There are two types of dips I have been enjoying lately:

1. Body weight dips in the gym. And..
2. Roasted red pepper hummus.

Guess which one I’ve been enjoying more? If you guessed the tricep torture chamber, you are wrong. But I’ll give you this recipe for Roasted Red Pepper Hummus anyway…

• 1 can (15 ounces) Garbanzo Beans (drained/rinsed)
• 1 Roasted Red Bell Pepper (peeled and seeded…sure, you can buy them in the jar, but roasting them in the oven or on the grill is not hard)
• 1- 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon Tahini
• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
• Juice of 1 Lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon Honey
• 1/2 – 2 teaspoons Hot Sauce (like Tabasco)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground Cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt

Toss all ingredients into your high powered blender (I used a Vitamix) or food processor and pulse until nice and smooth. Garnish with red pepper flakes. Serve with baked pita chips, carrots, cucumbers, eggs (yes, I said eggs), or use as a sandwich spread.

Now I really must go hit the gym and then tri some more dip!

I won’t be writing on Thanksgiving because I’ll be too busy counting my carbs, I mean, blessings. But I wanted to wish you a happy Thanksgiving and give you a snapshot of what’s on my grocery gratitude list from A to Z:

• Almonds and Almond milk
• Barbells and Bun warmers (what? It’s cold in Nebraska!)
• Coffee and Clients
• Dips and Deadlifts
• Eggs, Eggbeaters, and Epsom salt baths
• Family and Friends
• Gum and Gym memberships
• Health and Hummus
• iPods
• Journals and Jewelry
• Kardio. Kidding.
• Lip gloss and Lululemon
• Mascara, Massages, and Mock potatoes
• Nike dri-fit hats
• Oatmeal and Old Navy Pajama Bottoms
• Protein powder, Peanut butter, and Pumpkin (Predictable?)
• Quick rolls
• Rest days and Resistance Bands
• Soldiers
• Twitter
• United States of America and Under Armour hoodies
• Vitamix
• Wicked Mint Brownies
• Xanthan gum
• You, and you, and you, and especially YOU!
• Zappos.com

Now I really must go pray for next year’s blessings…everything from six-pack Abs to Zero-calorie chocolate cake! Happy Thanksgiving!

One year ago one of my favorite workout accessories of all time welcomed into the world a baby, fitbook junior!

fitbook junior is just like my fitness and nutrition journal, fitbook, only it’s designed for the kiddos in mind, that and it comes with a coaches guide and stickers. Lucky kids! The cool kids who already have these activity and food based journals call fitbook junior “AWESOME” and their parents give it an over all grade “A”.

And get this, according to a research conducted by fitlosophy inc, the makers of the fitbook product suite, 87% of parents reported seeing a “noticeable change” in their child’s awareness of eating healthier, choosing more nutritious food, and being more active on a daily basis when using fitbook junior.

Let’s recap with some simple math. Encouraging…

Healthy Play + Healthy Food = Fit Kids!

Bravo, fitbook junior!

You know who else thinks fitbook junior deserves top honors? The Parent Tested Parent Approved (PTPA) Media who announced today that fitbook junior received its coveted Parent Tested Parent Approved Seal of Approval for excellence in family products.

I think it’s safe to say the AWARD WINNING fitbook junior is going to have one heck of a happy first birthday!

I say this is grounds for celebration! Let’s make…

No Bake Protein Cake!

• 3 cups dry walnuts or almonds
• 1 cup pitted dates (I like Medjool dates)
• 2/3 cup chocolate protein powder
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1-2 T honey  (optional)
• Topping of your choice like strawberries, raspberries, or (my favorite) dark chocolate chips

Combine the nuts, dates, protein powder, salt, vanilla extract, and sweetener (if desired) into a food processor or high powered blender and mix well. Press the mixture into a cake pan or mini cupcake liners like I did, then add the topping of your choice. Serve chilled or even right out of the freezer!

Now I really must go clean up the kitchen, put on my tennis shoes, and get ready for my play-date!

Everybody’s going bananas lately.

Gina, Marisa, Sahar, and Brittany have all been monkeying around with frozen banana sensations over the last few weeks.

Maybe it’s because they know that in addition to a nice dose of potassium bananas pack 3-4 grams of fiber, are moderately low on the glycemic index, and are only about 100 calories. Or maybe it’s because they just know what tastes refreshing and what’s easy to make?

But I wonder if they know that the inside of the banana peel contains a ton of nutrients? To reap some additional benefits from your bananas just scrape down the inside of the peel and blend it into your favorite homemade ice creams and smoothies.

Anywho, now it’s my turn to give frozen banana ice cream the ole Fitness & Spice twist.

Here’s how you make…

Unchunky Monkey Soft Serve Ice Cream

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 T or more of peanut butter or PB2 (powdered peanut butter)
• 2 T chocolate protein powder (like Protein Freeze)

Blend the banana in the Vitamix (or blender) to your desired consistency. Toss into a bowl and fold in the peanut butter and protein powder.

You’re welcome.

Now I really must grab a quick bowl of Joanna Banana soft serve before I split.

We all make mistakes, I happen to be exceptionally good at them.

For instance, last week I decided to try my hand at making coconut butter. I read somewhere that all you need to do is toss shredded coconut into a food processor for several minutes and ta-da, instant coconut butter!

Instead of just following those simple instructions I decided to use my Vitamix blender rather than hauling out my food processor. That was the mistake! My 1 cup of shredded coconut just turned into even finer shreds of coconut instead of butter.

So, I tossed my Vitamix container into the sink to clean it out with some warm water and guess what? My coconut butter mistake turned into snow white coconut milk before my eyes. I put the container back on the base and blended it for about 30 seconds, tasted it, added a little bit of stevia and ta-da, instant coconut milk!

Let’s recap…

Instant Coconut Milk

• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1.5 liters of water
• Stevia to taste

Blend. Enjoy in cereals, shakes, smoothies, baked goods, you name it!

While I did not filter my coconut milk you might want to as it thickened up after refrigerating for a day or two. You can use a nut milk bag if you want to be fancy or just do what I did and toss it back in the blender for a quick refresher.

Now I really must go back into the kitchen…I feel another accident just waiting to happen!

If I was a mom I would not be the kind of mom that would get upset if given a kitchen appliance for Mother’s Day. In fact, I am a bit obsessed with kitchen gadgets. I love to buy them up, give them as gifts, and receive them as gifts (hint, hint).

But since I’m not a mom I decided to be my own Sugar Daddy and treat myself to my ultimate Mother’s Day gift anyway: A Vitamix.

I’ve been reading about these blenders for years and finally decided to take the plunge. If you’re not familiar with the Vitamix, let’s just say they are the Cadillac of blenders. And, yes, that includes both the Cadillac quality and the price tag. But just think of all of the money I’ll save making my own peanut butter, frappaccinos, lemonade, soup, salad dressing, ice cream, sorbet, breads, protein shakes, salsas, and did I mention PEANUT BUTTER?!

Not only that, I’m able to control what goes into everything I make so I feel healthier just by having this sucker in the house. All of that and everything seems easier to make in a Vitamix because it is a power house.

I can justify anything, can’t I?

My one regret about the Vitamix? That I didn’t buy it sooner.

Do you have a favorite kitchen gadget? Tell us about it!

Now I really must go figure out what I’m going to buy myself for Father’s Day!