Author: saramcdaniel

Y’all, this is one of my all-time favorite meal preps and it is SO easy! This week has been a low-carb week for me. So while I didn’t cut carbs from my diet completely, I just lowered my intake. I try to lower my carb intake throughout the week so I can splurge on the weekends with pasta, bread, and sweets. It’s all about balance, right?

Everyone’s body is different. For me, lowering my carb intake through the week and splurging on the weekend is a good balance. Let’s be real, I like to eat. I like to eat fried chicken, cake, ice cream, cookies…(the list goes on). So for me, it’s all about balance and maintaining.

This recipe is great for a low-carb meal. Low-carb is the key word here. The Italian sausage is high in fat. According to your diet and body, you may want to swap it out for shrimp. Low-carb, high-fat and moderate protein is the way to go if you’re looking to burn body fat. If you’re looking to lose weight, stick to the shrimp or chicken for this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 pack of Hot Italian Sausage
• 1 onion
• 3 large carrots
• 2 zucchini
• 1 squash

Seasonings

• 4 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning
• 1 tablespoon of garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon of creole seasoning
• 1 tablespoon of salt
• 1 tablespoon of pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Cut sausage, onion, carrots, zucchini, and squash. Place the veggies and sausage evenly on the pan.
3. Add olive oil and seasonings to the top. Toss the sausage and veggies to evenly season every piece.
4. Bake for 15 minutes then remove. Toss and turn the veggies and sausage and return to the oven. Bake another 15 minutes.
5. Remove and serve. You can serve this on top of brown long-grain rice if desired.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

You can shop some of the key seasonings at http://www.amazon.com/shop/sara.j.baker!

I’m always searching for low-carb meals that aren’t the same old lean meat and greens. These skinny, stuffed peppers are one of my new favorites and I had to share it with y’all!  They’re full of flavor and perfect for a low-carb diet!

Ingredients:

• 5 bell peppers
• 1-1 1/2 pounds of ground turkey
• 1/2 an onion diced
• 3/4 cups of water
• 1 cup of shredded cheese
• 1 packet of taco seasoning
• 3 tsp of garlic powder
• 3 tsp of hot sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray your baking dish with cooking spray.
2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown turkey and onions until no longer pink. Drain the grease and return to skillet.
3. Add taco seasoning, garlic powder, hot sauce, and water. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 5 minutes.
4. Cut off the tops of the bell peppers and hollow out, removing all seeds. I also trim the bottoms of the peppers to help them stand up better. If there are small holes in the bottom, that’s ok. It helps the grease drain out.
5. Fill the peppers with the meat and top with cheese.
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until peppers are tender. You can top the peppers with optional toppings such as salsa, sour cream, guacamole, chive, etc.

You can shop some of the key ingredients at https://www.amazon.com/shop/sara.j.baker!

Y’all this cake is everything!! I’m Oreo obsessed so I found a way to add Oreos to the cake AND the icing. Oh, and did I mention this cake is super easy to make? I’m not the best decorator when it comes to cakes, so why not just add more Oreos? The more the merrier, right?

Directions:

For Cake:

Grease two round cake pans or one at a time. Prepare cake batter exactly as box calls for. I used white cake mix, but I’m sure you could use any flavor. The white makes it taste more like Cookies & Cream. Crush up 15 Oreos. I put them in a gallon sized bag and crushed them up the old-fashioned way. After cake batter is mixed, stir in the crushed Oreos. Pour half of the batter into each cake pan and bake as directed on the box. Allow each half of the cake to COMPLETELY cool.

For Icing:

First, you’ll want to soften the cream cheese and make sure the cool whip is at room temperature. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and softened cream cheese to a mixing bowl and mix well. Stir in the cool whip and mix well. Don’t beat it in or the icing will turn out too thin. Crush 15 more Oreos up and mix well. Don’t forget to add a layer of icing between layers of the cake. When finished icing the cake, refrigerate until ready to serve.

Ingredients for the Cake:

1 box of cake mix

Eggs (as called for on box)

Water (as called for on box)

Vegetable Oil (as called for on box)

15 Oreos

Ingredients for the Icing:

16 ounces of powdered sugar

1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese

1 (8 oz) container of cool whip

1/3 tsp. of pure vanilla extract

15 Oreos