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It's clear that I can't keep up with a recipe blog. Instead, click on over to Kek's Good Food Blog. You won't be disappointed!

Sara's On-The-Fly Pineapple Protein Smoothie

1 cup light vanilla soy milk
1/2 c. unsweetened pineapple tidbits
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I used EAS 100% whey)
ice

Put all ingredients in blender, blend, pour, enjoy. Lick lips and think, Mmm... I'll make this again.

South Beach Coconut Chicken

Serves 2

Chicken braised in coconut milk (Opor Ayam) is a true classic of Indonesian fare. We did change the chicken to white meat instead of the traditional drumstick or wing. New traditions can sometimes be better than old ones!

Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 pound chicken breast tenders
1/2 tablespoon chicken broth
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3/8 teaspoon dried cilantro
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
1/16 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 pinch of ground turmeric
1/2 cup light coconut milk (no sugar added)
1 tablespoon macadamia nuts, finely ground
1/2 teaspoon sugar substitute
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 tablespoon tamarind paste (available in Indian and specialty food markets)
1 teaspoon water Scallion, chopped (for garnish)

Instructions
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes per side, or until browned and no longer pink in the center. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.

Heat the broth in the same skillet. Add the onion, garlic, cilantro, ginger, lemon peel, cumin, and turmeric; cook for 5 minutes (or until the onion is tender but not browned). Stir in the coconut milk, nuts, sugar substitute, and red pepper. Return the chicken to the skillet, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes (or until the chicken is cooked through).

Remove the chicken to a plate and keep warm. Do not discard the sauce in the pan. In a small bowl, combine the tamarind paste and water. Stir into the sauce in the skillet and gently boil until thickened and the mixture measures about 1/2 cup.

Evenly divide the chicken among 2 serving plates. Top with sauce and garnish with the scallion.

Nutritional Information:
360 calories
25 g total fat (14 g sat)
66 mg cholesterol
10 g carbohydrate
28 g protein
3 g fiber
60 mg sodium

South Beach Curried Chicken Salad

I'm making this immediately! Sounds delicious and easy.... score!

Makes 4 1-cup servings

Serve this sensational salad as is or try it inside half of a large scooped-out tomato or on top of fresh salad greens.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Ingredients
11/2 cups plain fat-free or low-fat yogurt
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
11/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 celery stalks, diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions
Whisk together yogurt, curry powder, and ginger in a large mixing bowl. Stir in chicken, celery, onion, and cilantro; season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving for more concentrated flavor.

Nutritional Information:
240 calories
2.5 total fat (0.5 g sat)
11 g carbohydrate
44 g protein
1 g fiber
270 mg sodium

Sara L's Choco Mud Cheesecakes

These little high-protein pots of deliciousness veer right into the realm of decadent indulgence (mmmmm…..). And yet, they fit right into a healthy lifestyle as a snack or a dessert AND they don’t require any real kitchen skills. What’s not to like?

Makes 4

Ingredients:
100g full fat ricotta (if you wanted to reduce the fat content further then use low-fat ricotta, but I don’t like the taste or texture of it… ew!)
100g low-fat quarg/kwark – the one I use has 9g protein, 2g fat per 100g)
100g yogurt – I use ‘Easiyo Organic’
75g xylitol
30g cocoa
5g gelatine (or use 1 sachet – that’s usually 4g). You could use Agar if you are making a vegetarian version.

Mix all the ingredients except the gelatin in a bowl (why do recipes always have to state ‘in a bowl’.. what else would you use?). Dissolve the gelatine in half a cup of water and add to the mix. Depending on the lumpiness of your quarg you might want to give it a blasting in the blender, but I find that the hot water melts everything down nicely.

Divide the mix evenly into small containers or cups and let it set in the fridge overnight.

Nutrition Information

Per Serve
Energy (Kj) 640.15
Energy (Calories) 152.87
Total fat 6.48g
Total carbs 26.10g
- of which sugar alcohols 19g
Protein 8.72g
P: 21%
C: 17%
F: 35%
Sugar Alcohols 28%

% is for calories contributed per macronutrient. Xylitol has to be calculated separately because it only delivers 2.4 cals per gram, instead of the usual 4 cals per gram that a carb would yield.

Coconut Shrimp Curry

(From the South Beach Diet newsletter.)

Serves 2

When making a curry, toast or warm the curry paste in liquid first, before adding other ingredients, to bring out the fragrant, complicated flavors. Opt for red curry paste as opposed to green, which is much spicier, and make sure you use unsweetened coconut milk, not the thick sweetened kind. We like to serve this over brown rice — the curry cooks so quickly, it will be done before the rice is finished cooking.

Tip: Since there's no oil in the pot, you must keep stirring the peppers and onions as they cook.

Ingredients
1 cup unsweetened light coconut milk, divided
1 teaspoon red Thai curry paste
1/2 large red pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons granular sugar substitute
1 teaspoon fish sauce
10-12 ounces extra-large shrimp
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Sliced fresh basil leaves and fresh lime wedges for garnish

Instructions
1. In medium saucepan over medium heat, bring 1/4 cup of the coconut milk and the curry paste to simmer. Add peppers and onions; cook 4 minutes, stirring often. Stir in remaining 3/4 cup coconut milk, sugar substitute, and fish sauce. Bring to a simmer; let cook 1 minute.
2. Add shrimp; cook 3 minutes, until shrimp is cooked through, stirring once to flip shrimp. Remove from heat; stir in lime juice. Serve over rice, garnished with basil and additional lime.

Nutritional Information:
399 calories
19 total g fat (13 g saturated fat)
235 mg cholesterol
19 g carbohydrate
37 g protein
2 g fiber
520 mg sodium

Creamy Coconut Shrimp with Crisp Veggies

(This is from www.hungrygirl.com. If you haven't signed up for their daily newsletter, do it now!)

Ingredients:
1 cup Blue Diamond Almond Breeze, Unsweetened Vanilla (or light vanilla soymilk*)
2 tsp. low sodium soy sauce
1 oz. Torani Sugar Free Coconut Syrup
2 tsp. cornstarch
8 oz. uncooked shrimp; shell-off and de-veined
5 cups green beans (or veggies of your choice)
Optional: 1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Directions:
Begin by stirring to combine Almond Breeze (or soymilk), Torani Syrup, cornstarch, soy sauce, and (if desired) red pepper flakes in a medium-sized saucepan. Set stove to low heat and cook until mixture reaches a frothy boil. Stir and continue to heat for 2 - 3 minutes. Turn off stove, but leave sauce in the pan to thicken. Wash and cut green beans and place in a microwave-safe dish with 1/3 cup of water. Cover veggies with a lid or plastic wrap, and heat in microwave for 5 - 10 minutes (depending on how crisp you like ‘em). Drain liquid and set aside. Next, add shrimp to the sauce in the saucepan and cook at medium heat. Cook until shrimp are pink on the outside and opaque throughout (about 3 - 5 minutes; time will vary based on shrimp size). Top steamed green beans with shrimp and sauce. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Serves 2!

(1/2 recipe: 235 calories, 3g fat, 550mg sodium, 23g carbs, 10g fiber, 4g sugars, 30g protein = 4 Points)

Strawberry Blancmange

(Another South Beach Diet recipe. Happy Valentine's Day!)

Serves 2

PREP TIME: 10 minutes
COOK TIME: 5 minutes
CHILL TIME: 2 hours or overnight

Similar to a Bavarian cream or Italian panna cotta, blancmange is an almond-flavored milk pudding, often thickened with gelatin. The name comes from the French blanc (white) and manger (to eat).

Ingredients

3/4 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
2 tablespoons cold water
1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup light or fat-free whipped topping
1 cup diced strawberries
2 small perfect strawberries for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Lightly coat 2 (1/2-cup) ramekins or heart-shaped molds with cooking spray. Sprinkle gelatin over water in a cup and let stand for 2 minutes. Meanwhile, heat almond milk in a small saucepan over low heat, until it comes to a bare simmer. Add gelatin mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until dissolved, about 1 minute. Stir in almond and vanilla extracts. Transfer to a small bowl set over a bowl of ice water and stir until the mixture is thickened slightly. Add the whipped topping and diced strawberries; stir to combine. Divide mixture between ramekins and chill for 2 hours or overnight. When ready to serve, run a knife around the edge of the blancmange and, using your finger to help coax it from the ramekin, gently turn each out onto a plate. Top each blancmange with a whole strawberry, if desired, and serve.

Nutritional Information

Per serving:
60 calories
1 g fat
0 g saturated fat
1 g protein
10 g carbohydrate
2 g fiber
35 mg sodium

(Hint: Pair with a protein shake or another protein portion for a Body For LIFE-friendly meal or snack!)

Baked Chick Peas

(Kek sent this one to me!)

8 oz. dry chick peas
4 tomatoes
2 onions
1 green pepper
2 cloves garlic
1/2 TSP marjoram
pinch of sage
1 TBSP chopped parsley
pepper
Light spray oil

Soak chick peas overnight or in boiling water for one hour. Boil them gently until just tender, or cook under pressure for about 20 minutes. Skin and quarter the tomatoes, peel and chop the onions and pepper and crush the garlic. Spray oil into pan and fry all the vegetables in it. Add the herbs and the cooked, drained chick peas. Season and cook in an oven proof dish, covered, at 325F for an hour.