____-free

posing practice, weight training, cardio, grocery shopping, church, and family time.

that was my weekend. how was yours?

this particular trip to HEB was one to remember! i have been hearing about Walden Farms this and Walden farms that in cyberspace recently. Walden Farms products claim to be:

calorie-free

sugar-free

fat-free

carbohydrate-free

gluten-free

cholesterol-free

not ALL products are free of ALL of the things i listed, but just read the label to be sure!

my ears perk up when i hear '____ - free' regardless, but not once have i heard so many in the same sentence and referring to one product!!!!! my curiosity got the best of me and i ordered the infamous Walden Farms pancake syrup online. however, man, sometimes all you have to do is ASK. 'do you carry Walden Farms products?' i asked the store associate. i just knew she would look at me crazy and reply with 'who!?', but nope, HEB always come through for meeeeeee.

could that be?...no... calorie-free ketchup!? yeah it scares me too...i'll go back for it later though lol

i read A LOT of product reviews (i do hope for the best that they aren't fake or anything) and the Walden Farms dips (chocolate, caramel, marshmallow, etc.) aren't sounding too good. so, i left them alone for now.

there they are...in all their glory! bbq sauce too! WF is on a roll.

and dressings! so for those of you who like to eat salad with your dressing lol, you should give these a try.

this is what i got outta there with in addition to my fresh fruits, veggies, and proteins. syrup (pancake and chocolate) sesame ginger dressing (which is nothing short of awesome) and more PB2- there was a 50 cents off coupon running and i couldn't pass it up.

saturday morning, i made Chiso a bowl of oatmeal and topped it with fresh blueberries, chia seeds, peanut butter, and almond milk.

then i made some more of those oatmeal pancakes i had last week (i am HOOKED!!). i made up the batter the night before this time and let it sit in the fridge.

we had them again this morning. ready to try them?! here's that recipe:

super moist banana oat pancakes

the stuff:

1/3 cup rolled oats (***you can use pre-ground oat flower, or ground them yourself in your blender or food processor***)
2 egg whites
couple dashes of cinnamon (be generous)
splash of real vanilla extract (OR you can use a couple drops of vanilla creme stevia if you want them sweeter!)
1/2 a mashed ripe banana
1/8th tsp of baking powder
2 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 heaping tbsp greek yogurt or unsweetened applesauce

do this:

mix all the ingredients well in your blender or food processor! *s/n: if the batter is too thick for you, add some unsweetened vanilla almond milk to stretch it. i've been adding water to keep my nutritional stats the same for my competition diet though.*
pour into a non-stick/sprayed skillet or griddle. you can make 1 big cake like they do at restaurants, or a stack. i like to do 4 mini cakes.
3-4 min on each side.
you can add SO many things to your batter- the options are simply endless. top or incorporate your fav fruit or nuts and don't forget that sugar-free syrup. i also sprayed mine with some 'i can't believe it's not butter'. this is too easy!!! i don't even need a pancake cheat meal anymore! tastes so darn good. i'll be adding some PB2 into my batter when i can have it again. enjoy and get creative.

(for the ENTIRE recipe)

Chiso is a fan.

heck, oatmeal hating Sonny likes them AND the syrup too. jackpot.

About Time sent me some free samples of their whey protein this past week- chocolate and birthday cake flavor. no carbs, no fat, no aftertaste, and all natural. hmmmmmmmmmm! as usual, i will be trying, next month.