Monday Nutrition Tip of the Week: Peanut Butter Power

This peanut butter-themed post is going up at an unfortunate time, as prices for it are about to go through the roof thanks to the drought plaguing the southern U.S. Apparently the price for a ton of runner peanuts has reached upwards of $1,200, up from just $450 last year. But, we'll soldier on because we love peanut butter.

The two things I almost always have in the house are peanut butter and hummus. A few weeks ago I grabbed a knife that had peanut butter remnants on it to spread hummus on some celery, and a flash of inspiration struck. Peanut butter and hummus...together? Tahini, one of the main ingredients in hummus, is made of ground up sesame seeds. Peanut butter is made of ground up peanuts. Couldn't you substitute peanut butter for the tahini with smashing results?

For a brief moment I thought I was going to be famous.

"It's going to be in all the stores! Everyone will want it! I'll be world renowned for my peanut butter hummus!"

A quick Internet search revealed that there are approximately 642 peanut butter hummus recipes in the world already, completely dashing my hopes for culinary fame and fortune. Is there ANYTHING that hasn't already been invented? 

This recipe is a combination of several I saw online. It's thick and peanut-y, and would be perfect for kids who don't like "regular" hummus. It won't replace the traditional tahini type in our house, but this is a special treat.

Peanut Butter Hummus
- 1 15 oz. can chickpeas
- 3 TB peanut butter
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup plain yogurt or plain greek yogurt (optional. I forgot to add this, but it would have been good.)

Mix all ingredients in a food processor or blender and mix until smooth and creamy.

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And now for more adventures with silken tofu. This is a peanut butter pudding that is great with granola sprinkled on top, or as a fruit dip. It's similar to the Low-fat Pumpkin Pie Dip I posted a few weeks ago, but I think this is better. Try it and let me know what you think!

Peanut Butter Protein Pudding
- 1 package silken tofu
- 1 ripe banana
- 1/4 cup milk (skim, almond, soy all work)
- 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg (optional)

Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender and mix until smooth.

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Workout of the Day

P90X One on One, Vol. 3: V-sculpt

P90X, Team Beachbody on Nightline

Last week ABC's Nightline featured a story about P90X and Team Beachbody. It was filmed in L.A. last summer during the annual convention for Team Beachbody Coaches. They interviewed Tony Horton and Beachbody's CEO, Carl Daikeler.

On first viewing, I was thrilled at the exposure for the company and for P90X. When Beachbody does well, I do well, since they give me customers through their lead program.

But on second (and third) viewing, it struck me how the report's tone is really quite condescending and cynical. The reporter clearly can't believe that people can get so excited about an exercise program, and is bewildered by a legion of P90X fans.


Now, I'll be the first to admit that Team Beachbody Coaches can be a bit fanatical, to put it politely. Get more than three coaches together in one place and you've got full-on fitness frenzy. That convention where the report was filmed? There were about 1,000 coaches there.

We already know that Team Beachbody Coaches (and everyone else who exercises regularly) are riding high on a natural dose of the same chemicals found in Prozac. Most of these people can't believe they were able to change their bodies, their health, and in many cases their minds with a simple workout program. Couple that with the profound experience of paying it forward by helping someone else change their lives for the better, and you've got a group full of people who seem to be drinking the Kool-aid. It's no wonder the guy thinks Team Beachbody is a cult.


I guess I wish the report could have highlighted the fact that there is a problem in this country, and that Beachbody's trying its best to solve it. Yes, enlisting the people who have succeeded using the programs is a brilliant marketing tactic, but it's also allowing humans to interact and encourage each other to make good choices about the way they live.

I like to refer to myself as the Avon Lady of Home Fitness, but only to provide a point of reference for how this business works. In my opinion, these programs and the clean-living lifestyle that go with them are far more important than lipstick and mascara. (The phrase "Putting Lipstick On a Pig" just jumped into my mind, but that would be a decidedly tacky and insensitive phrase to explore, so I will leave it alone.)

All in all, the only bad press is no press, so I'm happy that Nightline gave P90X some attention. Maybe next time the report will be about how a million Team Beachbody Coaches are turning the tide against obesity.

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Ya'll, I fixed Chickpea Filets again last night and they are delicious. If the second go-round gets as high marks as the first, you know it's a keeper.

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Workout of the Day

P90X One on One Vol. 3: Yoga MC:2

Monday Nutrtion Tip of the Week, a day late: The Cranberries are Back!

Last week I received an urgent email from a friend and fellow cranberry enthusiast informing me that cranberries are back in grocery stores. This is very, very good news.

You're probably thinking, "Why is that good news? Thanksgiving is more than a month away."

It's good news because at our house, cranberries have been unleashed from the chains of Thanksgiving. No longer does it only grace the table next to a large bird. Nope. I will buy and prepare a bag (ore more) of cranberries every week from now until they are out of the stores sometime after Christmas.

They are so good! And good for you, too. I wrote about it last year, and I'm reposting the basic recipe that I use to fix them.

Spiced Apple Cranberries
1 bag of cranberries (washed, pick out the smushed ones)
3/4 cup apple juice
2/3 cup agave nectar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 apple, grated
1/2 cup raisins
1 tsp. vanilla

Put the apple juice, agave nectar, cinnamon, ground cloves, and vanilla in a pot and bring to boiling.
Add cranberries, grated apple and raisins. Reduce heat to simmering.
Cook for about 5-7 minutes, or until about 2/3 of the cranberries have popped.
Put the sauce in a bowl and cool for several hours. It will gel, but might still be a little more runny than you're used to.

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For my first cranberry batch of the season, I decided to dress things up a bit. My parents were staying at our house (they generously offered to watch our kids while we went to see Shaun T), so I needed a fancier dessert than just plain old cranberries. I have a recipe for blueberry pear crisp that is awesome in the summer, and I thought the topping would be great on cooked cranberries, too.

It was! Full disclosure: I served the cranberry crisp warm with a bit of vanilla ice cream on top. BUT I only bought a pint of ice cream to split between 6 people, so it was gone quickly and nobody had gobs and gobs of it. Anyway...delicious! Kind of like pie, but without the crust.

Here's the recipe. Go on down and buy yourself some cranberries pronto!

Spiced Apple Cranberry Crisp

First, cook cranberries as stated in the recipe above. When the cranberries are just about finished, stir in about a tablespoon of corn starch (this will thicken up the juice).

Put the cranberries in a small casserole dish.

In a small bowl, mix the following:

- 1 TB brown sugar
- 1/4 cup wheat flour
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional -- I didn't use them)
- 4 TB ground flaxseed
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 TB melted butter
- 1 TB canola oil

Mix until ingredients are well combined, then sprinkle on top of the cranberries. Cook for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

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Workout of the Day

P90X One on One, Vol. 3: Plyocide (a.k.a., "death by jumping")

The Shaun T Experience

Last Saturday about 500 people got up real early and drove to Arlington to work out with Insanity's Shaun T. It was a blast!

This was the largest Beachbody event of the year outside the annual coach convention.

Arlington Convention Center, Pre-workout

Beachbody sent members of their Success Story team to interview people who have completed Insanity: The Asylum. Zach gave a lengthy interview about his experience with the program, and I chatted briefly with someone else. So look for us in a future infomercial or online segment on TeamBeachbody.com!

Group workouts this large are a lot of fun. There is so much energy in the room and everyone is excited to be there and work out with the person that's been screaming at them from the television screen all this time. Saturday had a concert atmosphere, with people fighting to get to the front of the stage where Shaun T would be.

But Zach and I have done Asylum, so we knew the last place you want to be is within arm's reach of someone while they're doing Asylum moves. So we parked ourselves at the back where there was plenty of room. And also...I knew that people in the back always get a visit from the trainer. We were in the middle of our basketball jump shot move when Shaun T came by to give me a pat on the back and tell me good job.

This was a tough, tough workout. Asylum is all about sports conditioning, so we were acting like quarterbacks, diving to ground like goalies, and jumping up from plank position to a surfing stance. The scissor kick/Simon Says game just about killed everybody in the room (if he didn't say "jump" and somebody jumped, you started over. And over. And over. It was supposed to be 4 sets of 10 and 40 total jumps, but it was probably more like 60 or 65).

Then we did a pushup pyramid where you had to do 16 military pushups, 16 standard width, 16 wide, then 16 "spider" pushups (stay in plank, alternate bringing each leg up outside your shoulder). Then repeat in reverse, with another round of spiders thrown in at the end, just for fun. I did most of those on my knees.

One older (but fit) lady in front of us was spending quite a lot of time on the ground in child's pose (kind of like the fetal position, for those of you who don't do yoga). Zach walked up and asked if she was alright and she replied, "Hell no I'm not alright!" Then she laughed and got back to it.

Shaun T saved the core moves for the end. I was physically incapable of doing it! Not because I was tired (even though I was), but because core is still a weakness of mine and I cannot hold my legs out in front of me for 30 seconds at a time, like so:

Get after it, people!

After the workout, there was a 45-minute Q&A with Shaun T.

He answered questions about workouts and nutrition, and about how to keep your workouts interesting so that you can keep at it day after day. 

One lady asked how to tackle changing her diet, and he gave some sage advice: Take a piece of paper and make two columns. On one side, write down your favorite foods that you couldn't live without. On the other side, write down the "OMG, I would have to eat that" foods. When you plan your five meals per day, make sure it's mostly from the "OMG" list, but one or two things can be from your favorite list. But you need to cut the portions of your favorite foods in half. 

He said that when he walks down the street in NYC and has to have an ice cream cone, he gets one. But as soon as they hand it to him, he takes a napkin, grabs about half of the giant scoop they gave him, and throws it in the trash. His point? It's not the 1 slice of pizza that's going to do you in, diet-wise. It's the 3 or 4 slices, multiple times a week. Don't deny yourself anything, but eat in moderation.

My other favorite part of his discussion was when he described his complete disbelief at being mistaken for Tony Horton. "He's a 50-year-old WHITE GUY!" he said incredulously. "I give the guy mad props, and I hope that I can do what he does 17 years from now, but c'mon."

And he's right -- even though they're both trainers, and both super-fit, they could not be more different. And that's a good thing! I like both of them, but they appeal to a very different set of people. I'm glad Beachbody has so many different trainers to choose from, because (as Tony says) "variety is the spice of fitness."

We wrapped up the day with a meeting about what Beachbody has planned for the last few months of the year. I'll write more about it later, but it involves Challenges...and discounts on the workout programs. Cool!

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Workout of the Day

P90X One on One, Vol. 3: V-Sculpt