).
Keeping hips and shoulders squared, pull right elbow up, keeping the triceps parallel to the floor (Figure B). Extend right arm straight back, hold for one second, and return back to Figure B position. Repeat on the other side to complete one rep. Do 5-10 reps depending on your ability level.
You can view this video to see the complete move.
Posted by M. Terry on February 17, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/17/engaging-the-core-plank-with-triceps-extension/
Anna requested red velvet cupcakes for her birthday. The thought of pouring bottles (yes, that is plural) of red artificial dye into her cupcakes was enough to send me searching. I am glad I did because I found this WONDERFUL recipe that uses beets to create a moist and red-colored cake. These cupcakes received rave reviews, and this is a recipe that will be used again! So thank you to sophistimom for all the time you took to put together and post this recipe! And thank you to God for giving us such rich and vibrant food that is both a treat to the tummy and to the eyes! I have reposted the recipe, but be sure to check out her sight for some extra tips and beautiful pictures (she made a layered cake).
(I used 3 medium beets and it was exactly 1 1/2 cups pureed. Also, I used just 2 tablespoons of cocoa, reduced-fat cream cheese, and organic sugar. It made 2 dozen cupcakes.)
2 large beets (enough for 1 1/2 cups puree)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 sticks (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened, but not quite room temperature
1 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened slightly
2 1/3 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 tablespoons natural (not dark or dutch processed) cocoa powder*
cream cheese frosting (recipe on sophistimom)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (165 degrees celsius). Place beets in a small baking dish and add a 1/2 cup of water. Cover with parchment paper and foil, and roast until quite tender, about 60-90 minutes. Allow to cool completely.
2. Butter 3 8 inch cake pans. Cut out parchment paper circles and place in the bottoms of the pans. Butter the parchment paper and dust with flour. Set aside. Peel the beets and cut into large chunks. Place in a food processor (or a very good blender) with the lemon juice, and pulse until smooth and pureed.** Stir in the vinegar.
3. In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and cream cheese. Pour in sugar and mix until smooth. Add in eggs, one at a time, mixing well until each is incorporated. Mix in vanilla.
4. While ingredients are mixing, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder in a separate bowl. Slowly add flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of the beet puree mixture, and fold into the cake batter. Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans. Tap pans on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Invert cakes onto cooling racks, and allow to cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze until ready to frost.
Posted by M. Terry on February 15, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/15/red-velvet-cupcakes-au-naturel-i-e-no-food-coloring/
Posted by M. Terry on February 14, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/14/happy-valentine-day/
No, this is not an ultra run distance for which I am training (although, some people are crazy enough to do so!). This is a mind-boggling fact that Scott read in his textbook for his seminary class, The Health and Well-being of the Minister. Here is the actual stat:
So here is the challenge:
Rather than your heart working hard to feed those extra 200 miles of blood vessels and capillaries, how about making it stronger by:
As we celebrate American Heart Month, give your heart the gift of strength and get moving!
Posted by M. Terry on February 13, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/13/200-miles/
Thankful that my heart belongs to Jesus!
Posted by M. Terry on February 12, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/12/a-conversation-heart-from-me-to-jesus/
Sacrifice to Savor- that is my motto when it comes to eating a special treat.As we approach Valentine’s Day, we are surround by candy, chocolate, cakes, and other goodies. When these sweets are so readily available, we often eat them without much thought as to what we are putting into our mouths and ultimately into our bodies. Even during a typical day, sometimes we are in the habit of eating those 2 cookies after lunch, and then we really don’t enjoy them- we just pop them into our mouth, chew, and swallow.
One of my favorite desserts is tiramisu. If I ate it everyday or even once a week, it would no longer be treat- it would be a habit. So when I have the opportunity to partake of this coffee creation (or any of my favorite desserts), I make sure to savor every bite! I “sacrifice” many other treats so I can truly enjoy the moment. I don’t want my tiramisu to become ordinary- I want it to always be extraordinary!
Posted by M. Terry on February 8, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/08/sacrifice-to-savor/
Don’t shy away from weights! They are essential to maintaining a healthy weight, strong bones, and a tight physique.
Since time is of the essence for all of us, weight workouts that use more than one muscle group at a time are your best bet to get the most out of lifting weights.
Here is a move that incorporates 8 different muscle groups in one move.
Muscle Groups Worked:
Posted by M. Terry on February 7, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/07/1-move-8-muscle-groups/
Last month, I made my “top 10” list of foods that I eat daily (or almost daily). One of the items on my list, chia seeds, are a new addition to my diet. I mainly add them to my shakes, but sometimes they top my granola and Greek yogurt. I have begun to “sneak” them into my kids’ sandwiches by spreading a little onto their PB & Js. I buy the seedless all-fruit spread, and simply add the chia seeds to the jam when I am spreading it on the bread. Voila- Omega-3 fats slathered onto their favorite lunch box staple!
You can actually make some chia seed jam since those tiny, little guys are a natural thickening agent. Check out one of my favorite fellow bloggers at The Gracious Pantry for her Strawberry Chia Seed Spread recipe.
Posted by M. Terry on February 6, 2012
https://wholetothecore.com/2012/02/06/sneaking-in-chia-seeds/
Whole to the Core Blog 