Friday, June 21, 2013

Hot Days, Cool Nights

Happy first official day of summer! After the winter we had and not much of a spring (hello snow on May 5th), isn't it a nice and secure feeling to know that summer is officially here? While I am not someone who enjoys extreme summer heat normally, I've been trying to embrace and prepare my body through plenty of exercise, yard work, and my latest endeavor- hot yoga. So far, I've tried what my gym calls a "slow burn" Vinyasa class. Last night, I tried a true Bikram yoga class taught by my friend's husband. Wow, are they a yoga powered couple! Very cool. For those of you who are not as familiar with different yoga practices, Vinyasa or Vinyasa Flow focuses on movement where poses are to flow in a steady, constant motion. Bikram  or Hot Yoga, cranks up the heat and humidity in the room. Poses are held and typically a 50/50 split between balancing poses and floor postures. Both classes I've taken cranked up the heat, even more so in the Bikram class I took last night. Both have been amazing, detoxifying, and fun ways to deepen my yoga practice. It has really been fun to explore yoga a bit more. Whether it's been hot or not, the main thing I've learned is to push the negative or "I can't" thoughts out. You have to trust yourself! I've also learned that you can pretty much breath through just about anything no matter how unpleasant or contorted I am feeling at the moment. Breath! Breath! Breath!

So with all of this discussion on the heat, let's talk about the protein powered meal that we've been enjoying to cool off at night shall we?


Whether it has been to replenish after yoga or softball or to simply fuel ourselves for the next day, I am so glad we've had a container of this chicken salad in the fridge this week. It has been perfect for our on-the-go summer schedule. Here I've taken leftover chicken and cranked the protein and flavor levels by using a combination of nonfat Greek yogurt and herbs. These Cool and Creamy Chicken Bacon Wraps are easy and the perfect meal to keep in the fridge when you need to keep things cool on a hot summer day.

Cool and Creamy Chicken Bacon Wraps

3 cups leftover chicken breast, shredded
6 slices cooked center cut bacon, crumbled
1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons or one package of your favorite ranch dressing mixture (I LOVE Penzy's)
1 tomato, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
1 tablespoon canola mayonnaise
4 gluten free wraps (you can use regular whole wheat wraps if you are not GF)
Lettuce, avocado, and more tomato for topping if you please

In a large resealable bowl, mix together the chicken, bacon, Greek yogurt, ranch dressing mix, tomato, chives, and mayonnaise until combine. Cover and store in the fridge until ready to serve or serve immediately.

In other news, I will not have a menu post for a while. I will be taking a little break before we restart our adventure with the fertility clinic. As always, you can always use other previous menus which can be located under the weekly menu tab. I do plan on maybe throwing together a mini menu or maybe putting together a little theme such as 4 Dips and a Dessert like last year. We'll see after we hear our news on what we will accomplish with the new doctor:) Until then, stay hydrated and cool!


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