Status Update & Some Rockin' Protein Brownies

Well, I can not believe how focusless and downtrodden I've been.  I mentioned my missing mojo to my doctor during a routine exam and she said it sounds like a Vitamin D deficiency.  She tested me for thyroid and Vitamin D.  One word of caution - the Vitamin D test can be VERY expensive and I was unaware of this until I got the shocking bill.  A couple hundred bucks to find out I'm fine.  All healthy which is great news, don't get me wrong.  But still my mojo being gone is a mystery.  We did take a short weekender to a sunny destination this month and I did find I felt better there.  We've had a miserably gray, wet, cold and windy winter here and maybe I just need to give myself credit that not being very excited to get soaked, freezing and wind chapped every time I go for a run is normal and human and quit beating myself up.  I ended up forfeiting my bid for my half marathon which happened this past weekend.  I just didn't feel up to it.  But all day I thought about it and woke up disappointed that I didn't muster up the wherewithal to do the race.  That just isn't me.

In an effort to be kind to myself and thus coax my mojo back I got up and went to the gym yesterday.  I took spinning class and found I was a beast in that class just like I used to be.  I was a little more tired from it, but overall my fitness level has hung in there pretty good.  Today I went again.  I had planned to do some weights and step class, but found myself in spinning again due to a glitch in my schedule this morning.  Being flexible, still making it to the gym and putting in some quality "me" time working out has lifted my mood all day.  It didn't hurt that it was actually not pouring today.  My plan is to just keep being supportive of myself and try to get back into my swing of things. 

Tonight, I made my Rockin' Protein Brownies.  Below is the brownie recipe:

Rockin' Protein Brownies

These are yummy clean protein bars that taste like chocolate cake/brownies.  Great for a low-fat low-cal dessert or as a snack.

1 cup Oat Flour (I buy bulk at the healthfood store)
4 Egg Whites (the real egg white, not the carton kind)
2 scoops Vanilla Whey Protein Powder (I use Muscle Milk 100% Whey from Costco - it tastes really good in smoothies and baking, but FYI not so great just by itself in water)
1/2 cup Xylitol (I buy bulk at healthfood store)
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp Salt
7 oz. Gerber Banana Mixed Berries NatureSelect baby food (any berry baby food will do)
3 Tbsp All Natural Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
4 oz. Water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
Mix flour, protein powder, xylitol, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder together.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix really well.  Using an electric mixer or a whisk is best as the protein powder can be a little clumpy.  Spray a 9x9 pan with nonstick spray or I used a cupcake pan this time as I found the mix doesn't set up very fast.  It remains really squishy until the next morning.  And then it remains a very soft cake consistency.  It was hard to cut and not have crumbs/breakage everywhere, so I'm trying the cupcake method this time for portability.
** Update: Cupcake pan method works great...WITHOUT the cupcake paper.  The cake sticks to the paper.  If it was just in the pan, it would've been perfect. **
Bake for 20-30 minutes.


The recipe makes 12 cupcakes at approx. 70 calories per, 1 g fat, 8 g carb, 7 g protein.  It's filling and decadent without all the nasty ingredients or guilt!  Even hubby liked them, which is saying a lot where clean food is concerned!