Stop Being Fat! Friday.

Yeah, yeah I know it is Saturday. But I wrote this yesterday. Our internet has been acting all weird since Thursday night so this is the first chance I've gotten to post...

Lately I have been a little obsessed with Coconut Oil. I have heard forever how amazing it is, not to mention how good it is for you. I bought some about 6 months ago to finally try it out. And I did. I cooked with it a couple times and I wasn't impressed. I can't remember what exactly I made, some sort of chicken and the coconut hint it added just wasn't doing it for me. So the bottle went back to the cupboard. About a month and a half ago I decided to give it another go. And now we are going through about a bottle every week or two. I am in love with this stuff. I have been using it in all sorts of ways.

Coconut Lemon Bread: I took a recipe I had for pound cake and subbed out the butter for coconut oil. I also subbed out the sugar for Palm (coconut) sugar. I the juice of 2 lemons and their zest.

Coconut Oil Fudge: I saw this recipe on Pinterest and added some Sea Salt. It's super easy. Just blend equal parts of cocoa, coconut oil, and palm sugar and about 2 tsp of sea salt. Press into a pan. Sprinkle more Sea Salt on top and allow to set up in the fridge. 

Chocolate Chip Cookies: I used this recipe I found on Pinterest and made a few changes. I again subbed out the sugar for Palm Sugar. and replaced half of the flour with Almond Meal. They were delicious.

Coconut Oil Popcorn: My new favorite snack. Just melt a tbsp of coconut oil and drizzle over a big bowl of  popped popcorn and mix around. I especially like this on kettle corn. 

Lotion: I was unsure about this one. But I now love it. I haven't used it on my face, (scared of putting any type of 'oil' on my face for fear of those evil red bumps) but I love using it on my arms, shoulders, legs and feet. I love the smell and it makes my skin super soft. And a little goes a long way.

Smoothies: I add a spoonful to the blender every time I make a spinach smoothie. 

I mentioned Palm Sugar above and I'm sure some of you are wondering what it is. It's a natural sugar from coconuts. It comes in rock form or in a paste. I have only been able to find the rock form locally (if you know of a place that sells the paste PLEASE let me know!) I buy the rock form at our local Asian Market. To use the rock form you can either grate it or melt it down a little and stir it into a paste. I melted mine down, and for the fudge and the bread it worked great. For the cookies however, it make the batter a little runny and I had to add some extra flour and almond meal to get the right consistency. The second time I made the cookies I grated it and it worked fine. (Just takes a little longer). 

In other news I have been in workout super mode this week. Getting in 1 to 2 hours of exercise EVERY day. Even with all the working out and such I am still feeling a little sluggish and haven't noticed a difference on the scale. (I really need to take my measurements again. Maybe that will make me feel better about things.)

That being said, today I started a juice cleanse. I found a Jack Lalanne Juicer on Ksl for $25! Score! I stock piled our kitchen with a ton of fruits and vegetables and am hoping that this will give me the kick start I need. (Go watch Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead via Netflix and you too will want to start a juice cleanse!) We leave on vacation Friday (and we're going to Blue Lemon for Book Club Thursday night) so the plan is to have only juice until Thursday night. Wish me luck. 

My new juicer and what I'll be having for the next 6 days.

Are as in love with Coconut Oil as I am? What's your favorite way to use it? Or are you yet to be converted?


Do you juice? If so give me some recipes!